In November, envoys from the Liao Kingdom also went to Western Xia, and the two sides signed a strategic alliance treaty.
This treaty was held in secret, and the two sides agreed that if a full-scale war broke out with the State of Song in the future, if one side started fighting, the other side would immediately come to the rescue.
Obviously, the strength of the Song Dynasty made Yelu Zongzhen unable to sit still. In addition to easing the increasingly sharp contradictions at home, he also had to actively seek foreign aid and work with his allies to deal with the Song Dynasty.
The Song State was not aware of this situation for the time being, but the Song State's internal supporters also knew that the Liao State envoys had gone to Western Xia. The people in the Political System Council knew what the Liao and Xia were up to without any hesitation.
However, this was something Zhao Jun and the others could guess, so it didn't matter.
Even though the Song and Liao dynasties signed peace talks and the Liao dynasty was trying to stabilize the situation, the Song dynasty also wanted to gain time for development and reform its many internal problems and contradictions.
As long as the Song Dynasty is given a few years, with money, food, soldiers, artillery, grenades, and even flintlock rifles, what is the point of the Liao and Xia alliance again?
Therefore, the Song Dynasty did not care about their alliance, nor did it actively try to destroy their alliance.
At the end of the year, the Xixia envoys held peace talks with Pang Ji, the governor of the Song Dynasty in the northwest, to discuss the specific matters.
Finalize the content of the treaty.
1. Seek peace.
Second, the Western Xia Emperor Li Yuanhao demoted himself to king and paid tribute to the Song Dynasty.
Third, every year, Western Xia had to offer the Song Dynasty one thousand sheep, five hundred cattle, five hundred war horses, and three hundred camels.
Fourth, the two sides opened trading markets on the border and allowed the free circulation and sale of all commodities without interference. Public security and regional affairs were jointly managed by Western Xia and the Song Dynasty, and taxes were determined by the nationalities of the merchants on both sides of the trade.
5. Western Xia must pay tribute to the Song Dynasty every year for the Qianyuan Festival (the birthday of Emperor Renzong of Song) and the New Year.
6. The Song State will restore all diplomatic relations that had been severed with Western Xia and maintain contact through envoys, but will cancel all expenses for receiving envoys. The envoys of both sides will have to pay for their own travel expenses. After arriving in Kaifeng, the Song State will only provide food and accommodation, and there will be no other reception expenses.
Seventh, Song and Liao signed a non-aggression pact. If either side violated the pact, the other would consider it a hostile state. This time, because Xia invaded again, Song and Liao should have completely severed relations and demanded compensation for all war losses. However, considering that peace is the aspiration of the people of both countries, we will give Xia one more chance. Don't say I didn't warn you!
8. The Song and Xia dynasties will use the existing border as the demarcation point, and both sides will withdraw their troops. From now on, neither side will harbor any thieves or fugitives who cross the border. Cities along the border between the two dynasties will maintain normal operations. No new city gods will be built, no troops will be sent to the border without authorization, and no troops will be rashly sent across the border to capture thieves or fugitives without prior notice. Any violation will be considered an invasion.
Ninth, the Song agreed to purchase Xixia's specialties, such as salt, saffron, and furs, to alleviate the current economic collapse caused by the accumulation of these products. However, the Song agreed to cede Xixia's vassal households to the Song, and Xixia would not supply Song with any prohibited goods, including war horses and minerals. At the same time, as with the Liao, both sides would lift all embargoes.
A series of peace talks culminated in a Western Xia envoy traveling to Bianliang, the capital of the Song Dynasty, to present an audience to the emperor. After the agreement was finalized and sealed, the Song emperor bestowed upon Li Yuanhao the titles of Special Advancement, Inspecting Taishi, and concurrently Minister of the Court, Jiedushi of Dingnan Army, and Inspector of Xia, Yin, Sui, You, and Jing Prefectures, as well as the title of King of Western Xia. This marked the end of the peace talks.
The Song Dynasty naturally welcomed Li Yuanhao's wise decision. Thus, the Liao Kingdom and the Western Xia Kingdom negotiated, and the foreign invasion came to a temporary end.
In the midst of this hustle and bustle, the first year of the Qingli period arrived!
(End of this chapter)
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