Chapter 276 Civil War in Liao
“Drive!”
In the inner city of Bianjing, on the royal road near the palace, a group of cavalry roared past.
Some people saw this scene and started talking a lot.
The royal roads in the city are not only accessible by the emperor's car.
But only when the emperor was traveling, or when new scholars were parading on horseback, walking was almost not allowed at other times.
Not to mention running wildly.
After learning about the situation, the Inner City Soldiers and Horses Division wanted to intercept them. Seeing that the leader was Zhao Xing, they dared to stop them.
Zhao Xing didn't know this. At this time, he was very anxious and kept urging the horse on his crotch.
The East Palace is not far from the palace. Zhao Xing ran all the way again and soon arrived at the main entrance of the palace.
"Stop whoever is coming!"
The imperial troops at the palace gate were facing a formidable enemy. This was the first time in all their years of service that they encountered someone riding straight towards the palace gate.
If the soldiers on top of the city had not recognized that the leader was Zhao Xing, they would have fired arrows.
“Xu~”
Fortunately, Zhao Xing still had sense and did not ride his horse directly into the palace.
Even if he was the prince, the guards at the palace gate would not be able to let him ride into the palace without permission. It would only take more time to explain.
Zhao Xing dismounted from his horse and ran towards the palace gate: "I am the prince. I have an emergency to enter the palace. Get out of the way quickly!"
The imperial army at the gate of the palace did not stop him.
Zhao Xing ran to his father's palace as soon as he entered the palace. The effect of his persistence in martial arts training over the years was reflected.
From the palace gate to the bedroom, even if Zhao Xing ran all the way, it took nearly a cup of tea.
"Father!"
Zhao Xing's eyes were red, and he rushed into his father's palace with a cry.
In the palace, an imperial doctor was checking the official's pulse in front of the bed, while Queen Cao stood aside.
Zhao Xing suddenly rushed in, startling everyone.
"Fuer!"
The official who had already woken up on the bed came to his senses first, squeezed out a smile on his pale face, and raised his hand feebly.
"Father, what's wrong with you?"
Zhao Xing stepped forward quickly, grabbed his father's hand, squatted in front of the bed, and looked at his father with worry.
After not seeing each other for a few days, my father looked much older, and his energy seemed to be gone.
Having not held his father's hand for a long time, Zhao Xing discovered at this time that his father's hand didn't have much flesh, it was very shriveled, almost skin and bones.
You must know that my father is only in his fifties now.
"I'm fine. I was just too excited before, so I couldn't take a breath and passed out." The official said with a smile.
Zhao Xing shed tears when he heard this. His father is the emperor after all. What could make him faint from excitement?
Obviously there is something wrong with my father's health.
"Fu'er, Dr. Xu is taking your father's pulse. You need to let Dr. Xu finish taking the pulse first!" Empress Cao reminded.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xing let go of his father's hand and stood up, wiping the corners of his eyes.
"Back to the Queen, I have just taken your majesty's pulse. Your majesty is not seriously ill, but you need to rest for some days." Dr. Xu said.
"Do you really mean what Dr. Xu said?" Zhao Xing looked at Dr. Xu happily.
"How dare I deceive Your Majesty and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!" Dr. Xu said with certainty: "Your Majesty only needs to rest for a while."
"I'm sorry to trouble you, Dr. Xu!" Zhao Xingwen Yan breathed a sigh of relief.
"This is what I should do. I still have to prepare medicine for Your Majesty, so I'll take my leave now!" Dr. Xu saluted.
"Yes." Zhao Xing nodded.
After Dr. Xu left, Zhao Xing looked at his father and asked: "Father, I heard that you received an urgent report that was 800 miles away, so I fell into a coma with excitement. Go over. What is the urgent news that makes Father so happy?"
A flush appeared on the official's pale face when he heard this. Zhao Xing was startled and hurriedly knelt down and said, "Father, Don't get too excited, call the imperial doctor!"
"I'm fine!" The official took a deep breath, controlled his emotions, and looked at Queen Cao.
Empress Cao understood and said she was going to cook porridge for the officials, and took all the maids and eunuchs out of the house.
When only the father and son were left in the room, the official said in a somewhat excited tone: "Fu'er, the Emperor of Liao is dead!"
"What?" Zhao Xing's eyes widened when he heard this. , horrified.
Did Yelu Zhongyuan really succeed?
No, if Yelu Zhongyuan succeeds, there is a high probability that he will be poisoned.
But if the Emperor of Liao died, the ministers of Liao State would definitely block the news.
Now he has not received any changes from the Liao Kingdom.
Unless the news of Emperor Liao's death was not concealed at all, Babaili rushed to deliver the news very quickly. The news had already been sent to Bianjing before he received the news.
"The Liao Kingdom did block the news, but Yelu Chongyuan placed people in the palace, and he received the news of the Liao Emperor's death as soon as possible. He secretly sneaked back to the fiefdom, and then ordered people to This news broke that King Yelu Yixin of Zhao was plotting to kill the Emperor of Liao, so he raised troops to help the king, and called on all the ministries of the Liao Kingdom to join him in raising troops," the official said. Zhao Xing had also heard of Yelu Yixin, who was quite favored during the reign of the first emperor of Liao.
The current Liao Emperor also trusted him very much after he succeeded to the throne. He not only named him King Zhao, but also made him the envoy of the Privy Council of the North Courtyard.
Some institutions in the Liao Kingdom imitated the Song Dynasty, but there were some differences.
The chief official of the Privy Council in the Song Dynasty was the Privy Council Envoy, and then the Deputy Privy Council Envoy.
However, the Privy Council envoys of Liao were second only to the Privy Council envoys and higher than the Privy Council deputy envoys.
