I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 302 Certificate of Surrender

...

Since Yelü Yanxi insisted on leaving Yanjing despite Yelü Chun's advice, Yelü Chun lost contact with Yelü Yanxi.

The emperor of a country has disappeared, and no one knows where he went. This is simply the most ridiculous thing in the world, and it is extremely rare.

Unfortunately, it was still wartime, and Liao generals such as Xiao Xiamai, the Xi King's Mansion official, Xiao Degong, the Northern Chancellor, Gunyelu Diligu, the Grand Master of Ceremonies, and Xiao Heshangnu, the Governor of Guizhou, were still leading the Liao army in battle against the Jin army.

At this critical moment, the Liao emperor died, and the Liao's resistance against the Jin completely lost its unified command.

It seemed that the Liao Kingdom's defenses were about to be completely breached by the Jin Kingdom, and the Liao Kingdom was about to perish.

Yelü Chun was restless and sent out many spies to search for Yelü Yanxi's whereabouts, hoping to find him and bring him back to take charge of the situation.

At this time, there were many rumors about Yelü Yanxi. Some said he had been captured by the Jin army, some said he had died in battle at Yuanyang Lake, and others said he had been invited by Zhao Yu to seek refuge in the Zhao Song Dynasty.

As the highest-ranking official of the Liao Dynasty in Yanjing City, and a descendant of the Liao royal family, Yelü Chun was deeply concerned about the future and fate of the Liao Dynasty.

Faced with the current chaos, Yelü Chun also wanted to do something, but he felt helpless.

The Liao Dynasty, once a powerful steppe empire, is now in a precarious state.

That evening, Yelü Chun drank alone in his palace. He felt that only wine could numb his pain and dilute his boundless sorrow.

Zhang Lin came to visit Yelü Chun and saw that Yelü Chun was so dejected. He advised him, "Wine is a poison that burns through the intestines. Drinking too much will harm your health. At this critical moment, Your Majesty must take good care of your body."

Zhang Lin originally served as the Southern Chancellor and later as the commander of the garrison in Shenzhou. He was criticized by his ministers for losing Shenzhou and subsequently became demoralized. Before leaving Yanjing, Yelü Yanxi arranged for Zhang Lin to assist Yelü Chun in defending the capital.

Yelü Chun sighed deeply: "I never imagined that the more than two hundred years of foundation of my Great Liao Dynasty would be destroyed in an instant. Tell me, how can we, these incompetent descendants, face our ancestors? We are ashamed before our forefathers, before Heaven, and before all the people!"

Zhang Lin said, "Waiting like this is not a solution. Right now, in Yanjing City, the King is the most senior, has the highest prestige, and holds the highest position. The King should come forward and summon the ministers to discuss countermeasures, or perhaps come up with a good plan to save the country?"

Not only were Yelü Chun and Zhang Lin angry and helpless about the unreliable emperor Yelü Yanxi's sudden disappearance at this crucial moment, but almost all the Liao people in Yan were also deeply disappointed in Yelü Yanxi, feeling that the Liao Dynasty was truly doomed. They all said, "Our great Liao Dynasty has not yet perished, but the emperor has already disappeared. This is utterly absurd! How can the fate of the nation last long if things continue like this?"

Many Liao nobles in Yan were worried that the Jurchens would break through the Liao's defenses and plunder Yanjing. They wanted to support Yelü Chun as emperor and lead them to defend their strategic locations in order to protect themselves.

However, because there were no historical figures like Li Chuwen, Xiao Gan, and Yelü Dashi who had supported Yelü Chun's ascension to the throne, this force that wanted to support Yelü Chun's ascension to the throne was not strong.

Meanwhile, another political force, led by Zhang Lin, was worried about the precarious situation of the Liao Dynasty, but was unwilling to betray Yelü Yanxi and become a traitor to the Liao Dynasty. Therefore, they advocated asking Yelü Chun to act as regent and did not support Yelü Chun's ascension to the throne.

The two sides argued endlessly, and neither could convince the other. As a result, Yelü Chun was unable to ascend the throne and establish the Northern Liao Dynasty after Yelü Yanxi's disappearance, just as he had in history.

Of course, this was also because Zhao Yu and his ministers acted quickly, giving Yelü Chun no time to ascend the throne.

