Chapter 1156 The Peak of Reputation (two updates in one)

"Promoted to Han Zhenzhi Privy Council, Chief Minister..."

After Han Zhen received the imperial edict, he smiled.

Below, the officials from the Privy Council and Shaanxi Province all congratulated Han Zhen: "Congratulations! The Privy Council has been promoted to the Privy Council!"

Han Zhen laughed proudly when he heard this.

This time, Lanzhou was victorious and Liang Yi was killed. Xixia had more than 100,000 soldiers and horses, forcing Xixia to cut off the three states and stop its troops.

As a result, Han Zhen was promoted from Tongzhi Privy Council to the Privy Council, from deputy to principal, almost on an equal footing with Privy Councilor Feng Jing.

Now Han Zhen is holding the holy decree in his hand, how arrogant and arrogant he is.

Han Zhen glanced at everyone, interpreting the four characters "feiyang domineering" to the extreme.

Shen Kuo, the strategic envoy of Jingyuan Road, had just arrived a few days ago. When he learned that Han Zhen had been informed by the Privy Council, he rushed to Qingzhou without stopping.

There is also Cai Yanqing, Qinfeng Road transfer envoy.

Seeing the two of them, Han Zhen's face was full of smiles and he accepted their congratulations.

Then he transferred the Yongxing military road to the side, leaving Zhao Zhan aside in the cold. Zhao Zhan looked very embarrassed.

When it came to the question of whether to cross the river to support Lanzhou and cut off the retreat of the party's troops, Shen Kuo and Cai Yanqing both supported Han Zhen's idea, while Zhao Zhan strongly opposed it.

Zhao Zhan believed that Dangxiang claimed to besiege Lanzhou with 800,000 troops. His own troops were already exhausted to cope with Dangxiang's general Liang Yongneng's attack on Huanqing Road and Jingyuan Road. It would be useless to send troops across the river to intercept, so he should remain cautious.

The city is the top.

But Han Zhen was true to his word and was determined to do what he wanted to do, so it was useless for anyone to object. After Zhao Fan objected, he realized that it was of no use, so he finally had to do his best to supply food and mobilize civilian service.

Finally, with Han Zhen's persistence, he commanded the soldiers and horses on Jingyuan Road and Huanqing Road to cross the Yellow River to intercept and achieve an unprecedented victory.

Zhang Yue presided over the discussion of meritorious deeds in Zhongshu, and directly gave Han Zhen the first place. This ranking also surpassed Li Xian, who was in charge of the defense of Xihe Road, and Peng Sun, the general who captured Liang Yimi.

A "Privy Council of Knowledge" fell from the sky, sending Han Zhen into the top five civil servants today.

Now that Han Zhen was so ambitious, he immediately settled the scores and humiliated Zhao Zhan in public. This was undoubtedly a serious punishment for Zhao Zhan's mistake in taking sides in the first place.

But this move also aroused dissatisfaction among the civil servants of the Yongxing military line below Zhao Zhan.

This is related to Han Zhen's meritorious service afterwards. Representative Zhao Zhan was a civil servant in the Yongxing Military Department. They were responsible for the logistics and supplies of the army, recruiting civilians, repairing the city, etc. They were all responsible for it.

They think they have merit. After you, Han Zhen, got merit, did you turn your back on them and deny them?

Afterwards, Han Zhen hosted a banquet in honor of the envoy.

The envoy said to Han Zhen: "Your Majesty said that Lu Neihan and Dang Xiang will reach an agreement within these few days."

"If the two families stop fighting, please ask the prime minister to restrain the troops and guard the city!"

Han Zhen asked: "What is Lu Nehan's contribution this time?"

The envoy said: "The previous discussion seemed to be with the Privy Council."

Han Zhen was very dissatisfied when he heard that Lu Gongzhu was going to serve as Tongzhi Privy Council. He immediately sneered and said: "Lv Neihan, you can do this just by talking. Where will you put our soldiers who are fighting in blood?"

The envoy's expression changed when he heard this, but the generals below cheered.

"Without our efforts, would Xixia be willing to secede the three states?" Han Zhen asked.

The envoy was stunned and didn't know what to say.

The generals below cheered and said yes again.

…

After the banquet, Han Zhen pulled Shen Kuo to sit down and asked with a smile: "Cunzhong, thanks to your help this time."

"Many...thank you so much for the Privy Council's recommendation." Shen Kuo faced Han Zhen's stuttering problem, which unknowingly became very serious.

Han Zhen laughed, and then said: "Cunzhong is a smart man. It is indeed a bit dangerous to cross the Yellow River and send troops to intercept the retreat of the party's troops. Once Lanzhou is captured, it may be difficult for these troops to return as a whole. "

"Thanks to Cunzhong's courage and foresight, this great achievement was achieved."

Han Zhen immediately wooed Shen Kuo, talked about their friendship, and then talked about the great victory in Lanzhou and how the two of them worked side by side and cooperated with each other to achieve this great victory.

After hearing this, Shen Kuo was a little confused as to what to say. He had previously negotiated with the Liao State on the matter of converting the border.

Shen Kuo and Han Zhen both went to the Liao Kingdom as envoys, but during the negotiations, they had differences and they tried to undermine each other. However, Zhang Yue later mediated the conflict between the two.

Shen Kuo knew Han Zhen's character very well. He didn't speak lightly, and his words must have deep intentions. He must have a purpose in wooing him.

Han Zhen said: "This time around, I plan to rank Cunzhong first. If so, Cunzhong's return to the center will be just around the corner."

