When the news of Wang Zongchu's suppression of the rebellion in Shandong reached Bian Jing, the whole country was shocked.
The Sixteen Prefectures were recovered, the Jin Dynasty was crippled, the Western Xia was powerless to resist, the Tubo was busy with internal strife, and even Dali was struggling to protect itself. With peace prevailing throughout the country, the Song Dynasty had reached its strongest military peak since its founding.
In reality, these were superficial phenomena. The Song Dynasty was already at the end of its rope. Land annexation was rampant, and various social contradictions were prominent. It was only when the Jin invaded that domestic conflicts shifted to war.
At this time, the national treasury had long been exhausted, and Zhao Huan deeply understood that if no reform was carried out, the Song Dynasty would be in danger of capsizing at any time.
But it's incredibly difficult to reform a social system that's rotten to the core. Once you touch the interests of certain people, they'll do anything to oppose you.
For now, let's form a marriage alliance with Xixia. Even if the Xixia princess is a sow, like Feng Jie, I, Zhao Huan, will blow out the lamp, close my eyes, and treat her as Nangong Lian'er.
The Xixia princess's wedding procession traveled through mountains and rivers, under the stars and the moon, and finally arrived in Bianjing.
Confucian scholars, in accordance with the laws of heaven, earth and human relations, happily welcomed the Xixia princess into the palace.
The two parties cannot meet before the wedding. God knows which bastard made this rule. It's probably the work of those scholars who use the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues and other ethics and morals to spread everywhere.
In the matter of marrying the Xixia princess as the imperial consort, Zhao Huan became the passive party, and a group of ministers manipulated all the details of the marriage.
To demonstrate the power of the Song Dynasty, the Ministry of Revenue spent a considerable amount of money on marrying the Xixia princess. The palace was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, a rare display of generosity on Meng Gu'rao's part.
Various tributes were sent to the court, indicating that Xixia was willing to submit to the Song Dynasty. The Privy Council then sent envoys to convey Xixia's wishes, stating that Xixia was a vassal state of the Song Dynasty and that from then on, they would share honor and disgrace.
After entering the palace, Princess Xixia moved into the Luande Hall, which was the western hall second only to the Renming Hall. After all, she was canonized as the Imperial Noble Consort.
Li Sisi was originally a Noble Consort, but Zhao Huan, in an effort to win over Xixia, offered to confer the title of Imperial Noble Consort. The title of Imperial Noble Consort had not been established since the founding of the Song Dynasty, meaning that if the Empress was unable to lead the six harems, the Imperial Noble Consort could act as the Empress.
Li Ganshun of Western Xia was overjoyed when he heard the news, and ordered his men to send two thousand war horses and three hundred camels as gifts.
Taking a concubine on the wedding night was a good thing, but Zhao Huan was a little nervous because the Xixia princess brought her own maids with her after entering the palace.
It would have been fine if they had just brought palace maids with them, but the terrible thing was that these twenty or so maids were all heroic, with swords hanging from their waists, standing in two rows outside the Luande Palace.
Zhao Huan brought Cao Dongsheng to the outside of Luande Hall and was shocked by the scene. He remembered a poem: The sword shines like snow in the bridal chamber in autumn, I believe there are people who are sad to be a son-in-law in the world;
The candlelight sways the red-haired man, who is half drunk, and dreams of Jingzhou on the bed of love.
It was said that when Liu Bei married Sun Xiaomei, on their wedding night, Sun Shangxiang had her maids stand outside the door with swords in hand. Could it be that he was about to experience the same thing today? "Dongsheng, what's all this fuss about?"
Cao Dongsheng looked at the sword-carrying palace maids on either side and stammered, "Your Majesty, perhaps this is the etiquette of the Western Xia."
"Damn it, have you ever seen such etiquette?" Zhao Huan said, straightening his clothes and walking away. This was the inner courtyard of the imperial palace, so they couldn't do anything wrong.
With a "Shua!", the maids drew their swords and raised them above their heads.
Cao Dongsheng was so scared that the lantern fell to the ground and he picked it up in a hurry.
Zhao Huan shrank back in fear, feeling a chill on his back. This was terrifying! This wasn't a wedding night; it was like going to the execution ground.
