Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 3: A piece of paper "Proposal for Protecting Against Summer" shocked the whole room of Wencheng!
"The Xia barbarians used commerce as a weapon for warfare, so we should use commerce to control military warfare."

"If all taxes on merchants and travelers in Hezhong were to be levied on the public treasury, and all useful horses from the barbarians and falcons were to be sold to the government, then even though the Xia army's armor and soldiers were sharp, without the means to trade them for rice, millet, and ironware, they would be like rootless dandelions, drifting away on their own."

"In the past, Chao Cuo advocated defending the border and preparing fortifications, focusing on strengthening the border; Jia Yi discussed the Xiongnu's strength, emphasizing the five baits. Now, I personally believe that there are three strategies to resist the Xia."

At this moment, Lu Beigu had completely entered into the flow state of "literary ideas pouring out like a spring". Not to mention that there was a person standing behind him, even if there was a group of people, he was completely unaware of it.

Before his eyes, there was only that piece of paper and the thoughts he poured into it.

Before he knew it, Li Pan had been standing behind Lu Beigu for a long time.

The county school's registrar and the chief eunuch also stood nearby, and just by glancing at it, they were shocked and puzzled by what they saw.

——When did Lu Beigu’s policy papers reach such a high level?
However, although the beginning of this policy paper is amazing, after analyzing the situation and putting forward insights, it still depends on whether the response strategy is appropriate.

After all, no matter how high the tone is, if there is nothing real inside, it is just a superficial gimmick.

Finally, after going to the nearby Hejiang County Academy and carefully chewing over these words several times, he couldn't help but look up and down at the scholar whose clothes were soaked.

To be honest, this policy paper hits the nail on the head. Not only is its insightful viewpoint unique, but its analysis is also extremely reasonable. It doesn't sound like it was written by a teenager at all!
"Among the younger generation of scholars, I'm afraid only that child prodigy from Meishan can write such an article?"

Xue Zheng pondered for a moment and continued reading.

"One is that the trade is to break the tendons and veins."

"Sang Hongyang's method of price stabilization ③ completely seized the interests and rights of the whole world; Tang Liu Yan's policy of transportation ④ effectively controlled the lifeblood of the feudal lords."

"They rely on camels and horses for their blood vessels, so I will block their vital organs; they rely on salt for their lifeblood, so I will cut off their throats."

"We should now prohibit the export of Qing salt and ironware from the borders. We should establish a tea and horse trading office on the Qinfeng Road and take over the Qingtang and Tubo trade. When their treasuries are empty and their tribes are alienated, even a hundred thousand soldiers will be nothing more than hungry eagles and tigers."

Seeing this, Li Pan's eyes became sharp.

The economic lifeline of Western Xia is, first, the Dangxiang horses, and second, the green salt!

The Dangxiang horse is not only tall but also has endurance and explosive power, which is even better than the grassland horses used in large numbers by the Khitans.

In addition, with the two excellent horse-producing areas of the Hetao Plain and the Hexi Corridor, the Xixia war horses are the best in the world in terms of quality and quantity!
Qingyan was the core of the Western Xia economy. It was no exaggeration to say that "the financial resources of Yuanhao's several states were all supplied by Qingyan."

If we can really sanction the Tangut horses and Qingyan of Western Xia and find substitutes, we can indeed deal a heavy blow to Western Xia economically and make it obey the orders of the Song Dynasty.

There is precedent for this.

In the first Song-Xia war, Western Xia won three great victories on the battlefield. Li Yuanhao even said, "I want to go to the Wei River in person and occupy Chang'an directly." But in the end he was forced to negotiate peace because the domestic economy was on the verge of collapse.

However, this countermeasure is very complicated to implement in practice. Tibetan horses can indeed be used as a lower-level substitute for war horses, but the problem with salt is more of a drawback of the Song Dynasty's economic system itself, and it can even be said that one move can affect the entire system.

Li Pan was not sure whether Lu Beigu did not fully understand the issue of green salt or was unable to elaborate due to the limited length of the policy paper.

But in any case, the proposal to set up a tea and horse agency in Qinfeng Road to trade with Qingtang Tubo is indeed feasible.

In fact, this economic policy was exactly the market exchange system adopted by Wang Shao during the famous "Xihe Frontier Opening" decades later in history. Regardless of the hidden dangers of the "Xihe Frontier Opening", bypassing the Western Xia and opening up a trade route with Hezhong was indeed a strategy that could bring the Western Xia to the brink of death.

As Lu Beigu's pen wrote on the paper, Li Pan temporarily put his thoughts aside and continued reading.

"The second is to establish a strong foundation by building borders and defenses."

