Inside the palace hall of Bianliang, Zhao Kuangyin's expression was layered with conflicting emotions.
They had already entered Youzhou, and the opportunity to prolong the dynasty's fate was right before his eyes. Under normal circumstances, this should have been a moment of relief, or even triumph. Yet the reality unfolding before him made it difficult to breathe.
Even though Han Shizhong's battlefield achievements provided some consolation, the overall situation was still deeply aggravating. Before Youzhou had even been fully secured, soldiers had begun looting the city, while the defending general of Zhuozhou had responded with such staggering incompetence that Zhao Kuangyin nearly lost control of himself.
In the end, he had to vent his anger somewhere. The wooden chair beside him had already been smashed into fragments scattered across the floor.
As the fury gradually settled, it transformed into cold disdain directed at his younger brother and his descendants.
They truly could not be relied upon to accomplish anything.
Since that was the case, it would be better for him to take matters into his own hands and do everything that needed to be done.
It was precisely for this reason that Zhao Kuangyin forced himself to calm down, sat before the stone table, and began writing words that would eventually be seen by later generations.
When he first put brush to paper, there had been a trace of unease in his heart. However, as he watched the light screen display more and more demands from the future, an inexplicable pressure began to weigh on his chest. For reasons he could not articulate, he found himself unable to speak, as if something were lodged firmly in his throat.
Zhao Pu, who was also gazing at the light screen, wore an expression more serious than he had ever shown before.
"A thousand years may pass, with the seas turning to dust and the lands shifting beyond recognition," Zhao Pu said slowly, "yet the people of later ages still find it difficult to accept the fate of our Song."
"The Emperor must not let them down."
Zhao Kuangyin pressed his lips together and gave a firm nod.
After briefly organizing his thoughts, Zhao Pu shifted his tone and began offering encouragement instead.
"Although many of these generals appear ignorant of true military principles," he said, "when one considers figures like Yue Fei and Han Shizhong, it is clear that Song does not lack brave and capable commanders."
"What we truly lack is a system that knows how to employ such men properly, as well as the discernment to identify and curb the spread of useless officials who occupy their posts without merit."
Zhao Kuangyin's expression grew noticeably more solemn. After pondering for a moment, he asked a question that had been troubling him for some time.
"I already understand that Liao was ruled by the Khitan, but this Jin state, what people do they come from exactly?"
This was, without doubt, his greatest uncertainty.
Neither Zhao Pu nor Liu Han, who was visiting for the first time, could provide a definite answer. In the end, they could only hazard a tentative guess that Jin might have emerged from the remnants of the former Bohai Kingdom.
After all, the old Bohai territory lay to the north of the Khitan lands, and the surname Wanyan did bear a certain resemblance to the Mohe tribes, who were believed to be Bohai's ancestral people.
Zhao Pu's thoughts went even further. He remembered someone from later generations mentioning in passing that Liao ultimately fell due to internal turmoil. On the surface, it appeared to have been brought down by defectors such as Guo Yaoshi, yet it could also be interpreted as a rebellion by Mohe descendants who established Jin and destroyed Liao from within.
He remembered clearly that Bohai had once been annihilated by the Khitan, with its people reduced to servitude.
Still, since Bohai had already perished nearly fifty years earlier, Zhao Pu merely stored this speculation in his mind, intending to search for more evidence when time allowed.
Meanwhile, Zhao Kuangyin found it difficult to completely suppress his lingering resentment. He let out a soft sigh.
"In the end, they truly are no better than Shi Chonggui."
Zhao Pu looked at him with a puzzled expression.
Zhao Kuangyin, however, remembered clearly the judgment of later generations, who had said that among all recorded national humiliations, none surpassed that of Shi Chonggui.
Yet now, after witnessing Emperor Huizong's decision to buy back Youzhou at the cost of northern loyalty and public sentiment, he realized that the fall of Jingkang was indeed even worse, just as those later voices had claimed.
Naturally, there was no need to explain such thoughts to Zhao Pu.
Instead, Zhao Kuangyin turned to him with a faint smile and said, "What our descendants have said has also reminded me of something. The matter of expanding maritime frontiers must not be neglected either. It is something I should strive for alongside Emperor Taizong of Tang and Emperor Zhaolie."
Zhao Pu only had a vague impression of these maritime discussions. At the time when later generations spoke of such matters, he had just received the imperial edict restoring him to office and was still on his way back to Bianliang.
Hearing the emperor speak this way now, his curiosity was stirred.
"If we speak of seafaring," Zhao Pu asked, "would our Song truly be inferior to the Tang?"
