In the Song Dynasty, there was no law or order.

In late January of the first year of Kangding, after more than ten days of correspondence, the court's tough response and request for peace talks with the Liao Kingdom were delivered to Fan Zhongyan's desk.

Looking at Zhao Jun's harsh and even slightly critical reply, Old Fan smiled bitterly.

In fact, he could vaguely guess the result.

But for him, his position was the same as Lu Yijian and others, and he did not stand on Zhao Jun's side.

After all, spending a little money in exchange for a long period of peace in the future was something he could recognize, just as he had never opposed paying tribute to Xixia in history.

Moreover, this would give him enough time to reform calmly, and there was really no need to fight the enemy now.

But obviously for people like Zhao Jun who had experienced a humiliating history, even if they thought they could weigh something, they would never accept it.

So Old Fan could actually foresee this.

Therefore, his reply was also to urge Zhao Zhen and Zhao Jun, with euphemistic words, asking in a negotiating tone, and he thought that the increase in currency could be reduced to 100,000, trying not to cause Zhao Jun's disgust.

Unfortunately, it still doesn't work.

Since it doesn't work, we can only prepare for war mobilization.

Fan Zhongyan thought to himself.

Then he quickly sent someone to Xijin Prefecture with the request from the court.

Originally, Liao should have sent envoys to Bianliang to discuss such a major event with Zhao Zhen, but Fan Zhongyan refused.

First, when Liao and Song went to war, the court had already issued an ultimatum, regarded Liao as an enemy country, and cut off all diplomatic channels.

Second, the court gave Lao Fan the power to act at his own convenience. Whether to choose to continue the war or choose peace talks depends on Fan Zhongyan.

Fan Zhongyan said that they could talk, and then they could talk.

Then wait for further consultations with the court. If the court approves, then Yelu Zongzhen can send envoys to Bianliang to sign the treaty.

Now he went south to invade the Song Dynasty, destroying decades of friendship between Song and Liao. In addition, Zhao Jun gave conditions that were difficult for people to agree to, so naturally he couldn't blame others.

Then fight.

Regardless of whether the Liao Kingdom accepts Zhao Jun's strategic counterattack or not, Lao Fan must be prepared for war at any time.

The only good news is that Lao Fan has enough time to prepare.

The Liao Kingdom was defeated this time, and the morale of the front-line troops fell to the bottom, and there was almost no possibility of a comeback.

If Yelu Zong really wanted to go all out and fight to the death, he would summon 500,000 troops to go south.

Not to mention that it was the beginning of spring, when both the Khitan and the Mengwu tribes had to herd sheep and fatten up on the grasslands, and it was also the season for the fishing and hunting ethnic groups in the northeast to break the ice and catch fish. When the spring was warm, he might not be able to summon so many people.

Even if he could recruit them, it would take half a year to rush from the grasslands and the three northeastern provinces, and he had to prepare food and grass. It would take at least a year to mobilize for war.

This year was enough for Fan Zhongyan to manage Zhuozhou like an iron barrel.

Then he would fight to the death.

So with such a determination, Fan Zhongyan sent someone to notify the other party.

Soon, the gate of Fanyang City slowly opened, and a knight ran out of the city, crossed the Laishui wooden bridge, and headed north to Liangxiang.

At the same time, just when Fan Zhongyan sent the court's request to the Liao Kingdom, Xijin Prefecture, Yelu Zongzhen had just received the news.

It was early spring, almost the end of February and the beginning of March in the solar calendar. The weather in Xijin Prefecture was still a little cold. The banks of the Sanggan River outside the city were full of greenery, and the wheat planted last year in the fertile farmland was growing vigorously.

In the Xijin Palace, Yelu Zongzhen had just issued orders to the generals guarding several nearby cities, asking them to take active precautions and dig more trenches to prevent sneak attacks by the Song army.

At the same time, as he moved to Nanjing, the original team in Zhongjing also came.

Dozens of Liao ministers and dignitaries quarreled fiercely at today's morning court meeting. Some said they wanted to fight to the death with the Song Kingdom, and some said they wanted to negotiate with the other side. Anyway, they all had different opinions.

This situation made Yelu Zongzhen feel headache, so he had to walk in the backyard of the Liao emperor's palace in Xijinfu, Nanjing, to bask in the sun and relax.

At this time, Zhang Jian and Xiao Xiaoyou, the Nanjing garrison, came in a hurry, both of them with extremely solemn expressions on their faces.

"Your Majesty!"

The two came forward and saluted first.

Zhang Jian used the Han etiquette, while Xiao Xiaoyou used the Liao etiquette.

Yelu Zongzhen saw that their expressions were not right, and Zhang Jian was holding a big newspaper in his hand, and frowned and said: "What happened?"

"The Song people refused to negotiate."

Zhang Jian said in a deep voice: "This matter is related to Zhao Jun, the head of the Political System Institute!"

"Didn't this person travel around?"

