Do you know: I am the crown prince

Chapter 427 Begging for mercy
Of course, Zhao Xing's purpose in doing this was not simply to fool the people.

Once the people believe him, he won’t have to worry too much about how many officials oppose him when he does something.

The Chinese New Year is coming soon, and after the New Year, he will use his own reign title.

However, after ascending the throne for more than half a year, Zhao Xing did not do much to reorganize the local area.

Now is the time to rectify the administration of officials.

Rectifying the administration of officials is not just about fighting corruption.

The power and responsibilities in the officialdom of the Song Dynasty were chaotic, there were too many preferential treatments, and promotions required arrangements. All of these needed to be rectified and changed.

The reason why Zhao Xing did these things before was that he knew that there would be great resistance to rectifying these problems.

According to Zhao Xing's original idea, he wanted to thoroughly investigate the land and win over the hearts of the people before starting to do these things.

The appearance of the jade seal was like a timely help.

While Yin Hanzhang was secretly stirring up public opinion, Zhao Xing frequently summoned important officials in the court to discuss issues related to the rectification of official administration.

At the beginning, Zhao Xing had no intention of showing his fangs. He only pointed out that the powers and responsibilities of various departments in the officialdom were unclear, and that there were problems with the supervision system. He summoned all the ministers to discuss how to clarify the powers and responsibilities and improve supervision.

The officials did not object to this.

…………

Five days before the Chinese New Year, Gu Tingye and Wang Shao returned to Bian Jing.

Zhao Xing summoned the two men to Longtu Pavilion and listened to their account of the situation in the northwest.

"It's a good thing that Dong Jian is capable. Now he has secured his foothold in Hehuang. However, Xixia will not give up and will definitely launch an attack on Hehuang next year," said Zhao Xing.

"Your Majesty is wise. I think so too," said Gu Tingye.

"Since Zhonghuai has thought of these things, do you have any solutions? For the time being, I don't want to fall out with Xixia." Zhao Xing said.

Gu Tingye bowed and said, "I haven't thought of any good ideas, but Zichun has thought of one!"

"Oh?"

Zhao Xing looked at Wang Shao and said, "What is Zichun's solution?"

“Your Majesty, as long as the Zuosilo tribe declares its complete surrender to the Song Dynasty, and Your Majesty confers the title of King of Hehuang on Dong Zhen, then if Western Xia sends troops it will be a violation of the alliance, and the Song Dynasty can intervene directly. And Western Xia will not dare to send troops easily.” Wang Shao said.

Zhao Xing frowned upon hearing this and said, "The Zuosiluo tribe has already accepted the reward from the Song Dynasty. They are nominally subjects of the Song Dynasty. Will it make any difference if they are further rewarded?"

The Zuosilo tribe was nominally a vassal of the Song Dynasty, but the Western Xia still fought against them.

Not only the Zuosilo tribe, but also the Western Xia tribe had accepted the enthronement from the Song Dynasty before it was established.

"A simple enthronement will not be enough to shut up Xixia, but what if the Song Dynasty sends an army to serve under Dong Zhen?" Wang Shao said with a smile.

"But will Dong Zhen agree?"

Zhao Xing understood what Wang Shao meant. Originally, the Zuosilo tribe was only a vassal of the Song Dynasty in name only.

Xixia also knew this, which was why it sent troops to attack the plateau.

It was impossible for the Song Dynasty to send troops to fight against Western Xia just for a nominal vassal.

Wang Shao's intention was to make Zuo Si Luo a real vassal of the Song Dynasty. Of course, this was just as fake as the so-called true one, and it was only done for show to outsiders.

Sending a troop into Hehuang was also a decisive move.

Once Xixia mobilized its troops, it could relieve some of the pressure on the Zuosiluo tribe in the early stage. If the Zuosiluo tribe was defeated, the Song Dynasty would also have a legitimate excuse to intervene.

But if the Song Dynasty sent troops into Hehuang, it would be like stabbing a knife into Hehuang, and Dong Jian would probably not be willing to do that.

"I have tested Dong Zhen. Although he did not agree directly, he proposed to marry the princess to the Song Dynasty," said Wang Shao.

