Volume 5 Chapter 38 Summer Rain (Part 2)
"His Majesty."
Seeing that Emperor Zhao was silent for a long time, Liu Hongdao thought that the other party did not know the details and could not judge, so he quickly gave a detailed explanation. "After the Yellow River turns at Fenglingdu in Tongguan, the water flow suddenly becomes fast, but it is not absolutely difficult to navigate, but it is relatively difficult to navigate in other places..."
"I understand what you mean, and I also understand the situation on the other side of the river." Zhao Jiu interrupted him without turning back. "I have passed by there several times, how can I not understand? On weekdays, there is enough space for the passage of troops and the transportation of supplies there, but after all, it is an emergency road, and it is common sense that you are afraid that it will become a key point that restricts logistics once the Northern Expedition begins... In addition, there was an old precedent in the Tang Dynasty to build a plank road and guide on the Hejian Stone Mountain, which was the backbone of the river. The Song Dynasty also had a precedent of setting up special envoys there to clean up when fighting against the Western Xia, so this suggestion came up."
"Yes." Liu Hongdao nodded immediately.
"You and Hu Yin are planning to repair it?" Zhao Jiu finally turned around and asked. "You are the Du Shuijian who is in charge of the Yellow River waterway, and he is the Minister of Works who is in charge of the overall situation. This is your responsibility."
"Yes." Liu Hong said more earnestly. "But we need to use a lot of gunpowder, otherwise we will not be able to make it in time for the Northern Expedition in the fall... The power of gunpowder to blast through mountains is just right for this purpose."
"This matter is not that simple." When Zhao Jiu heard this, he was stunned for some reason and then shook his head.
Liu Hongdao's heart also tightened, and he instinctively wanted to speak, but after glancing at the rain outside through the figure of the official, he fell silent again.
"Since you are here, take a rest for a while. I will take a look at the written reports you brought and then reply together." Zhao Jiu simply drove him away.
Liu Hongdao had something in mind, and having received the imperial decree, he naturally took his leave carefully, and then went to the back hall to rest with Zong Ying who was standing in front of the hall.
However, although it is called the back hall, it is actually Shengguo Temple on the southern side of Phoenix Mountain, which has been occupied by Emperor Zhao.
But there was nothing that could be done about it. After all, the old Wu Yue Palace on Phoenix Mountain was very narrow and had fallen into disrepair over the years. Only a sleeping palace at the back and a large hall at the front were usable. What's more, the so-called large hall was only as wide as three rooms. According to what Li Gang said when he was mediating with the villagers in Fujian and talking to the local elders about the emperor's virtues, it was only three rooms... In fact, if not for this, Emperor Zhao would not have had to hold a martial arts conference in the wild.
But now, with the continuous rain in Hangzhou in the summer of the ninth year of Jianyan, the two rows of small houses attached to the rear sleeping palace were soaked, causing seven or eight of the ten pavilions to leak, forcing the accompanying ministers and military officials who originally rested and worked here to evacuate. The nearest Shengguo Temple naturally responded enthusiastically to the call, making room for the emperor and serving as the 'back hall'.
Of course, this also indirectly shows that there are indeed many temples in the south.
However, these were none of Liu Hongdao's business. For him, living in the temple was more convenient because, firstly, the distance was not too bad. Secondly, after all, there was a mountain stream and two walls between him and the government. It was convenient for him to talk to people, ask questions, and live in peace... But there were too many crows. The entire Phoenix Mountain was full of crows. From time to time, he would startle the crows as he walked along.
Back to the present, it was still raining outside that afternoon. Liu Hongdao followed Zong Ying to Shengguo Temple to settle down for a while. After changing into clean clothes, he went out directly. He found the guard in front of the door and asked about the whereabouts of Guo Zhongxun, the reserve soldier of the imperial camp who had just arrived from Qianzhou not long ago. He asked the other party to lead the way and went to the military camp under Phoenix Mountain with an umbrella to pay a visit.
