The weather is clearing up.
Phoenix Mountain seemed extremely busy. The imperial guards and the reserve soldiers of the imperial camp were cleaning up the collapsed palace. Countless envoys of local officials and members of the cabinet came hurriedly to pay their respects to the emperor, but they stopped at the level of Lu Yihao and Liu Hongdao. Close ministers such as Lu Benzhong and Ren Baozhong were also sorting out documents. Even the monks of Shengguo Temple were taking the opportunity to drain the canals and clear the waterlogging in the mountains.
Not only that, the entire southeast should be very busy at this moment, because from Phoenix Mountain you can see that in the fields, villages and cities here, there are people draining water and clearing silt everywhere to minimize losses.
At this moment, Zhao Jiu himself has come to realize that such continuous rainy weather at this time of year and in this location is most likely caused by a typhoon thousands of miles away at sea.
I just don't know if it was just the flapping of my butterfly wings.
Of course, he also didn't know that historically there was indeed more rain in the southeast region in the summer of that year, which caused a decrease in silk production and autumn harvest, but it did not reach the level of a disaster. This matter was clearly known to later generations through the memorials of Zhang Jun and other relevant ruling ministers.
Then again, assuming Zhao Jiu was a high-end historical talent and he knew about this, he might ask why his butterfly wings failed to stop the typhoon?
Without further ado, let's get back to the present. After experiencing a small storm, Emperor Zhao showed up by going out for a walk, which calmed people's hearts. He took in the scenery after the rain, and after returning to Shengguo Temple at noon, he began to try to revise the poem.
That’s right, just change the poem.
There was a sudden storm last night, and his own house collapsed. There were splashes one after another, just like frogs jumping into a pond after the rain. Perhaps because of this, he couldn't sleep all night, so the official hesitated and was in a daze early in the morning, and made a huge joke... He actually wrote a bad poem with the wrong tone and even repeated words in the rhyme.
This is not just a matter of falling short of standard. Repeating words at the end of a sentence is a mistake that even a ten-year-old child would not make. If you don't believe me, why don't you ask the child prodigy from the Lu family to come and try?
Since the words were repeated, it was not a poem at all. But Emperor Zhao was not a monk, so he could not give himself a topic. What made Lu Benzhong and others speechless was that the embryo of the poem was still there, and the momentum and style were still in line with the emperor's usual attitude. Even if others wanted to take credit for it, they could not... So everyone basically believed that Emperor Zhao had made a mistake.
Therefore, the official spent the whole morning trying to revise the poem in order to make it less embarrassing.
However, Zhao Jiu looked at the poem on the table, thought about it, but didn't know how to start... It's not that it can't be changed, just one word, for example, change "Xia Yaoshan" to "Meeting Jinchuan" or "Crossing Dachuan" and directly refer to the event at the Jinhe League and the destruction of Western Xia, and it would be roughly acceptable.
But the problem is that the Western Xia incident obviously cannot be compared with the Yaoshan incident. The most important and greatest achievement of Emperor Zhao's so-called eight years of achievements was the Yaoshan incident. Yaoshan was the foundation. To some extent, the Western Xia and Jinhe alliance was the deep-seated result of Yaoshan's battle.
Therefore, since he was describing his own achievements and expressing his admiration for the ancient sages, he could not escape the story of Yaoshan.
But then again, if we have to keep the two words "Yaoshan", we cannot give up the famous line "Looking north to the Central Plains, the air is as majestic as the mountains", because that is the momentum of the whole poem.
So, the official thought about it over and over but couldn't come up with a solution, and finally just threw the poem aside... Anyway, he didn't believe that Lu You would be able to go to Dasan Pass to defend Bashu in his lifetime. The most he could do was to guard Yinshan... As far as the current situation is concerned, no one owes anyone anything, right?
Besides, in terms of effect, after listening to this doggerel, Lu Yihao did not delay his determination to go to Hebei to "fill the ditches"? He did not stand up and say, "Official, you used the wrong word."
The effect still worked.
However, although Emperor Zhao was just throwing away his hope, it made things difficult for Lu Benzhong.
As a true poet, Lu Benzhong saw that the embryo of this poem was excellent enough, so it was natural for him to want to edit the poem and publish it in Phoenix Weekly, which could be regarded as a political announcement for Emperor Zhao.
However, on the one hand, Emperor Zhao was unwilling to make changes, and on the other hand, Lu Benzhong was reluctant to make changes without permission. However, he was reluctant to give up the poem, so he gritted his teeth for most of the day, which made this famous poet very anxious.
But no matter what, Zhao Jiu, who had given up on revising the poem, would not care about Lu Benzhong's thoughts. Since he gave up on this matter, he did not return directly to the north, but still stayed in the southeast... However, everyone could see that this official was indeed a lot more relaxed compared to the hatred and bitterness he had felt here for more than half a year.
Without mentioning anything else, in the next few days, this official led the Red Heart Team to inspect the surrounding counties many times with a light load. His footprints were all over Hangzhou, Huzhou, Yuezhou, and Muzhou, but he often did not enter the city, did not ask officials, and did not reveal his identity. He just walked in the countryside and stopped in front of the market pier.
In fact, if Hangzhou had not been aware of Emperor Zhao's trip, the surrounding prefectures and counties might not have known from the beginning to the end that Emperor Zhao had visited their jurisdiction.