After finally walking through the forest of swords and rain of knives, Zhao Huan tremblingly pushed open the door of Luande Hall, and Cao Dongsheng bowed and left.
With a creaky sound, the door opened, revealing a young woman sitting in the main hall. She was slender and graceful, dressed as a bride, in a red dress with a red veil covering her head.
Zhao Huan was delighted. At least the Xixia princess had a nice figure. He looked closely and saw the princess's hands clasped together in front of her knees. Her hands were white and tender, which pleased him even more. They didn't look as ugly as a pig.
Zhao Huan turned around and closed the door. The princess seemed a little nervous and her body trembled slightly.
Zhao Huan was also nervous. This kind of girl who wields swords and guns is not easy to deal with. It is better to pretend to be timid first. Zhao Huan first bowed and said: "Your Highness, you have come a long way and worked hard."
There was no movement, and the princess said nothing.
Zhao Huan felt unsure. Could it be that she was as unhappy as he was?
Zhao Huan coughed and continued, "Your Highness, you must have come so far to make it. I am late."
Still no words were spoken, but Zhao Huan saw that the princess's two small hands were tightly grasping the lapels in front of her knees.
Zhao Huan almost laughed out loud. It turned out that the princess was shy. He had thought that this fiery woman who wielded swords and spears was only aggressive and unruly, but he hadn't expected that this Xixia princess also had a shy side.
As soon as the princess became shy, Zhao Huan was no longer afraid. He went over and was about to lift the princess's veil.
As a result, the princess was too shy and nervous, so she shrank back and refused to let Zhao Huan touch her.
Zhao Huan felt a little embarrassed. He touched his head and said, "Well, Your Highness, I just remembered a funny thing on the way here. Can you tell me about it?"
The Xixia princess remained silent.
Zhao Huan said, "Let's make a bet. If you smile, I'll lift your veil. How about that?"
This time the princess finally nodded gently.
"There is a great hero in our capital named Benboerba, who has unparalleled swordsmanship. He is much more powerful than those maids outside you." Zhao Huan talked freely. In order to ease the tense atmosphere, the princess's hands that were holding her clothes gradually loosened.
Zhao Huan continued, "One day, Benboerba received a letter from his opponent: 'You are known as the best swordsman in the capital. Come here in three days to fight me. If you don't come, you will admit defeat and get out of the capital. Your title of best swordsman is worthless. You are just a gray rat with a reputation for nothing.' Written below was the address of the scheduled battle. But three days later, Benboerba didn't respond. Can you guess why?"
The princess shook her head in confusion, and the phoenix crown and pearls under her veil rang crisply and beautifully.
"This Benboerba's swordsmanship is unparalleled, and he's known as the Sword Saint. The letter writer was so humiliating, saying that anyone who didn't accept the challenge would be a rat. Benboerba flew into a rage, tearing the letter to shreds after reading it. 'This is too much! You don't take me, the Sword Saint, seriously. I'll definitely be beheading you in three days!' Then, Benboerba slapped his forehead and said, 'Shit, I forgot his address!'"
Perhaps the joke was too unkind, and Princess Xixia almost laughed out loud, but managed to hold it in. However, the atmosphere became much calmer.
Zhao Huan rubbed his head, racking his brains for a joke the princess would understand. Finally, he remembered one: "A long time ago, a man from Chu was crossing a river in a boat. Halfway through the boat, his sword suddenly fell into the water. He hurriedly used a knife to carve a mark on the boat. The boatman was surprised and asked, 'What are you doing?' The man replied, 'My sword fell from this spot, and I'm marking it so I can find it when I reach shore.'"
The princess sneered in her heart: Everyone knows the story of carving a boat to look for a sword. This emperor is too contemptuous of people.
But Zhao Huan continued, "The boatman said again: 'You idiot, why did you have to dig such a big hole just to make a mark? The boat is leaking!'"
The Xixia princess finally burst out laughing with a chuckle, and the pearl rings on her phoenix crown jingled and trembled.
Zhao Huan rushed over and said, "Don't play tricks, I'll overturn it!"
The moment the veil was lifted, Zhao Huan was stunned. What a beautiful princess.
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