Chapter 293: Permanent Suppression of Xixia Zhejia Army

Protect China internally and repel foreign invaders externally.

The Zhe family has lived in the prefecture for hundreds of years, from the early Tang Dynasty to the present.

From the Five Dynasties to the Northern Song Dynasty, ethnic conflicts in the upper reaches of the Yellow River were acute and complex, and the political situation was volatile. The Later Tang, Later Jin, Later Han, Later Zhou, Liao, Northern Han, Northern Song and Western Xia dynasties in the Five Dynasties all established their own rule in this area.

It was during this turbulent and war-torn era that the Zhe family rose to prominence west of the Yellow River.

Guo Wei established himself as the emperor in place of the Later Han Dynasty, and the Zhe family surrendered to the Later Zhou Dynasty as a whole for the sake of their hometown. Zhao Kuangyin took advantage of the orphans and widows to establish the Song Dynasty, and the Zhe family surrendered to the Zhao Song Dynasty as a whole.

They stayed forever on the bank of the Yellow River, and all they wanted was peace.

It is better to be a dog in prosperous times than a man in troubled times!

The Zhe family fought bravely, one after another, like a solid shield, blocking the Xixia and Khitan people.

The story of the Yang Family Generals is actually about the Zhe Family.

The arrival of the Liangshan army completely broke the peace in northwestern Shanxi.

Fuzhou Fugu City was eventually captured by Guan Sheng.

All that could be broken was an empty city. After decades of war between the Song and Xia dynasties, northern Shaanxi was simply a military restricted area with countless fortresses. The Zhao Song Dynasty invested huge amounts of money, grain and supplies every year, but it was still put into practice.

Even with the strength of the entire Western Xia country, it had never been able to conquer northern Shaanxi. It would be extremely difficult for Liangshan to take over northwestern Shanxi by force.

If this war continues, both sides will suffer losses.

But as long as people are in the lead, interests can always be exchanged.

Under the city of Taiyuan, the strength displayed by Liangshan was recognized by the whole of Shanxi.

Fuzhou was broken, Yunzhong was broken, Fenyang was broken, Taiyuan became a turtle in a jar. As for the Western Army coming to support, they were blocked by Tian Hu and had lost the opportunity to fight.

The Taiyuan defenders Zhe Keda and Zhe Keqiu finally surrendered before the city was captured.

They are not afraid of death, nor are they disloyal, but their love for this land is greater than blind loyalty.

Besides, they didn't owe Zhao Song anything.

"King Wei, the border between Song and Xia is ahead."

This place is Yulin in later generations. Looking at the endless desert, Cao Jie's thoughts couldn't help but drift away.

In his previous life, he planted trees here, including poplar, sea buckthorn, and saxaul. He has forgotten how many trees he planted, but for the disappearance of the Mu Us Desert, he can proudly say: I also contributed to it.

A strong northwest wind blew over from the opposite side, and the fine sand on the ground moved along the ground, and the whole world seemed to come alive all of a sudden.

In most of the area, there is not a single tree or blade of grass to be seen. Apart from the army, there is no other life here.

Cao Jie's head was wrapped in thick linen, covering his mouth and nose tightly.

Everyone is dressed like this.

Seeing such a difficult environment, Cao Jie sighed and said, "Brothers of the Zhe family, it's hard for you and the soldiers guarding the border."

"My parents, wife and children are right behind me, so it's not hard." Zhe Keqiu grinned.

“How can it not be bitter?”

After saying a few words, he would spit out a mouthful of sand.

The heroes from Shandong all felt that this place was hell. If they came here to guard the border and resist Western Xia, they couldn't imagine how long they could last.

Not to mention a lifetime, even a year is not enough! Cao Jie patted the two brothers' hands and said in a deep voice: "Brothers of the Zhe family, I, Cao Jie, will give you a promise here. As long as Xixia is not destroyed, you will always control Xixia. The swords and guns of the Zhe family army will only be used against the outside world!"

"King Wei, even if all my Zhe family members die in battle, we will never let the Xixia people enter the Great Wall."

"Great! With the Zhe family army here, I don't have to worry about anything!"

After pacifying the Zhe family army, Cao Jie walked around the border for two days. Military Advisor Xu Guanzhong easily drew a map of northwest Shanxi. He was a living map. After comparing them in his mind, he said solemnly:

"King Wei, I have a map of the northwest from the Tang Dynasty. From here, along the edge of the desert, we should be able to reach the heart of Western Xia! But in just two hundred years, the desert here has more than doubled in size..."

Xu Guanzhong spat out a mouthful of saliva mixed with sand.

"The Xixia people are actually no longer a concern. Once we take control of the Central Plains, it will be easy to destroy them. But... the desert cannot continue to expand!"

Cao Jie couldn't help but think of Zhang Qing, the cannibal who could control plants and trees on the Cross Hill. If he hadn't killed him back then, and thrown him here to plant trees in the future, how great it would have been!

Unfortunately, killing him with one knife was too easy for this "she-devil" couple.

"The expansion of the desert cannot be stopped by human power!" Xu Guanzhong shook his head.

"Guan Zhong, man can conquer nature! The environmental deterioration in the upper reaches of the Yellow River has ultimately led to the rise of the riverbed in the lower reaches. The Yellow River outside Tokyo is already more than ten feet above the ground, a hanging river that weighs on the heads of millions of people! The lower reaches of the Yellow River have been diverted so many times over the years, and Shandong and Hebei have suffered so many disasters. This is not a mother river, it's an evil dragon!"

Xu Guanzhong smiled bitterly and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty is compassionate and has the world in his heart, but you have to wait until the world is at peace to control the sand and rivers!"

"If you don't plan for the moment, you won't be able to plan for the whole life."

After a brief sigh, Cao Jie put away his compassion for the world. As for how to plant trees and control sand dunes, he still had to wait until he unified the country.

Governing the world is far from being as simple as it sounds.

The territory of a country is not necessarily bigger, the better.

Cao Jie knew that the Song Dynasty did not have enough land, but for the time being it could not be too large. If it became too large, it would be difficult to control.

For example, the Former Tang Dynasty is an example. During the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, they successfully pushed the border to the Pamir Mountains.

But the long distance completely weakened the empire's rule there.

After Gao Xianzhi was defeated in Talas, the empire's territory immediately retreated 1,300 miles and never returned.

The territory of the Khitan Liao Kingdom was very large, even very large. It stretched from the Sea of ​​Japan in the east to the Altai Mountains in the west, from the Ergun River in the north to the Baigou River bordering the Song Dynasty in the south.

If the Khitans were evenly dispersed throughout the land, there wouldn't be a single person to be seen within ten miles.

Such a rule can no longer be considered a rule. In this era, in addition to the Chinese people's strong hunger for land, even the Khitans themselves did not understand where the border of their country was.

As long as there is no one living there, a dog can declare sovereignty by just peeing.

Cao Jie had strong confidence in pacifying Western Xia and turning the Yinchuan Plain into the Jiangnan of the Great Wall.

Returning to Taiyuan City from the northwest, this scarred city has entered a period of major construction. The collapsed city walls have been erected, and thick, large, black cannons have been mounted on the city walls.

Now, even if the Western Army wiped out Tian Hu and fought against Liangshan, it would be difficult to gain an advantage.

In a siege, the attacking party is always at a disadvantage, and the defending party has the advantage.

The Song Dynasty's rule in Shanxi has come to an end completely because of the Zhe family's defection.

The Western Army was in a dilemma in southern Shanxi.

(End of this chapter)