[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-shao-song":3,"chapter-shao-song-shao-song-chapter-17":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},1558183,2024,"Chapter 17: The Emperor Has Nowhere Left to Turn! (Part 2)","shao-song-chapter-17",17,"\u003Cp>It must be understood that what Zhao Jiu spoke of was a story from the time of Emperor Xian of Han.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In those days, Emperor Xian of Han fled east, encountering the mutinous troops of Guo and Li. To cross the river and escape, Dong Cheng slashed at the hands of those clinging to the boat, and the severed fingers piled up inside the vessel, enough to be scooped up by hand. Though Emperor Xian escaped, his accompanying palace women, ministers, books, carriages, and treasures were all destroyed together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone present was intelligent, so they naturally grasped the implication behind these words, and each fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, Zhao Ding was a man of substance after all. Though he had arrived in a wretched state and witnessed his companion killed with his own eyes, he did not completely lose his composure. He came to the curtained enclosure where Zhao Jiu was, and only upon seeing Zhao Jiu himself did he begin to weep and recount his tale. Thus, at this moment, by the campfire and within the tent, the core members of this exiled Zhao Song court were utterly speechless, yet the surrounding camp of the temporary imperial residence remained completely unaware… On the contrary, because they would enter the prefectural city in a day or two and were now having their evening meal, there was laughter and cheer everywhere. Inside and outside the single curtain, it was like heaven and earth, forming a stark contrast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amidst the laughter, the first to break the silence was Li Gang, supported by his son: \"Your Majesty has a benevolent heart, and we ministers have nothing to say. But I also wish to borrow a story from the Three Kingdoms to advise Your Majesty… The realm can do without us ministers, but it cannot do without Your Majesty.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Zhao Emperor shook his head repeatedly, not believing this in his heart, but the next words from the other man made him waver for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If it is so, then let only Yang Yizhong lead a hundred cavalry to escort you, secretly crossing the river. To the outside, we will say that Yang Yizhong was sent to reinforce Liu Zhengyan,\" Li Gang said slowly. \"I will immediately summon the chief eunuch here, and together with the ministers here, we will continue to pretend, separated by the curtain, that Your Majesty is still here. This will surely prevent the people's morale from collapsing on its own, and also keep the temporary imperial residence from having no response when facing the rebel army. If Your Majesty travels quickly, and sends reinforcements tomorrow, or if Han Shizhong truly does not rebel and we find him to settle this matter, then naturally there will be no worry.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jiu remained silent, and those around him, coming to their senses, urged him one after another. A green-robed secretary named Hu Yin even began to strip off his clothes, as if to exchange them with the Emperor, but was stopped by Yang Yizhong… It turned out that one side of the tent here faced the Ying River embankment, and in the pitch darkness, there was no need for a disguise in clothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And so, Yang Yizhong personally went out to arrange a hundred cavalry properly. The crowd then directly pushed the bewildered Zhao Jiu onto a horse, secretly cut open the curtain on the side facing the Ying River, and urged the Zhao Emperor to set off quickly from this exit, following the riverbank to find Yang Yizhong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, Li Gang could not restrain himself. He broke free from his son's support, stepped forward again, and at the edge of the curtain, grasped Zhao Jiu's hand from beside the horse:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your Majesty, I have one more word! The state is in peril, so when Your Majesty asks us to be like Marquis Wu, we are ashamed… But Your Majesty should not compare himself to Emperor Xian of Han. I do not ask Your Majesty to be like Wei Wu, but I beg Your Majesty to be like Zhaolie!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jiu's heart stirred. He was about to reply, but unexpectedly, Li Gang let go and signaled to someone. That person directly whipped the rump of the horse Zhao Jiu was riding. The horse, feeling the pain, galloped lightly forward and burst out of the tent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, Zhao Jiu, torn between a desire to survive and a sense of shame, half-reluctantly turned and left the tent, then bent over and climbed the river embankment… The winter evening wind was cold, and the feeling on the embankment needed no description. The Emperor, struck by the cold wind, broke out in goosebumps all over. The more he thought about it, the more wrong it felt! The more he thought about it, the more absurd it seemed!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was Han Shizhong!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He, the Zhao Emperor, was actually going to hide from Han Shizhong?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who was Han Shizhong?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To put it bluntly, Han Shizhong was the greatest pillar on which Zhao Jiu had relied to maintain a stable posture ever since he had transmigrated!