Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 822 What if I had died that day?

The Han army came and went in a hurry.

Dai Gao also led more than 10,000 troops from Chizhou back to camp one after another.

Yu Yunwen ignored Zhang Jun, who was already distraught and utterly dejected, and instead walked slowly out of the government office with Lu You, arriving at the city wall of Xia Cai.

Liu Huai and Yu Yunwen only agreed on a general outline; the specific spheres of influence still needed to be discussed in detail.

But that’s all in the past.

With the departure of the Han army, this all-out war, hastily triggered by the Battle of Kansai last year, has finally come to a temporary end.

It's really only temporary.

Because no one knows whether the war will resume immediately after autumn.

Yu Yunwen looked at the chaotic military camp outside the city with his hands clasped in his sleeves, and shook his head slightly: "Lord Lu, from now on, Hebei and Shandong can only rely on you."

Lu You had lost a lot of weight. Ever since his wish to kill Heshi Lie Liangbi was not fulfilled, he had remained silent.

Upon hearing this, he could only shake his head and smile bitterly: "Lord Yu overestimates my abilities. Both Shandong and Hebei were conquered by Liu Dalang. I only have the title of Military Commissioner of Hebei, how can I compete with him?"

Yu Yunwen shook his head directly: "It's not about you fighting each other, but about winning people's hearts through our actions, winning over Hebei, and ultimately bringing Liu Dalang back."

Lu You turned his head, his expression somewhat incredulous, and said, "Prime Minister Yu, even now, you still intend to make Liu Dalang submit to the Song Dynasty?"

Yu Yunwen shrugged and replied, "As the saying goes, 'Man proposes, God disposes,' we should try all sorts of paths."

To deal with someone as sharp and ruthless as Liu Dalang, one must either kill him outright or use a policy of appeasement, coupled with some coercion of the situation, to force him to refrain from launching a direct attack for the time being.

"If they could just while away the time for a decade or so, even if Liu Dalang remained ambitious, how could those who had already enjoyed wealth and luxury for so many years possibly risk their lives again?"

Lu You immediately thought of the Liao and Jin dynasties, and even the Song dynasty itself.

These countries conquered the north and south in the early years of their founding, and were invincible. However, after only a dozen years, the founding soldiers became corrupt and only lived on their own small plots of land, with no desire to expand their territory.

The world has fallen into such a state; it is undoubtedly the result of the collective decline of all forces.

How could the Han army, a military and political organization, be an exception?
Thinking of this, Lu You slowly asked, "Minister Yu, is today's situation, which allowed the Flying Tiger Cavalry to advance so far, also a trap set by you? Are you trying to see if Liu Dalang, with an overwhelming advantage, will let the Jin Kingdom go and immediately launch an attack on the Song Dynasty?"

Yu Yunwen shook his head and smiled bitterly: "I am the Prime Minister of the Great Song Dynasty, holding the heavy troops of Lianghuai. How can I take such a risk?"

Yu Yunwen's chubby face was now covered in frost: "I knew about the little tricks of Zhang Xiangong and Shao Hongyuan's group a long time ago, but I didn't stop them because I really wanted to see what they could do."

If I were to actually kill Liu Dalang in the heat of battle, or capture him and send him to Lin'an, I would have no complaints.

Lu You's cheeks twitched a few times, and he angrily demanded, "Then what about the great cause of the Northern Expedition?"

Yu Yunwen remained silent for a moment before speaking in the pale sunlight: "What Liu Dalang said just now resonated with me: a peaceful and prosperous era without the Northern Expeditionary Army cannot be considered a truly peaceful and prosperous era."

I must say, without the Song Dynasty as the main force in a Northern Expedition, it ultimately cannot be considered a Northern Expedition.

Lu You was so angry he laughed, but he was too lazy to argue in private. He just showed a sarcastic look and said, "It's a pity we didn't win, even when Liu Dalang's troops were at their weakest."

Yu Yunwen sighed and said, "This is the root of all the troubles in the Song Dynasty. No matter how many plans I devise or how much I think, if I can't win on the battlefield, it's all for nothing."

If He Shi Lie Liangbi heard this, he would surely feel a sense of kinship.

