Northern Song Dynasty: Starting from the son of Song Renzong

Chapter 56: The Emperor's Appearance
Chui Gong Hall.

Due to the distance, naturally, Zhao Zhen and Zhao Xin arrived earlier than Fu Bi.

Although he was a little confused as to why only the emperor and the Duke of Shou were present, Fu Bi still bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I am honored to meet you. I wonder why you are so anxious to see me?"

Negotiation is a technical job, and sometimes personal ability is very important.

And often during the negotiation process, people are free to say whatever they want.

Therefore, when Fu Bi did not hand over his secrets, how could even Zhao Zhen know that he would be able to complete the task?

Besides, Fu Bi had no experience in relevant diplomatic missions before.

Zhao Zhen called Fu Bi back again, mainly to highlight his concerns about the matter.

But that’s right!

The survival of the Song Dynasty was in the hands of a foreign official.

If it were you, you would also have to be careful.

Then Zhao Zhen pretended to be indifferent and said, "I summoned you to the palace so soon because I want to know if you have thought about how to tell the King of Liao after you arrive there."

Fu Bi also replied: "Your Majesty, hasn't this been discussed before?"

Zhao Zhen also said: "I'm not talking about that. What I mean is, if the Liao Kingdom does not accept our conditions, do you have any way to make them accept our conditions?"

Seeing his father's words being so roundabout, Zhao Xin simply said directly: "What the emperor means is, what is your confidence in going north to negotiate with the Liao Kingdom this time? Do you have any confidence in your heart?"

As soon as Zhao Xin said this, Fu Bi immediately looked at him sideways.

Looking at the pretty and good-looking Zhao Xin, this is definitely not something a four-year-old child can behave like.

Fu Bi also said: "Of course I have the confidence."

Zhao Xin said, "Then tell me about it!"

Fu Bi said, "The emperor and his subjects of the Song Dynasty are united, we have millions of elite soldiers, and strict laws. This is the confidence of the Song Dynasty."

Zhao Xin said, "That's fine!"

After that, Zhao Xin nodded to himself.

Zhao Zhen: "..."

Zhao Xin continued, "However, this will not make the other side feel any pain. Just saying that we have a million elite soldiers is useless. Has the Song Dynasty ever defeated the Liao Kingdom before?"

Fu Bi also thought about it, and then replied: "Before the Chanyuan Alliance, our Song Dynasty used the Eight Oxen Bed Crossbow to shoot and kill Xiao Talin, the Liao Nanjing Army Commander. He was shot in the head and fell off his horse and eventually died."

Zhao Xin said, "It hurts a little to hear this. Um... Dad, what is this Chanyuan Alliance? Why have I never heard of it?"

In fact, Zhao Xin had heard of it, but he didn't know the specific process.

Anyway, in the end, it will definitely be a peace negotiation and compensation.

And Zhao Zhen also thought to himself, you are so young, if you have heard of it, then there must be something fishy!
Seeing that his father was just looking at him without saying anything.

Zhao Xin then asked, "Fu Bi, tell me, what is the Chanyuan Alliance?"

Fu Bi then roughly recounted the entire process of the Treaty of Chanyuan. You won’t believe it, but in Fu Bi’s words, the Song Dynasty actually had the advantage.

only……

Prime Minister Kou Zhun wanted to achieve his goal in one fell swoop, but was rejected by his father's spineless father, who was also his eldest father.

It's obviously an advantage, so why bother negotiating?

Really are!
Zhao Xin also said: "If you know this history, you will be more confident in the negotiations."

Regardless of whether what Fu Bi said was true or not, he didn't need to lie to me. However...

Zhao Xin thought that the Alliance of Chanyuan was definitely not that simple.

It is very likely that they are not as advantageous as Fu Bi said, but they should not be that inferior either. After all, the opponent's Nanjing Army Commander was shot and killed by their side, which cannot be false.

Just killing one of the enemy's military commanders was already a great deterrent to the Liao Kingdom.

