Yelu Dashi is still so young, but his face is full of wisdom. His eyes are shining, and his speaking speed is a bit fast, reflecting his inner anxiety.
"The Xia Kingdom suffered a defeat and setback last year, which resulted in a great famine this year. We must raise food and tide over the difficulties, otherwise our vitality may be severely damaged. We, the Liao Dynasty, can sit north and south and have the upper hand. In addition to having strong soldiers and horses and strong national power,
The important point is that the Xia State is in the west, containing the Song State from its flanks, making it unable to fully deal with the Liao Dynasty."
"The power of the Three Kingdoms lies in the balance of power. But this summer, the power of the Song Dynasty is declining, and the power of the Song Dynasty is strong. With one increase and one decrease, the balance of power may be broken. Once the Xia Kingdom is defeated, the Song Dynasty will be able to use its full strength to deal with the Liao Dynasty...
"
Yelu Dashi paused for a moment. He originally wanted to say that Daliao was in danger.
However, for hundreds of years, Liao was always strong and Song was weak. Even if Xia was destroyed by Song, it would be difficult to change this situation.
Therefore, when he said that the Liao Dynasty was in danger, most of the people present probably did not believe it. So he thought of something a little more neutral.
"At that time, we in the Liao Dynasty will have less space to move around, and we will need to hoard heavy troops and spend a lot of food and grass to defend against the Song Dynasty."
But just like this, Xiao Fengxian and others still laughed at him.
Xiao Fengxian squinted his eyes and said with disdain and dissatisfaction: "Yelu Dashi, you actually think that the Song Dynasty can threaten me, Daliao? Are you a god who drank too much and got dizzy!"
Everyone also started laughing, laughing unscrupulously and with contempt on their faces.
"Chief Envoy Xiao, Deputy Envoy Li, everyone," a deep and deep voice sounded. It was the other deputy envoy of the mission, Brother Xiao.
He is the privy envoy of the Beiyuan and the son of Xiao Wuna, King of Lanling.
Xiao Wuna once risked his life to protect the emperor's grandson, and then continued to assist him loyally, and had a high prestige in the court. Xiao Sengge had been with the emperor's grandson since he was a child, and then visited border states to pacify the barbarians and established
"I think what Dashi said is very true. Unite the parties and suppress the Song Dynasty. This is the ancestral precept set by Emperor Shengzong and has continued for hundreds of years. Your Majesty gave medicine and wine to kill the Queen Mother of Xia and Liang, and presided over the peace talks between Xia and Song. All of them adhere to this principle
.And this Xia country is in danger, food is their life-saving thing, and we, Daliao, must do our best to help."
After Brother Xiao Seng finished speaking, there was silence in the room.
Li Chuwen saw the disgust and hatred in Xiao Fengxian's vulture eyes, and suddenly thought that although Xiao Wuna had life-saving grace and assistance to the emperor's grandson, he was too upright and spoke out many times to remonstrate with his superiors without knowing how to offend him.
How many times have I killed the emperor’s grandson?
On the contrary, Xiao Fengxian was well versed in the art of flattery, and his two sisters were deeply favored by the emperor's grandson, and they were already inseparable favorites of the emperor's grandson.
Li Chuwen also knew that as a favored minister, what he hoped most was that the emperor would favor him alone. In order to gain the entire trust of the emperor's grandson, Xiao Fengxian and Xiao Wuna were at odds with each other!
Li Chuwen decided which side to stand on in a few breaths of time.
"Deputy Ambassador Xiao, those grains were indeed stolen from Changpingcang. The military grains and the Song Dynasty's strict investigation and punishment are all their internal affairs. Due to emotions and reasons, we should not interfere without authorization. If we act recklessly, not only will we be wronged, but we will also be punished.
He harmed the kings and ministers of the Song Dynasty and ruined the harmony between Liao and Song Dynasties. After returning to the court, Your Majesty will ask questions. Should you bear this responsibility or should Xiao Zhengshi bear it?"
Li Chuwen's light words were like Wang Shunchen's and Gao Shixuan's arrows that hit Xiao Fengxian's mind.
Damn it, I worked so hard to get this grain back to the Liao Kingdom and then resold it to the Xia Kingdom. The benefits and credit all belong to those people, so I get a little bit of the benefit and use it to make wedding clothes for others.