Yelu Zongzhen wondered: "When the Political System Institute of the Song Dynasty was established, I learned that a young man became the head of the institute. I was surprised that the emperor of the Song Dynasty had a favorite minister or a member of the Zhao family, but I didn't know that there was no news about him soon."

In fact, Li Yuanhao and Yelu Zongzhen knew about Zhao Jun's situation, but they didn't pay much attention to it. Because for the Xixia and Liao people, this was not a big deal.

Mo Zang Epang's sister was young and beautiful, and was valued by Li Yuanhao, so the young Mo Zang Epang became powerful overnight and became the prime minister of Xixia.

And Yelü Zongzhen's younger brother Yelü Chongyuan, who is only 19 years old this year, is now the crown prince, the king of Yanzhao and the North and South Privy Council, and the Shangshu Ling. In two years, when he turns 21, he will be the Grand Marshal of the Army of the World.

Therefore, seeing that Zhao Jun had the same surname as Zhao Zhen, Li Yuanhao and Yelu Zongzhen thought that some royal family of the Zhao family had gained power.

Moreover, not long after Zhao Jun came to power, he traveled around the country and went to the grassroots for research, which naturally led to the Liao and Xixia spies in Bianliang paying less attention to him, and their eyes were on Lu Yijian and others.

Now that they suddenly learned that the peace talks with the Song Dynasty might be hindered by Zhao Jun, Yelu Zongzhen was naturally very surprised.

Zhang Jian replied, "This man returned to Bianliang at the end of last year and seems to have a good reputation in the Song Dynasty. According to insiders, Lü Yijian, Wang Zeng and others originally thought that peace talks were possible, including the civil and military officials of the Song Dynasty. Who knew that this man immediately changed the direction and sternly rejected it when he came out."

Yelu Zongzhen was furious and said, "Is this man so bold? Isn't he afraid that our Liao army of 500,000 will go south, trample on Hebei, drink from the Yellow River, and let their Song people die without a burial place?"

"Your Majesty, take a look at this."

Zhang Jian handed over the newspaper in his hand and said softly, "This is the strategy of the court to deal with us."

Yelu Zongzhen took the newspaper with doubt. He didn't believe that the Song people had any way to deal with the Liao army of hundreds of thousands who did not attack the city but only attacked the other side's villages and towns in the wild.

However, after reading the newspaper and understanding what happened, and seeing the strategy given by Zhao Jun, Yelu Zongzhen suddenly became a little impatient and said coldly: "Is this man so naive? He thinks he can scare us with just a few words?"

"Your Majesty."

Xiao Xiaoyou shouted: "The Song people are rampant. They think they can be more powerful than the Liao Dynasty with firearms. I will never tolerate it. I will collect tribute again this year. After the food and grass are gathered, I will trample the Song army!"

Yelu Zongzhen saw that he was aggressive and glanced at him. He was not as emotional as Xiao Xiaoyou. Instead, he said calmly: "You go down first."

"Your Majesty?"

Xiao Xiaoyou was puzzled.

Yelu Zongzhen said: "Last year, the two taxes were collected. If we impose more taxes, we will be disunited. Moreover, it is just winter now. The tribes don't have much storage. Forcible collection will only make the countries restless. Well, let me discuss it with the Grand Master."

"Yes"

Xiao Xiaoyou had to retreat depressedly.

Zhang Jian saw him go, then he bowed and said: "Your Majesty is wise."

Yelu Zongzhen sat down on the stone chair in the yard, threw the newspaper aside, and his face had become very ugly.

His attitude just now was naturally pretended, because unlike the Song Dynasty, the Song Dynasty had more surrenderists and peacemakers, while the Liao Dynasty was the opposite, which had a lot to do with the faction of Liao being strong and Song being weak in military strength for a long time.

Although the Liao army was defeated in the battle of Baozhou, this inherent concept was difficult to change in the short term. So even if Yelu Zongzhen saw the problem, he didn't dare to express it immediately.

"I know that Tabuyan has never seen the power of the Song army. He stayed in Nanjing before, and the Song people chased him but were repelled by him, which made him think that the Song army was still the same as before, but he didn't know that if he went south now, my Liao would be in real danger."

Yelu Zongzhen sighed.

Zhang Jian smiled bitterly and said, "It's not his fault. We don't dare to announce the real situation now."

Xiao Xiaoyou stayed in Nanjing and did not follow him to fight. Although he had heard that the Song army's grenades and artillery were powerful, he had never seen them. Before, the Song army's troops chasing the Liao people were out of touch. When he went to help, he killed a lot of Song soldiers. He thought the Song army was not good.

But who knew that the main force of the Liao people suffered heavy losses and low morale? In addition, the food and grass in the rear are still being collected and sent over. If they really gather a large army to go south, I'm afraid it will be another disastrous defeat.

Yelu Zongzhen said in a deep voice: "Father, has the Liao Dynasty really reached a critical moment of survival?"

"Not yet, but if we continue to fight, I'm afraid it will be true."