Zhao Kuangyin hesitated slightly before replying in an uncertain tone, "Perhaps not."
In the general's residence of Chang'an during the Han era, Zhang Fei let out a disdainful laugh as he watched the Northern Song's so-called recovery of Youzhou.
"I understand it now," he said bluntly. "Once the Song court loses its chance to squeeze money from the common people, it becomes incapable of accomplishing anything at all."
His expression then darkened as thoughts of his homeland arose.
"The lands of Hebei and Youyan have, since ancient times, produced bold and righteous men who value honor, loyalty, and courage," he said. "Why should such people suffer so much mistreatment?"
Zhang Fei was not truly expecting an answer. After all, the figures named one by one by later generations were separated from him by countless centuries. Among them, Li Shimin stood out as comparatively acceptable.
Moreover, just three months earlier, Li Shimin and his ministers had exchanged views with them regarding artillery, and even the military strategist had admitted that the gains were substantial. There was, after all, such a thing as feeling awkward after benefiting from another's generosity.
With Liu Bei's calm words of reassurance, Zhang Fei eventually suppressed his anger and let the matter pass.
Ma Chao, after briefly calculating in his head, shook his head in disbelief.
"The alliances of Northern Song are simply too numerous," he said. "They formed brotherhood with Liao, allied with Western Xia to resist Liao, then allied with Jin to destroy Liao, and finally signed another treaty to buy back Youyan."
"This truly matches what General Yide said, showing courtesy to beasts while bringing violence upon the people."
"I once believed that even separated by a thousand years, Song might still possess qualities worth learning from," he continued, his disdain evident. "But seeing this disgraceful display, I fear that even against Yuan Benchu, they would struggle to prevail."
This judgment was not unduly harsh.
As had been noted before, Liu Bei and his companions rose amid chaos. They might have lacked formal education, but they could not afford ignorance of warfare.
In the campaign to seize Youzhou, only the coordination with internal collaborators to enter the city could be considered commendable. Everything else, including the killing of civilians and drunken indiscipline, violated fundamental principles of military conduct.
Worse still was the panicked general who burned the supply camp, throwing the rear into disorder and creating an opening for the enemy to exploit.
Fa Zheng raised his head, his eyes cold with murderous intent.
"This man, Liu Guangshi, deserves execution by the harshest punishment."
Those gathered in Chang'an found themselves increasingly unable to comprehend the Song dynasty.
Those who wished to serve the nation had no path forward, fierce generals were kept in low positions, and parasites who contributed nothing dominated the court.
Zhuge Liang's emotions became even more complicated, blending regret with curiosity and a faint trace of anticipation.
With eunuchs interfering within and powerful enemies pressing from without, what path would Yue Fei ultimately choose?
Meanwhile, in the Tang court, Li Shimin spoke in firm rebuttal.
"The situation in Hebei is already different from what later histories recorded," he said. "With a naval force assembled at Dengzhou and Laizhou, we can cross the sea and strike Goguryeo directly."
"By transporting elite troops and warhorses by ship, a single decisive campaign would suffice, without the need to conscript tens of thousands of laborers."
Du Ruhui understood that the emperor's words were sound.
The Deng-Lai fleet had already entered a stable phase, and supplies only needed to travel down the Yellow River into the sea before heading north along the coast, saving enormous amounts of manpower and resources.
Not long ago, news had arrived from Liangzhou. Xue Rengui, seeing that Su Dingfang had organized affairs in Qinghai with meticulous order, felt he had little left to contribute there. He therefore led his personal troops westward to scout the frontier.
Near Dunhuang, he unexpectedly encountered a Turkic force.
After an initial clash, the two sides came to recognize one another. In the end, Duobu Khan identified the imperial bow in Xue Rengui's hands, a gift personally bestowed by Li Shimin.
According to Xue Rengui's report, Duobu Khan was seriously considering defecting to Tang.
The ministers of the Zhenguan era were not surprised by this development.
They had seen this man too many times on the light screen.
Based on later records, the famed Tang general Ashina She'er, who would rise a decade later, was very likely the same person.
History recorded that Ashina She'er, angered by the collapse of the Turkic state, attacked Xueyantuo, failed, fell into despair, and ultimately entered Tang service.
Now that contact had been established earlier, Li Shimin and his ministers agreed that plans concerning Xueyantuo and the Western Turks could be advanced ahead of schedule.
Amid all these considerations, Li Shimin had already made up his mind to develop Hebei into a vital stronghold for stabilizing the northern frontier.
It would never again be allowed to suffer.