Chapter 540: Negotiating a Price
Li Zhongmian also wanted to go to Xinshi, but looking at the room full of officials and investigators, he was the only one who could control these monsters. The old man bowed and said: I will reluctantly serve as the leader for Mr. Ding for a few days, but you must go quickly and come back safely.
The three of them immediately stood up and left with Fan Zhong.
People in Taijian Hall began to discuss who would succeed Meng Gong as the next deputy ruler of the New Song Dynasty.
These officials from Jiangdong valued the position of deputy director of the Central Council of the New Song Dynasty more than the officials in Chengdu. In their eyes, the director was the emperor, the ruler, and the long-lived Lord. The deputy director was a prince of nine thousand years old or eight thousand years old, and they were all dazzling stars in the court.
When Shi's son saw Mr. Ding and the others leaving, Mr. Ding appointed Li Zhongmian to take charge of the affairs of Taijiantang. He felt very disappointed when he thought that he was not even qualified to act as the agent of Taijiantang.
This guy was thinking about welcoming the old emperor back, because only by welcoming the old emperor back could his son have a second spring in life.
At the Zhao Mansion, King Zhao Feiyan was in a bad mood and refused to go to court. She sat in the pavilion, looking up at the sky in a daze. The spring sun was warm, orchids and flowers were blooming, and the tender yellow forsythia flowers on the pergola were dancing in the air, but our king just couldn't muster up the energy.
Shunzhidi went up to her and advised her to go to the office as she had a lot of things to do.
The young girl fiddled with the broken ceramic pig without moving, wanting to repair the ornament that Brother Yulin gave her.
Zhidi went up to help her, but she refused.
Shunzhidi saw the piglet that was smashed to pieces and said it couldn't be restored. Why not send it to Cuiping Mountain and ask the master in Xiaoqu's workshop to fix it for us.
Feiyan became angry after hearing this and felt very incompetent . She pushed Zhuzhuer away and said loudly: She is not a queen, she is just a weak woman, she doesn't want to be a queen. Then she fell on the table and sobbed.
Shunzhidi immediately asked the maid to collect Zhuzhuer's broken porcelain pieces and take them away.
At this time, Yangjin came in.
The woman sat down and asked her if she wanted to let Brother Yulin know that she was not capable.
Brother Yulin really values my sister, and he specifically asked Mr. Ding and Mr. Li to help her. Is my sister so vulnerable?
Our Feiyan has been the ruler for such a long time, and he has done a good job. The people of Wenjiang have sent crucian carp to our ruler again, and each one weighs half a pound. Last year, the ruler went to Wenjiang to encourage them to set up a council to adjust the land, and the people did it in one go, and they are grateful to our ruler.
There will definitely be a good harvest this year.
The grassland empire just wants money, so what's a mere two million strings of cash? We gave it to them, and the king summoned them and told them to eat and drink well and treat our relatives well. We won't pay even if we pay one less person.
Feiyan said with tears in her eyes: How can we do this? The Northern Barbarians tell us what to do, wouldn't that be giving them an easy advantage and making us a laughing stock to the world?
Yangjin told her: The deal between the Prairie Empire and us has just begun, and it is still a long way from delivery. Last year, 10 million strings of money were transferred from Chang'an to Linzhou for post-war reconstruction. It will not be used up in a short time. We have silver to pay, so there is no rush.
She suggested to Feiyan: Send a letter to the Northern Royal Court to make a list of all the people being returned. We need to examine it. It is impossible for the New Song Dynasty to accept all the orders without verifying their authenticity.
This move is called a delaying tactic. On the one hand, it can test the bottom line of the Northern Royal Court. On the other hand, it can also see how many abducted ministers are left after so many years.
Zhao Feiyan gradually regained her spirits. She took the towel handed to her by the maid and wiped her face, then looked at Yangjin and asked her to continue.
Yangjin asked her if she had anything else to continue?
Next, our king will quickly go to court to handle state affairs. The Central Council is discussing which general the king will choose to replace General Meng as deputy king.
She said that she had discussed it with Meng Gong, and the general supported Yu Jie to take over his position.
Yangjin said: "What are you waiting for? Zhidi, go and draft the document and we will discuss it tomorrow." Someone asked Yulin for his opinion, and the king said that Yulin also had the same idea.
Zhao Feiyan nodded in agreement and asked her if there was anything else.
Yangjin told her: Chengdu might be in chaos for a few days. The enemy is spreading rumors in the city to confuse people and mislead the people. They just want to create instability in our society so that the court will worry about the instability of the country and the people's rebellion, and will bow their heads to the northern royal court and admit defeat and transfer their money.
This trick is too low-level.
We should call the city's Shunfeng Division, Patrol Division and Garrison Commanders for a lecture, ordering them to perform their duties, to ensure the peace of Chengdu and the world. Anyone who dares to gather and cause trouble at this critical moment must be severely punished.
Feiyan asked her with a humming voice: What else?
Yangjin looked up at the sky and said: This is all she thought of, what else? Probably she wanted to choose a place to build houses for her father, her grandmother, her aunt, and her second aunt. These people had to find a place to live when they returned to Chengdu. Could they be sent to Hangzhou Prefecture to live in the former imperial city?
Feiyan immediately came to her senses and said helplessly: She gets a headache whenever she thinks of her veiled father. Once he comes back, he will definitely not be an easy person to deal with.
Yangjin murmured: There are still experts in the North, let them make good use of this deck of cards.