"The strength of the Xia barbarians lies in their ability to gather and disperse like the wind; our dynasty's difficulty lies in dividing its forces to defend key points." "Now that we have built interconnected forts and dug trenches in the northwestern provinces, so that the camps can support each other, we should also recruit local archers, grant them idle land, exempt them from rent and taxes, and train them in battle formations. We will practice archery every five days, conduct joint drills every thirty days, and conduct annual examinations."

"Whenever there is a war, silk and medals are awarded according to the number of heads cut off. Children defend their homes and warriors protect their hometowns, just like bees and ants defending their nests. Even if a mole cricket breaks through a hole, they will rise up and sting it."

"Once training is complete, gradually draw upon the elite troops stationed on the border to specialize in cavalry archery and sudden attack. If the Xia invaders suddenly arrive, the forts will be like iron chains across the river, guarding the strategic passes and strongholds to resist them. The cavalry will be like swords drawn from their shields, waiting for the enemy cavalry to be vulnerable and then striking them with lightning speed."

Lu Beigu's pen tip was as sharp as a knife, carving words on the paper that were so powerful that they could be seen through the back of the paper.

Unconsciously, Li Pan's calloused hands clenched in his official robe.

——This young man actually wrote about Zhong Shiheng’s unrealized idea in Qingjian City so incisively!
Moreover, even if it was not stated here why native archers were to be recruited, Li Pan could see through the intention. It was still an economic account. After granting land to the natives, the cost of employing a single soldier would be much lower than sending soldiers from thousands of miles away.

By mixing the natives with the Song army, it is possible to ensure sufficient garrison force in the fort while releasing field forces while keeping the financial expenditure unchanged. The money saved can even be used to build an elite force capable of field combat.

Of course, this also involves an issue that concerns the officials in the temple the most.

In other words, whether the standing garrisons and large-scale elite field armies that were created to meet actual defense needs would escape the control of the imperial court and once again lead to the disastrous consequences of separatist regimes.

No matter what, the strategy proposed by this young man to resist the summer is indeed completely feasible!
"The third is to devise strategies to confuse the inner circle."

"In the past, Zhang Yi broke up the alliance of the six kingdoms, and Chen Ping persuaded Fan Zeng to intervene in Xiang Yu's affairs. Although the current Xia Lord is in power, the Yeli and Mozang tribes each harbor different ambitions. The Guasha Uighurs and the Hehuang Zuosiluo have long harbored resentment. We should send debaters to sow discord among them, as in the case of Changsun Sheng. We could also follow the example of the Han Dynasty, enfeoff the King of Ruju, and allow the Hengshan chiefs to maintain their homeland for generations, thus luring the powerful tribes outside the Yellow River to submit to the Central Plains."

"The Tang Dynasty established the Anxi Protectorate, not only to exploit the power of swords, but also to control trade routes; the Han Dynasty established links with the 36 states of the Western Regions, not only to demonstrate the power of chariots, but also to promote trade and development."

"With these three strategies, even if they have the danger of Helan, they will eventually become trapped beasts; even if they rely on the abundance of Hetao, they will inevitably become dried-up carp."

After the last stroke was made, Lu Beigu put down the brush and realized that his wrist was sore.

When he looked up, he was stunned by the scene before him.

County Magistrate Li Pan had been standing in front of his desk at some point, surrounded by the principal, registrar and other county school officials, all of whom were staring intently at the policy paper on his desk.

"What a great article 'Summer Defense Strategy'!"

The cheers were like a northwest wind blowing through the hall, startling all the students and making them look up.

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① Transoxiana refers to the Syr Darya and Amu Darya river basins in Central Asia, which was an important hub of the ancient Eurasian land trade route, the Silk Road.

② The Five Bait refers to the five measures proposed by Jia Yi to appease and soften the Xiongnu. Later, it came to refer to various strategies for winning over foreign tribes.

③ Sang Hongyang’s price stabilization method refers to setting up price stabilization officials in the capital to be responsible for the transportation of goods across the country, selling when prices are high and buying when prices are low, with the aim of maintaining price stability and preventing merchants from hoarding goods.

④ Liu Yan’s transportation strategy refers to a system that realizes the rapid allocation of important materials by means of methods such as allocating ships for transportation according to the flow rate of different rivers and establishing storage areas in different regional centers.

⑤ Changsun Sheng successfully dismembered the Turks by making friends with distant people and attacking nearby ones, as well as sowing discord, causing the Turks to split into two parts, the east and the west.

⑥ In the second year of the Shenque reign of the Han Dynasty, Xianxian Shan, the King of You Ruju, had a feud with the Chanyu Wuyanquti. The Han Dynasty appointed him as the Marquis of Guide, and he led tens of thousands of his people to surrender to the Han Dynasty.

⑦ An abbreviation of the carp trapped in a dry rut, referring to the carp trapped in a dry rut.

(End of this chapter)