After all, this was not a drama of a secret visit and a cry for justice. Unless it was some typical vicious criminal case, an emperor's handling of some grass-roots affairs overstepping the authority would often cause chaos far beyond the matter itself. And how could such a purely super-vicious incident happen to happen next to him by such a coincidence?
Therefore, this official was more concerned about local customs and inspecting the impact of the summer rain on the local waterlogging, and he had no intention of interfering in the local affairs.
Of course, there is nothing that can be done about it. Now that Emperor Zhao has been on his southern tour for nearly a year, and the new taxation law has been thoroughly implemented, the most important things for the entire southeast are to measure the impact of this rain and when Fujian will be able to stabilize.
However, this has raised another question. Some people have secretly complained that the official business has been completed, and the affairs of Fujian and the rain in Liangzhe are beyond human control. Then why is he, the emperor, still staying here? Is he really attracted by the prosperity of the southeast and doesn't want to leave?
However, the old palace of Wuyue has collapsed, and staying in a Buddhist temple all day is not necessarily comfortable, right? Or is he really a Buddhist?
However, if we really want to talk about what happened, it seems that there was something going on. Not long after Liu Hongdao returned to Tokyo, when Emperor Zhao began to make secret visits, a new session of the cabinet meeting also began. The emperor officially issued an edict, summoning cabinet members at the first level in Lianghuai, Jiangdong, Jiangxi, Liangzhe, Fujian and other places to meet at Fenghuang Mountain... The cabinets in Lianghuai, Jiangxi, Fujian and other places were newly formed and had not yet met the emperor, which was of course reasonable.
Besides, no one knows when Emperor Zhao will leave, so organizing a few more successful conferences would be like drawing a circle around the West Lake and successfully concluding his southern tour, right?
Therefore, by the end of summer, the southeast and the banks of the West Lake were once again crowded with people, especially the members of the Lianghuai Public Office who flocked here directly from Yangzhou. Each of them had a wealthy family, and this time they were in opposition to the local government and had a strong desire to participate in politics. So their arrival almost instantly brought Hangzhou City back to the situation it was in before the martial arts conference.
Even better.
Outside Yongjin Gate, Hangzhou is really being misunderstood as Bianzhou again, and Louwailou has become so unaffordable that even the locals can’t afford to eat there.
However, it was almost as if it had been arranged in advance. Just as the Southeast Pavilion set the meeting date and began to handle the relevant procedures under the Leifeng Pagoda, that morning, Xu Jingheng, the former deputy prime minister of the capital province who had gone to Fujian to pacify the local area, also officially returned from Fujian.
After all, Prime Minister Xu was a prime minister before. Now that he was back, he certainly would not compete with those members of the cabinet for the opportunity to meet the emperor. Instead, he was directly led to the main hall of Shengguo Temple by Yang Yi Zhong who came to greet him. That morning, he paid his respects to Emperor Zhao and made a report.
The conclusion does not seem optimistic.
"So, Fujian's autumn harvest is still affected this year?" Zhao Guanjia, who was no stranger to the Main Hall, asked casually under the Buddha statue.
It is worth mentioning that although this place is spacious, the emperor is only accompanied by Lu Yihao and a few close ministers at this time... Fan Zongyin, Mei Li and others are still in Fujian and have not returned, and Xu Jingheng's return seems to be specially recalled by Emperor Zhao.
"So that the emperor knows, it's not the autumn harvest, it's the autumn tax." Xu Jingheng immediately made a correction in the hall. "Armed fighting mostly occurs between clans and villages, but when these people fight, they rarely destroy production or hinder farming... I said that it affects the autumn tax, which means that large-scale armed fighting has gradually subsided, but local villages are confronting each other with weapons, and small-scale vendettas will continue for a long time. In addition, this fight was originally caused by the allocation of taxes, and in order to appease the local area, I have taken the initiative to wipe out all the taxes involved in the dispute in Fujian... So, in this case, the autumn tax in Fujian will inevitably be affected, but it will not have much impact on the actual autumn harvest."
Hearing this, Zhao Jiu breathed a sigh of relief, followed by a long silence.
Seeing this situation, Xu Jingheng, who was standing in the hall, couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
As a re-employed prime minister, on the one hand, his height allowed him to understand the core of the problem even when he was on a business trip - although he only heard some rumors on the way back, he had long since realized that the problem was in the Northern Expedition; on the other hand, his sense of responsibility and political alienation due to his identity, political stance, and place of origin made him have some complex emotions in the face of this major event.
I don’t oppose or participate, but I don’t avoid it either... I feel like I’m being pushed around.
However, as the saying goes, what is coming will eventually come. After waiting for a while, Emperor Zhao looked at Lu Yihao under the Buddha statue and asked again: "So, Fujian is actually better than Liangzhe? There is an impact, but it is mostly limited to the grassroots, and in any case it has not reached the point of disaster... Is it true or not?"
"Forgive me for speaking frankly." Xu Jingheng bowed his hands and replied sternly. "Your Majesty is wrong... Many people died in Fujian, and this incident has far-reaching consequences. It is likely to cause a feud among the people of Fujian. In any case, it cannot be said to be better than the two Zhejiang provinces, which suffered a reduction in production due to rain! The new taxation policy seems too hasty outside the two Zhejiang provinces."
