It is undeniable that the party members are very fierce, not the five scum of the war, but when it comes to national power, Xixia is definitely not as good as the Song Dynasty, and so far, it is only limited to the civil strife in Xixia, and the Song Dynasty and Xixia have not declared war. The other is waxing and waning, where did Empress Dowager Liang get her confidence?
No need to think about it, it must be the Liao Kingdom.
Based on Li Bingchang's policy slogan, the Liao Kingdom must support the Empress Dowager Liang. He cannot allow Xixia and the Song Dynasty to get too close, especially now that the Song Dynasty's national power is booming, and the emperor sitting on it is very different from the previous Renzong and Zhang Zhenzong. Same, so at this moment, the Liao Kingdom needs Xixia more to contain the Song Dynasty.
In fact, the Empress Dowager Liang was very politically savvy. She was not stupid. She knew what the consequences would be if she did this, but she could only do this. At the same time, she knew she could use this to win over the Liao Kingdom.
If Li Bingchang is allowed to take charge, Song and Xia will become one family, and no one will help you contain the Song Dynasty.
Therefore, the Liao Kingdom also spent money to support the Empress Dowager Liang and transported a large amount of grain and grass to Xixia from the north.
Of course, the Liao Kingdom also knew clearly that transporting grain and grass alone was not a long-term solution. The key was that it could not take advantage, and could only transfuse blood to Xixia. The trade-off was to weaken both parties and then ensure its dominance. situation, so the Liao Kingdom had already divided its interests in Hedong.
As long as the Song Dynasty takes advantage of Xixia, then I will definitely take advantage of you, and at the same time make you lose your wife and troops.
The Liao Kingdom has always had the Song Dynasty under control, and it can even be said that it has everything under its control. In fact, before the Security Department of the Song Dynasty appeared, the Song Dynasty was no match for the Liao Kingdom even in a spy war.
But this time the Song army's movements were beyond the Liao Kingdom's surprise. There has been no declaration of war so far, and there is no sign of a large-scale attack. However, the Liao Kingdom still learned that the main force of the Song Army had entered Xixia territory, and also learned that, The main force on the northern front of Xixia was defeated by the Song army in Wudingchuan.
The situation is precarious.
So the Liao Kingdom finally couldn't hold it any longer, and first issued a notice to Shen Kuo, accusing them of the Song Dynasty's deliberate delay and lack of sincerity in negotiations. We had lost patience, and the border to Hedong was decided.
Immediately, 5,000 advance troops were sent to the disputed area, but there were 70,000 to 80,000 troops stationed on the border. It can be seen that the Liao Kingdom was also very cautious. They did not seem to create an atmosphere of invasion. This was still within the scope of diplomacy.
The Liao soldiers only entered the disputed area and did not mention burning, killing or looting, but they did not encounter any obstruction.
Because this place has been a no-man's land for a long time, the Song Dynasty was afraid that its people would go to farm next door if they were not careful, and they were also afraid that the Liao Kingdom would find an excuse to attack the Song Dynasty or engage in extortion. Later, Han Qi built some The fortress, however symbolically, was completely devoid of combat capability.
After the Liao troops stationed, the Song troops stationed here withdrew directly. They only stayed here symbolically.
The Han people living here can only withdraw from this place.
Even so, Taiyuan and Fuzhou still felt huge pressure. Fortunately, Wang Shao stopped and continued to attack. Otherwise, it would have been really dangerous.
The Song army guarding Taiyuan quickly launched an active defense.
The news soon spread to Bianjing.
Although everyone had been prepared in their hearts, when the Liao Kingdom actually took this step, the natural fear of the Liao Kingdom still emerged in their hearts.
Everyone inside and outside the court was shocked and frightened.
Do you really want to fight?
But some ministers are very angry about this, and this is true every time. As long as our army takes action against Xixia, the Liao Kingdom will definitely not be absent.
What a villain.
It is impossible to cede territory.
Even if someone wanted to cut it off, they didn't dare to say so. Wen Yanbo and the others were still afraid that Zhao Xu would compromise again.
After learning about this, these prime ministers hurriedly entered the palace with a firm attitude, never compromised, and never recognized the territory demarcated by the Liao Kingdom.
But what can I do if I don’t admit it?
beat?
No one had this idea, including Wen Yanbo himself.
Because in that disputed area, the power of the Song Dynasty was almost zero.
