Time flies, and it flies in a blink of an eye. At the end of the first year of Changping, the Zhao army destroyed the Qianghu tribes in the north and established Xia Prefecture, and included the area of 1,500 li in the north of the north that was divided by the Qianghu tribe in the middle and late Yan period into the rule of the Great Zhao.

In the second half of the first year of Changping, the Zhao army first repelled the Turks, and then regained lost territory. What he did made everyone in the world look sideways. Compared with Zhao Jun, Murong Cheng, the king of Qi, who also occupies the name of righteousness, has gained nothing. In the eyes of some scholars and Haoqiang with lofty ideals, Zhao Xun's weight gradually increased that of Murong Cheng.

In the first year of Changping, Zhao merchants traveled north and south, bringing many benefits to Dazhao. This is true not only for the mainland, but also for maritime merchants. The Flame Qilin Banner of the Great Zhao Merchants has already fluttered in various places such as the South China Sea and Persia. All of a sudden, businessmen from overseas countries came to Qingzhou Port for trade. The seaports of Jiaozhou and Yangzhou are gradually weaker than those of Qingzhou.

Regarding the gradual northward movement of maritime merchants, Murong Cheng, the king of Qi, could only secretly be jealous and scolded, but there was nothing he could do. The land of Jiaozhou was full of wars, and the local forces were divided and independent, so that the seaport in the land of Guangzhou stopped docking for a time. Not only that, but it also made Qiongzhou Island, which was occupied by Zhao Jun, a new transit point in the southern seas. And Yangzhou, because Murong, the king of Qi, became a conquest and increased taxes, causing the maritime merchants to leave one after another.

It is precisely because of the south-to-north travel of merchants that the Dazhao coin has become a common coin for merchants. Many speculators once tried to mint counterfeit money, but they could not confuse the real with the fake, and had no choice but to fail. And the coins minted by King Qi and King Yong themselves were gradually abandoned by merchants and the common people. In this regard, neither Murong Cheng nor Situ Lei was powerless to reverse it. In the end, it can only be resigned to the fact that Zhaodi coins are used as circulating currency.

The Chinese pinyin that Zhao Xun personally made has become a reading material for enlightened children in academies all over the Dayan Kingdom, and it has been widely circulated. And punctuation has also become a necessary condition for people all over the world to look sideways and even do learning. Now, if anyone says that Zhao Xun, the overlord of the north, is a martial artist, there will definitely be a large number of people who spit on him. In the past, Zhao Xun was called a brave and ruthless martial artist by the people of the world, but now, no one is called so anymore, whether it is a powerful family or a scholar.

In the first year of Changping, the rivers and canals of Zhaodi communicated all over the country, connecting the states together, and together with Chidao, forming a large circulation network. By land and sea, from south to north, there are all merchants from Zhao who hang the flame unicorn flag.

In the first year of Changping, the bond invented by Zhao Xun was officially established as a valid credit, which was accepted by the people, businessmen, and the gentry of the great clan. In this year, these big gentry felt that Zhao Xun's confiscation of their fields was actually not a bad thing. It's not a bad thing to let them keep their money in the bank. Without land, they went into business, opened workshops, and set up breeding farms, so that their wealth not only did not shrink, but also increased greatly. Not only that, in Zhao Di, no matter what you do, there is no distinction between high and low.

Here, whether it is a merchant or a craftsman, he has the right to be an official. Here, the scientific examination is divided into subjects, and it is also officially accepted by readers. Therefore, merchants and craftsmen are eligible to participate in the imperial examination.

At the end of the first year of Changping, there were nearly 30 million people under the rule of Zhao and the people of all ethnic groups in the territory of Zhao, including the people of all ethnic groups in the territory of Zhuzhou, Beisai and Zhaodi. And the entire Great Yan Kingdom is only 70 million people at the moment, and this is still counting the hidden households. Ten years ago, the entire Great Yan Country was only 80 million hidden households.

In the first year of Changping, the Khitans and the people of all ethnic groups who submitted to the Ya tribes had gradually integrated into the Great Zhao and became an ordinary Han people. They speak Chinese, learn Chinese characters, and take the customs of the Han people as their own. For the older generation of people of all ethnic groups, Zhao asked them not to force them, as long as they didn't make trouble. However, with their current lives, they will not cause any more trouble. Even the aristocratic groups of the former tribes of the Gazette are now running large and small businesses, and they are full of money. Compared with the past, although there is no power, life is better than a few back and forth. Unable to gain power anymore, their current life has made them very satisfied.

