Northern Song Dynasty: Starting from the son of Song Renzong

Chapter 326 I Love Peace Very Much

The forty-eighth year of the Li Yuan Dynasty.

The capital of the Ghaznavid Empire.

Considering his own strength, it might not be possible to expel the Song Dynasty.

The Ghaznavid emperor Masood III also thought of borrowing troops from the Seljuk Empire.

of course!

It’s hard to say whether I can borrow it, at least...

Masood III wanted to make other Islamic countries realize that Islam was no longer the only dominant country in West Asia and India.

This handwritten letter from Masoud III was soon delivered to the emperor of the Seljuk Dynasty, or more precisely, the Sultan, Muhammad I.

After reading the letter, Muhammad I was also puzzled.

I thought, isn't the power of Peach Blossom Stone originally in the far east?

Why did they come all this way?

The so-called peach blossom stone refers to China.

The reason why the other party called China Peach Blossom Stone is probably due to the Eastern Karakhanid Dynasty.

The Eastern Karakhanid Khanate probably wanted to find a father for itself so that others would not dare to attack it or interfere with its business.

Therefore, they sent people to the Arabian region to spread the word that Qin was divided into Upper Qin, which was the Song Dynasty, Middle Qin, which was the Liao Dynasty, and Lower Qin, which was the Eastern Karakhanid Khanate itself.

You see, when others heard it, they found out that the Eastern Karakhanid Khanate was also part of Qin.

Think about it, if others want to touch them, they have to consider the opinions of Shang Qin and Zhong Qin.

Even...the Eastern Karakhanid Khanate called Zhao Xin the Han uncle and the great official.

This is what it means to be relatives and to be familiar with each other.

of course!

If you say that this kind of relationship building and acquaintance building is random, that's not entirely true.

after all……

Since the Tang Dynasty, they did have some kind of relationship with the Central Plains dynasty through marriage and other means.

Even though the Tang Dynasty had long since perished, this relationship has remained.

Even at this moment, they no longer intermarry.

Anyway...

This means that at least it is more prestigious than a tributary state or a dependent state.

As for the attitude of the Song Dynasty.

I can only say that it is accepted by default.

After all, you shouldn't hit someone who smiles at you. If someone has done this and called you uncle, and you still hit him, that would be a bit unkind.

of course!

The main reason for this is that before Zhao Xin came to power, the Song Dynasty did not have the ability to fight against others.

In between are the Western Xia and the Xizhou Uighurs.

So since people call it that and it sounds so nice, there is no reason for the Song Dynasty to provoke any diplomatic disputes.

I should even say...

This friendly relationship between the two is still beneficial.

after all……

The Eastern Karakhanid Khanate would transport at least 100,000 kilograms of frankincense from the Western Regions to the Central Plains every year.

The imperial court could use this to collect certain taxes.

Regions like Western Xia and Tubo were also highly dependent on the trade benefits brought to them by the Eastern Karakhanid Khanate.

Back to the topic.

Muhammad I was a little confused as to what this peach blossom stone was for.

"What do you think?"

Muhammad I asked his ministers.

The ministers also said: "Sultan, your territories are not stable yet. If you still want to rescue Ghazni, wouldn't it be too much of a stretch?"

Another minister also said: "But if the other party really gets a foothold in the local area, I'm afraid it won't be a good thing, right?"

"Do you still remember the Tang Dynasty?"

Muhammad I also said: "I heard that it was once a very powerful country."

The minister said, "Once the country becomes strong, these peach blossom stones will run to the west. They are very clever and are good at everything. We must be on guard against them."

The minister in front said, "But after all, it is still thousands of miles away from us."

The latter also said: "I think we should send people to gather intelligence early to prevent the other party from doing harm to us in the future."

Muhammad I thought it made sense.

Therefore, he then said: "Then send someone to gather intelligence first. Why are they here and what their strength is. The letter also said... they have very powerful weapons. They can capture any city within a day. This should be taken seriously."

The minister said, "That is why I say they are clever in everything they do and we must be on our guard."

At last……

Masood III's envoys did not receive any reinforcements.

But it's normal.

After all, since the death of Malik Shah eighteen years ago, the Seljuk Dynasty has actually been in decline.

The infighting is very serious.

can only say……

It was a good thing that Muhammad I had the idea of ​​sending someone to find out the news.

If it were someone else, they would probably even save themselves this effort.

