Zhao Xin hurried back to the Yanhe Palace. The Imperial Council has been held for some time.

Seeing Zhao Xin coming in, Zhao Zhen immediately beckoned: "King Tang is sitting next to me......

These days, whenever a minister comes to see him, Zhao Zhen will let Zhao Xin sit next to him.

The courtiers had long been accustomed to it, and even adapted to it.

When Zhao Xin walked to Zhao Zhen's side, the official picked up Zhao Xin and put him on his knees, and then said to the ministers: "Qing and others continue to talk ......."

"Your Majesty, Tang Wang ......" knew that the Privy Council had to bow as if he was bowing, and then said: "The Daimyo's Mansion sentenced Guo Yingbao to report that after investigation, the soldiers and horses of the Liao State south of Waqiao Pass were the palace cavalry led by the emperor's brother Yelu Zongyuan who stayed behind in Nanjing, the Liao State, and there were about 3,000 ......."

"To the east, there is the Han Xiang army commanded by Xiao Hui, the privy envoy of the Southern Liaoning Yuan and the king of Qi, with a total of about 20,000 or so......"

"The minister thinks that if the Liao soldiers and horses only have such a point, it is impossible to break through the Waqiao Pass!"

In order to delay the cavalry of the Liao State, the Great Song Dynasty drove straight into the flat North China Plain and threatened Bianjing, but the main border of the Song and Liao Dynasty, especially Xiongzhou, where Waqiao Pass is located, was operated like an iron bucket.

In particular, after the alliance of Lanyuan, the Waqiao Pass guard made He Chengju, the six houses, in order to prevent the Liao cavalry from moving south quickly again, so he came up with a trick - he dug up nine rivers such as Xu, Bao, Sha, Tang, etc., and used the local terrain and the natural direction of the rivers to artificially build a water Great Wall with a length of nearly 800 miles and a depth of more than 60 miles in the Xiongzhou area.

As a result, from then on, it was no longer possible for the Liao cavalry to quickly pass through this area.

In terms of defense, the Song army will abolish the advantages of the Liao cavalry's mobility, speed and suddenness.

Of course, Zhao Zhen also understood this, he nodded, and asked, "What does this soldier mean, is the Liao people trying to blackmail with this?" ”

Zhang Dexiang nodded.

This is the favorite thing of the Liao monarchs and ministers.

Send a few troops to make a posture of wanting to go south, and force or coerce the Great Song Dynasty to make concessions in some aspects.

What is more embarrassing is that the monarchs and ministers of the Great Song Dynasty are often blackmailed by them.

After all, in the eyes of the wealthy Song Junchen, if you can buy peace with money, then buy it!

Because, once a war starts, even if it is only a small friction on the border, the money spent may be ten or a hundred times the cost of buying peace.

What's more - even if you win, the gains outweigh the losses.

Because, the current Great Song Dynasty has no ability and confidence in the Northern Expedition at all.

The Gaoliang River was defeated, and Taizong's donkey cart drifted, but it lost the confidence of the Great Song Dynasty monarchs.

Since then, except for Zhao Zhen, when he was young, he had the idea of the Northern Expedition, and no one dared to mention the Northern Expedition.

Patients with Liaophobia are all over the government and the opposition.

Now, the only one who dares to publicly shout the slogan of the Northern Expedition is probably the Tai students in the Guozi Prison.

But they are just students and do not affect anyone.

Zhao Zhen thought for a while and asked the ministers: "In the opinion of Qing and others, what do the Liao people want to blackmail?" ”

If it's just a little money or a few more markets.

Then Zhao Zhen felt that he could agree.

Because, in today's Song-Liao trade, the Great Song Dynasty is a serious Shunchao.

All kinds of commodities and even works of art produced by the Great Song Dynasty passed through the border city and sold well in Wujing, Liaoguo.

And the Liao people did not sell horses and cattle, which were urgently needed by the Great Song Dynasty and were willing to buy them with a lot of money.