Shen Kuo moved his mind, and he was demoted from the Third Commander-in-Chief all the way to here. Of course, he dreamed of returning to the center.

Shen Kuo hurriedly said: "Shen... Shen doesn't dare to ask for anything extravagant, I just want... to be reinstated."

Han Zhen slapped the table and said with a smile: "Cunzhong, you are under my command, how can I treat you so poorly? Wouldn't it make the world laugh at Han?"

Han Zhen paused and said, "What do you think of Cunzhong's peace talks?"

Shen Kuo was not a fool. He suddenly thought of a sentence, that is, the general's military orders abroad would be ignored.

Shen Kuo said: "This is the intention of the imperial court. Shen doesn't dare to speculate. I just follow it."

Han Zhen said: "Then do you think this proposal comes from His Majesty or from Zhongshu?"

Shen Kuo said: "Maybe Zhongshu."

Han Zhen said: "It's human nature to accept something when you see it. Prime Minister Zhang was once a guest of my Han family. He comes from a poor family. He is inevitably too cautious in doing things and does not have a far-sighted vision."

Although Shen Kuo is dull, he is not stupid.

He knew very well that Han Zhen was extremely thoughtful and extremely ambitious.

Now that he has achieved a great victory in Lanzhou, he is not willing to stop there. He will take advantage of this momentum and sweep the party in one fell swoop. In this way, he can achieve greater victory.

In this way, Han Zhen's fame reached its peak.

Previously, the Song Dynasty was on the defensive against Xia, and there was no debate between war and war. Now that the situation has reversed, and after the offensive and defensive positions have changed, differences have emerged.

As a result, differences arose between Han Zhen, who was in charge of the war at the front, and Zhang Yue, who was in Zhongshu.

One is to stop here and negotiate peace with Xixia, and the other is to continue to strive for greater victory.

Han Zhen whispered to Shen Kuo: "At this moment, any minister who dares to speak out for peace will be despised by the world."

"As for us, we opened up and expanded the territory of the Song Dynasty, and we are blameless no matter what."

"Your Majesty and the wise people in the court will support us."

Speaking of this, Shen Kuo listened to Han Zhen and felt that the other party was right.

After a great victory, it would not be wrong to advocate a war, but to talk about peace would be despised.

This is politically risk-free.

Han Zhen said slowly: "Like Zhao Zhan and other ministers, not only will I not do meritorious service for them, but I will also report their objections to crossing the river in advance to the court."

"Actually, many generals have already supported me. Cunzhong, if you are willing, you can join me in opposing the peace negotiation with Xixia."

Shen Kuo hurriedly said: "I can't do it, I can't do it. Isn't this a disgrace to Prime Minister Zhang's face?"

Han Zhen heard this and said sternly: "Cunzhong, don't you want to make greater achievements? Return to the court and directly enter the two palaces? You must think clearly, I can give you what Prime Minister Zhang can give you."

"I...I." Shen Kuo was speechless, and he didn't want to be among the two palaces.

But he is different from Han Zhen.

The Han family was kind to Zhang Yue, so Han Zhen didn't need to betray Zhang Yue's favor, but Shen Kuo was different. He was despised by everyone in the old and new parties, and he could only look after Zhang Yue.

Shen Kuo said: "Shu Yuan, I think we should recover the three states before we go further."

Han Zhen sneered and said, "Just follow Shen Jinglue's wishes."

…

"Your Majesty, Zhang Dun actually threw his crown and left in public. He is really frivolous and has no ministerial character. It is not difficult to imagine why he refused to be a Jinshi in the first place."

"At the same time, Zhang Dun was not strict with his family. His father and his brother wantonly embezzled people's land. The people blocked the road and complained, but he was arrested and taken to Kaifeng Mansion."

"The common people gathered together to complain and wrote to the Kaifeng Prefecture. No official in the Kaifeng Prefecture dared to accept the complaint. I don't know how Zhang Dun gained such power that he could prevent the court officials from even charging him. Such ministers must be strictly controlled by the court."

In the memorial before the emperor, Wang Gui told the officials that Zhang Dun was wrong and said: "Please demote Zhang Dun!"

The officials knew about the quarrel between Zhang Yue and Zhang Dun, and also understood what happened in the Yanhe Palace. The officials said: "Zhang Dun did make mistakes, but he is still loyal to Sheji. He previously advocated the continued use of troops against Dangxiang.

Don't let a good opportunity slip by while Mr. Lu says that peace has been achieved."

"I heard that the party has continued to use troops and the country and the people are depleted. What should I do?"

Zhang Yue knew what the emperor meant, and Zhang Dun, the main combatant, was demoted, plus what he said to him in public at the end.

Or putting himself in a disadvantageous position in public opinion, just like how later generations view the representatives who implemented the appeasement policy, that is how they view Zhang Yue.

However, Zhang Yue still said: "Your Majesty, it is true that Dangxiang is in short supply of the country and the people, but the people from all walks of life in Shaanxi are also exhausted. The quality of isolation around Lanzhou is as good as the Second Fort being repaired, and there are still more along the line from Huizhou to Tiandu Mountain.

More than ten forts have not yet been built. The local Tibetan tribes have not been afraid of surrendering to the king and are in the middle of rebellion. I estimate that it will take at least some time. Therefore, it is also beneficial to me to temporarily negotiate peace with Dangxiang."

"Although Liang Yi was killed in the Lanzhou victory, most of those defeated were scattered warriors from various tribes, and his elite guards were not much damaged. The party may not dare to fight, but the country's leader wanted to repair internal affairs, so he did not hesitate to cede territory and take the initiative to ask for peace."
To be continued...