Anyway...

With the Ghaznavid Empire in the east, it wouldn't be destroyed so quickly, right?

As for Zhao Xin, he was also restricted by the problem of long-distance transportation.

Although sea routes are very convenient and can transport a lot of gunpowder at one time.

but……

We'd better use the gunpowder sparingly.

at the same time……

There are not enough reliable management talents.

So much so that his expansion progress was slowed down a bit.

However, this year, he was already seventy-three years old.

If he doesn't hurry up, he will probably be buried in the ground without conquering the entire northern India.

This year……

Zhao Xin had to try to find a saltpeter mine nearby.

Sulfur is easy to deal with. There is plenty of it in Srivijaya.

As for charcoal, it is not a problem at all.

in fact……

If Zhao Xin had invaded northern India from the northeast, there would probably be no shortage of saltpeter mines now.

Because India's saltpeter mines are in the northeast.

can only say……

It's a backup option.

If a gunpowder production factory was really opened here, it would be difficult for Zhao Xin to guarantee that the technology would not be leaked in a short period of time.

Other people are not fools. They can guess what you are transporting on the road by looking at it.

……

The 48th year of Li Yuan, after autumn.

Zhao Xin led his troops again to attack Balamala.

The capital of the Paramala dynasty was soon captured, and at this time, one third to half of the land in northern India had fallen into Zhao Xin's hands.

The remaining dynasties naturally came to surrender and expressed their willingness to pay tribute.

Be reasonable!
Zhao Xin was also in a difficult situation.

If everyone accepts it, then northern India will be unified immediately.

However, this unity is quite loose and others can rebel at any time.

But if you don't accept it, to be honest, it's a bit tiring to kill them one by one.

of course!

The difficulty with all this is that they don’t have more Han people migrating here.

If they had enough Han people, there wouldn't be such a problem.

Considering this, a unified and centralized system is better.

and so……

Zhao Xin then asked them to abolish the title of emperor and at most be called the Governor-General of North India of the Song Dynasty.

This is equivalent to directly downgrading their status.

If they can accept it, then Zhao Xin is willing to accept their surrender. If they cannot accept it, then he will continue to fight.

This was an absolute insult to the remaining North Indian dynasties.

Naturally, it was impossible to accept Zhao Xin's proposal.

then……

The remaining dynasties once again considered having a big battle with Zhao Xin.

The battle took place near the capital of Balamala.

Because for the remaining dynasties, this is obviously the shortest distance to send troops.

Zhao Xin had also sent people to spy on their military intelligence.

After all, it is impossible for a large army to be mobilized without any sound.

Finally...Kalachuli offered 20,000.

Five thousand cavalry and fifteen thousand infantry.

Zhangdratria offered 25,000.

Eight thousand cavalry and seventeen thousand infantry.

Kachapagata offered fifteen thousand.

Three thousand cavalry and twelve thousand infantry.

Gahadavala pulled out 20,000.

Five thousand cavalry and fifteen thousand infantry.

There are two other countries that are even further away.

However, those two countries are too far away and are often despised by people here, who call them savages.

Indeed, many people from these two countries were driven to the east.

and so……

These two countries did not participate in the war.

Even the initial combat discussions did not include them.

At last……

Zhao Xin then used 4,000 of his own troops, 10,000 of the Zhuluo coalition forces, and 20,000 surrendered troops against 80,000.

The war took place within an area of ​​dozens of kilometers around the former capital of Balamala.

Of course Zhao Xin would not sit idly by and wait for death.

Some soldiers were left behind in the capital, while the others were to maneuver quickly on war horses during the full-moon nights.

First attack Karachuri, which is located to the southeast and relatively close.

at the same time……

He also pretended that there was another large army coming from the Johan Dynasty to attack Kachhapagata from the east.

This made Cacciapagata suddenly a little hesitant.

After dealing with the Karachuri, they encountered the soldiers of Chandratria and were defeated again.

Zhao Xin had already known about these dynasties as soon as their armies set out.

They were defeated one by one before they even had a chance to gather together.

it's over...

The soldiers of the Gahadavala dynasty rushed to Kachhapagata, and after repeated confirmation, they concluded that the troops coming from Johan were a suspected force.

at this time……

The two of them had evil thoughts again and thought about turning around and beating Qiao Han.

and……

If they go to attack Qiao Han, then Zhao Xin will have to defend it, right?
If it weren't for the news that the Karachuri front had been defeated, someone would have said, "Even if we capture an empty city, so what? The most important thing now is to destroy the enemy's main force."

finally……

Persuaded by the military advisor, the armies of the two countries continued to move south.