This is equivalent to your head coach being killed by someone.

After a pause, Zhao Xin said, "But this is still not painful enough! Because the pain is not felt on the ruler of Liao. And what if the other party wants to send a 'Xiao Tallin' to die! If you want to persuade him not to go south, you have to say something that is closely related to the other party's interests."

"For example... once this war really starts, what kind of benefits will the other side most likely gain, or what kind of disadvantages will the other side most likely gain."

"Regarding this... do you have any thoughts in mind?"

Fu Bi replied confidently, "Of course there is."

Zhao Xin also said: "Then tell me."

Fu Bi hesitated for a moment, but still said, "If the Liao ruler accepts the peace talks, then he can get more annual tribute without any effort. But if he insists on fighting, regardless of whether he can win or not, he will have to pay pensions and rewards to his soldiers, and also pay for the army's departure."

"If we win a great victory, that would be great, but what if we are in a stalemate or suffer a great defeat? That would cost a huge amount of money. By then, even if we let them take back the ten counties south of the Guan River, would it really be enough to repay the military expenses spent during this period?"

"It would be better if we could strengthen trade with each other, exchange what we have and what we don't have, and then get a free annual tribute."

"Wars cost the king's money. Even if the king wins, he still has to reward his soldiers. The ones who benefit are those who go to war and support the war. In addition to getting land, the king will have to collect taxes slowly in the future to make his money back. There is even a possibility that the war will have to last for many years, which will require more expenses. It may even lead to the court running out of money."

"As for the peace talks, all the annual tribute earned will directly belong to the king, without having to be distributed to the people below. Just think about it and you will know which is better."

Zhao Xin also echoed, "This is exactly the truth that destruction brings disaster, and harmony brings prosperity! Even if the Liao Kingdom really defeats the Song Dynasty, it will definitely be a devastated Song Dynasty. Moreover, the Liao Kingdom will also greatly reduce its national strength because of this war."

"Since you already know all this, Fu Bi, I have nothing more to say."

After saying that, he pulled his father's sleeve again and asked, "Dad, do you have anything else to say?"

Zhao Zhen: "..."

You both have said it, so what else can I say?
Zhao Zhen couldn't help but think so.

Fu Bi thought that what Zhao Xin said was very good, and was thinking in his heart that destruction brings disaster, while harmony brings prosperity.

You can borrow this when you go on a diplomatic mission.

Zhao Zhen then lowered his head and asked Zhao Xin: "What about what you said to Madam Miao before?"

Zhao Xin said, "That's irrelevant. When you go on a diplomatic mission, Fu Bi, you should also find an opportunity to try to alienate Xixia and Liao. It's very simple. When Liao asks for more benefits, you can tell Liao that you can ask for more benefits, but Liao must restrain Xixia. At that time... Xixia will definitely not listen to Liao. The Liao king will lose face and may fight with Xixia."

"Just treat it as an experiment! Be careful not to say it until the very end. If you say it too early, it will make people feel that you are being too deliberate. You have to find the right balance."

Done.

Zhao Xin also said: "Okay! The meeting is over, let's go back and play with Miss Miao! Oh, by the way! I almost forgot to let the soldiers in the north step up their training."

As he said this, he turned his face to his father and said, "Father, who will lead the troops to the north? We can't let the Liao Kingdom see the weakness of our Song Dynasty. We must make the soldiers cheer loudly during training, otherwise, it will be difficult for Fu Bi to do his job."

After saying that, he looked at Fu Bi and said, "Fu Bi, you can go ahead. Leave the matters after your death to me and Dad. We will be your strongest backing and most powerful support during the negotiations!"

Fu Bi looked at Zhao Xin.

He suddenly had an illusion, that is... why did he feel that the Duke of Shouguo seemed to have more qualities of a ruler than the emperor?

Officials often panic when dealing with this matter.

And what about Duke Shouguo?
You can't see him panicking at all, and you can even say that he has your back.

(End of this chapter)