On this day, Yelü Chun received a message from Liangxiang that Song envoys Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo had come to visit, and that they brought news that Yelü Yanxi was currently in political refuge in the Zhao Song Dynasty.

Upon hearing the news, the magistrate of Liangxiang County quickly dispatched a Han official as an escort to arrange for Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo to stay at the post station, and also sent someone to contact Yelü Chun.

Upon learning that Yelü Yanxi had gone to the Zhao Song Dynasty, Yelü Chun and the others were greatly surprised! They couldn't understand why Yelü Yanxi would be in the Zhao Song Dynasty.

It should be noted that before this, countless people had advised Yelü Yanxi to send someone to seek help from Zhao Yu to relieve the Liao Kingdom's urgent crisis. However, each time Yelü Yanxi would fly into a rage, saying that others might not know, but he knew that seeking help from Zhao Yu was like turning away a wolf at the front door and letting a tiger in at the back. He also said that Zhao Yu was ambitious and a hundred times more dangerous than Wanyan Aguda, which was absolutely unbelievable.

In short, judging from Yelü Yanxi's attitude, he would rather die than beg Zhao Yu.

But now, the Zhao Song Dynasty has sent someone to say that Yelü Yanxi has sought political refuge in the Zhao Song Dynasty.

This sounds incredibly eerie.

Yelü Chun and others were very skeptical about whether what Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo said was true.
After a brief discussion, Yelü Chun and the others agreed that, regardless of whether it was true or not, they had to bring Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo to Yanjing first, since they were using the guise of "Song envoys".

Yelü Chun quickly dispatched Han officials to Zhuozhou to welcome Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo's party.

On the outskirts of Yanjing, Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo were warmly welcomed by Xiao Ao, the governor of the four directions, and Zhang Jue, the vice minister of the Ministry of Rites. They served as their host and accompanied Ma Kuo and his party to Jinggou Temple for their lodging.

Judging from the reception he received along the way, Yelü Chun attached great importance to the visit of the Zhao Song Dynasty envoy.

This was mainly because Yelü Chun was well aware that if the Zhao Song Dynasty were to launch an attack on the Liao Dynasty at this time, and recover the five prefectures of Yan, the three prefectures of Pingluan and Ying, as well as the Juyong Pass and other passes under its jurisdiction, the Liao Dynasty would definitely not be able to withstand it. Therefore, it was necessary to stabilize the Zhao Song Dynasty at all costs and absolutely not allow the Zhao Song Dynasty to take advantage of the situation, let alone allow the Zhao Song Dynasty to join forces with the Jin Dynasty to divide up the Liao Dynasty.

The following day, Yao Meng, the commander of the palace guards, and Xiao Kui, the chief privy councilor, went to Jinggou Temple to host a banquet for Ma Kuo.

During the banquet.

Xiao Kui asked, "I wonder why my Emperor is in your country?"

Zhao Liangsi replied: "His Majesty has learned that after losing Tokyo, your country has also lost Shangjing and Zhongjing. He fears that the Jurchens may take the opportunity to capture Yanjing and threaten our Great Song. Therefore, he requests that your emperor come to our Great Song to discuss the matter of our two countries forming an alliance to jointly resist the Jurchens."

Upon hearing Zhao Liangsi's words, Xiao Kui was overjoyed and hurriedly asked, "Is this true?!"

Zhao Liangsi said, "How can two great nations speak of important matters with such blatant lies?"

Yao Meng asked, "Do you have an imperial edict from our emperor?"

Ma Kuo laughed and said, "If your emperor has an order, why would he send my Song envoy to deliver it? I expect that in two or three days at most, your emperor will send an order. The main reason that Zhao and I have come here is to show that our Song Dynasty wants to form an alliance with your Liao Dynasty. Soon, my emperor will personally lead a million-strong army north to reinforce your country. You just need to hold on for a few more days, and the reinforcements will arrive."

Yao Meng and Xiao Kui were overjoyed to hear that Zhao Yu was going to personally lead a million-strong army to reinforce the Liao Kingdom!
If the Song Dynasty had truly sent a million-strong army to reinforce the Liao Dynasty, then not only would they have been able to repel the Jin army's attack, but they would have had no problem even helping the Liao Dynasty recover its lost territory.

