Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 108 The Selection is All Depends on the Husband (Part )
As if unaware of Wanyan Yuanyi's expression, Hesheli Liangbi stroked his long beard and continued, "Not only do I know this, I also know that the Song army's northern expeditionary force numbered fewer than 5,000 men, but they were well-equipped for both land and sea operations. I can also guess that once the Song captured Haizhou, they would inevitably attack Yizhou and cut off the Yishui River."

After a pause, Hesheli Liangbi continued, "I can also speculate. After the Song army captures Yizhou, if our army marches south to attack the Song, they may cut off the Yellow River and Huai River waterways and harass our logistics. If our army does not march south, they will go to Dongping Prefecture or even attack Jinan Prefecture or Yidu Prefecture."

At this point, Hesheli Liangbi smiled and shook his head. "The so-called mountains and rivers are natural geography. The movements of the Song people are inseparable from this. They can't just leave Dongping Prefecture alone and attack Daming Prefecture directly."

The more Wanyan Yuanyi listened, the colder his heart became, and by the end he was so frightened that he could hardly express it.

He was not afraid of the thousands of Song soldiers, but was afraid of Hesheli Liangbi's nonchalant attitude.

This is not the attitude that a major country’s government should have when facing the loss of its territory!

Do you really think that all prime ministers in the world are bastards like Qin Hui who only appear once in a thousand years?

But it was precisely because he was certain that Hesheli Liangbi was not that kind of bastard that Wanyan Yuanyi was so terrified, not knowing what he was up to.

"Left Prime Minister, does His Majesty know about this matter?" Wanyan Yuanyi suppressed his fear and lowered his voice again, almost to the level of a mosquito.

Hesheli Liangbi's expression remained calm and composed. "Your Majesty naturally doesn't know. I've been reviewing documents according to the normal procedures, so these documents cannot be delivered to Your Majesty at this time. Of course, if Minister Wanyan is interested, he can take this document to see His Majesty in person."

Wanyan Yuanyi shuddered violently.

If this type of document is reviewed normally, it should be sorted and reviewed by the military department, then sent to the Marshal's Office, and then discussed by the Secretariat and reported to the Emperor of the Jin Dynasty.

After all, the Jin emperor was just a person, not a machine for reviewing memorials, and he would inevitably rely on the bureaucratic system.

Even Zhu Yuanzhang, who was as fierce as a tiger in later generations, only abolished the prime minister system instead of getting rid of the entire bureaucratic system.

But there is also a saying that goes, "In an emergency, one must take the necessary measures." A state has been lost, and Hesheli Liangbi is still pursuing procedural justice. Isn't it a bit too disrespectful of the emperor as a cadre?
As for personally delivering this bad news to Wan Yanliang...

No fucking kidding.

Whether Wanyan Liang was a tyrant or not is debatable, but he was definitely a tyrant who was used to speaking with the sword, otherwise he would never have been able to control the Jin Dynasty.

How could Wanyan Yuanyi dare to report bad news to Wanyan Liang and risk offending Hesheli Liangbi?
After weighing the pros and cons for a moment, the Jin Dynasty's Minister of War straightened his back and forced himself to calm down. "Left Prime Minister, I will not speak empty words today. I only have one word of advice. As a senior official and a pillar of the country, you must shoulder all responsibilities."

"No, I'm still waiting for something."

"What's the matter?"

Hesheli Liangbi's smile turned strange, and he said softly, "The governor of Yizhou, Pushan Damo, was killed and his army was destroyed."

Wanyan Yuanyi was stunned as if struck by lightning.

"When the time comes, I will bring the documents announcing the fall of Haizhou and Yizhou and go to see Your Majesty." Hesheli Liangbi's smile remained unchanged. "This is my responsibility."

Seeing the other party standing there in stunned silence, his eyes filled with horror, Hesheli Liangbi returned to the table and poured two cups of hot tea. "Yite Nian, when I was young, I was studying in my hometown of Anchuhushui. I was extremely naughty and liked to climb trees to catch birds and steal their eggs."

"According to our Jurchen tradition, these little things don't matter. But my father, Lord Taiyu, believes that a real man should die a worthy death. If he falls to his death because of mischievous bird-catching, his death will become a joke."

"But I was young, and even after my father scolded me, I always agreed to his orders in person, but secretly I couldn't help climbing trees and playing. Do you know how my father taught me?"

Wanyan Yuanyi was completely at a loss for words and could only slowly shake his head in response.

"My father sawed the lowest branch in half. It looked fine on the outside, but as soon as I stepped on it, the branch snapped and I fell hard into the snow. That fall almost cost me my life."

