There was something wrong with Li Yong's attitude, and it could even be said that he seemed a little disrespectful to the emperor.
However, the emperor in front of him is Song Zhenzong Zhao Heng. Although it is difficult to compare with Emperor Qin, Han, Wu and Tang Zong Song Zu in terms of talent, his demeanor is not bad.
Or to put it more narrowly, the Song Dynasty he is in now is not the Song Dynasty in the original historical time and space, but the Song Dynasty in Menghualu. The emperor in front of him is also the emperor in it. If not, he would not Say it so directly.
After hearing this, Zhao Heng's expression changed for a while, and he sat back down again, then stared at Li Yong with a playful smile.
Li Shenfu next to him was also worried about Li Yong. Although he knew that the emperor was always merciful, he was unpredictable. Who knew whether he could maintain his attitude in the face of such a disrespectful attitude from this young man.
The emperor's generosity and benevolence always had a purpose. Zhao Heng actually didn't need to have any scruples about someone like Li Yong who could be trampled to death with just one lift of his foot.
However, seeing Zhao Heng's attitude change at this time, he felt relieved again.
He didn't care about Li Yong's life or death, but if he angered the emperor, then the people serving around them would also be angered.
"You're right, keep talking."
Li Yong's expression remained unchanged. At this time, he just raised his hands and said: "The reason why the officials and ordinary people want to talk to the Liao people is because of national affairs. If there is no way to end this dispute once and for all, , only if both sides stop peace talks can peace be ushered in, even if it is only temporary peace.
"This is also a plan for the development of the Song Dynasty. If we can exchange part of the money for the stability of the border fortress, it will also save a large part of military expenditures that waste money and people. The Central Plains will not need to cause panic for this and focus on production and development.
"It must be known that when Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was a remnant of the fourth generation, he had to earn horses with blood and raise soldiers for hundreds of battles, so that he could be shamed and hated by Ma Yi. The common people did this, and the peace talks were also for the sake of development. Big plan. Being weak for a moment does not mean that you will be weak forever. A man can bend and stretch, and a country can be like a man."
In fact, this is also the true meaning of the Chanyuan Alliance.
Objectively speaking, this alliance did bring a hundred years of peace to Song and Liao.
After that, although there were some minor frictions on the border, the Liao took advantage in terms of fame and fortune. To put it simply, the Song Dynasty "gave too much", and the Liao people themselves wanted to invade the south for the same reason. Since these benefits can make the people of Song Dynasty obediently give away gold and silver without fighting, why bother?
The Song Dynasty required a lot of money to deploy troops and generals. Didn't the Liao Kingdom not need it?
And without the rise of the Jurchens, this alliance may have continued for a long time, because the Liao Kingdom has been addicted to pleasure since then, and the senior officials have gradually become corrupted.
Moreover, their internal forces are divided. It would be fine if they were united in dealing with the outside world during the war. After peace, they have nothing to do. Naturally, they will inevitably compete for power and gain. Everyone only focuses on fighting and ignores real development.
Therefore, Song and Liao became weaker and weaker after the contract. In theory, they could maintain this fragile peace without external interference.
However, there is a reason for Liao to become weak. After all, regardless of the rising Jin Kingdom, after they signed the Chanyuan Alliance with the Song Dynasty, there were no enemies around them. However, Song Dynasty had other people sleeping soundly next to the bed. Still in sinking state.
This was a disaster that had been planted since the founding of the country, but successive emperors had not improved it. New policies and reforms were either stillborn or aborted, ultimately making it difficult for such a large country to recover.
When Huizong of the Song Dynasty arrived, he had great ambitions to recapture the sixteen states of Yanyun. However, this sick and weak giant named Song Dynasty had more than enough ambition and insufficient strength. He thought well in his head but could not do it in his body.
In the end, when facing the Liao Kingdom, which was defeated by the Jin Kingdom, he completely exposed the fact that he was weak. In the end, just after sending away the sick tiger of the Liao Kingdom, he ushered in the hungry wolves of the Jin Kingdom, and was almost eaten alive. There are no bones left.