However, Yao Meng and Xiao Kui, who were well-versed in Han culture, had also heard of the story of "borrowing a road to attack Guo". They wondered if the Zhao Song Dynasty took advantage of the Liao Dynasty's weakness and used the pretext of helping the Liao Dynasty fight against the Jin Dynasty to seize the "Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun", which all the emperors of the Zhao Song Dynasty wanted to recover.
It wasn't that Yao Meng and Xiao Kui were judging others by their own petty standards, but rather that the Liao people in Yan were all on guard against this matter and believed that the Zhao Song Dynasty would not miss this golden opportunity to recover the "Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun".

Crucially, if the Song Dynasty didn't seize this opportunity to recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun, and if the Liao Dynasty were destroyed by the Jin Dynasty and the Jin occupied the Sixteen Prefectures, the Song Dynasty's north would certainly not be peaceful. The Jurchens were not the Liao people who had been Sinicized for hundreds of years; to be neighbors with them was to negotiate with a tiger for its skin. Therefore, many Liao people felt that if the Song Dynasty didn't take advantage of this opportunity, it would regret it later.

Although Yao Meng and Xiao Kui had their doubts, they dared not show them on their faces. They simply played along with the Song envoys, Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo, trying to find out the truth.

Zhao Yu sent Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo to Yanjing for two purposes:
The first was to prevent Yelü Chun from usurping the throne and establishing the Northern Liao Dynasty.

The second point is to encourage the Liao people and prevent them from giving up resistance, so that things don't end badly later.

Moreover, what Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo said was not (at least not entirely) a lie; Zhao Yu really intended to personally lead a "million-strong army" northward.

As for whether Zhao Yu, who personally led a "million-strong army" northward, would directly engage in war with the Jin army, that would depend on whether the Jin state would accept Zhao Yu's "mediation."

Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo were both outstanding diplomatic talents who left no room for error. How could Yao Meng and Xiao Kui have discovered anything detrimental to the Zhao Song Dynasty?
After the meal, Yao Meng and Xiao Kui hurried back to report the information they had gathered to Yelü Chun, Zhang Lin, and others.

……

As the secondary capital of the Liao Dynasty, Yanjing had a rather luxurious palace.

This palace complex stands in the southwest corner of Yanjing City, and is not large in scale. The city walls are three zhang high and one and a half zhang wide. The palace complex is an independent and enclosed area, which, in addition to the palace area, also includes orchards, a jade pool, and a ball court. The main gate of the palace complex is called Xuanjiao Gate, which connects to Yanjing City.

After Yao Meng and Xiao Kui returned, all the Han and non-Han officials in Yanjing received the notification and came to the Yaochi Hall in the palace for a meeting.

Inside the hall, the candlelight flickered, illuminating the faces of the Han and non-Han officials in Yanjing.

As soon as Yao Meng and Xiao Kui finished repeating what Zhao Liangsi and Ma Kuo had said, the hall fell into a deathly silence.

After a long while, Yelü Chun frowned and said, "Is the Great Song Dynasty truly willing to go to such lengths for my Great Liao?"

Zuo Qigong immediately stepped forward, his white beard trembling slightly, and said, "The Great Song and my Great Liao have been locked in a struggle for two hundred years. Yanyun has been a thorn in the side of several generations of their emperors. The Great Song has gone to great lengths to recover Yanyun. Now that my Great Liao is in danger, it is already a blessing that they are not taking advantage of the situation. Why would they send a million reinforcements out of nowhere? In my opinion, there must be a trap involved. We must be on guard!"

Kang Gongbi echoed, "Your Majesty previously loathed the Song Dynasty so much, how could you suddenly defect to them? There are many suspicious points in this matter. Could it be that Your Majesty has been captured? If that's the case, the Song Dynasty will surely use Your Majesty as a hostage and then use the pretext of aiding the Liao Dynasty to station troops in Yan. Wouldn't we be handing over Yanjing to others with our own hands?"

As soon as Kang Gongbi finished speaking, Han Fang couldn't help but retort: ​​"But right now the Jurchens are pressing us closer and closer. If the front lines are not able to withstand them, Yanjing will be in imminent danger! Even if the Song Dynasty has its own selfish motives, if it can really send a large army to repel the Jin army, at least the people of Yan can temporarily escape the flames of war. It's better than sitting and waiting to die, waiting for the Jurchens to massacre the city."

