female concubine

In the long summer of the ninth year of Qianyuan, Xiao Xianfu, the commander-in-chief of the Wei Song Dynasty, led his troops to attack the border of Xixia. The deputy commander Xiao Yunze defeated the enemy and led the defenders. In Zhouzhou, the imperial court ordered the court to reward the three armies when they triumphed.

The sound of a golden bell awakened the emperor from his slumber, and everyone's fears were settled after the sound of the bell, but the result was not satisfactory.

In the autumn of the ninth year of Qianyuan, the post envoy galloped to Jinyaomen on horseback, raised a flag and shouted loudly: "Lanzhou emergency military report!"

The gates of the old and new cities and even the imperial city were opened that night. Since the sound of the war horn was officially sounded, they moved to the Funing Hall for the night to prevent the army from reporting to the emperor at night.

"On September [-]th, Xixia abandoned Xiazhou and went south to attack Lanzhou. Marshal Xiao sent two lieutenants, Deputy General Xiao and Vice-Marshal Cao, to transfer troops back to defend Xizhou, and defeated Xia's army in Xizhou. Lost two members of Deputy Commander Xiao's confidant general, the deputy commander did not listen to the old general Cao Yun's advice, led Qingqi to chase to Xiliang Mansion and was besieged by the enemy. The commander-in-chief ambushed...defeated, old general Cao Yun died in battle, deputy commander Xiao rushed out of the enemy's siege, Xixia captured Lanzhou and Xizhou again and went straight to Qinzhou, Marshal Xiao had to abandon Xiazhou and transfer troops to support Qinzhou." Xiazhou. In the north of the Great Wall, if you sit firmly in Xiazhou, you can drive straight into the hinterland of Xixia.

The emperor tore the general newspaper to shreds with glaring eyes, gasped heavily and backed away again and again, and immediately pushed down the things on the desk, "I told him not to take credit for himself, not to be brave, and to listen to the counselors more, he Why don't you just listen?"

Xiao Youqing walked out upon hearing the sound, but saw paper scraps all over the floor under the dim candlelight, the emperor was hunched over the table, frantic, and then walked forward distressedly, "What happened to the front line? "

The emperor fell to his knees from the table with a plop, Xiao Youqing was so frightened that he ran away to catch him, "Official?"

The emperor turned around and threw himself into Xiao Youqing's arms, weeping tremblingly: "Sanniang, I'm sorry, I lost."

Xiao Youqing embraced her distressedly, stretched out his hand to caress her back, and said with red eyes, "No matter what the ending is, the minister and concubine will face it with the officials."

------------------------------

Because of the war, the people in the Northwest were displaced. The road from the Northwest to Gyeonggi was full of refugees, most of whom were old people leading their children, and young men were hardly seen.

"Huh!" The coachman jerked the reins and said angrily, "Are you blind?"

"I ask the officials to be merciful, the little girl is still young and ignorant, please forgive me."

The girl in the woman's arms was frightened and burst into tears.

"Master, the way ahead is blocked by refugees, do you want to make a detour?" the coachman turned his horse and asked.

"Refugees?" Su Yu bowed out of the carriage, and immediately saw many ragged old women and children on both sides of the street, "Why are there so many refugees?"

Then he got out of the car and asked, "Where are you from?"

Seeing that Su Yu was dressed like an expensive son, the woman knelt down and kowtowed, "Mr. Sir, please do me a favor. We, mother and daughter, escaped from Xizhou. We haven't eaten for several days."

"Xizhou?" Su Yu asked in surprise, "Why are there only some women and children, where are the men in your family?"

"After the busy farming season, they will be requisitioned. I'm afraid..." The woman cried loudly while holding the child.

Su Yu raised his eyebrows and said, "Give them some money."

"Yes."

"Thank you sir, thank you sir."

--------------------------------------

The news of the battle between Song and Xia soon spread to Beiliao. In the tent of the Beiliao emperor, the leaders of the Beidawangyuan and the khans talked a lot, but most of them were gloating.

