Chapter 267: Imperial City Department Of The Southern Song, First Hearing Of The Northern Frontier
“You’re not going to kill me?”
Li Anquan suddenly looked up at Li Xiao, saying in surprise.
“Why would I kill you?” Li Xiao glanced at him lightly, with a somewhat disdainful expression, and said slowly.
“Leaving a fool like you in the Xia imperial court is even more beneficial to my Northern Frontier, isn’t it?”
These words struck Li Anquan’s heart like a heavy hammer.
His face instantly turned a liver-ish red, his fingernails digging deeply into his palm: “You…”
The rage churning in his throat made it almost impossible for him to form a complete sentence, but meeting Li Xiao’s bottomless eyes, he swallowed the retort that had risen to his lips.
“Besides, the secret between you and Empress Dowager Luo could sustain you for a lifetime.”
Li Xiao’s voice carried on the wind and sand, chilling like a viper’s hiss.
He deliberately drew out the last syllable, emphasizing the word “secret” heavily, and caught a glimpse of Li Anquan’s pupils contracting sharply, his face turning even redder with anger.
He knew Li Xiao’s scheme all too well; that secret was a sharp sword hanging over his head.
Once exposed, not only would he be dismembered, but Empress Dowager Luo would also be ruined.
And Li Xiao clearly intended to use this leverage to turn him into a pawn planted in the Western Xia imperial court.
But what he couldn’t understand was how his and Empress Dowager Luo’s affair, so well-hidden, could have been known to Li Xiao?
Could there be Northern Frontier spies in the imperial palace?
Thinking of this possibility, Li Anquan couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat, his heart filled with dread.
This speculation was simply too terrifying.
Did that mean that even the lives of the Emperor and Empress Dowager themselves were in the hands of the Northern Frontier people?
“But don’t worry, as long as you obey obediently, I, this Great Protector, will not only do no harm to you and Empress Dowager Luo, but will also help you wholeheartedly.”
Li Xiao’s lips curled into a slight arc, his voice like a demon’s whisper: “You should have inherited your father’s throne and become the Prince of Yue, second only to the Emperor.”
“It was Li Chunyou, with his petty-mindedness and personal vendetta, who prevented all of that.”
“To only bestow upon you the title of Zhenyi Commandery Prince, are you truly content?”
“Heh heh, you are my Northern Frontier’s friend, with the help of my Northern Frontier.”
“Let alone the mere position of Prince of Yue, when the time is right, giving you the position of Xia Emperor, what’s the harm?”
Li Chunyou, while not possessing extraordinary talent and strategy, was a competent monarch.
He cultivated virtue and governance internally, strengthened the military externally, and was a staunch subordinate of the Jin Dynasty.
Once he reclaimed power from Empress Dowager Luo, his first action would be to reorganize the military equipment and continue to clash with the Northern Frontier.
Releasing Li Anquan back was like throwing rotten flesh into a viper’s nest.
Letting him and Empress Dowager Luo, that pair of illicit lovers, stir up trouble in the imperial court, preferably to replicate history.
When the Western Xia royal family was engaged in infighting and depleting its national strength, Li Anquan, having gained the throne through illegitimate means, would naturally face widespread dissent.
A Western Xia plagued by internal strife was obviously of great benefit to the Northern Frontier.
And as Li Anquan heard Li Xiao’s words, a slight tremor appeared on his flushed face, and a spark of heat flashed in his eyes.
Emperor of Western Xia!
His grandfather was the Emperor, his father was the Prince of Yue, and he was also qualified to inherit the throne.
Especially after experiencing such a series of human warmth and coldness, and the harshness of war, Li Anquan’s mind had become even more twisted.
“You will help me?”
“Why?” Li Anquan asked with a wary tone.
In his opinion, Li Xiao was clearly harboring ill intentions, like a weasel wishing a chicken a happy new year.
Li Xiao laughed heartily, looking at Li Anquan with a somewhat pitying gaze.