Facing a senior member of the Secret Council, and also a person who was on a mission from the Capital Water Conservancy Bureau... This mission seemed insignificant before, but it has become visibly important in the overall situation of the Northern Expedition... Guo Zhongxun naturally treated him with courtesy.
Moreover, although this visit was abrupt, it also had an explanation - as the former governor of Jiangnan West Route, since Liu Hongdao had arrived in the south, it would have seemed strange if he had not come to the relevant people to ask about the latest situation in Jiangxi.
It just seemed too urgent.
Sure enough, the two met, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then sat down opposite each other in the military camp at the foot of Phoenix Mountain. They then served tea and casually talked about the previous rebellion in Jiangxi, gradually broadening the topic. In the end, not only did the topics of conversation become more and more extensive, but because the two sides compared their personal connections in Jiangxi, and because both sides had a tacit understanding in the officialdom, they actually felt a bit like they had known each other too late.
In this way, the two chatted into the alley and gradually forgot the time. Suddenly, the sound of bells and drums came faintly from the mountains not far away, but not very densely, and there was no smell of war... How could the two not know that this was the rule of the temple. According to the weather, it might be a reminder for the monks to end the afternoon activities and go to the kitchen for dinner.
At this point, Liu Hongdao should have taken the initiative to say goodbye.
But for some reason, after glancing at the still drizzling rain outside, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War sat calmly and asked Guo Zhongxun, the owner of the military camp, a somewhat sensitive question:
"General Manager Guo, I am here to see the Emperor today. I can see that he is not very happy. But what is wrong here? Is there any trouble in Fujian again, or is there something going on in Hangzhou?"
Guo Zhongxun was slightly startled, then smiled and said, "Let Minister Liu know. I have only been in Hangzhou for ten days. Even if there is some inside information, how can I know it?"
That's the excuse.
However, Liu Hongdao just smiled and continued to ask: "It doesn't matter whether it's true or not, but if there are rumors, Manager Guo, just tell us..."
This is interrogation.
However, although the two men sat and talked like friends, their identities and status were completely different.
Among them, Liu Hongdao's qualifications, background, identity, and current assignments far surpassed the other party. What's more, for Guo Zhongxun, whether he wanted to consolidate his political foundation in Jiangxi or achieve something in the subsequent Northern Expedition, he would probably need the political resources of the person in front of him.
In fact, this was the fundamental reason why Liu Hongdao came to find Guo Zhongxun. He knew that the other party was under his control and it would be difficult for him to offend him .
Turning back to the present, after a moment of hesitation, Guo Zhongxun did not dare to offend the other party, so he smiled bitterly and tried his best to answer: "If so, if there are any mistakes, please don't laugh at me, Minister Liu."
"Of course." Liu Hongdao nodded slightly, but his attitude was obvious. "Please tell me in detail."
Guo Zhongxun saw the other party acting like this, and knew that if he didn't tell the truth, he might not be able to get away with it today, so he immediately put down the burden and told the whole story:
"On my first day in Hangzhou, I ran into the emperor who was in a rage. It happened in Fujian... It was said that Fujian had dealt with many rural fights, many of which involved the punishment of being shackled and put in public. As a result, the emperor was furious and issued an edict overnight, prohibiting such punishments not only in Fujian but also in other parts of the country... Minister Liu came here from Tokyo, so I'm afraid he just missed the news of this incident."
"Is this true? But why?"
"At first, we were also nervous. Later, when Prime Minister Lu came to ask in person, we found out that the emperor thought that the punishment of being shackled and displayed to the public was too humiliating, especially since some officials did not know the severity of the situation and would sentence the person to be shackled for several days after the execution. As a result, the person being punished could not even stand up or sit down , and could only lie on the ground like a dog or a horse... The emperor's original words were that any hero in the countryside would not be able to endure such humiliation, and they might rebel like Lin Chong because of a shackle."
"I see... This means that the government loves the people like their own children, and it also means a new atmosphere after the Jianyan Restoration... Is there anything else?"
