The prince is more stable

Chapter 1012 Song Army Invades the Border
There is a very interesting paradox, which is the phrase "treating each other with the utmost respect" between husband and wife.

Is treating each other with the utmost respect right or wrong?
If a couple stays together for a lifetime and still treats each other with respect, is that considered a loving couple or just a misunderstanding?
Zhao Xiaoqian didn't know how other couples got along, but at least for him, the phrase "treating each other with the utmost respect" was absolutely impossible.

The word itself carries a certain sense of distance, but if a couple is truly in love, there is no such thing as distance between them. Let alone spending a lifetime together, even if they only share a bed for a year or two, they will know each other's flaws very well, such as teeth grinding, burping, farting, constipation, shaving armpit and leg hair...

The essence of life lies in seeing all the flaws in the other person, yet still being willing to spend your life with them.

This is what a couple's relationship is really like.

Of course, Di Ying wasn't perfect either, but Zhao Xiaoqian didn't mind. He only saw his wife's good points and often secretly rejoiced that he had married her, which was the best decision he had ever made.

Pregnancy is tough for women. Di Ying's legs were already swollen, her face was becoming fuller, her belly was getting bigger and bigger, and it was getting harder and harder to sleep at night. With a baby in her belly, it was uncomfortable to lie on either side, and she often suffered from insomnia all night long.

Zhao Xiaoqian is experienced in this area, having been a father and a husband to a pregnant woman before, so he knows how to handle it.

She had to take the imperial physician's prescription for pregnancy support and also avoid certain foods. She heard that there was a folk remedy that eating more goose eggs before delivery would result in a fair-skinned baby, so she personally cooked goose eggs.

Di Ying's tastes are even lighter than when Niaoniao was pregnant. Even at five or six months pregnant, she still can't stand the smell of oil, so she has to give up things like stewed pork hock.

Inside the Funing Palace, Zhao Xiaoqian, having just finished dealing with military and political affairs, leaned back in his chair, his plump wife in his arms.

Although Di Ying was plump during her pregnancy, she was not heavy, and her skin was even whiter and smoother than before she was pregnant. This can probably be considered a kind of natural beauty.

"My lord has been so busy lately. The ladies have said they haven't seen you for several days. Is it because of the recent military campaign against Western Xia?" Di Ying whispered in his arms.

"That's right, this is a war of annihilation, which is very important to the fate of the Song Dynasty. With the fall of Western Xia, the Song Dynasty's chess game in the Northwest will be completely revived."

Di Ying looked up at him: "Can we win?"

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled: "Of course we can win. In fact, the outcome is no longer in doubt. I have been busy with how to handle the aftermath. After all, after incorporating Western Xia into our territory, the court still needs to do a lot of work to fully digest this land."

Di Ying smiled: "It's good that you won. My husband is indeed the most capable."

After a pause, Di Ying suddenly winked at him: "I've also heard that you've recently been favoring that woman named Xue Meiyun?"

Zhao Xiaoqian's face flushed: "I couldn't help myself for a moment..."

Di Ying spat and said, "You dog of a man, you just slept with him, why all the excuses!"

Zhao Xiaoqian: “…………”

“Alright, since Your Majesty ascended the throne, apart from us sisters, she is the only woman in the harem you have favored. That’s already quite remarkable. From now on, I will treat her as a sister.”

Zhao Xiaoqian pondered for a moment and said, "Observe her more often when you have time. Remember not to be completely trusting. Xue Meiyun is a scheming woman. Don't let her take advantage of you."

Di Ying smiled proudly: "I am the mistress of the harem. If she dares to play tricks on me, I will not hold back."

She affectionately pinched his earlobe and said with a light laugh, "Don't neglect the other sisters, my lord. They are all eagerly waiting to have children for you. The royal family is different from ordinary people. Only with many offspring can there be no chaos in the future."

Emperor Zhao Xiaoqian sighed, "With so many women, it's really difficult for me to take care of them all..."

As he spoke, Zhao Xiaoqian stretched out his long, slender hands and said slowly, "If you don't mind, I have ten fingers here..."

…………

Youzhou.

As spring arrived and the weather gradually warmed, the war drums suddenly sounded in the border army camp outside Youzhou City, and the soldiers gathered in droves.

Zhe Keshi, fully armed and mounted on his horse, surveyed the Youzhou border troops with a cold gaze.

After Zhao Xiaoqian recovered the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun, the imperial court renamed the former Liao Kingdom's Xijin Prefecture to Youzhou and abolished Beijing Daming Prefecture, renaming Youzhou to Beijing.

After Zhao Xiaoqian ascended the throne, Zong Ze was appointed as the garrison commander of Beijing, leading the border troops. Most of the generals under his command remained in Youzhou to guard the border.

Today, Zong Ze is beating the drums to muster the troops, precisely because he is acting on the imperial decree of Zhao Xiaoqian.

This was a war of revenge. The Liao army crossed the border in the northwest, massacred the Song people on the border, and burned villages. Although they annihilated the three thousand Liao soldiers who had crossed the border, this was far from enough.

Therefore, Zhao Xiaoqian issued an edict ordering the border troops of Youzhou to cross the border and massacre and plunder villages and tribes within the Liao Kingdom's territory. The Song Dynasty must repay tenfold the number of Song civilians they killed.