"Mr. Xu is right." Zhao Jiu paused and responded with a serious look. "I only thought about the short-term impact of the two places on the Northern Expedition, but did not consider the long-term situation of the two places... This is not what a monarch should think about."
Emperor Zhao admitted his mistake and directly pointed out the Northern Expedition. What else could Prime Minister Xu say?
After a moment, the man bowed helplessly and said, "Has the government made up its mind?"
"It's not a matter of whether I'm determined or not, but if there's no reason to stop, I can only bite the bullet and do it. And the current situation is that although there are twists and turns in Liangzhe and Fujian, and there's a bit of rain in the Central Plains, it hasn't caused a major disaster after all. And since there's nothing that needs to be stopped, we, the monarch and the ministers, can't deceive ourselves and escape." Zhao Jiu said bluntly. "Mr. Xu, the 300,000 imperial camp troops will be fully staffed in the fall. Although there are many new soldiers among them, there are also Tanguts who can be recruited , Taihang Volunteer Army can be mobilized, and even Mongolian and Khitan friendly forces can be summoned, so the scheduled military strength is still sufficient; as for food, military supplies, and military equipment, although they are a little less abundant than last year's estimate, they are actually sufficient compared to the measurement three years ago... In this situation, if we don't move, we will lose our credibility with the people of the world, don't you think so?"
Xu Jingheng was forced into a corner. After thinking it over again and again, he could only bow again: "That's right."
"That's exactly what my husband said." Zhao Jiu looked at Lu Yihao again after hearing this, and then they both turned their eyes to Lu Benzhong, who already looked a little nervous.
Lu Benzhong swallowed his saliva, but immediately took a step forward, took out a piece of white linen paper hidden in his sleeves with both hands, and took it away in front of Xu Jingheng in public.
Xu Jingheng only took a look at the white linen paper and felt a buzzing in his head, then he bowed to the ground instinctively.
Besides, the Song Dynasty favored scholars and officials. Unless it was some sacrificial or ceremonial occasions, civil officials often did not have to kneel before the emperor, let alone an imperial decree?
But the interesting part is here. As a prime minister whose political status far exceeds that of ordinary literati, generally speaking, he cannot avoid the experience of kneeling before the imperial edict. Because when a scholar truly reaches the peak of his life, that is, when he is appointed as prime minister, he must formally kowtow according to established practice.
That's right, this piece of white linen paper has only one meaning to someone of Xu Jingheng's level, and that is that he is going to make a second announcement and officially return to the ranks of prime ministers.
Of course, actually speaking, even Xu Jingheng had to use hemp paper once... Because when he first became prime minister, he was still in exile, and it was basically a small court. Where would he get the real white hemp paper?
However, Emperor Zhao has always been a man of the ability to prescribe the right remedy for the right situation, and to tailor the recipe to the person... Just like when he appointed Wu Jie as the governor, he used bright yellow silk to fool those rough guys in the Western Army. This time, in order to make Prime Minister Xu feel respected, Zhao Jiu also specially found white hemp paper.
All I can say is that the effect is outstanding. As a traditional old-fashioned scholar who had rehearsed in his mind countless times how he would react when seeing white linen paper when he was young, when he really faced this piece of white linen paper, Mr. Xu actually bowed down directly.
And with this bow, some things became a foregone conclusion.
The edict was written by Lu Benzhong, so naturally he would not make the low-level mistakes like Zhao Guanjia's doggerel. It can be said to be symmetrical and elegant. However, after reading it, there was only one meaning - Xu Jingheng was reinstated as the deputy prime minister of the capital province, and appointed as the governor of Ninghai Navy, the governor of Liangzhe Road, stationed in Hangzhou, and in charge of the six routes of Jiangdong, Jiangxi, Fujian, Liangzhe, Guangxi, and Guangdong.
Basically, he replaced Lu Yihao as the Southeast Envoy, and was also responsible for the expansion of Guangdong and Guangxi.
After the decree was issued, the government also issued an oral order, that the white hemp should be pasted under the Leifeng Pagoda, and ordered several officials in the southeast to go and see it together... This was the final step in the Xuanma Ceremony... When appointing a prime minister, no matter whether there is room for objection from the people below, it must be announced publicly for show.
Under the dilapidated Leifeng Pagoda, the six public officials gathered together, and at this moment they were still making some messy speeches and discussions, waiting for the arrival of Emperor Zhao in the afternoon. However, unexpectedly, Emperor Zhao did not come, but instead got a piece of the legendary white linen paper.
And this piece of white linen paper immediately set off the entire West Lake.
The vast majority of cabinet members in Liangzhe, Jiangdong, Fujian, and even Jiangxi welcomed this with a cautious attitude... because Xu Jingheng enjoyed great popularity in the southeast.
Of course, there are some reasons that are difficult to say out loud, but everyone knows them tacitly.
However, after leaving Yaoshan, they had already left the scope of the Southeastern Mission, and the members of the Lianghuai Road cabinet who had nothing to do with the matter were about to become annoying again. Some of them even said that this appointment was actually against the rules... It was not that Xu Jingheng was not qualified, not popular, or had no talent, but that as a native of Yuezhou, Xu Xianggong should avoid his hometown.
In fact, the two previous envoys, Yuwen Xuzhong who pacified Guanxi and Lu Yihao who pacified the southeast, were both from Jingdong.
