Chapter 42: He Boldly Aspires to Set the World Right, Yet Lacks the Means

Zhao Guangyi uttered his famous maxim, one that would echo through the ages.

And after speaking the words, "Security of the state depends on virtue, not on natural barriers," his mind suddenly cleared, and a train of thought opened up before him.

He continued without pause, "Your Majesty, pacifying the realm lies in virtue, not in strategic strongholds.

In the days of Yao and Shun, the capital was at Pubak; later, the Zhou dynasty established itself at Luoyang.

And what was the result? Shun raised an army and conquered the Sanmiao, while King Wu raised his forces to defeat King Zhou, founding a dynasty that lasted eight hundred years.

To this day, people still sing the praises of the benevolence and virtue of Yao and Shun, and the rituals and laws of the Zhou.

Was this because their capitals were steep and impenetrable? No, it was because of their virtue.

The Qin dynasty occupied the land of Guanzhong, possessed the eight hundred miles of the Qinchuan, and held the impregnable passes of Xiao and Han, yet the result was that it perished with the second generation.

The Jin dynasty made Luoyang its capital and rapidly decayed.

These are lessons from the past, and Your Imperial Brother cannot afford to ignore them.

Therefore, your subject says that pacifying the realm relies on virtue, not on natural barriers; there is no need to move the capital."

Having finished this speech, Zhao Guangyi suddenly felt a sense of relief.

Although the fundamental reason he stood up to oppose his imperial brother's relocation of the capital to Luoyang was that such a move would deal a heavy blow to the sphere of influence he had painstakingly built—entirely out of self-interest—

Yet, after voicing such a rationale, he almost convinced himself. He felt that his words were simply too profound and entirely justified.

Had not Mencius said: "Favorable weather is less important than advantageous terrain, and advantageous terrain is less important than human unity"?

"To hem in the people, do not rely on the boundaries of state borders; to secure the country, do not rely on the obstacles of mountains and streams; to awe the world, do not rely on the sharpness of arms. He who has the Way gets much help; he who loses the Way gets little help."

As long as one diligently cultivates virtue, then fixing the capital here in Bianliang will be secure, and there is no need to worry that Bianliang lacks defensible terrain.

Depending on the hazards of mountains and streams to secure the realm is the lowest form of governance.

Improving governance and elevating virtue to rule the empire and manage the state—that is the course that will prevail everywhere.

As long as these are achieved, Bianliang will be as solid as a fortress of gold, impossible for anyone to shake or breach!

Besides, when leading campaigns to the north in the future, to reclaim the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun and drive the Liao dynasty to its destruction, the northern threat would cease to exist.

Would not the natural barriers of mountains and streams return then?

Using the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun as a barrier to block the northerners from moving south—wouldn't that be far, far better than relying on the mountain ranges around Luoyang as a barrier?

His own elder brother was truly incompetent, utterly devoid of heroic ambition.

He fell far, far short of himself!

Such a person still occupied the throne and did not know enough to abdicate.

If he were the emperor, he would have pacified the empire and reclaimed the Sixteen Prefectures long ago.

He would have sent the Liao dynasty fleeing in disarray, making the northern nomads dare not venture south to graze their horses, and their archers dare not draw a bow in resentment!

Where would there be any need to harbor the aggrieved and cowardly thought of moving the capital, fearing the people of Liao like tigers?

Virtue, not natural barriers?

What a brilliant phrase—virtue, not natural barriers!

Hearing these words spoken by his own third younger brother, Zhao Kuangyin nearly laughed out of anger.

What kind of utter nonsense was this?

Since security lay in virtue and not in natural barriers, why bother keeping over one hundred thousand imperial guards stationed permanently in Bianliang?

If virtue alone were useful, what need was there for an army at all?

In the future, when the Liao forces marched south and besieged the capital, he should simply offer his bare neck to their blades and lecture them earnestly on his virtue!

Perhaps he could manage to reform them with virtue and send them fleeing in panic!

Especially seeing that after uttering such words, Zhao Guangyi wore an expression of complete righteousness and self-assurance, firmly believing that he was entirely in the right.

This only fueled Zhao Kuangyin's fury, making his ribs ache with rage.

Why had he never realized before that this third brother of his was so utterly inept?

In the past, he had foolishly thought that in many matters, this brother far surpassed Rixin.

Now it seemed he had completely misjudged him.

When it came to warfare and state affairs, the man was an absolute fool!

He felt a strong urge to open his mouth and scold him severely, but then he recalled what Li Cheng had said—that Northern Han was destroyed and the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun were recovered—and when he calculated the timeline against his third brother's age,

it was highly likely that these achievements would be accomplished precisely when his third brother ascended the throne.

Suppressing his anger, he forced those thoughts down.

Perhaps the man was not entirely incompetent in saying such things at this moment.

More likely, he was simply grasping for excuses to oppose the relocation of the capital, hoping to prevent his own sphere of influence from suffering devastating damage and losing its vitality.

Yes, that must be it.

Otherwise, how utterly foolish would someone of such high status and standing, who had walked through troubled times alongside him, have to be to utter such words and genuinely believe them?

"Your Majesty, the Prince of Jin is right. Security lies in virtue, not in natural barriers.

Countless examples have long proven that if the imperial court lacks virtue, even holding the most perilous natural defenses cannot save it from perishing with the second generation. There is no good end for such a regime!"