"Also, after I came to Hangzhou, I heard some bad rumors in the local area, which were directed at the government and the cabinet... the so-called 'three hundred strings of cash, become a cabinet member; two thousand stones, and become a magistrate'... It seems that the people still have some opinions about the government using cabinet positions and official positions to collect money and grain."
"It's okay... a few ignorant people who don't know the imperial court's plans... anything else?"
"Also, there was heavy rain at the beginning of summer this year, which is said to have affected the silk production in the southeast. As a result, although the people in Liangzhe received the favorable policies of equalizing the land tax and never increasing taxes, there were not many immediate benefits. The households were more embarrassed than in previous years, and they had more complaints. It is said that even the summer tax was reduced by half compared to last year because several prefectures reported disasters."
"This is a natural disaster. Can we really blame the government? This isn't the Han Dynasty. There's no need to talk about the idea of heaven and man interacting with each other... Besides, the fact that this happened even after a natural disaster actually shows that the government's new policies are beneficial."
"Who says it's not?"
"However, I have always known that the summer taxes in Liangzhe Road are unusual, and there will be all kinds of rumors at the slightest sign of trouble."
"That's exactly what I mean." Guo Zhongxun paused and then said earnestly. "The summer tax collection in Liangzhe Road was caused by the rain, and in Fujian Road by the chaos below. In my opinion, this is the biggest difficulty..."
"Who says it's not true?" Liu Hongdao, still cupping his hands, sighed slightly. "Fujian's summer tax has been reduced by 30%, and Liangzhe's summer tax has only been reduced by 10%, but the benefits are greater than Fujian's 30%... because the summer tax in the south is for silk, and I still remember that before the Jingkang period, there were 22 routes in the world, and the silk collected by Liangzhe accounted for one-fourth of the world's total. It was really one route worth five ordinary routes... Therefore, half of Liangzhe's summer tax is equivalent to 30% of Fujian's."
Guo Zhongxun also shook his head and smiled bitterly: "The silk and silk from Liangzhe Road is more than one-fifth of the summer tax. Even the sea merchants will be affected... The southeastern commercial tax will also lose a lot this year."
"But it's still not right." Liu Hongdao also shook his head, but looked out the dark window, where there was still a sound of dripping water. "Even if the summer tax and commercial tax in Liangzhe Road and Fujian Road are painful, what does it mean in the overall situation of the country? The loss of some silk and silk is just floating wealth. Not to mention whether it can be made up by national debt or something, even if it can't be made up, what does it matter? Why does the government hesitate about the Northern Expedition? You must know that the Northern Expedition is not as simple as the three years of financial preparation... Since the Jingkang period, to this year, the ninth year of Jianyan, not to mention Yuansheng, just the government has been in power and fighting hard, it has been eight years, right?"
Guo Zhongxun also glanced out the window. After a moment of silence, he continued, "If it's not the summer tax, then I think it's the autumn tax... After all, the summer tax is mostly silk, while the autumn tax is grain... And if we have to march north, we will lose hundreds of thousands of pieces of silk, and we won't be able to make up for the national debt. I'm afraid there will be a shortage of grain, and the southeast will suffer a disaster, and we will have to provide assistance."
Liu Hongdao finally nodded heavily, and then said seriously: "So, we all think that if the emperor is hesitant, it must be because of the continuous rain and he is worried about the autumn harvest in Liangzhe?"
Guo Zhongxun also nodded heavily, and with a slight emotion in his heart, he finally asked back: "May I ask Minister Liu, how is the north this year?"
Liu Hongdao finally smiled bitterly: "In fact, there is a bit too much rain in the north this year, but what's interesting is that the north is just like the south. Although it has become a problem, it has not reached the level of a disaster."
"If that's the case, it's normal for the emperor to have some doubts overall." Guo Zhongxun couldn't hold back any longer when the topic got to this point. "And Minister Liu came here because Tokyo noticed some of the emperor's doubts, so he came to ask?"
