The prince is more stable

Chapter 1000 Nanjing Anomaly
Chen Shou had followed Zhao Xiaoqian for many years, and his loyalty was beyond question.

When Zhao Xiaoqian ascended the throne, he rewarded his meritorious officials. Chen Shou was only promoted to the position of Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guards, and together with Di Zi, he was responsible for guarding the palace. Zhao Xiaoqian did not grant him a title.

The Song Dynasty was extremely stingy in granting titles. Apart from truly meritorious officials who expanded the territory, other officials could not obtain a title in their entire lives. After all, being granted a title meant becoming a noble, and not only would the court have to support their descendants, but having too many people granted titles would not only burden the country but also threaten the imperial power.

Zhao Xiaoqian was also very cautious about bestowing titles. When he ascended the throne, he rewarded his meritorious officials, but he only bestowed titles on a few generals who had loyally followed him. Moreover, the titles bestowed on these generals were beyond reproach, since they had indeed made great contributions and the titles were well-deserved.

Today, Zhao Xiaoqian finally decided to bestow a title upon Chen Shouye. Putting aside everything else, if it weren't for Chen Shouye's protection during last night's assassination attempt, Zhao Xiaoqian would have died at least three times.

Based on this alone, there is absolutely no problem with Chen Shoufeng being granted a noble title.

Although the title was only the lowest rank of "county lord," the place name was quite intriguing.

Yingchang was located in the capital region of the Song Dynasty, very close to Kaifeng. Historically, when emperors bestowed titles, there was an unwritten rule that the closer the place name in the title was to the capital, the more trusted the emperor was by the title.

Therefore, the prestige of Chen Shou County is self-evident.

Zheng Chunhe hurriedly went to deliver the imperial decree. Zhao Xiaoqian looked at Zhen Qing and Liu Dan, who were silent in the hall, and sighed, "This matter cannot be left unresolved. I will not be able to eat or sleep in peace until the person behind it is found out."

"The Imperial City Guard should be mobilized to search for every possible clue. There is no way to guard against thieves for a thousand days if you are a thief for a thousand days. If we cannot eradicate these people, do you think I will never dare to leave the palace for the rest of my life?"

Zhen Qing lowered his head, his whole body covered in cold sweat.

Last night, the Emperor was assassinated, and the Song Dynasty almost collapsed. Despite such a terrible incident, the Emperor did not utter a single word of blame, but not blaming him does not mean that the matter is over.

The case has now fallen to the Imperial City Guard, but unfortunately, there are very few clues to this assassination case, making it impossible to investigate. Zhen Qing feels an immense pressure on his shoulders.

Reluctantly agreeing, Zhen Qing was about to take his leave when Zheng Chunhe rushed into the hall, looking shocked, and said, "Your Majesty, an urgent report from Nanjing: the newly appointed Nanjing garrison commander, Zheng Chaozong, was assassinated two days ago!"

Everyone in the hall was startled. Zhao Xiaoqian instinctively stood up: "Zheng Chaozong was also assassinated? How is he now?"

Zheng Chunhe hurriedly said, "The report said that Zheng Chaozong was assassinated by thieves at the Nanjing Garrison Command two days ago. The assassin disguised himself as a servant and sneaked into the government office. He went to the backyard and stabbed Zheng Chaozong. Fortunately, there were servants in the backyard who saw it. After they screamed in alarm, the assassin quickly fled."

"Zheng Chaozong was stabbed in the right chest, with the blade penetrating his lung. The doctor said it damaged a lung lobe, and he was coughing up a lot of blood. After the doctor's treatment, his life should be saved."

The anger in Zhao Xiaoqian's eyes gradually gathered, and he looked coldly at Zhen Qing.

Zhen Qing immediately understood the meaning in the official's eyes.

"Two days ago, Zheng Chaozong was assassinated, and last night Your Majesty was assassinated. These two cases should not be a coincidence. Your Majesty, the Imperial City Guard has found the direction."

Zhao Xiaoqian nodded and said, "Go, uproot them completely, don't let a single one escape."

