I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 378 Liaodong of the Great Song Dynasty

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in fact--

The high-ranking officials of the remnant Liao dynasty, namely Yelü Aoluwo and his ministers, had long since noticed something was amiss.

While implementing a strategy of shallow advances and fortifications in the Liaodong region, the Song Dynasty also continuously sent immigrants to Liaodong to build up and develop the region.

In just over two years, the Song Dynasty had relocated several million people to Liaodong, including immigrants and dispatched laborers.

They carried out large-scale construction here, building roads, railways, docks, laying communication lines, establishing factories, building cities, reclaiming wasteland, transforming border markets into marketplaces, and conquering nearby tribes through encirclement, trade, and intermarriage, turning them into "Han people".

This clearly shows that they didn't want to leave once they arrived, which is completely different from what many Liao people thought: that the Song Dynasty was helping them seize the Liaodong region.

In fact, the Liao people had not previously worried that the Song Dynasty would usurp their territory.

This does not mean that the Liao people thought the Song Dynasty was of good character and would not seize the territory of their allies, but rather that the grasslands (including the Northeast Plain) had never been effectively ruled by the Central Plains dynasties in the past.

This is mainly because the grasslands and the Northeast Plain are too far from the Central Plains, and the communication and transportation costs are too high, making them extremely expensive and troublesome to govern.

The key point is that if the Central Plains dynasties wanted to extend their reach into the grasslands or the Northeast Plains, the nomadic peoples of the grasslands and the fishing and hunting peoples of the Northeast would certainly not allow it, and would then wage war against the Central Plains dynasties.

Did the Central Plains dynasties have guns, cannons, and advanced weapons, just like the Song Dynasty?
Useless.

Once the armies of the Central Plains dynasties enter the grasslands or the Northeast Plains, nomadic or hunting peoples can wear down the armies of the Central Plains dynasties by employing guerrilla tactics such as retreating when the enemy advances, harassing when the enemy camps, attacking when the enemy is tired, and pursuing when the enemy retreats.

The crucial point is that even if the Central Plains dynasties conquered the grasslands or the Northeast Plains, it wouldn't matter; they couldn't live there, nor would they dare to live there.

The Central Plains agricultural civilization relied on stable water sources and arable land, but the grasslands had scarce and uneven rainfall, with annual rainfall mostly below 200 millimeters, which was simply insufficient to support the cultivation of staple foods such as rice and wheat.

Even if a few small plots of farmland can be cultivated in the valleys, a sudden sandstorm or drought can wipe out months of hard work and yield nothing.

Even more fatal is that the grasslands are frequently hit by cold waves in winter, with temperatures often dropping below minus thirty degrees Celsius. The traditional earthen and wooden houses in the Central Plains are unable to withstand the cold winds. The cow and sheep dung fuel needed for heating is both a scarce resource and a huge gap in usage habits for the people of the Central Plains who are used to relying on firewood.

In summer, mosquitoes and other insects are rampant. The horseflies and mosquitoes unique to the grasslands carry a variety of pathogens. People from the Central Plains lack resistance and are very susceptible to disease. Moreover, the grasslands are vast and sparsely populated, so once they fall ill, even basic medical treatment becomes a luxury.

In addition, the grasslands could hardly produce the salt, iron, cloth, and other daily necessities needed by the people of the Central Plains, and had to rely on trade with the Central Plains.

Grassland tribes live a nomadic life, moving with the water and grass, and lack fixed markets and trading places. If people from the Central Plains were to settle there, it would be extremely difficult to obtain supplies.

At the same time, the people of the Central Plains were unfamiliar with animal husbandry and could not rely on cattle and sheep to obtain food and fur like nomadic peoples, so their foundation for survival was shaken from the very beginning.

While the Northeast Plain is known for its fertile black soil, its climate and soil characteristics posed a significant challenge to the early agricultural civilization of the Central Plains. Its winters are long and harsh, with the soil freezing to a depth of one to two meters, limiting the suitable farming season to only four to five months per year, far shorter than the eight to nine months in the Central Plains. The traditional single-crop-a-year farming model of the Central Plains struggled to even guarantee crop maturity here, let alone a bountiful harvest.

