Chapter 10: Three Talents

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Zhao Si was the biological younger brother of the original host; before he was born, Emperor Shenzong of Song, Zhao Xu, had already passed away, and by the time he reached five years of age, his biological mother, Imperial Consort Lin, had also died.

Thus, the original host was Zhao Si’s closest person in this world—without exception.

Since childhood, Zhao Si had trailed after the original host like a little tail, obeying him in every matter.

Only upon reaching adulthood were the two brothers separated, each establishing their own princely household.

Yet even then, Zhao Si still looked to the original host as his guiding star, maintaining an exceptionally close bond with him.

During the day, Zhao Si had watched in stunned silence as Zhao Yu fiercely rebuked Liu Qingjing, publicly humiliated Zhao Xu, and resolutely defended Empress Dowager Xiang. He could not fathom why his usually composed elder brother had acted so recklessly—especially since, unlike others, Zhao Si knew full well that the original host had little affection for Empress Dowager Xiang.

Zhao Si wanted to stop Zhao Yu from acting impulsively, but he was so accustomed to caution and timidity that he dared not “defy” his elder brother, nor could he bring himself to entangle himself in this court political struggle involving Zhao Xu, Empress Dowager Xiang, and Liu Qingjing.

In the end, Zhao Si could only watch helplessly as Zhao Yu performed.

After the incident passed, Zhao Si hurried to find Zhao Bi, Zhao Ji, and Zhao Shi, hoping the three of them would accompany him to petition Zhao Xu on Zhao Yu’s behalf.

Zhao Bi, a kind-hearted man, immediately agreed.

Zhao Shi also wished to join them.

But Zhao Ji said: “Prince Shen acted rashly and insulted the imperial majesty—he deserves punishment. Moreover, our elder brother has been defied by Prince Shen; if we all stand on his side, what will our elder brother think?”

Hearing Zhao Ji’s words, Zhao Shi, who was clearly closer to his own elder brother Zhao Xu, could only abandon the idea.

Zhao Bi and Zhao Si went at once to the Chuigong Hall to petition Zhao Xu.

But Zhao Xu refused to see either Zhao Bi or Zhao Si, leaving them waiting indefinitely.

Zhao Bi and Zhao Si waited outside the Chuigong Hall until the hour of Hai; only then, wishing to avoid escalating the matter, did Zhao Xu send a eunuch to accompany them to release Zhao Yu.

When Zhao Bi and Zhao Si found Zhao Yu, they saw him lounging comfortably on a temporary bed brought in, with one eunuch and two junior eunuchs quietly shooing away mosquitoes around him; the food boxes sent by Zheng Xiansu and Wang Yisu had already been emptied.

Seeing Zhao Yu eating well and sleeping soundly, with no sign of suffering, Zhao Si felt relieved.

Yet Zhao Si also felt a pang of resentment—he and Zhao Bi had been anxious and hungry all day, not even drinking a drop of water—so who was truly being punished?

Zhao Si stepped forward and shook Zhao Yu awake: “Elder brother, it’s time to rise.”

Zhao Yu opened his eyes, saw Zhao Bi and Zhao Si, and immediately guessed he was free.

“Can I return to my princely mansion?” Zhao Yu asked.

“His Majesty has shown mercy and pardoned your offense,” Zhao Si replied.

“Prince Shen must never again provoke His Majesty’s anger; otherwise, you may not be so fortunate next time,” Zhao Bi kindly advised.

“Yes, yes, yes—I’ll be careful next time,” Zhao Yu replied dismissively.

“I’m tired. Let’s return to the mansion,” Zhao Yu added.

The eunuch and the two junior eunuchs immediately stepped forward to help Zhao Yu put on his shoes.

Seeing Zhao Yu pay no heed to their words, Zhao Bi and Zhao Si still wished to urge him—never again challenge Zhao Xu, never again provoke Liu Qingjing.

