[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-shao-song":3,"chapter-shao-song-shao-song-chapter-110":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Shao Song",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1558276,2024,"Chapter 110: Return to the City (Continued)","shao-song-chapter-110",110,"\u003Cp>The Hermit Wang said he could transmute lead into gold—that was quite intriguing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Which 'gold' does Hermit Wang specialize in refining?\" the Emperor let out a dry laugh, momentarily baffled, suspecting the man was being deliberately obscure with hidden meaning. \"Is it the gold of weapons, meaning you have new arms to present? Or the gold of the Jin army, meaning you have a strategy to deal with them? Whatever it is, speak up—I will not stint on rewards.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Hermit Wang, upon hearing the Emperor's words, seemed at a loss instead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just then, Wang Shuzhan, the Chief Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, perhaps sensing the Emperor's confusion, stepped forward to explain: \"Your servant, Chief Minister Wang Shuzhan, ventures to report. I have seen with my own eyes that this Hermit Wang can use an unusual method to turn cinnabar into gold, and it is unquestionably genuine gold... And in my view, during the Jingkang disaster, the Jin were rapacious, stripping the Eastern Capital of all gold and silver while discarding copper coins. Now, not only in Nanyang but throughout the realm, gold and silver are scarce. Hermit Wang's skill meets this need. If it could be promoted and widely applied, it would suffice to relieve the whole empire.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Emperor fell silent for a moment, lost in thought, but in any case, he did not curse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, the other councilors and senior ministers reacted... Lü Haowen looked embarrassed and lost color; Yuwen Xuzhong covered his face and turned away; Xu Jingheng nearly flushed with rage but forced himself to hold back after glancing at his close colleagues Lü Haowen and Wang Shuzhan; Wang Boyan remained composed, happy to watch the Eastern Administration's embarrassment—today the Emperor had returned in triumph, the Bureau of Military Affairs had merit and no fault, so he was glad to spectate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Below the four councilors, Zhang Jun, the Censor-in-Chief who held a rank equivalent to half a councilor, reacted swiftly, immediately turning to stare at Li Guang and Hu Yin beside him, clearly signaling the two Palace Censors to read the room and not stir up trouble—if they wanted to impeach, they could do so after returning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, from the Emperor down, everyone in the know had woken up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But with such matters, those who understood truly understood, and those who believed truly believed. While the Emperor and the councilors were rendered speechless by this farce, under the urging and encouragement of Chief Minister Wang Shuzhan, the Hermit Wang reluctantly began a public demonstration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing a pile of jars, pots, and a furnace brought up, and then the Hermit Wang actually roasting cinnabar in a sealed alchemical furnace to extract mercury... The Emperor came to his senses, wanting to kill someone, yet he knew that by the technological standards of the age, the old man and Wang Shuzhan were hardly guilty of a capital crime, perhaps not even guilty at all. He wanted to stride forward and kick over the alchemical apparatus, but he had to consider that mercury vapor was highly toxic. More importantly, this was a ceremony carefully prepared by Lü Haowen with good intentions—the civil and military officials, as well as specially selected talents from Jingxi and the two Huai circuits, were all watching with curiosity. He had to preserve some face for the innocent Councilor Lü and this already tarnished Great Song!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To put it bluntly, even popular science was hard to do at a time like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With this thought, the Emperor could only have Feng Yi move his chair back and then order everyone except Wang Shuzhan and the Hermit Wang to stand farther away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sun had shifted slightly westward, and the Emperor, following the man's steps, had long guessed his method—burn cinnabar to produce mercury, then use some sleight of hand to secretly add something containing gold ore or ready-made gold leaf, dissolve the gold in the mercury, and finally distill off the mercury, leaving the gold behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The counterintuitive part here was that almost everyone in this era found it hard to understand that gold, representing the utmost stability, could be dissolved by mercury, a liquid that could be directly evaporated... And in the traditional Eastern feudal age, apart from alchemists seeking immortality, few people ever encountered both liquid mercury and gold simultaneously. Mercury itself was generally only produced by these mysterious figures and then commonly used for funerary and other esoteric purposes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, watching the Hermit Wang pour clean mercury into a clean white porcelain basin, then place it in a special ceramic vessel with a strange tube for distillation, and finally retrieve both the mercury and the gold, several councilors were fucking shaken! As for Feng Yi, Yang Yizhong, and the others nearby—no matter how sharp, clever, or worldly they usually were—they too faltered in the face of this... These eunuchs and generals were simply dazed, unable to take their eyes off the gold and the apparatus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, the Emperor felt he had encountered the greatest insult to his intelligence in his life—even the time he first went to college and a woman holding a child at the train station took ten yuan from him was less absurd than this... Yet for the sake of the bigger picture, he couldn't expose it!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because during the Hermit Wang's alchemical process, the Emperor had already discussed the matter with Lü Haowen and Councilor Xu Jingheng, who had secretly passed him a note, and they had decided on the final resolution.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Someone, bestow upon Hermit Wang ten bolts of silk and ten bushels of grain as recognition. Then take these implements, along with this gold and this... what?