I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 186 Only women truly understand women
...

He seduced Xiao Sese and made her fall in love with him instead of her. Although he was a time traveler and the emperor of the Song Dynasty, Zhao Yu was not so arrogant as to think that he really had such charm.

As for Zhang Chun's empty promises, such as winning over Xiao Sese and the possibility that she might be helpful in destroying Liao, Zhao Yu could only listen to them and not take them seriously.

The key point is that Zhao Yu has so many women, and he will have even more, so why would he lack Xiao Sese?

Yes.

Xiao Sese is beautiful, has a good background, and is very talented.

However, in Zhao Yu's harem, there were certainly women who were just as beautiful as Xiao Sese, or even more beautiful than her.

As for her status, Xiao Sese was at most a concubine, not an empress, empress dowager, or even a princess, so she was ultimately lacking in status.

It would be more plausible if Xiao Duoli were lazy, after all, she was the true empress of Liao.

Let's talk about talent.

Although Xiao Sese could write poetry and criticize Yelü Yanxi, how could she compare to Li Qingzhao? Li Qingzhao directly cursed Zhao Mingcheng to death, which is the pinnacle of female poets.

Despite Xiao Sese's insults, she caused Yelü Yanxi no harm whatsoever. Furthermore, no one knew about her poems, yet when a novelist quoted one, he was suspected of using AI. With a skill level comparable to AI, finding thirty to fifty women in Zhao Yu's harem wouldn't be a problem at all.

In short, Xiao Sese looks alright, but upon closer inspection, she's really just so-so.

There were three things that tempted Zhao Yu.

Firstly, Xiao Sese has now become a pawn of Yelü Yanxi. If Zhao Yu does not want Xiao Sese, Xiao Sese and her unborn Shu princess Yelü Yuliyan will only have one way out: death, or at least a very miserable life. However, if Zhao Yu takes Xiao Sese in, he will truly be helping Xiao Sese and Yelü Yuliyan, and will truly be giving them a way to survive.

To put it simply, if Zhao Yu didn't touch Xiao Sese or pay any attention to her, even the servants might dare to bully her, and there might even be some audacious scoundrels who would dare to harass her.

—This is not the imperial palace after all, and the surrounding area is full of arrogant and fierce soldiers who risk their lives. Anything can happen here.

Furthermore, with the chaos of war and the distance between Yanjing and Tokyo, and Xiao Sese being pregnant with Yelü Yuliyan, it's uncertain whether she could successfully return to Bianliang with Zhao Yu and give birth to Yelü Yuliyan without careful care.

To be honest, both Xiao Sese and Yelü Yuliyan were tragic figures in history, the kind who had no real faults but met a particularly miserable end. Since Zhao Yu has traveled through time, it would be good if he could save them, mother and daughter.

Despite Zhang Chun's devilish demeanor and her threats and intimidation of Xiao Sese, she actually wanted to save the two pitiful women, Xiao Sese and Yelü Yuliyan. Otherwise, why would she risk being disliked by Zhao Yu?

Think about it again. Now, Xiao Sese and her daughter Yelü Yuliyan can only be truly saved if they follow Zhao Yu.

Secondly, Zhang Chun's concerns were not entirely unfounded. If Xiao Sese were left unattended, given her current stubbornness, she might cause trouble. If she did something wrong, not only would Zhao Yu certainly kill the poor mother and daughter, but Zhao Yu would also end up being ridiculed for being misled by a woman.

Therefore, we should give Zhang Chun's proposed solution a try. After all, only women truly understand women, and who knows, whether Zhao Yu is angry or kind, he might actually be able to win over Xiao Sese?

Of course, Zhao Yu personally felt that it wouldn't be that easy, but in the end, Zhao Yu was just putting in some effort. If it didn't work out, he wouldn't lose anything. But if it did work out, he could at least give Xiao Sese and Yelü Yuliyan and her daughter a minimum guarantee so that they could live smoothly and not suffer as tragically as in history.