“Because you are a fool!”
“As I just said, leaving you in the Xia imperial court is even more beneficial to my Northern Frontier!”
“If you were to become Emperor, Western Xia would pose no threat to my Northern Frontier.”
Li Xiao’s words struck Li Anquan’s soul once more.
Not only was his character insulted, but his intelligence was repeatedly ground into the dirt.
But he was no longer angry, because it was useless; in fact, he was even secretly pleased.
“Just for this?” Li Anquan asked, swallowing.
“Of course not only this.”
The setting sun, like blood, stained Li Xiao’s dark gold dragon-patterned armor crimson.
He sat astride a tall horse, looking down at Li Anquan standing before him, his horsewhip casually tapping the saddle, producing a heart-stopping “da da” sound.
“Go back and tell Li Chunyou.”
“The Hexi Corridor, my Northern Frontier claims it.”
“West of the Great River, I, this Great Protector, do not wish to see any more Xia armies.”
Saying this, Li Xiao narrowed his eyes and said indifferently: “Otherwise, my Northern Frontier Iron Cavalry will trample every Xia army camp, burn Xia battle flags to ashes, and ensure that no one wearing Xia armor can be found alive in the entire Hexi region.”
Before his words had even finished, Li Xiao slowly raised his hand, pointing towards the faintly visible mountain range silhouette on the distant horizon.
In the twilight, those undulating outlines resembled the spine of a giant beast, standing majestically in the evening breeze.
“Every Xia general who dares to step into Hexi will have their head cut off and hung on a flagpole.”
His voice drifted out, carrying an undeniable authority, “I, this Great Protector, will never break my word.”
“You want the entire Hexi?”
Li Anquan said in shock, a chill running from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
He had originally thought the Northern Frontier Army would only loot and leave, but now he realized they intended to completely annex Hexi.
The Hexi Corridor and Hexi were two different concepts.
The Hexi Corridor referred to the area west of Wushao Ridge all the way to Yumen Pass, including regions like Liangzhou, Ganzhou, and Heishui City.
While Hexi literally meant west of the Great River, encompassing the entire Hexi Corridor and the area between Wushao Ridge and the Great River.
However, in reality, Li Xiao truly only desired the Hexi Corridor and planned to build a pass in Tiger Wolf Valley to seal off the entire corridor and impede its development.
As for the Hexi region east of Wushao Ridge, although protected by the natural barrier of the Yellow River, most of the Northern Frontier Army was not skilled in water warfare, and the Xia army could cross the river from many places to attack Hexi.
It would be the main battlefield between the Northern Frontier and Western Xia in the future, making it impossible to develop with peace of mind.
Therefore, Li Xiao regarded the Hexi region merely as a strategic buffer zone, focusing on consolidating control over the Hexi Corridor and promoting agricultural and commercial development.
“A miscalculation.”
Li Anquan sighed in his heart: “Everyone in Great Xia has miscalculated!”
Although the Northern Frontier originated from the grasslands, its ruling class consisted of Han people. Conquest and territorial expansion were their true nature.
Looting and plundering were merely their disguise.
These damnable barbarians, their initial goal was to capture the entire Hexi.
Suppressing his shock, Li Anquan forced a cold laugh: “Does the Great Protector desire the entire Hexi? As the saying goes, ‘a covetous heart is like a snake trying to swallow an elephant.’ Is the Great Protector not afraid of being choked to death?”
Li Xiao heard this and casually shook his head: “My appetite has always been excellent.”
“You don’t need to trouble yourself with it, Your Highness the Prince of Yue.”
Li Anquan stood frozen, his heart full of unwillingness and anger with no outlet.
He knew deeply that the Northern Frontier enemy was far more troublesome than any previous nomadic tribes, posing a severe threat to Great Xia.
Gazing at Li Xiao’s receding back, he secretly vowed in his heart: “Just you wait, I will definitely make you regret this.”