Zhao Yu, unwilling to listen to Zhao Bi and Zhao Si drag him down their path, turned to the three eunuchs who had served him diligently all day and asked: “What are your names? I wish to promote you.”

All three had been relegated to guarding a remote palace, used scarcely once a year—they naturally yearned for Zhao Yu’s patronage; otherwise, they would never have gone to such lengths to procure a grand table, writing brushes, ink, paper, and a bed, and served him meticulously all day.

Seeing Zhao Yu’s gratitude, all three were overjoyed and rushed to announce their names:

“Your servant, Huang Jingchen.”

“Your servant, Liang Shicheng.”

“Your servant, Li Yan.”

Hearing these three names, Zhao Yu was stunned!

Zhao Yu had never imagined that, merely to escape Zhao Bi and Zhao Si’s nagging, he had just recruited three historical celebrities.

Zhao Yu first turned to Huang Jingchen.

Historically, during the Jingkang Humiliation, Emperor Qinzong of Song, Zhao Huan, and his court of fools foolishly believed the sorcerer Guo Jing’s absurd claim that seven thousand seven hundred seventy-seven Six Jia Orthodox Soldiers could repel the Jin army.

These so-called Six Jia Orthodox Soldiers were utterly routed upon leaving the city by five hundred Jin cavalry.

The Jin army then seized Xuanhua Gate and pressed eastward along the city wall toward Dongshui Gate.

Wherever the Jin army advanced, towers and ramparts were set ablaze.

The Song soldiers defending Dongshui Gate, terrified by this sight, lost all morale and fled in panic.

Only the eunuch Huang Jingchen held his post, refusing to flee.

At the time, Huang Jingchen, as Commander of Baode Army and appointed by Zhao Huan to supervise the eastern wall, watched as the wall collapsed and the soldiers broke.

Gazing across the city toward its magnificent palaces, he was overcome with grief and wept aloud.

Knowing he could not save the crumbling Song dynasty, he chose to leap into the flames and die.

Recall that during the Song dynasty, countless eunuchs enjoyed imperial favor.

Yet in that national catastrophe, Huang Jingchen was the only eunuch who died for his country.

His heroic act rivaled that of Wang Cheng’en, the eunuch who accompanied Chongzhen in hanging himself on Coal Hill.

In past Han and Tang dynasties, decline came from eunuchs.

Whenever they were employed, disaster inevitably followed.

Yet Huang Gong alone possessed lofty vision.

With white hair and sincere heart, he dared to speak truth to power.

He gave his all defending the eastern city, dying for the realm.

His name shall never fade, shining bright for ten thousand generations.

Zhao Yu had never imagined that this middle-aged, slightly overweight eunuch before him—thirty-some years old—was the most courageous and loyal eunuch of his era: Huang Jingchen!

Zhao Yu was overjoyed!

An eunuch like Huang Jingchen was utterly trustworthy—he would never betray him.

Zhao Yu immediately resolved to appoint Huang Jingchen as chief steward of his Shen Wang Mansion and to promote him in the future.

As for the original host’s former chief steward—who could only hoard money and do nothing else—he could be dismissed on any pretext.

Zhao Yu grew increasingly pleased with Huang Jingchen, so much so that he nearly overlooked the other two eunuchs, far more infamous in history: Liang Shicheng and Li Yan.

Historically, Liang Shicheng and Li Yan were grouped with Cai Jing, Tong Guan, Wang Fu, and Zhu Mian as the Six Evils.

Cai Jing and Wang Fu were the two chief ministers of Emperor Huizong’s reign.

Tong Guan was the supreme military commander of Emperor Huizong’s reign.

Zhu Mian helped Zhao Ji collect the Flower and Stone Fleet, triggering Fang La’s rebellion, which severely undermined the Zhao Song dynasty’s foundations and indirectly led to the Jingkang Humiliation and the fall of Northern Song.