The duties and powers are the same, in charge of the mobilization of troops and horses in the world.
However, there is no Privy Council envoy in the North Court of Liao State. He, the Privy Council Envoy, is the highest official of the Privy Council.
No wonder my father was so excited after reading the urgent report.
"Father, is this news confirmed? Is it possible that Emperor Liao deliberately pretended to be dead to induce Yelu Chongyuan to raise troops?" Zhao Xing said.
"Impossible." The official shook his head and said: "Seeing that Yelu Yixin couldn't hide the news, he had already proclaimed the eldest son of Emperor Liao, Prince Liang, as emperor, and announced to the public that Emperor Liao was murdered by Yelu Chongyuan. He called on all the ministries to put down the rebellion, and now they may have started fighting. "
" What a shame," Zhao Xing looked pityful after hearing this.
In fact, he also felt that the possibility of Emperor Liao cheating to death was very slim. If Emperor Liao really wanted to take action against Yelu Chongyuan, there would be no need to let Yelu Chongyuan leave Beijing last year.
Since the Liao Emperor let him leave, it means that he is not sure that he can quickly quell Yelu Zhongyuan's power, and he does not want to lose too much of the Liao Kingdom's strength.
It is a pity for him that the Song Dynasty is not strong enough now and cannot take the opportunity to recapture the Yanyun Sixteenth Prefecture.
However, Zhao Xing soon felt relieved. He had long known that even if the Liao Dynasty was in civil strife, it would be difficult for the Song Dynasty to take advantage.
The Liao Kingdom is not stupid. Once the Song Dynasty intervenes, there is a high probability that the Liao Kingdom will stop first and unanimously deal with the outside world.
However, the civil strife in Liao was of great benefit to the Song Dynasty, but I don't know how long the civil strife will last.
Thinking of this, Zhao Xing said: "Father, I think we should send more troops to the northern border!"
"Huh?" The official asked doubtfully: "The civil strife in Liao is very important to the Song Dynasty. It's good. Wouldn't the increase of troops at this time make the two parties alert and unable to fight with all their strength? "
"Father, we just can't let them fight with all their strength." Zhao Xing said: "The longer the Liao Kingdom is in chaos, the more likely it will be for the Liao Kingdom to fight. The greater the benefit for the Song Dynasty. At this time, many ministries in the Liao Kingdom were waiting to see if the Song Dynasty was sending more troops to the north. If the Liao Kingdom could not figure out the situation, it would inevitably lead to a temporary truce. "< br>
"Didn't my father want to build the Great Wall in the north? Even if the Liao Dynasty was in civil strife, I am afraid that the Song Dynasty would not be able to safely build the Great Wall. It is inevitable to increase the number of troops by then. Now it is just a little ahead of schedule."< br>
After hearing this, the official pondered for a while and said, "I have already ordered people to invite some of my husband-in-law. When they arrive, I will discuss it with them."
As soon as the official finished speaking, Mr. Liu came in to report. : "Your Majesty, several ministers have arrived outside the palace."
"Let them in!" the official said.
After hearing this, Eunuch Liu withdrew, and soon Han Zhang and the five others came in.
There are five ministers in the imperial court, namely the chief officials of the three provinces and the minister of the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel.
Now that Xianggong Yu is not here, there are only four Xianggongs, and the other one is the envoy of the Privy Council.
The status of the Privy Councilor is no worse than that of several ministers except the Grand Prime Minister.
It’s just that the Privy Council is in charge of the mobilization of soldiers and horses in the world. It is actually a military position, not a civilian position, so it is not a minister.
"I pay my respects to Your Majesty and His Highness the Crown Prince!" Several people bowed and saluted.
"No courtesy, please sit down!" The official waved his hand and said: "I'm a little tired. Prince, please tell some of your husband the specific situation!"
"Yes!" Zhao Xing responded, and after waiting for the princes to sit down, he told them all about the civil strife in Liao, including what his father said.
Although several people were shocked by the news, after all, they were in high positions and were considered to be the most powerful officials in the Song Dynasty. There were still some in the city. They quickly calmed down and looked thoughtful. color.
"Your Majesty!" Han Zhang pondered for a moment, his eyes flashed, and he spoke first: "At this time, we should send more troops to the border!"
Although Han Zhang has a common problem among literati, he looks down on generals. , and even said the words of a good man in Donghua Gate.
But in fact, Han Zhang not only used the art of war, but also personally directed the war.
As a Grand Prime Minister and someone who knows the art of war, he naturally has some acumen.
"The Grand Prime Minister's words coincide with the prince's."
The official family actually has the intention of sending more troops to the north.
It is just to increase troops without fighting, and what Zhao Xing said makes sense. When the Great Wall is built, the Liao Kingdom will definitely send troops to harass them. The existing troops in the north are too few.
Seeing that Han Zhang thought the same way, I was happy and relieved at the same time.
"Your Majesty!" Hu Zhongyan bowed and said: "The civil strife in the Liao Dynasty has only advantages and no disadvantages for us in the Song Dynasty. The increase of troops at this time will make the Liao country suspicious and cannot let go of fighting. I think that troops should not be sent."< br>
Hearing this, the official glanced at him and said, "The Grand Prime Minister and several other Prime Ministers will tell you why we need to send more troops to the north."
"Yes!" Han Zhang responded and put his hand on I talked about building the Great Wall in the north.
Only the Guan family, Zhao Xing and Han Zhang knew about this matter, and no one else knew about it.
The other princes were shocked to hear that the officials actually built the Great Wall in the north.
They thought about it carefully and realized that if they could really build the Great Wall, it would be of great benefit to the Song Dynasty.
But how much manpower and material resources it will cost to build the Great Wall, can the imperial court afford it?
(End of this chapter)