Volume 1 Chapter 43 Documents (Part 2)
The next day, which was the morning of the fourth day of the first lunar month, Zhao Jiu had just sent the Zhongshu Sheren Hu Yin and Hu Mingzhong to Xiacai City to inquire about the restoration of the inner crossing, when he met the trembling Jin army envoy Shi Wenbin and saw the letter of surrender whose intention was unclear.
To be fair... Zhao Jiu was certainly not touched at all.
After all, he probably knew more about the tragic fate of the two saints than Jin Wushu did, because Jin Wushu had been fighting for half a year, and he knew that in history, Song Qinzong was probably trampled to death by a horse while playing polo... Did Jin Wushu know?
Moreover, Zhao Jiu had no sympathy for these two people. He could not even muster any sympathy other than humanism for the entire royal family who were abducted to the north.
The reason is very simple. The country is ruined. In the two rivers (Hebei and Hedong), Jingdong, and Guanxi, millions of lives have been lost. How many families have been destroyed and how many people have been killed? Wasn't it all caused by the Zhao Song dignitaries? As a normal person who grew up under the red flag and received a class education, he should sympathize with these people... Unless he, Zhao Jiu, is so stupid and ignorant that he thinks that those dignitaries who have forced countless ordinary people to rebel are qualified to represent this country and this nation.
In fact, after seeing this document which was meaningless to him, Zhao Jiu's first reaction was to selfishly look for classic passages in Chinese history so that he could continue his imitation show of the Holy Lord and the Hero King.
However, this is where the weird part comes in - no matter what, whether he is occupied or bound, Zhao Jiu is using Zhao Laojiu's body at this time, and he relies on it to survive in this war-torn era, so he must follow the rules attached to this body. And the rule is that even if Zhao Jiu has the urge to drown the "Second Saint" in the cesspool in front of him, he can't do it, at least not openly. Even if he does it secretly, he must first brush up the prestige of the Qin Emperor and Tang Zong before studying the feasibility.
Otherwise, people in the world will only regard him as a madman, and a madman is not qualified to lead the people of the world to fight against the Jin Dynasty, nor is he qualified to be the guide and leader of this country and nation.
As the saying goes, although one's heart is devoted to the people, one must first act like a feudal emperor, so as to achieve the best solution... This made Zhao Jiu realize a new problem, a problem about responsibility and obligation, selfishness and public spirit. It can only be said that this document made Zhao Jiu think far beyond everyone's imagination, whether it was Jin Wushu who was full of pride on the other side of the river, or the Song Dynasty's civil and military officials who knelt down in front of the imperial tent crying.
Just like that, I don't know how long it had been, and the outside of the tent was still a mess. However, seeing that Emperor Zhao still hadn't left the tent, and the civil and military officials outside the tent were also somewhat tired, he couldn't help but gradually become worried... After all, when he ascended the throne in Nanjing (Shangqiu), this lord had fainted in public; and after falling into the well, although this emperor gradually became expressionless on the surface and rarely did these things, but in fact, seeing him tie up the most scoundrel Han Taiwei with a belt, feed the most appetite Zhang Taiwei with a saltwater duck, cut the highest-ranking Liu Taiwei with a knife, and squeezed the Chief Censor to tears with just a few words, you know that his skills are now becoming more and more perfect.
So in this situation, God knows what this person can do?
"The government has issued an oral order!"
Just as the civil and military officials outside the tent were becoming increasingly suspicious, Lan Gui, the chief escort of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, suddenly opened the tent and spoke in a serious tone.
The civil and military officials outside the tent were also terrified and quickly became solemn.
"The emperor said so." Lan Gui said word by word with a blank expression. "Crying from day to night, crying from night to day, can you cry Dong Zhuo to death?"
"cough!"
When they heard the name "Dong Zhuo", Lu Haowen, who was at the front, became unsteady and almost choked. The other ministers also lost their composure.
"The emperor has said that." Lan Gui waited for Lu Xianggong and others to recover, and then continued to stand with his hands folded and preached seriously. "The matter of the two emperors' hunting in the north, welcoming back the two emperors' opinions, was already discussed by Li Xianggong and the emperor when they were still in Nanjing (Shangqiu). Unless the country is strong and the military force is used to attack Hebei, it will not work! Today's humiliation by the Jin people, all ministers should keep it in mind, and then forge ahead. When the situation turns around, we will repay them!"
Having said this, Lan Gui paused for a moment, then slowed down his tone and continued:
"The emperor said that after this decree arrives, all civil and military officials must stay at their posts and return to their respective teams. In the face of the battle, they must not fall into the Jin army's trap or reveal their flaws, otherwise he will not come out in person to see you off..."
