Chapter 300 The Life and Death of the People
Feiyan and Li Gong were both very happy. The old man said with a smile that Li Shu of Dai Viet had finally come to his senses and issued a document to become our vassal state, and to do business according to the same rules as Dali. But I really promised him that we would suspend jade trading with Dali for half a year.
Zhao Yulin said that family affairs are small, national affairs are big, so inform Master Lu to follow the agreement in the letter of credence. It's okay. The Dali Kingdom should also learn a lesson.
Lao Cao told them about the arrangements for Li Yunqing's Western Expedition Army, and that the next step was to increase the construction of roads in the three states of Xining, Chamdo and Kangning.
Mr. Ding said he knew, and the transportation of military equipment and supplies cannot be neglected. The soldiers on the border have shed blood and sweat, so we must consider it carefully.
Zhao Yulin was very happy, as this group of people from Sichuan and Shu had finally come together to form a joint force.
He suggested to Ding Gong that Lao Cao should go to Huangzhou to meet General Meng again. As the New Year was coming to an end, General Meng must be short of money, and Lao Cao was just the right person to help him.
At the same time, please ask General Meng to allow the Shenwei Army to enter the Xiangshui line. In the future, we will do business with South Vietnam, and this convenient waterway is indispensable.
Mr. Ding was worried that time was running out as it was almost the end of the year.
Lao Cao readily agreed.
Zhao Yulin said that the schedule was a bit tight, so the general should set off immediately and go directly to Jiading with 5 million strings of new currency to head east to Huangzhou.
Lord Ding immediately said that this was a very good idea and Lord Cao should go and come back quickly.
Lao Cao didn't dare to delay and went back immediately to prepare for the trip.
In Lin'an of Jiangdong, Shi's son's regicide rebellion failed to capture the false emperor Zhao Bing. After escaping from the secret passage where his father went to seek pleasure, Zhao Bing gathered his new imperial guards outside the city and marched into Lin'an. The two sides were evenly matched and fought for ten days in the city, both sides were exhausted and neither could defeat the other.
The fighting in Lin'an was so intense that rivers flowed with blood, but Yu Jie, the commander of the army in Jiangbei, refused to help anyone. This gave Shi's son and Zhao Bing the opportunity to establish their own regime in Lin'an.
Zhao Bing thought that this would be very detrimental to his continued reign as emperor, and after careful consideration, he felt that the Lin'an court could not do without Shi's son as a pillar for the time being. Otherwise, even if he conquered Lin'an, he would not be able to command Jiangdong.
After careful planning, Zhao Bing quickly sent envoys to negotiate with Shi's son, promising him the position of prime minister and not pursuing his crime of treason. The two of them worked together to regain control of the small court in Lin'an.
After a long period of tug-of-war in Lin'an, the envoy Xiang and Zhao Bing felt that they could not delay any longer. If they continued to delay, the people would see them as useless. What about the emperor with pure blood, the imperial power inherited from their ancestors, and the loyalty to justice? They were all just a trick and empty talk. All they wanted was power, and they did not care about the lives of the people at all.
At this time, Zhao Bing extended an olive branch to him, and Shi's son would definitely be happy to accept it. With Zhao Bing, he would have the pretense of being the legitimate emperor.
Zhao Bing also let him continue to serve as prime minister, and he still held the same power. After the truce, everyone could sleep well, relax and celebrate the New Year, and everyone was happy.
The two of them quickly came together to have a detailed discussion. After determining the number of troops stationed in the city and their respective responsibilities and rights, they reorganized the Lin'an court again.
The smoke of gunpowder finally dissipated in Lin'an City, and both sides went back to take a shower, change clothes, and discuss post-war reconstruction.
But how can the devastated Lin'an overcome the current difficulties?
Our historian once again demonstrated his great wisdom.
The first is to firmly support the pseudo-emperor Zhao Bing's layoffs and government simplifications. Because the houses were destroyed, the palaces collapsed, and the disabled officers and soldiers needed preferential treatment and resettlement, all of which cost money.
He cut the salaries of court officials in half without hesitation, and even claimed that he was taking the lead in implementing the emperor's instructions and working frugally.
The second thing was to collect donations for national salvation from the wealthy families in the city and local businessmen, asking these people to pay money to maintain the operation of the court. The people of Jiangdong dared not speak out, and the sky was filled with curses and insults, but they still handed the silver to Prime Minister Shi unwillingly.
The third thing was to set his sights on Sichuan and Shu. Everyone knew that Sichuan and Shu had money, and Shi Xiang knew even better that Zhao Qi'er was extremely rich. He began to plan to get some money from Zhao Qi'er so that he could celebrate the New Year.
It is rare to have peaceful days in this world. The Lin'an court had just declared a truce, but the Dali court started fighting again. It is really one crisis after another.
Duan Xingzhi, the young emperor's nephew and his brother's eldest son, believed that the throne originally belonged to him, but was taken away by his uncle. He always felt resentful and quietly planned to take back the power and become the emperor.
His father knew that his son was a shady person, so he did not pass the throne to him, but to his younger brother, Duan Xiaolin's father.
This was a normal change in the succession of the throne of the Dali Kingdom. The previous emperor was still healthy and practicing martial arts in the Tianlong Temple. There was no talk of usurping the throne.
However, Duan Xingzhi couldn't wait any longer. He was already close to 40 years old, and the current emperor was also in his prime. When he was no longer interested in the throne and wanted to pass it on to the next person, he would definitely find someone younger. Naturally, the throne would fall to a young man like Duan Xiaolin. His hard work for most of his life would be meaningless.
