Chapter 676 A Dream of Youth 208
Xie Ning felt that this corrupt atmosphere might also be related to the rulers' indulgence.
Admittedly, when Emperor Taizu established the dynasty, civil officials were not yet a significant force. However, as dynasties changed, the power of civil officials grew stronger, eventually leading to a situation where "civil officials governed the country." This atmosphere of "respect for literature" not only influenced the people but also the highest rulers.
Human ambition is never satisfied.
The scholar-officials who dominated the government needed to consolidate their position, and even unconsciously, they raised the banner of "respect for literature" and strengthened the emperor's resolve.
Influenced by this mainstream ideology, the emperor naturally leaned more towards Confucianism.
In terms of direction, the ruler's attitude is very important, but his attitude can also be influenced.
If doctors have a promising future, more people will practice medicine, and with more people participating in a particular industry, medicine will naturally become more and more prosperous.
Advanced medicine leads to improved national health, increased life expectancy, and overall societal progress; these are mutually reinforcing and promote each other's development.
The emperor pondered for a long time. He felt that Xie Ning's words made some sense, but it was too late now. If there was an opportunity in the future, he could discuss it in court.
"Since Minister Xie has an idea, then write a memorial to me another day." Just saying this was only a general discussion.
"Yes." It seemed she had never actually submitted a proper memorial before.
After Xie Ning left with the medicine box, the emperor slowly got up and said, "Go to the small study."
He also has to hold small court assemblies, and he's busy day after day. Xie Ning keeps saying that his neck is bad, and he's always looking down at memorials. It would be strange if his neck got better.
The emperor thought for a moment about the infant prince who was still breastfeeding, and sighed inwardly. He decided to just let the emperor decide the matter himself for a few more years.
If only his Yanxi were a prince, the emperor thought, touching the memorials on his desk, his heart filled with hesitation.
He was still pondering whether or not to let Yan Xi take the position when everyone at the small court assembly arrived.
Today, their main discussion is about sending troops to Xili—yes, Xili, not Northern Jin.
The emperor would not be foolish enough to be the first to break the treaty. Although there have been constant disputes between the Great Zhou and the Northern Jin over the years, they have all been minor, with only two major disputes.
Once, the Great Zhou suffered a military defeat against the Western Jin, and the Northern Jin intended to provoke a diplomatic dispute with the Great Zhou, accusing the Great Zhou of violating the treaty by building defensive fortifications. But that was just their excuse.
This was their way of demanding the land south of the pass from the Great Zhou, or else they would send troops south.
However, the Northern Jin was in the wrong. Apart from a small number of people in the Southern Privy Council of the Northern Jin who supported it, everyone else, including the Northern Privy Council Envoy, opposed it. They all hoped that the two sides would maintain their traditional friendly relations.
Because the Northern Jin's determination to reclaim Guannan was not firm, the two sides negotiated and agreed that, while adhering to the original alliance, the Great Zhou would provide an additional 100,000 bolts of silk and 100,000 taels of silver, but this was also subject to conditions.
The Great Zhou demanded that the Northern Jin promise to restrain the Western Jin from harassing the Great Zhou, and thus, peace was restored to the border.
Just recently, the two sides were still arguing over the issue of the Great Zhou building more fortifications along the Hedong Road. The Northern Jin wanted to redefine the territory, but the Great Zhou was unwilling. After all, how could they just give up a territory that was 700 li in length and width?
This assassination attempt was also orchestrated by Xi Li, with the aim of igniting war between the Great Zhou and the Northern Jin, giving Xi Li time to quell the internal political turmoil.
After all, with the young emperor on the throne and the maternal party in power, things were very chaotic. They were afraid that the Great Zhou would take advantage of the situation and also harbored the intention of reaping the benefits.
The Great Zhou did indeed intend to take advantage of the chaos to launch an attack, so the emperor had begun preparations long ago. Moreover, in recent years, the Great Zhou had maintained the strategic initiative in dealing with Xili. Even when the assassination attempt by Princess De'an occurred, the emperor did not lose his temper and become irrational.
Xi Li's actions not only failed to ignite a war between the Great Zhou and the Northern Jin, but also gave the Great Zhou a reason to put pressure on the Northern Jin, and also revealed Xi Li's collusion with the Border Workers' Office.
The emperor was furious. The thought that the weapons he had paid for had benefited Xili made him feel like he had a heart attack and wanted to kill all of them.
The main reason for sending troops to Xili was Hengshan. The Great Zhou had been planning to take Hengshan for forty years, but had not yet succeeded, and had spent a lot of manpower and resources.
But Yokoyama couldn't be left unattended.
Xili's high position on Hengshan Mountain exposed some counties and prefectures along the border of the Great Zhou Dynasty to its very nose. In order to defend these places, a large amount of manpower and resources had to be mobilized to strengthen its forward positions.
Although the Great Zhou took the initiative to attack, due to the loss of Hengshan, it entered a desolate desert region with no water, grass, or human habitation as soon as it crossed the border. Once the supply of soldiers, food and provisions could not be provided, it had no choice but to retreat without a fight.
Xili, on the other hand, was like a tiger with wings, relying on its natural defenses to defend itself and gather troops and supplies.
How could the emperor not hate him?
With this internal turmoil at Xili University, he must take advantage of the chaos to reclaim Yokoyama!
Of course, their deployment was definitely not limited to Hengshan, but rather aimed at encircling the entire Xili University and completely annihilating it by launching a five-pronged attack.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