After this was said, most people outside the imperial tent were more or less relieved, and then they either cried a few times or threatened Wen Bin a few times, and then they all bowed and left the imperial tent... To put it bluntly, although the second year of Jingkang and the first year of Jianyan were the same year, after all, a new emperor has new ministers, not to mention that it was already the second year of Jianyan? Therefore, most of the newly promoted ministers did not really care about the two saints, but the rules since ancient times and the moral values commonly upheld by the people of the world were there, and they had to consider the face of the new emperor, so they had to do so.
All in all, things outside the tent soon became quiet, with only a few key officials and attendants sitting behind the curtain in front of the imperial tent.
Let me add one more thing here. Although Emperor Zhao has never publicly stated that he wants to continue the previous defense of the Huai River, it is obvious that he has this intention, as can be seen from the continuous construction of the Huainan Camp in Bagua Mountain.
In fact, after the supplies were escorted over, the entire Bagong Mountain camp had been renovated in a permanent direction... During the Chinese New Year, Lü Haowen lived in a wooden house; after the Chinese New Year, the central army tent and the imperial tent of the Zhao family in the small camp on the top of the mountain were also supported by wood; and now, the fences of the various camps below are also adding earthen ramparts and trenches, and a circle of wooden sheds has been set up in front of the curtains in front of the imperial tent! Even the huge dragon flag on the northernmost cliff of the Libei Mountain has been piled with stones and nailed with wooden stakes, and it has been completely fixed on this Bagong Mountain!
In a word, everyone knew what Emperor Zhao was thinking, but no one said it out loud.
Coming back to the present, after most of the civil and military officials had gone to their busy work, a few important ministers and close officials sat under the wooden shed in front of the imperial tent according to their rank. Only Shi Wenbin stood in the empty middle circle, trembling with fear, not knowing where his life would be today.
But after a long time, the emperor still did not come out to give an immediate answer, and everyone gradually became impatient. If it were not for the fact that Emperor Zhao's prestige had been increasing these days and the matter was too sensitive, Lu Haowen and others would have almost rushed in to ask him in person. But there was no need to do so. As the sun gradually set, Hu Yin hurried back from the other side of the river, giving everyone a legitimate reason to ask for a meeting.
Zhao Jiu, who had been lying in the tent for almost the entire day and had been daydreaming all day, heard Hu Yin asking to see him outside the tent. He knew that he could not delay any longer. In addition, he did have some practical ideas, so he simply got up and took the initiative to go out of the tent.
"Officials!"
Lu Haowen and others all stood up to greet him, with expectant looks on their faces.
"The Jin people are barbaric and shameless. We cannot lower ourselves to be equal to beasts." Zhao Jiu glanced at the bleak Shi Wenbin and was too lazy to argue with him. "Who among you can write a letter in my personal name to inform the fourth prince of the Jin Kingdom, Wanyan Wushu, so that the envoy can take it back!"
Everyone looked at each other in silence, but Hu Yin, who had always been radical on this issue, ignored the fact that he had no other tasks to answer and directly said, "I am the Secretary of the Central Secretariat, and I am taking the liberty to write for Your Majesty."
Zhao Jiu had no objection.
Anyway, writing is a basic operation for a person who was a Jinshi in the Song Dynasty, not to mention that Hu Yin himself was a famous talent, so it only took a moment for him to finish writing... According to the letter format of that year, the heading and signature were all complete, and the content was also four-six parallel prose. The language was gorgeous but not without grace, the allusions were rich but not without accuracy, and there was no problem with the stance, which was to scold and condemn the other party's barbarity and shamelessness, and demanded the other party to return the two saints as a parent and son.
However, after the letter was written, Hu Yin read it aloud in public. Everyone thought it was appropriate, but Zhao Jiu frowned for a long time without saying a word... After all, he really wanted to say directly "please give me a share of the pie", so how could he be interested in such a document?
But he knew in his heart that if he did that, he would be in big trouble. Not to mention that Lu Haowen, Zhang Jun, Hu Yin and others would die for their advice, but Li Gang, who had just arrived in Yangzhou, might even come and settle accounts with him.
So, after hesitating for a long time, Zhao Jiu finally had no choice but to suppress his resentment and take the document. Then he turned his head and looked at the Jin army envoy: "Your name is Shi Wenbin?"
"Your Majesty...I am Shi Wenbin!" At that time, Wenbin had been standing here for almost a whole day. Not only had he not eaten or drunk anything, he had also been pushed and shoved by military officials and scolded and mocked by civil officials the entire day. He was already exhausted. Upon hearing the words, his legs softened instinctively and he knelt on the ground, ready to surrender. However, he realized after he had already said this... With his current actions and identity, it would be impossible for him to become a Song citizen again in his lifetime.