The Northern Frontier barbarians treated Great Xia like fish on a chopping block, but he was determined to lead Great Xia back to glory.
And in his heart, Li Chunyou was not the one who could accomplish this mission.
Li Chunyou lacked the capability because he was not ruthless enough.
Only he, Li Anquan himself, was the chosen one destined to lead Great Xia to rise again.
The next morning, the morning breeze by the Yellow River was bone-chilling.
Li Xiao ordered a dilapidated flatboat to be thrown to Li Anquan, telling him to paddle across like Wang Baobao.
As for how he would explain himself to Li Chunyou upon his return?
He could just continue to fawn over Empress Dowager Luo; that woman wouldn’t bear to let him die.
……
Xining Prefecture, anciently known as Qingtang, is located in the renowned Hexi Valley.
After the An Lushan Rebellion, it was occupied by the Tubo people.
After the establishment of the Northern Song Dynasty, numerous armies were dispatched to conquer it. Finally, during the reign of Emperor Huizong, Generals Wang Hou and Tong Guan led their troops and completely pacified the local Tubo people.
They incorporated the Hexi Valley into the Northern Song’s territory.
Subsequently, the Northern Song court carried out large-scale immigration and land reclamation in the Hexi Valley from regions like Longyou and Guanzhong, while also exiling criminals there.
This led to a rapid surge in the Han population in the Hexi Valley in a short period.
However, with the occurrence of the Jingkang Incident, Western Xia took advantage of the chaos, and the Hexi Valley was consequently seized by Western Xia.
On this day, a caravan from the south appeared in Huangzhou （ (present-day Ledu, Qinghai, a county under Xining Prefecture ）).
Over thirty yaks, laden with goods, traversed the wilderness.
The steward was a man around thirty years old, wearing a brocade sheepskin hat, a crimson woolen robe, and a leather belt inlaid with turquoise.
A string of prayer beads hung on his chest, making him appear to be a standard Tubo person at first glance.
Seeing an old farmer working in the fields by the roadside, the man dismounted and stood outside the furrow, deliberately jingling his prayer beads.
“Brother old man, please excuse me for asking for directions.”
He shouted in a rough Tubo accent, “How do I get to Xingqing Prefecture?”
The old farmer, who was pulling weeds, slowly straightened up, his calloused hands tightly gripping his sickle.
His cloudy eyes roamed over the man’s crimson woolen robe, then shifted to the yak caravan behind him.
A dozen men were either walking or riding yaks with their legs spread apart, some wiping sweat from their brows with their sleeves.
The old farmer, without betraying emotion, pointed to a road in the northeast direction: “Go through that mountain gully ahead, and you’ll reach Huangzhou City. Then, keep going north, and after you cross the Datong River, ask someone else. This old man doesn’t know any further.”
With that, the old farmer spat into his palm and resumed bending over to cut grass.
But the man froze for a moment.
He understood, but felt somewhat embarrassed.
Because the old farmer was speaking the Guanzhong dialect, but he was currently disguised as a Tubo person and speaking Tubo.
Helplessly, the man tried to ingratiate himself with the old farmer again, saying: “Brother old man, are you Han?”
The old farmer slowly straightened up again, a sly smile appearing on his dark, wrinkled face.
He chuckled and said, “You Tubo barbarian, how can you speak Han language?”
Seeing the old farmer’s expression, the man realized his disguise had been seen through.
He could only smile wryly and shake his head, saying: “Please forgive me, old brother!”
“We are merchants from Xingzhou, doing business on the plateau. To avoid trouble, we disguised ourselves as Tubo people.”
“My surname is Li, and my name is Li Benzhong.”
The old farmer laughed heartily, revealing two large yellow teeth, and slowly walked out of the furrow. He eyed them and nodded, saying, “Not bad, young man, you’re being honest.”
Hearing this, Li Benzhong quickly asked for advice: “I hope old brother can enlighten me, where did we reveal our flaws?”
