I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 62: A Bit of Bullying (Edited)

...

There is actually a consensus among the princes on who can become the emperor and who is more suitable to be the emperor.

This consensus is Zhao Ya.

In fact, the last time the princes offered their advice in Wende Hall, the winner had already been decided. Even Zhao Si, who still wanted to compete with Zhao Ya, had to admit that Zhao Ya was more suitable to be the emperor than him.

As for Zhao Qi and Zhao Si, who did not want to fight for the throne and were not qualified to fight for the throne, they sincerely hoped that Zhao Ya could become the emperor. In that case, they could enjoy wealth and glory under the protection of a capable emperor.

Now, seeing that Zhao Ya was so close to Empress Dowager Xiang, it was obvious that he was not only suitable to be the emperor, but also had the strength to compete for the throne. Zhao Qi and Zhao Si consciously gave the C position to Zhao Ya and spoke to him with respect.

Zhao Ya declined, but did not push away. Instead, he stood calmly between Zhao Qi and Zhao Si.

Then, Zhao Ya broke his previous habit of not discussing politics and asked Zhao Si, who had remained silent nearby, "Now the Western Xia are taking advantage of my brother's illness and, instead of their previous servility, are acting as if they are ready to fight. The Liao Dynasty has sent envoys to claim that the boundaries of Baigou are unclear and are showing off their troops in Xincheng. Our dynasty's old and new factions are constantly fighting. The court's finances are weak, and official salaries and military pay are long in arrears. With all this going on, why is Prince Jian teaching me?"

Zhao Si tried to remain calm after hearing what he said, but Zhao Ya and the other two could see that there was sweat on his temples.

Zhao Ya thought to himself: "Am I a bit of a bully?"

Zhao Xu found it difficult to solve these problems, or even couldn't solve them. How could he ask a young boy who grew up in the deep palace, and think that he could possibly come up with a solution?

But then again, no matter who inherits Zhao Xu's throne, this is a difficult problem he must face.

Moreover, not to mention the last two long-standing problems, which have been going on for so long, there is no need to rush, but the problems ahead cannot be delayed.

The key point is that the Liao Kingdom requested to redivide the border twice, and the Zhao Song Dynasty suffered losses both times.

Both incidents became stains on the emperors of the time, Song Renzong and Song Shenzong, who had good reputations.

Both Song Renzong and Song Shenzong were in the middle of their reign and their rule was stable, so they could withstand such a political stain.

The next emperor, however, would have to face such a thorny diplomatic and even military incident right after ascending the throne. If he couldn't handle it properly, Liao and Xia would join forces to attack Song again...

Zhao Si didn't dare to think any further. His mind was filled with the question, "If I become the emperor, won't I become the ruler of a ruined nation?"

In an instant, Zhao Si felt that this throne was not attractive at all. He might become the scapegoat and be nailed to the shame rack of history.

At this moment, Zhao Ji's voice rang out: "Government affairs are handled by the prime minister and the ministers. Major matters are handled by the empress dowager and the ancestral system. Those in power will make the decision."

It must be said that Zhao Ji saw things more clearly than Zhao Si. He knew very well that no matter who became emperor, Empress Dowager Xiang would have to rule the country from behind the scenes first. She would be a puppet for a short period of time and would not have to face these difficulties directly.

Moreover, Zhao Ji was very smart. He deliberately did not say that to be emperor, all you had to do was use the right people. Obviously, he did not want to offend those in power, so as to prevent them from becoming obstacles to his becoming emperor.

Zhao Ji felt that he had grasped the essence of being an emperor.

Zhao Ya looked at Zhao Ji, who thought he could do it, and said with a smile, "I have nine questions. If Prince Duan can answer them, I will admit defeat. How do you think?"

"Admit defeat?!"

Zhao Ji quickly realized that Zhao Ya meant that if he could answer these nine questions, he would give up the throne to him.

Zhao Ji's breathing became rapid and he was eager to try.

But Zhao Ji already knew that Zhao Ya was very powerful, and this was proposed by Zhao Ya, so how could he easily accept the challenge?

So Zhao Ji was hesitant.

Seeing this, Zhao Ya smiled and said, "Then I will relax the conditions. I will give you ten days and you can find someone to ask for advice. As long as you can answer these nine questions, you will be the winner. How about it?" Zhao Ji felt that Zhao Ya was insulting him. He was well-read and knowledgeable, but he was only given ten days to answer nine questions, and he could also find someone to help him answer them. If he still couldn't win, then he would have no face to compete with Zhao Ya for the throne.

Zhao Ji wanted to say, "No need to wait ten days, and no need to ask anyone else. I will answer you right now."

But Zhao Ji swallowed back the words that were about to come out of his mouth because of his remaining rationality, and changed it to: "You can ask as long as you want."

“One question is, how many acres of land does a farmer need to survive?”

"This……"

The first question stumped Zhao Ji.

is it hard?

Not difficult.

This is common sense known to most people at the bottom of society, but how could Zhao Ji, a prince who grew up in the deep palace, know it?

Zhao Ji's face flushed red as he couldn't answer such a simple question. He said shamelessly, "I'll answer your question another day."

"Second question, how much do people living in the city earn per month to survive?"

Zhao Ji obviously couldn't answer this question, so he turned his head away and said, "I'll answer you another day."

"Question three: How do we classify poor peasants, middle peasants, rich peasants, and landlords?"

Zhao Ji closed his eyes and said, "Together."

"Fourth question: How many social classes are there in the Great Song Dynasty? What are they? What are their attitudes towards reform?"

Zhao Ji had never heard of the word "class", so he didn't know how to answer. He simply kept silent.

"Question Five: Why does the Song Dynasty frequently initiate reforms?"

Zhao Ji knew a little about this question, but he knew that what he knew was definitely not enough to answer Zhao Ya's question, so he remained silent.

"Six questions: Why is military reform so difficult to break through?"

Zhao Ji regretted it. The questions Zhao Ya asked him were all problems that the emperor needed to face, but they were also things he did not understand.

"Seven Questions: The Core Measures of the Qingli New Deal and the Reasons for Its Failure?"

"Question 8: Why did the Xining Reforms fail?"

"Ninth question: What is the fundamental reason for the failure of the Great Song Dynasty's reforms?"

Zhao Ji was completely dumbfounded. He couldn't answer any of the nine questions Zhao Ya asked. He felt that all his reading was in vain.

Zhao Ji felt that he had been fooled again. These questions were obviously reflections on the reform. The civil and military officials in the court had been arguing about them for so many years without reaching a conclusion. How could he, a leisurely prince, possibly answer them? Who else could answer them?

"If you can answer these nine questions, I will truly admit defeat. Otherwise, even if you get what you want, it won't solve the problems facing the Song Dynasty, and will only end up hurting both ourselves and others."

Leaving behind a sentence "Making a decision is not that easy. If you make the wrong decision, the consequences will be disastrous.", Zhao Ya walked into Cide Palace.

Zhao Qi and Zhao Si glanced at Zhao Ji and Zhao Si, one sighed, the other shook his head, and then quickly caught up with Zhao Ya, leaving Zhao Ji, blushing, and Zhao Si, worried, standing there...

(End of this chapter)