Furthermore, the Northeast Plain has numerous rivers, but they freeze in winter and flood frequently occur during the summer flood season. Unlike the Central Plains, it is impossible to stabilize water supply by building irrigation canals, and instead, farmland is often destroyed.

At the same time, the northern part of the Northeast Plain is mostly marshland and wetlands, and the land is muddy and difficult to traverse, making it difficult for the animal-drawn farm tools commonly used in the Central Plains to pass through, and the cost of reclaiming land is high.

Furthermore, transportation to the Central Plains was extremely inconvenient. To enter Northeast China from the North China Plain, one had to cross the Yanshan Mountains, where the mountain roads were rugged and the cost of transporting supplies was several times that of the Central Plains. It was also difficult to maintain a continuous supply of food, tools, and other materials.

Furthermore, the Northeast Plain is densely forested and frequented by wild animals. Even if farmland is cultivated, it is often attacked by wolves, bears, and other wild animals, making personal safety difficult to guarantee. This environment, where "cultivation is risky," meant that even if people in the Central Plains wanted to settle down, they had to weigh the risks involved.

This meant that even if the Central Plains dynasties conquered the grasslands or the Northeast Plains, they could only seize some livestock, wealth, women, and so on. At most, they could find a deep stone, carve some words on it to indicate that they had been there, but nothing else could be changed.

If we capture nomadic or hunting peoples, killing them would be considered cruel; but keeping them would not only waste food, but we would also have to find ways to govern them and constantly guard against their rebellion.

In short, in the past, when the Central Plains dynasties attacked the nomadic or hunting peoples on the grasslands, it was a losing proposition with a serious disproportion between investment and return.

In the words of the conservative literati of the Central Plains dynasties, this was a waste of resources and manpower, and emperors who were keen on attacking nomadic or hunting peoples on the grasslands or the Northeast Plains would be called warmongers.

It was precisely because they understood this that the high-ranking officials of the remnant Liao Dynasty always believed that even if the Song Dynasty conquered the Liaodong region, it would not think of occupying it. They believed that one day in the future, the Song Dynasty would definitely return the conquered grasslands and the Northeast Plain to them. At that time, they could use the Song Dynasty to restore their country. At most, they would just act as the Song Dynasty's henchmen. If any nomadic or hunting people on the grasslands or the Northeast Plain refused to submit to the Song Dynasty's rule, they would take action to teach them a lesson.

Based on this understanding, the remnants of the Liao Dynasty knew that the Song Dynasty was making them and the Jin Dynasty mutually deplete each other's population, and also cooperating with the Song Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty to wear each other down.

Unexpectedly, after the Song Dynasty conquered parts of Liaodong, it began to govern the area.

Crucially, the railways and ocean-going ships developed by the Song Dynasty brought the Northeast closer to the Central Plains; the telegraph system established by the Song Dynasty eliminated communication problems between the Northeast and the Central Plains; many agricultural machines developed by the Song Dynasty were much more powerful than traditional livestock and were able to manage the rivers of the Northeast and reclaim wasteland in the north; furthermore, the brick-and-mortar houses, cotton products, and new fuels such as coal, biogas, and solar energy promoted by the Song Dynasty largely solved the problem of heating in the Northeast during winter.

More importantly, the new crops developed by Yuan Qingcheng, such as rice, corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes, have short growth cycles and can be harvested once a year in Northeast China.

All of this signifies that the Song Dynasty intended to completely occupy the Liaodong region.

What sank even deeper into the hearts of the Liao dynasty's leaders was that the Han people in Liaodong, including the highly Sinicized Bohai people and the Liao people who were well-versed in Han culture, had all surrendered to the Song dynasty. Even a large number of grassland tribes and fishing and hunting tribes had turned to the Song dynasty and were even joining the Song army in attacking the Jin dynasty.

In fact, it's not that these nomadic and hunting peoples are to blame; the real reason is that the Song Dynasty has not only stopped trading with the Jin Dynasty and its allies, but also strictly controls the supply of grain, salt, tea, and daily necessities to the people of the grasslands and the Northeast Plain, ensuring that not a single item flows into the hands of the Jin Dynasty and its allies.

This move is a bit too cruel, like killing someone psychologically.