There is one thing to say, even if they send troops to fight, they can't defeat it. Moreover, part of the main force of the Western Army is still in Xixia, and thanks to Emperor Tuo'er, the Liao Kingdom has an absolute geographical advantage along the entire border, allowing it to advance and retreat freely.
Besides, they still have war horses, and currently firearms cannot dominate the battlefield.
The only way the Song Dynasty could counterattack was to rely on diplomatic channels. To be more precise, it was to use Sui coins and the market to put pressure on the Liao Kingdom.
The point of their discussion was the Chanyuan Alliance.
Because Sui coins and Ganchang were both part of the Chanyuan Alliance, but in fact, the Chanyuan Alliance did not clearly stipulate the boundary to the east of Hedong, only the Xiongzhou side.
When you bring up the Sui coins and the market, it is equivalent to tying the Hedong boundary to the Chanyuan alliance.
Some ministers believe that doing so will leave them with no way out.
Because you don't give Sui coins or open a market for sales, the Liao Kingdom will definitely go to war. The Liao Kingdom is so cautious now because it is worried that the Song Dynasty will close the market for sales and not give coins.
So when you propose the Sui coins and discuss the situation, if the Liao Kingdom still refuses to withdraw, will you give the Sui coins or not?
This would put him in a dilemma, because after all, he had not yet made up his mind to go to war with the Liao Kingdom.
They wanted to calculate it separately. It was impossible to cede territory. They had to exert pressure through diplomacy, but they could not use the Chanyuan Alliance to make trouble.
Of course, they didn't know that Shen Kuo had already come out with the New Year coins to put pressure.
But Wen Yanbo believes that if you don't take the coins and the market, why should the Liao Kingdom pay attention to you? This is tantamount to acquiescence that they occupy our territory, and the Liao Kingdom is very likely to make further progress unless our army withdraws from Xixia.
The two factions also engaged in heated debates on this point of view.
Zhao Xu has always been relatively silent. Although he did not appear to be very weak, he was not too tough either.
royal palace.
"Actually, the current situation cannot be considered very bad. At least the Liao Kingdom did not directly send a large army to invade. It can be seen that the Liao Kingdom is also wary. The only solution now is to protest through diplomacy and resolutely refuse to recognize the boundary. It can be delayed as long as it takes."
Zhang Fei still saw Zhao Xu's worry, so he comforted him.
The worst case scenario is that the Liao Kingdom directly sends troops.
"I know it too."
Zhao Xu nodded and said, "But the question now is, should this matter be included in the Chanyuan Alliance?"
Zhang Fei was silent for a while and said: "I think your Majesty should be prepared to break with the Liao Kingdom."
Zhao Xu couldn't help frowning when he heard this.
Zhang Fei added: "Because we mentioned the Sui coins before, the Liao Kingdom only sent five thousand soldiers and horses to garrison. They must also be testing and giving Xixia a guarantee.
If we don't mention the Chanyuan Alliance, the Liao Kingdom will definitely think that we are bluffing before and dare not break with it, but our Xixia plan cannot be given up.
The Liao Kingdom will definitely make further progress, and then they will find new problems, and then continue to invade our territory, or ask for more Sui coins.
And if we show more strength, the Liao Kingdom will also be wary. Although it is impossible for them to withdraw from the Hedong border, they may be able to buy us some time. At the same time, we are still collecting evidence of Yelu Yixin. Maybe he can help us at a critical moment. "
Although the two of them had discussed this issue no less than 180 times, when it came time to make a decision, Zhao Xu still seemed very hesitant, "We are currently deploying troops in Xixia. Although we have not sent all the main force, there are still about 100,000 people. Many ministers in the DPRK still believe that fighting on two fronts is too risky. In addition, after so many years of peace on the border, the people of Liao are tired of war, and our people are also tired of war."
Zhang Fei also saw that Zhao Xu was still a little uneasy about breaking with the Liao Kingdom. After all, the Chanyuan Alliance had been in existence for nearly eighty years, and it actually involved the interests of many people, whether it was the Song Dynasty or the Liao Dynasty. As far as the Liao Kingdom is concerned, if they really break up, it would be fine if they win. If they lose, it may shake their dominance. At present, there is really no guarantee that they can defeat the Liao Kingdom.