The remaining furs, fish and salt goods did not have much sales in the Great Song Dynasty.

As a result, the wealth of the Liao State was continuously earned by the Great Song Dynasty, and on average, the Song and Liao trades and the Great Song Dynasty earned at least millions of dollars.

This is also the result of the restrictions imposed by the Liao.

It is precisely because of this that the Great Song Dynasty had the idea of buying back the sixteen states of Yanyun with money from the Liao people.

"Your Majesty......" Lu Yijian sighed and said, "The old minister thinks that I am afraid that the Liao people want to interfere in the war between our dynasty and the western thieves......"

"The western thief is also a ...... who claims to be a minister to the lord of Liao"

"Therefore, in the first year of Baoyuan, after Yuan Hao rebelled, our dynasty had to inform and inform the Liao lord before mobilizing the army to fight the western thieves ......"

The current Liao State attaches more importance to the tributary system and the relationship between the clan and the vassal than the Great Song Dynasty.

I prefer to be justified.

In the impression of the ordinary people of the Great Song Dynasty, perhaps the Liao people are still the Yidi barbarians who drank blood and refused to obey the king a hundred years ago.

However, the high-level leaders of the Great Song Dynasty are clear that the Liao people are actually very polite now, and they like to regard themselves as China, and they prefer to argue with the Great Song Dynasty about 'who is China's orthodoxy' and 'who can inherit the Tang Dynasty better'.

As a result, this forced the monarchs and ministers of the Great Song Dynasty to pay attention to these things.

After all, there is a Liao country in the north, which is competing with itself for Chinese orthodoxy.

For example, during the solar eclipse of the first lunar month last year, the Song and Liao countries began a war called 'etiquette'.

As a result, the Great Song side did not pay enough attention and made serious mistakes, while the monarchs and ministers of the Liao State won the war in strict accordance with the requirements and traditions of etiquette.

Da Song was disgraced and embarrassed because of this.

And the Liao country cheered and celebrated.

But because of this, the changes and mentality of the Liao State can be grasped by the monarchs and ministers of the Song Dynasty.

"Yuan Hao has two sides and three knives, and it has never been for a long time!" Zhao Zhen said: "If the Liao lord really uses this as an excuse to interfere with our dynasty to quell the rebellion, can the Qing and others have a countermeasure?" ”

"Naturally, it is based on reason!" Lu Yijian raised his head and said: "We must not let the Liao people interfere with it with half a truth and a reason!" ”

"The minister thinks that His Majesty should strike first, send a powerful minister, send an envoy to the Liao State, and ask the Lord of Liao, why did he betray the alliance!"

This is to strike first and take the initiative to start the Song Liaozui artillery war.

Zhao Zhen thought about it, and also felt that Lu Yijian was right, so he asked: "In the opinion of the prime minister, who should I be the envoy?" ”

"The old minister thinks that the right of the Zhiyuan is the best candidate!" Lu Yijian bowed his head and said: "Last year, Fu Bi went to the Liao State to envoy the Liao State, and he had already convinced the ministers around the Liao Lord!" ”

Zhao Zhen listened and nodded, Fu Bi is indeed a good choice.

"What about the deputy envoy?" Zhao Zhen asked.

"The minister thinks that the left thing of Zhichun Fang, Lu Gong's book, can be a good choice!" Yan Shu bowed respectfully.

Zhao Zhen listened, thought about it carefully, and felt that the combination of Fu Bi and Lu Gong could suppress those ministers around the Liao Lord, so he nodded.

At this time, he suddenly felt that the beloved son he was holding quietly pulled his sleeve.

Zhao Zhen lowered his head, and heard Aiko say softly: "Aya, what if the Liao people insist on interfering? ”

His voice was not loud, but it was clearly heard.

As a result, everyone has to think about Zhao Xin's problem.

If the Liao State insisted on interfering in the Song and Xia wars, then the Great Song Dynasty was capable of dealing with the intervention of the Liao people, and was there any countermeasures?