female concubine

In June of the 11th year of Qianyuan, the Gaochang Uighurs in Xizhou sent envoys to the Song court to see the emperor via Tubo.

Qi Liu approached the tent, "Officials, a Uyghur envoy from Gaochang was captured on the border of Tubo, saying that he was seeking to see Emperor Wei Song on the order of King Gaochang."

"Uyghur?"

Li Shiji looked at the large map on the screen, "Hundreds of years ago, a group of alien troops crossed the Tianshan Mountains and entered the Yanqi area. The Uighur Khan was killed, and the leader of this army became the new Khan. Decades later After development, they expanded eastward and captured several states including Xizhou, Beiting, Luntai, and Qingzhen. Later, they were punished by Tuoba, the ancestor of the Li family in Xixia. Beiting and other eastern states were lost and forced to move their capital to Gaochang. Gaochang State, since the founding of the country by Emperor Taizu Gao, Xizhou Uighurs have never been absent from paying tribute every year, so Emperor Taizong called Xizhou "exogenous."

"According to what General Li said, the current branch of Xixia is a descendant of the Tuoba clan, so it is a feud with the Xizhou Uighurs?"

"The former Xixia king had ambitions to expand in all directions. He wanted to annex the Uighurs, but was stopped by the Liao Kingdom, and finally took the land of Hexi. But at that time, the Central Plains were in chaos, and Emperor Gao had just established his country."

"Song and Xia are just at war, and Xizhou's envoys suddenly came to ask for something," the emperor said with a smile, "I guess they, like Tubo, want a piece of the pie in my hands."

"Xizhou was originally under the jurisdiction of the Protectorate of the former dynasty. After the war, it gradually lost contact. It was originally a Han land."

"The Protectorate's Mansion..." The emperor stared at the map with his hands behind his back, "Where is the envoy now?"

"The border is closed."

"Bring it here."

"Yes."

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In the military camp of Xiping Mansion, Li Yuanhao was furious after his defeat, and the envoys sent to Beiliao were also sent back overnight by the Khitan soldiers.

The envoy also brought back the words of Yeluming, the emperor of the Northern Liao Dynasty, but when he saw Li Yuanhao, he was so frightened that he hesitated to speak.

"Just say something, if you don't say it, I'll kill you!"

The envoy was so frightened that his legs limp and knelt down: "The emperor of Beiliao said, you are a subject, and you dare to proclaim yourself emperor if you don't abide by the rules of a subject. What is your intention? Song and Liao are now a country of brothers. You are not easy to serve, and you are trying to separate them. What is your intention? you..."

Li Yuanhao drew his sword and slashed to death before the envoy brought back the words, "Useless trash!"

Li Yuanhao's confidantes in the tent swallowed in fright.

"Without Wei Mu Yeli, you wouldn't even be able to defend a city?"

"The battle of the previous year was protected by the Great Wall, and Xiazhou was easy to defend and difficult to attack. Now the Song army has doubled its strength. This defeat cannot be blamed for not having a hidden leader."

The elder brother of Empress Wuzang knelt in front of Li Yuanhao, "Your Majesty, the battle was supposed to be even, but the Song army got a weapon from somewhere, this weapon is more powerful than the gun, and it pierces through armor and shoots at the human body." It will explode, and the fatality rate will be □□ several times... Your Excellency..."

"Weapon?" The commander presented the weapon of the Song Army brought back from the battlefield, "I don't know why this thing has such great lethality. It not only has a long range but can also break armor, just like the artillery, but it doesn't need to be used." A huge bed crossbow is used to project, and the shells are much smaller, so I saw Song soldiers holding one..."

Li Yuanhao's confidant stared at it, and immediately smelled the sulfur smell on the muzzle of the gun, "Fire...powder?"

Li Yuanhao pointed to the musket. "So, the little emperors of the Eastern Dynasty have been playing with this thing for more than ten years?"

"The armor is like naked in front of this thing. The morale of the Song army is high, and the minister is incompetent. Please forgive me."

"The former Wei Mumo Ning Ling said that the Eastern Dynasty was the best, and ordered the Privy Council to mine ore to follow suit, but because..." his confidant raised his head slightly, "Because of the continuous drought in Hexi for several years, the things of the Eastern Dynasty were attacked by other tribes. Rejection, in desperation had to stop."

Li Yuanhao glared at his confidant angrily.

"Beiting is playing in a hurry, there is a change in the state of Gaochang in Xizhou."

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"Officials, the Gaochang envoy brought them here."

The Uighur envoys were taken to the place where the army was stationed. The emperor walked out of the inner tent where the affairs were discussed, straightened the skirts of his armor, and sat down slowly, leaning on the armrest of the chair, "Let the envoys come in."

"Yes."

"Kowtow to His Majesty the Emperor of Song Dynasty, may the Son of Heaven last forever."

Uyghur envoys pay tribute to the court every year with special respect, so the emperor raised his head with a smile and said, "Please rise, envoy."

"Your Majesty, the king sent his ministers down this time to congratulate His Majesty on his recovery of Hexi."