This certainly stirred up a hornet's nest. For a moment, the public offices of Liangzhe Road and Lianghuai Road were instantly in opposition to each other, and almost led to a group fight under the Leifeng Pagoda.
However, no matter where they came from, the real political experts in the cabinet remained serious and silent. Regardless of their place of origin, these people gathered in groups of three or four at the edge of the venue and discussed the situation in low voices. It was obvious that they all smelled a hint of solemnity and uneasiness from this piece of white linen paper.
These people simply didn't believe that no one had reminded the emperor of Xu Jingheng's hometown, nor did they believe that Lu Yihao was gone just like that... You have to know that although Prime Minister Lu was harsh to the southeast, he was undoubtedly a capable minister to the central government and the emperor, and was the Southeast's reliance.
What's more, Xu Jingheng's title of Jiedushi was enough to arouse people's speculation.
Or to go further, the truly smart people have already realized what is going on, but their intentions are unclear, so they dare not discuss it in depth.
All I can say is that, as expected, a moment later, Shao Chengzhang, the eunuch of the Ministry of Internal Affairs who had just returned, returned to the foot of Leifeng Pagoda with a full set of ceremonial equipment and pasted another piece of white linen paper.
The white linen paper also had four-six parallelism and brilliant writing, but the original meaning was so clear to everyone present at a glance that even the dumbest person understood what was going on.
There was no other reason. Lu Yihao got his new assignment - deputy envoy of the Privy Council, and governor of Guide Army, and commander-in-chief of the military and state affairs of Hebei East Road, Hebei West Road, Hedong Road, and Yanshan Road.
This is the so-called Grand Commander of Hebei.
This means the Northern Expedition!
How could these people in the southeast not have thought that the signal for the Northern Expedition was actually sent from West Lake in Hangzhou... Is this reasonable? Did they really mistake Hangzhou for Bianzhou?
However, after the loud bang, at the foot of the Leifeng Pagoda, in the open field surrounded by the Qianzhou troops under Guo Zhongxun, countless members of the public cabinet quickly became serious again. No one thought about the struggle with the local officials anymore, and no one dared to discuss the matter itself... When the time came, as the most representative ruling class in the southeast region, most of these people just felt terrified, uneasy, hot, and timid.
Zhao Jiu was not the only one who was terrified of the impending war that would cost him everything.
Even though there were a few passionate people among them, they did not dare to shout excitedly at this time, because the words "Northern Expedition" were not publicly stated after all. Maybe Lu Yihao was just responsible for the preparations for the Northern Expedition?
Of course, for people with a little political common sense, this possibility does not exist, because the Jiedushi of Guide Army was the title used by Emperor Taizu of Song Dynasty, just like the Jiedushi of Taining Army used by Emperor Taizong, it has a special meaning... During the Song Dynasty, the Jiedushi of Guide Army had never been awarded to anyone else, while the Jiedushi of Taining Army was recognized as the first Jiedushi. It was awarded to several people before and after, and they were all the most important figures in the dynasty. After the Battle of Yaoshan, Han Shizhong was the Prince of Yan'an and the Jiedushi of Three Towns. His first title was Jiedushi of Taining Army.
At this time, Lu Yihao, as the Prime Minister of Xifu, added this Jiedushi, which could not be led by a military man and had been vacant for more than a hundred years. There could only be one meaning, that is, to use his qualifications, character, and enthusiasm for the Northern Expedition to serve as the chief military commander of this Northern Expedition.
When necessary, the emperor needs to kill someone, even if it is to kill someone from the ten governors, he does not have to do it himself! Because there is a ruthless character who dares to kill people to do it for Emperor Zhao.
Just when all the horses were silent under the Leifeng Pagoda, as the escort Shao Chengzhang turned back for the third time, another imperial decree arrived, and this time it was directed to the hundreds of members of the Southeast Public Pavilion present.
The decree was very simple. It required the members of the public cabinets in Lianghuai, Liangzhe, Liangjiang, and Fujian who were present on the scene to select one hundred people with both talent and virtue within today based on their talents and virtues... Ten of them would be top-class, twenty would be upper-middle class, and seventy would be top-class. At that time, Emperor Zhao would appoint these people as prefects, military officials, judges, county magistrates, criminal supervisors, and those in charge of tea and salt, etc. in Hebei, Hedong, and Yanshan according to their ranks.
No one is allowed to leave the venue without permission before the election.
After the order was given, Shao Chengzhang turned back three times, leaving only a few hundred elites from the southeast to be embarrassed and lose their composure under the Leifeng Pagoda in front of more than a thousand Qianzhou soldiers.
These people's feelings are really complicated at this moment... On the one hand, Emperor Zhao has fulfilled his promise to the cabinet, and a large number of people will be directly transferred to actual assignments, and they are such generous assignments; on the other hand, this so-called actual assignment is also obviously an empty assignment!
If the Northern Expedition was successful, then let's not talk about the Yanshan Road, just the three prefectures, eleven states, five armies, and fifty-seven counties in the eastern Hebei Road; the four prefectures, nine states, six armies, and sixty-five counties in the western Hebei Road; the three prefectures, fourteen states, eight armies, and eighty-one counties in the eastern Hedong Road. These one hundred dispatches would be absolutely proper, and would not even prevent other places from following suit.
