In the Song Dynasty, people were lawless. In the 287th chapter of the main text, Li Yuanhao voluntarily surrendered to Xishi Town, which was Yuzhong County in later generations.
Because it is located on the border between Qingtang and the Song Dynasty, it is increasingly becoming a commercial center.
Before the Western Xia opened the Hexi Corridor and became the middleman between the Song Dynasty and the Western Regions, many merchants from the Western Regions had to take a long detour through the Hehuang Corridor.
After crossing the Hehuang Corridor, you will reach Lanzhou.
Therefore, Xining, where the Qingtang regime was located, and Lanzhou City became places where merchants gathered.
Xishi Town gradually prospered along with this prosperity.
Especially in recent years, the Song Dynasty has become more keen on foreign trade, and since then the West Market has become an important transportation hub connecting the Western Regions' commerce.
At this moment, outside the town, the continuous tents seemed to have no end. On the left bank of the Qingshui River, less than a mile away from the town, more than ten camps of different sizes were densely packed together to form a fortress.
The northwest suffered from severe soil erosion and increasingly scarce vegetation. Therefore, Yang Xie used local materials, irrigated the soil with water, and built a village wall, which was built against the hilly slopes to the west.
There are several camps on the top of the mountain, with dozens of steel cannons placed on them. The silver color emits a dazzling light under the setting sun in winter.
In the main camp below, Yang Xie threw away the document in his hand and said, "What is Zhao Yuanhao doing?"
He had just met Li Yuanhao's envoy in the front camp. In addition to bringing Li Yuanhao's letter, the envoy also brought a box containing a human head. When the box was opened, one could see that the man had died with his eyes open.
Yang Xie was speechless and had to let the envoy go first while he discussed the matter with his many generals in the rear camp.
He had just finished reading Li Yuanhao's letter and looked around at the officers sitting on the chairs on either side and said, "He sent Zhang Yuan's head here, saying it was a gesture of sincerity to the Song Dynasty. He doesn't understand what I'm saying, does he?"
Ren Fu, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Qinfeng and Fuyan cavalry, scratched his head and asked, "Could it be that the Commander-in-Chief didn't explain things clearly? Did they mistakenly believe that taking Zhang Yuan's head would appease the imperial court's wrath?"
"Nonsense."
Yang Xie rolled his eyes and said, "I have almost made it clear. If Zhao Yuanhao still doesn't understand, he is extremely stupid."
As he spoke, he stroked his goatee and narrowed his eyes, saying, "In my opinion, this Li Yuanhao is pretending to know everything. He thinks he can fool me by bringing Zhang Yuan's head."
Ren Fu thought for a moment and said, "Why not go directly and tell the envoy that you, the Xixia, are so arrogant and have harassed the Song Dynasty, and the imperial court is furious. You are so ungrateful. If you don't pay compensation, the Song Dynasty's celestial army will definitely teach you a lesson."
"You're such a blockhead."
Yang Xie said with deep regret, "Our great China is a nation of propriety and has always used virtue to win over people. How can one seize and plunder, and act recklessly and wantonly?"
Ren Fu stared at him with a pair of eyes full of wisdom, with a blank look, not knowing what was going on.
Jingtai, who was a Jinshi graduate and had been promoted to the position of Deputy Transport Commissioner and General Manager of the Qinfeng Road due to his meritorious service, whispered, "You don't understand. This matter must be justified. We can't let foreigners think that we, the great Chinese, are bullying others by taking advantage of our power."
"Forehead"
Ren Fu still didn't understand.
None of them cared about Zhang Yuan's head.
Everyone was thinking about completing the task assigned by Zhao Jun - how to blackmail Xixia.
But it's not easy to do it openly.
This is actually the difference between Chinese thinking and Western thinking.
Western thinking is a bandit logic. If I defeat you, I can plunder, rob, burn, kill, and do whatever I want.
However, ancient Chinese Confucianism emphasizes benevolence and righteousness in dealing with the world and winning people over with virtue.
Even if I am stronger than you, I will not bully you for no reason. I will only use appropriate excuses.
For example, when Nanyue killed a Han envoy, it was divided into nine counties; when the King of Wan killed a Han envoy, he was beheaded at Beique County; when Joseon killed a Han envoy, it was immediately executed.
This is called having a legitimate reason.
Although the Western Xia invaded the border, Li Yuanhao always emphasized that they were not enemies of the Song Dynasty, but were sworn enemies of the Qingtang Zuosiluo, and their attack on Qingtang was reasonable.
It is understandable that the Song Dynasty could provide assistance based on its alliance with Qingtang, but it would be difficult to use this excuse to attack Western Xia.
After all, Xixia has already given enough face and has not given too many excuses.
In fact, many people in the court felt that Zhao Jun's demand for compensation from Western Xia for its defeat was unreasonable.
Even if Greater China wins the war, it would be enough to teach them a lesson. Why force them to pay tribute to the court?
Even if they had to pay tribute, they would do so on their own initiative. When all nations came to pay tribute, the surrounding countries would pay tribute with some local specialties, and the court would give them generous rewards.
Only in this way can the magnanimity of the court be demonstrated.
It sounds like these court officials are outrageous, and I don't know what's going on in their heads.
After all, from the perspective of reality and interests, the tributary system in ancient China was a bit like trying to save face but suffering in the end.
But it is undeniable that it is precisely such a system that has constructed a set of East Asian values with Confucianism at its core.
It is just like the later emperor who spread his values of cooking and nourishing food everywhere.
It is precisely because of the existence of this set of values that the Huaxia Empire can maintain its core position in East Asia.
Otherwise, the Liao Dynasty and the later Jin Dynasty would not have been committed to competing with the Song Dynasty in terms of orthodoxy.
It can be said that if the Song Dynasty changed its thinking and began to learn Western thinking, the robbers would immediately start plundering when they defeated the enemy.
This will inevitably cause dissatisfaction among other East Asian countries that have always regarded the Song Dynasty as the Celestial Empire, and will also cause the collapse of their faith.
This is extremely detrimental to building common values in the future and then completing the Eastern Pole strategy to seize the entire East Asia.
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