After a pause, Zhao Xiaoqian continued, "Liu Dan, take Bingjingwu's men and go to Nanjing with Zhen Qing. After the Imperial City Guard takes down the suspect, Bingjingwu should interrogate him immediately and follow the clues. We can't delay."

"This time, I have no choice but to exterminate his entire family."

The two bowed and took their leave.

Zhao Xiaoqian rubbed his temples. Nanjing again!
If these two cases are not coincidences, then ultimately, both assassination attempts are related to the Fangtian Equal Tax Law.

If the interests of powerful landlords are threatened, they will launch a fierce counterattack even on their deathbed.

After Zheng Chaozong took office in Nanjing, in accordance with the decree given to him by Zhao Xiaoqian, his first task was to invalidate all the land registers previously created in the government offices of the seven counties under his jurisdiction, and to re-investigate the land in the seven counties. He discovered a large number of powerful landlords who had concealed or covered up their land holdings, and the court punished them according to the law.

This provision likely made many powerful landlords uneasy, as it would not only force them to pay back taxes they had concealed for years, but also potentially lead to the confiscation of their land, wiping out their wealth overnight and causing generations of accumulated wealth to vanish in a single day.

The Imperial City Guards' Zhen Qing and Liu Dan rushed to Nanjing to handle a case, but they were only dealing with an assassination. Zhao Xiaoqian, on the other hand, had a different perspective and considered the issues more deeply.

It was necessary to suppress the powerful landlords in Nanjing with strong measures. This was like a farmer slaughtering a pig for the New Year. Before the fat pig was slaughtered, its hands and feet were tied, its head was held down, and it was made to obediently let the butcher bleed it. At most, it could only let out a few unwilling screams.

Having made up his mind, Zhao Xiaoqian walked to the table, wrote a few words on a piece of yellow silk, and finally stamped the imperial seal.

"Old Zheng, deliver this decree to General Xu of the Privy Council and have him immediately mobilize troops. The Palace Cavalry Command shall draw 10,000 soldiers from the Imperial Guards of Bianjing, equip them with firearms, armor, and warhorses, and set off for Nanjing immediately."

"The troops are stationed outside Yingtian Prefecture. If there is any unusual activity in the seven counties under Nanjing's jurisdiction, there is no need to ask the court for permission. We will immediately send troops to suppress and annihilate it."

Zheng Chunhe respectfully agreed and hurriedly left the palace to deliver the imperial decree. Nanjing was an important town of the Song Dynasty, and in fact, it had long been heavily guarded by troops, including the regular imperial guards.

However, these imperial guards had been stationed in the local areas for too long, and their generals had close ties with local powerful figures, perhaps even engaging in some shady dealings. If something happened, the Nanjing imperial guards might not act quickly.

That's why Zhao Xiaoqian transferred the imperial guards from Bianjing to garrison the city.

It's understandable that powerful landlords would launch a desperate counterattack when they're cornered, but since they dare to fight back, they must bear the consequences. Their entire families can now tremble in fear and await their fate.

Nanjing was the first region to pilot the Fangtian Equal Tax Law. The first shot had to be a resounding success; otherwise, if even the first region couldn't implement it, the new policy would have to fade into obscurity, and Emperor Zhao Xiaoqian would only remain a laughingstock.

The powerful landlords under Nanjing's jurisdiction probably didn't understand the Song Dynasty's determination to implement this new policy; otherwise, they wouldn't have risked the extermination of their entire families to do something so meaningless.

No matter how many people are killed or what price the court pays, the policy of equal land tax must be implemented. Even if all the landlords in Nanjing are killed, the policy must be firmly implemented.

This is Zhao Xiaoqian's determination.

…………

In the following days, Zhao Xiaoqian focused his attention on the Western Expeditionary Army. The two assassination cases had been handed over to the Imperial City Guard. Now that clues and directions had been discovered, Zhao Xiaoqian was no longer worried.

