Brother Song Taizu

chapter 215

The negotiation process was not easy, and it was really risky for Zhao Guangmei to go to the Liao Kingdom to meet Xiao Siwen in person at this juncture when the war was not yet over.

After talking for three days in a row, Zhao Guangmei finally settled the matter with Xiao Siwen. He almost copied the conditions he had discussed with Yelujing before, and then added a few additional terms.

First, Xiao Siwen will support Yelvjing as the Supreme Emperor of the Liao Kingdom and build a palace for Yelvjing in Zhuozhou. At the same time, Song Ting ensures that Yelvjing will be accompanied by at least a thousand Yulong Banzhi at all times to protect Yelvjing's personal safety and ensure his safety. Will not leave Zhuozhou.

You must know that although Zhuozhou is the free city chosen by Zhao Guangmei and Xiao Siwen, it is actually still the territory of the Liao Kingdom, and the Liao Kingdom also has troops stationed here.

As compensation, Zhao Guangmei first agreed to Xiao Siwen to double the interest-free loan to Liao Commercial Bank.

It didn't matter. No matter how much he lent out the interest-free loan, Zhao Guangmei was confident that he would be able to earn back double the amount.

However, the second item was very important. Zhao Guangmei had to agree that the Song Dynasty commercial bank could not conduct direct transactions with the Jurchen, Shiwei, Bohai and other ministries, including the loans previously promised to be allocated to them, and they had to go through the Liao Dynasty. The trading house, or simply the Shulu Department, will carry out the transfer.

Third, Xiao Siwen will use troops against Goryeo next. The Song Dynasty will not be able to make peace with Goryeo during this period, and even needs Song to provide some logistics.

There are only three of them, but especially the second one, it makes Zhao Guangmei very uncomfortable. Even in Korea, Zhao Guangmei actually has the idea of ​​​​seducing her through sea trade.

Like Hexi, this place has always been a chessboard for the great powers of the Central Plains. Although it is always arrogant, it would still be a good thing if it can be developed into a nail in the back of the Liao Kingdom.

The result is now all in vain.

Of course, Xiao Siwen did take a huge political risk in this transaction. After all, since Yelujing is alive, if the Song Dynasty launches a large-scale invasion of Liao Dynasty one day, he might still be able to tie the Supreme Emperor to a flagpole as a mascot. ?

But this matter must still be unpleasant, so Zhao Guangmei went to Xiao Chuo again.

After finishing the matter, Zhao Guangmei hugged Xiao Chuo, who was obviously a little fatter because of giving birth, and said: "After you come back to Kaifeng with me, if you... um... if you have free time, I will buy you a big house. If you can't, you can Just...continue to be my assistant?"

Xiao Chuo gave him a roll of his eyes and said: "You are thinking too much. I won't marry you. Do you care? Do you really treat me as your concubine? Our Daliao Trading Company will further expand its relationship with Song Dynasty." Regarding business, I went to Kaifeng as the envoy of Liao, fully responsible for the affairs of Daliao Commercial Bank. Who is going to be your assistant? Besides, my father will go to Beijing to pay homage to the Prime Minister soon, and he will not be able to stay in Yanyun for a long time. , I still need to make the decision regarding the affairs of the Liao State Commercial Bank. Let’s go, clouds and rains are clouds and rains, business is business, do you really think of yourself as my husband?”

"Uh... this... you... are you responsible for the affairs of Liao Guo Commercial Bank? What about Handerang? You and he will still... have some contact. In any case, you are a mother, right?"

"Haha, so what if I gave birth to a child out of wedlock? Is there anyone in this world who dares to despise me? Hey~, to be honest, if it weren't for your enemy, I would probably be the queen of Daliao by now."

As he spoke, Xiao Chuo's tone unconsciously contained a bit of resentment.

Zhao Guangmei felt quite jealous for a while.

He curled his lips and said: "What's so great about the Queen of the Liao Kingdom? What's the use of that thing? I'll let you be my Queen of the Song Dynasty later."

"Cut, do I care?"

To be honest, his relationship with Xiao Chuo is quite strange. Although they already have a child, he himself doesn't believe there is any love between the two. People are just pretending to be real.

He himself couldn't tell how he felt about Xiao Chuo. In terms of appearance, Xiao Chuo didn't match his taste. None of the dozen concubines in the family were much prettier than her, especially now that she had just given birth. Because of this, her figure is so out of shape that if objectively evaluated, she may not even be considered a handsome figure. Even if she is attracted by sex, she is not in that condition.

What's more, her position is obviously on the other side of the Liao Kingdom. Even if this girl really likes her, she will always be a woman from the descendants of the Liao Dynasty. Women like Min Min Temul will only appear in novels, and Or a martial arts novel.