Although Li Yong had made arrangements with the Jurchens, he himself was not sure what would happen in the next few years. Therefore, the most likely possibility is that in two or three years, the current situation will still be the same as in history. If it continues to develop like this, it is still necessary to sign the Chanyuan Alliance.
The key thing is what the Song Dynasty will do and what it can do after signing the alliance.
"In the humble opinion of ordinary people, if the negotiation with the Liao people can be successful, the Song Dynasty will have sufficient time to develop in the next ten or twenty years. If the officials are not willing to do this, they can definitely strengthen their troops. The Liao Kingdom will be powerful in a short period of time. Let’s not touch him. Anyway, with the covenant, they will generally not invade again. We can first eliminate the problems in the party and Dali..."
During the Northern Song Dynasty, in addition to the Liao Kingdom in the north, there was the Xia Kingdom established by Dangxiang in the west, and the Dali regime of the Duan family in the southwest. Of course, the latter was basically no threat.
In fact, the party of the Li family was originally dominated by the Song Dynasty, but one of the Li family, Li Jiqian, fled Xiazhou. In the second year of Yongxi (985), Li Jiqian and his brother Li Jichong lured and killed Song general Cao Guangshi and occupied Xiayin. Zhou, conquered Huizhou, and completely fell out with the Song Dynasty.
Later, Li Jiqian asked for surrender from the Liao Kingdom, took refuge with the Liao people, and was named King of Xia.
In the second year of Zhidao (996), Li Jiqian intercepted 400,000 grain and grass supplies from the Song army and sent troops to surround Lingwu City. Song Taizong was furious and sent five troops to attack, but they were all defeated by Xia.
When Zhao Heng came to the throne, he treated the Xia State with the same calm attitude as he did with the Liao people. He even took the initiative to cede Xiazhou, Suizhou, Yinzhou, Youzhou and Jingzhou to Li Jiqian, and in fact recognized the independence of Xixia. .
But like the Liao people, the Dangxiang Li family will not be satisfied.
In two years' time, Li Jiqian will lead his troops to capture Lingzhou and Liangzhou, two important towns in the Song Dynasty, cut off the trade routes between the Song Dynasty and the Western Regions, prevent the Western Regions from paying tribute to the Song Dynasty, and begin to prohibit the tribes in the Western Regions from selling horses to the Song Dynasty, directly weakening the Song Dynasty. The decline of the Song Dynasty's military strength was also one of the reasons why the Song Army's cavalry became increasingly weak.
Therefore, in Li Yong's view, the attack on Xixia should be stronger than that of Liao to a certain extent.
It's just that beating a dog depends on the owner. The reason why Li Jiqian was so rampant was because he was affiliated with the Liao State. This made the Song Dynasty have to look at the Liao State's face if it wanted to attack them.
At this time, war with the Liao Kingdom was imminent, and the Song Dynasty was naturally not willing to fight on both sides. Li Jiqian may have seen this, so he first occupied a good position for himself before the Song-Liao Chanyuan alliance. As a result, whether the Song Dynasty beat him or not, it would be wrong.
On this point, you can also take a closer look.
Zhao Heng's face darkened when he heard Li Yong mention Xixia.
In fact, not long after he took the throne, he found that what he inherited seemed to be a mess. There was Liao Kingdom in the north and Xia Kingdom in the west. It was also unstable internally. It could be said that it was suffering from internal and external troubles and enemies from all sides.
That's why Zhao Heng would settle the matter for the time being, give in to both sides, and concentrate on developing domestic affairs first.
But the Liao Dynasty refused to give up, and Xixia also made further progress. For Zhao Heng, it was just two words: tired.
Nowadays, it sounds easy to hear Li Yong say it, but it is not easy to do what he said.
First of all, we have to fight another war with the Liao Kingdom, and we must win, so that the Liao Kingdom will be willing to sit down and negotiate peace with them.
But if the battle is really won, who can be willing to bow his head and seek peace?
But Li Yong is right. With the current situation of the Song Dynasty, they can't do anything without seeking peace. They can only stabilize the Liao Kingdom, their great enemy, and then develop themselves.
