I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 209 The sun shines on you but not on me

...

On the very day that Tong Guan was escorting Li Qianshun, the royal family and clan of Western Xia, and the spoils of war obtained from Western Xia back to Bianliang (Kaifeng), an incident occurred in Yundi.

To be precise, something happened in Yunzhong Prefecture.

After recovering Liaoxi Capital, Zhao Yu renamed it Yunzhong Prefecture.

More than a month ago, Zhang Xun and Wang Shan led the Eastern Auxiliary Army to attack Liaoxi Capital. Seeing that the situation was hopeless, Xiao Chala, the garrison commander of Liaoxi Capital, had no choice but to open the city gates and surrender.

However, Zhang Xun and Wang Shan were not satisfied with the achievement of only recovering Yunzhong Prefecture. So they left only a detachment led by their general Xiang Chun to garrison Yunzhong Prefecture to monitor the surrendered troops, while they led the main force to recover Huanzhou.

Unexpectedly, taking advantage of the vacancy left in Yunzhong Prefecture, the Liao people of Yunzhong Prefecture killed Xiang Chun and others and rebelled again. They then contacted the Liao people everywhere, wanting to reclaim Yunzhong Prefecture on their own.

It is worth mentioning that because the Liao people of Yunzhong Prefecture hated the people of the Zhao Song Dynasty for invading their homeland, and to be honest, Xiang Chun, who came from the Western Army, was also bad at military discipline, after Zhang Xun, who was in charge of military discipline, left, he led his men to plunder many families and did a lot of bad things, which aroused the anger of the people. The Liao people of Yunzhong Prefecture dug out Xiang Chun's heart and liver and ate them to vent their resentment.

Upon learning of the renewed rebellion in Yunzhong Prefecture, Guo Cheng swiftly dispatched Zhong Pu with the Northern Auxiliary Army to quell the rebellion.

More than 30,000 Liao people from Yunzhong Prefecture set up camp west of Yunzhong Prefecture city and engaged in a battle with the Northern Auxiliary Army.

From the perspective of these Liao people, they were well-rested and had more troops than the Northern Army, so they were sure to win the battle.

However, these Liao people overlooked one thing: when Zhao Yu returned in triumph, he left the Jingse Army to Guo Cheng.

Before Zhong Pu set off, Guo Cheng, fearing something might happen, handed over the Jing Sai Army to Zhong Pu.

On this plain, heavily armored cavalry is an invincible torrent of steel.

The result was obvious: the three thousand Jingse Army soldiers, with their invincible force, became the absolute masters of this war.

As soon as the battle began, the Jingse army charged into the Liao army's camp like wild horses, unstoppable. Each of their charges was accompanied by the Liao army's cries of agony and rout, and under their crushing force, the Liao army's formation quickly crumbled.

Xiao Chala and the others were shocked to see this, as they had never expected the Song army to have such powerful armored cavalry.

Originally, they thought they could easily defeat the Northern Auxiliary Army with their numerical advantage and strategy of waiting for the enemy to tire themselves out, but they were unexpectedly crushed like never before.

The Liao people were routed at the first blow, and their fighting spirit quickly crumbled.

At the same time, Zhong Pu commanded the remaining troops of the Northern Auxiliary Army to cooperate in the battle, using bows and arrows, and other long-range weapons to kill a large number of Liao people.

On the battlefield, arrows rained down, and the sounds of crossbows echoed continuously, intertwining with the thunderous hoofbeats of the Jingse army to create a nightmare that the Liao people would never forget.

After a one-sided massacre, the Liao people scattered and fled.

The Northern Army pursued their victory, killing generals and capturing flags along the way, chasing the Liao people for more than thirty miles.

More than 10,000 Liao people were killed in this battle.

At the same time, Geng Hong, the former military governor of Zhangguo Army and general of the Liao Dynasty, led 7,000 elite Liao cavalry from the Southwest Pacification Headquarters to Baidaopo to provide reinforcements.

Unexpectedly, they were stopped by Wang Shan, who was returning to reinforce them, at a point forty miles east of Yunzhong Prefecture.

Wang Shan knew that they had made the mistake of being greedy for credit and acting rashly. If they did not make amends for their mistakes, the best outcome would be that they would neither be rewarded nor punished, and they would lose a promotion opportunity for nothing.

Enraged, Wang Shan personally led his vanguard to attack Geng Hong, beheading over a thousand men.