However, on the other hand, he had to admit that he was indeed quite obsessed with this woman.

First, because the name Xiao Chuo itself carries a great aura. When he thinks that this is the original Empress Dowager Chengtian of Daliao, he will feel that there is endless power in his body when he gallops his horse.

Moreover, she is smart, independent, and sassy, ​​and she does have many qualities that he loves.

The most important thing is that this woman is equal in personality in front of him. The relationship between the two is not a love relationship at all, but a partnership or even a rival relationship.

With Zhao Guangmei's background, even if he really talks about the equality of men and women and respecting each other as guests, it is just a joke. Who can be equal to him?
Xiao Chuo can do it.

This is the only woman who has an independent personality in front of Zhao Guangmei.

Even if she really holds a position like the Empress of the Song Dynasty, she is really not rare.

Even if the two of them quarreled, and it got serious, Zhao Guangmei actually had nothing to do with her, so that she really didn't have to please Zhao Guangmei at all.

Although she was not able to become the Queen of the Liao Kingdom like in history, she was an envoy of the Liao Kingdom, and her visit to Kaifeng represented the dignity of the Liao Kingdom as a great power. On the contrary, she must not lose the face of the Liao Kingdom.

For example, just now he wanted Xiao Chuo to squat down and serve him, but he was rejected.All in all, the relationship between the two people is actually similar to a pair of partners with a relationship of interest, the kind of friends who can sleep with each other but cannot get married.

This kind of relationship is so special for a prince like him that he is really a bit hungry and can't stop.

But Xiao Chuo leaned his head on his chest and said: "Whether it is the Queen of the Liao Kingdom or the Queen of the Song Kingdom, I don't want to be, let alone the queen. In comparison, the identity of this business owner is even more embarrassing." I'm much more satisfied. I'm a female. I can neither fight on the battlefield nor serve as an official in the court. Apart from this business, where else can I be used? Speaking of which, I really want to thank you."

After speaking, she held his hand affectionately, looked directly into Zhao Guangmei's eyes and said, "Xiao Chuo only hopes to do his meager effort to be a bridge and contribute to the peace between Song and Liao. As the saying goes, one general's achievements can lead to the death of thousands of bones. Whether it is the Song Dynasty or the Liao Dynasty, how can the people deserve it? All the lives of the people will be destroyed in the war. I really can't bear it. How can it be like now, sharing each other's needs, loving each other, and being harmonious and smooth? Your Highness , you must be thinking the same way, right? As long as the people of the two countries can be prosperous and healthy and no longer start a war, this life will be considered in vain. I hope your highness will cooperate more in the future."

Then he showed an affectionate look.

Zhao Guangmei didn't know how much of her story was true and how false. When she was talking about love with Xiao Chuo, she told and listened to the truth and lies all day long. To be honest, I'm used to it, but it has a different flavor.

The attendant hugged him back into his arms and said, "We should get out of bed and talk about important national issues. Can't we talk about the long-term friendship between our children?"

…………

In this way, Zhao Guangmei spent a lot of time in Youzhou. He originally wanted to take Xiao Chuo and his wife to Kaifeng directly, but as a result, the new emperor Yelvxian ascended the throne, and Xiao Siwen was busy fighting for power and went to the capital to become the Privy Council. All matters concerning Daliao Commercial Bank were left to Xiao Chuo.

It happened that Zhao Guangmei was also here. Most of the business of this Liao trading company was connected with the Song Dynasty trading company, so he simply played a guest role as Xiao Chuo's assistant to help her sort out the affairs of the Liao trading company. Clearly.

Naturally, there was a lot of resistance in the process. In any case, the war between Song and Liao had just stopped, and the overall hostility between the two countries had not changed. Yelvwuzhi and Yelvxian certainly did not want the Shulu Department to get too close to the Song Dynasty. , however, private commerce was prosperous, and the Song and Liao countries were indeed economically complementary. In addition, the Song and Liao countries did business peacefully, which indeed benefited the Shulu Department greatly. This matter was settled in this way. Next, it was finally established that the Song and Liao countries both hated each other and were friendly and engaged in trade with each other.

In this way, when Zhao Guangmei finished all these things and returned to Kaifeng, she was still behind Zhao Kuangyin's squadron returning to the court.

Thanks to the agreement between him and Xiao Siwen, Zhao Kuangyin was able to bring most of the Forbidden Army back to Kaifeng. The defense in the Hexi region, except for Liangzhou, was almost entirely under the full responsibility of the local Jiedushi envoy.

However, the imperial troops stationed abroad in Guanzhong and several border troops were completely moved. Although I dare not say that the Wanli frontier of Anxi was restored, I can finally stand up straight and say that our Song Dynasty will no longer have "today's border defense is in Fengxiang" Such an embarrassment.