Zhang Jian said: "The court used the summer grain last year to fight the Song army, and the autumn grain is being sent over, so there is no worry about stabilizing the front line. However, if we want to mobilize a large number of troops, this autumn grain may not be enough, but."

"However, the domestic dignitaries own a lot of land, and the taxes paid by the temples are also very small. If you want to mobilize a large number of troops, you have to take money and grain from them, but you can't take it out, right?"

Yelu Zongzhen finished his words for him with a cold face.

Zhang Jian's face showed bitterness.

People think that the Song Dynasty had serious land annexation, but in fact the Liao Dynasty was similar.

The ethnic groups in the Liao Dynasty were mainly Khitans. The dignitaries of the Khitan tribe owned a lot of land, and then the dignitaries of the other vassal states and tribes also had a lot of land.

In order to take care of their interests, the Liao Dynasty had very low taxes, which indirectly caused the Han people in the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun to prefer the Liao Dynasty.

But this situation will definitely not last long.

Since the late period of Emperor Shengzong of Liao, the problem has become prominent and increasingly serious.

The powerful people of Liao believed in Buddhism, so they built a large number of temples. The temples also had a lot of land. The people had to pay tribute to the court and pay taxes to the temples, which caused a certain burden.

In particular, Yelu Zongzhen himself was a devout Buddhist. He was the most active in building temples and supporting monks and nuns. With his support, there were hundreds of thousands of monks and nuns in Liao. They ate without working and owned a lot of land, which became a major social burden.

At the same time, the Yelu clan and the Xiao clan of Liao often fought internally, and the contradictions between the imperial clan and the empress clan became increasingly acute, causing serious internal friction.

The Xingzong era of the Liao Dynasty could barely survive, but as the middle and later periods of the Liao Kingdom began, the upper-class dignitaries became increasingly corrupt, extravagant and extravagant, spending a lot of financial resources, and the national treasury became increasingly empty.

What to do after feeling empty?

Of course, it is to squeeze the people, the country and the tribes, making the people and the people of various tribes increasingly poor and full of complaints.

In the end, the Wanyan Aguda Rebellion led to the overthrow of the Liao Dynasty.

Although the Liao Kingdom was at its late peak at this time and had not reached the level of Daozong and Emperor Tianzuo in the later period, it was already quite difficult to maintain the country with annual tax revenue alone.

Therefore, the hundreds of thousands of coins given by the Song State every year are very important and are one of the important sources of income for the Liao State.

Liao Xingzong was actually not stupid.

He just didn't have the ability to change the many problems left by his father, the Liao Sheng Sect, from its prosperity to its decline.

And he himself is one of the problem makers.

But that doesn't mean he doesn't know anything.

The Battle of Baozhou has highlighted many problems in the Liao Kingdom, such as the decline in the combat effectiveness of the army, the national power of the Liao Kingdom being corroded by domestic dignitaries and temples, and the attrition caused by the infighting between the imperial clan and descendants, etc.

Even if the vassal states and tribes are currently relatively stable and there is no large-scale rebellion or uprising, once the war continues and they are defeated again, they will see the weakness of the Liao Kingdom and it will not be certain.

So now Yelu Zong really knows everything, but can't do anything.

"His Majesty!"

Zhang Jian said seriously: "Your Majesty actually understands the domestic situation now, so I won't be too talkative. What I just want to tell you is that the Liao Kingdom can still accept a big defeat, but I'm afraid it won't be able to accept a second defeat, let alone the Song Dynasty." I’m afraid this human method is indeed effective.”

"What Father Shang means is that once I recruit soldiers and horses from all over the country, the Song Dynasty will immediately send envoys to contact many tribes and give them money and weapons. Will they really rebel?"

Yelvzong said in disbelief.

Zhang Jian nodded; "Yes, I think the possibility of this happening is very high."

"Hmph, give them some courage!"

Yelu Zongzhen snorted coldly. He felt that with the Pishi Army in hand, there would be no problem in suppressing the tribes.

But Zhang Jian said firmly: "Your Majesty, you must not think like this. How prosperous was the military force in the Tang Dynasty? How much favor did Li Longji give to An Lushan? But once a person's desire rises, it will be difficult to fill even the deep valley. Not to mention that the Tang Dynasty was still at its peak, and we had just experienced a disastrous defeat."

Yelu Zongzhen was a little shaken by Zhang Jian's persuasion, and hesitantly said: "If I test them and send people to ask each tribe to hand over the tribute immediately, and send more troops. I don't ask the entire tribe to send troops, will they agree? ?”

Zhang Jian seriously warned: "Your Majesty can try this, but what I can only tell you is that you can only try this once at most. I even suspect that many tribes will find reasons and excuses to send less troops, less money and food, or even It is better not to send troops or provide money or food. If that happens, please Your Majesty immediately agree to peace talks with Song Dynasty."

"Why?"

Yelu Zongzhen asked.

Zhang Jian said meaningfully: "Because the human heart cannot withstand temptation."