Listening to Zhang Qu's introduction, Gao Chong and Zhao Li secretly sighed that fortune and misfortune were impermanent, although this heavy snow delayed their trip and caused a lot of losses to personnel and materials, but they also avoided the ambush of the Western Liao army. They knew that although the Western Expeditionary Army, which was dominated by cavalry, was equipped with advanced firearms, it would still be limited by the terrain in the mountains, and it would be difficult for them to exert their full combat strength. The weapons and equipment of the Western Liao Army were backward, but they occupied the time, place, and people, and they were calculated with heart and no intention, so even if the Western Expeditionary Army had the advantage in weapons, it would inevitably suffer heavy losses.

It was precisely the arrival of the snowstorm that convinced the Western Liao army based on past experience that it was impossible for the Song army to successfully cross the Altai Mountains, and even retreated halfway, and the return had to wait for the ice and snow to melt in May of the following year, which may reproduce their eastern crusade that died halfway due to lack of grass. Based on the above judgment, the Western Liao Army withdrew and returned to China, making this area a demilitarized zone without troops, allowing the Western Expeditionary Army to take advantage of the loophole and escape at its weakest time.

"Being able to enter Gaochang easily, this can only be said that God bless my Great Song Dynasty, although I have suffered some hardships on the road, I have avoided the danger of annihilation of the whole army!" Gao Zhong sighed, he understood that even with the current national strength of the Great Song Dynasty, it would take a lot of determination to complete this western expedition, and if this western expedition failed and suffered too much damage, the government and the opposition would definitely oppose another western expedition. Even with the strength of the emperor, he had to temporarily compromise and plan in the long run, thus losing the opportunity to subdue the forces of the various tribes in Mobei and conquer Gaochang.

"Yes, after the peace with the Jin State and the return of the former emperor, some people in the court thought that they would repeat the grand occasion of a hundred years of peace with the Khitan, and they did not need to spend huge sums of money to raise troops to prepare for war. Reduction of military spending. If the Western Expedition is defeated this time, the pressure on His Majesty can be imagined. In order to calm public opinion. I'm afraid I'm going to have to put on a show too! Zhang Qu sighed, the luck of the Western Expeditionary Army is also the luck of the emperor. It can also be said that they are the luck of these emperor's henchmen.

"After His Majesty ascended the throne, although the ministers of the court supported the emperor to organize their armaments and conquer the Jurchens, it was mainly based on the reality of the Jurchen's invasion of our Great Song Dynasty, they just felt that the capital was breached, and it was a great shame for the second emperor to be forced to hunt north. In order to maintain the face of the great power of the Celestial Empire, and also to eliminate the threat of the Jin State to the Great Song Dynasty, we had to support the emperor as a last resort, and maintain a certain degree of tolerance for the improvement of the status of our warriors. Zhao Li said, "Now that the Jin Kingdom has taken the initiative to sue for peace and put back the former emperor, they feel that the threat has been eliminated and they can rest easy." It will reiterate the old tune of the ancestral family law to continue to implement the rule of law and martial arts. Once successful, the next step is to gradually ask the emperor to cede power and increase the power of the prime minister, so as to achieve the goal of weakening the imperial power! ”

"Well, Brother Li'er's words are thoroughly analyzed! Some courtiers are short-sighted and just want to fight for power, but they don't know that there is still a crisis around our Great Song Dynasty, and although the Jurchens are in decline, other tribes are allowed to develop and expand. It won't be long before she becomes a new Jurchen, do you want to repeat the disaster of Jingkang? Gao Zhong nodded and said, "The emperor is far-sighted, and he hopes to eliminate the potential power that threatens the Great Song Dynasty through conquest and alliances. At the same time, it will deter countries and lay the foundation for long-term peace and stability. If it is to reduce armaments, blindly implement the policy of Huairou. It won't be long before they will return to the old road of Jingsui, when those people find that Da Song is just a tiger without minions. How can you keep to yourself! ”

"Therefore, the battle of the Western Expedition is a matter of state affairs and the status of our warriors. So we have to win, and we have to win! Zhao Li clenched his fists and said.

"I don't understand the two high-level arguments, and fighting a war is also the business of the two generals, I just bring the words, and the task will be completed if the things are delivered!" Zhang Qu waved his hand and said impatiently, in fact, he understood that he could not achieve the current status and wealth without the support of the emperor, and the emperor could not do without everyone's help, they had already formed an unbreakable interest group, but he also understood that he could not be involved in politics too deeply, otherwise he would live to the end, so he interrupted their topic.

"Hehe, I'm far away for a while, don't blame the shopkeeper!" Zhao Ligong smiled and said, "We have been in the mountains for more than two months, and the news has been cut off, so please ask the shopkeeper Zhang for some advice!" ”

"Hehe, Brother Li is polite!" Zhang Qu also turned to the topic with Ha Luha, "We, Sheng Hetang, were ordered to raise food and salaries for the Western Expeditionary Army, and set up bases in Western Xia and Gaochang in case the army needed it from time to time. Last year, Gaochang's betrayal of the alliance led to hostility between the two countries, and they sent troops to block the passage of our Great Song caravan, so it was very difficult to transport and raise supplies. According to this, the Western Xia initially agreed to attack Gaochang with us, and for convenience and safety, they mainly used the Western Xia base, preparing that the caravan could enter Gaochang after they sent troops, but Li Qianshun, the lord of the Western Xia, accepted heavy bribes from Gaochang and changed his mind and never fulfilled the contract, and the Western Liao army deployed heavy troops in Gaochang to block the border, resulting in the cutting off of the trade route and the inability to transport it out for a while! ”

"Shopkeeper Zhang, don't we have any savings in Gaochang?" Gao Zhong listened and asked anxiously, now the Western Expeditionary Army urgently needs to replenish ammunition, and they also hope to be replenished here.

