Chapter 14 Chapter Fourteen

Murong Qiuzui, Fang Zhengnan, Cheng Yu and Cheng Dexuan hurried back to the capital. Cheng Yu and Cheng Dexuan sat at the bottom of Qingxin Building in Nanya, listening to Zhao Guangyi narrate to them what happened in Beijing recently, Cheng Yu couldn't help feeling worried: "Qiantui, Zhao Pu illegally sold Qinlong lumber, and the government didn't punish him. Instead, Zhao Yu, the general of the Zuojian gate guard who enforced the law impartially, was demoted to a small dental school in Ruzhou in the name of falsely accusing the minister. The secretary of Wuyue State sent gold to Zhao Pu, but the officials still did not ask him about the crime, but instead asked Yu Ji He, it can be seen that the official family's love for Zhao Pu has not diminished, Zhao Pu's family is still prosperous, and the humble official feels that it is not easy for us to make a move now."

Zhao Guangyi smiled and said: "That's not necessarily the case. The dislike for a person is accumulated little by little. It would be strange if the head of the court could be brought down just because of these two things. These things are just for dinner. It is nothing more than to plant some suspicions in the hearts of the officials, and make the officials feel disgusted with Zhao Pu. What the officials are most afraid of is that the courtiers dominate the sky, violate the authority of the emperor, and the officials treat others benevolently. This is his only thing. These days, the king is secretly deploying in Kaifeng, looking for Zhao Pu's handle. Next, we will start from this aspect and attack him continuously. The embankment of a thousand miles collapsed in ant nests, small ant nests one by one If we dig it down, Zhao Pu's long embankment will be washed away sometimes."

He smiled coldly, bowed his head slightly and said: "Zhong Yuan, you just came back just in time. You are prudent and eloquent. This king's important matter is about to be arranged by you. Zhong Yuan, come here with your ears..." On the Bianhe pier, Zhao Pu and Yang Hao looked at the Tang Dynasty ship approaching from afar, and they dusted off their official robes at the same time, while the ceremony and music team on the side also got ready. This time the Tang State sent the seventh son of Yuan Zong and Li Yu's younger brother Zheng Wang Li Congshan and Minister of the Ministry of Officials Xu Xuan. Such a grand diplomatic mission was unprecedented.Needless to say, Li Congshan is the brother of the Southern Tang Emperor and the prince of the Tang Kingdom, so his status is naturally precious.And Xu Xuan is a well-known talent in the south of the Yangtze River. He was able to write poems at the age of seven and literature at the age of ten. He became a minister of the Tang Dynasty at the age of sixteen.He and his younger brother Xu Kai both had literary names, and they were called "Jiangdong Erxu".

In order to send someone to welcome the Tang envoy, there was a serious discussion at the court meeting.The Tang State sent a prince and an official secretary. According to the etiquette, the Song State should also have people of the corresponding level to receive them.But the King Zheng of the Tang Dynasty is nothing more than that. This Xu Shangshu is famous for his writing and eloquence. Dealing with a foreign envoy, these officials in the Song Dynasty were a little scared. Now there are only two princes in Song Dynasty, one is Wei Wang and the other is Jin Wang.King Wei is still young, and he is far from Xu Xuan's opponent in terms of knowledge and qualifications. He has just made a name for himself during his mission to the south of the Yangtze River. Carefully maintain.As for the king of Jin, he is still serving as the prefect of Kaifeng, so it is not suitable to be the welcoming ambassador.Furthermore, when he thought of dealing with Xu Xuan, Zhao Guangyi was really afraid of his mouth, and Zhao Guangyi didn't want to show up.

In this way, the officials sent by the imperial court to welcome the mission had to choose a high-ranking official from among the officials in the DPRK and China, so as to match the standards of the other party.The name of the person, the shadow of the tree, the reputation of Xu Xuan's quick mouth like a knife has long been spread all over the world, and the important officials of the Song court are afraid that they can't say that Xu Xuan will lose face to the court and damage their own reputation. Fame is a prevarication, and no one is willing to take on this responsibility. After picking and picking, in the end, Zhao Pu had no choice but to act in person when the chancellor was unable to shirk his responsibilities.Zhao Pu is actually not very willing, although he has never met Xu Xuan, but he has heard of the other party's reputation, he Zhao Puyi has only learned half of it now, let him go to Jiangnan talented scholar Xu Dashi to fight, Where does he have that confidence?

