Song Gexing

Chapter 265 Negotiation
"Wait a minute, I would like to ask the noble concubine, is she willing to exchange Yizhou for benefits?"

Everyone was having a heated discussion when Han Qi suddenly stood up and asked Xiao Guanyin with his hands raised. Everyone was startled and quickly looked up at her.

Zhao Fangyi took a look and said dissatisfied: "I have already said it, why does the chief minister still ask the imperial concubine?"

Han Qi looked at him and said seriously: "Since this is the law of the Liao Kingdom, then Yizhou is the private property of the imperial concubine and cannot be taken by the Liao Kingdom. It is inappropriate for us to exchange it for benefits. How can the Song Dynasty be as generous as the Liao Kingdom!"

Zhao Fang, whose liver ached from being poked, had no choice but to look at Xiao Guanyin and signal her to speak for herself, otherwise these ministers would criticize him morally.

Xiao Guanyin said solemnly: "I invite you all to come here to discuss this matter. I am a noble concubine of the Song Dynasty. Naturally, I must follow the rules of the Song Dynasty. Yizhou belongs to both my concubine and the official family."

Fu Bi now understood Han Qi's concerns and quickly added: "Even if it is the empress's dowry, according to the laws of the Song Dynasty, the husband has no right to dispose of his wife's dowry. Has the empress thought about it?"

Xiao Guanyin nodded and said: "Yes, but I am willing to hand over Yizhou to the officials, and I would like to ask all the Qing family for your advice."

Everyone was relieved. This matter seemed to be insignificant, but in fact it was a big problem. The laws of the Song Dynasty stipulated that dowry was a woman's private property and could only be passed on to her children. The husband had no right to interfere.

This is why the ancient Chinese valued their uncles. If your mother died early, the only person who could help you compete with your father for your mother's dowry was because when a woman got married, her natal family would leave detailed information about her dowry.

Don't think that if father and son are one, your father will give you your mother's things. You must know that if your father remarries, the mistress of the family will no longer be your biological mother.

In ancient times, women were the stewards of the house. If your stepmother takes over the property, you will have no room to reason. Only your biological uncle will have the evidence to stand up for you.

That's why there is a saying that the uncle is the greatest in the world. To put it bluntly, it is still a matter of interests.

Maybe those who argue will say, why should my uncle stand up for you if he doesn't get any benefits? His sisters are gone, so who cares about your nephew.

This principle makes sense in later generations, but it does not make sense in ancient times, because in ancient times, the property inheritance rights of the natal family were legally cut off.

The reason why future generations put profit first is because it is profitable. But if it is not profitable, then family affection will prevail.

It makes sense for the ancients to separate family ties from interests. For the uncle, since he can't get it himself, why not give it to his blood-related nephew instead of giving it to outsiders?

That way, you can not only get the gratitude of your nephew, but also the praise of the public. Why not do it.

But once the relationship between family and interests is linked, it will change the taste. Human hearts are selfish, and selflessness is cultivated, not human innate disposition.

"So, I propose to discuss with the Liao Kingdom in exchange for Yunnei Prefecture."

After Han Qi confirmed it, he immediately raised his hand to Zhao Fang solemnly.

Wang Gongchen was startled and frowned: "Why not change to Datong Mansion? In exchange for Yunnei State, we will suffer a big loss."

Fu Bi smiled and said: "Datong is the Xijing of the Liao Kingdom. It is impossible for the Liao Kingdom to agree, but Yunnei Prefecture is different. It seems that we are suffering a loss, but in fact we are not."

"Oh! Why?"

Fu Bi laughed at the chicken thief and said: "Yunnei Prefecture is not far to the northwest of Datong. Once it is in our hands, if Song and Liao start a war, the Datong defenders will not dare to attack, otherwise they will worry about being attacked by our army. In that case, the Liao Kingdom The Xijing Road will lose its threat to the Song Dynasty, Jun Kuang understands now." Wang Gongchen is indeed not as good as Han Qi and Fu Bi in military aspects, and he is also convinced by their views on military affairs. After hearing these words He nodded in realization.

But he still raised a question: "I'm worried about the location of Yunnei Prefecture, which is isolated in the north of the Yellow River. If the Liao Kingdom attacks there first, our army's reinforcements will be a big problem."

This is indeed the key point. Yunnei Prefecture in the Liao Kingdom was Hohhot in later generations. Of course, the location is biased, but it is basically nearby.

It is located just above and to the right of the bend of the Yellow River. Beyond the Great Wall, not far to the southeast is Datong, Shanxi. Although there is no Great Wall blocking it, the Great Wall defense line in the Song Dynasty was actually dilapidated.

During the Northern Song Dynasty, the Great Wall was basically in the hands of the Liao Kingdom and Xixia. The Song Dynasty only had the inner section of the Great Wall in part of Shaanxi and Shanxi.

The Liao Kingdom and Xixia did not need the Great Wall for defense. They were nomadic peoples and their strength was cavalry. What else did they need the Great Wall to do, hinder the galloping horses?

Of course, they will not demolish the Great Wall. Defense is still a necessary means. However, the Great Wall has been damaged in many places since the Qin and Han Dynasties and the wars in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui and Tang Dynasties.

Who will repair that place? How much money and food will it cost to plug the hole of debt?

Therefore, historically, it was not until the Ming Dynasty that the Great Wall began to be rebuilt, and it was pushed back a lot.

The Liao Kingdom did build a section of the Great Wall, but it was not based on the original one. Instead, a Great Wall was built in Liaodong and later Dalian Bay to defend the southern line of Liaoyang.

The purpose of building this line of defense was to cut off the Song people's connection with Liaodong.

Yes, you read that right. The Liao Dynasty defended itself against the Song Dynasty, which was considered weak by later generations. The reason was that after the establishment of the Song Dynasty, many Han rebellions occurred in Youzhou, Liao State, and they wanted to get in touch with the Central Plains Dynasty.

Liaoyang Mansion is the Tokyo of the Liao Kingdom, the area with the most taxes in the Liao Kingdom, and a large number of people from the former Bohai Kingdom have been moved there, and they also love to rebel.

What the Liao Kingdom is most worried about is that if the Song Dynasty, the Youzhou Han people, and the Bohai people unite, the whole Liaodong is likely to change.

It should be said that the most wrong thing Yelu Abaoji did was to move a large number of people from the Bohai Kingdom into Liaodong, which became a reminder for the Liao Kingdom in the future.

It was precisely these people who would join forces with the Jurchens in the future that Wanyan Aguda would have the strength to challenge the Banliao Kingdom. Otherwise, the Jurchens alone would not be enough, as the number would be too small.

The Liao Kingdom was not the Song Dynasty. 1 Jurchens might dare to attack the 10 Song army, but they would never dare to attack the same number of Khitans.

Even though the Khitans have become corrupt, many people have still been accustomed to riding horses and shooting arrows since they were young. The Khitans can still easily raise hundreds of thousands of troops at once.

But it's different when you add the Bohai people. The Bohai country itself is also a country composed of Jurchens, known as mature Jurchens, plus Jurchenized Han people, or other nomadic peoples who were Hanized.

The main ethnic group in the Bohai Kingdom is the Mohe people, who are the ancestors of the Jurchens. Because they were moved to Liaodong by the Liao Kingdom and registered as household registrations, they were called Mature Jurchens.

But Balhae is not only Jurchens, but also Koreans, Hans, and other ethnic minorities in the Northeast and even the Far East.

The Bohai people were Hanized very early and began to receive canonization in the Han Dynasty. During the chaotic times of the Three Kingdoms, a large number of northern Han people fled to join them.

(End of this chapter)