Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 766 Killing the Chicken

The Wuliang Mountain Cherry Blossom Valley is a place of picturesque scenery with clear water and green hills.

Next to a jade-belt-like stream, there is an exquisite bamboo building.

Gao Zhenshou, the hereditary prime minister of Dali, was holding a jade bowl and drinking the old hen stewed with matsutake mushroom soup slowly.

The soup was delicious and fragrant, and Gao Zhenshou squinted his eyes comfortably.

At his age, still having a good appetite is one of the few joys in life.

Gao Zhenming sat cross-legged opposite and told Gao Zhenshou about Yang Liangao's conditions.

Gao Zhenshou said slowly: "Do you think that our Gao family should agree to Yang Liangao?"

Gao Zhenming thought for a moment and said, "The new emperor of the Song Dynasty has just been established, and Dali has taken the initiative to provoke a fight. The young emperor is young and full of vigor, and he will definitely not tolerate such humiliation.

Now, the three armies of the Song Dynasty are marching south with great momentum. If what Yang Liangao said is true, it will be impossible to promote the Duan family. "

Gao Zhenshou pondered for a moment and said, "So, should we agree to him?"

"If the Song Dynasty really stands on his side, we have no choice."

"Um……"

Gao Zhenshou put the bowl down, drank up the small bowl of soup, ate up all the matsutake mushrooms in it, and sucked the chicken leg until only a bone was left.

Gao Zhenshou was silent for a while, and then said, "Although the Yang family originated from the Tantric Buddhism, they have long been independent, and the Tubo people have long been dissatisfied.

This time, they agreed to help, not because they were persuaded by Yang Liangao, but because they were trying to "praise and kill" him. "

Gao Zhenshou paused, then looked at Gao Zhenming: "If our Gao family does this, I'm afraid the Tibetan Tantric Sect will not let it go."

Gao Zhenming said disapprovingly: "If they refuse to give up, what can we do? Will they bring troops to attack us?"

Gao Zhenshou smiled slightly and said, "Our Gao family has played a trick on Yang Liangao. Even if he hasn't figured it out now, he will figure it out sooner or later.

This person has great ambitions but little talent, and a narrow mind. He will definitely take action when the time comes.

Moreover, the Yang family built the temple at the place where the powerful people from all sides lived. Unfortunately, the Yang family themselves were also powerful people who owned a state, rather than pure magicians.

There is no room for two tigers in one mountain. If the Yang family becomes the royal family..."

Gao Zhenshou shook his head repeatedly.

The master he was talking about was not a Zen master who could perform magic, but a monk who was good at explaining the scriptures and was dedicated to preaching the teachings.

A sutra master refers to a monk who is proficient in Buddhist scriptures.

A theory master refers to a monk who is proficient in the theory collection and interpretation of the scriptures.

A lawyer refers to a monk who is good at reciting and explaining the Vinaya.

In Tubo, religious power and secular political power were two parallel systems.

The Yang family became the emperor, but they held both religious and political power in their own hands.

From the very beginning, Gao Zhenshou never thought of making the Yang family the royal family of Dali.

It’s just that the current Dali emperor’s lineage has no close relationship with him, so let Yang Liangao do it, and after the matter is done, they will reap the benefits.

However, they did not expect that Yang Liangao, who was seeking help from others, could actually become the King of Sichuan in the Song Dynasty.

As for the Liangshan local soldiers' attack on Wumeng of the Song Dynasty, he now knew that it must have been done by Yang Liangao.

However, it is difficult to obtain evidence in this matter, and I am too lazy to bother with it.

Now, because of Yang Yuan, they can no longer easily control Yang Liangao as before, so they have to think of another strategy.

The two brothers were silent for a long time. Gao Zhenshou smiled softly and said, "You go and have a rest. I will come up with a safe solution first."

"Yes!" Although they are brothers, there is a difference of more than 20 years between them. Gao Zhenming has always respected his elder brother as his father.

After hearing what he said, Gao Zhenming stood up, bowed, and quietly retreated.

Gao Zhenshou sat in silence for a long time, then stood up and left the bamboo building, went upstream along the stream, and soon came to a place with a flat terrain and a canopy of lush pines.

On a stone under a pine tree, an old monk in red robes was sitting cross-legged. Beside him, clear water flowed over the green moss-covered bluestone, making a gurgling sound.

