Chapter 337: Plotting Against Empress Dowager: Zhao Yu and Meng Xiang Enter the Game

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As previously mentioned, when constructing the Yanfu Palace, Zhao Yu specially ordered the construction of several secret passages, two of which connected the original imperial palace to the Yanfu Palace—one from Chong'en Palace to Liu Mingjie's palace, and the other from the palaces of Meng Xiuyi and Meng Shunrong to Meng Xiang's Qingshou Palace.

Given that Liu Qingjing's secret passage was used by Zhao Yu and Liu Qingjing for their clandestine affair, it is not hard to deduce that Meng Xiang's passage was also used by Zhao Yu and Meng Xiang for their clandestine affair.

At this point, someone eager to know might ask: Did Zhao Yu and Meng Xiang also become lovers? When did this happen?

This actually occurred fourteen years ago, shortly after Liu Qingjing became pregnant.

Here is how it happened.

At that time, although Zhao Yu had become Emperor, actual power rested with Empress Dowager, and in a sense, Zhao Yu was merely her puppet.

Of course, describing the relationship between Empress Dowager and Zhao Yu in this way is inappropriate, at least inaccurate.

At the time, the conflict between the conservative Old Party and the reformist New Party intensified, and some officials believed both Yuanyou and Shaosheng eras had erred, advocating the elimination of bias and reconciliation of tensions; thus, Empress Dowager, who also felt that both Gao Taotao and Zhao Xu had been wrong, championed a centrist policy stance.

After assuming power, Empress Dowager frequently summoned ministers from both parties, earnestly urging them to set aside their grudges and prioritize state affairs.

Yet the Old and New Parties had accumulated such deep animosity that years of factional strife had turned each into the other's mortal enemy, making them unlikely to heed Empress Dowager's appeals.

Old Party ministers outwardly showed great respect to Empress Dowager but secretly continued resisting New Party policies, even deliberately creating obstacles during implementation to hinder the smooth rollout of new reforms.

Meanwhile, New Party ministers, already harboring strong resentment toward Empress Dowager, viewed her advocacy of concessions to the Old Party as forcing them to compromise on reform achievements, fueling their anger and intensifying their attacks on the Old Party.

On the court, the Old and New Parties continued to bicker, even more fiercely than before.

Empress Dowager exhausted herself trying to reconcile the conflict between the two parties.

During that time, Zhao Yu was busy securing funds and managing foreign affairs.

—Empress Dowager and Zhao Yu effectively managed separate domains.

Over time, worn out by the factional strife, Empress Dowager finally acknowledged Zhao Yu was right: patching things up through balance could not solve the problem; to resolve Song's factional conflict, the party barriers must be shattered and court consensus rebuilt around state affairs.

In fact—

Soon after ascending the throne, Zhao Yu, with Zhang Chun's help, devised a solution to the Song dynasty's Old-New Party conflict.

Zhao Yu also explained to Empress Dowager that the root of factional strife lay in both parties placing partisan loyalty above state interests: they opposed whatever the other supported and supported whatever the other opposed, even deliberately distorting policy intent to attack rivals. For instance, during implementation of new laws, the Old Party ignored their successes in enriching the state and strengthening the military, focusing solely on accusations of disturbing the people; after the Old Party regained power, the New Party entirely rejected the reasonable adjustments of the Yuanyou restoration, trapped in a vicious "either-or" cycle.

To break this deadlock, Zhao Yu proposed addressing three areas:

First, judge merit by performance, not party affiliation. The court should establish an independent evaluation body to quantitatively assess policy outcomes—such as whether the Green Sprout Law truly alleviated peasant hardship, or whether the Replacement Labor Law genuinely reduced burdens on the lower classes—no longer relying on partisan claims, but using people's livelihood and state treasury surplus or deficit as hard metrics. Those with outstanding achievements, regardless of party, should be promoted; those responsible for policy failures, even from their own faction, must be held accountable.

Second, sever the linkage between factional strife and power. At the time, censors and remonstrators often became tools of factional warfare, routinely impeaching colleagues under "New/Old" labels. Regulations must require censors to address only specific administrative failures, strictly prohibiting attacks based on "favoring allies and attacking rivals"; violators would be dismissed. Simultaneously, selection of chancellors and vice-chancellors should no longer be limited to party leaders but drawn from local officials with outstanding performance and no strong partisan leanings; if a chancellor promoted members of their own party beyond a set proportion during their term, they must face interrogation by the Censorate to prevent the court from becoming a private tool of one party.