These people have not even arrived in Chengdu, but they have already made our king uneasy. If they all return to New Song, who knows what kind of trouble they will stir up?
Zhao Feiyan said that she was fed up with these trivial matters and did not want to be the ruler of the country anymore. Her elder sister was more daring than her younger sister, so it would be better for her elder sister to do the job.
Yangjin touched her forehead and asked her: Are you confused because of a cold or fever?
At the beginning, Brother Yulin said that she was the most suitable person to be the leader of New Song. He wanted her to take on the responsibility of governing the New Song and shoulder the responsibility with her father. But she backed down when she encountered a difficulty. This is not the demeanor of a leader.
Feiyan started to act helpless again, saying that she was just a weak woman and how could she take on the responsibility of governing the country.
Yangjin stopped arguing with her and told her to go talk to Yulin Ge'er herself.
At this moment, Zhao Yulin was leisurely accompanying Yuqi on vacation in Huanglang.
Wu Yuqi gave him a stack of secret reports from Shunfengsi. Only then did Zhao Yulin see that the Grassland Empire was going to return the hostages of the previous dynasty who were captured in Jiangdong and exchange them for silver.
He said with a smile: Your friend is not stupid at all. If these people are placed in his place, they will just be fed and well-drinked, and will be of no use at all. But if they are placed in Chengdu, they will be much more useful. Without your friend's teaching, they will challenge us and work hard for the Grassland Empire.
Yuqi said: Chengdu must be in chaos, Feiyan will be worried for a while.
He said that she was the ruler of the New Song Dynasty, a country with a population of nearly 100 million, and it was not easy to do it. She had to overcome this hurdle.
Zhao Yulin said to himself: The leap from the feudal dynasty to the republic has broken people's traditional mindset. It will not be stabilized in three to five years. Perhaps after ten, twenty, or even thirty to fifty years, there will still be people dreaming of restoration.
Yuqi asked him in surprise, what should we do then?
He said: Let the chaos be, it is just the right time to expose those who are restless and punish them. We must have determination and rely on education to awaken everyone. As long as the people agree with our republican governance, we will not be afraid of the scoundrels making trouble.
Chen Chen and Hu Lan came back from their trip to Ma Lake. The little girl said to Zhao Yulin with an innocent look: Her father and Master Lu have returned to Xuzhou, so let's go to Xinshi, where the town is big, popular and more fun.
Yuqi was very envious of Chen Chen's good character, which seemed to have nothing to do with her even if the sky fell, and she only cared about her own happiness.
Zhao Yulin smiled, looked at Yuqi and said: There are many rapeseed flowers in Xinshi, and the fragrance of rapeseed flowers in the air is so rich that it is intoxicating. Let's follow Chen Chen back.
Yuqi pretended to be jealous and said: Go back if you want, my brother will spoil her.
Chen Chen laughed and went over to hug Yuqi and tickled her, and told her that Master Chen Xian missed Brother Yulin, and the masters in Hongmeng Valley were all looking forward to Brother Yulin going back to help with the manufacture of new things.
Zhao Yulin did not go to participate, but took Hu Lan to Houhai to soak in the magical hot springs.
The little girl happily waited for him to go into the water, and soon she was crawling on him like a mermaid. He asked Hulan: Have you figured it out?
The woman thought he was talking about that thing, her face turned red and she said: It's so embarrassing to do it in broad daylight, let's go back to the house and do it.
Zhao Yulin was so excited when he heard this. He put his hands tightly around her waist and said with a smile: You are thinking in the wrong way. He is asking if you have figured out that you are the wife of Zhao Yulin of the New Song Dynasty and no longer a princess of the Great Mongol Empire?
The young woman's face had already turned red, and she covered Zhao Yulin's mouth with hers to stop him from making any more noise. The couple quickly stirred the hot spring pool so that waves splashed...
After a fierce battle, Hulan snuggled in his arms, breathing and gathering strength. The woman asked him: Your friend Khan returned the officials and ministers of the previous dynasty to us, which must have made Sister Feiyan entangled.
Zhao Yulin put his arms around the woman's chest and exerted force again in response, and the woman immediately hummed softly.
He said: What is coming will come, it is like a hurdle that Feiyan must step over.
Hu Lan suddenly broke free, pressed on him and said: I have been climbing the slope these days, and I have already climbed over this slope.
Zhao Yulin smiled, and the couple happily merged together.
The next day, they left Huanglang for Xinshi. Chen Chen stood at the stern and looked at the town of Huanglang from afar and felt reluctant to leave.
He said: The people of Huanglang are simple and lovely, the original bamboo houses are unique in style, and there are sulfur-rich Houhai Hot Springs, which makes it an excellent holiday destination.
Ma Lake is close to Huanglang, just like a huge reservoir with inexhaustible water energy that can be used to generate electricity. He plans to build a power station here one day so that Huanglang will be the first to light up.
Chen Chen had long heard Zhao Yulin explain the function of electricity, and was looking forward to the electric light Zhao Yulin had mentioned, which would make the whole world as bright as day. He was delighted to hear him say that.
The little woman knows that her man always keeps his word and never lies, so maybe the lamp will be lit soon.
As soon as the official ship entered the dock, Chen Xian was seen waiting from afar.
As soon as Zhao Yulin got off the boat, he asked: What's the hurry?
Do we want the master of Hongmeng Valley to come to the dock in person to pick up people?
Chen Xian excitedly told him: Brother said that trains are not pushed, and awesomeness is not boasting, our train can run happily, go and see.
