Great Zhou Empire: Kill Zhao Kuangyin at the beginning

Chapter 445 Chinese Orthodoxy (Special thanks to book friend Under the Dome Apple Tree for ten monthly tickets!)
On November 2, the 32nd year of Kaixi, Chai Zongxun received the news that Zhang Yong and other Longxiang Guards had arrived in Bianjing at noon, escorting the Khitan prince Reina, more than 600 beauties from the palace, more than 3 million taels of silver from the national treasury, and more than 2,000 rare treasures.

Chai Zongxun immediately summoned Zhang Yong, Reina and others to the Huangji Hall.

After greeting, Chai Zongxun looked at the two of them and said with a smile:

"Lord Zhang, your demeanor has become more serious, which means your skills have improved!
I heard that when we conquered Qingshan, the city of Tingya occupied by Li Jiqian, Zhang Aiqing faced a city wall guarded by thousands of enemies. He climbed up in the heavy rain in the middle of the night as if he was in an empty space. He was extremely brave and captured the enemy's capital in one fell swoop.

Zhang Aiqing has made great contributions again, eliminating the thief Li Jiqian and bringing the Khitans into our territory. How should I reward you?"

Zhang Yong hurriedly said:

"Your Majesty, I am ashamed to receive your praise!
This is all thanks to your majesty's planning and the dedication of our Great Zhou soldiers! I am just fulfilling my mission."

Chai Zongxun nodded slightly and said with a smile:
"In the past two years since my beloved Zhang went on the expedition to attack the Khitans, Lady Xinzhou has asked me many times when you will return victorious.
Your eldest son Xingnian is already nineteen years old and has not yet married.

I always ask Lady Xinzhou to wait a little longer, and wait until Minister Zhang returns to the capital before arranging the wedding for Xing Zhou.

This time, I will reward Xing Zhou with more care!"

Zhang Yong quickly bowed deeply to express his gratitude.

Chai Zongxun turned his eyes to the Khitan Western King Reina who was standing in the hall. He saw that he was tall and strong, and looked 70% similar to the Han Chinese.

Chai Zongxun said:

"My dear Reina (full name Reina Guduolu, first name first last name), if you can come back with sincerity, I will not treat you unfairly!

I confer upon you the title of "Duke Jiankun", grant you a mansion in Bianjing, and grant you a fief of 5,000 households!"

When Reina came all the way to Da Zhou, the little worry he had was finally completely dissipated. He was immediately delighted and thanked him:

"Thank you very much for your grace, Your Majesty!

This time, I have brought the most beautiful lady in the country, Li Yan, the daughter of the leader of the Jianhe tribe, to present to Your Majesty, and also presented a hundred rare swords made of meteorites for Your Majesty to enjoy!"

Chai Zongxun nodded with a smile, and the chief eunuch Tang Qi immediately ordered the imperial guards waiting in the side hall to present Li Yan and a hundred precious swords.

A moment later, several imperial guards, led by several eunuchs, entered the palace escorting a seventeen-year-old girl and hundreds of long packages.

After the greeting, Chai Zongxun looked at the girl in the center. He saw that she had a graceful figure and a natural sexiness all over her body. Her face was that of a Han beauty, but with a hint of exotic charm.

Chai Zongxun was very pleased and said:
"Lord Li is indeed a beauty of heaven and earth, rare in the world! I am very pleased!
I take Li Aiqing into the palace as my concubine, and confer the title of "Marquis of Jianhe" on your father!"

Li Yan was delighted to see that Chai Zongxun was tall, handsome and in his prime. She bowed and thanked him immediately, then followed the eunuch to the harem to settle down.

Chai Zongxun said:

"My dear Lord Reina, you are loyal to the emperor and the country, which is very much in line with my wishes. I will give you another ten thousand taels of gold! In the future, your descendants can all become officials in the court through the imperial examination and be treated equally with the people of our Great Zhou."

Seeing that Chai Zongxun was very satisfied with Li Yan, Reina smiled and said:

"Thank you very much for your grace, Your Majesty!

I have a feeling that I don’t like, but I don’t know if I should tell you about it.”

Chai Zongxun was in a good mood and said casually:
"My dear Lord Reina, please feel free to speak."

