[Lightscreen]
[The Qingli peace talks between Song and Xia ended last year, and their impact on the fate of the Northern Song ran deep.
For some scholar officials, the annual tribute was nothing more than a trick to placate the common people. Fooling others was one thing, but who wanted to keep fooling themselves forever?
Did they not remember how, in the early years of Zhenguan, Li Shimin regarded the humiliation at the Wei River, where he bought peace with treasure, as a lifelong shame? He only truly washed it away after capturing Jieli Khan and making him dance in chains before his eyes.
That kind of disgraceful peace became the spark that ignited the reformist movement in the Northern Song.
Yet for the vast majority of scholar officials, their answer could be summed up in four characters: increase the dosage.
After Di Qing pacified Nong Zhigao, Teng Fu, a distant relative of Fan Zhongyan and at the time a frontier official, wrote an essay titled Record of Sun Weimin's Southern Campaign.
In the piece, Sun Mian first supposedly predicted that Nong Zhigao would rebel. He then "employed a clever ruse" to delay Nong's advance, raised a million strings of military funds within a single month, and personally rushed to the front lines. Upon discovering that Nong's troops relied heavily on shields and long spears, Sun Mian allegedly worked through the night to forge great sabers and long-handled axes, sending them straight to Di Qing to counter the enemy.
Still not enough.
Sun Mian then presented Di Qing with three strategies, high, middle, and low, to eradicate the rebels. In the end, he calmly commanded events from behind the scenes, wiping out Nong Zhigao with effortless poise.
As for Di Qing, the essay painted him as clueless in the early stages, flustered in battle, stingy with rewards later on, and utterly incapable of enforcing discipline. The entire victory was carried on Sun Mian's back alone.
So how did Di Qing earn his fame? Entirely thanks to Sun Mian's lofty virtue. He supposedly slipped strategies to the Grand Commandant in private, allowing Di Qing to "claim the credit for himself."
Under Teng Fu's impassioned pen, an image emerged of a tireless scholar official, devoted to the state and its people.
If Zhuge Liang were to rise from the grave, he would probably clap and say, "Impressive." Even Luo Guanzhong might have asked him for pointers. Honestly, failing to expand this into a full-length Romance of the Northern Song would have been a waste of talent.
Yet it was precisely this enthusiastic piece of fantasy that exposed the reality behind most Northern Song scholar officials. Their reputations far exceeded their actual worth.
Later research revealed that Sun Mian's so-called three strategic forecasts were plagiarized from a memorial written by Liu Ji, a vice magistrate in Binzhou, and forcibly attributed to Sun Mian. The tactic of using long-handled axes to break shields was lifted wholesale from discussions between Zeng Gongliang and Di Qing. Using axes to smash shield formations, then following up with swift cavalry charges, had already been Di Qing's settled plan before marching south.
As for the accusation that Di Qing was unclear in rewards and punishments, the essay simply swapped the roles.
The History of Song records that when Sun Mian was appointed to suppress the rebellion, he abandoned all sense of official propriety. He feasted, indulged in women, accepted bribes freely, and stuffed anyone who paid him into the army as a commander so they could share in the glory. Military discipline collapsed into chaos. Only after Di Qing arrived and decisively executed this entire circus did order finally return.
Meanwhile, accounts recorded by Sima Guang in Random Notes from Suishui, detailing Di Qing personally leading troops into brutal combat with Nong Zhigao and Sun Mian disobeying orders out of fear of the tribal forces, nearly disrupting Di Qing's formation, were quietly erased.
And yet, even so, by the Southern Song, the official Wang Shipeng could still sigh, "Our Great Song is famed for its many talents… second only to the achievements of Sun Weimin."
Others eagerly joined in, praising Sun Mian as "a dragon among men, upright in speech and brilliant in command, his name shaking the Chinese and the barbarians alike."
As for Di Qing?
Never heard of him.
Such was the miserable position of military generals in the Northern Song.]
Inside the light screen, comments continued to scroll.
[Server Chat Log]
Zhang Fei : "This ability to call black white and a deer a horse... even my military strategist couldn't match it!"