"Vajrabodhi Venerable."

Gao Zhenshou stopped, bowed to the old monk with a ruddy face and full of vigor, and then sat down on the cushion in front of him.

The old monk slightly opened his eyes, glanced at Gao Zhenshou, and said, "Is the Prime Minister worried about something?"

"Yes!"

Gao Zhenshou told Master Vajrabodhi that the Song Dynasty had sent troops and entered the border of Dali.

Vajrabodhi frowned and said, "Did the Song people really master a very powerful firearm?"

Gao Zhenshou smiled bitterly and said, "Master, even if the Song people don't have firearms, we can't defeat them."

Vajrabodhi said: "So... it's no longer feasible to defeat Yang?"

Gao Zhenshou said: "I'm just not sure whether what Yang Liangao said is true."

Vajrabodhi frowned slightly and his eyes flickered.

With the help of the ambitious Yang Liangao, the Emperor Duan, who was at odds with the Gao family, was driven out of power.

He then incited the powerful and influential people from all sides to support an obedient member of the Duan family as emperor again.

Then the rebellious Yang family was suppressed, and the religious power held by the Yang family was replaced by Tantric monks. From then on, the Yang family became a third-rate force.

In the end, the Gao family was satisfied, the Tibetan Tantric Buddhism was satisfied, and the dignitaries of the Dali Kingdom were also satisfied.

But who knew that Cheng Yaojin would show up halfway...

Did Yang Liangao lie?
Vajrabodhi doesn't think so. Yang Liangao would not use such a big event to deceive the public.

The fact that the Liangshan local soldiers invaded Wumeng was itself suspicious.

Therefore, what Yang Liangao said might be true. The Song Dynasty really supported Yang Liangao and sent troops to help him.

What should I do about this?

Vajrabodhi closed his eyes and thought for a long time.

The wind blew the pine waves, the water gurgled, and after a long time, Vajrabodhi laughed.

"Prime Minister, since Yang Liangao has found a powerful backer, then persuade the local dignitaries to settle down and let him be the emperor." Gao Zhenshou said doubtfully: "This will not be a big loss for my Gao family, but for the Tantric Buddhism..."

Vajrabodhi said, "Isn't Yang Liangao going to marry Gao's daughter Shu Yao as his empress? Then, let Shu Yao control Yang Liangao, and from then on, the emperor will make the decision, and the empress will make the decision. That would be perfect, wouldn't it?"

Gao Zhenshou said: "How can the Yang family just sit there and watch? Besides, Yang Liangao is not someone who will be manipulated by a woman."

Vajrabodhi smiled and said, "Shu Yao has cultivated the six aspects of Ming Fei and has the ability to confuse the gods."

Gao Zhenshou was surprised and asked, "Can you confuse and control other people's minds?"

Vajrabodhi shook his head: "As long as it's not too extreme, people will be misled by her unconsciously, thinking that what she said is right, and will subconsciously think and act according to her opinions."

Vajrabodhi paused and said, "This is a method that is mastered by great masters. Otherwise, how can it be spread and preached?"

Gao Zhenshou said: "Yang Liangao also practices Tantric Zen, has profound skills and a strong will. Can he be induced?"

"We only need to give him another medicine and have him take it for a long time, and his mind will become confused and even more chaotic than that of an ordinary person. Then, if we combine it with the six phases of the Ming Concubine, he will definitely obey us."

Gao Zhenshou was delighted when he heard this: "Great! Since there is such a wonderful method, I am not afraid... Hiss~, it's just that Shu Yao doesn't like Yang Liangao..."

Master Vajrabodhi smiled and said, "Isn't that better? She doesn't like him, but he has taken possession of her body. She will definitely feel resentful towards Yang Liangao, and she will not be soft-hearted when she tries to control him in the future."

Gao Zhenshou's eyes flickered, and after thinking for a while, he nodded gently and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Master. I know what to do now."

"Goodbye, Prime Minister." After saying this, Master Vajrabodhi closed his eyes again.

Gao Zhenshou followed the flowing water again, following the waves.

……

The official system of the Dali Kingdom was greatly influenced by the Central Plains Empire, but there were also some differences.

Under the emperor is the prime minister.

Below that is an executive body similar to the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers, but the Dali Kingdom called it the "Jiu Shuang".