Hesheli Liangbi shook his head and smiled bitterly, handing the teacup to Wanyan Yuanyi. "After this, although I also enjoy climbing trees, I will be extremely cautious and careful. Sometimes, it's good to suffer a small loss." Wanyan Yuanyi carefully took the teacup and said, "Does the Left Prime Minister mean that Your Majesty should also suffer a little? Does the Left Prime Minister actually not agree with the southern expedition to the Song Kingdom? Forgive my frankness, but it's too late. If we stop the southern expedition now, who knows, the consequences may be worse than just fighting to the death."

"Whose result?" Hesheli Liangbi replied in a deep voice: "Is it your result, my result, your Majesty's result, or the result of the Great Jin?"

Wanyan Yuanyi was confused for a moment, then suddenly came to his senses.

Halting the southern expedition at this time was naturally a major blow to these powerful individuals. However, for the entire Jin Dynasty, abandoning the all-out war of annihilation and choosing to gradually erode Song territory through small-scale battles was not a bad thing.

Could it be that Hesheli Liangbi was so willing to sacrifice his life for the Jin Kingdom?

Before Wanyan Yuanyi could figure it out, Hesheli Liangbi continued, spreading his hands. "Furthermore, I didn't expect the Song State to take action at this time. It would be understandable if it was earlier or later, but why at the end of July or the beginning of August?"

"Yes, why?" Wanyan Yuanyi muttered to himself. After quickly recalling the geographical locations of Haizhou and Yizhou in his mind, he suddenly shuddered.

To be honest, Wanyan Yuanyi had been shocked many times today, but this time was even more shocking.

After taking a few deep breaths, Wanyan Yuanyi's eyes turned red as he looked at Hesheli Liangbi: "Left Prime Minister, have any military orders been issued to Su Baoheng and the Wanyan Zheng family?"

These two people were the commander-in-chief and deputy commander-in-chief of the Jin navy.

Hesheli Liangbi kept smiling, took a sip of tea, and answered frankly, "Of course not."

Wanyan Yuanyi felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave. A cold feeling rose from the soles of his feet, and his teeth began to tremble violently.

What Hesheli Liangbi wanted to sell was not only Gao Wenfu of Haizhou and Pushan Damo of Yizhou, but also the navy of the Jin Dynasty stationed in Tang Island!
It should be noted that although the Jin Kingdom's southern expedition strategy is still kept secret and is in the stage of preparation, high-ranking officials of Wanyan Yuanyi's level naturally know about it.

The main attack direction has been determined. Wanyan Liang will personally lead the main force, follow the Huai River whose river channel has been taken away by the Yellow River, break through the two routes of Huainan in the Song Dynasty, and drink water from the Yangtze River.

The navy would also depart from Tang Island and head straight for Lin'an, cooperating with the main force from the east led by Wanyan Liang, and directly destroy the small southeastern court of the Song Dynasty with a single attack.

If the Jin navy in Tang Island, Shandong was wiped out by the Song army, the Eastern Army would be isolated and deep in the enemy's territory, and it would be easy for something bad to happen!

Wanyan Yuanyi, who was well versed in military geography, instantly understood Hesheli Liangbi's intention.

The biggest goal of this Shangshu Zuocheng was to make Wanyan Liang cancel his southern expedition plan and focus on the internal affairs of the Jin Dynasty.

If this goal could not be achieved, he wanted to cause chaos in Shandong and destroy the navy, so that the Jin Kingdom could not deploy heavy troops in Lianghuai, thereby preventing Wanyan Liang from attacking Lin'an directly and taking a military risk to achieve his goal in one battle.

Hesheli Liangbi seemed to be right, but his method of betraying tens of thousands of naval soldiers still broke Wanyan Yuanyi's bottom line.

Wanyan Yuanyi, no longer fearing Hesheli Liangbi, waved his sleeves and said, "Left Prime Minister, aren't you acting just like that scoundrel Qin Hui? Destroying the Great Wall and selling out your own men for so-called strategic gain—how shameless! Although I'm only the Minister of War, I have my own responsibilities and ambitions. Farewell!"

With that, Wanyan Yuanyi turned away, but only heard the clear voice of Hesheli Liangbi behind him.

"Governing a great country is like cooking a small dish; you can't be impatient. If you're reluctant to pull out the firewood now, you'll only end up with a pot of charred charcoal. Think carefully!"

Wanyan Yuanyi paused, then walked away without looking back.

Hesheli Liangbi still maintained the demeanor of a prime minister, poured himself another cup of tea, and sat behind the desk.

After a while, a rare look of fatigue appeared on his face.

(End of this chapter)