bookrandom Chapter 1276 I’m coming!
Chapter 1276 I’m coming!
Chapter 1276 I’m coming!
You don't deserve it!
Xiao Xi was shocked and the Liao envoy beside him was also at a loss.
One of the envoys even deliberately asked the Song Dynasty for soil to be used as teapots. When Song Dynasty officials asked about its purpose, the envoy replied that they would return with their own soil.
The implication is obvious: if the Song Dynasty is unwilling to withdraw from Liangzhou, then the Liao Kingdom will once again demand land from the Song Dynasty.
Under such blackmail, Sun Gu, who was negotiating with Liao, made concessions again and again.
Now, Chen Guan, the envoy of the Song Dynasty, directly threw out this note. What kind of note was it that caused the Song envoy's attitude to change so drastically?
Xiao Xi suppressed his anger and immediately spread out the note and began to read it quickly.
In Liao, officials who knew Khitan were generally fluent in Chinese, but Khitan officials who knew Chinese were not necessarily fluent in Khitan. Therefore, they could understand the letters of the Song Dynasty.
After reading it, several people were shocked. Their first reaction was that the text on the note was fake and it was a deliberate fraud by the Song Dynasty.
How could the Dangxiang be so stupid that they did not wait until autumn to join forces with the Liao Kingdom to attack Pingxia City on their own and lost 200,000 soldiers, almost annihilating their entire army.
Is this something a person with normal IQ would do?
If it was true, Xiao Xi wanted to strangle the Dangxiang leader by the neck and yell at him, "You're such a pig teammate."
Why can't we wait until autumn comes? Why do we have to take all the troops in the country to "send" them to the Song Dynasty?
But before Xiao Xi confirmed it, he still asked, "What does this mean?"
Chen Guan said: "It doesn't mean anything, it's just a piece of good news!"
"After you have read it, you can give it to me. I borrowed it from the Secretariat and I have to return it!"
Xiao Xi calmed himself down and looked at Chen Guan. The two of them stared at each other for a moment.
Xiao Xi threw the note back to Chen Guan and said, "Do as you please!"
The Liao envoy said, "Since you, the Song Dynasty, have no sincerity in negotiations, we will set off for home tomorrow and report to our lord."
"If anything goes wrong in the future, don't blame me for what happened today!"
The afternoon sun shone into the courtyard, dimming the candlelight in your mother's hall.
The scene of the confrontation between the negotiating envoys of Song and Liao was clearly illuminated by the sunlight, and everyone could see the expressions on each person's face clearly.
In the past, when Liao envoys threatened to end the negotiations, the Song envoys were always at a loss and tried to keep them.
But this time...
Chen Guan smiled and said, "As you please!"
Xiao Xi's expression froze. He had a feeling at this moment that all the money he had won at the gambling table was going to be lost in the last round.
On the other hand, the envoys from the Song Dynasty were all confident. Xiao Xi laughed, then changed his sitting position, raised his Hu boots and crossed his legs, looked at Chen Guan and said, "I don't believe that the tens of thousands of elite Tangut troops have been wiped out!"
Chen Guan said: "In fact, the emperor of this dynasty has long known that your Liao Kingdom and the Tanguts have made a secret agreement to raise troops together in the fall."
"So I'm letting you know in advance today! You'll have to know it sooner or later anyway, so you won't be panicked when you return home."
Xiao Xi asked, "So what are you Han people going to do? Break the alliance? Fight with the Liao?"
Chen Guan said, "It has been eighty years since the Treaty of Chanyuan was signed. During the Qingli period, our dynasty was repeatedly defeated by the Tanguts in the northwest. The Liao Kingdom asked for the land south of the Guan Pass and increased the annual payment by 100,000 silver and 100,000 silk to settle the dispute."
"At the same time, the annual tribute is called 'tribute' instead of 'gift'! This is the shame of our dynasty, and we must correct it today!"
Xiao Xi laughed.