\" The Emperor swallowed the word 'mercury' and pointed at the bottle of liquid, looking at Wang Shuzhan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Spiritual liquid,\" the more learned Chief Minister Wang quickly educated the Emperor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, spiritual liquid,\" Zhao Jiu said, suddenly enlightened, and then finally spoke the word with renewed severity. \"Take these implements, the gold, and the spiritual liquid, and sink them all into the Baihe River! I would rather lose the realm than use such false things to deceive the people of the world!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those around were momentarily stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Jingheng quickly stepped forward and said solemnly, \"Your Majesty's action truly displays the bearing of a sovereign!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Councilor Xu,\" the Chief Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices said, panicked and confused, apparently not feigning it. \"This is real gold!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Gold for whom to use?\" Xu Jingheng turned and said coldly. \"For paying the troops or rewarding the officials? I do not know if this gold is real or fake, but regardless, if Your Majesty accepts these implements today, will the people of the world ever trust the gold Your Majesty gives out in the future?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Shuzhan was left speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As for this Hermit Wang, take your reward and return to your hometown to live,\" Zhao Jiu continued, his face stern, leaving no room for the officials to interject.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yang Yizhong, what are you doing?!\" Wang Boyan, knowing that the Emperor still intended to protect Lü Haowen, immediately put on a stern face and pointed at the still-dazed Yang Yizhong, scolding him repeatedly. \"As the Commander of the Imperial Guard, did you not hear the Emperor's oral decree?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yang Yizhong hurriedly responded and stepped forward to throw away the items.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Smash those jars first before throwing them away,\" the Emperor added with a slight sigh. \"As for Chief Minister Wang, since you recommended the man, you shall escort the Hermit Wang back properly.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yang Zhengfu and Chief Minister Wang were each helpless. The former quickly grabbed a hammer from the guards and smashed the implements before the Emperor and the officials, while the latter, sweating profusely, could only drag the distressed Hermit Wang to bow in thanks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For some reason, the surrounding officials and the gathered talents from Jingxi and the two Huai circuits all breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And so, the farce came and went in a hurry. The Emperor sighed, forced himself to cheer up and console the officials and the talents from Jingxi and the two Huai circuits who were meeting him for the first time, promising a public palace examination in a few days, before mounting his horse and returning to the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once inside the city and the palace, the officials dispersed, but the Emperor was inevitably busy again. First, he sent Academician Lin to deliver an edict to comfort Lü Haowen with kind words, then had the eunuchs distribute the yellow plum wine sent from the southeast to the various councilors, close ministers, and generals of the Imperial Army's central corps, including Han Shizhong and Li Yanxian, with whom he had recently exchanged messages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That wasn't all. After these people had left, the Chief Eunuch Lan Gui came forward to report.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did Zhao Jiu learn that Nanyang had indeed become quite lively in recent days. Besides those who had come for the selection, many other miscellaneous people had also gathered in Nanyang recently, drawn by its stability and its stores of grain, wealth, and troops... As Chief Eunuch, Lan Gui naturally had to report on matters involving the palace and significant events within Nanyang city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the Emperor, some of these were pure nonsense, while others were hard to put out of his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Su Shi's grandsons have all come?\" Zhao Jiu was momentarily stunned. \"To petition for the restoration of their grandfather's reputation?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes,\" Lan Gui said cautiously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jiu frowned slightly... Su Shi had been branded a member of the Yuanyou faction by Cai Jing, and of course his reputation should be rehabilitated, but for this to happen now was clearly someone's deliberate attempt to build momentum, as this was also one of the notes he had left for Lü Haowen and others before he left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, just as the schemers had anticipated, the Emperor had no reason not to grant the rehabilitation, if only out of respect for the name Su Shi. Grand Academician Su was a figure of celestial stature, not limited to a single Song dynasty... He just wondered who was in such a hurry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I understand,\" Zhao Jiu said casually. \"Anything else?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Recently, the Lady Yi'an and her husband, Minister of Rites Zhao Mingcheng, are privately seeking a divorce. Many are saying this is due to Your Majesty's harshness,\" Lan Gui continued cautiously, reporting in a low voice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let them say I'm harsh,\" Zhao Jiu said, already quite weary after half a day of military affairs and the commotion at the western city. He was completely indifferent to such news. \"It's not like I did more than borrow a few lines of the Lady Yi'an's poetry, making it seem as if I were deliberately mocking Zhao Mingcheng... When this blows over, remember to bestow a gift on the Lady Yi'an in my name, to express my gratitude.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lan Gui seemed about to speak but ultimately said nothing more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Lan Gui withdrew, Feng Yi came up again: \"Your Majesty, Ma Xingzu, the younger of the two Mas—the finest painters in the old Eastern Capital palace—has found his way to Nanyang. His father, the elder Ma, Ma Ben, perished in the Jingkang disaster. Your Majesty has a rule for the palace, forbidding the arbitrary filling of positions...