Zhao Bing knew that the corruption of officials was a sign of the decline of the regime, but the Song Dynasty took the initiative to open the door to corruption for military generals. The initiator was Zhao Kuangyin, the founding emperor, who was widely praised by the people as a symbol of "release of military power with a glass of wine". The incident itself was indeed a good thing simply, and it transitioned from the separatist peace of military rule to the literati and official ruler. It did not kill a hero, creating a new historical situation, but it harmed its descendants.

According to historical records, when "release the power of military power with a glass of wine", Zhao Kuangyin once enlightened all the military generals and said: Life is short and a flash of time passes. It is better to save more money and treasures, store lots of good land and beautiful houses, and sing and dance girls to end their lives. In this way, there is no longer any guesses between the king and the minister, and they can achieve both. The words are already very plain, meaning that as long as the generals put down their weapons and do not hold military power, they will no longer pose a threat to Zhao Kuangyin's throne, then everything else is easy to say, and you can do whatever you want.

This shows that when Zhao Kuangyin released military power, he offered extremely generous prices to the generals and acted very generously. Of course, it was also the generosity of the country and the nation. Looking at the essence through the phenomenon, Zhao Bing also understood that the so-called release of military power by glass of wine was actually just that Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin exchanged military power by corruption from the perspective of stabilizing his position. In a sense, it can be said that it was Zhao Kuangyin who issued a "corruption license" to the entire military group.

Zhao Kuangyin's practices were very effective. Due to the strategy of exchanging corruption for military power by Zhao Kuangyin, except for two rebellions launched by Li Yun and Li Chongjin, the old ministers of the Later Zhou Dynasty, there has been no political incident like "yellow robe" in the Song Empire for more than three hundred years.

Zhao Bing believed that from a political perspective, this incident was an important reflection of the Song Dynasty's strengthening of the centralized system. Some people believed that almost all founding emperors had committed murders of meritorious officials, but Song Taizu used peaceful means to release military power without hurting the harmony of the monarch and ministers, and eliminated the threat of military authority from ministers and successfully prevented the army's coup, which was considered a historical precedent and could be regarded as a famous Annei strategy.

However, there are often one advantage in the world, and one disadvantage in the world. With the "corruption license" issued by the emperor himself as a protection, since then, the generals have been corruption with confidence, which shows that the generals of Taizu were almost all lustful. However, for the Song Empire, although consolidating the central government, it was tantamount to self-destructing the Great Wall and committing suicide by chronically directly causing internal corruption, and the price paid was quite high.

Now Zhao Bing is taking the blame for his ancestors and wiping their butts. It is precisely because he is well aware of the dangers of corruption that he also bribed money when he first founded the General's Office. However, he quickly formulated the "Eight Uncertainty" iron law to restrain the generals, and almost rejected all senior officers in the old army in the past, because he knew that these people were terminally ill, and their corruption was deeply rooted in the bone marrow, and it was extremely difficult to transform them. He simply abandoned them without using them, and opened them again to draw a clear line with them.

Later, Zhao Bing reorganized the army in succession. By strengthening military discipline, establishing a rigorous reward and punishment system, and maintaining a high-pressure anti-corruption situation, he basically curbed the corruption trend in the army and eliminated the corruption of middle and senior officers. However, after a hundred secrets, problems still arose in the local army...

"Wu Shenzhi, the head of the Fujian-Gansu Station of the subordinate affairs bureau, please see Your Majesty!"

"Yan Fengming, the head of the Minguang Station of the subordinate affairs bureau, please see Your Majesty!" When the two of them saw the little emperor coming in, they immediately bowed and worshiped.

"Please get up, sit down and talk." Zhao Bing raised his hand and asked the two to avoid the gift. He sat on the soft couch, and then they sat down.

"I invite you two to come today because I want to ask about the situation of the chief officers of Weisheng and Huai'en." Zhao Bing said frankly and said the purpose of summoning them so that the two of them would not think too much.

"President Yan asked in advance!" Wu Shenzhi bowed to Yan Fengming and said politely. Although they belonged to the affairs bureau, they were only famous and never met. Their names may be fake. They only recognized the seal when they contacted each other, so they never knew each other under the city of Ezhou.

"Your Majesty asked suddenly, I still have to think about it. Master Wu would like to ask in advance." Yan Fengming smiled and said with a smile.