The Song Dynasty had two humiliations: because it was defeated by Li Yuanhao and had no power to fight back, it had to increase the currency by 200,000 yuan. At the same time, it called itself "tribute" instead of "gift currency" during the reign of Emperor Zhenzong.
Both of these are great humiliations.
To be honest, the Song Dynasty still felt that it had gained an advantage at the time. After all, spending little money to accomplish great things led to the Liao Kingdom fighting two wars with the Dangxiang, with both sides suffering heavy casualties.
This is similar to the Treaty of Chanyuan, when Emperor Zhenzong of Song Dynasty was glad to receive 300,000 tributes instead of 3 million, and in the end he was so smug that he offered sacrifices to the gods at Mount Tai.
Xiao Xi laughed grimly, then slammed the table and said, "Well, you Great Song might as well ask for more, or even waive the original 300,000 coins."
Chen Guan said: "The first 300,000 was a true temple matter. It was a gift at that time, a gesture of friendship between Song and Liao. The 200,000 became a tribute, which was an insult."
"I know that the envoy is very angry, and even the king is planning to end the war after hearing about it."
"But the situation is different now. The Tanguts will soon be gone. I have a suggestion. Song and Liao can divide up the Tanguts together. Wouldn't both families be happy?"
Xiao Xi laughed angrily, "Dangxiang is a country that is related to the Liao Dynasty. How can we betray them? Besides, can you Song Dynasty really swallow up the Dangxiang?"
Chen Guan said: "It's not certain. For example, there is a piece of land occupied by thieves and has never been recovered. Now we have killed all the thieves and asked you to share the land with us. This shows our sincerity!"
"Of course you don't want it, we will take it upon ourselves!"
"I advise everyone in your country to be careful. When Princess Xingping of your country married Li Yuanhao, she died for unknown reasons and the matter was never resolved. What about the country of in-laws?"
Xiao Xi's expression changed slightly. It was not that his Liao Dynasty had no ambitions for the territory of Dangxiang, but that it could not be fooled by the Song Dynasty.
Just because of the battle of Pingxia City, you guys are getting cocky, right?
Xiao Xi said expressionlessly: "Please inform your Great Song Emperor that we will return to Liao tomorrow. We don't want the letter from the credible king anymore!"
Chen Guan's emotions were slightly agitated, but he still said, "Your Excellency, please do as you please. I hope that our deputy envoy Tong Guan, who has been detained, can be released as soon as possible."
Xiao Xi sneered when he heard this.
Seeing that the other party did not answer, Chen Guan got up and left.
The Song Dynasty delegation also left.
Chen Guan took a few steps, but heard something behind him.
"Wait!"
Xiao Xi suddenly spoke.
Chen Guan stopped and turned to look at the other party and asked, "Do you have any other instructions, envoy?"
Xiao Xi crossed his arms and said, "I dare to ask, after I return to the Liao Dynasty tomorrow, if there is a war between Song and Liao, who in your country, which minister in the court will take on this responsibility?"
After hearing what Xiao Xi said, Chen Guan couldn't help but feel a little flustered.
At this time, footsteps were heard at the door, and someone said something.
"I come!"
Hearing the sound, everyone looked towards the door and saw a tall figure walking into the hall.
Chen Guan was overjoyed when he saw this, and his heart was finally at ease.
The other person was wearing a purple robe with a curved collar and wide sleeves, a jade belt with a goldfish around his waist, a fu hat on his head, and black boots on his feet.
Although the person has not arrived yet, the sound has already arrived, and the place where the sleeves pass by is like the breeze.
Upon seeing this, Chen Guan and other Song Dynasty officials stood up from their chairs, bowed to the visitor and said, "Greetings, Prime Minister!"
The other party did not greet him, but his eyes swept across the hall and fell on Xiao Xi.
The sunlight in the patio was just right, falling on Zhang Yue's purple robe, as if it was coated with a layer of golden light.