Then Zhang Xun led the main force of the Eastern Auxiliary Army to arrive. Under Zhang Xun's command, the central army of the Eastern Auxiliary Army charged into Geng Hong's central army, while the remaining Song soldiers used crossbows to kill the Liao army from both flanks.

In this battle, the Liao army was almost completely annihilated, and Geng Hong had no choice but to surrender.

Wang Shan hated Geng Hong and the other Liao people so much that he ordered all the captured Liao people, regardless of whether they were Han or non-Han, to be beheaded without exception.

Wang Shan had reason to be angry. His beloved general, Zhang Gong, died in this battle, trampled into a bloody pulp by his warhorse, a truly gruesome death.

Soon, Wang Shan and Zhong Pu met up at the foot of Yunzhong Prefecture.

After discussing the matter, Wang Shan led his troops to fight in the east of the city. They used wood to build caves and form fortifications to avoid the Liao army's arrows and stones. They also built four-wheeled straw carts that were higher than the city walls. Wang Shan personally led his personal guards to climb the carts first and engaged in fierce fighting with the Liao people defending the city.

The Liao people knew that if the Song army recaptured Yunzhong Prefecture, they would suffer greatly. Therefore, all the Liao people in the city climbed the city walls and fought back fiercely, holding their ground and refusing to retreat.

Seeing this, Wang Shan became furious and summoned the few thunderbolts in his army to launch a fierce attack on the city walls.

Meanwhile, Zhong Pu was also attacking the city from the west.

Unexpectedly, there was a towering Buddhist pagoda in the west of the city. The Liao army, positioned atop the pagoda, fired downwards, causing heavy casualties among the Song army.

Upon seeing this, Zhong Pu's eyes lit up. He summoned the Jing Sai army and ordered them to use door panels to support their heads and forcefully attack the bottom of the tower. The Liao people's advantage weakened, and after several fierce attacks, they finally annihilated all the Liao people guarding the tower.

Then, Zhong Pu led his elite troops to the top of the tower, reflecting off the Liao soldiers defending the city, and finally conquered Yunzhong Prefecture.

After the city fell, Zhong Pu, worried that the Yundong region would be vulnerable due to its lack of manpower, handed over Yunzhong Prefecture to Zhang Xun and Wang Shan and led his troops back.

After Zhong Pu left, Wang Shan was furious at the Liao people in Yunzhong Prefecture for their repeated attacks. He knocked down the cartwheels and carried out a brutal massacre of the Liao people in Yunzhong Prefecture.

Zhang Xun also felt that the Liao people in Yunzhong Prefecture were unruly and fickle, and worried that the Zhao Song Dynasty would have difficulty governing the area, so he indulged Wang Shan's behavior.

When this news reached Bianliang (Kaifeng), the capital of the Southern Tang dynasty, Emperor Zhao Yu issued an edict demoting Zhang Xun and Wang Shan by three ranks. Zhang Xun was relieved of his post as Commander of the Eastern Auxiliary Army, but temporarily assumed the post; Wang Shan was relieved of his post as Commander of the Eastern Auxiliary Army, but temporarily assumed the post.

Logically, under these circumstances, Zhao Yu should have formulated some policies to win the hearts of the people and retain the people of Yundi, since population is an important component of a region's strength.

However, Zhao Yu not only failed to issue policies to retain the people of Yundi, but also took the opportunity to issue edicts to change clothing, retain heads, and change Han status.

This order to change clothing, as the name suggests, means that everyone, regardless of whether they are Han or non-Han, must change their left-hand clothing to their right-hand clothing.

Left-fastening robes generally refer to the attire of non-Han ethnic groups outside the Central Plains.

Han Chinese clothing has always maintained the right-fastening style.

Therefore, the right-fastening of the robe became one of the symbolic representations of the Han Chinese.

The "Keep Your Head Order" was officially called the "Keep Your Hair Order".

The Hu people like to shave their heads.

The Han people believe that one's body and hair are given to one's parents, and one should not damage them.

Therefore, allowing these non-Han people to keep their hair was also a way for them to submit to the Zhao Song Dynasty. It must be noted that the "Keep Your Head Order" was truly a "Keep Your Head Order," meaning that only those who kept their hair could keep their heads; those who shaved their heads without cause would be beheaded.

The "Changing Han Order" meant changing all the scripts in Yundi to Chinese characters and prohibiting all other scripts.