That Liang Shicheng and Li Yan were ranked alongside these four men as the Six Evils reveals the depth of their harm and the breadth of their influence.

In truth, Liang Shicheng and Li Yan—especially the former—were no less powerful or notorious than the other four.

At his peak, Liang Shicheng long controlled state secrets and even forged imperial edicts, imposing his will upon governance. He colluded internally with Chancellor Wang Fu to jointly control the court; contemporaries called him the “Hidden Chancellor.” Wang Fu treated him like a father; even Cai Jing and his son Cai You fawned upon him. He held over a hundred official titles.

Notably, Liang Shicheng claimed to be the “son of Su Shi,” the “descendant of the Su lineage.”

Li Yan, meanwhile, ran rampant in the provinces; his “Western City Office” seized farmland with frenzy, leaving countless peasants homeless and intensifying social tensions.

Historically, to help Zhao Ji solve fiscal crises, Li Yan and his predecessor, the great eunuch Yang Jian, established the Western City Office and declared the entire eight-hundred-li expanse of Mount Shuipoliang “public property,” imposing heavy taxes on any fisherman, lotus-picker, or reed-cutter according to boat size; violators were branded as bandits. Impoverished farmers and fishermen, unable to pay these taxes, finally erupted in rebellion under the leadership of Song Jiang and thirty-six others.

Liang Shicheng and Li Yan not only provoked massive popular resentment but also embezzled vast wealth—they were unambiguously corrupt ministers.

Acquiring Huang Jingchen delighted Zhao Yu.

But acquiring Liang Shicheng and Li Yan troubled him.

Not using these two great villains was impossible—he had already promised to elevate them.

Crucially, villains were merely evil, not incompetent.

Take Liang Shicheng: he was clever, cunning, well-versed in law and administration, skilled in flattery, and astonishingly, he had passed the imperial examination with top honors—he was unquestionably a first-rate talent.

Li Yan was no less so: after Yang Jian’s death, he succeeded him as chief eunuch of the inner palace, managing the entire imperial garden, seizing over thirty-four thousand three hundred hectares of land around Bianliang, ruining countless wealthy merchants and commoners, and personally ordering the deaths of over a thousand innocent civilians—he was a ruthless man indeed.

In short, anyone who left his name in history was rarely mediocre.

By this standard, Liang Shicheng and Li Yan’s abilities likely surpassed Huang Jingchen’s.

Zhao Yu’s current dilemma: not only did he face obstacles like Zhao Ji on his path to the throne, but he also had no capable men at hand.

—The personnel of the Shen Wang Mansion had already been assessed by Zhao Yu; none were worth promoting.

Moreover, as a prince, Zhao Yu’s position was highly sensitive; he could not recruit ministers like Zong Ze, Zhang Shuye, or Zhong Sida—they were unlikely to serve a retired prince anyway.

In other words, for Zhao Yu, the best—and perhaps only—choice now was to use eunuchs.

Zhao Yu comforted himself: “Use a man’s strengths, and no one in the world is unusable; use a man’s weaknesses, and no one in the world is usable. I’ll use them to ascend the throne and seize imperial power. If they truly become corrupt ministers as in history and threaten my rule, I can always eliminate them myself—there’s still time.”

“Besides, how a minister behaves depends on how the emperor uses him. Villains are often more loyal. A ruler cannot rely solely on one kind of minister.”

With this thought, Zhao Yu suppressed his revulsion toward Liang Shicheng and Li Yan and said to all three: “Tomorrow, report to my Shen Wang Mansion. I’ll handle the rest.”

—After all, Zhao Yu was a prince; securing three gatekeepers was effortless.

Seeing Zhao Yu was serious and had immediately transferred them to his mansion, Huang Jingchen and the others were overjoyed. They knelt together and bowed as loyal retainers, crying out: “Thank you, Great Prince! We pledge our lives to serve you!”

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(End of Chapter)