Chapter 1320: Knock Knock

Although this meal did not taste like a family carnival, it was also a joy in the exchange of cups and lamps, and Zhao Yu also talked about the war between the two Huai. Listening to the soaring advance on the eastern battlefield and the fruitful results, the generals couldn't help but blush, and a few glasses of spirits were in their stomachs, and the belligerent heart was also stirred up by him, and one by one they promised to take Xiangyang.

"Today's wine and food are not rich, and they are a little slow to treat you." Zhao Yu picked up the wine and invited the generals again, and said apologetically, "But this time it's not because I'm stingy, it's really that the chickens, guineas, geese and ducks in the hands of the people in the city have all been eaten, and the baggage officer also said that even the ploughing cattle in the hands of the people were forcibly bought to eat meat, so it's not easy to make up this table of wine banquet, and I can't help it!" ”

"Your Majesty, it's a dereliction of duty on the part of the minister!" As soon as the emperor's voice fell, the needle drop could be heard during the banquet, and the generals looked at each other, and no one dared to answer, and after a while, Xie Ming got up and saluted.

"Oh, what does this have to do with you?" Zhao Hao put down the wine glass and asked suspiciously.

"Your Majesty, after our department occupied Fancheng, it has been a long time since we went on an expedition, sleeping in the open air, and there was a shortage of meat and vegetables. During this period, some profiteers took the opportunity to raise prices, and the soldiers inevitably had disputes with them...... In the meantime, there have been some forced buying and selling. This is all the fault of the minister's unfavorable restraint and the unstrict nature of the emperor! Xie Ming bowed down and pleaded guilty.

"In this way, I have some doubts, has the Ezhou Transshipment Division underallocated grain and grass, or the delivery was delayed, or the total division did not allocate military expenses in time?" Zhao Yu asked.

"Your Majesty, the grain, grass, and military salaries were all allocated in full and on time, and the ministers were also sent to the ministries in a timely manner without delay." Xie Ming replied again.

"In that case, it must be corruption from below!" Zhao Hao frowned and said, "Lao Hu, you are an old and important official, are you from the middle of the middle, causing the soldiers to not continue their meals!" ”

"Your Majesty, the last general will keep in mind the iron laws in the army and dare not violate them." Hu Decai heard His Majesty call him and immediately got up and saluted, "The subordinates manage the baggage and allocate materials in accordance with the relevant regulations in the army, and they dare not embezzle a penny or a grain of grain." When the war is not urgent, we can purchase fish, meat, vegetables and vegetables according to the food standards and distribute them to all departments; In wartime, the food expenses will also be transferred to the relevant troops in a timely manner, and they will purchase them themselves, and if there is something to do, it will be here. ”

"So where do you think the problem is?" Zhao Yu nodded and asked again.

"As far as the last general knows, there are indeed profiteers who are troubled by the Marquis of Duyu, but only a very few. Violations of discipline occur frequently, and there are still some generals who are greedy for appetite, or take advantage of this to raise morale, and take the opportunity of their own procurement to order the subordinate officials to buy from the people. And the people are so poor, the hens that lay eggs, and the pigs and dolphins that are fattened are all the salt money and expenses of the family. The hard feathers of geese and ducks can be used as arrows, and they are raised to be handed over to the government as tribute, and they dare not eat them, and the cattle are the lifeblood of the family, so they naturally refuse to buy and sell. But in order to return to his life, the soldiers responsible for purchasing at the bottom could only buy and sell by force, throwing down a few dollars and taking things away. ”

"Well, old Hu Ke still remembers why we made iron laws in the first place!" Zhao Yu nodded and asked again.

"Of course, I remember, where His Majesty formed the government army, asked everyone, why did the people not respect the king's division and treat him as bandits, and everyone said that the king's division was too forcibly conscripted for service, and grain, looting the people in the name of collecting military funds, etc., Your Majesty has established an iron law against the evils of the times to prohibit many evil deeds, and violators will be severely punished!" Hu Decai replied.

"Many of you here are from handsome families, so you should be no stranger to this!" Zhao Yu pressed his hand to let Hu Decai sit down, and then turned to the crowd, "Zhang Bingkun, Xu Shou, Qin Bian, Song Xi, Liu Bing, Wang Kun, you can still remember." ”

"Your Majesty, keep your subordinates in mind!" Several of the named generals got up and left their seats.

"I remember that several of you were born in the countryside, and you were also born in farming, and you also suffered from it back then, but now you have forgotten your roots when the position is reversed!" Zhao Yu slapped the case, the wine glass bounced up and fell to the ground, and shouted loudly.

"The subordinates don't dare!" Several people knelt down in unison.

"Your Majesty is angry, this is the enemy's capital, our army will not take it, and it will be the enemy in the future!" Song Lian got up and persuaded beside him.

"When the two armies clash, the people are innocent." Zhao Yu turned his face to look at him and said, "Jingxiang is my hometown of the Great Song Dynasty, it has only been lost for more than ten years, and the people are also the people of my Great Song Dynasty. This not only makes them cold, but also makes them sad, and how can they help me. ”

"Your Majesty, the last general knows that he is wrong!" Song Lian was drenched in cold sweat when he heard this, and then bowed down and said in fear.

"The people are our parents, brothers, and sisters, and you and I don't understand the simple truth that what you wear, what you eat, what you put in your hands, and every bullet you shoot comes from the hard work of the people? Don't you have to think about it when the officials force the people to rebel! Zhao Yu shouted angrily.

"Your Majesty, the last general is guilty, please punish Your Majesty!" Everyone was shocked when they heard this, and they all pleaded guilty.