The old man pointed to the prayer beads on the man’s chest: “These things are too new. Tubo people chant scriptures with them every day, they’d be worn smooth long ago.”
“And your way of holding the beads is also wrong; you clearly learned it from Han monks.”
“Also, Tubo people usually sit cross-legged on yaks, not like you riding them as if on horses. Look at how the saddle is tied; it’s clearly the craftsmanship of the Sichuan horse guilds! And when you wipe your sweat…”
The old man pointed out several errors, making Li Benzhong feel a throbbing in his temples. He had thought his disguise was seamless, but there were so many loopholes.
Fortunately, they had avoided the Tubo people along the way and hadn’t ventured into any Tubo settlements.
It was fortunate that the old man was also Han; otherwise, they would have been in serious trouble this time.
Feeling relieved, Li Benzhong quickly bowed in thanks: “Thank you, old brother, for your guidance. Otherwise, we would have been in trouble.”
Listening to Li Benzhong’s flattery, the old farmer grinned widely again and chatted with Li Benzhong for a while.
“Where are you from, old brother?”
“My ancestors were from Qinzhou.”
“Then that’s very close to Xingzhou.”
“Indeed, that’s why this old man felt so familiar when he saw you young fellows.”
“What a shame, Qinzhou is now Jin’s territory…”
During Emperor Huizong’s reign, the old farmer’s grandfather could no longer make a living in Qinzhou and brought his family to Huangzhou.
At that time, Huangzhou was very desolate. The land allocated by the court was insufficient to live on, so the old farmer’s grandfather continued to reclaim land.
But just as they were about to have a good life, the Great Song Dynasty was no more.
The capital was breached by the Jurchen barbarians, and regions like Xining Prefecture and Huangzhou were left unattended, eventually being seized by the Dangxiang.
The land that originally belonged to the old farmer’s family was eventually snatched away by the Dangxiang.
The old farmer’s family could only farm for the Dangxiang to make a living.
Speaking of this, the old farmer felt a pang of bitterness.
But there was no alternative; life was cheap. As long as they had food and didn’t starve, they would continue.
Listening to the old farmer’s words, Li Benzhong was filled with emotion.
The loss of territory, the humiliation of the common people, the shame of the Son of Heaven – it was due to the incompetence of them, the generals, and the uselessness of the officials.
At this moment, Li Benzhong wished he could personally mount his horse and kill the enemy, expel the Dangxiang and Jurchens, and restore the Han family’s mountains and rivers!
Thus, he could only console the old farmer, saying: “Old brother, please rest assured.”
“Our Han army will return sooner or later.”
Li Benzhong was not a mere merchant; he held an official position.
“Acting Official of the Lishixilu Branch of the Great Song Imperial City Department.”
Lishixilu, in terms of location, was roughly the area south of the Wei River and north of Hanzhong in later generations, with its administrative seat in Xingzhou （ (present-day Lueyang, Shaanxi ）).
Acting Official was a high-ranking position within the Great Song Imperial City Department, responsible for intelligence in the Lishixilu region.
Not long ago, Li Benzhong received an order from the Director of the Imperial City Department to gather intelligence on Western Xia.
This included the current deployment of Western Xia troops, the domestic situation, grain reserves, and relations with the Jin Dynasty, among other things.
All intelligence regarding Western Xia must be promptly compiled and sent to Lin’an.
Although there is no other clearer intelligence, judging from Li Benzhong’s experience, the Imperial Court is likely preparing for a major move.
The objective is very likely the Guanzhong region.
This is because, in addition to having him gather intelligence on Western Xia, several groups of people were specifically dispatched to infiltrate Jin-controlled Guanzhong.
They are likely preparing to act in Guanzhong, but must also guard against Western Xia interfering.
This is because Western Xia has a precedent for such actions.