With Zhen Qing and Liu Dan's abilities, there is no case in the world that they cannot solve.

Now it is the second year of Jingkang, and spring is just around the corner. Spring sowing is about to begin. The court is not only focused on the army's westward expedition, but the government and various departments are also extremely busy arranging and planning local spring sowing matters.

As an agrarian nation, land and food are of paramount importance. During the two crucial seasons of spring sowing and autumn harvest, the imperial court always shifts its focus to these two areas.

News from the Northwest Front came in military reports almost every two or three days.

A month ago, Zhong Jianzhong sent an urgent memorial, stating that after the army entered the Northwest, the first battle was not against the Western Xia, but the annihilation of three thousand Liao soldiers.

These three thousand Liao soldiers took advantage of the chaos and actually crossed the border into the territory of the Song Dynasty. They burned, killed, looted, and massacred villages on the border, causing countless Song civilians to suffer and die tragically. Many villages were burned to the ground and their homes were destroyed.

Enraged, Zhong Jianzhong ordered his deputy commander Guo Cheng to lead troops in pursuit and annihilation. The three thousand Liao soldiers were wiped out by the Song army without a scratch, leaving no one alive.

After his anger subsided, Zhong Jianzhong began to have some doubts. After all, the first battle of the western expedition was against allied forces—this was a rather... questionable move.

Zhong Jianzhong was really unsure of the Emperor's attitude, so he was a little hesitant in his wording in the memorial and even took the initiative to apologize to the Emperor.

After reading the memorial, Zhao Xiaoqian shook his head and smiled.

What crime are they apologizing for? The Liao army crossed the border to slaughter and plunder the people on the Song Dynasty's borders. The Liao people should be the ones apologizing. Isn't it only right to kill them all?
Moreover, this matter cannot be left like this; it's not over yet.

Zhao Xiaoqian immediately summoned several high-ranking officials from the State Affairs Hall and the Privy Council. After reading Zhong Jianzhong's memorial to them, he told them in a righteous and stern tone that this matter must be investigated.

Led by Cai Jing, the Vice Minister of the Secretariat, along with the Minister of Rites and the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies, the Liao envoys stationed in Bianjing were summoned. Their demands were threefold: first, to lodge a strong protest and express serious concern; second, to hold those responsible accountable, including the generals who had died and their superiors; and third, to compensate the Song border residents for their losses.

In short, just keep cursing.

Putting aside everything else, upon meeting, they first firmly established the moral high ground, then, from a superior position, they sternly condemned the Liao generals in the name of righteousness, and finally demanded that the Liao emperor Yelü Yanxi severely punish the Liao army generals and compensate the border people for their losses.

The suggestions put forward by several senior officials from the Council of State and the Privy Council were all reasonable, and Zhao Xiaoqian adopted them one by one. However, Zhao Xiaoqian still frowned, looking frustrated and unable to release his anger. It was like being about to take up arms and then having your girlfriend suddenly tell you that she has started her period...

"Although these conditions are all legitimate and reasonable, and quite satisfying, I still feel it's not enough. I can't get rid of this pent-up anger..." Zhao Xiaoqian said, stroking his chin in contemplation.

"What kind of era is this? The situation between Song and Liao is completely different now. What's wrong with the Liao army? They actually dare to cross the border to provoke and slaughter border residents. Don't they watch the news?"

Xu Jiang said calmly, "The army that Liao used to destroy Xia was drawn from the Northwest Expeditionary Command in the far north. Those soldiers were not entirely Khitans, but also included Xi, Bohai, Jurchen and other ethnic groups."

"They are stationed in the far north and are not very clear about the situation in the south. Even though they know that the Liao Kingdom has been defeated by our Great Song Dynasty several times, I estimate that they still have not personally experienced the power of our Great Song Dynasty's elite army. They are probably dissatisfied, so their cross-border slaughter and plundering are probably motivated by a desire to provoke and challenge us."

"Now look what happened. With General Zhong's order, they not only got a beating, but every single one of them was stabbed."

(End of this chapter)