The prince is more stable

Chapter 1030 The Allied Forces Are Coming
Throughout China's thousands of years of history, the position of "prime minister" has occupied a very important position.

At the same time, the existence of this official position has both advantages and disadvantages, and it is difficult to say whether it should exist at all.

The prime minister is an indispensable and important assistant to the emperor. The emperor must entrust the prime minister with many aspects of state affairs.

This is an unchangeable fact. Those who have often been emperors are probably aware of how many things happen in a country every day, and how many memorials from local officials regarding people's conditions, livelihoods, and military affairs are submitted.

This does not include the memorials from various government offices such as the Transport Commissioner, the Supervisor, and the Judicial Commissioner. In such a vast country, at least several thousand memorials had to be processed every day.

If the emperor were to handle all the reviews and approvals alone, he would likely die within two or three years of his reign, exhausted to death.

The reason why Emperor Zhezong Zhao Xu died so young was directly related to his tireless work on state affairs. The court was in a critical period of reform and renewal, and Zhao Xu was even busier. He often stayed up all night to handle state affairs, which ultimately led to his short life. He died before the age of thirty.

Later emperors, such as Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, wanted to centralize imperial power and simply ended the thousands of years of prime ministerial power in China. So they took Hu Weiyong as an example, and the Ming Dynasty never had a prime minister again.

Historical records clearly state that after the Ming Dynasty abolished the prime minister system, Zhu Yuanzhang had to personally review thousands of memorials every day, slept for less than three hours a day, and could not take a vacation all year round, except for two days of rest during the New Year and his birthday.

Emperor Hongwu, who could have lived a long life, only lived to be around seventy years old before passing away. It wouldn't be wrong to say that he was worked to death.

Ironically, not long after Zhu Yuanzhang died, his son Judy Jingnan ascended the throne and carried out a series of reforms to the court.

In this reform, Judy did not restore the prime minister system, but instead adopted the Grand Secretary system.

The father offended so many people, used the sword to prove his point, and overthrew the prime minister system that had existed in China for thousands of years. As a result, his son created the cabinet system and produced a large group of prime ministers. From then on, the emperors of the Ming Dynasty were tormented by the Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, resulting in all sorts of distorted and bizarre situations.

Zhao Xiaoqian's thinking about the country was very rational. He knew very well that the Song Dynasty still could not do without a prime minister, or more accurately, without the Council of State Affairs.

An emperor needs someone to assist him. If imperial power is too centralized, and the emperor makes a foolish and incompetent decision due to being blinded by a leaf, no minister will dare to object. In that case, the people of the country will suffer. Yet the emperor thinks he is wise and is completely unaware that he is being foolish and bringing disaster to the country.

Zhao Xiaoqian didn't consider himself particularly wise. He knew very well that as his desire for power grew, he might make foolish and incompetent decisions in the future. Therefore, he had to keep a few loyal and upright ministers around him who would be brave enough to advise him against every foolish decision he made.

But now, Zhang Dun is clearly no longer suitable.

He had selfish motives. For the party faction he represented, for the group that supported him in the court, and even for the interests of the powerful landlords and tycoons of the country, his stance in advising Zhao Xiaoqian was inherently flawed.

"Zhang Dun has fallen ill. I hope he recovers quickly. After all, he is a veteran minister of three reigns who has made great contributions to the Song Dynasty. I only wish that he can live to be a hundred years old and live in peace every year," Zhao Xiaoqian said deeply.

Cai Jing, standing before him, was taken aback for a moment, then quickly understood the Emperor's meaning.

Yes, we hope he lives a long life, but the emperor didn't say he could still be prime minister.

Cai Jing immediately chimed in, "Yes, Mr. Zihou has devoted himself to the Song Dynasty and deserves a good end. I also hope that he lives to be a hundred years old."

Zhao Xiaoqian nodded. He had said his piece, and Cai Jing understood. That was enough.

His concern was that Cai Jing, after taking power, would be relentless in his pursuit of Zhang Dun, who had retired from office, and would eliminate him completely.

Although Zhao Xiaoqian disliked Zhang Dun and decided to dismiss him from his position as prime minister, from a personal standpoint, he had no grudge against Zhang Dun and there was no need for him to go to such lengths to eliminate him.

If we can't get along, let's break up peacefully. You can go home and retire in peace, while I continue to be my emperor.

Zhao Xiaoqian continued, "From today onwards, you will temporarily replace Zhang Dun and handle state affairs. All matters of state must be discussed and resolved with the members of the Council of State Affairs."

Upon hearing this, Cai Jing was overjoyed and immediately knelt down, choking with gratitude, and said, "Your Majesty, I will certainly live up to Your Majesty's high expectations and will do my utmost for the Song Dynasty and Your Majesty!"

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said, "You should pay more attention to the court. Now that the Western Xia has been destroyed, the court is accumulating national strength and preparing to launch a northern expedition against the Liao Kingdom. At such a critical time, I do not want the court to fall into infighting. Let everyone keep to themselves and not cause me any trouble."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will certainly restrain the court officials. In particular, in the next two years, I will try my best to downplay the conflict between the old and new factions, maintain harmony in the court, and encourage everyone to work together to assist Your Majesty in unifying the country!"

Zhao Xiaoqian gave him a deep look. Cai Jing was actually very smart. He knew very well where the contradictions in the court lay and how to resolve and maintain them.

With such abilities, he is more than qualified to be prime minister.

During Zhang Dun's reign, the court was in chaos, with the conflict between the old and new factions becoming increasingly intense and sharp. Many of these conflicts were even initiated by Zhang Dun himself.

Of course, Zhang Dun did these things with Zhao Xu's tacit approval or even instruction. The national policy of abolishing the old and restoring the new naturally required a purge in the court.