As for the future of Xiao Sese and her daughter Yelü Yuliyan, since it is Zhang Chun who wants to save them, and Zhang Chun is even willing to pretend to be a demon in order to save them, then Zhang Chun will take care of them. Zhao Yu just needs to cooperate with Zhang Chun.

Thirdly, Zhao Yu would certainly not do something that would cause trouble for himself if he couldn't get what he wanted.

Now that everyone knows that Yelü Yanxi gave his favorite concubine to Zhao Yu in order to quell the matter and pinned the blame on Zhao Yu, it would be too cowardly for Zhao Yu to simply leave Xiao Sese there, or even treat her like a precious object, without touching her or taking any advantage of her. In the end, it might even backfire.

Let's say that.

Taking advantage of Xiang Yu's main force being engaged in attacks on Qi and Pengcheng, Liu Bang led the allied forces of the feudal lords eastward and captured Pengcheng in one fell swoop. Upon learning this, Xiang Yu quickly returned to the rescue, inflicting a major defeat on Liu Bang at Pengcheng. Liu Bang escaped with only a few dozen horsemen; his father, Liu Taigong, and his wife, Lü Zhi, along with other family members, were captured by Xiang Yu. Lü Zhi and the others were held hostage in Xiang Yu's camp for over two years until the Chu-Han peace treaty was negotiated, at which point Xiang Yu released Lü Zhi and the others.

Xiang Yu was quite benevolent, wasn't he? He didn't even touch Lü Zhi. According to the TV series, Lü Zhi took the initiative to seduce Xiang Yu, but Xiang Yu wasn't tempted.

Ultimately, Xiang Yu's act of benevolence did not leave any positive impression on him and Empress Lü. On the contrary, this experience became a permanent source of pain for Lü Zhi. After being released and returning to the Han camp, her personality changed drastically, and she became increasingly ruthless. In the end, she assisted Liu Bang in achieving hegemony and became the powerful Empress Lü. Xiang Yu, on the other hand, met his end by committing suicide at the Wujiang River.

Conversely, if you had kept Yu Ji by Liu Bang's side for two years, Liu Bang would definitely have had Yu Ji bear him two children.

Zhao Yu wanted to be like Liu Bang, never like Xiang Yu...

……

While Zhao Yu was busy all night, Yelü Yanxi also did not sleep.

Yelü Yanxi's entourage wasn't all fools. People like Xiao Changge, Yelü, and Luwo were definitely Liao officials with rich experience in governance. They immediately saw that Zhao Yu and his ministers wanted 200,000 horses to cut off their chance of escaping Yanjing.

Yelü Heluwo was furious on the spot. He roared at Xiao Fengxian, who had reached this treaty with Han Zhongyan, "You dare to make decisions on such terms without authorization? You must have taken bribes from the Song people to dare to betray your country for personal gain! I will kill you!!!"

As he said this, Yelü and Luwo drew their scimitars.

It was clear that Yelü and Luwo were truly enraged.

Xiao Fengxian did not explain to Yelü Heluwo, but simply bowed to Yelü Yanxi and said:

"Although the Southern Dynasty has threatened Your Majesty by inviting you out of the city and has pressured you by saying that Nanjing will fall tonight, I know that there are things that can be done and things that cannot be done. Therefore, even though the situation is extremely precarious, I dare not make decisions on my own. For the sake of the country and the people, I only dare to say that I will do my best to facilitate this matter as a delaying tactic. Otherwise, Nanjing will surely fall tonight."

"I have now bought a night for the people of Nanjing. Whether to fight or send the Imperial Uncle and others to renegotiate peace is entirely up to Your Majesty's wise decision."

"I'll say it again: if Your Majesty desires war, my father, my two sons, and all the men, women, and children of our clan are willing to climb the city walls to defend our home and country; if Your Majesty desires peace, I am willing to take on the responsibility of negotiating peace and will never shirk it!"

Xiao Fengxian's words deeply moved Yelü Yanxi! He felt that ministers like Xiao Fengxian, who always thought of him, were the pillars of the country and the true loyal ministers. Compared to Xiao Changge, Yelü Heluwo, and other pro-war ministers who forced him to stay in Yanjing but could not defend the city and only caused trouble, Xiao Fengxian was a hundred times better.