In the early years of the Southern Song Dynasty, Emperor Gaozong once prepared to contact Western Xia to jointly resist Jin, but unexpectedly, the Western Xia Emperor Li Qianshun’s attitude was arrogant, and he even refused to give the Song envoy a seat, as a form of humiliation.
Furthermore, they even assisted the Jin army in attacking the Song army, causing the Southern Song to completely lose control of Guanzhong.
Therefore, if they truly intend to fight the Jin army in Guanzhong, the Southern Song officials and subjects must consider Western Xia, that troublesome troublemaker.
After chatting for a while, Li Benzhong and his entourage had rested enough and prepared to take their leave and head towards Xingqing Prefecture.
However, at this moment, the old farmer said, “Young man, I, this old man, advise you to return immediately and absolutely do not go to Xingqing Prefecture.”
Li Benzhong curiously asked, “Elder brother, what’s wrong? Didn’t you just point us the way to Xingqing Prefecture?”
Why are you telling us not to go now?
The old farmer chuckled, “Weren’t you ‘Tubo people’ just now!”
Alright, if they were Tubo people, then it’s a setup.
But if they were young men from his hometown whom he favored, the old farmer could not bear to see them go to their deaths.
“I heard that the Northern Frontier barbarians have attacked, and the Hexi region is very chaotic right now.”
“If you encounter those barbarians, let alone losing your goods, you might even lose your lives.”
Hearing this, Li Benzhong was stunned. He exchanged glances with the scouts under his command and asked confusedly, “Northern Frontier barbarians?”
“Who are they?”
The old farmer also shook his head lightly, “This old man doesn’t know.”
“I’ve never been to the Northern Frontier either.”
“I’ve only heard that on the grasslands further north, you can consider those barbarians to be Khitan or Uyghurs.”
With that explanation, Li Benzhong understood that the Northern Frontier barbarians were likely nomadic peoples from the grasslands.
But from the old farmer’s words, were those barbarians fighting with the Western Xia people?
And had they even invaded Hexi?
“How is that possible?” Li Benzhong was shocked.
Hexi is nearly a thousand li from the grasslands, and it’s already close to the Western Xia heartland.
After crossing the Great River and traveling a few hundred li further would be Xingqing Prefecture, the capital of Western Xia.
How could the Western Xia people allow barbarians to reach this point?
“Elder brother, please tell me, what exactly is going on?”
“When did the fighting start? How is it going now?” Li Benzhong asked eagerly.
He hadn’t expected to gather such important intelligence as soon as he arrived in Western Xia.
This was incredibly useful.
If the Western Xia people were being pushed into their heartland by the prairie barbarians, it meant they definitely wouldn’t be able to participate in matters concerning Guanzhong.
In the future, after retaking Guanzhong, the Song Dynasty could even jointly attack Western Xia with the prairie barbarians, to avenge the past.
Li Benzhong hadn’t expected to achieve such a great feat so easily.
“Oh dear, I’m not too clear about that,” the old farmer said, shaking his head.
He grabbed a handful of yellow earth from the ground, rubbed it in his sweaty palm, and said as if recalling, “I don’t know when it started, but I heard the fighting was brutal.”
“Many people died in the Liangzhou area.”
In the Battle of Hexi, the vast majority of Western Xia soldiers were killed or captured, but a small number managed to escape.
Some of them passed through Biandu Pass, crossed the Qilian Mountains, and out of ten, only one or two managed to return to Xining Prefecture intact.
They also brought the news of the Imperial Court’s army’s disastrous defeat in the Hexi Corridor.
“To fight this war, the Imperial Court collected all the grain from the villages and sent it to Yuanchuan Granary. I also helped move the grain.”
“A few days ago, some people who fled from Hexi said that the Northern Frontier barbarians had attacked Hexi again and captured Yuanchuan Granary.”
“What a pity for our good grain.”
After hearing the old farmer’s words, Li Benzhong’s eyes widened, and his mind was greatly shaken.
“The Hexi Corridor has been occupied by the Northern Frontier barbarians?”
