The Song army marched into Kaifeng in a mighty force, and Wang Kai, who was reinstated to the throne, personally went outside the palace to greet them.
Outside the gate of the Kaijing Palace, Zhao Huan got off the dragon sedan chair, and Wang Kai led all the civil and military officials to bow and salute.
"King Wang Kai of Goryeo leads all civil and military officials to pay homage to His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Song Dynasty. Long live the emperor!" Wang Kai knelt first, and the ministers followed.
The Song Dynasty was the superior country, and since Goryeo had become a vassal state, it should meet the Emperor of the Song Dynasty with the etiquette of a monarch and a subject.
This was the first meeting between the kings of the two countries. Zhao Huan had never met an emperor of another country, but he did not expect that the first person he would meet was Wang Kai, the King of Goryeo.
In fact, Wang Kai could not be considered an emperor. Goryeo had already agreed to be a vassal of the Song Dynasty forever, and was called a king, not an emperor. Wang Kai was still the king of Goryeo, but he could not call himself an emperor.
Zhao Huan nodded: "Please stand up quickly, King Goryeo, look who I brought to you." Zhao Huan pointed behind him.
"Father!" Princess Yanran flashed out, no longer caring about etiquette, and ran towards Wang Kai crying.
When Wang Kai saw his daughter, he was so moved that tears streamed down his face: "Ran'er, it's my orphan Ran'er."
The father and daughter hugged each other tightly and cried, which was a unique scene.
Entering the palace caused another problem. After all, Wang Kai was the king of a country, the King of Goryeo. Although he could not officially be called an emperor, in reality, he was no different from the emperor.
The title of emperor was merely a courtesy bestowed upon the Song Dynasty by the vassal state, and it sounded pleasant to outsiders. However, Li Ziqian did not understand this, and for the sake of a vague and useless title of emperor, he was willing to turn against the Song Dynasty, and the result was his demise.
There was only one dragon throne in the main hall, and Zhao Huan should have sat on it. But this was Goryeo, and Wang Kai was the king. If Zhao Huan sat on the throne, Wang Kai's position would be there; he couldn't just sit there and serve as a subordinate.
The Goryeo king was too embarrassed, and the Song Dynasty was a bit too much. If Wang Kai still sat on the throne, the Song Dynasty, as the superior country, would lose face.
Fortunately, both sides finally found a solution. Two dragon thrones were placed on the throne. Zhao Huan sat on the main dragon throne, as a sign of Goryeo's respect for the Song Dynasty. Wang Kai sat on the secondary dragon throne, listening to the ministers' reports.
Zhao Huan and Goryeo disagreed on how to deal with Li Ziqian. Goryeo wanted to finish the job with a single blow to prevent future troubles and let Li Ziqian get the punishment he deserved.
Zhao Huan, on the other hand, wanted to imprison Li Ziqian, since he had surrendered voluntarily. If Li Ziqian resisted to the end, although Kaifeng would still be captured, it would also cause certain casualties.
Li Ziqian had voluntarily surrendered, thus saving Kaijing from war, and had also helped Wang Kai ascend the throne. Based on this, Zhao Huan disagreed with sentencing Li Ziqian to death.
The two sides spoke different languages, so they relied on interpreters to help them. Zhao Huan was adamant about the handling of Li Ziqian's case, refusing to budge. This concerned the laws of the Song Dynasty and certain aspects of its dignity.
Wang Kai and his ministers discussed the matter in whispers for a while, some nodding their heads, others shaking their heads, as if a decision was being made. Zhao Huan angrily slammed the table and said, "I conquered Goryeo! I've imprisoned Li Ziqian, who dares to object?"
Zhao Huan's rage instantly silenced the Goryeo officials. Everyone looked at Zhao Huan in horror, and Wang Kai was also horrified. The Song Dynasty could easily destroy Goryeo. They hadn't expected the emperor to be so enraged over Li Ziqian. So, the officials agreed to imprison Li Ziqian.
Fortunately, Li Ziqian was not old and was only one step away from the gates of death. Even if he was imprisoned, he would not live for many years.
Finally, Goryeo finally agreed to Zhao Huan's plan and imprisoned Li Ziqian in Zhaowang Mansion outside the palace.
Li Ziqian, who was originally sitting on the throne, suddenly became a prisoner, while Wang Kai, who was originally imprisoned, now sat back on his throne.
Goryeo was deeply grateful for the Song Dynasty's overwhelming support and, after unanimous agreement between the government and the people, vowed to hold an altar to worship their ancestors and pledge to the gods that they would forever remain a vassal of the Song Dynasty, never harboring even the slightest disloyalty.
Zhao Huan was very satisfied. This trip to Goryeo had not only demonstrated the power of the Song Dynasty but also thwarted Hebula's conspiracy to ally with Goryeo. Secondly, the Song Dynasty's prestige was so well-known that the Yelang Kingdom dared not to rebel again.
"Great Khan! Great Khan! Hurry and call for the troops!" At Hebule's camp, shocked to hear that Zhao Huan had personally led the army to quell the Goryeo rebellion and imprison Li Ziqian. The former king had been re-enthroned, forever a vassal of the Song Dynasty. Hebule could no longer endure it, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.
The successive defeats left the Mongol Empire with no hope, and the tribes began to stir again. The tribal leaders gradually stopped obeying Kublai Khan.
The successive blows made Kublai's health deteriorate. The Mongols believed in immortality, so the generals invited a wizard to cure the Khan's illness and eliminate disasters.
Hebule was already bedridden, but the wizard outside the tent was still performing rituals, praying to God to grant the Khan strength to stand up again.
General Darantai stayed by Hebule's side. As a die-hard loyalist, Darantai felt deeply guilty. He believed that the defeat of the Iron Wolf Army was due to his poor command, and he was unwilling to accept it.
Hebule shook Darantai's hand and asked, "Darantai, where is the Song army fighting?"
Darantai could not bear to distract the Khan, so he comforted him: "Don't worry, Khan, the Song army is only outside the Dadan tribe and has not continued to invade."
Hebula sighed, "I was wrong. I shouldn't have provoked the Song. But now the Song are like gods descending upon us. Their red-coated cannons are invincible, their divine crossbows unstoppable. We Mongols are only fit to gallop across the grasslands, herding sheep on wooden horses. The Song have abundant gold and silver treasures, but they are beyond our power to take. But now we have provoked trouble. The Song army has invaded the grasslands. I, your Mongolian daughter, once conquered them, but I never thought I would be defeated on the same horse again today."
Dalantai consoled him, "Don't worry, Great Khan. Our Mongol state has many capable and skilled warriors, and the various tribes can still muster a force. Let's fight the Song army to the death and drive the invading enemy off the grasslands."
Hebule coughed loudly, and Darantai was shocked. He hurriedly ordered his servants to come over and rub and beat him.
It was really a double whammy. At this moment, a soldier rushed in from outside the tent in a panic. The soldier looked anxious and bowed to Kubula and said, "Great Khan, it's not good. The Borjigin, Ba'alin, and Belgunati tribes have received a letter. They have declared their surrender to the Song Dynasty and no longer accept the command of Kubula Khan. He, they also..."
Hebule's breathing was rapid, and his face flushed with anger. Dalandai was shocked: "What else!"
The soldier whispered, "They are still willing to join the Song army and fight together against the Khan."
"What!" Dalandai was shocked and angry: "People!"
With a "Puff" sound, Hebule vomited several liters of blood and then fell into a coma.
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