The key point is that the Liao Kingdom is also a thief. They have been paving the way for this matter for a long time. We have determined the border through diplomacy. We have been talking for two or three years. It shows that we do not want to break with the Song Dynasty. We are just saying that you The Song Dynasty deliberately delayed, and it was you who were at fault first.
After thinking for a while, Zhang Fei suddenly said: "Why don't you let me do this?"
Zhao Xu was startled and said in shock: "Are you coming?"
Zhang Fei nodded and said: "His Majesty still chooses a more prudent approach in diplomacy, while domestically, through people's lawsuits, the Supreme Court will judge the other party for breach of contract."
Zhao Xu was shocked when he heard this, "How can this be done?"
Zhang Fei said: "I can only judge that the other party violated the contract and ask the other party to compensate our people, instead of tearing up the contract. The imperial court does not have this power. This must be decided by your Majesty yourself."
Zhao Xu was a little confused when he heard this, "Can you still ask the Northern Dynasty to compensate our people?"
"Of course not."
Zhang Fei said: "But after the imperial court's judgment, if your Majesty decides to break with the Liao Kingdom, it will be to defend the interests of his own people. This is in line with the concept of the rule of law, and it is also what your Majesty should do. In this way, it can alleviate the His Majesty’s pressure, and His Majesty can take more initiative, and then assess the situation, and our Imperial Court will also cooperate with His Majesty’s strategy.”
Zhao Xu's eyes lit up, no matter whether it was used at this time or not, this was really a method.
Now that he wants to break with the Liao Kingdom, the opposition must think that you are ignoring the safety of the people, but when the matter turns around in the imperial court, it becomes defending the rights and interests of the people.
Zhao Xu asked again: "So you think it's time to break with the Northern Dynasty."
Zhang Fei nodded and said: "I believe that the Liao Kingdom's move is a test. If we feel guilty, they will definitely intensify their efforts until we withdraw from Xixia. In that case, it will be the same as before, losing both our wives and our troops.
Moreover, we can't just think that this is the Liao Kingdom's intention to provoke a war. We originally planned to break up with the Liao Kingdom. We can also use this matter to tear up the Chanyuan Alliance. After all, His Majesty also said just now. , we the people of the Song Dynasty also cherish peace very much. At that time, we will have to find another reason to go to war with the Liao Kingdom and recover the sixteen states of Yanyun.
Nowadays, the situation in Liao Kingdom is also very delicate, and we have gained another year, enough to establish defenses in Hebei. The timing is not bad for us. "
Zhao Xu nodded slightly, and after weighing it, "Okay, I'll do what you say."
After Zhang Fei left, Empress Dowager Gao suddenly sent someone to invite Zhao Xu.
When mother and son met, Empress Dowager Gao got straight to the point and said, "Guan family, I heard that my uncle disobeyed military orders on the front line. Is this relevant?"
Zhao Xu was stunned for a moment and said: "When I returned to my mother, I heard about this, but Dan'er thought it might be a misunderstanding. The old general sent troops from Qingzhou and defeated the enemy along the way, winning consecutive battles and victories."
Empress Dowager Gao waved her hand and said: "This is not a misunderstanding. I know my uncle's character very well. Although he is loyal to the Song Dynasty, he is too petty and jealous of talents, especially military achievements. He is very obsessed with military achievements.
The officials must not care about my face, and deal with it as they should. It is best to remove him, so as not to spoil the matter. "
Zhao Xu nodded and said, "Yes, I understand."
Seeing that the emperor agreed so casually, Queen Mother Gao still felt uneasy, "Remember, at this critical moment, don't let him lead the army again."
Zhao Xu immediately said: "Don't worry, Queen Mother, this matter has been transferred to the Military Imperial Court and will be heard there."
Queen Mother Gao nodded.
She knew what happened to Gao Zunyu, but she was very supportive of Wang Shao. After all, there was still a Liao Kingdom here. The deeper we went, the emptier the rear became. She was really afraid that Gao Zunyu would do whatever he wanted because of his status.
Now the situation is really affecting the whole body.
Zhao Xu finally chose the safe way and sent Han Wei to the Liao Kingdom to go to Beijing to negotiate with the Liao Kingdom about the Liao Kingdom sending troops into the border of Hedong, but did not mention the Chanyuan Alliance.
This decision brought relief to most people.
Although they shouted fiercely, they were actually unwilling to start a war with the Liao Kingdom. After all, there were not many Song people in those areas.