“The entire army of the Western Xia Imperial Court was annihilated?”
It was a fantasy.
Back then, the Great Song army and the Western Xia had fought a major battle in the Hexi Corridor for several years, ending in a devastating defeat.
Now, even Western Xia couldn’t hold the Hexi Corridor?
“What is the origin of this Northern Frontier barbarian?”
“How can they be so terrifying?”
Li Benzhong muttered to himself.
The powerful combat strength of the Northern Frontier Army deeply shocked him.
He knew that even with the full might of the Southern Song, they struggled immensely against the eighty thousand elite troops of Western Xia.
Merely holding them off was difficult, yet such a large army was wiped out by the suddenly appearing Northern Frontier barbarians?
It was utterly appalling!
However, although the old farmer spoke earnestly, Li Benzhong still needed to investigate and inquire further to ascertain the actual truth.
Moreover, he had to further understand where these Northern Frontier barbarians came from.
Were they friend or foe?
Thus, after bidding farewell to the old farmer, Li Benzhong continued to lead his men northward.
After crossing a mountain, they arrived at Huangzhou City.
This city was under Xining Prefecture. Although called a town, it was actually just a large fortress, very rudimentary, and lacked complete urban functions.
At the city gate, Li Benzhong and his group were stopped and questioned by officers and soldiers.
“Where are you going? What is on the yak’s back?”
“Shu brocade, Tibetan incense, and a Rinpoche, heading to Xingqing Prefecture,” Li Benzhong honestly replied in the Tubo language, clasping his hands together and feigning the appearance of a Buddhist believer.
A Rinpoche is a Buddha statue of the Tubo people. Because Tibetan Buddhism has great influence in Western Xia, some Buddha statues made in Tubo are also very popular in Western Xia.
The soldier poked open the cowhide wrapping with his spear, and the strong scent of Tibetan incense immediately wafted out. Beneath the woolen fabric, some bronze Buddhist artifacts were faintly visible.
The soldier quickly lowered his weapon, clasped his hands together, and repented to the Buddha statue.
Since it was a Buddha statue, the soldier naturally did not dare to obstruct them, but he still warned Li Benzhong, “The road to Xingqing Prefecture is no longer passable.”
“You should turn back.”
“Why? How is it impassable? What about our goods?” Li Benzhong asked, feigning ignorance.
“You can’t go, so you can’t go. What’s with all the questions? If you really want to sell your goods, sell them here in Huangzhou City,” the soldier said impatiently.
If it weren’t for the sake of the Buddha, he would have surely extorted a hefty sum from them, let alone warning these ‘Tubo merchants’.
Li Benzhong immediately felt helpless and shook his head, “I will consider it.”
The goods would fetch at least twice as much in Xingqing Prefecture as they would in Huangzhou.
If they were sold so easily in Huangzhou, it might arouse suspicion.
However, Li Benzhong’s true intention was to enter Huangzhou City to gather information.
To understand the current situation in Western Xia.
Just as Li Benzhong was about to enter the city gate, a horse galloped from afar, its appearance panicked, shouting loudly, “Enemy attack, enemy attack~”
“Quickly close the city gates.”
Hearing the shouts of the approaching person, the soldiers at the city gate became flustered and herded Li Benzhong and his group into the city gate before immediately closing it tightly.
Urgent gong sounds then rang out from the city wall.
“Dong dong dong dong~”
At this moment, Li Benzhong was completely bewildered. He had entered just like that?
These Western Xia soldiers were a bit irresponsible!
If they had been enemy spies, they could have immediately counter-attacked and opened the city gates, allowing the army outside to enter.
So, did these Western Xia soldiers not know how to fight?
Just as Li Benzhong was preparing to find a place to hide with his men, he suddenly heard a low rumbling sound.
“Boom boom boom boom~”
Li Benzhong’s expression changed drastically. This sounded like the sound of a large-scale cavalry charge.