Following the Prince of Jin's statement, Lu Duoxun was the first to step forward in support of Zhao Guangyi, opposing the relocation of the capital.

Li Huaizhong, the commander-in-chief of the left and right cavalry divisions, also stepped out:

"Your Majesty, Eastern Capital has the Bian River canal transport, which can ship millions of bushels of rice from Jianghuai every year.

Hundreds of thousands of imperial guards depend entirely on this for their sustenance.

If Your Majesty wishes to move the capital to Western Capital Luoyang, canal transport will inevitably become difficult and obstructed, and there is fear that food supplies will fail, shaking the foundations of the capital itself..."

Hearing this, Zhao Kuangyin nodded inwardly. This argument made sense; it was a genuine, practical difficulty.

He himself had harbored similar concerns prior to this.

This sounded far more reliable than all that empty talk about virtue versus natural barriers.

"Your Majesty, I beg Your Majesty to think twice!

Western Capital Luoyang has fallen into disrepair over the years, and its palaces are dilapidated; it is long unsuited to serve as the capital.

If the capital is to be moved there, massive renovations will be required.

To say nothing else, just the construction of the palaces alone would consume an untold amount of wealth and require immense manpower.

At present, Northern Han has not been destroyed and Youyun has not been recovered; if the capital is moved to Luoyang at the cost of vast financial resources, when on earth will we ever conquer Northern Han and recover Youyun?"

Cheng Yu, the judge of Kaifeng Prefecture, stepped out of the ranks.

Following his intervention, Jia Yan, the administrative officer of Kaifeng Prefecture, also stepped forward:

"Your Majesty, Western Capital Luoyang is only a capital in name; in reality, amidst continuous warfare, it has long been reduced to utter ruin. Most of the people have fled, the livelihood of the common folk is withered, and they struggle daily just to survive.

If the capital is moved there, how can it possibly sustain the imperial court?"

One after another, officials stepped forward to voice their opposition.

Zhao Kuangyin sat upright upon the imperial throne, watching the crowd in silence.

Splendid! Truly splendid!

His influence is indeed formidable; until now, I truly underestimated this third brother of mine!

Zhao Kuangyin knew that not everyone speaking against the relocation was a partisan of the Prince of Jin.

Yet the majority of them had inextricable ties to the Prince of Jin.

And among those who had remained silent on the matter, how many were hidden partisans of the Prince of Jin yet to be exposed?

What a fine brother!

Right under his very nose, he had already amassed such vast power.

Previously, he had truly grown careless.

"Imperial Father, this son believes we ought to relocate the capital to the Western Capital!"

Amidst the clamor of chaotic voices, Zhao Dezhao could no longer hold back. He stepped forward, cupped his hands in a bow, raised his voice, and offered a dissenting view.

Zhao Kuangyin's expression remained unchanged, but his spirit was instantly revitalized.

"Speak."

"Uncle says security lies in virtue, not in natural barriers; this child does not think so.

It should be said that security relies on both natural barriers and virtue. Having barriers without virtue cannot ensure longevity; having virtue without natural barriers is an invitation to destruction.

Barbarian tribes respect power and do not cherish virtue; attempting to reform and deal with them through virtue alone is undoubtedly akin to conspiring with a tiger.

It is offering one's own neck to the barbarian's blade.

Qin relied on Guanzhong and perished with the second generation, yet Western Han relied on Guanzhong and Eastern Han made Luoyang its capital, each ruling the realm for two hundred years.

The flourishing Tang dynasty built its capital at Chang'an and survived for nearly three hundred years before falling.

To this day, the two most powerful dynasties both established their capitals in lands possessing natural defenses.

Why does Uncle turn a blind eye to this, speaking only of virtue while ignoring natural barriers, mentioning only Qin and Jin while omitting Han and Tang?"

Splendid! Splendid! Rixin is the one who speaks the truth.

To speak only of virtue and ignore natural barriers is equivalent to spouting nonsense; maintaining both virtue and barriers is the correct principle.

At a critical moment, his own son was of one heart with him and truly dependable!

Zhao Guangyi knitted his brows, a surge of fury rising within his chest. How dared someone as foolish as Zhao Dezhao argue with him about these matters?

He immediately opened his mouth to refute...

Zhao Kuangyin's proposal to move the capital to Luoyang had stirred up a thousand ripples.

It made the entire Wansui Hall seethe like boiling water.

Sharp tongues crossed like swords, thrusting back and forth—what a bustling spectacle it was.

The debate lasted for over an hour before Zhao Kuangyin finally spoke up to halt it.

He announced that the matter would be shelved for further discussion.

Hearing this, Zhao Guangyi let out a silent, long breath of relief.

He felt that he had achieved an initial victory in this matter, successfully resisting the malicious intentions and persecution of that scoundrel Zhao Kuangyin.

He instantly resolved that upon leaving the court, he would mobilize his forces to launch every possible form of opposition against this scheme.

Since his brother refused to act like a human being, he would no longer show any courtesy!

He had to crush this plan to move the capital once and for all; absolutely nothing would allow that bastard Zhao Kuangyin to succeed!

...

At night, within the Wansui Hall, which had returned to stillness, Zhao Kuangyin sat alone for who knows how long, lost in deep contemplation.

After running his hand over the imperial axe for a long while, he made yet another decision...