These items are essential goods for nomadic and hunting peoples, and monopolizing them allows for complete control over the people on the grasslands and the Northeast Plain.

Zhang Juzheng in history did just that, hoping to eliminate the Mongols, but unfortunately, he did not stick to it.

Finally, the Manchus learned this trick. They used it, along with other methods, to reduce the Mongol population from nearly ten million at its peak to just over five hundred thousand.

This shows just how successful this tactic was.

Now that the Song Dynasty has resorted to this tactic, how could those small nomadic tribes on the grasslands and those small fishing and hunting tribes in the northeast withstand such a blow? On the contrary, as long as they turn to surrender to the Song Dynasty, they can have whatever they want, especially if they help the Song Dynasty fight a war, it will be enough for them to live comfortably for several years.

Given that these nomadic and hunting peoples were already opportunistic, how could they possibly not submit to the Song Dynasty?

What made the Liao dynasty leaders feel most desperate was that the Song dynasty was already attacking Goryeo.

Even a fool could see that if the Song Dynasty wanted to incorporate Goryeo into its territory, it had to possess Liaodong; otherwise, it wouldn't be able to connect with the region.

To put it another way, if the Song Dynasty had conquered Goryeo but abandoned Liaodong, then Goryeo would have been an exclave that would eventually become independent.

Therefore, the Song Dynasty's conquest of Goryeo is sufficient proof that the Song Dynasty was determined to seize Liaodong.

This plunged the remnants of the Liao dynasty into unprecedented panic and chaos. They had initially hoped that the Song dynasty would withdraw its troops after a brief military victory, as previous dynasties in the Central Plains had done, giving them a chance to restore their kingdom. However, the Song dynasty's actions indicated that not only would they not withdraw, but they would also take root in this land and establish long-term rule.

This is not what worries the high-ranking officials of the remnant Liao dynasty the most.

What worries them most is Emperor Yelü Aoluwo, on whom they once placed great hopes.

Yelü Aoluwo was carefully nurtured from a young age, and by the age of seven he was already skilled in riding and archery, possessing the martial prowess that Khitan nobles admired. At the same time, he broke the trend of valuing martial arts over literature at the end of the Liao Dynasty, and once covered for a eunuch who was secretly reading, which was praised by his contemporaries as having the demeanor of an elder.

At the age of ten, Yelü Aoluwo showed a gentle and polite nature, often praising the strengths of others and covering up their weaknesses, and his virtue and ability were recognized both inside and outside the court.

It can be said that within the Liao Kingdom, "everyone knew that the Prince of Jin was virtuous and looked up to him with high regard."

At that time, the Jin army marched south, and half of the Liao Dynasty's territory fell to the Jin. Yelü Yanxi indulged in hunting and neglected state affairs, alienating virtuous officials and appointing treacherous ministers, leading to corruption in the court and demoralization of the army. As the Liao Dynasty teetered on the brink of collapse, the wisdom of Yelü Aoluwo contrasted sharply with the incompetence of Yelü Yanxi, making him the only hope for saving the Liao people from the crisis. Whether nobles and officials or ordinary soldiers and civilians, everyone placed their hopes for the revival of the Liao Dynasty on him.

Some Khitan nobles regarded Yelü Aoluwo as the core of the regime's continuation. Some even directly planned to support his ascension to the throne in order to replace Yelü Yanxi and restore order to the court.

The court officials generally recognized Yelü Aoluwo's ​​eligibility to succeed to the throne. Even though he was not made crown prince because of his status as a son born out of wedlock, most officials still considered him the best candidate to succeed to the throne, which even aroused the suspicion of Xiao Fengxian and other forces.

Yelü Aoluwo also showed compassion for his subordinates and treated the people well, which earned him a high reputation in the army and among the people.

Many Liao generals were even "loyal to the Prince of Jin but not to the Liao Emperor," and ordinary soldiers and civilians firmly believed that after he ascended the throne, he would reduce taxes, rectify military discipline, and change the survival predicament in the chaotic world.

It can be said that when Zhao Yu was about to perish, he installed Yelü Aoluwo as the emperor of Liao, which was actually a shot in the arm for Liao and gave the Liao people hope for restoration, even if Yelü Aoluwo was just a puppet emperor.