However, he accepted bribes from Wuyue Kingdom and was caught by Zhao Kuangyin. Now it is time for him to make atonement, how can he refuse?I had no choice but to bite the bullet and agree.Fortunately, the officials have also said that according to the specifications, there must be such a chief assistant minister who can stand shoulder to shoulder with the prince to welcome him. As for the welcome, my prime minister is busy with official duties, and Honglu Temple is responsible for the details of the whole escort. Only then did I feel relieved. As for the Honglu Temple, the Dahonglu Zhangtai Liu, who was always sick, was so sick that he couldn't get out of bed when he heard about the lineup of the Southern Tang Mission.As for Youqing Gao Xiang, who wanted to compete with Yang Hao in everything, this time he also showed his integrity and had no intention of competing for favor.

Yang Hao didn't know who Xu Xuan was. The ignorant had no fear. As soon as Zhao Kuangyin said it, he readily agreed.When he went home and told him about his job, Wu Wa'er hurriedly said: "Officials, I heard that Xu Xuan has an iron mouth, like a gun and an arrow, extremely sharp, and all the officials in the court push each other. Afraid of his mouth. Officials are full of wit and tricks, of course they are not inferior to others, but this Xu University scholar is knowledgeable, but he is not only good at eloquence.Li Yu built a building in the south of the Yangtze River, and searched all the rare and unique books in the world. Only Master Xu, who has read thousands of volumes of books, knows countless rare allusions, classics and histories from ancient and modern times. It's a small matter of his own face, but this is extraordinary, and it represents the court of the Song Dynasty. There are so many learned scholars in the court, why don't you see one of them in his early years?Officials are required to top the tank. "

Yang Hao became furious when he heard this, and immediately went to the palace to say goodbye to the envoy, admitting that his knowledge was too shallow to deal with the number one talented scholar in the south of the Yangtze River. Zhao Kuangyin laughed loudly, and said to him: "When Yang Qing was in Guangyuan, he laughed and scolded a Jiangnan talented Lu Renjia so hard that he vomited blood. Could it be that he can't deal with Xu Xuan now?" Yang Hao smiled bitterly and said: "Officials, at the beginning when they scolded the famous scholars in Lu, I used some rogue tricks. Anyway, I am a commoner, so I am not afraid of lowering my status? But now... now I am Honglu Shaoqing, representing It's our court of the Song Dynasty, how can we resort to means that harm the state?"

Zhao Kuangyin smiled slyly, and said: "In terms of expediency and opportunity, few officials in the court can match you. Naturally, the national system and national character must be preserved, but dealing with Xu Xuan who is eloquent and eloquent. It is really hard to find an opponent for all the learned scholars in my court. Since this is the case, it is better to let you let go of your hands and feet to agree. Yang Qing is not good at reading. Everyone in Song court knows it. If there is any confusion, it is not considered. shameful." When Yang Hao heard it, you are too hurt. You really can't pick a capable person who can deal with Xu Xuan, and you feel that everyone knows that I, Yang Hao, am a big stick who doesn't study. The idea of ​​using my dead pig to pour boiling water, so I had to hold my nose and agree.

Just like that, two officials, Zhao Pu and Yang Hao, reluctantly took up their posts and acted as welcoming ambassadors.Of course, Zhao Pu was on a part-time job, and Yang Hao was a full companion, so it was even more difficult. The envoy ship of the Tang Dynasty came slowly and was about to enter the dock. King Zheng Li Congshan and Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs Xu Xuan both walked onto the bow deck in neat clothes. Under the colorful shed draped in red, stood two ministers of the Song Dynasty. Li Congshan and Xu Xuan hurriedly adjusted their clothes and got ready to meet each other ashore.