Violence is the fundamental logic of how this world works, and those who possess violence and are adept at using it are the natural supreme leaders.

There were no Guanzhong soldiers who only recognized the Qin King's teachings and not the Emperor's decree. So why did Li Shimin expect his father to watch him kill two of his brothers?

Without the imperial guards presenting the yellow robe at Chenqiao, how could Zhao Kuangyin have made the orphaned mother and son of the Chai family relinquish the throne?
In the world today, who has a stronger army than Liu Huai? Who is more skilled in using violence than him?

Upon hearing this, Lu You steadied himself against the parapet and gazed at the smoke and dust outside the city, saying, "In the end, we still have to train our troops. Even if... even if we ultimately break with Liu Dalang, we still have to settle things with force."

Yu Yunwen nodded in agreement, then looked at Lu You and said solemnly, "Lord Lu, your journey to Hebei is arduous and far-reaching. I will not make any assignments; you are free to do as you please. If one day things truly become unmanageable, you should return to the Song Dynasty as soon as possible."

Although our army did not gain any advantage in Huaibei in this battle, it has completely occupied Nanyang, and the situation has been opened up.

According to Zhuge Liang, after a two-year rest, taking advantage of the renewed battles in Hebei, a large army should be dispatched from Wancheng and Luoyang, and Guanzhong, then the world can be pacified!

Listening to Yu Yunwen's vision, Lu You naturally knew that the other party wanted to take advantage of the opportunity when the Han army launched a northern expedition to attack the Eastern Jin, so that both sides would be unable to spare any resources, and strangle the Western Jin in one fell swoop.

Although the plan was good, Lu You inexplicably recalled Shi Ju's previous words.

Yu Yunwen was half a Zhuge Liang, but he failed because he relied on trickery.

Lu You could be considered half a military commander, but he failed because he didn't take the lead.

Lu You doesn't know whether he can make the decision now, or what the effect will be if he does.

However, Yu Yunwen seems determined to take the easy way out.

However, looking at Yu Yunwen's gray hair, Lu You ultimately did not offer any words of advice.

Yu Yunwen is fifty-five years old this year, which is considered old.

The saying "ten years of recuperation and ten years of lessons learned" sounds good, but let alone whether there will still be an opportunity for a northern expedition by then, and regardless of Yu Yunwen's health, are we going to let a 75-year-old man lead the army on a northern expedition?
Do you really think everyone is like the old tortoise Sima Yi?

Therefore, Yu Yunwen was determined to take the best of a trick.

Lu You was also helpless about this.

At this point, among the pro-war faction, who else could they rely on besides Yu Yunwen?
Chen Junqing and Wang Shipeng?

Or is it the senile Zhang Jun who is already old and about to die? Lu You barely managed to gather his thoughts and said to Yu Yunwen in a serious tone: "Liu Dalang said that he wants to take Henan to enrich himself, and he is not comfortable handing over several prefectures in Huaibei to the Song Dynasty, fearing that the Song Dynasty's exorbitant taxes and levies will once again force Henan to rebel."

Furthermore, Liu Dalang also needed to find a way to appease the powerful clans of Henan who had submitted to him. At most, he would cede Caizhou in the west; that was his bottom line.

Yu Yunwen thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Add Xia Cai City as well, otherwise I will not be able to appease public opinion in the court."

Lu You nodded in agreement, and then said, "Liu Dalang also said that he would still welcome officials sent by the Song Dynasty, but they could only serve in Hebei and they would have to have the power to make decisions on their own."

Upon hearing this, Yu Yunwen laughed in anger: "What, doesn't Liu Dalang look down on the Song Dynasty? Why do you still want talents from the Song Dynasty? Are you so fearless?"

Upon hearing this, Lu You immediately felt somewhat helpless.

If the State of Song hoped that he could make a difference in Hebei, how could they not send anyone?

Otherwise, who could Lu You rely on?

But if they were to be sent, how could they not be drawn into the Northern Expedition, thus devoting themselves wholeheartedly to it and developing an affinity for Liu Huai?

Zhang Xiaoxiang and Zhu Xi's group are clear evidence of this.

Zhu Xi, in particular, besides working on his theory of investigating things, also vigorously promoted the theory of the severance of the orthodox lineage, implying that the world was divided and no one side was the legitimate one.

