Li Yong originally planned to exchange Liao Emperor Yelu Longxu with the Liao State for the Sixteenth Prefecture of Yanyun, and possibly add Empress Dowager Xiao as a new head.
As for Yelu Longxu's harem and heirs, the men were all put back, and the women - he had already enjoyed what he could enjoy anyway, Brother Xiao Bodhisattva, the deposed queen Xiao Guifei, Xiao Defei and her eldest daughter, Xiao Concubine Yuan and Brother Yeluyan, the eldest daughter of Yelu Longxu who was left behind by another late Concubine Xiao.
Now that she is his woman, there is no reason to return the favor. And I believe that under the current situation, 80% of the Liao people will agree.
In fact, the Sixteenth State of Yanyun seems to them to be unsafe now. It is possible for the Song Dynasty to take the opportunity to take it back. It is better to take the opportunity to let the Song Dynasty and Tubo fight here. Then they sit on the mountain and watch. Tigers fight, if you avoid this crisis, you may still be able to reap the benefits.
Of course, this is only possible, and there is still a possibility of being rejected. Unless the Song army has taken the first step to occupy the Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures, then for the Liao Kingdom, which only has a nominal ownership by then, verbally speaking Just give it away.
Zhao Heng's edict arrived just at this time. After some weighing, Li Yong actually did not hesitate for too long and chose to abandon the previous overall plan and come back directly to settle everything.
The Tibetan soldiers can be given to Zhejia, the sixteen states of Yanyun can be given to the Song Dynasty, and the Liao Emperor is even less important. But he wants to be emperor!
But for the time being, it's not a good time. He has given up so much. Although Zhao Heng may not know it, after this time, it should be enough to regain his trust.
The trust of an emperor is fragile, but sometimes it is also very stubborn. In the past, Li Yong could only listen in at such times, but today he was allowed to openly participate in the discussion under the scrutiny of the ministers. This is enough to show that Zhao Heng now relies heavily on him.
Of course, as a person who has personally experienced this matter, Li Yong is indeed the one who has the most say.
"Okay..." Zhao Heng showed no emotion or anger on his face, and he didn't know what he thought about the discussion among the ministers. However, he turned around and looked at Li Yong with a pleasant look, and asked: "Your name, what is your name?" In your opinion, why does the leader of the Tubo Kingdom want the Sixteen Provinces of Youyun?" Li Yong said with a calm face: "In my humble opinion, he must have wanted to form an alliance with me, the Song Dynasty." If it were said before, Everyone was shocked and angry, but at this time they were completely surprised. Even Zhao Heng looked at Li Yong with curiosity and asked: "Li Junming, why do you make such a conclusion? Besides, didn't the Tibetan soldiers belong to our army long ago?" Under the rule of the Song Dynasty?" Yes, the young prince of Tubo led his troops to defect to Fuzhou Zhejia, and then received the emperor's order to join the Western Army, becoming the fifth corps in addition to the four main brigades.
The Tibetan soldiers then annexed another Tubo tribe as well as the Dangxiang, Uighur, and Qiang tribes, unified the foreign tribes in the northwest, and in turn became the largest force in the northwest, faintly surpassing the Western Army.
Later, because of this threat, the Song Dynasty court felt uneasy and sent two imperial envoys there. Although nothing was noticed, this time in the battle between Liao and Song Dynasty, the Tibetan soldiers sent out troops brazenly, which made the Song court further aware of their intentions. Can not control.
Although the dispatch of troops actually helped them, there was no communication beforehand and no voice afterward.
Zhao Heng said this at this time, feeling somewhat resentful in his heart. But he also knew that Li Yong was not to blame for this matter. After all, he went to the northwest mainly to target Li Jiqian, and at most to target Dangxiang and Xia Guo.
In terms of results, his mission was completed to perfection. I'm afraid he himself can't predict the subsequent development. If someone is really responsible for this, the Zhe family will be more responsible. After all, they must know the situation in the northwest better than Li Yong, an outsider, and know the true unity of those alien races. , What will happen if we form an alliance?
