A Top Scholar From A Humble Background.

Summary

The Song Chao dynasty's weakness was attributed to its foreign warfare, despite being the pinnacle of commodity economy and cultural development in Chinese history. The dynasty suffered crushing defeats and lost half of its territory to the Jin people, eventually falling to the Mongols. The emperor, Zhu Youcheng, raised this question, and the ministers present found it difficult to respond casually. Zhang Heling attributed the weakness to the emphasis on literature over military affairs, while Min Gui believed it was due to the loss of natural defenses. The emperor leaned towards Min Gui's opinion, prioritizing civil governance over military might. A heated discussion ensued, with Xu Qiong mediating and shifting the focus to the accumulated weakness of the Song Chao Emperor. The conversation was becoming reasonable, but just as it was about to be dropped, a childish voice intervened.

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