"Okay, Ruoshui, you take Chief Yan to the next room and think about it carefully. Let's talk about it a little bit." Zhao Bing understood as soon as he heard the two of them refuse each other. Although they belong to the Affairs Bureau, they are still wary. One is to prevent being betrayed by the other party, and the other is to prevent leaking secrets. In fact, this is also the basic skill of an intelligence officer. Only in this way can they live for a long time.

"Report to Your Majesty, my subordinates were ordered to enter the Fujian-Jiangxi area in the third year of Xiangxing, engaged in private salt trafficking, and were later ordered to enter the Huai'en Army to lurk, and serve as the Sihu Army to join the army and manage the transaction of food, grass and materials." Wu Shenzhi knew that the Affairs Bureau was established by His Majesty, and they were their real backstage boss. Of course, they dare not hide anything in front of him. First, introduce his own experience clearly.

"Well, thank you for your hard work. Our Affairs Bureau holds many important positions in the Weisheng Army. Why did you just join the army?" Zhao Bing nodded and asked with a smile.

"Your Majesty, don't joke with my subordinates. We were ordered to recruit a lot of salt teams back then, but in order to conceal our identities, only peripheral personnel can openly hold military positions. The core personnel hid in various places in the army as staff and low-level officials to monitor the movements of all parties and collect intelligence. Their subordinates' ranks are no less than their military positions!" Wu Shenzhi said with a smile.

"You did a good job. These positions seem low-key, but they are easy to get in touch with core secrets and are not noticeable." Zhao Bing praised.

"Thank you for your praise!" Wu Shenzhi said politely.

"No need to be too profitable!" Zhao Bing waved his hand, "I want you to break the rules today because I want to know the situation of the chief general in the army. I want to listen to the truth!"

"Yes, my subordinates will definitely speak!" Wu Shenzhi said politely again, "Huai'en's army was originally composed of Mrs. Xu and Huang Hua's rebel army. Huang Hua had already died in battle, and his troops were mainly Mrs. Xu. After the adaptation, they were headed by Mrs. Xu and Song Dutong. The commanders of each department occupied half of the original imperial guards who aided the north. Most of the officials and officials below were the leaders of the rebel army and the salt team. After Xie Fu's envoy entered Fujian and Jiangxi, the military and political power was again subordinated to him, but he had a short-term military and political power in the army, lacked prestige and weak influence. He mainly managed local government affairs."

"Can Mrs. Xu and Song Tong have violated the imperial edicts and embezzled local fish and meat?" Zhao Bing nodded and asked again.

"Your Majesty, according to the situation under his jurisdiction, Mrs. Xu has always been loyal to the emperor and patriotism. Especially after learning that Your Majesty posthumously named his father and raised his brother, she often teaches his subordinates to be loyal to His Majesty. She will strictly abide by the imperial edicts issued by the court, urge his subordinates to implement them, and never neglect them." Wu Shenzhi immediately replied, "In addition, Mrs. Xu is very good at managing the business. He used the food and salaries allocated by the court and made several times the profit, and added the money to the army, purchased weapons and armor, and paid the fallen soldiers!"

"Can he make profits from it and use it for private activities?" Zhao Bing had already known about the things that Mrs. Xu was good at managing. He was able to make the Xu family a wealthy through maritime trade in just a few years, which shows that he had the ability. He did not object to using public funds to operate in order to improve the conditions of the troops, but it would be another matter if he put money in his pocket.

"Report to Your Majesty, as your subordinates know, Mrs. Xu is extremely fair in doing things. In addition to not only his salary, he never takes a penny, but he often uses private money to subsidize military use. The business income and the property he handles are all accountable to check. My subordinates have never found that Mrs. Xu has made any attempt to gain personal gain!" Wu Shenzhi said.

"In this way, Mrs. Xu is very prestigious in the Huai'en army!" Zhao Bing nodded.

"That's true!" Wu Shenzhi nodded and said, "In the Fujian-Jiangxi region, on the surface, Xie Fu Envoy presided over the military and political affairs, but in fact, Mrs. Xu secretly assisted him. Otherwise, Xie Fu Envoy would be unable to move forward. Even though the Huaien army was almost taken over by the generals sent by the imperial guards, less than half of the troops could be dispatched, and local people responded to it in a long way. Perhaps only Wen Xiang could compare with it." Wu Shenzhi said.