"That's not the case. We are mainly here to discuss official business. However, Minister Hu of the Ministry of Works and several familiar commanders of the Imperial Camp are indeed a little worried. They also asked me to come and take a look privately... After all, if the Southeast can think of it, how can Tokyo not think of it?" Liu Hongdao also told the truth, because he could see that the other party also supported the Northern Expedition. "But I didn't expect that the emperor's doubts were so obvious."
Guo Zhongxun sighed slightly, and finally expressed his opinion: "The current situation is that the arrow has been put on the string and has to be shot... And logically speaking, the emperor is not a person who looks ahead and behind... But the autumn harvest is unusual, and we have status and obstacles. As long as the emperor does not make it clear, we cannot speak directly. However, Minister Liu's qualifications are extraordinary, and the current assignment is also very important. If you want to speak frankly, of course it is great. Even if you want us to follow suit, it is also natural."
Liu Hongdao nodded slightly.
And then, now that he got the answer he wanted to know, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War certainly did not linger in the military camp any longer, and he turned back regardless of the darkness and slippery roads... As for Guo Zhongxun, who quickly sent a team of people to escort him carefully, that was another matter.
Returning to Shengguo Temple in the rain, they had already had dinner, but Liu Hongdao was of low status, so he didn't even want to say a word, and the monks surrounded him and served him warmly... When he entered the room, a monk had already served him hot water. After he changed into clean homely clothes, another monk led him to the kitchen and served him freshly fried seasonal vegetables.
After the meal, there was even some fruit cut into a platter and carefully placed on the table.
However, Liu Hongdao had something on his mind, so why would he care about these things? While eating and drinking, he was thinking about how to write a letter to clarify the situation and persuade the government to put down their burdens and focus on the Northern Expedition. After thinking about it, he felt that there was no need to write a letter directly, but to ask Lu Benzhong to publish an article in the Phoenix Weekly to test the waters.
And after thinking of the idea, eating and drinking, this guy actually wanted to take more... He thought that the dry biscuits at Shengguo Temple were fragrant and crispy, and the fruits were not bad either, so he wanted to take some away for the officials accompanying him to taste.
The monks had no choice but to quickly find a cloth bag for Minister Liu to fill the food. Just as he was filling the bag... another person came to the kitchen, and the monks were so frightened that they quickly sent people to serve him.
Liu Hongdao and this man were both in plain clothes, and it was night and raining outside. Although he heard the monks call him "Sheren" when they went up to curry favor with him, he did not recognize him at first. But when he finished packing the bags and met the other party face to face in the light under the kitchen, they immediately recognized each other - the man was none other than the attendant at the gate of the cabinet, and the government had to use Ren Baozhong, a close minister.
Besides, Ren Baozhong was an old man, but he was cunning and unruly, and he was also an old Tangut dog with his hair not even in good shape. Therefore, even the close ministers who were used by the emperor wanted to make friends with him... Of course, this man was probably used for this reason... But no matter what, it was awkward for the two of them to bump into each other like this, and Liu Hongdao hesitated for a moment, but did not want to offend him at this critical moment, so he asked him a question casually because of his age, and then hurried away without waiting for his response.
Only a flattered so-called Dangxiang old dog was left standing there in a daze.
After the chance meeting in the kitchen, Liu Hongdao originally thought that the matter would end here, but unexpectedly, that evening, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War returned to his room and began to work under the window on the draft of "On the Inevitability of Delaying the Northern Expedition" which he was going to submit to Lu Benzhong the next day. He had only written about a hundred words when suddenly someone knocked on the door... When he opened the door, he was even more surprised to see that it was Ren Baozhong.
"Minister Liu." Ren Baozhong did not go in, but bowed in the corridor. "Excuse me... The emperor is beginning to hesitate, has the Minister noticed?"
Seeing that the other party was so straightforward, Liu Hongdao was too lazy to even complain about the two barbaric words "Sir". Instead, he became more energetic.
