The people of the world except for a very small number of careerists with evil intentions, they are eager to seize greater benefits in troubled times. As long as most honest and honest people have three liters of millet to fill their stomachs, they will be grateful to the emperor and the emperor. They will honestly hand over one liter of millet as the royal grain and land tax, and then educate their children and grandchildren to continue to be good sons for the official family for a lifetime.
If nothing else happens, everyone will spend their lives like this.
Is it hard to live like this? Not bitter! This kind of life is already ten thousand times better than the cannibalistic era when the fifth generation was beaten into human meat buns. After eating, you can go to the market and watch the excitement. If you behave obediently, the government will not cause trouble. Now that the Khitan people have been quiet for decades, and even the Western bandits have been suppressed, it goes without saying that there will be at least several more decades of peace, and every household will not have to go out to fight to kill people. Who would be unhappy!
Are the people happy with the peace talks with Xixia? Naturally, they are happy. No matter who they fight, whether they win or lose, the only thing that remains unchanged is the taxes paid. What changes is that their family may have one less male, or even several males! So what if we win this battle between kings and masters? Their husbands and sons could never come back, and the hard days really began.
After the Battle of Haoshuichuan, almost every household in the northern Shaanxi provinces complained that there was no good man who died for the country. After crying, they continued to send their children and men to the front line to die! Teng Zijing, a high-ranking official, summoned the souls of fallen heroes and even demoted his officials to the south. There is such a truth in the world.
During Bao Zheng's trip to the northwest, what he saw was not the streets welcoming the people to eat pots of milk, but the families were broken, the families were dead, and the wives were running away. It turned out that the wealthy northwest was only desolate and suffering. Some of the desolate land has begun to be plowed again, and the people pulling the plows are women, old people, and children. There is no sign of a man. Yes, they are all buried in the loess there. .
The eyes of the common people when they saw their mission were full of hatred and fear. The majesty and dignity of the imperial court were based on their disaster and loss. When groups of orphans and widows with dead husbands and sons rushed to the mission, they stopped Bao Zheng from driving and said bitterly, Sir, we can't. If we fight again, if we fight again, all the good men in the northwest will die!
At that moment, Bao Zheng's heart was truly touched. If he was a hard-hearted politician, he wouldn't care so much. What he wanted was fame and fortune, but what he came into contact with was Liang Chuan's bloody life. He has not been contaminated by the evil thing of politics, and his conscience is still there. At this moment, he really understands that this battle really cannot be fought!
The peace talks were successful, but the Song Dynasty still had to pay a price. According to Liang Chuan's calculation, the small amount of money spent by the Song Dynasty was completely worthless compared to the huge military expenditure. It seems that the Song Dynasty suffered a loss, but in exchange for decades of peaceful development space, as well as the hearts and minds of the people!
As he wished, if this trip brought news of the continuation of the war, he might not be able to return to Bianjing safely, and the people would kill him, a war fanatic, on the way. What he brought was the news of peace, and finally no more deaths were needed. The people blocked his way home, brought him food and juice, and praised him as a good official who truly cared about the people!
At that moment, he suddenly felt a little confused. Why were the people so supportive even though he had the illusion of losing the face of the Song Dynasty? After he came back, he must ask Brother Liang for advice. He looked at the problem from a different perspective. Have a different opinion!
News of the victory reached Bianjing City, and the arrogant and arrogant Western thieves finally surrendered. The people of the Song Dynasty were very proud! The Khitans have been defeated in the north, and the Dangxiang people have been defeated in the west, and we can live in peace again!
The subconscious mind of the people of the Northern Song Dynasty is different from that of modern people like Liang Chuan. The territory of the Sixteenth State of Yanyun was not lost to the Northern Song people, and the Song people of the Sixteenth State of Yanyun regarded the Liao Kingdom as orthodox, and their lives were not as good as those of the Northern Song Dynasty. The Han people in the Song Dynasty are poor (they may not have a high status, but they really have to pay less taxes than the Han people), so their heart is towards the Khitan. Under such differences, the Song Dynasty will not regard these two lands as An integral part of themselves since ancient times, they are different regimes, as long as they are obedient.
Of course, this kind of thinking is intolerable in modern times. It is clearly an attempt to separate Xia and Liao, and the peace talks are useless and will destroy you two turtles and bastards.
The common people rushed to welcome the returning mission. They all wanted to cheer for Bao Zheng. Seeing Bao Zheng's brilliance, Zhao Zhen also came out of Xuandemen in person. The Ministry of Rites put up a big formation. The emperor was waiting for Bao Zheng at the end of the Royal Street. Return.
The last time Bao Zheng enjoyed this feeling of unlimited scenery was when he served as the governor of Kaifeng for three days, but at that time he had never seen any of the officials. This time, it was really the same scenery. He arrived at Xuandemen in a sedan chair, far away. After getting off the sedan chair far away, he hurriedly walked to Zhao Zhen, bowed his head and bowed down.
"The guilty minister Bao Zheng has failed the emperor's favor and came here to apologize!"
Zhao Zhen was overjoyed. His father had signed a Chanyuan Alliance with the Khitan people. It would not be a shame for him to sign a peace treaty with the Dangxiang people. After all, the precedent was there. He is happy that he can finally continue to be his emperor of peace, and the world has returned to peace. This is the most important thing to him.
"I love you, please be safe soon. You are here to work hard and achieve great results. You promoted the national prestige of the Song Dynasty, publicized the crimes of the Li family, and put an end to the chaos in the northwest for decades in one fell swoop. You are truly a meritorious official of our Song Dynasty for thousands of years. Why are you guilty of this!"
Bao Zheng felt extremely ashamed. The Song Dynasty was victorious without force. How could anyone argue with the loser even if they won the battle? However, Zhao Zhen himself said that it was merit rather than fault, so what else could he argue with?