The emperor put his hand on the armrest, "Then borrow the auspicious words from King Gaochang."

The envoy looked at the generals on the left and right, "Your Majesty."

The emperor waved his hands to the left and right, "Go down, all of you."

"Yes."

Except for the emperor's close servant, the rest of the generals withdrew from the tent, and the Uighur envoy presented a letter, which the servant then handed over to the emperor.

The messenger knelt down and said, "My king wrote the letter himself, and I hope His Majesty the Emperor will read it."

The emperor raised his eyes and watched the envoy open the letter immediately, and laughed lightly after reading them one by one, "King Gaochang wants Beiting?"

"Your Majesty, Beiting was originally the territory of the Uighur kings, but it has been occupied by Xixia for many years. My king knows His Majesty's ambitions and is willing to raise troops to besiege with His Majesty."

The emperor put down the letter, stood up on the chair, walked to the side of the envoy with his hands behind his back and said, "How do I remember that Xizhou is my Han land?"

The messenger looked sideways at the emperor, "What do you mean by your Majesty's words?"

"Although Xizhou has never been merged into the Song Dynasty, it was the land of the Han Dynasty hundreds of years ago. Hexi entered the Guanzhong, and Chang'an went west for thousands of miles without exception."

"Could it be that your Majesty is unwilling to agree to my king's request, because he wants to take Hexi as much as possible?"

"No, I'm not a belligerent person. Now that King Gaochang has given me the conditions, how can I miss them, but...you have to remember that Beiting was given by me, not by you, Gaochang."

After thinking for a while, the Uighur envoy said, "My king doesn't care about nominal matters. It is a lifelong desire to get back the land lost by our ancestors."

The Uighur envoy who received the answer from the Emperor Song Ting was sent away by a team.

The minister stepped forward and said, "Although the Xizhou Uighurs have been developed for several years, they cannot be underestimated, but their strength is not enough to fight against Xixia. If we hadn't sent troops to the dynasty, how would they get the reward? The officials agreed to King Gaochang like this." Yet?"

The emperor turned around and raised his hand to pat the servant's shoulder, "I'm not trying to take all of Hexi, but the whole world, including the Uighurs in Xizhou. It's just a verbal response. How can I remember it when I'm beaten?" The emperor smiled , "It's not the first time I've backtracked."

After the laughter stopped, the emperor sighed again: "King Gaochang is also good at planning. Seeing that my royal conquest has the potential to take Xixia, he has the heart to attack together. He will not send troops with all his strength."

"I won't do my best... what is the official's promise?"

"It is enough to contain Xixia and divide its troops so that it can disturb the morale of the army. Tubo has suffered from Xixia before. Several states south of Xixia used to be the land of Tubo. Li Yuanhao is now in a state of isolation and helplessness. emperor?"

"If you think that you can look down on the world by eradicating the serious troubles of your confidants and winning the military and political power, if there were no veterans in Xixia in the past, why would you be where you are today? People always have to pay the price for their arrogance."

"Report!"

"Come in." The emperor sat back on the chair.

"Deputy Marshal Li ordered General Huo Qing and General Xiao to lead the three armies to besiege the left and right wings. They have broken through all the defense lines of the Xia Army's Xiping Mansion and reached the city."

"Okay, does the deputy commander have anything to say?"

"The deputy commander said that behind the Xiping Mansion is the capital of the Xixia Kingdom outside the Great Wall, and that it is well-defended inside, and that he might not be able to take it down for a while, so he ordered the army to station for repairs."

"Okay." The emperor called the soldiers, "Wait."

"Order people to carry all the wine in my tent to comfort the soldiers, and also notify the back cook to slaughter the sheep."

"Yes."

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In July of the 11th year of Qianyuan, there was a long summer, and there was a severe drought in Hexi, and the grain harvest in Xixia was in short supply. The Xizhou Uighurs in the west suddenly rebelled, making them enemies on both sides. The battles were frequently won.

In mid-July, Kunning Hall.

"The small Buddha statue with ambergris in the saint's hand has been seen for more than ten years, and the taste is still the same." The introspective palace man combed Xiao Youqing's hair.

"Do you believe that there is anything that can last forever with the sun and the moon?"

The palace man looked at the Buddha statue in the queen's hand, "The villain is stupid."

"As the seasons change and the stars move, the sea changes and the fields change. Only the sun and the moon remain unchanged but never see each other."

"The sun and the moon don't meet...Is the saint concerned about the officials?"

Xiao Youqing put the ambergris back, shook his head and said: "It will become very numb after a long time."

The servant with gray temples walked to the door of the dormitory, bowed and said to the door: "Saint, the king has come to Ding Province to say hello."

Xiao Youqing stared at himself in the bronze mirror, "Da Lang is the most diligent, Ruhua hasn't got up yet."

"Return to the saint, today is a double day, and the princess is still asleep."

The palace people took out the clothes and changed them for Xiao Youqing, a boy of fifteen or sixteen years old stood bowed outside the hall, more than ten palace people exited from the bedroom in the inner hall.