But if it doesn't work, this mission is just bullshit!
Of course, this was also the Zhao family's conspiracy, to get them to support the Northern Expedition! Even looking at the current situation, it is possible that after being selected, these 100 people will directly follow the army, which will not only make the rear stable, but also allow these people to serve in the front and be sent out to manage the local areas at any time. At the same time, it is like handing over hostages. In case the Northern Expedition is a bit difficult, it is possible that the families of these people will directly contribute their property in the back, right?
As soon as they thought of this, everyone's thoughts quickly moved to the question of whether they should go to the battlefield if they were selected, and whether it would be dangerous.
But then again, if the Northern Expedition succeeded, then the positions of prefect, military commander, assistant prefect, county magistrate, as well as the chief judge and the chief of tea and salt affairs would be futures that one could never have imagined in one's lifetime, right?
In the panic, I couldn't make a choice, and it was impossible to escape under the watch of the army, so I could only talk nonsense to express my confused emotions.
In the chaos, in just half an hour, in the afternoon, the only Yutang scholar who accompanied the emperor, who was also the eldest son of the Donglai Lu family who actually surpassed Meihua Han to become the most famous family in the court, scholar Lu Benzhong, came to visit.
He is here to guide the election.
But with the arrival of Master Lu, things changed abruptly... There was no other reason. You know, with the eight years of fighting by Emperor Zhao, there were always some brainwashed and hot-blooded people in the six public offices in the southeast, and some people who came from official households and were obsessed with their political future.
Therefore, when Master Lu took the initiative to lead the way, dozens of people volunteered and quickly occupied half of the 100 positions.
Now, among the remaining people, those who were originally considered to have prestige and influence were naturally indignant; and those who were not originally famous in the government were also envious, but afraid that they would miss this opportunity.
So, after a whole afternoon of hard work, Master Lu finally returned to the mountain satisfied with the list of a hundred people.
After waiting for a while, around the time of sunset on Leifeng Pagoda, Shao Chengzhang, the chief of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, came back for the fourth time. As expected, the emperor had given an oral order. According to the list, these one hundred people could write letters to their families, but they did not have to go home. They could directly return to Tokyo with the emperor tomorrow... Those who could not ride horses should prepare their own mules!
This was expected, but it must be said that this official had been on a southern tour for nearly a year before he revealed his rumored claws. It is no wonder that the simple-minded people in the southeast were fooled.
Not to mention that this public cabinet meeting was gathered inexplicably and disbanded inexplicably, and then how the hundred people who were selected were happy, how they were worried, how they explained to their families, and how they planned for the future... Let's just say that after working hard all day, Scholar Lu Benzhong Lu returned to Emperor Zhao's house to report his mission. He was speechless in public, but that evening, when he was packing his luggage in his bedroom in Shengguo Temple, he was suddenly summoned by Emperor Zhao, and then he received an imperial edict in Emperor Zhao's "bedroom" like a bolt from the blue.
"I... don't have to follow the emperor back north?" Master Lu instinctively looked behind Emperor Zhao, as if he felt that there was some villain there.
However, there was no one behind the official except a statue of Buddha more than one meter tall, standing there holding a flower and smiling. Turning around, there was a Yang Yi Zhong guarding the gate, but Yang Yi Zhong should have been here.
"No need to look, no one said anything, it was my intention." Zhao Jiu seemed to see through the other party's thoughts and smiled directly. "I want you to stay here and do two things for me..."
Lu Benzhong thought about it, tried to suppress his many distracting thoughts, and asked seriously: "May I ask your Majesty, do you want me to maintain the Phoenix Weekly here to maintain the morale of the southeast during the Northern Expedition?"
"That's right." Zhao Jiu continued to smile. "But you must be careful. The Northern Expedition cannot be taken lightly. After I leave, Phoenix Weekly is not allowed to have any romantic discussions. You must be strict..."
"yes."
Lu Benzhong bowed his head quickly... Although Lu felt that this assignment was a bit of a waste of talent, it was a direction he could think of after all, and it was also his past business, so he felt relieved. "Then may I ask the emperor, the second thing is that I should keep in touch with the emperor at any time to report the public opinion in the southeast?"
"Of course not." Zhao Jiu smiled again. "This kind of thing is a given, why would we need to specifically explain and assign it?"
Lu Benzhong nodded quickly and waited for instructions.
"The second thing is also simple." Zhao Jiu continued to smile at his own internal order in front of the Buddha's lotus platform. "I will leave you a team of soldiers in Phoenix Mountain... If there is any rumor that I am not harmonious in Hebei, you will personally lead the soldiers to the Dongxiao Palace not far from here to deal with Yuan Sheng."
Lu Benzhong nodded quickly, but was immediately stunned, then dumbfounded, and finally broke out in a cold sweat at the smile of Emperor Zhao.
As the saying goes, I dare not agree, nor do I dare to refuse. It's like a thorn in my throat and I'm walking on thin ice.
After a while, he managed to muster up the courage to confront him: "Your Majesty, I dare not say whether this is right or wrong... But if Your Majesty wants to do this, why not let Ren Bao Zhongren stay in Fenghuang Mountain? Even if it is General Yang... Any centurion under General Yang can do it, right? And I am just a scholar... Besides... Besides, Your Majesty has already arranged for his offspring, and the prime ministers in Tokyo are of one mind, so the two saints are not worth mentioning at all, right?"