After Yelü Aoluwo inherited the throne from Yelü Yanxi, especially after Zhao Yu allowed Yelü Aoluwo to go to Liaozhongjing to serve as the "real emperor," Yelü Aoluwo also wanted to make a big splash. He ordered officials and people to submit memorials to propose things that should be adopted, showing his ambition to restore the country.

Yelü Aoluwo was kind-hearted and abhorred killing. When he captured fugitives, he only used flogging (a punishment involving striking the prisoner's back or buttocks with bamboo sticks or canes). Those who voluntarily surrendered were given official positions. He casually remarked to his attendants, "Those who wish to join me may come; those who do not wish to follow, let them go. Why force them?"

Yelü Aoluwo would also frequently take out the Tang Dynasty's "Zhenguan Zhengyao" and Lin Ya Yelü Zizhong's "Zhiguo Shi" and order his attendants to recite them, demonstrating his desire to learn.

Because of Yelü Aoluwo's ​​performance in the early stages, Wugu tribe's military governor Jiuzhe, Dielie tribe's commander Tabuye, and supervisor Tulibu, among others, led their respective tribes to submit to him.

From then on, various tribes of the Liao Kingdom arrived one after another.

As a result, the Liao Dynasty improved somewhat.

However, less than a year had passed. Perhaps it was the fickle nature of youth, perhaps the dire situation made him lose all hope of restoring his kingdom, or perhaps Xiao Puxian and Xiao Sese held him too tightly and gave him no real power. Yelü Aoluwo gradually became indulgent and lazy, and began to enjoy Cuju (ancient Chinese football) and other games that had spread from Zhao Yu's harem.

Yelü Chun spoke frankly and strongly, which made Yelü Aoluwo restrain himself and stop indulging in these games.

But not long after, Yelü Aoluwo reverted to his old ways, secretly playing Cuju (ancient Chinese football) and other small games.

Furthermore, Yelü Aoluwo was extravagant with his money, frequently rewarding his entourage with lavish gifts.

This may be because Yelü Aoluwo felt insecure under the control of the Song Dynasty and Xiao Puxian and Xiao Sese, and therefore wanted to gain some people loyal to him through generous rewards.

The problem is that Yelü Aoluwo was a poor emperor. Where did he get the money? The little money he had was all spoils of war that Yelü Chun and others had fought hard to obtain on the battlefield. Every copper coin was stained with the blood of the Liao people.

Therefore, Zhizhang Baode advised Yelü Aoluwo: "The national treasury is now depleted. If we continue to give such excessive rewards, how will we make ends meet?"

Yelü Aoluwo angrily said, "Back when we were hunting in Fushan, you falsely accused the hunting officer, and now you're saying the same thing again! If we lose the tribes, where will we get our taxes?" He refused to heed his advice.

Furthermore, Yelü Aoluwo ordered the herdsmen to transport salt and millet, but some people stole them. He then discussed registering the amount stolen and ordered them to compensate for the losses.

Yelü Aoluwo, pretending to know what he was talking about, set his own values: for every cartload of millet stolen, he would compensate with a sheep; for three cartloads, with an ox; for five cartloads, with a horse; and for eight cartloads, with a camel.

Both sides said, "It is not acceptable to use a sheep to pay for two bushels of millet, let alone a cartload of millet!"

Yelü Aoluwo stubbornly replied, "What the people own is what I own. If we make them repay everything, how can they bear it?"

Seeing how Yelü Aoluwo governed the country, many small tribes that had come to surrender to the remnants of Liao were greatly disappointed and turned to surrender to the Song Dynasty instead.

Seeing this, Yelü Aoluwo became even more reckless, not only openly indulging in his favorite games like Cuju (ancient Chinese football), but also following in the footsteps of his father, Yelü Yanxi, becoming obsessed with hunting.

Xiao Sese reprimanded Yelü Aoluwo several times, but he was obedient to her in front of her, only to do as he pleased in the end.

Seeing Yelü Aoluwo's ​​incompetence, many insightful people realized that the Liao Dynasty's fate was sealed, and they would turn to the Song Dynasty for refuge, or to Xiao Puxian, who represented the Song Dynasty...

……

(End of this chapter)