When Ren Baozhong saw the other party like this, he also came to his senses, but he did not hide it at all, and bowed again: "Minister Liu, I also want to march north, because if I don't march north, if I don't let all the Dangxiang men go out of Hebei and serve the country, the rift in Shaanxi and Ningxia will be difficult to resolve..."
If the Dangxiang men don't all leave Hebei, how can you, an old Dangxiang dog, show your ability and make further progress? Liu Hongdao finally had room to complain, but then the other party's next sentence made him completely wake up.
"Minister Liu, we are on the same side. I just saw that you are a polite person in the kitchen. Moreover, I also guessed that with your identity and mission, you must have come here not only to greet the emperor, but also to pay your respects. You must have been watching the summer taxes and autumn harvests in Tokyo and noticed the emperor's attitude... But, I have a reminder, please consider it... The emperor may not only be worried about natural disasters and man-made disasters, but he may also be worried that the court is now united and has a reckless attitude!" After speaking, Ren Baozhong turned away, leaving Liu Hongdao stunned in front of the door.
But when he closed the door and returned to the desk in front of the window, he hesitated again when he looked at the article he had prepared long ago, because Ren Baozhong just provided him with a new idea that he had not noticed before... that is, after a series of continuous purges, the court was basically full of people like himself who advocated war or longed for the Northern Expedition.
From the prime ministers, generals, and secretaries to people like myself, Ren Baozhong, and Guo Zhongxun, and down to young newcomers like Hu Quan and Yu Yunwen, if they did not advocate war and think about the Northern Expedition, or did not take the initiative to change their position and declare a Northern Expedition, they would have been eliminated long ago.
In fact, if we think about it carefully, starting from the first year of Jianyan, not to mention those who advocated peace like Huang Qianshan, even the ministers who advocated defense and slowness, such as Li Gang, Lu Haowen and Xu Jingheng, were all driven by the current situation actively or passively.
This is even more true as we count further down.
For example, Zhao Mingcheng, who had similar experience to himself but was older and more experienced, and who also fled to Bagong Mountain, could not enter any court because he could not and did not want to fight. In the court, if you don't advance, you will retreat. He failed to stand firm several times, so he naturally had to go back to his hometown to study his knowledge of epigraphy... In comparison, the saying that Emperor Zhao admired the poetry of Yi An Jushi and brought disaster to Zhao Mingcheng was simply a joke to the real high-level bureaucrats.
The same was true for the Imperial Camp Army, where some were capable of fighting, others were brave enough to fight, and at least none of them were afraid of the Northern Expedition. There were also people from Hebei who were crazy about their old homeland, such as Yue Fei and Li Qiong, and people who had endured many years of suffering and were almost dying of anger, such as Li Yanxian and Ma Kuo.
As for the so-called prudent generals, they had been purged repeatedly with the success of military operations. In the past, the Xin brothers had five governors, how glorious they were? Now their staff member Hu Hongxiu has become the governor of Ningxia, where are they? The Miao and Liu people who were known as Han Shizhong and Zhang Jun were also gradually expelled from the imperial camp.
In a sense, what the official said at the martial arts conference was that he was pushed forward, which was honest.
At this time, the government would take a cautious stance to prevent the people below from getting out of control, which could be considered a reasonable imperial strategy.
In this way, Liu Hongdao sat in front of the window, listening to the drizzle of the night rain and the occasional cry of the crows, thinking over and over again. Instead of polishing a single word, he thought more and more. In the end, he even recalled all kinds of past events that he had personally experienced in the past nine years, from the first year of the Jing Kang period to the ninth year of the Jian Yan period.
From the grief and indignation over the Jingkang Incident, to the haste of being suddenly appointed to Qingzhou, to the panic after a fierce battle with Wuzhu, to the embarrassment on Bagua Mountain, to the caution and diligence in Jiangxi, to the busyness and desire to avenge the humiliation after returning to Tokyo, to the situation today...and, thinking back to the thing I mentioned to Guo Zhongxun in the evening, that is, although there were disasters in the eight or nine years before the Song Dynasty, they were all minor disasters. The large-scale rain that has spread across the north and south this year is really rare...I am even more filled with emotion.