"I can tolerate you neglecting me, but I must not ignore the people, otherwise I will be severely punished!" Zhao Hao said in a deep voice.

"We take it to heart!" And they saluted again.

Seeing this, Zhao Yu's face softened slightly, and he ordered someone to rearrange the wine and food, but everyone's hearts were awe-inspiring, and the food had no taste. After the meal, Wang Yinglin announced the imperial decree on the adjustment of the Eighth Army. approved Zhang Ba's resignation as the commander of the Eighth Army and his reappointment as the Sima of the Xingying; Tian Zhong, the commander of the First Brigade of the Imperial Protector Army, was transferred to the commander of the Eighth Army, Xie Ming was still the Marquis of Duyu, and the other generals remained unchanged and each had his own duties.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they heard this, everyone understood that Zhang Ba was the best result, although he was hung up, he finally kept his grade. And there is no objection to Tian Zhong's appointment, you must know that he once served as the head of the new army, and the generals present can be said to be his students, and he participated in the previous wars of this dynasty, which can be described as a great achievement, who dares to disagree, naturally wholeheartedly supports.

Zhao Yu is still very satisfied with everyone's performance, he is not to blame for the 'big things', but he still has to beat the small things, otherwise he really thinks that the emperor is cowardly! Turning his head to see that Ni Liang was still gloomy, he may be the most dissatisfied with this arrangement, Tian Zhong, as a veteran of the first brigade, has always been relied on by Ni Liang, and transferring him is equivalent to taking one of his arms.

But Zhao Yu was also helpless, he wanted Xie Ming to express his intention to let him be transferred to a military minister, hoping that he could take up the post of unification of the Eighth Army, but he was politely refused on the grounds that he was not good at military affairs. He has long been mentally prepared for this, and naturally he doesn't want to learn from his ancestors, and it is indeed a short board in the military, and at the moment he has no one to use, so he can only let Tian Zhong go up, so this arrangement can not only make him rise, but also solve the current problem.

Subsequently, Zhao Yu convened a military meeting to discuss the recovery of the Guanghua Army as soon as possible to concentrate his forces to capture Xiangyang. Guanghua Army was under the jurisdiction of Jingxi Road in the Song Dynasty, adjacent to the Han River in the west, choking the main road of Bashu, bordering Fancheng in the south, facing the Hanjiang River and Gucheng across the river in the west, it has always been an important transportation hub in the northwest of Hubei Province, it is known as "the gathering of small boats in the thousand leaves, and the gathering of merchants from all directions", and it is an important military base on the north bank of the Han River in the Southern Song Dynasty.

Therefore, only the recovering Guanghua Army can control the upper waters of the Han River, so as to prevent the enemy from using the ferry here to reinforce Xiangfan along the Han River, so as to ensure the smooth development of the battle, and it has also become a must-attack place. The generals had just been beaten, and they were anxious to make meritorious service to atone for their crimes, and Tian Zhong's new official took office, and he also wanted to use this to establish his authority, so naturally they all had no objection to the Guanghua Army quickly, and promised to conquer this city within ten days.

As for how they planned, Zhao Yu did not participate, this was an opportunity for Tian Zhong to get acquainted with the generals, and also to let him enter the role as soon as possible. He served tea in the pavilion in the garden and gossiped with two veterans who were 'planning a mutiny'.

"Your Majesty, the last general is already old, and he also wants to return to the field to retire, please ask Your Majesty for permission!" After a few words, Hu Decai pleaded. He knew his role in this matter, and no chief officer would like such a thorn under his command, even if he would not deliberately suppress it, he would try to hang it high and offer it to the mud fetus bodhisattva, which would be uncomfortable and simply torture.

"Your Majesty, the last general also wants to retire and return to his hometown, and when he is older, his physical strength can't keep up, and it will only drag everyone down!" Qi Zhong also said.

"Hehe, the two of you have been in the army for so many years, can you adapt to returning to your hometown to farm?" Zhao Hao asked with a smile as he poured tea for the two.

"This ......" The two couldn't help but look at each other and smile bitterly when they heard it, they have been in the army for many years, in fact, they have adapted to this kind of life of fighting and killing, if they are really allowed to leave the robe like brothers, it is really difficult to adapt to the hometown and farming.

"This matter can be resolved smoothly, you two have actually made great contributions, and I can't let you go home without a reward, wouldn't that make people say that I am ruthless and treat the old brothers badly!" Zhao Yu looked at the expressions of the two and said with a smile.

"No, no, this matter is the reckless behavior of the two of us, which has caused great trouble to Your Majesty, how dare you ask for a reward, let alone resent!" Hu Decai quickly waved his hand when he heard this.

"Your Majesty can forgive us for our mistakes, it is a great grace, don't dare to ask for more!" Qi Zhong also shook his head again and again.

"Not to mention anything else, as long as you two serve the king faithfully, and dare to stand up in times of crisis, I will be rewarded. Besides, when you were dying, you followed me to fight in the south and the north, and made countless contributions to the country, so you returned home, how can I bear it! Zhao Yu said quite emotionally.

"We are loyal to the country, and it is our duty to share worries for Your Majesty, and besides, we are only shallow in our studies, and we are embarrassed to take on a big responsibility, and staying in the army for a long time will only become a burden to Your Majesty, please let Your Majesty return to our hometown!" Hu Decai sighed.

"Not allowed!" Zhao Yu said categorically, "I know that you have a concern now, and staying in the Eighth Army with your prestige is worried that you will be jealous of your superiors, and I am worried that you will be sad in the future. But I'm not afraid, so come to me! ”

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