"Mr. Lu." Emperor Zhao smiled. "You are right... The two saints are not worth mentioning. How can a scholar like you do this as well as Ren Baozhong, or even a crude soldier? But I ask you, if that's the case, why do I still keep you here to prepare for this?"
Lu Benzhong became more and more frightened after hearing this. On the one hand, his intelligence reminded him that there was a huge, serious mystery concerning life and death hidden in the official's words; on the other hand, his mind was like a paste and he couldn't sort it out for a while.
"Forget it, I'll just say it straight." Zhao Jiu could only sneer at this. "First... the Second Saint is certainly not worth mentioning, but there are still risks, especially the Supreme Emperor Yuansheng. Many people say that he was incompetent during the Jingkang period, but not immoral... I should take precautions, right?"
"Yes... yes!" Lu Benzhong took a lot of effort to utter this word.
"Secondly, compared to the Supreme Emperor Yuansheng himself, I am more worried that the old ministers of Jingkang, or the so-called old party, will make a comeback after I am in trouble... so that the second Northern Expedition will become a fantasy." Zhao Jiu finally sighed, but still smiled. "And if these people return, who do you think will be the target of their comeback?"
"Taishang Yuansheng... no, Xu, Mr. Xu..." Lu Benzhong blurted out, but quickly corrected himself.
"It's Xu Xianggong." Zhao Jiu nodded. "In fact, you and I only know during this southern tour that these so-called southeastern people, from the old party to the Taoists, and then to the local scholars, are completely in a mess, without a leader or rules. It is only because I established the public cabinet that these people can gather together and have a place to talk... In this case, if I don't appoint Xu Xianggong this time, these people may go to find Liu Dazhong and follow Zhao Ding's path. Even those Taoists will have to look at the situation in the court and find someone to raise the banner of Taoism again... But since I have appointed Xu Xianggong and customized a three-level public cabinet for them, if something happens to me and the Northern Expedition fails, they will naturally use the public cabinet as a system to unite to Xu Xianggong's side, forming a real opposition, and then they may shake the court situation."
Lu Benzhong was still confused: "If that's the case, the emperor can just dismiss Xu Xianggong and not use him, or abolish the cabinet and cut off their foundation, what do you think?"
"Mr. Lu, you must know that I set up a public cabinet in the southeast, basically to appease the southeast and implement new policies, and the implementation of new policies is to reduce the burden on the people so that they will not be crushed by the Northern Expedition; I appointed Xu Xianggong, basically because of his experience in the central government, political talent and popularity in the southeast... These are all upright and open, and they are all for the Northern Expedition to have a better chance of success!" Zhao Jiu shook his head and smiled. "Do you think that I set up the public cabinet and appointed Xu Xianggong for some conspiracy from the beginning?"
Lu Benzhong was stunned on the spot.
"Mr. Lu, how could I not know that what I asked you to do was a secret? But the problem is that we were all open and aboveboard for the Northern Expedition. Although the Northern Expedition is the general trend, is it a sure thing?" Zhao Jiu continued to shake his head and smiled. "What I said at the beginning was that if the Northern Expedition fails, I can't come back, and our upright situation will collapse... At this time, someone has to come out to do these bad things for me."
"Your Majesty." When Lü Benzhong heard this, he didn't know whether he realized the three words "I can't come back" or because he was forced by the emperor, but tears came down. "I'm really not shirking my responsibility... Your Majesty's kindness and respect for our Lu family, not to mention me, even our whole family should go through fire and water for you... But this matter, this matter is really unbelievable. Not to mention my incompetence, even Minister Xu is actually a loyal minister. He will never support the Supreme Yuansheng Emperor just because of some old favors during the Jingkang period."
"Yes, he is a loyal minister, and so are you... so is your father, Prime Minister Lu!"
Zhao Jiu looked at the other party with emotion for a while, and finally put away the smile that had frightened the other party, but the next words directly froze the other party. "But Lu Qing, haven't you figured it out yet? These people in the southeast are not capable of breaking away from the government system and starting a new one. If they take Liu Dazhong as their leader, they will eventually be under the jurisdiction of Prime Minister Zhao Ding, but if they take Xu Xianggong as their leader, they will inevitably respect your father as a distant leader... Even if your father is also a loyal minister and is unwilling to get involved, the people promoted by your father when he and Xu Xianggong were in power together will still gather together and respect the two of them. As for the fact that I must let you deal with the Supreme Abyss Saint Emperor, think about it, since the Supreme Abyss Saint is not important, then who is important? In other words, what is important in this matter?"
Lu Benzhong was staggering and could hardly stand.
Because Emperor Zhao has made the logic and the answer very clear... If the Northern Expedition fails and Emperor Zhao cannot return, then the opposition will inevitably form a real reactionary political force in the southeast along the cabinet. Once a political force is formed, it will naturally form a party with southeastern giants such as Liu Dazhong and Xu Jingheng, leading to the country's return to compromise and peace talks.
And in this process, Liu Dazhong will basically be connected to Zhao Ding, and behind Xu Jingheng, he will basically be connected to his own father, the former prime minister, and the first minister of the Restoration, Lu Haowen!