Including Han Qi, Fu Bi, Sima Guang, and Wang Anshi, they all believed that fighting on two fronts should be avoided as much as possible. At the same time, Hebei's defense still needed time to build, and they could not break up with the Liao Kingdom at this time.
At the same time, Xixia also received news that the Liao Kingdom had sent troops to Hedong. Empress Dowager Liang was overjoyed. Both she and her brother Liang Yimi believed that the balance of victory had tipped in their favor.
The Song Dynasty was led by literati. Faced with a huge advantage, it stopped moving forward. This is not a fool.
The morale of the Song army must be very low.
At the same time, the Liao Kingdom's march to Hedong will inevitably make it difficult for the main force of the Western Army to take care of the head and tail, and dare not use all its strength.
So they sent an army of 200,000 troops, divided into three groups, to attack Lanzhou on the south line, Yanzhou on the middle line, and Xiazhou on the north line.
But the result was beyond their expectations.
None of the three armies made any achievements.
What surprised them even more was that the morale of the Song army was even higher than theirs, and they fought with more determination than the Dangxiang people.
This made Empress Dowager Liang shocked.
Historically, during Song Shenzong's five-pronged expedition to the Xia Dynasty, the party members had to fight against the odds, while the Song army went deep alone, so it ended in a disastrous defeat. But this time it was very different.
First of all, the Song Dynasty did not declare war, and the generals entered as merchants, nominally protecting trade routes and the overall interests of the local people.
Secondly, after these two months, the interests of the occupied areas were properly arranged. A large amount of green salt entered the territory of the Song Dynasty, bringing a lot of livelihood to the local people, and everyone benefited from this.
Therefore, the Song Army's army and civilians are united. We are not fighting for others, we are fighting for ourselves.
The Dangxiang soldiers were only to protect the power of Empress Dowager Liang, not to fight against the odds in this life-or-death situation.
In addition, the Song army has been building fortresses according to the terrain and has completely given up attacking.
The time, place, and people are all on the Song Army's side.
The two armies fought several times, but the party members saw no chance of a breakthrough. On the contrary, the logistics were somewhat stretched.
As for the Song Army, since it was only a small step forward, the logistical pressure was not very great.
And it's not just the Western Army that has trouble keeping track of the beginning and the end, the Xixia Army is also in trouble, because the Tubo tribe in the west is also fighting with the Xixia Army in Ganzhou.
After this battle, the generals of the Song Army fully understood Wang Shao's intentions. We only need to defend well. Xixia is just a trapped beast still fighting, because the Empress Dowager Liang has to fight even if she doesn't fight. So why not wait for work and take care of Liao at the same time? The army may move south.
The generals from all walks of life also calmed down and continued to build forts and strengthen defenses. At the same time, they developed firearm tactics. More and more firearms were sent to the border.
However, the good news from the northwest did not bring more surprises to the capital. As the saying goes, if you gain something, you will lose something.
Han Wei was sent as an envoy to the Liao Kingdom again. He was originally going to Beijing to negotiate with the Liao Emperor. However, when he arrived in Nanjing, that is, Youzhou, he was stopped by the special envoy sent by the Liao Emperor.
Our emperor is busy hunting and has no time to talk to you. Let’s talk here in Youzhou.
As soon as they came to the negotiating table, before Han Wei even opened his mouth, he was criticized by the Liao envoys. They believed that the Song Dynasty had no sincerity in the Hedong negotiations and was just delaying and playing word games.
And who can play this word game better than you, Song Dynasty? Aren’t you bullying others?
For the sake of the century-old friendship between the two countries, we have decided on the border between Hedong and China so that there will be no misunderstandings.
Han Wei was also aggrieved. He could not argue against the Chanyuan Alliance. He could only reason and present evidence. However, the evidence had not yet been produced. The Liao State directly concluded that the Song Dynasty was playing word games.
I don't listen.
I can't read either.
Why should we, the Liao Kingdom, recognize the records of your Song people?
Han Wei could only moan feebly there. We refused to admit it, but his tone was very weak, as if he was being suppressed by blood.
When news of this situation reached Bianliang, Tokyo, no one had the time to celebrate the victory on the northwest front.
There was silence throughout the ruling and opposition parties.
In fact, everyone expected this to be the case. In other words, they just acquiesced to this situation and didn't admit it, that's all.
They were defeated again and again, and they did not dare to use the only countermeasure they had easily.