Therefore, the first thing this guy wanted to do was to kick Duan Xiaolin out of the court.
He made a big fuss about Duan Xiaolin's livelihood at the Prince of Zhennan Mansion, lavishly bribed a group of ministers who opposed the young emperor, and organized a powerful front to target Duan Xiaolin, the Prince of Zhennan.
They attacked the Zhennan Palace for monopolizing the court's livelihood and plundering the country's wealth, which emptied the treasury. They also seized on the uncertainty of the jade business and made a fuss about it, and casually accused the Zhennan Palace of making huge profits and enriching itself, and wanted the young emperor to seize Duan Xiaolin's throne and thoroughly investigate whether Duan Xiaolin had concealed any information or used it to benefit himself at the expense of the public.
The young emperor was stunned by the sudden attack and had no choice but to compromise with Duan Xingzhi. He deprived Duan Xiaolin of his throne, thoroughly investigated the Zhennan Palace, and sent him to Mantis River.
Fortunately, Duan Xiaolin built the town of Kunming on the Mantis River, otherwise this brother would have been so angry that he would have jumped into the Dianchi Lake and drowned.
He was filled with regret, and cried bitterly while hugging Zhao Yulin's fourth sister, Zhao Sihan, questioning why he was born into the royal family? Why was his life still so difficult even though he was already the eldest prince?
In Chengdu, Zhao Yulin certainly didn't know about the changes in Dali Kingdom. He had a good sleep and went to the government office to participate in the meeting.
The day before yesterday, Cao Youwen advanced 5 million strings of silver, and Mr. Ding asked him to make an explanation at the meeting first.
This old man is just a guy who doesn't want to take responsibility, and he is the leader of a country.
Zhao Yulin didn't bother with him and said that he, Lord Ding and Lord Li had made a temporary decision and asked General Cao to bring 5 million strings of new currency to visit General Meng Gong in Huangzhou to comfort the troops.
It is difficult for General Meng of Jinghu to get military support from the court. We Sichuan and Shu must unite with Jinghu to better defend Xiangyang and stabilize Jinzhou and Hanzhong. Earlier, when we fought the salt war with Jiangdong, Jinghu also supported Xiangyang salt, which shows that General Meng still wants to stand with us.
After Zhao Yulin gave a long speech, Mr. Ding took over the topic and made a final decision on the transportation of silver from Jinghu. The gentlemen began to discuss the topic of the day.
Seeing that they were all trivial matters that followed a routine, he nodded in approval and the meeting was quickly concluded. Li Zhongmian smiled and invited him to have tea in the back hall of Mr. Ding's house.
The old man said that on New Year’s Eve and the first day of the New Year, all the officials stayed up together for the court, prayed for blessings and offered sacrifices to the heavens, and performed the rituals of founding a country.
Zhao Yulin said that he would listen to the old man and do what should be done, but he just hoped that it would be simpler and not too complicated.
Mr. Ding said cheerfully that the masters of the Imperial Observatory had repeatedly worked out the rituals for the time of day and night, and it was already very simple. The necessary etiquette still had to be performed, so brother should stop putting it off.
He nodded and asked Feihu to call Jiang Ligang and tell him that the inspection bureau would be responsible for ensuring safety during this year's state ceremony.
Jiang Ligang agreed immediately.
Lord Ding said solemnly that there must be no mistakes, as this was a critical moment for the founding of our new Song Dynasty and the princess' wedding, a double happiness.
Li Zhongmian said that the Transportation Department has also specifically listed overtime pay increases for those participating in security patrols, and told civil servants that if they do a good job, they will be rewarded, if they mess up, they will be fired, and if they cause harm, they will be thrown into prison and punished.
Jiang Ligang's expression immediately became serious, and he promised word by word that he would do it.
Zhao Yulin felt a little amused as he watched Jiang Ligang walking away . The burden that the two old men had put on others was a bit heavy.
Seeing Zhao Yulin's slightly worried expression, Ding Gong said there was no need to be afraid. They were just trying to scare Li Gang and told him to be careful. Chengdu has been divided into four districts: southeast, northwest, and northeast. A thorough investigation is being conducted. I believe that the New Year will be peaceful.
At this time, Li Zhongmian suddenly smiled and said to Zhao Yulin that he had personally checked that the second day of the first lunar month was an auspicious day. Madam Danfeng was very happy and had already set the wedding date for the boy and the princess, which was on the second day of the first lunar month.
Ding Gong also smiled and said: "Good, very good. It is really a celebration for the whole country."
Damn, that's the key point.
Zhao Yulin almost spit out a mouthful of tea, then quickly calmed himself and said, "There's no need to be so anxious, isn't it February?"
The two old guys happily said that the second day of the first lunar month was a good day, and that was settled.
When Zhao Yulin returned home, the house was already being cleaned and decorated.
Ma Linger told him that Lord Ding and Lord Li had come to see her and asked her, as the mistress of the house, to be more tolerant and to make things decent for the little princess. She was arranging for craftsmen to redecorate the east wing where she lived into a new house.
Zhao Yulin grabbed Ma Ling, dragged him to the east room and told him not to move and to return all the belongings to their original places.
He told Ma Ling'er: Although there is no clear definition of who is the mistress of the house in this courtyard, everyone is the mistress of the house. But the sisters all know that she, Ma Ling'er, is the first one to be brought into the Zhao family.
The woman leaned on him, tears streaming down her face.
Zhao Yulin ordered the empty house on the west side to be cleaned up and decorated for the little princess to live in. The craftsmen and the family members immediately got to work.
He helped Ma Ling to sit down in the living room and said: From now on, she will be the head of the family and the mistress of the house.