He didn't know how the emperor arranged the line between Liu Dazhong and Zhao Ding, but for the line between Xu Jingheng and his father, the emperor wanted him, Lu Benzhong, to destroy it with his own hands. As the eldest son of Prime Minister Lu, under the rule of Prime Minister Xu, he disposed of the Supreme Yuansheng Emperor for the emperor in the heart of the southeast. Naturally, the political appeal of Lu and Xu would collapse in an instant.
By then, even if the Southeast Public Cabinet wanted to form a powerful opposition political force again, it would not be possible so quickly.
This political arrangement was cruel, shameless, and even incredibly unreasonable... But Lu Benzhong could not feel angry, nor did he feel any sense of betrayal, because he knew very well that this was just an arrangement under extreme circumstances, an arrangement based on the fact that the official on the opposite side encountered great misfortune.
For an emperor to ask his subject to do something so absurd and impossible as a way of instructing him on his affairs after his death, something that can only be accomplished by his own self-consciousness... is helpless in itself.
In fact, it seems to be somewhat honest and upright.
"Lü Qing."
Under the candlelight, after a long time, Zhao Jiu finally called out to the other party softly.
"I'm here." Lu Benzhong bowed his head in response.
"Don't laugh at me."
"I dare not."
"I clearly said that after my death, I don't care what happens. But you still couldn't help but make such a secret plan after my death, and you want you to destroy your own future with your own hands..."
"It is I who cannot share your worries. I know in my heart that if I had any real ability apart from my father and family, I would have gone to the front with you long ago. Only things like this that require my family can be of some use." Lu Benzhong bowed to the bottom. "Even this matter, you don't have to tell me. Given my stupidity in government and military affairs, you could have just asked General Yang to arrange someone, or simply let Ren Baozhong stay in Phoenix Mountain, and then push the responsibility on me... Your Majesty is willing to tell me, which means that you are considering my feelings as a monarch and a minister."
Zhao Jiu was silent for a moment, avoiding the topic: "In that case, you don't have to answer. Remember what I said today. When the time comes, it depends on the situation. It doesn't matter whether you are willing to do it or not. Anyway, I don't know... Let's go back today!"
When Lu Benzhong heard this, he couldn't help himself and almost agreed on the spot... but he gritted his teeth and held back, lowered his head and walked out.
After the people left, it was a long time before Zhao Jiu spoke: "What do you think?"
"I dare not say..." Yang Yizhong, who was standing in front of the door, turned inside and bowed. "I really don't know, but there is no need to say. I have always felt that although this Northern Expedition is not a sure thing, it is enough to achieve results and then preserve it, so it won't have to come to this point."
Zhao Jiu, who was standing under the Buddha statue, shook his head repeatedly: "To be frank, what I said just now is useless. It only shows that I am afraid in my heart... Since the rain in early summer, when I considered that the Northern Expedition was just around the corner, I began to be afraid... That's why I pushed this irrational, unwise, and even unjust thing on him."
"The government is afraid of defeat?"
"At first I was afraid of defeat. After the house collapsed, I made up my mind, but then I became afraid of something else." Zhao Jiu was still honest with Yang Yizhong. "I should be a hero when I live and a hero when I die. I still miss Xiang Yu, who refused to cross the Yangtze River... If I lose, eight years of hard work will be destroyed in an instant. After ten years of hard fighting, I can't recover the land. How can I cross the river and come back? What I am afraid of now is the aftermath of defeat..."
Yang Yizhong instinctively wanted to persuade him, but he didn't know where to start.
"Zhengfu." Zhao Jiu thought for a moment and finally sighed again. "Do you still remember what I said to you on Mount Bagong that day?"
"Excuse me, I don't know which sentence you meant?" Yang Yi Zhong asked quickly.
"I say...if the Jurchens cross the river and can't escape, I want you to end it for me." Zhao Jiu sneered in response.
"Yes... Your Majesty...but this is a different time." Yang Yi Zhong was very anxious.
"I know, this is a different time." Zhao Jiu said with a sigh. "So, the order I give you this time is the opposite of that time... If this Northern Expedition fails, I am ashamed to turn back, and you have to tie me up and take me back to Henan... Then do it again for another eight years! Do you understand?"
"I understand!" Yang Yizhong bowed his head and accepted the order, feeling relieved.
A night of silence ended the next morning. Emperor Zhao had long forgotten the unforgettable worries of the previous night. On the contrary, the emperor, who had just made up his mind to march north in the southeast, showed an extremely enthusiastic attitude towards the people of the southeast . He took a hundred reserve Hebei officials from the southeast, left Guo Zhongxun and his army behind, and only took a thousand or so imperial guards. He went into battle lightly and left Phoenix Mountain, where he had been stationed for almost a year, and headed north that day.
Because the number of people accompanying him was greatly reduced and the places along the way were sufficient to supply logistics, Emperor Zhao returned very quickly this time.
On the first day of July, just as Lü Benzhong could no longer resist and secretly revised Zhao Guanjia's poem "Departing to the War to Show His True Fame" and published it in the "Phoenix Weekly", the great poet Zhao Guanjia crossed the Yangtze River from Guazhou.
Arrived in Huaidian on July 15th.
On July 25, he once again left behind some of his subordinates and troops and rushed to Nanjing (now Shangqiu).
At this time, without waiting for the envoy from Tokyo to greet him, Yue Fei, who was stationed in the north, took the lead in publicly submitting a letter of greetings, and at the same time asked about the drought and floods in Liangzhe and the unrest in Fujian.