In the blink of an eye, it has been the second year of Changping, and the officials of the various departments who have taken annual leave have also returned to the right track and dealt with the affairs of the various departments. Now that the war in various places has calmed down, both officials and ordinary people hope that in the new year, there will be greater gains.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have gained a lot in the past year. Not only did we defeat the Turks, but we also took the annex and recovered the land of Beisai. "In the lobby of the Zhao Palace, the civil and military officials of the Zhao military system gathered together.

"The new year is coming, we have to look forward, and the past achievements can only be an example for us to go further. We must not indulge in the glory of the past, otherwise, sooner or later we will be swept into the dust of history. ”

"Now, we need to face and solve the three main quantities. First, the Turks, who were defeated by us last year and were brought to the royal court by us, will certainly not be reconciled. This year, or in the near future, they will surely retaliate. However, we are not afraid, since we can defeat him once, we can defeat him a second time, a third time. Zhang Yuanjing, how did you do to win over the Turkic tribes? ”

Zhang Yuanjing, who returned to Youzhou City to report on his work, got up and said, "Return to the Lord, it has been completed." A total of nine tribes are willing to cooperate with us and resist the oppression of the Turkic court. In the process of wooing them, the subordinates deliberately lured them into fighting with the rest of the tribes, and created rumors that they were colluding with us. Now, they have no way out but us. However, they need us with food, grass, and armor. The subordinates promised to exchange livestock and war horses with them for grain, grass, supplies and armor and equipment. In addition, because their terrain is northern, we can expand our territory to the north for another 300 miles, whether it is Bingzhou or Xiazhou. ”

Hearing this, Zhao Xun was overjoyed and said, "Okay, this matter is a great credit." The local civil and military officials of Liangzhou, Xiazhou and Liangzhou were ordered to build a city to the north, a city for a hundred miles. Even so, however, we can't help but guard against the fact that these nine parts will not give birth to other thoughts. Therefore, for these nine parts, we can only use them, not credit them. ”

"Second, that is the war in the southern Central Plains. Whether it is King Qi or King Yong, they are all our enemies. Now King Yong is weak, and King Qi is powerful. Therefore, Murong Cheng, the king of Qi, will now be our primary enemy. Of course, the reality is based on the changing situation. What we need to do is to prepare our arms for war, and prepare food, grass, materials, and armor and equipment. These should be the responsibility of the Logistics Division and the Foundry Division. Zhang Jun, Xu Qing, what problems do you two have? ”

Zhang Jun, director of the Logistics Department, and Xu Qing, director of the Foundry Department, said in unison: "There is no problem with the subordinates, the army needs it, and it can be transferred at any time." ”

"Excellent! The two of you are the foundation of our army's actions, and you must not be neglected. ”

"The third is the issue of accommodating displaced people in the annexation of prefectures, which is also a matter of local governance. We need a large number of Han people to move in to increase the proportion of our Han people and strengthen our rule. And the entry of displaced people from the south will better solve our problem. In the future, our territory will gradually expand northward, so the more displaced people, the better. In addition, they will also provide us with a large number of laborers and soldiers. ”

"The Department of Commerce has strengthened the commercial support for the land of Merge Prefecture and Xiazhou, and the prosperity of commerce will naturally lead to the prosperity of the local area. This point must have been seen by the adults from Liaozhou and Dingzhou. ”

Subsequently, Zhao Xun made a series of military arrangements, the most important of which was the formation of the Eighth Army of the Praetorian Guard. Each army drew part of its forces to supplement the Eighth Guard, and then added from the new and descended soldiers. The Young Guards were also formally established, with only two armies, which were considered to be reserve forces and low-level officers for each army. Of course, the military academy will also be greatly expanded.

The Eight Banners of the Guards have also officially become history, and they will be added to the Eighth Army of the Praetorian Guards and mixed together with the Eighth Army of the Janissaries. Among the Eighth Janissary Army, the regular establishment was 25,000 troops, 10,000 cavalry, and 15,000 foot soldiers. The Eighth Army of the Praetorian Guard is directly subordinate to King Zhao and can be regarded as a forbidden army. In addition, there were 30,000 pro-guards, all of whom were cavalry. 10,000 heavy cavalry, 20,000 light cavalry, the main general Han Meng, and the deputy generals Wei Dong and Wei Chen, a total of eight capitals.