"Where did you work before?" Zhao Jiu didn't know whether he was in no hurry or was unwilling to hand over the document, but he took the opportunity to ask some small questions.
"I used to be the magistrate of Yuncheng, and then transferred to the assistant magistrate of Weizhou. When I was about to serve as the assistant magistrate for the second time, I was implicated in the rebellion of Song Jiang, a former official of Yuncheng. The rebellion was defeated by Zhang Shuye and Zhang Longtu. I lost my future and was demoted for a long time. A few years ago, Prime Minister Li took power and recruited people to serve as the chief officers of the military prefectures and counties in Jingdong. Then I was appointed the magistrate of Yishui again. As a result, only one month after I took office, the Fourth Prince of Jin... led his troops south, passed the Yishui route and marched south. The magistrate fled south, and I... followed the assistant magistrate and followed the Fourth Prince." Shi Wenbin knelt on the ground and spoke carefully and intermittently, and finally told the story roughly under Zhao Jiu's strange gaze.
"I see." Zhao Jiu sighed after hearing this. "In fact, when the Jin army marched south, your Yishui County was the first to bear the brunt of the attack. Under the pressure of the army, I can't blame you..."
"I thank the emperor for his understanding." Shi Wenbin actually burst into tears when he heard this.
"But, Magistrate Shi, I can be sympathetic, but since you have surrendered to the Jin people and are doing things, you are no longer our enemy in the future, so don't expect anything in the future." Zhao Jiu continued with emotion. "Otherwise, how can I, as an official, deal with the minister you just mentioned, Zhang Shuye? You were under the Jin people's command, and Zhang Shuye died of starvation. He died when he crossed the Song border. You should know whether it is true or not, right?"
Shi Wenbin said nothing, but just kowtowed and cried.
Zhao Jiu felt powerless and a little irritated, so he handed the document over and went to do the work he wanted to do.
However, for some unknown reason, just as Shi Wenbin stood up and was about to take the document, suddenly, Emperor Zhao did something that no one expected - he sighed suddenly, then withdrew his hand and angrily tore up the document in front of everyone!
"Officials!"
The important ministers and close officials around were all shocked. Even Yang Yizhong, who had been following Zhao Jiu all day and had not said a word, was stunned.
"Your Majesty...but what was wrong with my words?" The matter was of great importance, so Hu Yin quickly bowed his head and apologized.
"It's none of your business." Zhao Jiu felt like something stuck in his throat. "I just feel that if this document is sent to the other side, it will certainly be worthy of the two saints, but how can it be worthy of Li Ruoshui, Zhang Shuye and others? How can it be worthy of the people of Lianghe who have lost their homes and lives? How can it be worthy of the 30,000 soldiers of Xiacai who are alone on the other side of the river?"
"I am ashamed!" Hu Yin was speechless.
And Lu Haowen and others could only bow their heads and express shame.
"Or don't go back?" After asking for forgiveness, the Chief Censor Zhang Jun gritted his teeth and stepped out to suggest. "To show your determination."
"If I don't reply, it will only increase Jin Wushu's arrogance." Zhao Jiu shook his head. "Please write another letter, Mingzhong. Don't use white paper. Use the silk cloth used to announce the decree. Just write the heading. I will write the content and signature myself!"
Things had come to this point, Hu Yin dared not delay, he immediately returned to the wooden shed, and in a moment he had prepared everything with the help of the eunuchs, then made way and invited Emperor Zhao to come forward.
Zhao Jiu walked forward, without picking up a pen or using ink, and without even thinking, he directly spat a mouthful of saliva that he had been accumulating for half a day right into the center of the spread out silk!
Then, in front of the stunned eyes of the civil and military officials, he picked up the brush and drew a seal of "Zhao Jiu, Cangzhou, Hebei" at the end of the signature... Cangzhou was the ancestral home of the Zhao family. Then, the official did not call Lan Gui, but went directly into the imperial tent, and in a moment, he personally took out the rather large and rarely used Great Song Emperor's Seal, and stamped it heavily on the silk under the wooden shed, almost covering up half of the silk, and completely covering up the six-character seal.
After finishing all this, Zhao Jiu folded the document, and without adding a cover or anything, he raised his hand and handed it to the Jin army envoy Shi Wenbin:
"That's all, take it!"
Shi Wenbin wanted to cry but had no tears. He could only bow his head, take the documents with both hands, and then leave in a hurry.
Up to this point, throughout the entire process, there was not a single sound inside or outside the imperial tent.