Reina said:
"Your Majesty, I grew up on the Khitan steppes and love hunting. It's okay if I don't drink, but if there is no hunting, I will feel uncomfortable.

I beg Your Majesty to allow me to go hunting in the wild with my armor and guards."

In this era, ordinary people can have swords, bows and arrows at home, but they cannot hide armor, which is a serious crime of deliberate treason. Chai Zongxun said:

"My dear Lord Reina, you have come here with sincerity. How can I not treat your little hunting hobby with favor?

I allow you and a hundred men in your palace to wear armor and go hunting in the mountains."

Reina was overjoyed. After thanking Zhang Yong, he left the hall together.

Chai Zongxun picked up the hundreds of precious swords on the imperial desk and began to admire them.

Seeing that these swords are all exquisitely crafted, with gold and jade as sheaths, and inlaid with gems all over, they are magnificent. And the material is made of meteorites from outer space that have never been seen before, I can't help but love them.

The swords presented by Reina this time can be said to be the 100 most famous swords in the history of Khitan. Of course, he may have kept a few treasures for himself.

After admiring them for a while, Chai Zongxun kept more than ten of his favorite swords, and ordered Tang Qi to give the rest to the eighty-two princes, one each.

Thinking of his son Han Jiyu born to Lady Huarui, Chai Zongxun asked Tang Qi to bring a dagger to Lady Huarui and Jiyu respectively for their enjoyment.

More than half a month later, the Ministry of Internal Affairs selected an auspicious day to hold a grand royal wedding for Emperor Chai Zongxun to marry Li Yan as his concubine.

On the wedding night, after the passion, Chai Zongxun hugged Li Yan, who was crying in pain, and comforted her. It took a long time for her to calm down.

The two chatted for a while, and Li Yan said in a tender voice:

"Your Majesty, now that Khitan has been annexed by the Zhou, my family and other members of the Black-haired Clan will all rely on Your Majesty to administer justice."

Chai Zongxun nodded and said:

"Of course. Even if she is from my beloved concubine's family, how can I not protect her?

I heard from Minister Zhang that the land of Angas is a place where people cannot distinguish right from wrong, black from white, and there is no justice at all. Everything is based on profit and the strong prey on the weak. Is this really true?"

Li Yan said:
"Your Majesty, that is indeed the case.

Most of the Khitan people have no conscience at all. They will do anything for the sake of profit and will even frame their relatives and friends!

Among the black-haired tribes, only my parents' tribe and other black-haired tribes still have many who believe in the traditional Chinese teachings of "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness" and "Heaven, Earth, Emperor, Parents and Teachers" passed down from ancient times.

If Commander Zhang had not rescued my Jianhe tribe that day, I would not be able to serve Your Majesty on his bed today."

Chai Zongxun said:

“Don’t worry, my dear.

After the new year, I issued an edict to completely ban private fighting in the land of Khitan, and everything should be done in accordance with the "Criminal Code of the Great Zhou" to save the local people from suffering.

With my new policies on agriculture, industry and commerce, the "village sage system" and the jury system, in a few years, the people in my beloved concubine's hometown will surely have enough food and clothing and live in harmony and friendship!"

On December 15, the 32nd year of Kaixi, Yang Ye’s memorial from Khwarezm was sent back.

After reading it, Chai Zongxun thought about it for a while, and discussed the matter with his ministers at the court the next morning.

Minister of War Li Fang came out and said:
"Your Majesty, I think Yang Ye's move is quite risky. If we fail to quickly capture the Khwarezmian capital of Koti, the Eighth Corps will be surrounded by the enemy and face the danger of being annihilated.

Your Majesty should quickly send an order, telling Yang Ye not to be stubborn and if he cannot win quickly, he should break out of the encirclement and withdraw to the Khitans while there is sufficient food and military supplies. "

The Prime Minister Li Hang came out and said:
"Your Majesty, although Yang Ye is taking a risky move this time, he is worried about advancing steadily. Khwarezm has gathered a large number of troops to defend our Great Zhou, and the western front is weak, so the Eastern Roman Empire will take advantage of it and wantonly occupy Khwarezm's territory. That means our Great Zhou is making wedding clothes for the Eastern Roman Empire."

(End of this chapter)