Every dynasty has its own situation. The current situation of the Song Dynasty does not require a purge of the court. Instead, it needs a stable and secure government to concentrate its efforts on external affairs and accomplish important tasks.

It was only natural that Zhang Dun was eliminated by the times; the world had changed, and there was no longer a need for his sword.

The statement is cruel and heartless, but it is the truth.

…………

Spring breezes do not reach Yumen Pass. The Song Dynasty court is rife with intrigue and turmoil, and the highest levels are undergoing changes that will impact the nation's destiny. However, news of these changes remains unknown to anyone in the Western Xia, thousands of miles away.

Even if they knew, these generals wouldn't express any stance; their mission was to expand territory.

On the 21st day of the third month of the second year of the Jingkang era, Zhong Jianzhong led his troops to capture Xingqing Prefecture, the capital of Western Xia.

When the Song army entered the city, the capital city experienced another bloody battle.

With the city gates and walls breached, the Western Xia garrison had no choice but to retreat into the city. Most of the garrison, seeing that the situation was hopeless, surrendered to the Song army. However, a small number of the garrison refused to surrender and engaged in a brutal street battle with the Song army inside the city.

Every house, every alley, and every high point in the city became a battlefield where soldiers from both sides fought to the death.

Many people in the city also joined in. It is undeniable that in the final moments of national crisis, there were some who refused to submit to the enemy. Their integrity and spirit of self-sacrifice should not be underestimated just because they were the enemy.

Within the city of Xingqing, the majority of the inhabitants were Dangxiang Qiang people, a group known for their fierce spirit and bravery in both military and civilian life.

After Zhong Jianzhong's Song army entered the city, the street fighting inside the city caused some casualties to the Song army.

On the main battlefield, the Song army feared no enemy. No matter how powerful the enemy was, they could not withstand the sharp firearms. One shot was enough to kill.

However, in the alleys of the city, the Song army's firearms inevitably had shortcomings, and their effectiveness was limited. The battle for control of the alleys and residences was extremely fierce, and the Song army could only advance with difficulty by stepping over corpses and blood.

It wasn't until an hour later that the Song army completely controlled the city, killing all the Western Xia garrison troops inside, and the Western Xia capital finally fell entirely into the hands of the Song army.

Post-war casualty statistics showed that the Song army suffered almost no casualties during the siege, but more than two thousand died in the street fighting.

This figure infuriated and deeply saddened Zhong Jianzhong. So, immediately after sending out his report of victory, Zhong Jianzhong sent another report to Bianjing, requesting punishment for his mismanagement.

After capturing Xingqing Prefecture, the Song soldiers had no time to rest and immediately went out of the city to form ranks to meet the Western Xia reinforcements from Xiliang Prefecture and Xuanhua Military Command.

Almost at the same time that the Song army had just formed its battle lines, the Western Xia reinforcements arrived outside Xingqing Prefecture.

It was another head-on battle, and the outcome was a foregone conclusion.

The Western Xia reinforcements were routed. Besides the fact that the Song army's firearms were too strong to withstand, the most important factor was that before the battle even began, the Song soldiers shouted in front of the battle lines that the Western Xia ruler Li Ganshun and the royal family and officials had all been captured alive.

To verify the authenticity, Zhong Jianzhong specifically ordered that Li Qianshun, whose hands and feet were bound, be helped onto a horse and paraded around in front of the two armies.

Then, the morale of the Western Xia reinforcements collapsed instantly.

From generals to ordinary soldiers, everyone was filled with grief and despair, realizing that the Western Xia Kingdom was doomed.

With the capital breached, the king captured, and the enemy so powerful, sweeping across the land with unstoppable force, what hope does this country have?
In the ensuing battle, the Song army won with remarkable ease. After the front lines had only fired a few volleys, the rear of the Western Xia reinforcements began to rout.

The rout is like a contagious disease, spreading from one to ten, and from ten to a hundred.

Finally, the disease spread like a plague. Of the 40,000 Western Xia reinforcements, more than 10,000 were killed in battle, and the rest were routed and scattered. The Song army pursued them for a hundred miles and annihilated nearly 10,000 more.

With the complete defeat of this relief force, the Western Xia could no longer organize an effective, large-scale resistance force within its territory.

In other words, the Song army under Zhong Jianzhong had completely taken control of the entire territory of Western Xia.

Meanwhile, just as the Song army captured the capital of Western Xia and took its ruler Li Qianshun prisoner, Yelü Chun, the commander of the 100,000-strong Liao army, which was also an ally, finally took office and began to assume command of the troops.

Unfortunately, it was all too late.

The Song army had already occupied the capital of Western Xia, captured the king alive, and looted the Western Xia treasury and the property of the royal family, nobles and officials in Xingqing Prefecture. Even the granaries were occupied and divided by the Song army.

Upon hearing the news, Yelü Chun, the newly appointed commander of the Liao army, was furious. After convening a meeting with his generals, Yelü Chun pondered the matter several times and finally decided to lead his army south, heading straight for Xingqing Prefecture.

Now the Liao army has lost all initiative, and the Song army is enjoying the best of everything. The Liao army has come all this way only to come up empty-handed. Yelü Chun certainly cannot tolerate this.

Yelü Chun now has one last bargaining chip: the "Song-Liao alliance."

The two countries formed an alliance to destroy Xia. The territory, cities, money, and grain they conquered should be divided equally between the two countries. There is no reason for them to keep all the spoils for themselves.

Therefore, Yelü Chun had to lead his army south, with his forces aimed directly at Xingqing Prefecture.

With an army of 100,000 pressing in, the Song army had to give something in return, otherwise Yelü Chun would have no way to explain himself to the capital.

(End of this chapter)