"I know!" Zhao Bing believed that Mrs. Xu had this ability. Her roots were deep in Jiangxi and Fujian. Not only was her husband here, she had many relatives and rural residents. Moreover, her father Chen Wenlong had a good reputation and died for the country. His heroic death was deeply supported by the local people. Xie Fangde was new to him, so his prestige was naturally not comparable to Mrs. Xu who had been in charge for more than ten years.

"Your Majesty, Song Dutong is a man of a good rule. He is very obsessed with leading troops and training the army, and never takes any other direction. He is not greedy for power, but he is very strict in the control of the people and never merciless in the law. He may also be compassionate to the poor and cherish the weak, so his subordinates are very respectful to him." Wu Shenzhi talked about Song Lian's situation again.

"Does Song Lian love money?" Zhao Bing asked again.

"Your Majesty, my subordinates have not discovered it. Apart from studying, General Song had no other preferences, his life was also very simple, his clothes were just military uniforms, and his food never exceeded the standard, and most of his salary was sent home." Wu Shenzhi thought for a moment, and seemed to be recalling, "The other things that were empty salary, accepted bribes, and extorted business travelers were not discovered. Perhaps it was because Mrs. Xu was in charge of military funds and it was difficult for him to intervene."

"It seems that he is still honest. I don't think he is like a cunning person, but we still cannot be trusted by this. Some people will change!" Zhao Bing said. He understood that it is very easy for a general who commands tens of thousands of troops to make money. He is in Jiangxi where the emperor is far away. Even if he makes some minor mistakes, Shangguan has to accommodate him. However, he can still be strict with himself for so many years, which is particularly rare. Otherwise, he will not be able to escape the surveillance of so many spies from the Bureau of Affairs.

In addition, Zhao Bing thought that Song Lian was not as mediocre as he showed, but was very strategic. Take the view that he served as the chief officer for many years but still could not completely control the entire Huaien Army after his main generals were all his own people. This shows that he understood Mrs. Xu's position in the hearts of the military and civilians in Fujian and Jiangxi, so he did not choose to use the support of the court to seize power. From a small perspective, he was not greedy for power, but he also knew how to advance and retreat; from a big perspective, it shows that Song Lian was considering the overall situation and knew tolerate the situation for internal unity. However, he also controlled half of the Huaien Army's army, and even if there was a change, he had the ability to control the situation.

The basic situation has been understood clearly. Zhao Bing asked Wu Shenzhi about other situations and praised him a few more words, asking him to closely monitor the military dynamics and ensure his safety. Once his identity is exposed, he can quickly leave. The content of this conversation must be kept confidential and not leaked. Then he asked him to leave to avoid being discovered by someone on the imperial ship.

Zhao Bing sent Wu Shenzhi away quietly, but did not rush to summon Yan Fengming. Instead, he drank two cups of tea and silence before letting him come to meet him. He suddenly investigated the heads of the two armies. Of course, it was not a whim, but inadvertently discovered some clues. Yesterday, on the battlefield, when he was hungry and wanted to have a meal, Song Lian gave his own dry food bags, which were all common ordinary foods, but Qin Linfeng's dry food bags were dough cakes and beef.

Everyone may think that noodle cakes and beef are very common, not good things. However, in Jiangnan, especially in ancient Jiangnan, it was not ordinary. The crops grown in Jiangnan were mainly rice, and only rice and wheat were planted in parts of Jiangdong, while wheat was grown in Ezhou area. No matter what, rare things are, and white flour became a rare thing, not everyone can eat them, so it is not easy for people to regard noodle cakes as dry food.

Besides, beef must come from cows. Not to mention that cows were an important means of production in ancient times, it was the same for a long time before the 1970s in modern China. The slaughter of old and sick must be approved by the county to slaughter them privately, and prepare to go to jail. In ancient times, the crime of slaughtering oxen was even greater, even if the cows were his own. However, Zhao Bing found that the beef sent by Qin Linfeng was not jerky, but fresh beef that had just been stewed, but the army did not raise cattle, so the origin of the beef forced Zhao Bing to think about it in a "false place".

If Zhao Bing only relies on this point, he would not have any doubts. After all, Qin Linfeng is the commander of the army, and it is necessary to eat some beef, noodles, and make some specialization. The source of the cow can be the cows that were exhausted and killed during the war. However, he found that he had a charming attitude when he spoke to him, which was not the kind of respect others. Especially when he refused to eat beef, Qin Linfeng's eyes flashed with disdain, but he did not see his displeasure and warning.
Chapter completed!