"What if the Jurchens have more ships? I am from Qingzhou, and I have heard since I was a child that when pirates fight at sea, no matter how experienced the sailors are, they cannot defeat an army with more or bigger ships..." Liu Hong said seriously.
"Minister Liu, please relax." Zhang Rongwen also answered swiftly. "What you said is absolutely right, but that was on the sea, and this is the Yellow River. The sea is boundless and the waves are strong. In such a place, if people don't have boats to rely on, where can they survive? Isn't it true that more boats are better than fewer boats, and bigger boats are better than smaller boats? But what about the Yellow River? Minister Liu, look at it with your own eyes, it's only this wide, and the old river mouth over there is not even this wide. In this situation, even if the Jurchens stockpile a bunch of steamships, I am confident that I can rely on the Imperial Camp Navy to defeat them on the river for the emperor."
Liu Hongdao woke up early when he saw the golden river surface, and the people around him nodded in agreement.
Zhao Jiu, on the other hand, also looked at the river surface sparkling in the afternoon sun, nodded, but continued to listen to the news in a serious manner: "Let's not talk about this matter, but what else? Does Commander Zhang have any other questions? I came out this time just to put aside the superficial and figure out some military issues from all aspects... Some things don't seem to affect the war at the moment, but what about one, two, three, five years? As long as Mr. Zhang has an idea in his mind, no matter what it is, just say it."
"To be honest with you, I... I do have some thoughts. For example, even though I'm used to it, I still feel that it's hard work for the people along the river to pound ice in winter." Zhang Rong listened carefully and hurriedly rolled up his sleeves to face him earnestly, but he probably felt that the posture was a bit awkward, and after a few words, he actually put it down again. "Hundreds or thousands of miles away, they have to pound ice, and usually every day. As a result, after pounding for many days, one day it gets cold and freezes overnight, and the Jurchens may come to harass them if they want."
“There’s nothing we can do about it.”
Before Zhao Jiu could speak, Liu Hongdao immediately responded. This time he was not showing off, because the winter ice-breaking has always been a regular winter corvée launched by the Dushuijian in the name of river management. "In my opinion, breaking ice and not breaking ice are completely different things... If we don't break ice, the ice will thicken day by day, and the Jurchens can make proper preparations in advance, and after proper preparations, they can directly send a large army to attack. If we break ice, the ice will suddenly become thick, and the Jurchens can only take the opportunity to harass. Moreover, if the ice is broken every day and can still freeze overnight, it can only be said that those days are extremely cold, and under such extreme cold, even if the Jurchens harass, their strength is not enough."
"Of course I understand this." Zhang Rong shook his head. "I just think that the people along the river have to bear more corvée labor for no reason. In the middle of winter, they can't even watch a few Cuju games compared to others. It's hard..."
"The people are indeed suffering, but right now, where in the north, south, east and west is not suffering?" Liu Hongdao was not impressed when he heard this, and even became a little excited. "The riverside needs to break ice, and the south also needs to increase taxes. Bashu simply prepaid taxes, which is almost equivalent to emptying the family's coffers, hurting the inside... And if we talk about corvée, there were also many corvées in the south when suppressing the rebellion before, and it has only been reduced since last year. Even if we don't talk about the south, but only talk about the north, the corvée in Guanxi is the heaviest, because the main battlefields of the wars in recent years are all in Guanxi! Doesn't General Zhang know that the government mobilized 100,000 corvées in Hedong before?!"
This came unexpectedly. Just when many people thought that Zhang Rong would be furious, this former bandit governor was not angry at all. Instead, he listened carefully and nodded seriously: "Minister Liu is right. I only look at the situation in front of me, but I didn't expect that other places are more difficult."
Zhao Jiu was silent for a moment, then asked again: "I remember the ice-breaking issue started after I returned to Tokyo. Has the problem always been there, or has it become more common? Is the problem the same across the lower reaches of the river?"
Zhang Rong was a little confused by the question. He lowered his head and thought for a long time before answering seriously: "Your Majesty's question is true... In recent years, more and more people have complained about their hardship. The complaints along the river around Tokyo are louder, while those above Luoyang and below Shaoxing are less."
"This is because the situation has eased a little, and some people have forgotten the brutality of the Jin people, and gradually become unable to endure hardship." Lu Benzhong finally interrupted.
Zhao Jiu sighed in his heart, but his face showed no extra reaction. He just nodded slightly:
"That's a little bit true, but it's also because Tokyo's economy has recovered and prices have risen, making the surrounding money and grain worthless. Especially in winter, the people along the river have to make ice every day, which delays the opportunity to go to the city to work as servants during the slack season. Naturally, they will complain... However, they still have to make ice. There's nothing we can do about it. Besides, once the Northern Expedition is successful, this matter will be resolved... Of course, speaking of this matter, I have some other thoughts."
As he spoke, Zhao Jiu glanced at Liu Yan, who understood. The imperial guards also took the initiative to line up with their swords, pushing back some of the local officials and low-ranking naval officers who were originally accompanying them.
Those who stayed near Emperor Zhao, including Liu Hongdao, stood up immediately. Zhang Rong was stunned for a moment, then looked at the reactions of the people around him, and quickly stood with his hands folded.
"What I mean is that we can make some preparations in advance. If it suddenly freezes over, we can do the opposite, cross the river and stab the Jurchens, and use offense as defense..." Zhao Jiu ordered solemnly. "We don't seek victory or spoils, we just want to scare the enemy and then return with our whole army."
Hearing this, many people including Liu Hongdao were stunned, but soon they came to their senses. Even Zhang Rong knew that Emperor Zhao's move was probably not for military spoils, but because Zhang Zongyan had just been defeated in a battle while crossing the river, and he wanted to do this to boost morale.
When they thought of this, everyone including Zhang and Liu agreed.
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