Yelü Yanxi looked at Xiao Fengxian with deep admiration and trust, and felt increasingly annoyed with Xiao Changge, Yelü, Luwo, and others.

Xiao Changge, however, was completely unaware of this. After a moment of silence, he said, "The best course of action now is perhaps for His Majesty to go out of the city and personally negotiate peace with the Song emperor. Otherwise, our Great Liao will be in a very passive position."

Yelü Heluwo also said, "We absolutely cannot allow the Southern Dynasty's rulers and ministers to imprison us in Nanjing. Your Majesty should probably go and see them."

Xiao Bodie reminded him from the side: "Han Zhongyan said that if the warhorses do not leave the city by tomorrow morning, the Song army will continue to attack the city. The Southern Dynasty obviously does not want to talk anymore, nor does it want to give our Great Liao a chance to delay the war. Either Your Majesty goes out of the city to see the Song Emperor tonight, or we fight, or we hand over the warhorses tomorrow morning. There is no fourth way to go."

Xiao Changge frowned and said, "In that case, Your Majesty should go out of the city to see the Song Emperor immediately, and there may be a chance for a change of fortune."

Yelü Heluwo also said, "This matter should be handled quickly and cannot be delayed."

Yelü Yanxi's other favorite minister, Yelü Asi, also said to Yelü Yanxi: "If Your Majesty goes out, the Southern Dynasty will surely capture you, hold the emperor hostage to command the feudal lords, demand wealth and people, and plot to cede territory."

Zhang Lin, the Deputy Privy Councilor, reminded everyone: "Our Great Liao has not yet decided on an heir. If His Majesty is truly captured by the Southern Dynasty, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Yelü Yanxi thought even more deeply. He believed that if he were detained by Zhao Yu, Xiao Changge, Yelü Heluwo, and others could take the opportunity to replace him as emperor, for example, by replacing him with Yelü Chun, who had almost usurped the throne from him.

Yelü Yanxi even thought that the reason why Xiao Changge, Yelü Heluwo and others were so desperate to persuade him to leave the city to negotiate peace with Zhao Yu was so that he would be detained by Zhao Yu and replaced with Yelü Chun, whom they preferred, as emperor.

Upon reflection, Yelü Yanxi immediately made up his mind: 'I absolutely cannot leave the city, otherwise I will be like a lamb entering a tiger's den, the throne will be seized, and I might even die far from home!'

Thinking of this, Yelü Yanxi interrupted the ministers' discussion and said, "It's not that I'm unwilling to leave the city, but if I go to negotiate peace, the Southern Dynasty will definitely demand warhorses. Otherwise, they will attack the city with all their might. Once the city is breached, all the people inside will belong to the Southern Dynasty. Given this situation, how can the Southern Dynasty let it go so easily?"

Yelü Yanxi's words also make sense.

The truth is, if Yelü Yanxi dared to leave the city, Zhao Yu would definitely detain him and extort more benefits. Of course, Zhao Yu would eventually release Yelü Yanxi.

Then, Yelü Yanxi set the tone for himself: "Now that things have come to this, we should think of the preservation of our Great Liao Dynasty and the lives of all the people in the city. All external things are not worth cherishing."

Xiao Changge wanted to persuade him again.

Xiao Fengxian, who also wanted to negotiate peace, immediately launched an attack on Xiao Changge, saying: "The country is in such a state because of you war-loving people! Now that the country is in danger, even if you die ten thousand times, it will not be enough to absolve you of your responsibility!"

Xiao Fengxian's words struck a chord with Yelü Yanxi. If it weren't for Xiao Changge, Yelü Heluwo, and other pro-war ministers insisting on keeping him here, would he have suffered such a humiliating and miserable fate?

Xiao Changge, Yelü Heluwo, and other ministers who advocated war were rendered speechless by Xiao Fengxian's rebuttal and had no choice but to agree to hand over the warhorses.

Yelü Yanxi immediately put Xiao Fengxian in charge of the handover of the warhorses.

