Chapter 1124

Grand Tutor Wen Chenghuan said calmly: "The Princess is of noble birth; this old official would not dare be disrespectful. I merely speak plainly and hope the Princess will be magnanimous." Although his words were tactful, every sentence pointed at Qiqi.

At this moment, many officials around also stood up to support Wen Chenghuan's remarks; in fact, it's no wonder, since entering the twelfth month, Dakang's grain shortage problem has become increasingly severe, and the court has no solution. Now Da Yong proposes exchanging land for grain, giving the troubled Dakang a glimmer of hope. Matters have priorities; although everyone understands that territory cannot be easily given away, the significance of these two cities for them is far less than that of grain. Not to mention Dongluo Granary was just seized from Da Yong, and Dongliang Jun was also recently given to them by Da Yong's Emperor Yongqing as compensation. If they could exchange these two cities for grain, it would naturally be welcomed by all, and in the view of many officials, this is an extremely profitable deal.

Qiqi saw the officials all around singing opposing tunes against her, her heart grew ever more gloomy; in this vast court, with so many officials, not a single one stood up to support her—it seemed the Emperor's influence in the court remained deeply entrenched.

At this moment, Chancellor Zhou Ruiyuan stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, I also have something to say!"

The entire court fell silent in an instant, all eyes turning to Zhou Ruiyuan; Qiqi was no exception, her heart filled with anticipation. Zhou Ruiyuan was undoubtedly the clearest-minded among the officials; he should be able to see through Da Yong's scheming, oppose the land-for-grain exchange, and perhaps persuade the Emperor to change his mind.

Long Xuan'en nodded and said: "Zhou Qingjia, speak!"

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "I believe exchanging land for grain is not a bad feasible plan; for the present Dakang, it is also the most feasible means to resolve the grain shortage."

Upon hearing this, the officials all nodded; it seemed Zhou Ruiyuan also agreed with this view, meaning Da Yong's proposed peace terms had passed without any doubt.

Qiqi's beautiful eyes were filled with bewilderment; Zhou Ruiyuan actually agreed with the land-for-grain practice. She clearly had been isolated by the officials and could not stop the final outcome. Qiqi bit her lip, wondering if these officials failed to see that this might be Da Yong's scheme to drive a wedge, offering favorable conditions to exchange for cities while actually pressuring Hu Xiaotian's territory, forcing his newly developed power south of the Yongjiang River.

Long Xuan'en said: "Since Zhou Qingjia also agrees with the peace terms, there should be no mistake, issue the edict…" He was about to seize the moment to finalize the land-for-grain matter.

Zhou Ruiyuan, however, added: "Your Majesty, saying this is easy, but implementing it may prove difficult."

Long Xuan'en furrowed his brows: "Zhou Qingjia, if you have something to say, speak plainly; no need to beat around the bush—what are you worried about?"

Zhou Ruiyuan asked: "Who currently controls the two cities that Da Yong wishes to exchange for?"

Long Xuan'en blinked slightly; Zhou Ruiyuan, this is hardly a question he doesn't already know the answer to—Dongluo Granary and Dongliang Jun are both under Hu Xiaotian's control.

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "As the saying goes, a general abroad is not bound by the sovereign's orders; the Emperor had earlier commanded the Yongjiang Navy not to engage Da Yong in battle, not to garrison troops in Dongliang Jun, nor to provoke hostilities—hence Tang Bohui was ordered to lead the Nanyang Naval Village in attacking Dongliang Jun, while the Yongjiang Navy commander Zhao Dengyun remained passive, refusing to send reinforcements."

Long Xuan'en understood what Zhou Ruiyuan meant: he was saying that even if he agreed to exchange land for grain, Hu Xiaotian might not willingly surrender the hard-won towns; as the saying goes, a general abroad is not bound by the sovereign's orders—if Hu Xiaotian does not obey his commands, it would amount to openly defying the court, and his imperial dignity would surely be tested again. Although Zhou Ruiyuan's words made Long Xuan'en very displeased, he could not deny that Hu Xiaotian might well refuse to submit, making defiance highly likely.

Wen Chenghuan said: "Chancellor Zhou, you are overthinking; Hu Xiaotian is after all a subject of our Dakang—how could he dare defy the Emperor's orders? Would he dare openly rebel?"

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "If he truly defies orders, what then?"

Wen Chenghuan shouted: "If he dares to openly defy orders, then he is a traitor and rebel, deserving of death by all!"

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "What a fine saying—"all traitors and rebels shall be punished." Grand Tutor, I wonder who would go to attack, who would go to punish? He first defeated Tang Bohui's thirty thousand elite navy, then repelled Qin Yangming's seventy thousand army, snatched from under their noses the strategic stronghold Dongluo Granary, one of Da Yong's seven major granaries, with ample provisions, and the Emperor has just placed the Yongjiang Navy under his command." Zhou Ruiyuan looked around at the officials and asked: "If he defies orders, which official would volunteer to take up the banner and attack him?"

For a moment the court fell utterly silent; no one dared speak at such a juncture, everyone clear that Hu Xiaotian had now become a vigorous, growing tiger—perhaps even the Emperor could not control him, a heaven-defying strongman who had won two successive victories on Da Yong's turf, certainly not someone they could handle. Zhou Ruiyuan's words were like a bucket of cold water poured over the officials' heads; they realized how laughable their earlier discussion of peace terms had been, for the two cities Da Yong wanted were fundamentally beyond the Emperor's control.