In this regard, although Zhao Yu did not go so far as to destroy all other scripts in Yundi, he still required the officials of Yundi to change all the scripts that could be seen in Yundi to Chinese characters. Other scripts, no matter what kind, were not allowed to appear in Yundi, otherwise they would be severely punished.

Emperor Zhao Yu even issued a special imperial edict, ordering officials in Yun to collect all books, paintings, and stone tablets containing other writings and send them to Bianliang, the capital of the Eastern Capital.

Written language is by no means a simple set of symbols, but rather a core link that maintains national identity and cultural heritage.

Controlling a writing system is essentially a primary strategy for the spiritual colonization of conquered territories, and its importance lies in three irreplaceable dimensions: memory erasure, ideological discipline, and power reconstruction.

Written language is the physical carrier of collective memory. The historical narratives, religious beliefs, and technological knowledge of any civilization all need to be passed down through generations via written language.

When indigenous people are unable to trace the glory of their ancestors through written records, their national pride and sense of resistance will naturally dissipate due to the memory gap, clearing the way for conquerors to reconstruct the historical narrative.

When the next generation can only think in the language of the conquerors, cultural autonomy will quietly disappear in the process of language transformation.

The mandatory unification of written language is not only a transformation of language tools, but also a recoding of social value standards, ensuring that the conquered continue to accept the new power order in their daily writing.

Throughout the historical process of the clash of civilizations, writing has always been a key battleground for conquest and counter-conquest. From Alexander the Great's rewriting of Near Eastern culture with the Greek alphabet to Britain's promotion of English education in the Indian subcontinent, the strategic value of destroying existing writing systems has been repeatedly proven by history. For conquerors, the extinction of writing systems is not only a cultural defeat, but also a necessary prerequisite for establishing eternal rule.

Therefore, Zhao Yu, who was fully aware of all this, issued such an imperial edict.

Since Zhao Yu had issued such an edict, those who were unwilling to submit to the Zhao Song Dynasty naturally left Yun and went to Yan, or went directly north to other regions of the Liao Dynasty.

Zhao Yu showed no regret whatsoever.

Emperor Zhao Yu deeply understood that the strength of a nation lies not in the size of its population, but in the loyalty of its people and the cohesion of its culture. What he wanted were people who truly identified with the Song Dynasty, were willing to integrate into this land, and jointly write a new chapter in history. Those who left due to temporary policies might still harbor loyalty and nostalgia for the old dynasty; their departure did not hinder the overall situation. On the contrary, it allowed the remaining people to stand more purely and firmly on the side of the Song Dynasty.

To put it simply, force can conquer a region, but it cannot completely subjugate it. Only through cultural penetration and integration can a region truly take root. The edicts regarding changing clothing, keeping heads, and adopting Han customs, while seemingly harsh, were in fact designed to reshape the people of these newly recovered territories, gradually allowing them to accept and integrate into the cultural system of the Song Dynasty, both outwardly and inwardly.

This is a silent revolution, far more profound and complex than the sword fights on the battlefield.

Not only in the nine provinces of Yun, but Zhao Yu also issued the same order in the Ningxia, Gansu, and Qinghai regions.

……

In early June of the third year of the Hongwu reign, Tong Guan escorted Li Qianshun, the royal family and clan of Western Xia, and tens of thousands of cartloads of spoils of war back in triumph.

As rows of prison carts carrying members of the Western Xia royal family and imperial clan, carriages laden with royal daughters and imperial daughters, and carts loaded with spoils of war drove into Bianliang (Kaifeng), the city walls were abuzz with the fluttering of banners, as if celebrating the victory. The streets resounded with the deafening roar of gongs and drums, a cacophony of voices as people flocked to the sides of the streets, eager to witness this rare spectacle.

Soon, the streets were packed with onlookers. They pointed and whispered among themselves, their faces beaming with admiration for their emperor and army, as well as contempt for Li Qianshun and the Western Xia people.

Tong Guan rode a tall horse, clad in magnificent armor, holding a long whip, his face dignified. Behind him, the soldiers, each on a tall horse, their gleaming armor reflecting a dazzling light, marched in perfect unison, each step seemingly embodying the glory and power of the Song Dynasty.

Li Qianshun sat in the prison cart, his face pale and his eyes vacant. The former emperor had become a prisoner, a tragic turn of events that evoked sighs of pity.