"I am terrified."
"I've been going to the northwest for several months, and it's been a lot of work with boats and cars, plus the bitter cold in the northwest. Your body can handle it!"
Bao Zheng burst into tears: "The parents of the ministers who teach me are all under the command of the king. Even if they have to go through the sea of fire and the mountains of swords, there is no way to go through the hardships."
"I have asked the imperial kitchen to prepare a banquet in Jiying Palace tonight, just to welcome you and wash away your dust. From now on, I will still need to rely on you to make contributions!"
Bao Zheng bowed his head and bowed again: "I don't dare to accept death."
The two monarchs and ministers were polite to each other for a while, which made the civil and military officials standing next to them became jealous. What kind of luck did Bao Zheng have to have the Zhao Guan family so favored!
As the prime minister, Jia Chaochang naturally followed Zhao Zhen. He saw all this, his eyes were full of disdain and indifference, and he kept saying in his heart, let you be happy for a while, and I will ask you to watch it soon!
Of course, Zhao Zhen had his reasons for being happy. This was a feeling that no one else could understand. The Hehuang area was not lost in his hands. The Li family had occupied the northwest even longer than the founding of the Song Dynasty. Their grievances had lasted for nearly a hundred years, and wars, large and small, had continued. It was in his hands that the most violent riots were made, and finally in the Song Dynasty. He fixed it in the form of a covenant on his hand.
As cunning as the Khitan people have been, they have been obedient for decades under a piece of paper. I believe that this piece of paper will keep the party members obedient for decades.
In the next few decades, he can do many things. He can be a wise and promising king, and he can be the leader of ZTE. More importantly, he can live a comfortable life in such an environment. He does not have to worry about the subjugation of the country and does not need to be punished by future generations. People reviled! He is far inferior to Taizu Taizong. They have no way to regain Yanyun and the northwest, so the world has no reason to scold him!
But this is just what he thinks. All the officials are ministers who are determined to bring peace to the troubled times. What they yearn for is like the twenty-four ministers of the Tang Dynasty, who conquered Goryeo in the east and destroyed the Turks in the west, and made immortal contributions that will be known to all generations. The kind of achievements in the name of others are now reduced to negotiating terms with Ququ, a Xixia, and giving them money. Zhao Zhen can bear this kind of humiliation, but they cannot.
Most scholars can't stand it, because they don't have to do the dead people's work, and the dead people are not their family members. They just need to stimulate their feelings and express their ambitions, and the thieves and soldiers will sacrifice their lives. There are really not a few people who use their own lives to open up new territories. Even famous ministers like Han Qi have such thoughts. It is really sad in this era.
Jiying Palace.
During the four seasons, fruits and melons were fragrant, and a variety of desserts including fat sheep, fish, and crabs were displayed. They defeated Xixia. Although a peace treaty was still made, it was enough to frighten several nearby regimes. Dali, Uighurs, Tubo and Khitan in the north also sent envoys to congratulate the Song Dynasty. I don't know whether they came to mock the Song Dynasty or sincerely congratulated them. Anyway, they sent a lot of people.
Officials of all sizes from the two governments, three departments and six departments all took their seats one after another. They enjoyed the beautiful dance performed by the palace ladies and drank fine wines. The joyful atmosphere gradually reached a climax.
Zhao Zhenxin poured three cups of palace wine for Bao Zheng, a junior official. The palace wine was the favorite of these scholars. It was prestigious and had a special fragrance. No matter how much he drank, he would not get sick. After a good sleep, it would be the next day. Why are you still so lively? Unlike some low-quality horse urine among the people, people would like to hang themselves the next day after drinking it. It is really painful!
Bao Zheng drank three glasses in a row. He had seen the suffering of the people in the northwest, and he was really resistant to being in this wine pool and meat forest. However, the people in front of him were officials, and he had to give face. There were still ten thousand dissatisfaction in his heart. Zhao Zhen Even if what is poured for him is really horse urine, he still has to drink it, and he still has to say good wine and good wine!
Zhao Zhen admires Bao Zheng very much. This young man has no party affiliation, no backing, and is upright. He is really a rare talent. Such a person has been put to good use, and he will not have to look up to Jia Chaochang and others for everything in the future. If he wants to control the power of the government, he must have his own people working for him. It's time to cultivate his own people!
The people of the Western Army are led by Xia Song. Today's dinner is obviously to cleanse Bao Zheng. In fact, they all understand that without the military exploits that the Western Army has gained with their blood, how can they, the Xixia people, bow their heads? Can Bao Zheng sign as soon as he goes? They are the protagonists today, so they are in a better mood than Zhao Zhen! Although Xixia was not destroyed, in their own feeling, Xixia was defeated by them!
Zhao Zhen took Bao Zheng's hand and said many kind words to him. Everyone saw this scene. Everyone looked at Bao Zheng with envy, jealousy, and hatred, and they looked forward to one day that they could enjoy it too. Such high-level treatment.
From the beginning to the end, Jia Chaochang just looked at this scene coldly, with a stinky face from beginning to end, and his butt looked like a sore, motionless. Logically speaking, his upright attitude was very important in this situation, so he did not express his position. You should also say a few polite words to boost morale and make Zhao Zhen look good.
He didn't.
The dinner party reached its climax, and many people also noticed something was wrong with Jia Chaochang. They wanted to go up to toast him, but they all avoided it. Who among the people who can drink in this hall is not the best among human beings? Seeing that, Even those who have the ability to use the wind to control the rudder will die early.
Finally, Zhao Zhen noticed something was wrong. He walked up to Jia Chaochang with a wine glass and asked, "Does Mr. Jia have something to say?"
