One Piece of Song Dynasty

At this time, the Jin army that arrived outside Tokyo was just the vanguard of Zong Wang's East Route Army. They were stationed at Liujia Temple. Liujia Temple is a village located northeast of Tokyo. Zong Wang's main force and Zong Han's West Army have not yet reached the outside of the city. They are all speeding up and advancing towards Tokyo City.

On November , Nie Chang, Geng Nanzhong and others who were ordered to send envoys to the Jin Army encountered the Chinese troops of the Jin Army on the West Route at Xiaoyi Bridge of the Yong'an Army. The Jin people made an appointment with them and arranged for them to meet Zong Han the next day.

Early the next morning, in order to receive the envoys of the Song Dynasty, the security outside Zonghan's tent was extremely tight. Two rows of guards stood in heavy armor and held weapons, and the atmosphere was solemn.

When Nie Chang, Geng Nanzhong and others came to the outside of the tent, a man named Qiu said: "Hui uses the list to praise his name and introduce him to the prime minister."

Nie Chang asked: "Who is the prime minister of the country?"

Sheren said: "Prime Minister Marshal."

Nie Chang said: "As a prime minister and marshal, he is also a minister of the Jin Kingdom. Chang is also a minister of the Southern Dynasty, and he should only meet the ministers of the equal country as guests. How can a minister of the Southern Dynasty meet the ministers of the Jin Kingdom with the courtesy of a minister?"

Shi Ren asked: "The Privy Council is not afraid of death?"

Nie Chang replied: "The master is worried about the humiliation of his ministers, and the master is concerned about the humiliation of his ministers. Death is not something to be feared, and integrity cannot be surrendered." They argued for a long time and reached a stalemate.

Zong Han saw that Nie Chang's attitude was very tough, but he could not force him to meet him with courteous courtesy, so he received him in the felt tent with guest courtesy.

Zong Han said: "Our army has crossed south and has reached the city. When the privy council came back from the ceded territory, our army returned in triumph because the Southern Dynasty had broken its promise."

Nie Chang said: "The emperor is benevolent and sage, and he has never broken his trust in the world. In the past, because Tong Guan and Wang Fu were selfish and unfaithful to the Liao Dynasty, the country is in unexpected difficulties today. It is not the country that broke the trust of the Liao Dynasty. And the Prime Minister this spring We swore an oath to make peace and stopped our troops from crossing the river, but now we have broken the promise and invaded south. Isn’t this the Jin Kingdom’s breach of trust?”

Zong Han said: "I don't dare to cancel the peace agreement. I just wait for the land to be obtained and then withdraw the troops."

Nie Chang said: "Chang came under orders and did not dare to make independent decisions. If the Prime Minister does not return the troops from the north, even if Chang dies, the land will not be cut off."

Zong Han was furious when he heard this. He stood up, turned around and walked into the back tent, leaving Nie Chang and others in the tent in the cold. After a while, Zong Han sent an order to Nie Chang and others to retreat.

After Nie Chang, Geng Nanzhong and others returned to their residence, the Jin people did not give them food all day long, and sent many soldiers to surround the house where they lived.

On that day, Zong Han made a decision: he sent Grand Master Yang Tianji to lead a thousand soldiers to cut off territory in Hedong with Nie Chang; he sent Grand Master Wang Ru to lead a thousand soldiers to cut off territory in Hebei together with Geng Nanzhong.

Early the next morning, before setting off, Nie Chang proposed to meet the Prime Minister and Marshal again, but the Jin refused.

The main force of the Jin Army on the West Route advanced from Luoyang to Tokyo, and many people were captured on the way to carry food for them. Shi Daochen, the transfer envoy on the south and north roads of Beijing, was also among them. The Jin soldiers asked him to carry grain, but he said he couldn't do it. The Jin soldiers "hit him on the head with a stick" and gave him a good education.

Senior officials like Shi Daochen used to have many followers when they went out, shouting in front of them and crowding in behind them. People had to give way quickly when they met on the road. But now, he had to carry food for the Jin people and suffered humiliation. People all lamented this.

At this time, Song Qinzong and several close servants were watching carefully a cat and mouse game directed by Guo Jing in front of a main hall in the palace.