The daughters of the Western Xia royal family and clan, though dressed in magnificent attire, were filled with terror and despair in their eyes. They were to be taken to the palace to become the new playthings of Zhao Yu, the emperor of the Song Dynasty, second only to Zhao Kuangyin.

The convoy moved slowly forward, leaving behind a trail of dust and noise, a testament to the Song Dynasty's conquest of the Western Xia.

Before entering the imperial city, Tong Guan led the way, dismounting from his horse. Tong Guan did not go in first, but instead had Liang Shicheng bring in Yelü Nanxian, the royal daughters and imperial daughters of Western Xia, as well as the beauties he had carefully selected for Zhao Yu. After Huang Jingchen took away the confiscated property that did not need to be put into the national treasury (that is, Zhao Yu's private property), Tong Guan personally escorted Li Qianshun and the royal family and imperial family of Western Xia into the imperial city.

Upon arriving at the palace, Tong Guan became even more discreet. Following Zhao Yu's orders, he personally led four fierce generals to escort Li Qianshun into the Daqing Hall.

Upon arriving at the palace, Tong Guan whispered to Li Qianshun, "You traitor, now that you've met the true emperor, why don't you kneel down and beg for forgiveness!"

On his way to Bianliang, the capital of the Eastern Capital, Li Qianshun had already decided that he wanted to become King Goujian of Yue.

"If Goujian could endure hardship and humiliation to rise again and eventually succeed in restoring his country and defeating his enemies, why can't I?"

Although Li Qianshun knew that the road to restoring the country was long and fraught with difficulties, he still held onto a sliver of unquenchable hope that burned silently in his heart.

Therefore, Li Qianshun slowly knelt down and bowed, saying, "This sinful subject Li Qianshun pays respects to His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Song Dynasty. May His Majesty live ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand years."

Although Li Qianshun's voice was low, every word was clear, as if squeezed out from between his teeth, carrying resentment and forbearance.

'He's still a young man; although he resolved to endure it, he couldn't completely conceal the resentment, humiliation, and unwillingness in his heart.'

Zhao Yu's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a composure beyond his years as he said, "Raise your head."

Upon hearing this, Li Qianshun slowly raised his head, which had been hanging low, and met the gaze of the high and mighty Zhao Yu.

This was the first time Zhao Yu and Li Qianshun met.

Zhao Yu never expected that Li Qianshun, who was the same age as him in this world, would have mostly white hair, showing signs of premature aging. It's not hard to imagine the mental torment and the devastating blow of national ruin he had endured.

Li Qianshun was surprised to find that Zhao Yu was so young!
Li Qianshun was somewhat dazed. Zhao Yu was so young that it was almost unbelievable to him. Although his face carried a certain majesty, it could not hide his inner youthful vigor.

Li Qianshun couldn't help but think, 'I actually lost to a child.'

Immediately, Li Qianshun remembered that he was the same age as Zhao Yu.

However, Li Qianshun's experience of going from emperor to prisoner and his current predicament as a fish on a chopping block made him feel that he was already in his fifties, while Zhao Yu still maintained the vitality and vigor of a young man, which gave him such an illusion.

"Zhao Yu is a thriving ruler who restores his dynasty, while I am a deposed monarch whose kingdom is in decline. We are the same age but have different fates!" Li Qianshun sighed with deep emotion.

Zhao Yu and Li Ganshun stared at each other for a long time before Zhao Yu finally spoke, making a startling statement: "Your crimes, Li family, are heinous and unforgivable. I intend to impose the ultimate punishment on you as a warning to others. Do you have anything else to say?"

"capital punishment?!!!"

A flicker of panic crossed Li Qianshun's eyes. He hadn't expected that Zhao Yu would actually kill him!
But Li Ganshun also felt that Zhao Yu was right to kill him, because based on what he and his ancestors had done, he did deserve to be executed.

However, Li Qianshun was extremely unwilling to accept this. He cried out in his heart, "Can't you give me a chance to be like Goujian?!"

Zhao Yu quietly watched Li Qianshun's changing expression. Resentment, fear, despair... all sorts of emotions intertwined in Li Qianshun's eyes. His expression was uncertain, as if the scales in his heart were undergoing a fierce battle.

After an unknown amount of time, Li Ganshun slowly stood up, looked directly at Zhao Yu, and snorted, "The sun shines on you but not on me!"

……

(End of this chapter)