Time flies, and in an instant, it is February of the second year of Changping. Just when Zhao Xun was busy reorganizing the army and accompanying his family, new news came from the Yanzhou army, which made Zhao Xun involved in the war again.

"Lord, this is news from Yanzhou." Situ Liang handed the intensified military information in his hand to Zhao Xun.

"Huh? This Murong Cheng couldn't stay idle. Zhao Xun muttered.

"The main thing is that the Lord's harvest last year made Murong Cheng feel extremely dissatisfied and dissatisfied, he also had a hard year last year, and as a result, he not only lost Yanzhou, but also did not gain anything in the process of conquering Situ Lei. Moreover, he was first defeated at Bishui Pass, losing more than 100,000 soldiers, and then fighting hard at the two passes for several months, costing the people and losing money. Now, he understands that the benefits in his hands are the real benefits. Therefore, he is going to make this big move. Situ Liang said with a smile.

"Yes, this Murong Cheng also understands that this attack on Yongzhou is not so easy to attack."

"From the perspective of his subordinates, Murong Chengcheng should have let the coalition army contain it in the two passes, and cede Yongzhou to the coalition army as a good place, while he attacked Yizhou and Ningzhou in the west. Taking Yizhou and Ningzhou first, and attacking Chang'an in the north is his best way. However, this Murong Cheng only has Luoyang in his eyes, only the emperor's throne, staring at the land of the two passes, how can this coalition army be willing to die hard. After all, with the Qi army here, if you break through the two levels, the benefits will also be Murong Cheng's. Situ Liang said slowly.

Yang Wangqing shook his head and said: "Actually, Murong Cheng didn't expect it, it's just that he is the initiator of the conquest of Situ Lei, and conquering Luoyang is the most important action he should take." It's just that he didn't expect that we didn't send troops from the land of the two passes to join them, and he didn't expect that the land of the two passes would be so difficult to fight. He thought that after issuing the message, the Yongjun army lost momentum and broke it with one blow. He is taking advantage of the prestige of issuing the inscription to ascend to the position of the Ninety-Five. ”

Zhao Xun shook the urgent military situation in his hand and said, "This Murong Cheng wants to unite with the Yanzhou army to attack Xuzhou, what do you think?" How should we respond? ”

Situ Liang said in a deep voice: "If it weren't for the news from the Yanzhou army, we would have thought that Murong Cheng would be as aggressive as he is now on the surface and ready to attack Yongzhou again." would never have thought that this Murong Cheng's goal had been transformed into Xuzhou. Therefore, the Xuzhou army will not know the real goal of the soldier Murong Cheng. With preparation and defenselessness, this Xuzhou army is afraid that it will be dangerous this time. ”

Yang Wangqing continued: "And once Murong Cheng targets the Xuzhou Army, then Situ Lei will also have other actions. For example, because we lost and annexed the states last year, now after removing the greatest pressure, we will counterattack when the Turks come. In this way, Murong Cheng withdrew from the battle with Situ Lei, but we fell into a full-scale battle with the Turks and Situ Lei, but he Murong Cheng sat on the mountain and watched the tiger fight. ”

Zhao Xun nodded and said, "Well, what you said is right, if Murong Cheng really fights with the Xuzhou army." Then Situ Lei will not be indifferent and sit back and watch the expansion of all parties. His Murong Cheng's idea of sitting on the mountain and watching the tiger fight can be realized nine times out of ten. ”

Situ Liang smiled: "However, now that this situation is known to us, and the Yanzhou Army is our people, this situation is naturally not what we thought before." ”

"It was inevitable that the Turks would do something to us. The Turkic Khan, whether in order to maintain his dominance or to plunder the property and population of our Han people, needed to go south. And the direction of the southward attack is precisely in the land of Bingzhou and Xiazhou. However, we already have nine Turkic tribes in Xia and the northern part of the state that have fallen to us. Until they are defeated by Xue Jian Khan, there will be no big problems with Bingzhou and Xiazhou. Therefore, we only need to support these nine tribes and force them to fight against Xue Jian Khan, and the rest is not too much of a problem. ”