In short, his mind was full of thoughts and he had all kinds of words in mind, but he couldn't put anything to paper. Instead, he gradually became stupid.
In the end, Minister Liu simply lay down on his desk and fell asleep in a daze, without being able to type even a few words.
However, this sleep was not so peaceful. Suddenly, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War was awakened by a roar in the mountains, and was shocked and confused.
It was indeed a roaring sound. Suddenly, there was a rumbling sound like thunder on Phoenix Mountain. Then countless crows were startled and woke up. Regardless of the rain, they kept crying all over the mountain.
Liu Hongdao was distracted for a moment, then he immediately opened the door and shouted:
"What happened?"
However, there was chaos in Shengguo Temple. Not to mention the monks, even the imperial guards and their own followers who hurriedly stood up around the room were unable to answer.
Liu Hongdao had no choice but to put on his clothes quickly, find his attendants, call two squad leaders, and go straight to the main hall of Shengguo Temple. Although this place with many eternal lamps lit became the place where everyone gathered instinctively, it was also in chaos, and no one knew what had happened... However, it can only be said that Liu Hongdao was an official with many years of experience after all, and he knew the importance of things. In fact, he had figured it out on the way here. It didn't matter if something happened elsewhere, he was just worried that something might happen to the emperor.
Therefore, he made a prompt decision and issued an order in the Main Hall to gather the monks and guards and rush to the palace on the other side of the mountain to rescue the emperor.
Just as the minister was trying to command the monks, he looked up and saw that Ren Baozhong, the gate attendant whom he had met last night, had gathered a team of guards stationed in the temple and was heading towards the palace regardless of everything.
Liu Hongdao cursed himself for being useless. He ignored all taboos and threw the monks to Lv Benzhong, who had just arrived at the main hall and was still in a trance. Then he almost caught up with Ren Baozhong and the squad and went to the palace together.
The mountain road was difficult to travel on at night, and was slippery and muddy due to the rain. Before reaching the top of the mountain, the two older leaders, Liu and Ren, fell several times. Even a Western Mongolian prince named Toli, who was accompanying the imperial guard, hit his knee on the stone steps and was killed.
But when the team reached the top of the mountain, they saw that the palace was full of lights despite the rain, and there were many people running around asking questions and shouting. They knew that something had happened in the palace... In fact, they could all guess what had happened without even thinking. It was obviously the continuous rain that collapsed the palace... At this moment, almost everyone, including the two of them and the accompanying Imperial Guard and the Red Heart Team, was horrified.
Under the lantern that had already been broken in half, Liu Hongdao and Ren Baozhong could not help but look at each other, and they saw fear in each other's eyes.
But the next moment, the two of them completely ignored the difficulties of the rainy night and rushed into the palace with the help of the people around them.
"The emperor... where is the emperor?" Liu Hongdao arrived at the palace in a panic and saw collapsed houses and piles of materials. Covered in mud, he tried several times before he could shout out, but he was still trembling.
Maybe it was because the whole mountain was filled with voices and lanterns, and even the city of Hangzhou was alarmed. In addition, the frightened crows kept cawing, so no one answered at first.
In desperation, Liu and Ren could only shout in trembling voices while rushing towards the seemingly tidy bedroom.
"Is it Liu Qing and Ren Qing? Don't panic, I'm fine here." On a rainy night, a familiar voice came from an open space behind the bedroom, which made Liu Hongdao and Ren Baozhong feel relieved and they sat down on the ground.
The next moment, the Ziyouban class stepped forward, picked up the two men, and brought them in front of Emperor Zhao.
However, for some reason, in the brightly lit place, when they saw Emperor Zhao standing under a big umbrella, not only was he not hurt at all, even his clothes were not wet, Liu Hongdao and Ren Baozhong, who had been standing upright, both fell to the ground and covered their faces and burst into tears.
Now it was Zhao Jiu's turn to be stunned.
