Chapter 222: Encirclement and annihilation of Hulagu (Part 1)

"See the Emperor." Li Jun took Taoist Qingfeng's hand and strode forward. Liao Shenggong, Zheng Jinghe, Zhang Shijie, Zhang Jue, Jie Jin, Zhao Liangchun, Chen Xingdao, European army Xing, Du Dayong, Huang Han, Xu Guanghan, and Zhu Ruixiangqi bowed to Li Jun.

Li Jun never cared about these common etiquettes, so he still waved his hand and said, "Forgive me, sit down." He pulled a chair and said, "Master, please sit down." Qingfengzi thanked Li Jun and sat down. Li Jun sat down, and Liao Shenggong and the others sat down.

Li Jun looked around everyone, laughed before speaking, and said, "I'm going to ask you a question: What does it mean to meet a teacher?"

Is this still necessary to ask? Will it mean rendezvous, and of course, the division refers to the army. The meaning of rendezvous means that the army attacking from different directions will be combined together. This question is too simple. Li Jun actually used it as a question to test Liao Shenggong and others with super talent, which is really unexpected.

"Emperor, meeting troops means that the army gathers together, just like the Northern Expedition of the court, where three armies gather in Bianjing." Jie Jin blurted out without thinking.

No matter how correct his words were, they were immediately responded by the European army, Zhang Shijie, Zhang Jue and others, and said together: "Yes."

However, the scholar Li Jun's answer was greatly disappointed. Li Jun's answer was: "It's not wrong to say this, but it's not complete enough, and there should be a better statement."

Jie Jin's answer was 100% correct. Li Jun actually thought it was wrong, which was really unexpected. Liao Shenggong thought for a while and said, "I would like to ask the emperor to give me advice."

"I don't dare to give me some advice. I'll tell you my simple opinions, and I'll ask you to consider it." Li Jun said in a humble scholarly tone, "I think the best explanation for this meeting is not only the army's rendezvous, but more importantly, the generals must also meet. Just like we are now, together, we are the real meeting."

Li Jun’s words were suspected of being accused of being strongly defended, but Jie Jin and the others had tears in their eyes and said excitedly: “Thank you for your care!”

They interpreted the true meaning of Li Jun's words, that is, not only did the Southern Song Dynasty win a great victory, but several armies gathered in Bianjing, but more importantly, Liao Shenggong and other generals suffered no losses and went to Bianjing to join him intact. War is a dangerous thing, and casualties are inevitable. Even if the Southern Song Dynasty wins, the generals suffer heavy losses. In that case, the victory will be imperfect and the significance of meeting will be greatly reduced.

Li Jun was able to speak like this because he was very worried about the safety of the generals and took their safety to heart. This was a touching thing in itself. Jie Jin and others interpreted Li Jun's voice, and there was still a reason not to be moved.

Qingfengzi nodded and said, "The army's reunion is a great joy, and the generals' reunion is another joy. Today is a double joy. God bless me, the Song Dynasty. Emperor, I think we should take advantage of the opportunity when the generals gather together to discuss how to annihilate Hulagu."

After Bianjing was gone, Kublai Khan disappeared. There were only the remnants of Hulagu and Guo Kan in the Central Plains. Among these two, it should be the most important thing to eliminate Hulagu. Qing Fengzi's words immediately received support from everyone and said, "Yes, the emperor."

Li Jun, who has always been eager for official duties, had a somewhat unexpected performance this time, shook his hand and said, "What the Taoist priest said is not without reason. However, I think we should eat something first when we let this matter go. Since the Northern Expedition, you have been exhausted and very difficult. It is rare to have this time, so take the opportunity to relax."

Jie Jin hurriedly said, "The emperor, work hard for the country and fulfill his loyalty to the court. I dare not speak of my hardship. I also asked the emperor to give an order. As long as the emperor gave an order, I will immediately bring Xulagu's head."

His words resonated with each other, and Zhang Jue said: "Emperor, General Jie is right. I have already prepared to annihilate Xulagu, and I just waited for the emperor to give the order."