Xiao Xi was so intimidated by the other party's aura that he felt as if needles were pricking his buttocks. He stood up and saluted involuntarily.
Zhang Yue said slowly: "Brother Xiao, I just heard what you said. If Liao and Song go to war, I, Zhang Yue, will take on the responsibility. Do you have any objection?"
Faced with this question, Xiao Xi did not dare to answer directly, but said: "I was very pleased to hear that my old friend was promoted to the position of Prime Minister when I was in Shangjing."
"I heard that the Prime Minister was ill, and I was very disappointed that I didn't have the chance to see him. Today, I am very happy to be able to look up at his light!"
"I didn't want to come, but I heard you were leaving, so I came to see you, Brother Xiao. Please take a seat."
After Xiao Xi took his seat, he felt very uncomfortable. The officials of the Song Dynasty all stood silently behind Zhang Yue with their hands hanging down, like a screen.
Zhang Yue sat there calmly. He raised his hand to sip the tea and put the teacup aside.
From the whole action, Xiao Xi did not feel that the other party had any deliberate control. He just sat there casually, and such a strong aura emerged naturally.
It's like a person who has never seen a tiger, but seeing a tiger for the first time will make your legs tremble. This is a kind of instinct for people to perceive danger. Xiao Xi keenly felt that compared with the negotiations in Dingzhou that year, the opponent's momentum was simply incomparable. This is the momentum that comes naturally from being in power for a long time and holding the power of killing.
Zhang Yue said: "Negotiations between two countries are not a posturing, and the matter of Pingxia City will not lie to you."
"To be honest, there were indeed many difficulties before. The pain is so deep that it cannot be expressed in words."
"Now it's all right. As your Liao Dynasty wished, our Song Dynasty has finally come together as one. After all, whether it's war or peace, we must first unite internally."
Xiao Xi suddenly realized where Zhang Yue's confidence and courage came from.
He had such an amazing intuition. Just as he saw through Sun Gu's bluff, he also saw the confidence behind Zhang Yue's words.
Chen Guan once again admired Zhang Yue's foresight. Why did he have to wait until the victory of Pingxia City before returning? There are some things you must convince people and make them support you willingly.
Xiao Xi asked: "May I ask the Prime Minister, what are you going to do next for the Song Dynasty?"
Zhang Yue said: "We Han people are used to hiding things that are too sharp and too useful, or using them with caution."
"Lest the tool be above the Tao."
"We like to be reasonable and will not coerce others unless we have no other choice."
"Back then, Li Yuanhao and his ancestors were granted surnames and titles, and received salaries from the emperor. Later, they usurped the throne and disturbed the border. Our dynasty should have fought against them, but the Liao claimed that they were related to Li Yuanhao as uncle and nephew, and had already pledged loyalty to the Liao. The Song Dynasty has launched an army without any reason and is blaming our dynasty for this."
"Increasing the annual tribute by 200,000 and calling it tribute is a great shame and humiliation for the emperors and ministers of this dynasty! Is it the same now?"
There was a commotion among the Liao envoys below, and Xiao Xi gestured to them not to act rashly.
Zhang Yue raised his eyes slightly and glanced at the commotion of the Liao envoys behind him, then said: "I haven't finished what I want to say!"
"Do you still think that the Tanguts are still the same as they were during the Qingli period? Do you still expect them to lend you a helping hand? In less than three years, the iron cavalry of the Song Dynasty will be able to crush the entire Tangut!"
As soon as these words were spoken, Xiao Xi and the Liao envoys were all shocked and could not breathe.
When some people say the same thing, others can only think that he is bragging, boasting, and bluffing.
But some people speak one word at a time and they will fulfill every word they say.
If we say it will be three years, it will be three years. It will never be dragged to the fourth year.
Xiao Xi was sweating all over, and he forced himself to say, "If you, the Song Dynasty, really want to crush the Tanguts, then there will be no choice but to fight between the Song and Liao dynasties!"