Upon receiving the imperial decree from Bianjing, Zong Ze immediately mustered troops, appointed Zhe Keshi as general, and led 20,000 border troops northward to begin indiscriminately slaughtering, looting, and burning villages and tribes within the Liao territory.

This decree was impulsive, even crazy, but Zong Ze and his generals were greatly excited.

The imperial edict was stern, ordering Zong Ze and other generals in Youzhou to carry it out without fail, and to execute this revenge against the Liao Kingdom without fail. This time, the Song Dynasty didn't care about any gains, how much wealth was plundered, or how the Liao court would react; in short, it was all about revenge!
These words were exhilarating, and the generals of the Youzhou border army were all excited.

That's right, that's how it should be done. Let the Khitans know that the Song Dynasty is no longer what it used to be and cannot be easily provoked. If they are provoked, the Khitans will pay ten times the price.

At the drill ground, Zong Ze read out the imperial edict in front of the soldiers. The shouts of battle from the three armies shook the heavens. The imperial edict ignited the long-dormant fighting spirit, which spread rapidly like wildfire.

That afternoon, Zhe Keshi led his army on an expedition, heading north across the border.

Twenty thousand cavalrymen swept across the Liao territory like a whirlwind.

On the border of the Liao Kingdom, several Liao soldiers who had been stationed there for many years were lazily yawning and sleepily looking at the endless plain in the distance.

This area was once the heartland of the Liao Dynasty, but later the Song Dynasty recovered the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun, and the Liao Dynasty's borders had to shrink northward. As a result, the once rich and fertile plain was divided in two, with one half belonging to the Liao Dynasty and the other half belonging to the Song Dynasty.

This fact caused great distress to many in the Liao Kingdom, who wept bitterly, lamenting that the nation's power had declined and they were no longer the most powerful empire.

But most people silently accepted this reality.

The Liao army, in particular, which had fought against the Song Dynasty, were the first to accept this reality.

The powerful officials and nobles in the capital only knew how to sigh and lament, and only blamed the Liao army's poor performance in battle.

But the Khitans who actually fought against the Song army knew very well how desperate it felt to face them. Every battle was a brush with death, and whether they survived depended entirely on how strong their birth chart was.

The firearms wielded by the Song army seemed like divine weapons bestowed upon them by the gods, who could not bear to see the suffering of the Song people. The cold weapons wielded by the Liao army appeared so laughable in the face of their firearms, like a child waving his little fists at a burly man.

Having personally experienced the pain and despair of the Song-Liao War, the morale of the Liao army had long since collapsed. The Liao soldiers had no objections to the Song Dynasty's recapture of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun. As long as they were not forced to fight the Song army on the battlefield, they could accept any amount of territory lost by the Liao Dynasty.

Now the border between Song and Liao is finally at peace, and the Liao army no longer makes any provocative moves to cross the border and raid.

In order to avoid arousing misunderstandings from the Song army on the opposite border, the Liao army guarding the border deliberately retreated one mile from its own border. Even in the border camp, there were no large-scale troop movements, for fear that the Song army on the opposite side would discover the abnormality and the two armies would once again enter a tense state of war.

It must be said that the Liao army was very restrained and patient. People who have personally experienced the brutality of war will not shout for war like useless scholars. They will try their best to avoid war because they know very well that the two countries cannot go to war again, as they simply cannot win.

Today was another ordinary day. The Liao soldiers guarding the border yawned and stretched listlessly.

From generals to soldiers, everyone felt very reassured.

Because they knew that the Song and Liao dynasties had recently formed an alliance again, this time to destroy the Western Xia.

The two countries became allies like brothers, and the Song-Liao border was naturally safe.

Although the Song army's firearms were formidable, they would not provoke conflict, and the two countries were in an alliance, making the border area extremely stable.

The Liao generals stood on the border for a while, but there was no sign of any movement or disturbance. The days were so dull they were almost unbearable.

The general stretched and planned to go back to his tent for a nap.

However, as soon as he turned around, the soldiers behind him screamed in alarm.

"Soldiers! Soldiers on the other side! So many!"

The Liao general's heart sank. He turned around quickly, and then his eyes filled with fear and despair.

Sure enough, there were many soldiers, only a mile or two from the border. Their origins were obvious; one only needed to look at their banners, the armor they wore, and the strangely shaped firearms they carried to know who they were.

"Quickly! Light the beacon fires to send a message that the Song army has invaded the border!" the Liao general shouted angrily.

Thick black smoke rose rapidly, billowing like a chained dragon, struggling and thrashing in mid-air.

Immediately afterwards, a long bugle call sounded in the Liao army's border camp, and war drums were beaten. Countless Liao soldiers poured out of the camp, gathering and lining up on the border with bewildered expressions.

"Why did the Song army suddenly invade our borders? Aren't we allies?" The Liao general's eyes were bloodshot, his expression full of confusion.

No one answered him, because no one knew the answer.

The Song army on the opposite side was advancing. They were dressed in neat armor. When they were about a mile away from the Liao border, the 20,000 Song soldiers dismounted and lined up. Under the command of their generals, they marched towards the border on foot.

Without a declaration of war or any warning, 20,000 Song troops suddenly appeared on the border and launched an attack on the Liao army.

(End of this chapter)