The Northern Song Dynasty was always very afraid of the Liao Kingdom, which makes sense. The Liao Kingdom was indeed very powerful, and it occupied the geographical advantage of the Sixteenth Prefecture of Yanyun. During the Five Dynasties, Emperor Taizong of the Liao Dynasty went south in a large scale, and continued to attack Kaifeng and destroy the Later Jin Dynasty.
This happened in about 944, which was about fifty years ago. Not long ago, people in the Song Dynasty must still remember this period of history.
The southern invasion by Emperor Taizong of the Liao Dynasty encountered strong resistance from the Central Plains people. In the end, it could no longer stand and had to return to the north. From then on, the Liao Kingdom believed that it was very difficult to occupy the Central Plains and did not dare to invade the south on a large scale. However, after Emperor Taizong of the Liao Dynasty invaded the south,
After this incident, from the perspective of the Central Plains people, the Liao Kingdom was undoubtedly the largest and most vicious enemy. And after this battle, the Central Plains people also became very clear about the importance of the Yanyun sixteen states: without Yanyun,
The Central Plains is a wide open country with no danger to defend. The Liao Kingdom can drive deep into the Song Kingdom's hinterland at any time. As the saying goes, "If the swallow thistles are not harvested, Hebei will not be strong; if Hebei is not strong, Henan will not be able to sleep peacefully."
Therefore, from Chai Rong to Uncle Zhao, and then to Uncle Zhao, they were always determined to win the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun. Chai Rong personally conquered Yanyun early and captured the three prefectures of Ying, Mo, and Yi; Uncle Zhao did not accept the invitation from the ministers to give him the title of "Unification"
"Taiping", saying "You Yan has not been restored, how can we talk about unification?"; not to mention the two Northern Expeditions of Uncle Zhao Er. In the eyes of the vast majority of Central Plains people in the early Song Dynasty, the importance of the Sixteen States of Yanyun was undoubtedly far away.
Beyond the northwest, it is not an exaggeration to say that it is "a thorn in the heart of every Song Dynasty person." These should be considered historical common sense, right? Therefore, in the eyes of Second Uncle Zhao, the achievement of recovering the sixteen states of Yanyun is naturally the greatest, and the northwest
It's incomparable.
Another point that needs to be noted is that historically speaking, although Uncle Zhao wanted to capture Yanyun, he did not seem to be mentally prepared for a long and hard battle with the Liao Kingdom. His goal was to capture Yanyun rather than destroy the Liao Kingdom, and the strategy he adopted
It was always a sudden attack, trying to succeed in one fell swoop, and then using natural obstacles such as Yanshan Mountain to block the Liao Kingdom from the pass. Regarding this point, you can refer to "Jinglue Youyan" by Mr. Zeng Ruilong, a historian.
On the contrary, in the early Song Dynasty, it seems that the northwest was not paid enough attention to, or even looked down upon. They believed that Dangxiang was just a "little fan". The biggest enemy in their eyes was always the Liao Kingdom, and the northwest was a remote place for them. Li Jiqian's rebellion against the Song Dynasty caused a stir.
It was so fierce that the troops of the Song State were exhausted, and three generations of his ancestors and grandsons continuously attacked Hexi, but as soon as they asked for surrender, the Song State agreed to rule the five states of Dingnan. After conquering Lingzhou, the Song State would give up if they could not take it back;
When they attacked Hexi, the Song Dynasty was too far away to admit it. By the time Li Yuanhao proclaimed himself emperor, the strength of Xixia was definitely not inferior to that of Xiao Yang. The Song Dynasty still considered Yuan Hao a clown. Until Li Yuanhao defeated the Song Dynasty three times in a row.
After the beating hurt, the Song Dynasty began to pay attention to it, but when Li Yuanhao asked for peace, the Song Dynasty still agreed to peace talks and granted it at the end of the year. The Song Dynasty's offensive against Xixia happened later.
Now, if Xiao Yang is invited to be a vassal and a war horse with a jade seal, the Song Dynasty will have both face and dignity, and considering the threat of intervention from the Liao Kingdom, it would be a bit strange if it refuses to agree to the peace talks.
