The Liao Dynasty was a nomadic people who rode on horseback and disliked delays.
The kings of the Liao Dynasty have always won by force. Some are clever, some are reckless, but they all have one thing in common: they can't wait.
Lack of patience.
After all, if they wait a little longer, the throne might not still be in their hands.
The current ruler is named Yelü Tuohong, an absolute tyrant who enjoys drinking and hunting. He is highly skilled in martial arts and killed his own brother under cover of night to ascend the throne.
Li Gao entered at that moment, and whispered in Ning Xuan's ear, "Princess Shengping is outside the door."
Ning Xuan waved her hand, "Let her in."
He wanted to hear what his good daughter's understanding of military affairs was.
Li Gao bowed and withdrew, then whispered to Sheng Ping, "Your Highness, His Majesty has summoned you in. They are discussing the Western Xia and Liao dynasties."
Sheng Ping nodded and stepped inside.
Ning Xuan smiled at her and waved to her, "This is Minister Lin's memorial, take a look."
Sheng Ping respectfully accepted the document, while subtly placing his own memorial on Ning Xuan's desk.
Ning Xuan placed one hand on the document and did not look at it immediately.
Sheng Ping read quickly, combining the information he had recently received from the Ministry of War regarding troop deployments, and said, "In my opinion, we should first take over Western Xia, feign a marriage alliance, and in reality, do our utmost to incite the Liao Dynasty's dissatisfaction with Western Xia. When the Liao Dynasty attacks Western Xia, we can then send troops to rescue Western Xia, establish a government office there, and take hostages."
Su Yan was very pleased to hear this. As expected of his student, he had a good mind.
Lin Yuanyao was somewhat bewildered. When he rode quickly to the border, Princess Shengping had not yet attended court.
Today, upon hearing this, I find the princess's opinion to be quite good.
They might lack martial ethics, but the benefits they received were real.
“The princess is absolutely right! We should conquer Western Xia first, so that we will have no worries about our rear when we attack the Liao.” he said.
The Liao Dynasty was still too unruly on the border, robbing Daliang merchant caravans and frequently abducting people to the border market, causing the border market to become increasingly desolate and no one dared to go there.
He never dared to move when the soldiers of Daliang were guarding the position, but he would rush forward as soon as they rested.
Riding a horse, he ran incredibly fast, impossible to catch, much to the annoyance of the soldiers stationed on the border.
Faced with such a rogue, the only way is to crush him in one fell swoop and beat him until he's terrified!
The Liao Dynasty had vast territory and herds of cattle and horses, all of which were real interests to be fought for!
Ning Xuan smiled proudly and looked at Su Yan, "Minister Su?"
Su Yan nodded, "Princess, this plan is the best. This time, when sending another delegation, we should also send more troops to Western Xia, in reality to gather intelligence on Western Xia, and on the surface, we should add some gold and silver under the pretext of protecting the court."
The group discussed the details until they felt that nothing had been overlooked, at which point Lin Yuanyao and Chu Guan received their orders and left.
Ning Xuan then picked up the memorial and began to read it.
After reading it, he was so angry that his face turned ashen. "A bunch of corrupt officials and parasites!"
Sheng Ping hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed, "Father, please calm your anger! If the water is too clear, there will be no fish. Now that we have controlled the fish's movements, that's good. At the same time, we should make an example of them to warn the other officials to behave themselves."
She understood a principle: every emperor has a new set of ministers, and after the power struggle, it's just a change in social status.
Different officials in high positions may not necessarily refrain from corruption, forming cliques and protecting each other, oppressing the people, or calling a deer a horse.
The emperor's key to success lies in employing the right people, placing the right ministers in the right positions, and keeping track of their movements.
People like Su Yan, with their simple and clean backgrounds, wholehearted dedication to the people, and integrity, are a blessing to the Great Liang.
Throughout history, such ministers have been extremely rare.
Human nature is greedy—greed for fame, power, wealth, and sex—it all depends on one's own internal standards.
Su Yan followed up, "It's far better to clearly see greed than to be able to blind His Majesty to greed. Greed itself is one thing, but what's truly concerning is that it obscures what can be done right under His Majesty's nose."
Rebellion is an option; if the emperor can't see his subjects clearly, then he can do many things.
Ning Xuan picked up a vermilion brush and circled all the names in the book. He wrote them down, "If they continue to be unrestrained and fall into my hands, they will be punished for both their old and new crimes!"
Sheng Ping replied respectfully, "Your Majesty is wise. I wish to take this opportunity to further promote the new policies and order the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Works to approve them."
The new policy aimed to improve the status of women and provide them with opportunities for choice.
Of the nearly one hundred people in the Ministry of War, most did not support the new policies.
Minister Lin Yuanyao was strict and never made any mistakes, but he was extremely biased towards his subordinates.
The Ministry of War is not clean. Some of the loopholes in the allocation of grain, military pay, and pensions are real, while others are fake. Lin Yuanyao did not investigate the fake ones in depth, unless they were very large.
This is the leverage she now holds; all she needs to do is get the ministers of the Ministry of War who can attend court to approve the new policies.
The situation is different between the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of War, and she has already discussed countermeasures with her staff.
Ning Xuan stared at her intently. This roster was clearly enough for her to surpass all six departments. "Why only these two?"
"Father, the problems in these two ministries are relatively minor and there is still a chance to correct them. The remaining four ministries will be severely punished, and there is no need to win over the officials who are about to leave the capital."
The Ministry of Revenue, in particular, is the most troublesome.
As long as the Minister of Revenue remains in office, the national treasury will not be full, and we can only watch helplessly as natural disasters and man-made calamities occur.
This is definitely not the scene a wise ruler would want to see.
Ning Xuan nodded. "I grant your permission."
Thinking of the criticisms that were raging in the palace today, he said, "Shengping, I have high hopes for you. Do not let mere feelings for your children hurt my feelings."
Sheng Ping hurriedly kowtowed to him, "Your Majesty, please understand. I only intended to use Wang Yinian to incite internal strife within the Wang family. I had no intention of having any romantic feelings for him."
Fearing that Ning Xuan wouldn't believe her, she pulled a piece of paper out of her sleeve and handed it to her with both hands.
Ning Xuan unfolded the paper and looked at Wang Yinian with a pitiful expression.
In just half a month, Sheng Ping had uncovered many of the Wang family's secrets.
He was speechless for a moment, then stood up and patted Shengping on the shoulder, "Come with me for a walk in the Imperial Garden."
His daughter has surpassed him in ability, even more so than he has.
A kind heart, yet ruthless, using any means necessary, and always taking the initiative rather than being passive.
Su Yan wisely went home first. It was well past dinner time, and he was starving. He was bound to get stomach problems sooner or later.
Ning Xuan took Sheng Ping for a walk in the Imperial Garden, and the father and daughter "bumped into" Consort Wang, who was also taking a stroll.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects!" Consort Wang bowed gracefully to Ning Xuan.
Ning Xuan took her hand. "Get up."
Sheng Ping, too busy to change out of his court robes, respectfully bowed to Consort Wang and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."
Consort Wang kept her eyes fixed on Ning Xuan, deliberately ignoring her for quite a while, and only remembered her after being reminded by her head maid, Xingyan.
"Oh dear, look at me, my mind goes completely blank when I see His Majesty. Shengping, please rise. From now on, we're all family, so there's no need for you to bow to me anymore~"
As she spoke, Consort Wang raised her handkerchief, covered her mouth, and laughed.
Her peach blossom eyes were still carefully observing Ning Xuan's reaction.
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