Naturally, they came here with an extremely important diplomatic mission.The Song Dynasty attacked the Han Dynasty in southern Fujian, and the war went smoothly. They were in the south of the Yangtze River, and they knew the situation in southern Fujian faster than Kaifeng. The news of the Song Army's victory was reported to Jinling City every day. Li Yu couldn't sit still. . The situation was as expected by Lin Renzhao. The Han State, which had lost its popularity early, was not the opponent of the Song State at all. There was no powerful Khitan backing the Southern Han State. This time, it might be difficult to save it. At that time, Tang State was surrounded by Song State on three sides. If Song State found another excuse to attack Tang State... With this in mind, Li Yu couldn't sleep or eat. He thought about it and finally decided: strike first! Li Yu's preemptive attack was different from Lin Renzhao's urging him to take advantage of Song Ting's troops to send troops to southern Fujian, and the rear was empty, and send troops to attack Kaifeng.So, he sent his brother and great scholar Xu Xuan, and sent them to meet the emperor of the Song Dynasty, pay tribute to Fangwu, cut down the title of the country, and changed the title of the emperor of the Tang Dynasty to the King of Jiangnan. As long as this title Song State is approved, then Tang State will be demoted to one level and become a vassal state of Song State.In Li Yu's view, my country of Tang has become a vassal state of your Song country, and I, the king of Jiangnan, has become your courtier of the emperor of Song. right?With wishful thinking, Li Yu planned carefully, prepared a large amount of property, selected a group of Jiangnan beauties, and sent someone here. Li Congshan is only a young man in his early twenties, he is a talented person, elegant and generous, and Xu Xuan, a famous scholar in the south of the Yangtze River, is even more elegant in conversation and first-class in literary talent.He is a celebrity, but a real celebrity. He has been in the officialdom for a long time. He speaks fluently, and his answers are impenetrable. Talking and laughing happily during the two visits, and entering the city hand in hand, you can see the wide streets of Bianliang, the prosperous market, the grain boats and ants gathering under the river, no soldiers fighting on the street, the prosperous market, and the gathering of all kinds of goods, which is a peaceful atmosphere.Li Congshan and Xu Xuan could not help but be amazed by the rapid development of Zhao and Song Dynasties. In the past, when the Southern Tang Dynasty was at its peak, it covered thirty-five prefectures, spanning Jiangxi, Anhui, Jiangsu, Fujian, Jing, and Lake, with a population of five million and a strong army. , Now that one is ebbing and the other is growing, it has declined to such an extent that I can't help but secretly sigh. Zhao Pu and Yang Hao sent the two envoys to the Courtyard, and hosted a banquet for them.After inquiring about the intention of the other party, they learned that the Tang State had actually cut down its ministers and asked them to surrender. The two couldn't help being overjoyed. After the banquet, they immediately passed the news to the palace. Policy. In the early morning of the next day, Li Congshan, King Zheng of the Tang Dynasty held the letter of state and met with Xu Xuan in the palace.It was also the first time for Li Congshan and Xu Xuan to see the emperor of the Song Dynasty. They saw Zhao Kuangyin, who was sitting high on the Dragon Throne, with big ears, a graceful bearing, bright eyes, not angry and pretentious, and his conversation was even more crisp. With evil spirit.Hundreds of officials in the court advance and retreat in an orderly manner, moving and coordinating with etiquette, and the order is orderly. Thinking about the weather in Kaifeng seen on the streets yesterday, I know that the peace of the Song Dynasty has been achieved, and the day of hope for governance is in sight, so I can't help feeling awe. The envoys of the Tang State came here to ask for the reduction of the country's name and dignity, and please be a vassal of the Song State. After that, they will respect the Song Dynasty, stop the soldiers and show compassion to the people, and provide a salary of 100,000 taels of silver to the Song Dynasty every year.The emperor changed his title to king, changed his yellow robe to purple shirt, and removed all the dragon decorations in the