Just like now, the threat to the Song Dynasty from the northwest has suddenly risen to the same level as that of the Liao Kingdom. The delay in launching an action against Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures also has a lot to do with this.
As a result, Li Yong actually said that the leader of the Tibetan soldiers and the leader of the Tubo Kingdom voluntarily came to Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures in exchange for the Liao Emperor and offered him as a gift of alliance.
Logically speaking, in the past, the Tibetan soldiers were under the control of the Western Army of the Song Dynasty. Even an alliance was considered an alliance between father and son. Now, what they are seeking is naturally an alliance between brothers. Logically, it seems reasonable, but it is worth their efforts. What?
Taking the risk of directly offending the Liao Kingdom, he broke into the Linhuang Mansion in Beijing and abducted Emperor Yelu Longxu's family in order to help the people who had been hesitant.
"Brother" Da Song exchanged for the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun that had been waiting for decades? If this were true, he would make me cry.
But the monarchs and ministers of the Song Dynasty were naturally not gullible. They were always wary of foreigners. However, this wariness could not be converted into motivation to strengthen themselves, but it did not prevent them from being wary of other people's intentions.
"Everything the minister said is true. Of course, officials and princes may not believe it. But as far as I know, the King of Tibet really has no ambitions. He only wants to occupy the northwest and form a generational alliance with the Song Dynasty.
"The reason why he is willing to send troops this time is because he is worried that the Liao army will be strong and the Song army will be defeated. If the Song Dynasty is defeated, the northwest and Liaodong will be implicated..." In other words, the enemy of the enemy is a friend, and Tubo may not be sincere. To form an alliance with the Song army is just to choose a weaker one between the two strong neighbors of Liao and Song.
The Privy Council and the Ministry of War wanted to defend their Song army, but after thinking about it, they decided not to do so. No need...
"If this is really the case..."
"Officials!" Ke Zheng frowned and said, "These are just the words of Deputy Envoy Li. Deputy Envoy Li may be loyal to the officials and the Song Dynasty, but it is unknown if he was deceived by the Tibetan king. "
"In that case, I will send another imperial envoy to talk to the Tibetan king in person!" Li Yong's heart moved, and he immediately stepped forward and said: "I'm afraid it's not necessary..."
"Oh, why is this?" Li Yong smiled bitterly: "Actually, before I returned to Beijing, the King of Tibet told me that he would arrange for envoys to come over and discuss the alliance with me, the Song Dynasty. Of course, this matter We still have to wait for a reply from the Liao Kingdom first..." The monarchs and ministers of the Song Dynasty looked at each other. In the end, Zhao Heng was silent for a moment, but he rubbed his eyebrows and said: "In that case, let's wait for a while and wait for the news from over there. But..." He glanced at Li Yong, hesitated for a moment, but still did not say it directly. He only said: "The matter of Youyun Sixteen Provinces will be put on hold for now. But what Li Yong said is right. No matter what, he sent troops first and occupied it. Let’s talk about the location.” In the next few days, the Song army continued to increase troops in Yingzhou, Mozhou, Shuozhou, and Youzhou, and the Liao Kingdom’s reply also reached Zhe Lijun’s head.
After she went back to discuss with her family, she decided to follow the orders left by Li Yong and continue to communicate with the Liao Kingdom while sending another envoy to Tokyo.
But the first batch of envoys had already arrived, and they told Li Yong exactly what he said. This also made the monarchs of the Song Dynasty from Zhao Heng on down completely believe what Li Yong said, and began to seriously consider the so-called alliance.
In fact, if this is the case, it is something they take advantage of and there is no need to hesitate at all. What needs to be considered is how they will intervene in the northwest in the future, including the arrangements for the Western Army.
Originally, the Western Army was to defend the northwest, but if peace is maintained, the importance of the Western Army seems to be reduced.
In accordance with Da Ting's tone of emphasizing culture and suppressing military force... and then the arrival of the second northwest envoys refreshed their spirits.
The Liao Kingdom agreed to trade negotiations, but they only agreed to hand over half of the Sixteen States of Yanyun in exchange for Emperor Yelu Longxu and Empress Dowager Xiao.