For example, Mushuang is similar to the Ministry of War. Congshuang is similar to the Ministry of Revenue. Fashuang is similar to the Ministry of Punishment...

In terms of local administrative divisions, Dali has district names such as prefecture, county, town, and state.

However, they have equal status and no subordinate relationship, and they are all vertically responsible to the court.

The official positions are also different from those in the Central Plains, although the functions are similar.

For example, the Jiedushi was called Yanlian, the Dudu was called Yanlan, the Tongpan was called Jianfushi, the county magistrate was called Xianyin, Minister of State, Dianchang, and so on.

Yang Yuan's troops advanced so quickly that they encountered almost no obstruction along the way. They had already wedged into the hinterland of Liangshan Prefecture and reached the copper and gold vein that he had been longing for.

At this time, the chiefs of the tribes in Liangshan Prefecture, such as the head of the village, the county magistrate, and the governor, finally reacted and hastily gathered troops to prepare to encircle and suppress the invading enemy.

However, this Song army rushed into Dali in a hurry, did not seize the county cities, did not plunder the fortresses and villages, but went to a desolate area where no one lived, which surprised the local officials of various tribes.

Some of them who were more shrewd felt that there must be something fishy behind the Song army's unreasonable fighting style.

For fear of falling into a trap, one must be extra cautious.

As for Yang Yuan, he had already occupied this mountain of gold, so he felt relieved.

Yang Yuan immediately deployed the entire army and divided them into four tasks.

The first route was to build cities and forts according to the terrain.

This is to be a permanent military city, not a temporary garrison site, so it must be treated with great ceremony and respect.

The construction drawings were designed by Wang Changsheng himself.

The second army was led by Han Qianchen, who planned and designed the mining area construction.

The third route was to explore back along the way they came to ensure the smooth flow of food.

However, at this time, the food for the garrison could be transported by the State of Song, but this must not be done in the future as long-distance transportation would be too wasteful.

Only by getting food locally can you achieve long-term survival.

Therefore, the Fourth Army was responsible for "friendly" telling the various tribes, towns and cities in Liangshan Prefecture that future taxes would have to be paid to the Song Dynasty.

Because, from then on, Liangshan Prefecture belonged to the Song Dynasty.

That naturally does not just refer to the land here, but also includes the population living on this land.

But, you said that this place belongs to the Song Dynasty, so does it belong to the Song Dynasty?
Of course, it is impossible to decide by just issuing an edict.

They intimidated them with military force, won them over with promises of benefits, promoted them with industrial and commercial development, and assimilated them with culture and education...

The key to rallying people's hearts and integrating strength is to use both war, rituals, music and carrots and sticks.

And the first step must be deterrence by force.

But Yang Yuan didn't want to kill too many people, as the population was too precious to him.

In order to achieve the deterrent effect at the lowest cost, we must pick out the first bird to stand out, break its bones, suck out its marrow, and serve as a warning to the rest.

By then, it will be time for the concubine to take action.

Although this may seem cruel, it is the best way to avoid turning this place into ruins in the endless tug-of-war.

But who should be chosen to be the “one”?

After all, Yang Yuan had just arrived. From the information he had previously acquired, he knew the approximate local population and its distribution, which major cities there were, and the conditions of the roads and mountains, which was already very good.

As for which force is the most determined enemy, it is impossible to find out clearly under normal circumstances.

Although Dao Feifei roughly remembered the distribution of power in each state, prefecture and county, it was impossible for her to understand the positions of these chieftains in such detail.

She was racking her brains to think of a way to explain it to her husband as clearly as possible, when Liu Dazhuang came running into the tent:

"General Fu, the Tiger-Catching Sword Minister of Ale City in Liangshan Prefecture is leading his troops to attack us."

When Yang Yuan heard this, he said to Dao Feifei, "Dao Qinhu? Feifei, his last name is also Dao. Is he your relative?"

Dao Feifei said smilingly: "My dear, not all the people with the surname Dao in Dali are my relatives."

Her lacquered eyes turned smartly, and she nodded and said, "Maybe they were one family five hundred years ago? Anyway, I don't remember."

Yang Yuan was overjoyed, patted Dao Feifei's hips, and said lovingly: "Go and play, your husband will kill a chicken first!"

(End of this chapter)