These words struck a nerve with many Liao people, and many Liao ministers, especially Han Chinese ministers, nodded in agreement.

Even Yelü Ning, who was in charge of the southern campaign, said in a deep voice: "You have all heard about the terrible things that happened when the Jurchens captured Shangjing and Zhongjing. Without strong reinforcements, Nanjing will surely follow in the footsteps of Shangjing and Zhongjing. If we can use the strength of the Song army to temporarily alleviate the crisis, even if it is just to buy some time to reorganize and prepare for war, it would be a good thing!"

Zhang Lin said leisurely, "I'm afraid the Song Dynasty will use this as a pretext to attack Guo."

Yelü Chun closed his eyes, feeling utterly exhausted. How could he not know Zhang Lin's concerns? But the shadow of the Jin army pressing in was like a thorn in his back, the city of Yanjing was short of money and food, and the soldiers lived in constant fear.

The sudden "goodwill" of the Zhao Song Dynasty, though suspicious, was like a plank floating in front of a drowning person; even knowing it might be a piece of driftwood, one couldn't help but want to grab it.

"Ma Zhi said that His Majesty's decree will arrive soon?" Yelü Chun suddenly asked.

Yao Meng nodded: "That's right, they said at most three days."

"Three days..."

Yelü Chun stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the deep night outside. "Let's wait for these three days."

Everyone understood Yelü Chun; he wasn't the emperor of Liao. Yelü Yanxi was the emperor of Liao, and whether or not to ally with the Zhao Song Dynasty was a decision for Yelü Yanxi to make, unless Yelü Yanxi had truly disappeared.

Furthermore, given the current precarious state of the Liao Dynasty, perhaps only if Yelü Yanxi persuades Zhao Yu to unite the Zhao Song Dynasty with the Liao Dynasty could there be a glimmer of hope for survival.

If this was indeed orchestrated by Yelü Yanxi, then it shows that Yelü Yanxi was not utterly incompetent and beyond redemption, and the Liao Dynasty might still be saved.

In short, Yelü Chun could not let suspicion destroy the last hope for Yan and even the Liao Dynasty.

The night was deep, the moon hung high in the sky, and its silvery light added a touch of coldness and tranquility to the tense hall. The candlelight inside still flickered, but seemed dimmer than before, as if even the light itself was powerless in the face of this turbulent situation.

Yelü Chun's silhouette cast a heavy shadow on the window lattice. His gaze pierced the night, seemingly penetrating the walls of Yanjing, looking towards the distant Shangjing and Zhongjing in the north—once the glorious lands of his Liao Kingdom, now spoils of war for the Jurchens. He then looked south, wondering if that was where their Liao Kingdom's hope lay.

Yelü Chun was filled with mixed emotions, a deep longing for his homeland and endless worries about the future...

……

Inside the Jade Flower Pavilion.

Xiao Puxian looked at Xiao Fengxian kneeling below and asked calmly, "Di Liyan, do you want to go to Yanjing as a Liao envoy?"

Xiao Dili is Xiao Puxian's older brother. He and his family came to join Xiao Puxian several years ago. Now, he is on Zhao Yu's orders to communicate with Yelü Yanxi and his ministers.

Xiao Fengxian hurriedly replied, "Your subject is willing to serve my Great Song Dynasty, and to serve His Majesty the Emperor and His Majesty the Empress!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Puxian asked calmly, "How do you intend to serve me?"

Xiao Fengxian said, "I will help my Great Song recover Yan and Yun, help my Emperor of Great Song complete the unification, and help the Empress obtain the highest power in Liao."

"Oh? That's interesting." But then Xiao Puxian's tone changed, and she said bluntly, "But what if I don't trust you? You are Aguo's most favored minister. How would I know if you went to Yanjing and gathered troops to turn against Aguo and come to her rescue?"

Xiao Fengxian didn't say that the Liao Kingdom was on the verge of collapse and didn't have the strength for such a feat. Instead, he said resolutely, "Your subject will offer a pledge of loyalty..."

……

(End of this chapter)