Li Shimin : "In Qi, there were the honest bamboo slips of the Grand Historian; in Jin, the brush of Dong Hu; but in Song, there are only peace treaties and pens that manufacture 'heroes' out of thin air."
DarkVoid: LMAO, brother Li Shimin, keep going! To put it simply, Northern Song civil officials were only 'brave' during internal infighting. They acted like grandsons before foreign enemies and like grandpas before their own generals."]
Zhao Pu noticed that the emperor's face had truly flushed red.
Already dark, his complexion now looked like he had downed several cups of wine. He pointed at the light screen and argued, "This Song… is not my Song."
Perhaps it was the mention of Zhuge Liang, or perhaps Li Shimin's mockery had simply cut too close to the bone, but Zhao Kuangyin was genuinely rattled now.
Still, he could hardly start writing a rebuttal on the stone table.
He vaguely understood that these anonymous words likely came from later generations. Since they could praise Emperor Taizong of Tang, it meant others in the future could see what he said as well. In that case, even uttering a single word might invite relentless criticism from curious descendants. Why bring that trouble on himself?
Zhao Pu hurried to smooth things over. "Your Majesty is the emperor of our Song, but Emperor Zhenzong was not your direct heir. And the defeats at the Gaoliang River and Yongxi were not your responsibility. Where, then, is your fault?"
A few words were enough to ease Zhao Kuangyin's discomfort.
But Liu Han, who had been closely following this exchange, could no longer hold back. "Did the Prince of Jin truly intend rebellion?"
For Liu Han, accepting that the light screen spoke of the future was not particularly difficult. Qin and Han fangshi had long dealt in prophecies and cryptic texts. Even after the founding of Song, imperial edicts banning talk of heavenly mandates and prophetic writings had failed to stamp them out among the people.
Prophecy studies relied on hidden symbols, charts, astrology, and omens to predict fortune and governance.
So while the future revealed by the light screen shocked him, it remained within the realm of acceptance. What truly startled him was Zhao Pu's earlier remark. Coupled with the sudden disappearance of the Prince of Jin from Kaifeng and the unusual movements of the imperial guards, the pieces were already falling into place.
Zhao Kuangyin and Zhao Pu exchanged glances, both clearly trying to deflect responsibility.
For Zhao Kuangyin, whether it was the axe-shadowed candlelight or the sudden deaths of heirs, none of it reflected well on him. For Zhao Pu, the look he gave the emperor carried only one message.
Do you really think it is appropriate for me to say this?
Their silent standoff lasted a while. In the end, Zhao Kuangyin gave in. Meeting Liu Han's unwavering gaze, he hesitated before saying, "The Prince of Jin did attempt to assassinate me, and he sought to harm Dezhao as well. All of it is true."
Liu Han and Zhao Pu both stared, eyes wide.
Liu Han had suspected as much, but seeing the emperor's solemn expression, he could only sigh inwardly at the Prince of Jin's greed. For the sake of a single throne, he had gone this far.
Zhao Pu, for his part, understood what "assassination" implied. Yet where had the Prince of Jin found the spare capacity to target the imperial heir at the time? Still, it was not entirely incorrect, strictly speaking.
After brushing past the matter with a few words, Zhao Kuangyin sighed again. "If that is the case, then this Di Qing… was never destined for a good end."
The later accounts made it clear that Di Qing was promoted because of this merit, shifting from acting to full appointment. Yet even such a pivotal achievement was subject to slander and distortion by key ministers. It showed just how disliked this tattooed Grand Councilor truly was.
From Zhao Kuangyin's perspective, there was more to consider. Emperor Renzong had initiated reforms, showing that he possessed ambition. Displaying Di Qing's portrait might well have been a gesture of favor. Given the circumstances, Di Qing's appointment as Grand Councilor likely depended most on Renzong's support.
Perhaps Renzong was not blind to the flaws of governing the military through civil officials. Elevating a man of humble origins like Di Qing may have been intended to set an example for the imperial guards.
Judging from the few words left by later generations, however, the effort ultimately failed.