Emperor Zhao immediately responded publicly that the southeast was safe and asked whether the military equipment in Jingdong was appropriate.
After the envoys came and went, it was said that because of the autumn harvest, Emperor Zhao started from Nanjing on the first day of August, but he and Lu Yihao followed him slowly to Tokyo, and they traveled no more than 20 miles a day. At this time, the prime ministers of Tokyo and the generals of various places had already known about the previous interaction between Yue Fei and the emperor, and they also came to express their greetings, saying that the warehouses were sufficient, the roads were repaired, the weapons were sufficient, and the morale was high.
In the end, it was Li Qiong who officially said that sentence, which was "Please divide the troops to the left and right of Taihang Mountain to recover the homeland of the two rivers."
In response to this, Emperor Zhao continued to slowly return to the capital, but at the same time he publicly issued edicts to refute it continuously, telling all ministers and military commanders that important military and national affairs must not be divorced from reality or exaggerated without authorization.
At the same time, data from the Privy Council, the Imperial Camp, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Works were sent along the way, pointing out that in the current situation, only the roads and warehouses were properly repaired, and the rest, such as the 300,000 soldiers in the Imperial Camp were just full, and many of the new recruits were undertrained; armor and weapons were slightly short of the full quota, and the livestock were not fat and strong enough; among the allies, only the Khitan and Western Mongolia had publicly promised to send troops from Yinshan, and Japan was willing to send a samurai to accompany the emperor to express its position, while Eastern Mongolia had not made up its mind, and the Koreans were indecisive and refused to answer; another example was that the naval ships were not harmonious and were not enough to launch an independent battle; and the grain storage was not enough for one year's military use, and they had to wait until after the autumn harvest to check the data before they could feel at ease.
Immediately afterwards, the emperor publicly sent out envoys to commend the Minister of Works Hu Yin, the Minister of Revenue Lin Jingmo, the Imperial Camp Commander Wang Yan, the Imperial Camp Front Army Commander Yue Fei, and the Imperial Camp Central Army Commander Li Yanxian for their excellent preparations. He also criticized the Deputy Envoy of the Privy Council Chen Gui for insufficient military equipment, the Imperial Camp Rear Army Commander Wu Jie for his messy accounts, the Imperial Camp Right Army Commander Zhang Jun for doing nothing and failing to train his troops diligently, and the Imperial Camp Naval Army Commander Zhang Rong for fighting on the river in the previous summer, wasting military funds.
The journey was more than 260 miles, and it took Emperor Zhao 14 days to walk. Even Guo Zhongxun's troops behind him were caught up during this period and stationed directly in Qingcheng, south of Tokyo. Fan Zongyin, Yu Yunwen, Mei Li and others also gradually caught up... and all the memorials, replies, commendations and reprimands along the way were published in the court bulletin. People all over the world, not to mention the Song people, even the Jurchens and Goryeo people could see it clearly.
On August 14, the ninth year of Jianyan, Emperor Zhao once again returned to his loyal Tokyo City. However, after a year, he passed through the city without entering it, but went directly to the Yuetai Camp in the west of the city, and presided over the Mid-Autumn Festival on the second day of August.
After the Mid-Autumn Festival, it is time to hold the imperial examinations to select scholars.
This time, Emperor Zhao did enter the city. In the palace examination, he asked a question about how to appease the four routes of Hebei after the Northern Expedition... namely, Hebei East Route, Hebei West Route, Hedong Route, and Yanshan Route.
He even nominated Zhang Jiucheng, who was allowed to take part in the palace examination as an exception, as the top scorer.
Then, within a few days after the palace examination, the official stayed in the harem and stayed there all the time. It was said that he mostly enjoyed family happiness with his two concubines, princesses and princes.
But this kind of life did not last long. On the last day of August, the emperor held a public banquet in Gyeongbokgung Palace to invite the three queens to watch the new play "The Palace of Eternal Life". At the beginning of September, a large court meeting was held, and the government directly announced that there would be no limit on the Northern Expedition bonds, which would be sold simultaneously with the price of money, silk and grain. At the same time, twelve scholars including Lou Zhao, Zhang Tao and Wang Jin, and twelve secretaries including Zong Ying, Su Bai and Li Tao were sent to the various armies and departments of the imperial camp to serve as liaisons.
On the afternoon of that day, Emperor Zhao, who had only stayed in Tokyo for half a month, went out of the city together with the Hebei Grand Commander Lu Yihao, the Imperial Camp Commander Wang Yan and many close ministers who had already joined them, and began to patrol along the Yellow River as they did in previous winters.
This action made the Jurchen army in Hebei unable to bear it any longer. Under the command of the two military headquarters in Daming Prefecture and Longde Prefecture, tens of thousands of Jurchen troops began to dispatch and respond.
On both sides of the Yellow River, there was a moment of panic and every tree and grass looked like an enemy.
"Prime Minister Qin is from the south. What do you think, is the Zhao Song government just bluffing this time, or is it really going to send troops?"
In the Shangshutai of Yanjing, it was a clear autumn day with few clouds and no rain. However, as the King of Liao and the Grand Tutor and Prime Minister Wanyan Oben frowned and asked questions, Qin Hui could not help but shiver.
But I don’t know what I’m afraid of?