Zhou Ruiyuan bowed to Long Xuan'en and said: "Your Majesty, I believe this is a scheme devised by Da Yong to drive a wedge, hoping to use this matter to create a rift between the Emperor and Minister Hu."

Long Xuan'en said: "You are not Hu Xiaotian—how do you know he won't obey my orders?"

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "Your Majesty, if Hu Xiaotian agrees to return the two cities to Da Yong, what will he do next? Where will he and his troops retreat to?"

Long Xuan'en said: "Wuxing Jun!"

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "I have heard that Hu Xiaotian is currently recruiting troops with all his might, training incessantly; his forces may reach over seventy thousand by next spring. I dare say this: if Hu Xiaotian harbors ulterior motives, the seventy thousand troops stationed at Wuxing Jun could unleash consequences unimaginable."

Long Xuan'en drew a sharp breath; Zhou Ruiyuan made a good point—if Hu Xiaotian were released into Jiangnan, his large army would surely make it hard for him to eat or sleep in peace; relatively, Hu Xiaotian in Jiangbei would be better, forcing him to focus his main forces on defending against Da Yong. For a moment Long Xuan'en was torn, he furrowed his brow and slowly shook his head, saying: "Let us postpone this for further discussion; I need to weigh it carefully."

After court was dismissed, Long Xuan'en kept Zhou Ruiyuan behind alone; the latter's earlier words had indeed moved him considerably. If he agreed to Da Yong's grain-for-land terms, Hu Xiaotian might openly refuse, and his dignity would surely suffer.

Long Xuan'en said: "Zhou Qingjia, in your view, will Hu Xiaotian agree or not?"

Zhou Ruiyuan shook his head and said: "Your Majesty, have you forgotten how Hu Xiaotian came to control the Yongjiang Navy?"

Long Xuan'en sighed and said: "You mean he will certainly not agree?"

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "Your Majesty, I do have some understanding of Hu Xiaotian's character; he and his father are both men of great ambition—Hu Buwei has already fled Dakang, while Hu Xiaotian now holds three cities, controls the Yongjiang Navy, and has seized Dongluo Granary; that granary is one of Da Yong's seven major granaries, with abundant grain and military supplies, so it can be said that Hu Xiaotian has already solved the provisions problem for his troops. If Your Majesty agrees to Da Yong's grain-for-land terms, Hu Xiaotian's forces will inevitably be shifted to Wuxing Jun, where he will command seventy thousand elite troops; if he intends to act against Your Majesty, the consequences would be unimaginable." He had already emphasized this point for the second time to Long Xuan'en. Zhou Ruiyuan meant well; on the surface he was saying Hu Xiaotian harbored great ambitions and early disloyalty, but in reality he wanted Long Xuan'en to feel wary, so as not to lightly decide to hand over the two northern cities.

Long Xuan'en nodded and said: "I, too, am worried about this; after these two battles, Hu Xiaotian's power has rapidly grown, and I somewhat regret not having acted earlier." Now regretting letting Hu Xiaotian go is already too late.

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "The Da Yong envoy has come, promising to lift the grain ban and exchange land for grain; in my view this may not be trustworthy—their true intention is still to sow discord between Your Majesty and Hu Xiaotian, to create a rift over this matter; if Hu Xiaotian becomes angry out of shame, it would not be surprising to see a repeat of the Li Tianheng incident, which would be of little consequence to Da Yong but would add frost to Dakang's wounds."

Long Xuan'en said: "I, too, have noticed this, but Dakang's current situation is truly dire; if the grain shortage cannot be resolved, who knows how many commoners will freeze or starve to death this winter."

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "When weighing two harms, pick the lesser! Although Hu Xiaotian harbors rebellious intent, his wings are not yet full; in the current situation he poses a certain check on Da Yong, and given Da Yong's strength, even if they tried to seize cities by force, Hu Xiaotian would still be unable to resist. However, the new Da Yong ruler has just ascended the throne, his power unsteady; in my view, after these two defeats, Xue Daohong's prestige among the people has greatly diminished, which is why he dares not launch another war. Moreover, the Black Hu peoples are mobilizing troops in Bei Jiang, and he dare not fight on two fronts, so he has adopted a roundabout strategy, seeking to use the Emperor to pressure Hu Xiaotian through negotiations. If all goes well, they can retrieve Dongliang Jun and Dongluo Granary without losing a single soldier; if it fails, they suffer no loss, and can instead use this to create a rift between the Emperor and Hu Xiaotian."

Long Xuan'en let out a long sigh: "How malicious the intentions of the Yong people!"

Zhou Ruiyuan said: "Even if Hu Xiaotian agrees to return the two cities to Da Yong, I doubt Da Yong will readily lend us grain; Your Majesty must carefully consider this matter."

Liang Yinghao delivered a bamboo tube into Hu Xiaotian's study, respectfully saying: "My lord, I have just received a pigeon message from the capital!"

Hu Xiaotian took the bamboo tube, extracted the sealed letter—this missive was personally written by Huo Shengnan. After reading it, he couldn't help but frown and whispered: "As I expected, Da Yong has launched a diplomatic offensive."

Liang Yinghao said: "How? Did they also send envoys to Kangdu?" (To be continued…~^~)