"Wei Song didn't know the insidiousness of the generals of the Yeli tribe, so he rushed to conquer. It's not surprising that they were defeated. Your Majesty, since the Song Kingdom has been defeated, they asked me for [-] horses from Beiliao a few years ago. Why don't you take this opportunity? Do you want to come back?"

"Your Majesty, when the Wei and Song Dynasties are at war with Xixia, the capital must be lacking in defense. It is better to take the opportunity to attack and take back Youzhou."

"No, Hebei is still guarding their standing army of 20. Moreover, Song has expanded its military strength in the past few years and its military strength can no longer be compared with that of the original."

"Seeing that Xixia has seized several states in a row, if we attack Qinzhou again and go straight to Jingzhao Mansion, then the Central Plains will become Xixia's."

"Xixia can't break through the Jingzhao Mansion." Marshal Ye Lufang, Marshal of the Northern Liao Army, stroked his beard and squinted his eyes.

Seeing that the officials of the Northern Liao Dynasty seemed to want to take the opportunity to attack the Song State, the Emperor of the Northern Liao Dynasty remembered what the Song envoy had brought to him before, "The first emperor Zeng made an alliance with the Son of Song, and it is winter now. The common people should suffer from the cold again." The emperor looked at his uncle Yelufang, "What's your opinion, uncle?"

Yelu imitated the emperor's fists, "Your Majesty is kind and compassionate to the people. I think that the king of Xixia proclaimed himself emperor, and his ambition was to annex the Northern Liao and Wei Song. In a stalemate, His Majesty sent troops to attack Xixia again, but only bluffed to make them retreat."

Hearing the Generalissimo's words, the Beiliao Emperor breathed a sigh of relief.

"Marshal, I don't understand, why don't you swallow such a tiny place like Xixia?"

"Northern Song Dynasty wants to annex Xixia, are you willing?" Yelvfang asked back.

"Of course not..."

In the autumn of the ninth year of Qianyuan, Beiliao secretly transferred troops to Shangjing.

----------------------------

The old general Cao Yun died in battle, the news that Xizhou fell and Qinzhou was in an emergency soon spread to Tokyo, which shocked the ruling and opposition parties, and even made the conservative faction jointly sign a letter demanding an armistice and the abolition of the new law.

In late September of the same year, the Northern Liao Dynasty suddenly transferred troops from Shangjing to the border of Xixia, which caused panic among the people of Xixia.

On the first day of October, there was a dispute between the old and the new parties in the Zichen Palace.

"The Xixia envoys sent envoys to Qinzhou to seek peace, and Marshal Xiao asked for the imperial court's order."

The emperor sat stiffly on the throne, and Ra remained silent with a pale face.

"Your Majesty, the reason for peace in Xixia was because the Northern Liao Dynasty had troops on the border. The Kingdom had 60 elite troops of millions. The loss of Lanzhou and Xizhou was due to the cunning of the party members. Xixia has stopped trading, and when winter comes, the barbarians will be short of food, if we can transfer our troops and send more supplies, we will be able to turn the tide of the war." Fang Zhiyan insisted.

"The war is costing the people and money, but now the Prime Minister of the Left still wants to fight a protracted war, because he wants to make the Northwest lose its opponents?" Zhang De stepped out from the stand and asked.

"There are millions of mercenaries in the country, and there is a holy emperor in charge. Why does Deputy Prime Minister Zhang think that his country will lose?"

"Don't confuse the public." Zhang De argued.

"Since the founding of the country by Emperor Gao, in order to prevent military generals from usurping power, he has given up his military power, which has led to an imbalance in the civil and military affairs of the country. Since Taizong succeeded to the throne, he has successively annexed the separatist forces and unified the country. As a result, the country was poor and weak, and it fought several battles with Western Xia and Northern Liao, but was repeatedly defeated. Since Emperor Wuzong, he appointed Duke Wen Mu as his chancellor, followed the new law to eliminate the disadvantages, and only then did the cloudy land connect the canals to the prosperity of today." Shangshu Zuo Servant Shefang Zhiyan Duanhu knelt down and said: "Your Majesty's holy bow has the heart of the world, and he is the lord of all ages. Only laymen can't understand the great cause of the future, so the vulgarity is not to be feared, but it is shameful. I hope the Holy Lord will not be shaken by the chaotic officials. I implore Your Majesty to use the old general of the late emperor to recover the land of Hexi."