They blessed themselves one after another and said, "Wanfu, my lord."

"Majesty Wanfu."

The young man nodded, and immediately sent someone to bring in the breakfast. He went to his mother's table, raised his robe and bowed his knees, saying: "My son, please be well."

"Is Ruhua still asleep?"

The boy stood up and sat on one side, cupped his hands and said: "Go back to your mother, the son saw that it was still early and didn't wake up my younger sister and younger sister Xi."

"Her father pampered the two of them, even you. The two girls will make you spoiled sooner or later."

"Ma'am, the military report on the front line said that the Northwest has been victorious, and since the government sent troops to Hexi, there has been a severe drought, and the rain has not yet fallen. Western Xia is short of food, and the north is also hot. The son ordered the water transport to bring back a batch of grain from the south of the Yangtze River. Just in case." The boy immediately took out a letter from his sleeve, got up and handed it to his mother in person, "The Uighurs in Xizhou suddenly rebelled against Xixia at the beginning of the month, causing chaos in the rear of Xixia, and my father's conquest made our army's momentum high. I will be able to regain Hexi in one fell swoop, and please rest assured your empress."

"The right time, the right place, and the right people..." Xiao Youqing looked at the military newspaper on the letter, and immediately closed it and put it down, "Recovering Hexi is the last wish of the late emperor, and it is also what your father has been thinking about since the beginning of his succession. The king launched a war to expand the territory. The disadvantages of the current world are also beneficial for the future, but you have to understand that it is more difficult to defend than to fight, and whether it is martial arts in troubled times or civil governance in prosperous times, you must not be too selfish."

"Son remembers."

"That wife in your palace..." Xiao Youqing picked up the spoon.

The boy's hand holding the chopsticks suddenly froze, "What did you say?"

"What do you say?"

"Wu's wife takes good care of her son, and is more knowledgeable than her other wives." The young man turned his head, "But is there anything wrong?"

"Why don't you use the servant? Although she is your personal servant, but you are old now, you should know some sense of propriety. You are the king of the first line, and besides your father, you are the most respected person in the inner palace." , don't use your identity to provoke and harm others."

"I..." The boy put down his chopsticks, "My son has never thought of this before, nor has he used his status to suppress others."

"According to the rules, she has already reached the age to leave the palace to marry, but you never let her go because you were still young."

"Ma'am," the young man walked to Xiao Youqing's table, knelt down while holding up his skirt, "my son begs me not to drive her away."

"You can't give others anything, so why do you want to stay by your side?"

The young man raised his head, "Could it be that what Wu Neiren said is true, that father will arrange a marriage for his son after he comes back?"

Xiao Youqing just shook his head and did not reply, "I will stop the rumors in the palace for you, there is a war on the front line, don't create chaos in the rear."

The young man was paralyzed on the ground, and Xiao Youqing explained helplessly when he saw this: "Mother is not trying to drive her away, but just giving her a choice. You are a good child. Mother always knows, but you have to remember that being affectionate is more hurtful than being ruthless." .”

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In a hut in the Kunning Palace, the palace servants sat on chairs and looked at Wu who was packing his bags, "Didn't the sage give my sister a choice, why did my sister leave?"

Seeing that Mrs. Wu didn't reply, the palace man said again: "Your Majesty will be the crown prince in the future. If my sister marries the Majesty, she will not be able to become the main wife. It is also very good for us to be a side concubine. We will wait for the Majesty to become a prince in the future." Crown Prince, Elder Sister Xu is Liang Di's wife who can be appointed as Crown Prince, if a grandson is born in the future..."

"Your Majesty is just like a younger brother to me. Do you know what the prosperity and wealth in this city are exchanged for? The battle in the inner palace is the most complicated. I would rather the Qingdeng Ancient Buddha spend his whole life than be trapped here .”

"My sister is so smart and knows a lot, and the king still relies on her, so why does my sister need to compete with her for favor?"

Wu shook her head, "The heavenly family is unlucky, the king has little love, there is no favor that you can guarantee will last forever."

"But the official family and His Royal Highness have been married for nearly 20 years now, and their relationship is still so good. The official family has set up six palaces for His Royal Highness, and there is no second wife besides His Royal Highness."

"That's the official family, not the king."

——Boom! ——

"Who?" The palace man got up vigilantly.

"Sister, it's me."

The palace man glanced at Mrs. Wu and walked quickly to the door, opened the door and said, "Wanfu, my lord." Then he left.

The boy walked into the house.

Wu saluted and said, "My lord is blessed."

The boy looked at the luggage on the bed, "Is my sister leaving now?"

"According to the rules, the slave has reached the age to leave the palace."

The boy raised his helpless hand and then put it down again, "Did I do something wrong?"

Wu shook her head, then knelt down, "Your Majesty is benevolent and generous, and he will definitely be a benevolent and wise king in the future."

The young man bowed his waist and wanted to help him up, but he turned around with his hands behind his back, "Your Majesty is right, I have no right to force anyone except myself."