And with Zhao Guangmei's triumphant return as the last person from this expedition, the government and the public were filled with excitement, people's hearts were high, and the streets were full of singing and laughter. His prestige as the King of Qin was rising steadily, reaching a new high.

However, on the other side, thousands of people were in silence. A few days before he returned to Beijing, all the officials in the court had put on ugly faces, as if their whole family had died. Even those who went to high-end restaurants to have fun could not bear it. I dare not speak loudly anymore.

Everyone knows that His Highness the King of Qin will definitely rectify the officialdom when he comes back, and this time it will definitely be thunderous, probably even more intense than when he promoted the New Deal before.

No one dares to doubt the determination of His Highness King Qin. After so many years, almost everyone in the world knows who King Qin is. If you want to say he is wise and powerful, he must be qualified, but when he has convulsions, he is also really crazy.

If he wants to completely replace the grassroots officials in the country because of this matter, no one else can do this. Even Zhao Kuangyin may not be so bold, but King Qin.

A prince who dares to take the initiative to give weapons and armor to the rebels and let the rebels start their own rebellion, then it is not surprising that he will do anything.

Although the main targets this time were local officials, none of the imperial officials in the court had anything to do with the local officials. Even if they knew that King Qin was a mad dog, the officials had to bite the bullet and get back together to discuss what to do. Confronted it.

Find Zhao Pu. Zhao Pu and Zhao Guangmei are now in the same trousers, and Zhao Pu also has Zhao Pu’s New Deal. The judicial reform in the early Song Dynasty has just begun. In fact, this matter has always been led by Zhao Pu, that is, the power of killing is removed from the control of various places. The transfer envoys and defense envoys were received by the prefect. This is really the crux of the unjust, false and wrong cases. Do you think Zhao Pu didn't know about this problem in advance?In fact, he has always been a member of the Qing Dynasty, and Zhao Pu has long wanted to move.

Now Zhao Guangmei took the initiative to intervene, which Zhao Pu actually wanted, so he took the opportunity to make a quick change. It was only Zhao Guangmei, a tall man, who was able to dig a hole in the sky, and he couldn't even cooperate in time.

Then everyone found Zhao Guangyi.

Zhao Guangyi hid, but these civil servants pushed and forced him, forcing Zhao Guangyi to the front.

So after Zhao Guangmei returned to Beijing, as soon as she reported her work to Zhao Kuangyin, Zhao Guangyi took the initiative to come to her door.

Zhao Guangmei did not give any face this time and said: "Second brother, I know very well what you are here for. You should also know that I have decided on this matter and there is no need to discuss it."

Zhao Guangyi sighed when he heard this: "Third brother, you are in the prime of your life now. If possible, I really don't want to go against you anymore, but your second brother and I, the blisters on my feet are all caused by myself. I can't stop now if I want to." It’s not coming down anymore. Even if I want to hide and ignore this matter, it’s impossible. Third brother, I understand your mood, but no matter what, I hope you can calm down. It’s you who said that running a big country is like this. When cooking fresh food, you can't use the raging fire to cook oil when you get excited."

Zhao Guangmei said: "The reform of civil service has always been the most difficult thing in all dynasties. Although I knew that there were many unjust, false and wrong cases in various places, I did not expect that there were so many cases. This was clearly an attempt to destroy our country during the Song Dynasty. Foundation, second brother, I know you represent the civil service group and this matter cannot not happen, but as an important member of the clan, I hope you can at least understand your position."

"Of course I know my position, and I'm not against you rectifying the administration of officials and punishing them. No minister in this court really dares to say that he disagrees with your inspection. It's just that the law does not punish everyone. Everyone hopes that You can come up with a charter and have a certain degree of control when doing things. Which ones must be killed and which ones can be favored. I am here to ask you to prioritize this matter. To put it bluntly, To be honest, even if everyone deserves to be killed, we can’t really kill all the civil servants, right? I’m not here to stop you, I’m just here to make a three-part agreement with you, how about that?”

"What the second brother said is true. However, if we, the first generation who founded the country, do not do some things, future generations will not be able to do it. If Liu Xiu of the Eastern Han Dynasty could persist in farming, Guo Zuo of the Eastern Han Dynasty would not be able to do it. The reason why I am worried about it is that I am worried that the country will be unstable if the action is too big. However, now, the elder brother is in good health, the soldiers of the imperial army are loyal to me, Zhao Song, the people live in peace, and the world is at home. At this time, it is no longer necessary. When can we go to war? As for the so-called three chapters of the agreement, I can guess it even if you don’t tell me, but it is to redeem your brother and I don’t want to hear it."

(End of this chapter)