Xiao Fengxian ordered that all troops in the city, including Yelü Yanxi's personal guards, from leaders and generals to soldiers, should not leave a single horse behind. They should all be led to the Imperial Street in front of Tongtian Gate for handover, and there should be no mistakes.

Xiao Fengxian also specifically emphasized that anyone who dared to disobey orders would be killed without mercy.

Under the strict orders of Emperor Yelü Yanxi and his minister Xiao Fengxian, many Liao soldiers who were afraid of the Song army's raid on the city led their horses to the Imperial Street to wait for the handover of their warhorses.

Fearing that the Liao soldiers might cause trouble, all the Liao soldiers who surrendered their warhorses were driven away by Xiao Fengxian and his men.

After collecting the warhorses, Xiao Fengxian's men grouped every hundred warhorses into sets of five, with each set consisting of five men, so that they could be handed over the next morning.

By midnight, the warhorses had lined up for miles along the Imperial Street...

Just as Yelü Yanxi was waiting in the palace for Xiao Fengxian and others to gather warhorses, a eunuch suddenly rushed into the main hall in a panic, saying, "Huili Bao, Dashi, and several hundred others have rushed into the palace, saying they want to see His Majesty!"

Huilibao was none other than Xiao Gan, a fierce general of the Liao Dynasty. After Emperor Daozong of Liao, Yelü Hongji, died, Yelü Yanxi succeeded to the throne and appointed Xiao Gan as the commander of the Khitan Palace, in charge of Yelü Yanxi's personal guard.

Da Shi is Yelü Da Shi, the eighth-generation descendant of Emperor Taizu of Liao, Yelü Abaoji, and he is not yet sixteen years old this year.

Upon hearing that Yelü Yanxi intended to hand over all the horses in Yanjing City, and that all the warhorses would be handed over by tomorrow morning, one of them led a number of Yelü Yanxi's personal guards, and the other led a number of young members of the Liao royal family into the palace to request an audience with Yelü Yanxi.

When Yelü Yanxi learned of this, he was terrified and hurriedly got up to leave, trying to escape from the palace.

But as soon as Yelü Yanxi reached the entrance of Yaochi Palace, Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi led hundreds of people straight into the palace.

Yelü Dashi stopped Yelü Yanxi and said loudly, "Your Majesty, please leave quickly! You cannot remain in the city!"

Xiao Gan, Yelü Dashi, and others came with great force and were filled with murderous intent.

This terrified Yelü Yanxi, who asked in a panic, "Where do you want me to go?"

Xiao Gan said, "We are willing to risk our lives to fight alongside Your Majesty and break out of the city!"

Yelü Dashi even brought over a fine horse, attempting to help Yelü Yanxi onto it.

Yelü Yanxi struggled fiercely and refused to mount the horse.

In Yelü Yanxi's view, the city was surrounded by Song troops, and if he rashly rushed out of Yanjing, he would be doomed. Even if Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi could take him out, he would probably be controlled by them and become a puppet emperor. Therefore, he insisted on not mounting his horse.

A eunuch from Yelü Yanxi's side rushed over to stop Xiao Gan, Yelü Dashi, and the others, angrily rebuking them: "Stop being so rude! This is the Emperor of our Great Liao! How dare you act like this?!"

Yelü Dashi was furious. With a swipe of his scimitar, the eunuch's head was severed, and blood gushed out.

Upon witnessing this scene, Yelü Yanxi turned pale with fright! He never expected that Yelü Dashi would dare to behead his most favored eunuch right in front of him!

Xiao Gan hurriedly defended Yelü Dashi: "We dared not be disrespectful, but truly wished to save Your Majesty from this calamity. The Southerners are treacherous, and the peace agreement is unreliable. If we surrender our warhorses, all the people in our city will be lambs to the slaughter. Xiao Fengxian is a spy, a traitor seeking personal gain, trying to frame Your Majesty as disloyal, unfilial, unrighteous, and immoral. We still have 100,000 troops and hundreds of thousands of civilians in our city. We have agreed on a time for the troops and civilians to charge in from all four directions and eight gates. We will protect Your Majesty and blend in with them. We will surely break through the Song army's blockade. The next day, Your Majesty can gather your troops and return to retake the city. This is the only way to save the country. I urge Your Majesty to make a decision quickly!"