"Gao Shuai, don't worry, I just said that it was mainly based on Western Xia, but I gave up Gaochang's side without saying anything." Zhang Qu said, "Sheng Hetang has been operating in the northwest for many years, of course, it has its own channels, and it will not be helpless because they prohibit us from passing, but it will take some troubles." ”

"Oh, how did Shopkeeper Zhang escape the obstruction and inspection of Gaochang?" Gao Pet asked with some curiosity.

"As the saying goes, 'cats have cat roads, dogs have dog roads', although the Gaochang border is full of desert Gobi is difficult to pass, but it is not impossible to walk, they can only guard the road, and other routes are not able to be guarded all day even if they know the road. We promised to transport supplies into Gaochang through some small caravans with a lot of money. In addition, there is not much land that can be cultivated in Gaochang, and the grain output is not high, so it is very difficult to purchase it on the spot, so it can only be transferred from outside, and we will buy it through the merchants and store it in their hands! ”

"Oh, shopkeeper Zhang is really troubled!" Gao Zhong understood that they were using smuggling methods to transport military supplies into Gaochang, and the grain was brought in through merchants from other countries, of course, at a much higher cost.

"Shopkeeper Zhang, I don't know where to hoard supplies, and now our army urgently needs to replenish!" Zhao Li asked.

"Hmph, of course we won't exist in the big city, it's so easy to attract attention, and the war will also be requisitioned, so we can only put it in the outer places where the army passes, otherwise how can you collect so much grain and grass in this projectile land!" Zhang Qu rolled his eyes and snorted coldly.

"Ah...... Could it be that the grain in this Yanbo City is one of the hoarding points set up by the shopkeeper! Gao Zhong and Zhao Li looked at each other and asked in surprise.

"Of course, because the army came north, and this was the only place where the army could rest after crossing the Altai Mountains, we hoarded a lot of food here, but it was all in the hands of the merchants. Their supplies were forcibly requisitioned by you and they told me urgently, and I learned that the army of the Dao had escaped here, so I hurried here! Zhang Qu said that he collected a large amount of grain and grass, and if he put it in one place, it would inevitably arouse suspicion, so it was all placed in the hands of various merchants.

"This ...... We really don't know that this is owned by the shopkeeper, otherwise we wouldn't have acted like this! Zhao Li hurriedly apologized.

"This was originally prepared for you, and you will take it when you take it, and it didn't fall into the hands of others anyway, but it just cheapened those merchants, so that they received a double share, and they had to work hard to get it back!" Zhang Qu said with a wry smile.

"Ha Lu Ha...... It doesn't matter if the shopkeeper is there, we also got the money from the barbarians, and we didn't use the money in the public office! Gao Zhong laughed when he heard it.

"That's what I said, but that's two or three hundred thousand, it hurts to think about it, and I have to get it back!" Zhang did not accept Gao Zhong's statement, and he must make up for it.

"Shopkeeper Zhang, the accumulation of this place is almost in our hands, but it is not enough to support our Western Expeditionary Army for January, is there anything available nearby?" No matter what Zhang Cheng thinks about collecting debts, what he cares about is how much material he can provide them, 200,000 stones seems to be a lot, but there are a lot of them, and there are still a large number of war horses to be fed, which is really not much on average.

"That's why I'm here, and although there are still some nearby, it's mostly ammunition and equipment, and there's not much food and grass. Therefore, it is necessary to go south to the north court as soon as possible to fundamentally solve the problem of insufficient baggage! Zhang Zhengse said that at the beginning, it only took a month at most for the Western Expeditionary Army to arrive here, and there should be a lot of accumulation in hand, which could be supported after a little replenishment here, but a lot of time was wasted on the way, resulting in increased supply pressure and insufficient hoarded materials.

"Shopkeeper Zhang, how is the fortification of the north courtyard?" Gao Zhong nodded and asked again, but knowing that there was ammunition nearby, his heart was a little wider, at least he didn't have to fight with the enemy with a burning stick.

"Beiting is the summer capital, every year its lord takes refuge in the summer, and when the weather turns cool, he returns to Gaochang for the winter, and now Bilge has already returned, and they think that our army will not be able to cross the Altai Mountains, so only a small number of soldiers are left to defend the city, and the fortification is not tight. I'm just worried that Xiliao is very close to here, and after learning the news, I will definitely send troops to stop it! Zhang Qu said.

"As long as there are bullets in the guns and food in the stomach, why should our 100,000 army be afraid of him Xiliao, the Jurchens were able to beat them far away from here, and the Jurchens have never been cheap in our hands, but I am afraid that they are not as powerful as the Jurchens!" Gao Pet said proudly.

"Since Xiliao wants to wade through this troubled water, why don't we divide our troops into two places, take Beiting all the way, and reject Xiliao all the way!" Zhao Liyan said...... (To be continued......)