Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

Zhao Ding said, "Hanzhong has the foundation for an emperor."

"But it is not the business of emperors,"

"The capital should not be located in the Sichuan-Gansu region."

"Bianliang has no natural barriers of mountains or rivers,"

"And then there's the threat of the Yellow River,"

"It would be best if the new dynasty did not establish its capital here."

"The land in Guanzhong is becoming increasingly barren,"

"Unable to sustain a great undertaking,"

"Chang'an is not the first choice either."

"Where do you think we should make the capital?" Zhao Yuan asked.

Zhao Ding said, "Luoyang."

Given the current situation,

Luoyang was indeed the first choice for establishing a capital.

From a military perspective,

Luoyang is surrounded by passes on all four sides.

From an economic perspective,

Kaifeng has a well-developed waterway network.

The grain tribute could be transported to Kaifeng first.

Then quickly transport it to Luoyang.

Hebei won't work.

Youzhou has long been plagued by war.

Already dilapidated

The population shortage is extremely severe.

Moreover, the border between the Song and Liao dynasties

A man-made "Great Wall of Water"

The water system is in complete chaos.

If the capital is established in Yanjing

First, at least a million people need to immigrate.

Not only should the population of Yanshan Prefecture be increased,

Other surrounding counties and prefectures also needed to be inhabited and reclaimed.

Next, we need to clean up the messy river channels.

Then a canal was dug to connect Youzhou with Jiangnan.

This series of actions,

It would take at least twenty years to complete.

"We'll discuss this later."

Zhao Yuan gave an ambiguous answer.

"Yes." Zhao Ding shut his mouth.

Zhao Yuan then asked, "Do you have any talented individuals to recommend?"

Zhao Ding said, "Chen Guoting, the former Grand Master of the Palace of the Song Dynasty, is a man of great talent."

Zhao Yuan smiled and said, "I know Chen Guoting."

"This person is indeed usable,"

"He recommended Zong Ze to negotiate peace with the Jin people."

During the Fang La Rebellion,

Chen Guoting suggested that Cai Jing, Wang Fu, and Zhu Mian be executed as punishment.

As a result, he was stripped of his official position and transferred to Huangzhou.

Li Bao fled before even attacking the prefect of Huangzhou.

Chen Guoting also fled back to Kaifeng with his family.

It just so happened that Zhao Huan had just ascended the throne.

Chen Guoting was promoted to Grand Master of the Palace.

He served as acting Minister of Rites and concurrently as Vice Minister of Rites.

At that time, Wanyan Zongwang was still on the way.

The Song emperor and his ministers discussed negotiating peace with the Jin people.

Chen Guoting could not object.

Therefore, Zong Ze was recommended as the peace envoy.

This suggestion was actually approved...

Chapter 1622 Zong Ze

When Zong Ze left Beijing, he told his friends, "I'm definitely not coming back."

"It would be best if the Jin people repented and withdrew their troops,"

"If the Jurchens do not withdraw their troops, how can I submit to them?"

This news terrified Zhao Huan, Geng Nanzhong, and others.

They immediately dismissed his peace envoy from his post.

They were afraid that Zong Ze would directly fight the Jurchens.

But since Zong Ze had already left the capital, they simply appointed him as the prefect of Cizhou.

Plant a nail in the path of the Jurchen army's advance.

Zong Ze's role as a thorn in their side was indeed firmly planted.

He refused to surrender even when ordered by the emperor.

This severely disrupted the important task of "joining forces with the Jin dynasty to suppress the bandits".

Chen Guoting was Zong Ze's recommender.

Naturally, one must bear the responsibility.

He was removed from his position as acting Minister of Rites.

Only the position of Vice Minister of Rites was retained.

Zhao Ding said, "Not only Chen Guoting is usable,"

"Zhang Xiaochun and Zong Ze should also be given high positions."

"You may send someone to deliver the appointment and dismissal documents, sir."

"Zhang Xiaochun is appointed as the General Manager of Hedong."

"Zong Ze was appointed as the General Administrator of Hebei,"

"Let the two of them continue to defend the city,"

"Recruit more righteous troops to fight against the Jin army!"

"We should send envoys to the Western Xia to negotiate peace,"

"Try not to deploy troops in the northwest border region."

"The Western Xia invaded our border areas, and taking the initiative to negotiate peace would only embolden them."

Zhao Yuan did not like this plan.

Zhao Ding said, "There are different levels of urgency in this matter."

"My lord is surrounded by enemies on all sides, but Jinghu has the prime minister Zhong,"

"With Zhao Ji in the southeast, Shaanxi and Shandong are also unstable,"

"The Jurchens are still eyeing us covetously in the north."

"At this time, if we could negotiate peace with Western Xia,"

"Even a reward of some money or goods would be acceptable."

"Once the south is pacified, and the areas east and north of the Yellow River are stabilized,"

"It's not too late to deal with Western Xia later."

"The Western Xia is not invincible,"

"The key question is, does Your Excellency still have any grain?"

"No," Zhao Yuan said helplessly.

This war was significant for both Zhao Yuan and the Jurchens.

They were all undercooked rice.

The Jin people were always short of food supplies.

They are now surviving entirely by plundering Hebei.

They forced local officials in Hebei to voluntarily deliver grain.

Zhao Yuan originally had enough provisions.

But taking Tokyo

They were suddenly in dire straits.

Because hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians are starving and waiting for food.

Even if we cross the river and fight the Jurchens, we can't hold out for long if we do nothing.

We're still waiting for grain to be transported from Sichuan, Lianghuai, Xiangyang, and Nanyang.

The next battle,

There's no way a fight will break out.

At most, small-scale battles will break out.

In Shaanxi, the rebel army and the Western Army remained locked in a stalemate.

Both sides are wasting their supplies.

A proclamation must be sent out as soon as possible to settle the matter.

Disband the newly recruited soldiers of the Western Army.

Let these new recruits return to their hometowns to work as soon as possible.

Because the people's strength in Shaanxi had already been overdrawn.

Of course, it was impossible to negotiate peace directly with the Western Xia, as they would definitely make exorbitant demands.

We'll have to play a few games first!

Zhao Yuan then had another conversation with Zhao Ding.

Have Bai Sheng deliver the gifts to the person.

Bai Sheng immediately took this courtesy to heart.

He treated Zhao Ding with great respect.