"You can be prepared and deeply understand my heart. I am very happy." Li Jun picked up the emperor's driver for a few words, said, "Hulagu is now hard to escape, and he doesn't fight for this meal to sweep. What I have prepared for you is not a delicacy, but a snack soup dumpling from Bianjing. A hundred years ago, the imperial court rushed south and the soup dumplings also arrived in Lin'an. I think you have eaten them in Lin'an, but the authentic soup dumplings are still in Bianjing. We have regained Bianjing. What's the harm in eating this soup dumplings."

Previously, Jie Jin and the others opposed it very much. After hearing Li Jun's words, they would never object again. Because they interpreted various meanings from Li Jun's words. It is reasonable to hold a grand liberation ceremony for important strategic goals like Bian Jing to restore the liberation ceremony, but Li Jun did not do this. This is to cherish the people's strength and not to be arrogant.

Without this ceremony, it was a pity for the generals who worked hard and made great contributions, such as Jie Jin and others, so Li Jun decided to compensate with a snack. However, this snack contained a deep meaning. Soup dumplings are the signature food of Bianjing. Since the Song Dynasty moved south, authentic soup dumplings have been difficult to eat, and it has never happened before for the generals to eat soup dumplings in Bianjing. Today, they are a great honor to eat soup dumplings in this scene.

Therefore, a snack seems ordinary, but it is not ordinary at all. It is both frugal and affordable, and it also contains a special meaning. It is an affirmation of the soldiers' sacrifice and bloodshed. It is a unique expression.

According to their understanding of Li Jun, Li Jun must be confident in making such arrangements. After eating this meal, he will embark on a new journey. This is undoubtedly a unique farewell ceremony.

"Thank you, the emperor!" Liao Shenggong and the others said very moved.

Li Jun made a gesture to Duan Ganmu and said, "Ganmu, come on."

Duan Ganmu responded and directed a group of guards to bring soup and put them in front of the generals.

"The soup dumplings are as color as amber, crystal clear, thin skin, fresh meat, and beautiful soup. They are the delicacies of Bianjing, so don't miss them." Li Jun picked up the chopsticks, picked up a soup dumpling and put it on a white porcelain plate, and said, "The way to eat soup dumplings is particular, don't make a joke."

Xie Jin asked, "Prince, how do you eat it?"

Li Jun had a little weird smile on his face and said, "Of course, I will eat it one by one."

He said nothing, and he didn't eat anything one bite at a time. After hearing this, Jie Jin almost choked to death and muttered, "If you don't say it, don't say it, it's so encouraging." He picked up a soup bun and bit it. He bit it, which was amazing. The soup splashed on his fingers, and Jie Jin's nose couldn't stop moving, and he said, "It smells so fragrant."

"This is what I asked the chef of Yulou to make for you specifically, of course it's delicious." Li Jun explained while eating the soup dumplings, reminding Jie Jin: "Don't suck your fingers, be careful to flow to your back."

The soup on his fingers flowed to his back. The chances of this happening were too low. Jie Jin had no doubts about Li Jun's use of troops to fight, but he didn't believe in it at all. He muttered, "Is it so evil?" He began to suck his left hand's fingers. His sucking was amazing. The soup flowed along his fingers to his arm. Jie Jin hurriedly sucked his arm, but the soup flowed to his elbow again.

Jie Jin shouted, "It flows so fast?" His arm was raised high, and the soup flowed even faster. After a while, it reached the shoulders and then to the back.

"It's so weird. It's really flowing to the back, it's still so sticky and so hot." Jie Jin stood up and stretched his right hand behind him.

His words immediately attracted a burst of laughter, and Li Jun laughed and said, "You kid don't believe in evil, now do you believe it? You kid fight very well, and you can't be satisfied with eating. Don't eat this soup bun in the middle, eat it from the bottom first. If you bite it from the middle, the soup will not be filled with water. If you raise your hand so high, the soup will only flow on your back and not on your heels, which is worthy of your boy." His words caused a burst of hilarious noise.

"Your Majesty, you said it earlier. My heart still hurts now." Jie Jin complained.

Qing Fengzi put a soup dumpling on a white porcelain plate, then clamped it up, pointed to the soup shredded soup that connected the porcelain plate and the soup dumpling, and said, "General Jie, you haven't found this yet?"

Jie Jin never expected that the soup was so magical. His tiger eyes were wide open and he said in extreme surprise: "This is constantly? They are really capable, and they can actually draw water into silk."