Admit it!
That's what it means.
However, at this moment, a class action lawsuit broke the atmosphere of silence.
It turned out that the people who had been driven out from Hedong suddenly appeared in the capital and filed an appeal through the Legal Aid Office, suing the Liao Kingdom for occupying their land.
Everyone in the government and the public was dumbfounded.
How did these people come to the capital?
Are they crazy?
The Liao Kingdom has seized your land, and if you come to the imperial court to appeal, our imperial court can still help you get the land from the Liao Kingdom?
This is not public prosecutorial law, this is superstitious!
Not to mention them, Zhao Pian was also dumbfounded.
Grass!
How to judge this?
If Liao people commit crimes within the country, this can be tried, and everyone has experience, but this is diplomacy, this is a national event, and the other party is a serious Liao army.
If I decide, can I change anything?
It's not that Zhao Pian doesn't dare, it's that he doesn't know how to interrogate.
So, he first went to find Fu Bi and Sima Guang.
As a result, the two men also looked at each other.
Don't know what to do either.
This is the first time that the Public Security Bureau has encountered such a situation, and it would never have happened before.
At this time, resistance from the DPRK and China came, explicitly and covertly asking Zhao Pian to reject it. You can't mess around with this. Han Wei is still negotiating in Youzhou, so don't make it self-defeating.
Although Zhao Bian was a stern censor, after all, this was a national matter and he did not dare to act recklessly.
Just at this moment, Wen Yanbo suddenly came quietly to the door.
"Mr. Zhao, please dismiss it first."
"But.?"
Zhao Pian asked: "Then what's the reason for rejecting it?"
Wen Yanbo said: "Just find any reason and say that the imperial court is solving these problems through diplomacy."
Zhao Pian heard that there was something in his words and couldn't help asking: "I hope Mr. Wen will say it clearly."
Wen Yanbo smiled and said: "If no one helps, can these Hedong people appear in the capital quietly?"
"I also thought of this." Zhao Pian said: "I thought..."
He thought it was Wen Yanbo who caused it, because Wen Yanbo insisted on negotiating with the Liao Kingdom through the Chanyuan Alliance.
"Not my doing."
Wen Yanbo said: "But since it's not me, it must be him."
Zhao Pian said: "President of the Grand Court?"
Wen Yanbo nodded, "It must be him."
Zhao Pian said: "Why is Duke Wen so sure?"
Wen Yanbo smiled and said: "It's very simple, because I can't think of asking those people to come to the imperial court to appeal. Has Mr. Zhao thought of this before?"
Zhao Pian suddenly woke up as if from a dream.
It's not that they couldn't think of it, but they thought it was impossible and unreasonable. The imperial court couldn't hear such a case.
Having said that, they couldn't imagine how those ordinary people could think of appealing through the public prosecutor's office and so quickly.
In the whole world, only Zhang Fei can think of this method, and only he can handle this kind of case.
There is no doubt that it was Zhang San who was responsible.
Wen Yanbo added: "But this matter is of great importance. I don't know what kind of medicine is sold in Zhang San Gourd for the time being. It's not appropriate to make it public for now. Mr. Zhao only needs to dismiss the case. At that time, those people will appeal to the Supreme Emperor." Court, I guess Zhang San is already waiting for the table, let’s see how he plans to deal with it.”
Zhao Pian nodded and said, "Thank you, Mr. Wen, for your advice. I know what to do."
After receiving advice from Wen Yanbo, Zhao Pian dismissed the lawsuit filed by the common people on the grounds that the matter was within the scope of diplomacy and could not be made by the imperial court.
All the ministers in the DPRK let out a sigh of relief.
However, they seemed to have forgotten the existence of Zhang Fei, because during this period, Zhang Fei kept a very low profile and kept his identity as the president of the court. He did not make any comments on the matter or participate in the discussion of these political affairs. He only talked with Zhao Xu Discuss privately.
No one expected that those common people would backhand with a super double and directly appeal to the Supreme Court.
? ? ?
The ministers suddenly woke up, oh, there is a chief judge above.
this..
As we all know, the president of the court is not the same person as them, and there is quite a grudge between the two parties. If he rashly intervenes, he might be accused of interfering with justice by Zhang Fei.
At present, no one knows what Zhang Fei's position is because he has never spoken out.
The key is, this guy often doesn't play according to the routine.
This is really scary!