Third, resolve disagreements through Confucian classics, not twist classics to justify disagreements. The New and Old Parties frequently used disputes over Confucian commentary to reinforce opposition: Wang Anshi based reforms on the Three New Classics, while the Old Party upheld traditional commentaries to reject them. The court could convene scholars from both parties and neutral parties to jointly compile the "Compendium of Confucian Texts," clarifying common ground between "reform" and "conservation," affirming that "governing a state does not follow one path, benefiting the country does not mean imitating antiquity" was about people's welfare, not party victory, turning Confucian classics into a bridge for reconciliation, not a weapon of factional strife.

Ultimately, the essence of factional strife is the misalignment between "party interest" and "national interest." Only when the entire court understands that whether "New" or "Old," they are all ministers of Song, and policy choices must be measured solely by whether they benefit Song's stability and the people's well-being, will the soil of factional strife gradually erode.

Empress Dowager found Zhao Yu's arguments reasonable, but since the time of Wang Anshi's reforms—and even earlier—she had quietly observed the Song dynasty and held her own views on governing it.

Zhao Yu's ascension to the throne owed greatly to Empress Dowager's efforts.

Moreover, Zhao Yu already knew then that Empress Dowager had only about a year left to live.

Out of sentiment and reason, Zhao Yu had to let Empress Dowager try.

Crucially, Zhao Yu understood Empress Dowager's stubborn streak: once she decided on something, it was nearly impossible to change; better to let her hit a wall through trial, so when he later implemented his reform plan, resistance would be greatly reduced.

Empress Dowager enthusiastically promoted her centrist policy, attempting to find a balance between the Old and New Parties.

But the outcome proved her centrist path was utterly unworkable.

Fortunately, Empress Dowager was not as obstinate as Gao Taotao; seeing she could not save the Song and realizing her health was failing, she swiftly handed full control of the Song to Zhao Yu, leaving him to clean up the mess.

After taking over the Song, Zhao Yu immediately struck hard, crushing both the Old and New Parties.

Seeing Zhao Yu was truly more capable, Empress Dowager happily retired to rest and recover.

But at this moment, as Empress Dowager turned her attention back to the inner palace, she suddenly discovered Liu Qingjing was pregnant.

With her control over the inner palace, Empress Dowager easily confirmed that Liu Qingjing's child was Zhao Yu's.

Fine.

In fact, Empress Dowager didn't even need to investigate, because in the entire inner palace, only Zhao Yu possessed the ability to impregnate women.

Thus, even before investigating, Empress Dowager suspected Liu Qingjing's child was Zhao Yu's.

This enraged Empress Dowager immensely.

Empress Dowager even felt a sense of bitter disappointment.

Recall: had Liu Qingjing's son not died suddenly, followed by the death of her patron Zhao Xu, both Empress Dowager and Zhao Yu would have been destroyed by Liu Qingjing.

In Empress Dowager's eyes, Liu Qingjing was an ambitious, destructive force—a woman like Daji, Bao Si, or Mei Xi, who brought ruin to the state.

Crucially, at that time, Liu Qingjing maintained close ties with the New Party.

Empress Dowager feared that if Zhao Yu, like Zhao Xu, became bewitched by Liu Qingjing, the Old Party would be in danger, even the Song itself.

It was no wonder Empress Dowager harbored such fears.

Indeed, at the time, Cai Jing and others, who enjoyed Zhao Yu's heavy favor, argued under the pretext of "continuing Emperor Shenzong's new laws," branding the Old Party as the culprits behind "destroying reform and shaking the state's foundation," urging Zhao Yu to "uphold his ancestral legacy" by tying the purge of the Old Party to "strengthening the state" and "restoring proper order."

At that time, Cai Jing and others portrayed the Old Party as "forming cliques for personal gain" and "plotting treason," claiming that unless the Old Party was eliminated, court chaos would ensue and even imperial authority would be threatened, trying to convince Zhao Yu that suppressing the Old Party was a necessary means of maintaining rule.

Cai Jing and others—including then-Chancellor Zhang Dun and Vice-Chancellor Cai Bian—repeatedly attacked the Old Party on court, accusing them of "colluding with foreign enemies" and "obstructing new policies," aiming to fabricate the illusion that "purging the Old Party was a consensus across court and realm," forcing Zhao Yu to acquiesce.

To this end, Cai Jing and others prepared extensively, listing hundreds of "traitorous ministers" from the Old Party and requesting Zhao Yu to dismiss them all, exile them, ban their descendants from official service and imperial examinations, and even prohibit them from residing in Jingcheng, utterly severing the Old Party's political future.

Worse still, officials sympathetic to the Old Party or holding neutral views were suppressed under charges of "associating with traitors" or "shielding factionalists."

Cai Jing and others also sought to have Zhao Yu order the destruction of Old Party members' books and writings—including Sima Guang's "Comprehensive Mirror to Aid in Government" and Su Shi's poetry and prose—banning their circulation among the people, attempting to erase the Old Party's ideological influence.