Because many ministers think Guo Jing is a liar, such as Tang Ke, Sun Zhan and others. But there are also many ministers who think Guo Jing is a genius, such as Wang Zonglio, Sun Fu, He Li and others. The ministers had different views on Guo Jing and attacked each other, which made Song Qinzong feel at a loss.

In order to thoroughly find out whether Guo Jing mastered the art of Qimen Dunjia, Song Qinzong ordered Guo Jing to enter the palace and practice in front of the palace. He wanted to test it himself. Guo Jing then used a cat and a mouse to represent the enemy and our troops, and staged this absurd game in front of the palace.

The specific method is: "Use a cat and a mouse to draw a circle on the ground, and open two corners to represent the path of life and death. First, the cat enters the path of life, and the rat enters the path of death. The rat will be killed by the cat. Then the rat enters the path of life. , when the cat enters the realm of death, the cat will no longer see the mouse.”

After the drill, Guo Jing said: "By using troops in this way, if our army enters the path of life, the thieves will not be able to see it, and we can win."

Song Qinzong and the chamberlains beside him were stunned. From then on, Song Qinzong began to have deep faith in Guo Jing.

Guo Jing extensively recruited Liujia magic soldiers in the city, and the progress was going very smoothly. There were many applicants, but he only had people. His condition for recruiting soldiers is that they don't care about their martial arts skills or their age, as long as they are born in the same year as Liujia. Liujia is: Jiazi, Jiayin, Jiachen, Jiawu, Jiashen and Jiaxu. There are many ordinary children and idle people who have transformed into Liujia magic soldiers. According to the Taoist classic Tao Zang, the Liujia Divine Weapon has great power, “can summon wind, clouds, thunder and lightning, destroy military strongholds, make wooden oxen and wooden horses, make people painted on the wall move, make hundreds of grass bloom in the winter moon, and can ward off water, fire and swordsmen. , can break through millions of people.”

There was a man named Bo Jian who knew how to use a stick. He often set up shows on the streets and made a living by performing tricks. Guo Jing hired him and made him his coach.

There was also a man named Liu Wuji, who was a Taoist selling medicine. He often stood on his head in the mud and begged for money from passers-by. He was a scoundrel. He was also recruited by Guo Jing as the Liujia Divine Soldier and appointed him as the commander.

Guo Jing has his own standards for recruiting soldiers, and his requirements are very strict. In addition to the life expectancy of Liujia, sometimes he also needs to "look at each other's face" to decide whether to recruit. A businessman selling silk fabrics came to sign up, determined to go to the battlefield to kill the enemy, and handed in a petition on the spot. A military official wanted to accept him as a deputy general, but Guo Jing refused. Because Guo Jing saw the ominous look on this man's face and said to him bluntly: "Although I am talented, I will die in the first month of next year, which may affect everyone."

He Li had recruited five thousand troops when he was in Kaifeng Mansion. Now that he had returned to the court to assume important responsibilities, he handed over these five thousand troops to the leadership of Guo Jing. As a result, these five thousand troops also became Liujia magic soldiers.

Guo Jing ordered the Liujia Divine Soldiers to all have "ghostly looks and strange clothes", and he personally led them to "show off their troops in the market." When the residents of the capital saw it, they were all delighted, regardless of whether they were high or low. They all thought that gods descended from heaven to help the Song Dynasty destroy the bandits. The people respected Guo Jing very much. When his name was mentioned, they would "raise their hands and foreheads and call him Xianggong."

However, knowledgeable people feel chilled by the court's enthusiasm for playing gods and ghosts.

Someone said to Sun Fu: "I have never heard of anyone who has succeeded in this way since ancient times. The current court may have heard that it is better to send fewer troops, and wait until they have achieved considerable results, then they will be promoted to more senior positions. If the entrustment is too much, in case of failure, it will be inevitable." It brings shame to the court.”

When Sun Fu heard this, he was very angry and said: "Guo Jing was born for the time, and he knows everything about the trivial matters among the enemy. Fortunately, you said this to me. If you told others, you would be designated as a Jushi." crime."