palace one by one. His sons who were originally named "king" were reduced to "gong", and all the yamen that were equal to the Song Dynasty also had to be removed. As soon as the name was changed, such as Zhongshu Province, Menxia Province, Shangshu Province, Yushitai, etc., they were all renamed "Left and Right Neishifu", "Sihuifu", "Sixianfu" and so on, and all official names were changed one by one. Changed to avoid suspicion. With all kinds of conditions, Zhao Kuangyin's face was full of happiness after hearing that Zhao Kuangyin's face was full of joy.Of course, at this time, it was just expressing the meaning of the Tang Dynasty, and the Song court had to come up with reciprocal conditions. It was impossible to sign the letter of credence immediately and establish the status of each other's monarchs and ministers. However, some of the gifts offered were offered in court.Thirty beauties from the south of the Yangtze River were brought to the hall, all of them were twenty-eight young beauties with cloudy buns, misty temples, bright eyes and white teeth.Zhao Kuangyin smiled faintly, and waved his hand to bring people into the harem, without mentioning it. Xu Xuan also made people present ten boxes of gold, ten boxes of jade, ten boxes of precious stones, and ten cages of pearls. Zhao Kuangyin also smiled and accepted all kinds of treasures.Then Li Congshan presented another jade belt, inlaid with gold and jade, which was extremely gorgeous. Zhao Kuangyin stroked it and asked suspiciously: "This object is no different from the treasure just presented, why present it separately?" Li Congshan bowed and replied: "Your Majesty, please try to press the jewel in the buckle." Zhao Kuangyin was suspicious, so he took the jade belt and pressed the valuable light golden bead in the buckle, there was a clang sound, the jade belt was straight, and a sharp blade popped out half a foot, and the cold air rushed towards his face , Zhao Kuangyin couldn't help but his eyes lit up, and he blurted out praise: "Good sword!" Li Congshan looked complacent, and said: "This sword is made by famous craftsmen from Longquan using elite hardware. It is as soft as cotton, tougher than steel, and extremely sharp. It can be hidden in a jade belt when there is nothing to do. Pulling it out is a sharp weapon for self-defense, so I would like to offer it." Zhao Kuangyin laughed and said, "I am the Son of Heaven. When I need to fight with a sword, is the overall situation worth asking?" Li Congshan was suffocated, and hurriedly pleaded guilty in panic, Zhao Kuangyin smiled but drew his sword out of its sheath, the three-foot Longquan was like a pool of autumn water, and the cold light was shining brightly.Zhao Kuangyin flicked his wrist, the wind of the sword rustled, and only heard the chant of the Qingyue dragon, the blade of the sword broke from the middle. The civil and military masters of the whole dynasty who knew swords couldn't help being shocked, marveling at how wonderfully Zhao Kuangyin used the sword. When the force is directed to the left and right, the opposite two forces act on the blade at the same time to have this effect.Immediately someone shouted and praised: "Your Majesty is brave!" Li Congshan's face was ashen, but Zhao Kuangyin smiled, trying to comfort them, and ordered them to stay in the concierge courtyard for a while, and then discussed in detail the matter of Tang's self-declining of the country and belonging to the Song Dynasty. As soon as the court meeting was over, "Yang Quanbei" accompanied Li Congshan and Xu Xuan back to the Courtyard, and listened to the detailed conditions that the Southern Tang Dynasty would put forward for cutting the country's name.But Zhao Pu stayed, and Li Chongju, the privy envoy, followed Zhao Kuangyin to Wende Hall. As soon as he entered Wende Hall, Zhao Kuangyin's face full of spring breeze disappeared, and he said solemnly: "You two lovers, look, what is Li Yu's trouble?" Li Chongju said disdainfully: "Officials, it is clear that Li Yu was timid when he saw the power of our soldiers in the Song Dynasty, so he asked himself to be demoted to the king in order to calm down the war. At the beginning, when his father Li Jing was emperor, he was afraid of Zhou. Didn’t Emperor Shizong’s bravery also send an envoy to lower his national status once? Now Li Yu is just imitating his father and repeating the old tricks.” Zhao Kuangyin murmured: "Maybe, or maybe... it's just a strategy to slow down the