He made enemies of the king and ministers of the Song Dynasty and ruined the harmony between the two countries, but this debt must be settled on my head.
There aren't many benefits, but I have to take a big blame. I'm not stupid, so why do I do this? It's better to take the benefits in the side room and let the food matter go smoothly, hoping that nothing will happen.
Anyway, this gong belongs to others, but the fault may be your own, so it is better to put it all away and not touch it in any way.
"We were ordered to go as envoys to the Song Dynasty, firstly to express our condolences to the great emperor, and secondly to consolidate the harmony between the Liao and Song Dynasties. This is the national policy that His Majesty earnestly explained before leaving. We cannot act contrary to the order. Regarding food, we must
It’s settled! We’ve done everything we need to do, and the rest is up to Buddha to bless us.”
Xiao Fengxian was the chief envoy and made the final decision. With the approval of the first deputy envoy Li Chuwen, most of the other members of the mission hurriedly agreed.
The opposition of Xiao Sengge and Yelu Dashi was of no avail.
Back in his room, Brother Xiao Seng asked Yelu Dashi to sit down and consoled him: "This matter is sudden. Your Majesty and the Privy Council have not explained it. They can only follow the envoy's arrangements. Now that Lieutenant Xiao has made a decision, we can only wait and see for the time being."
Accept it and think of other ways."
Yelu Dashi said unwillingly, "Prince Xiao, can you please write a letter and submit it directly to King Lanling, asking him to come to your Majesty to ask for an edict? Chief Ambassador Xiao and Deputy Envoy Li had nothing to say.
.”
"Dashi," Xiao Sengge pondered for a while and asked quietly, "do you know how Li Chuwen's uncle Li Yan became the Privy Councilor of the South Courtyard?"
Yelu Dashi lowered his head, his face became extremely angry, and then helpless.
"His Majesty felt that there were many virtuous people in the court, but he was in trouble as to how to reuse them, so he decided the positions in the court by drawing lots... Li Yan was chosen as the envoy to the Privy Council of the South Courtyard." At this point, Yelu Dashi let out a long sigh.
, "I understand what Governor Xiao means. Your Majesty is old and depressed, and does not want to cause trouble. Even if King Lanling advises His Majesty, I am afraid that it is better to do less than to do more."
There was silence in the room.
After a while, Brother Xiao Seng couldn't help but ask: "Why has Xixia declined so much? It has been defeated again and again, and now its strength is reversed with that of the Song Dynasty?"
"Xiao Prefect, my subordinates have read various histories and know a little bit about it. The northwest is located in a corner. Whenever the Central Plains is in turmoil, there are many separatist forces. Xiliang, the former Xia, and the Western Qin in the early Tang Dynasty... But it is bitterly cold there.
, and the land is poor and the population is small. Those separatist forces are often short-lived. Once the Central Plains are unified, they are quickly destroyed."
"Xixia was able to separate the old land of Lingwu and establish the country to this day not because of the favorable location and people, but because of the right weather. Its greatest luck was that it encountered the weak Song State. It relied on the blood-sucking of the Song State to continue to this day."
Brother Xiao Seng saw Yelu Dashi talking freely and was full of approval.
"Since the founding of the country, Xixia has become so-called 'strong' by plundering the Shaanxi roads of the Song Dynasty. This also determines that it can only win battles, but not defeat them. Because when it wins a battle, the spoils can replenish blood; when it loses a battle, it can
Not only would it not be able to replenish blood, but it would also lose blood. Since the Liang Party took over power, the Xia State had repeatedly used troops against the Song State. At the beginning, they won more than they lost and were barely able to sustain themselves. Later, the Song State changed its strategy and instead fought a war of attrition, and the Xia State had a mixed victory and loss.
, the national power is getting weaker and weaker.”
Yelu Dashi squinted his eyes and looked to the west. His gaze penetrated thousands of miles of mountains and rivers and landed on the land west of the river.
"In the Battle of Pingxia City, Xia Kingdom was defeated and suffered heavy losses. It also laid the groundwork for last year's defeat."
Brother Xiao Seng's expression of approval became even stronger, and he continued to ask: "Please ask Dashi to help me solve my doubts." chapter