"Therefore, the Turks are not too much of a threat, not to mention that whether it is Xia Zhou or Bingzhou, we have a large army stationed. Well, it is Situ Lei to the south. The main thing that Situ Lei can attack us is to send troops from Yongzhou to attack and merge with the state. Or send troops from Liangzhou to attack Bingzhou and Xiazhou. However, in the land of Xiazhou and Bingzhou, General Li Chenfeng, Qin Daolin, and Xue Qinglan have already stationed more than 100,000 troops. Before Situ Lei has a clear advantage, he will not rashly turn against us. Otherwise, he will be our mortal enemy. And Murong Cheng, the king of Qi, will definitely not have an affair with him, otherwise, if Murong Cheng wants to admit that Situ Lei is not a thief who kills the king and usurpers, then his text will become a joke. This also means that the current emperor is orthodox. ”

"Just as Situ Lei is about to choose, Situ Lei should be good with us at this moment. Taking advantage of Murong Cheng's attack on Xuzhou, he attacked Bingzhou and Jiangzhou and occupied the prosperous land in the south. Therefore, we do not need to overestimate the threat posed to us by the Turks and Stuart. Of course, we can't send the possibility that Situ Lei will do something to us. ”

Yang Wangqing nodded and said: "My subordinates also think that Lord Situ is reasonable, we have to get involved in this matter, and it is best to obtain greater benefits in this matter and greatly weaken Murong Cheng." If we can weaken Murong Cheng this time, then our actions in the land of Jiaozhou and the operation of seeking the Qi army and navy will increase the success rate. ”

Zhao Xun pondered for a moment and said, "You mean to say that if we participate in the attack on Murong Cheng, it is best to bring our boss Tu Lei along?" However, in this way, it is difficult for us to get out. Moreover, we did not have a border with the Qi army, so it was difficult to intervene. If the relationship with the Yanzhou Army is leaked, then whether it is Murong Cheng, Situ Lei, Tang Xian of the Tang Army, or Li Chi of the Xuzhou Army, they will all suspend the operation, and maybe they will take the lead in taking action against us. ”

Situ Liang said with a smile: "No, our Zhao army is not moving, we are still busy defending against the Turks coming from the north." But the Yanzhou army can act at will, and the Yanzhou army seeks benefits for itself, which is natural. ”

Zhao Xun's eyes lit up, he smiled, and said, "Yes, I got the tip of the horns." As the Yanzhou Army, we roped in Situ Lei, Li Chi and Tang Xian to act together against Murong Cheng, the overlord in the south. Thinking about it, whether it is Li Chi or Situ Lei, they are very happy. As for Tang Xian, he was born under Murong Cheng, and in the south, he should also have a lot of foundation, and when Murong Cheng is defeated, he can also rise in the south. ”

Situ nodded and said, "Yes, that's what the subordinates mean." Inform Situ Lei of the situation, Situ Lei must not mind giving Murong Cheng a blow from the side when Murong Cheng and the Xuzhou army were fighting. ”

"That's it, then this king personally went to the Yanzhou army, how to say, I am also the master of the Yanzhou army, I haven't been there for half a year, and it's not easy to explain to the outside world." Zhao Xun said lightly.

Situ Liang and Yang Wangqing hurriedly stopped: "Lord, you are the master of an army, let's do this matter." In case the identity is exposed, the danger is not small, after all, in Yanzhou, there are spies from all armies. ”

Zhao Xun waved his hand and said: "It's okay, the appearance of this king in the Yanzhou Army is all disguised. Unless it's a very close person, the average person won't find out. Besides, with the Guards following, nothing out of the ordinary will happen. In addition, the Eagle Eye Division and the Shadow Division have been laying a lot of eyeliner in Yanzhou. ”

Seeing Zhao Xun like this, the rest of the people no longer stopped him. Zhao Xun is the lord of the Yanzhou army, and tens of millions of Yanzhou are also the most suitable. The Yanzhou Army is also controlled by officers from the Armed Forces Academy and the Pro-Guard Army, and there will be no changes on the surface. In addition, this operation involves a wide range of aspects, and many things can only be decided by Zhao Xun himself, and it is very likely that he will not be able to keep up with the military orders issued from a distance.

After Zhao Xun explained the main arrangements of the administrative secretary for the displaced people who also entered the country from the south, as well as the affairs of the northern Turks in Bingzhou, he explained to his family, and after making arrangements, he once again dispersed into Yanzhou with 5,000 soldiers and soldiers.