What does he want to do?
Is this paving the way for a hero who will one day unify the world?

Yu Yunwen seemed to realize the dilemma as well, and sighed, saying, "Then let's do it this way. I will select some veteran officials with a strong foundation in Jiangnan and send them to Hebei. I will also find a few capable generals and send them over together. Hopefully, there won't be any more trouble."

Lu You sighed in agreement: "How could there not be trouble? With the death of Duke Wei, I have no idea how much turmoil it will cause within Shandong."

After returning to Hebei, everyone will see me as an enemy, and it's not impossible that they'll want to kill me.

Yu Yunwen scoffed, “Lord Lu, don’t make such a joke. You and Lord Wei are both veterans and meritorious officials of the Northern Expeditionary Army, with outstanding prestige.”

Otherwise, why would I have agreed to let you become the Military Commissioner of Hebei? And why did Liu Dalang consider this his greatest show of sincerity?

In a few words, the two had already divided up the results of this northern expedition. The remaining details were not undiscussable, but they could not be explained by words alone. They had to test each other with their troops and shed blood before they could make a clear decision.

Just as the atmosphere was easing slightly, the two saw Li Xianzong approaching quickly, his expression unusually flustered.

"Lord Yu, Lord Lu... Lord Zhang... Lord Zhang has fallen ill."

"what?!"

Both Yu Yunwen and Lu You were extremely surprised, and then a feeling of horror arose in their hearts.

This guy was full of energy and vitality just two hours ago, with a great sense of exhilaration after seizing power. How did he fall ill in such a short time?

Could it be that Liu Huai's scolding was so effective?

The two hurriedly left the city and rode their horses to the government office. After passing through the still messy main hall, they arrived at the back of the main house and found that several doctors had been invited and were whispering among themselves. Two of them were shaking their heads in secret.

Yu Yunwen asked anxiously, "What exactly is the situation?"

An older doctor was chosen to step forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Master Zhang's illness is due to the end of his lifespan, and cannot be cured by medicine. This old man... this old man is also powerless to help."

Yu Yunwen led Lu You and Li Xianzong, and the three of them entered the inner hall together.

Then they saw Zhang Jun, whose face was ashen and who was on his deathbed.

To be honest, before meeting Zhang Jun, no one expected that a person could transform from being energetic to looking emaciated in less than an hour.

Zhang Jun's eyes were now clearly clouded. When he saw Yu Yunwen and Lu You, his eyes widened slightly, and he murmured to himself as tears streamed down his face.

Yu Yunwen thought Zhang Jun was giving instructions, so he quickly moved closer and put his ear close before he could hear the other person's indistinct voice.

"Yuanzhen...Pengju...I...I'm so sorry..."

"I...couldn't save it..."

"Even today..."

The voice was muffled and incoherent, but Yu Yunwen could still roughly understand it.

With a somewhat complicated expression, he straightened up and looked at the officials, generals, and subordinates who had rushed over, and said loudly, "By order of Prime Minister Zhang, he was exhausted in this battle, but fortunately, the Song Dynasty was blessed and ultimately victorious."

However, the affairs of state cannot be neglected. Minister Zhang has instructed me to draft his will, requesting that Minister Lu be appointed Military Commissioner of Hebei and Hebei, hoping that the Song Dynasty can recuperate and rebuild its strength over the next two years, ultimately unifying the world!

Everyone looked at Zhang Jun, whose expression was dazed, and no one thought he would say such a thing.

However, in such a serious place, if no one immediately and directly objects, then what Yu Yunwen said will become Zhang Jun's posthumous memorial, sent to the court in front of everyone, and then even if it is not true, it will be true.

But at this time and in this place, who can stop Yu Yunwen from doing what he wants to do?
Besides, who can guarantee that Zhang Jun didn't say those things?

Therefore, everyone remained silent.

When Yu Yunwen stepped out of his room to fetch his writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, he looked at the pale sunlight in the sky and suddenly felt a pang of sadness.

Yes.

If Zhao Ding and Yue Fei had been saved back then, what a magnificent scene it would be now!

Why should I put up with Liu Huai's temper?!

(End of this chapter)