Yelü Yanxi thought that Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi were simply fanciful. If they were to leave the city according to their method, what difference would that be from courting death?
Therefore, Yelü Yanxi remained silent, using his actions to tell Xiao Gan, Yelü Dashi, and others that he did not want to leave.

Seeing that Yelü Yanxi was so timid and cowardly, not even daring to take a chance and only wanting to wait for his death, Yelü Dashi was so angry that he grabbed Yelü Yanxi's clothes and tried to forcibly take Yelü Yanxi away.

Yelü Yanxi didn't want to go with Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi in the first place, and Yelü Dashi's rudeness only made Yelü Yanxi even more anxious and angry. He stomped his foot and said irritably, "I am the emperor, Dashi, do you intend to commit insubordination?!"

While dragging Yelü Yanxi, Yelü Dashi said, "We disregard our own lives and are willing to serve Your Majesty with utmost loyalty. If Your Majesty does not employ us, all is lost!"

Yelü Yanxi was afraid of Yelü Dashi, this hothead, so he could only feign compliance: "If we really want to leave the city, I need to go back to the inner palace to make some preparations. I will take the Empress, Consort Yuan, Consort De, and all the princes with me. How can I leave them to the Song Emperor?"

Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi were still young, and Yelü Yanxi was the emperor with a noble status. In the end, Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi compromised and let Yelü Yanxi go to pick up Xiao Duolilan and the others.

Yelü Yanxi deliberately delayed for a while. Upon receiving the news, Yelü Chun personally led three thousand elite soldiers into the palace to confront Xiao Gan, Yelü Dashi, and others.

Seeing this, Yelü Dashi indignantly advised Yelü Chun: "Your Majesty is a hero of our people. How could you not see that this is a conspiracy by the Southerners? If we do not leave the city now, the consequences will be unimaginable!"

Xiao Gan also said, "The state affairs have come to this point because Your Majesty trusts treacherous ministers and does not listen to honest advice. Your Majesty must not hesitate any longer. If you hesitate, our Great Liao will surely be in danger."

Yelü Chun said, “You have risked your lives to protect His Majesty and break through the encirclement, showing your utmost loyalty. However, His Majesty must be well-protected before he can act. How can we act rashly?”

Yelü Chun held a very high position and had an excellent reputation in the Liao Dynasty. He was also a man of both literary and military talent. Moreover, what he said was true. Therefore, Xiao Gan, Yelü Dashi, and others were quite convinced of his abilities.

Yelü Chun then asked, "If you escort His Majesty away like this, can you truly protect him?"

Xiao Gan sighed, "Your Majesty truly understands military affairs."

Yelü Chun said, "I will now report your intentions to His Majesty, so that you may discuss them together at a longer time. What do you think?"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Seeing that things had come to this point, Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi had no choice but to disband the imperial clan and personal guards.

In fact, at this time, Yanjing City could muster at least 70,000 to 80,000 cavalry, if not 100,000, and there were fierce generals like Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi who hoped to break out of the city and escape.

If Yelü Yanxi and his ministers can effectively organize these forces, a breakout might be possible.

However, only exceptional individuals can turn the tide at crucial moments, and Yelü Yanxi was not such a person, nor were any of the ministers he trusted.

Once it was safe, Yelü Yanxi immediately ordered Yelü Chun to arrest Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi.

—If it weren't for the fact that Xiao Gan was the chief of the Six Xi tribes and Yelü Dashi was a member of the imperial clan, Yelü Yanxi would have wanted to kill them.

Even so, though they were spared the death penalty, they could not escape punishment. Yelü Yanxi still ordered Yelü Chun to whip Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi twenty times each.

After this minor incident, preparations for the handover of warhorses continued overnight in Yanjing City, with no room for slackness whatsoever. The scale of these preparations was unprecedented in history.

……

(End of this chapter)