Later on the way I heard that Chandratria was also defeated.

This time...

The two countries had to stop again.

Good discussion.

of course!

At last……

The two countries still insisted on continuing to move south.

only……

At this time, the morale of the soldiers of the two countries had already been shaken.

The outcome of the ensuing battle is predictable.

At the slightest sign of trouble, they scatter like birds and beasts in an instant.

It was just less than twenty days.

The armies of the four countries were massacred by Zhao Xin, and more than half of them were captured.

As for the rest...

It’s just a matter of conquering their capitals one by one.

It was the 49th year of the Li Yuan period.

All the kings were captured, and naturally, the remaining cities surrendered as well.

Zhao Xin did not kill these kings, royal families or anything like that.

He just told the enemy king when he was attacking the city that if he surrendered now, he could still live.

After the other side surrendered, the kings and royal family were escorted back to Solange.

When Zhao Xin returned to Solangi, many Song Dynasty scholars had also come to the capital of Solan.

This just solved Zhao Xin's problem of insufficient manpower.

Those who are brave and able to lead troops to fight, let them lead the troops to fight.

Those who lack courage and are not good at leading troops in battle will be given a civil servant to be responsible for taxation and other related matters.

Since they arrived half a year in advance, Zhao Xin only returned from the front line at the end of the year.

and so……

Although I can’t say that they all understand the language here.

but……

After these six months, I am no longer unable to speak a single word.

Zhao Xin asked them to start with Solange as the center and then continue to expand outward layer by layer.

As for the positions of county magistrate and county lieutenant, all you can say is that you can take the positions once you get them.

Those who rely more on literature will be given the title of county magistrate, and those who rely more on military force will be given the title of county lieutenant.

As for other newly conquered areas.

After taking the city, Zhao Xin arranged for someone to serve as the temporary governor in the local area.

This is not urgent.

after all……

Compared with other areas, their base camp is more important.

it's over...

The news that Zhao Xin had conquered the entire northern India, or to be more precise, at least 80% of northern India, was also discovered by the spies of the Seljuk Empire.

When the news got back to Muhammad I.

Muhammad I could only say that this peach blossom stone was indeed abnormal!
of course!

If you really want to say it, Ghazni conquered northern India at about the same speed.

It’s just that Ghazni stopped fighting when he saw that the other side was willing to submit and pay tribute.

However, Zhao Xin defeated the 80,000-strong coalition force of four countries.

Eighty thousand people!

Even if those Indians' weapons and equipment are not good, this is not a small number.

Muhammad I had to start facing up to Zhao Xin's existence.

then……

He wrote a letter to Zhao Xin and also sent Zhao Xin some gold and silver utensils, spices, and beautiful women as gifts to show his friendship.

Only then did Zhao Xin realize that the other party was also very concerned about the situation here.

Zhao Xin thought that since they were so far away, the other party would not pay much attention to them.

The other party mainly said that they hoped Zhao Xin would not prevent their Arab caravans from doing business in the future.

and……

In a situation like this where you win, I win, and everyone wins, there is no reason for anyone to stop it.

Zhao Xin was not so narrow-minded as to want to kill all those Arab businessmen.

of course!

You know what, he actually thought about it.

After all, these Arab businessmen are most suitable to be used as spies to steal their technology.

It also allows assassins to pretend to be businessmen, which will increase the security risk to Solange.

Although Zhao Xin didn't know much about the history of Central and West Asia.

But he still vaguely knew that the people in this place loved to assassinate the emperor the most.

Throughout history, many emperors were assassinated.

Some emperors seemed to never have sons.

Zhao Xin naturally couldn't believe that an emperor couldn't give birth to a son.

There are so many beautiful women around me.

of course!

Except his dad.

But if something like this happens so frequently, seemingly every few decades or even a hundred years, that's not normal.

Maybe it’s because their sons were assassinated before they even grew up.

Or maybe the war was too fierce, so they all died on the battlefield.

Or is it that the weather is too hot, resulting in poor sperm activity?

Regardless, Zhao Xin wrote back, “I love peace very much and welcome you to do business in Solangi. I hope we can become good friends.”

Trick the other party first.

(End of this chapter)