troops. I just received a tip that not long after I sent troops to southern Fujian, Tang Guozhen's 100,000 navy army was suddenly ready to go, and there seemed to be a change, but soon, the emergency was suddenly lifted I don't know why, but now that I think about it, I'm afraid Li Yu once wanted to take advantage of the opportunity of our troops to send troops to southern Fujian and open Kaifeng to attack my heart, but later, for some reason, he has dispelled this idea." Speaking of this, Zhao Kuangyin said with lingering fear: "Fortunately, he gave up his mind again. Otherwise, the widowed army was out at that time, and the crisis of food shortage in Kaifeng had not been noticed. Once the 100,000 elite soldiers of the Tang Dynasty rushed to Kaifeng, the capital shook and the whole country panicked. The morale of the army in southern Fujian is completely demoralized, and at this time there is news that there is insufficient food and grass. By then, one place will be defeated and everywhere will be defeated. It is not known that the country of Song Dynasty has changed hands, and I really don’t know how to deal with it.” Zhao Pu smiled and said, "Tang Guo gave up on such a great opportunity. This is their own destruction, and it is also God's blessing to our Song Dynasty. Officials, they never took advantage of such a good opportunity. Now our Song Guobing is as powerful as ever. How dare Li Yu plunder his vanguard? In my opinion, sending envoys from the Tang Dynasty to the court should not be a plan to slow down the troops. I am afraid that as Li Shumi said, this is just imitating his father and intending to downgrade to become a minister. It is just the fate of the whole country in the south of the Yangtze River." Zhao Kuangyin sneered and said, "It's different today. Now the Central Plains is almost all in my hands. How can I let him sleep soundly beside the couch?" Zhao Pu smiled and said: "Your Majesty, don't forget the previous agreement with the minister. If you want to gnaw down this last hard bone with the least loss and the fastest speed, you might as well do what you want. When I am ready, I will return to you." Let's crusade." Zhao Kuangyin frowned slightly and said: "What I worry about is that the crusade against the Han Dynasty is to use the Han Dynasty's perverse actions. The whole dynasty is full of eunuchs, and the name of exploiting the people is unbearable. After being demoted to the rank of minister, there will be no disrespect in the Tang Dynasty, so I am not a teacher without a name?" Zhao Pu discussed with Murong Qiuzui and his staff last night. At this time, he was confident and said: "Officials, Li Yu is shooting himself in the foot. Does he think that if he pays tribute to the officials, the officials will be unknown? Hey I have a plan. If they have any conditions, I might as well agree to them. Then I will give Zheng Wang Li Congshan an official house and keep him in the capital. Since he is my Song minister, he dare not accept the official position of the official family. what? When I was ready to go to court, I called Li Yujin of the Tang Dynasty to meet him. It was reasonable to face the king as a minister, but with the lessons learned from Li Congshan, he would never dare to come. Even if he dared to come, the officials of the Tang Kingdom would not dare to let him come. At that time, if the minister did not obey the edict, it was only natural for the emperor to attack. " Zhao Kuangyin laughed loudly: "Zhen Pingzhen is still my son's house, well, it's up to you." The three monarchs and ministers discussed again, and then Zhao Pu and Li Chongju bid farewell and left.Zhao Kuangyin dealt with the official documents, and was about to return to the apse to rest, when a fast foot from Honghe Temple was brought into the hall, Zhao Kuangyin hurriedly asked: "Li Congshan and Xu Xuan went back, did they say anything, to mention Are there any conditions?" The quick foot bowed and said: "Back to the official's house, Li Congshan didn't talk much, but Xu Xuan talked endlessly. Although Tang Guo wanted to be a vassal, Xu Xuan still didn't want to lose his prestige. What he said was soft but firm, soft and hard At the same time, it intends to force our dynasty to sign a treaty that will never invade Tang." Zhao Kuangyin's eyes flashed, and he hurriedly asked, "Then how does Yang Shaoqing respond?" Hearing that, the quick foot twitched the corner of his mouth, revealing a weird expression that was half a smile...