"Or else, can they call a chef?" Li Jun said with a smile.

Liao Shenggong took a bite and poured the soup bag and sighed: "We are happy and regretful to enjoy this delicious food in Bianjing today."

His words immediately aroused Qingfengzi's interest and asked, "General Liao, where does the regret come from?"

"The Taoist priest doesn't know that we can sit here to eat soup buns today, of course, the soldiers, the emperor's, and the Xiangfu and Lu Shan's contribution." Liao Shenggong explained: "Especially, Xiangfu, in order to raise military expenses, he has a lot more hairy hair, which makes it distressing to look at it. If he could sit here and eat the soup buns with us, his hair would probably turn black."

Of course, he could not understand that Li Tingzhi was a diner and was overjoyed when he saw the delicious food. Instead, if Li Tingzhi could eat soup buns with them here, it would be the best reward for Li Tingzhi's hard work. Li Tingzhi ate all night long, in order to restore Bianjing. Bianjing was revived, and eating soup buns in Bianjing was of great significance, and Li Tingzhi must be very happy.

His words suddenly reduced everyone's appetite and no longer had an appetite. This is easy to understand. They feasted here, but Li Tingzhi, who deserved the most, did not eat it. They were in the mood to eat it again.

Li Jun smiled and said, "You don't have to feel guilty. I have sent someone to send a batch of soup dumplings to Lin'an, and asked Xiangfu to distribute some to the ministers in the court. General Gao and General Liu also sent a batch of them to give some to the soldiers who have made contributions. Chen Yizhong also sent a batch of them. We can sit here to eat soup dumplings, which is the credit of all the soldiers, and the credit of all the ministers in the court. We cannot enjoy it alone."

In order to please Yang Guifei, Emperor Minghuang of Tang sent fresh lychees from Guangdong, and was ridiculed as "A concubine riding a ride in the world, no one knew it was lychees coming." Li Jun delivered soup bags to Li Tingzhi and the others thousands of miles away. Although it was a long distance and it was inevitable to spend money, Qingfengzi and the others dared not connect the two, because this was the best reward for Li Tingzhi and the others' hard work. It was better to say that it was a good news than a food delivery!

"Emperor!" Jie Jin and the others were moved and could not speak.

Li Jun smiled and said, "Don't just talk, eat it, we have to discuss major issues after eating it." Jie Jin and his team opened their appetites and started eating very hard.

Qingfengzi exclaimed: "The emperor will not decorate his achievements, and will not hide his virtues, and his virtues will be better than Emperor Tang."

This means that Li Jun remembers the merits of his ministers, recognizes the merits of his ministers, and gives them the rewards they deserve. This is a very rare thing. In Chinese history, there are many historical events that make people sigh. Their failure is not when they fail, but when they succeed. The reason is that the emperor takes credit and does not recognize the merits of his ministers. It is precisely because of this that there is a very famous exclamation saying "It is easy to share hardships, but difficult to share wealth and honor." For example, King Goujian of Yue killed Wen Zhong after his success.

The emperor who could remember the merits of his ministers was probably Emperor Taizong of Tang. He did not treat meritorious officials as "retreat meritorious officials and promote civil officials" by Emperor Guangwu of Han, but instead used them as usual, just to ask them to do their own things.

Although Li Jun just asked the heroes of Jie Jin and the others to have a soup bun, this was a trivial matter, but the friendship was different. This was to recognize the merits of the generals, and its significance was extraordinary.

Li Jun did not understand Qingfengzi's meaning, and said, "Gathering many scholars will lead to great success." This is a saying in the Book of Songs, which is used to praise King Wen of Zhou for his grand occasion of respecting wise men and talents. Li Jun borrowed this poem, meaning that Bian Jing was able to be restored, which was the contribution of the soldiers. Inviting them to have a soup bun is what they deserve.

Qingfengzi praised with infinite admiration: "The emperor is truly benevolent and sage!"

"Emperor, during the battle of restoration of Bianjing, the Tartars' army was chaotic and unconscious, like a headless fly. I thought Kublai Khan might have suffered heavy damage in artillery fire, which left the Tartars army uncontrolled, giving us an opportunity to quickly recover Bianjing." Qing Fengzi analyzed and said, "Now that Bianjing is restoring, the court is preparing to encircle and annihilate Xulagu, and while preparing to cross the river and go north, and before the Tartars recover, they will recover the land of Yanyun."