"Marriage?" Zhao Xing said with an ugly face: "There is no unmarried princess in the Song Dynasty, how can we have a marriage?"

Zhao Xing had an instinctive aversion to the idea of ​​marrying a foreign princess.

Since ancient times, peace achieved through alliances and marriages has been highly praised.

But in Zhao Xing's view, the so-called alliance and marriage could bring peace because the other party itself did not have the ability to invade.

Although if this were not done, border frictions would continue, but if it was agreed to, it would also make subsequent emperors lose their ambition to make progress.

Not to mention that there were no princesses of the right age in the Song Dynasty, even if there were, Zhao Xing would not be willing to let a woman be sacrificed.

"Dong Jian also knows that the Song Dynasty does not have a princess of appropriate age. What he means is that the Song Dynasty can choose a princess from the royal family to be canonized." Wang Shao said.

"Is he trying to learn from his ancestors?" Zhao Xing sneered when he heard that.

The Zuosilo tribe was a tribe formed after the split of Tubo, and Songtsen Gampo was indeed his ancestor.

Princess Wencheng, who was married to a foreign emperor in the early Tang Dynasty, was a member of the royal family. Emperor Li Shimin was reluctant to let his own daughter marry, so he selected a princess from the royal family and gave her a title of nobility.

"Zichun wants me to agree?"

"I think we can agree to it. The marriage will not only appease Dong Zhen, but also prevent Western Xia from launching an attack on Hehuang next year, giving the Zuosilo tribe time to recuperate." Wang Shao said.

"What's the point of appeasing Dong Zhen?"

Zhao Xing sneered, "The reason why he agreed to the Song Dynasty sending troops into Hehuang was to buy time to recuperate. If I don't agree, will he not agree?"

Zhao Xing now understood that although Dong Zhan did not agree, he did not directly refuse.

This shows that Dong Jian originally wanted the Song Dynasty to send troops into Hehuang.

The purpose was nothing more than to prevent Xixia from sending troops to attack Hehuang for the time being, so as to buy time for recuperation.

Therefore, whether there was a marriage alliance or not, Dong Jian would agree to allow the Song army to enter Hehuang.

"Did he limit the number of troops entering Hehuang?" Zhao Xing asked.

"No!" Wang Shao shook his head.

"Humph!" Zhao Xing snorted coldly, "He didn't mention it because he wanted to wait until the Song Dynasty agreed to the marriage. You can just reply to him and say that the Song Dynasty doesn't have a princess of the right age and it's inappropriate to confer the title of princess on a royal family girl. If he doesn't want the Song Dynasty to send troops into Hehuang, forget it."

"Yes!" Wang Shao saw that Zhao Xing was angry and didn't dare to say more.

"Okay, you have worked hard. Go back and have a rest. I will hold a banquet in the palace tonight to celebrate your success." Zhao Xing said.

"I resign!"

Wang Shao bowed and left, but Gu Tingye did not move.

Zhao Xing knew Gu Tingye's purpose, but pretended not to know and asked, "Zhong Huai, is there anything else?"

"His Majesty!"

Gu Tingye knelt down and said, "My brother has committed a heinous crime and deserves death, but as his elder brother, I still want to plead for him and ask Your Majesty to spare his life."

Zhao Xing looked at Gu Tingye without saying anything after hearing this. After a long while, he said, "Zhong Huai, you have been with me since you were a child and have never asked me for anything. Since you asked, I will give you face and spare his life. However, I will not reward you for your contribution in Hehuang this time."

Although Gu Tingye did not take Hehuang, it was because Zhao Xing took the initiative to ask him to withdraw his troops and hand over Hehuang to the Zuosilo tribe.

In any case, Gu Tingye was ordered to enter Hehuang and won several battles, so he must be rewarded.

What Zhao Xing said was equivalent to using Gu Tingye's merit in exchange for Gu Tingwei's life.

Originally, because of his father's words, he planned to spare Gu Tingwei's life.

Now that Gu Tingye has asked for mercy, it would be good if it could offset Gu Tingye’s contribution.

(End of this chapter)