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If he was originally a palace person, then take him under your charge,\" Zhao Jiu said, having heard a jumble about Mas but understanding that a court painter had arrived, and growing increasingly unconcerned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Also, several imperial physicians have arrived upon hearing the news,\" Feng Yi continued softly. \"I, as the director of the pharmacy, have taken the liberty of keeping them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jiu suddenly became serious: \"None of them burn cinnabar, do they? Let me make this clear to you—if anyone dares to paint cinnabar on this shabby house of mine, every single one of them will be sent to Jiaozhou!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Understood...\" Feng Yi hurriedly replied, then quickly explained. \"Rest assured, Your Majesty. The physicians who have come are all specialists in their fields, not charlatans like that one today. For instance, Peng Shi specializes in pediatrics; and Wang Jixian specializes in male and female disorders...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jiu slowly nodded, but then felt something was off: \"If that's the case, shouldn't these two be sent to Yangzhou?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Feng Yi bowed his head and said nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Emperor was stunned for only a moment before suddenly realizing, then looked around the hall and pointed at one of them with a cold laugh: \"I said I wanted someone who could serve in military attire, and you went and found one on your own?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing this, Lan Gui, Yang Yizhong, Feng Yi, and the man the Emperor had pointed at—the one who had been holding the wine earlier and had followed all the way here as an 'armored guard'—all knelt down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his confusion, Liu Yan, not knowing what else to do, also knelt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your Majesty,\" Feng Yi began to explain as soon as he knelt. \"It was not that we presumed to guess Your Majesty's intentions. After the last time, I corresponded with some old colleagues, the chief eunuchs in Yangzhou, and mentioned this matter. The news naturally reached the Empress Dowager and Lady Pan. The Empress Dowager then gathered the palace ladies together with Lady Pan and personally inquired if there was anyone from the old Prince of Kang's household who could wear armor and ride a horse, and who was willing to come here to serve Your Majesty... That is how Lady Wu volunteered. She arrived in Nanyang just two days ago.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jiu was slightly taken aback: \"This Lady Wu is an old retainer of the Prince's household?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sent by the Empress Dowager?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes,\" Feng Yi looked up and explained in detail. \"Your Majesty does not remember after falling into the well... This Lady Wu comes from the Pearl Wu family of the Eastern Capital. She was well-read from childhood. Three years ago, at the age of fourteen, she entered the Prince's household as a maidservant due to her intelligence and family wealth. During the Jingkang chaos, the Empress Dowager gathered the remaining household members to her side, so Lady Wu has been attending her ever since. It was for this reason that Your Majesty granted her the distant title of District Lady after ascending the throne, giving her a formal status... However, precisely because of this, after Lady Pan left from Shunchang Prefecture, there has been no one to attend to Your Majesty on the road.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jiu thought for a long time, dazed, and found that he had no reason left to refuse this person... And besides, why should he refuse this time?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only that, but the armored lady raised her head to steal a glance, meeting Zhao Jiu's eyes directly. She was indeed around seventeen or eighteen, at the prime of a woman's beauty. And since she had been selected into the prince's household at fourteen, she was naturally delicate-featured and quite attractive. If one had to find a flaw, it would be that she had grown up in a wealthy family, likely with excellent nutrition, and her frame had become somewhat larger over the past two years, not quite matching the era's scholar-official aesthetic for women. However, this was not an issue for Zhao Jiu. In his eyes, the iron armor she wore did not hinder her movements in the slightest, but instead gave her a unique charm in her bearing... In fact, if it weren't for this, earlier by the Baihe River east of the city, Zhao Jiu wouldn't have recognized at a glance this person who made one wonder, \"How can I tell if I'm male or female?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With this thought, Zhao Jiu looked around again and found that aside from a few eunuchs, even Yang Yizhong seemed to have been granted a concubine. Adding to his own fatigue, he yawned and forced himself to give an order to Feng Yi:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Since that's the case, let this not set a precedent!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, he stopped mentioning the issue of gynecologists or pediatricians, and instead rose directly and headed toward the rear of the hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lady Wu naturally hurriedly followed, hand on her saber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing this, everyone in the hall rose together. Lan Gui and Liu Yan seemed lost in thought, Feng Yi smiled without speaking, but Yang Yizhong alone remained expressionless, utterly lacking his usual tactful demeanor in private interactions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>PS: Sorry... yesterday my mother went downstairs to the supermarket and celebrated my thirtieth birthday belatedly for me... I spent too long in reflection, which delayed my writing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Good night, everyone.\u003C\u002Fp>",2784,"2026-06-06T07:45:46.639Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","a54b8b1536d8e87a026c2aa051fc7cfbda4853d5cf33c3c0fe063303b85913af","shao-song-chapter-111","shao-song-chapter-109",489,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fshao-song-cover.jpg"]