"I implore Your Majesty to send troops to recover Hexi." All the officials of the New Party led by Fang Zhiyan knelt down, and it was clear from the stage.

"Left Prime Minister," Zhang De stared at his eyes, "Zuo Prime Minister can know that the news sent back to Gyeonggi is a defeat. It can be seen that the people in the government and the opposition are in a panic. The fortress of Zhaofu not only increased the burden of the people, but also launched a war because of the reforms advocated by you, which led to chaos in the northwest. Refugees from all walks of life in Hexi poured into the capital. Prime Minister Zuo went to see the streets of the capital and see those who fled from the northwest. Refugees who have returned, go and listen to the wailing of children, women, and old women on the city wall. Where the teacher is, there are thorns growing. The request to continue to send troops is only because there were no members of your Fang clan among those who died in the battle, how can Zuo Xiang, as the head of a hundred officials, disregard all the people in the world because of his own selfishness?"

"Your Majesty," Shang Shu Zuo Cheng knelt with the wat board in his hand, "I would like to ask Your Majesty to stop the war and discuss peace, and abolish the new law."

Su Yu stood behind the queue of officials and remained silent for a long time. Hearing Zhang De's words, he remembered the scene on the street, so he stepped out and took out a scroll from his sleeve, "Your Majesty, Minister Zuo Sijian Su Yuyou play."

The servant took over the scroll presented by Su Yu, "Your Majesty, I implore you to unfold it in public."

The servant glanced at the emperor and received the signal, and unfolded it together with another person. Su Yu said loudly, "This is a map of refugees in the northwest."

As soon as the picture of the refugees came out, the misery on the picture shocked the courtiers again.

Su Yu straightened up and looked at the throne, "The left minister is the heart of the country and has no objection, but the left minister is too hasty, not only improving people's livelihood but making people's lives miserable, is it not the opposite of the law of making the country rich and powerful? I saw those who lost their fathers on the street the day before yesterday. Husbands, sons, old and young, women and children crying, and seeing the refugees in the Northwest displaced by the war, exiled in exile and helpless, how sad, Your Majesty is the father of the world, love the people as you love your son, as a parent and as a king , why do you have the heart to let your people suffer so much?"

Looking at the tragic situation of the refugees in Tuli, more and more people opposed the new law, and some neutral people began to waver, "Your Majesty, I would like to ask you to abolish the new law and negotiate a truce."

The emperor clasped his hands, his eyes were full of indifference, "The new law has lasted for nearly two years, and the increase in treasury income is obvious to all. Marching and fighting is no joke. How can our soldiers retreat because of the setback of defeat in World War I... "

The emperor's intention was that he was unwilling to abolish the new law and cease the war. "Your Majesty, if the war continues, it will lead to more refugees. If the plague recurs, what should we do?"

"Then wait until the plague arrives..."

"Your Majesty!" Jiang Luochuan came out and presented Zha Zili to the hall and said: "Censor Yushi Zhongcheng, one of the three justices, the chief of Wutai, sued the current prime minister."

"Zuo Xiang, as the head of a hundred officials and a minister of the emperor, actually denounced Tai Zugao Emperor and Taizong in the court hall. This is a great disrespect for a minister."

"As a prime minister, he formed a party with other officials to disrupt the government and disrupt the order of the court."

"Refugees from central Beijing poured in and did not resettle, but they still encouraged the emperor and instigated war."

"How can an official love the country if he doesn't love the people, and how can he be loyal to the king? The prime minister uses the name of the reform to monopolize the power. Please play at the Yushitai, and ask your majesty to depose the Shangshu Zuo Pushe and choose a virtuous minister as the prime minister."

The emperor hesitated to speak several times, and immediately looked at the old minister next to Fang Zhiyan, "Does the right minister have anything to say?"

Standing behind the prime minister were only the neutral ministers and Lu Wei's confidants. Lu Wei raised his head, looked at the expectation in the emperor's eyes, and walked out of the sequence helplessly. Seriously, withdraw troops and negotiate a peace."