Yes, it really was that urgent.
The first day of the lunar new year.
Xingqing Prefecture was decked out in festive lanterns and decorations.
The air was full of holiday cheer.
It was a bustling city. The grain caravan scattered as soon as it entered Xingqing Prefecture.
Lin Feng walked along the road with Jiang Quan, who had also changed into Daoist robes. On the streets, Lin Feng saw people from many different ethnic groups.
Arabs, Uyghurs, Tanguts, and others did not necessarily celebrate the Spring Festival.
But Li Yuanhao did.
The changes Zhang Yuan had brought to Western Xia were comprehensive and far-reaching.
Li Yuanhao held Confucianism in high regard, as it benefited his rule, but he also revered Buddhism and Daoism. His understanding of certain Buddhist teachings was considerable.
Li Yuanhao was a vicious dragon. He had many faults, but there were reasons he had ruled Western Xia for so many years.
He knew what benefited him.
A few years ago, the state chancellor had been a Han Chinese man.
Now the state chancellor was Menzang E'pang, a man brimming with ambition.
Western Xia's state chancellor differed from the Northern Song's chief minister. The former possessed a degree of military authority, especially a man like Menzang E'pang.
Li Yuanhao's state preceptor was a monk.
Among Western Xia's nobles, there were also plenty who believed in occult arts and Daoist priests.
Buddhism also enjoyed high standing in Western Xia. Both were called the Merit Office, but the office dedicated to managing monks had far more departments than the one overseeing Daoist priests.
There were more monks, requiring a more complex administration, and their status was higher as well.
Not only the monks from the Plateau, but also Mahayana Buddhism from the Central Plains had a substantial following in Western