Liao Shenggong agreed with Qing Fengzi's opinion very much and said, "I deeply agree with what the Taoist priest said, and I would like to ask the emperor to order it."

"The Taoist priest is a far-sighted move. It is inevitable to cross the Yellow River to fight the northern expedition and recover the Yanyun land before the Tartars recovered." Li Jun nodded and agreed, "In view of the current situation, the court should concentrate its forces to encircle and annihilate Hulagu and pursue the remnants of Guo Kan's troops, and on the other hand, it should encircle and suppress those scattered soldiers and rascals. The need for this force will be very large. Besides, it is unrealistic to concentrate all the troops to cross the river at the same time, because we do not have so many ships. Therefore, I think that we should cross the river in batches. First, we should draw a group of elite troops, so that they should not participate in the encirclement and annihilation of Hulagu. The progress will be briefly rested, and then cross the Yellow River immediately, capture some cities along the river, and create conditions for the subsequent troops to cross the river."

The situation facing the Southern Song Dynasty is very good, but it is still "a long way to go". After crossing the Yellow River, if you just recover the land of Yanyun, it would be too sorry, because there is still a large amount of land that needs to be revived. Northeast, northwest, Tibet, Xinjiang and other places have been China's territory since the Qin and Han Dynasties, but now it is a place outside the country, and it should be revived in one fell swoop.

Furthermore, after the regaining of Yanyun, the remnants of the Mongols would inevitably retreat northward and retreat to the grasslands, use the vast grassland to rest and rest. When their strength was almost restored, they would attack southward, in an attempt to restore their previous hegemony. In this regard, history has taught the Han people a good lesson, and they went south first, and even the "Tumu Fort Incident" staged was captured alive by the emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Therefore, taking advantage of the great defeat of the Mongols and their vitality, concentrating their army deep into the northern Mobei to carry out strategic pursuits became the top priority. The importance of strategic pursuits, Li Jun, who is familiar with history, will certainly not forget what Emperor Wu of Han did. After the decisive battle in Mobei, the main force of the Huns was annihilated. Many people in China wrote to Emperor Wu of Han on the grounds of heavy national strength, "half of household registration" and "short few horses", to ask Emperor Wu of Han to not fight again. Emperor Wu of Han was unmoved and concentrated on strategic pursuits. Although Huo Qubing died of illness and Wei Qing did not lead troops again, the Han army won not win too many battles, and eventually dragged down the Huns. Of course, the cost of the Han Dynasty was also very high, but the Han Dynasty could afford it, but the Huns could not afford it.

Now, although North China has not yet been restored, Li Jun is already facing the situation of Emperor Wu of Han in a strategic pursuit that year. He must not give the Mongols a chance to recuperate. It is absolutely necessary to carry out a strategic pursuit.

These problems are attributed to one point, that is, there will be many troops to cross the Yellow River. In addition to leaving some bandit suppression and restoration of public order, the troops in the Central Plains must cross the Yellow River north, either to the northeast, to the northwest, to Tibet, Xinjiang, or to the north of the desert. It is definitely not a matter of success to cross the Yellow River every day. Even if the Southern Song navy is strong enough, it is impossible to complete it in a short time. Crossing some of them first and conquering some cities. In a military term, it is to seize some favorable bridgeheads, which is a major event that should be included in the action at the moment.

Li Jun continued: "The other thing now is that we should also include the march to the Northeast, Northwest, Tibet, Xinjiang and Mobei on the agenda. Although these things are not our top priority at the moment, we should also be considered."

Everyone said in an infinite admiration: "The emperor is wise." They spoke very excitedly.

The northeast, northwest, Tibet and Xinjiang were included in the Qin and Han dynasties, and they were divided only because of the wars at the end of the Tang Dynasty. The Song Dynasty was incompetent and did not restore these inherent territories. Li Jun's determination to restore these territories was indeed an exciting event, and they could not be excited. Not to mention that Liao Shenggong and others were happy, if the Song people could really restore these places, their blood would be boiling.
Chapter completed!