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Consider that Yue Fei was only twenty-four this year, still thirteen years away from his great victory at Zhuxian Town; Li Gang was a good hand at stabilizing the court, and his role as a banner against the Jin was irreplaceable, but his military ability was clearly questionable; Zong Ze could indeed be trusted unconditionally, but he trusted Zong Ze, while Zong Ze did not trust him, and at this moment, he truly could not merge with the Tokyo headquarters and cause trouble for Zong Ze instead…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, for a long time, the one who had consistently brought Zhao Jiu a sense of security, the hidden card he had kept in his heart without revealing, was none other than Han Shizhong, who had been shielding the northern side of the temporary imperial residence!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since arriving in this era, Zhao Jiu had inquired very clearly. Han Shizhong was thirty-nine this year, had fought in a hundred battles, and was unmatched in martial arts—he was at the most golden stage of a famous historical general! What he had said this morning about whether they could fight, needing to hear Han Shizhong's opinion, was truly not a deliberate challenge to Li Gang, but the sincere words of him, the Emperor!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, Zhao Jiu knew better than anyone that this world-renowned Han Shizhong and the missing Yue Fei could not possibly rebel!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, the current situation was also very clear: Han Shizhong had not rebelled; it was the veteran soldiers among his subordinates who were about to mutiny… But even so, Zhao Jiu found it absurd!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just now, Li Gang probably thought this might truly be a farewell of life and death, and told him to learn from Liu Bei, perhaps to urge him to endure for a time, or to advise him not to be ashamed of fleeing… But if he, the Zhao Emperor, was Liu Bei, then Yue Fei and Han Shizhong were precisely Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, weren't they?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well then, Zhang Fei's subordinates cause a revolt, forcing Liu Bei to abandon his wife and children…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this thought, Zhao Jiu's mind wavered, and then he suddenly realized. He finally understood why this path, seemingly reasonable, had been so hard for him to accept!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The worries of these high ministers at the temporary imperial residence were not unfounded, because they did not know that Han Shizhong himself was completely reliable. These civil officials, including the military officer Yang Yizhong, still believed that Han Shizhong himself might follow the mutiny, rebel, and then be passively or actively involved… But he knew this man would not, because this man was his Zhang Fei! He was the trusted confidant of him, the Zhao Emperor!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So the question was, if Liu Bei was waiting for Zhang Fei to come see him, but Zhang Fei's vanguard revolted (a common occurrence in chaotic times), what should Liu Bei choose to do then?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Abandon everyone, wade through a river full of ice shards in the winter wind, and go find some Meng Da or Wei Yan?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That wasn't right!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These thoughts, though complicated to describe, had already been swirling in our Zhao Emperor's mind for a while. Now, in an instant, stimulated by the winter wind, they simply became clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this thought, Zhao Jiu hesitated no longer. He actually turned his horse and rode back along the same path to the tent. Scanning the astonished faces inside, he immediately pointed at one person:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Zhao Ding! You said you had inquired with Han Shizhong's vanguard scouts for news, and only encountered the commander in the town when the mutiny began, correct?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes…\" Zhao Ding, who had long since stopped crying, stood up in surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then I ask you, where is Han Shizhong himself?\" Zhao Jiu held a horsewhip, his face looking somewhat fierce in the firelight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"At… at Jingou Town, behind Wanshou County!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How far from here?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Forty li!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing this, Zhao Jiu spurred his horse and left. But a moment later, he turned back again, and still facing the bewildered ministers, raised his whip to point at Zhao Ding: \"I don't know the way, and I'm afraid of running into the mutineers. The imperial guards might also be a bit confused. Would the Censor Zhao be willing to act as a guide?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having said this, perhaps worried that Li Gang would stop him, or perhaps realizing he could find another guide along the way, in any case, Zhao Jiu, as soon as he finished speaking, hurriedly spurred his horse away again, leaving only the dumbfounded high ministers of the temporary imperial residence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faced with this scene, Zhao Ding, whose clothes had already dried from the mud, opened his mouth to speak but no sound came out. Only the image of his colleague dying in the icy river earlier, and the image of his own wife and children here at the temporary imperial residence, surged into his mind simultaneously, urging him to evade for a while.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But for some reason, a feeling like a stroke of inspiration welled up in his heart. This man, already over forty and having wasted half his life under the Daoist Emperor, almost involuntarily turned over and leaped onto a horse by the campfire. Then, through the cut opening in the tent, he rode up the river embankment and chased after!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Close behind him were the Censor-in-Chief Zhang Jun and the Grand Secretary of the Hall for the Propagation of Literature, Yuwen Xuzhong, who was nearly fifty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Forty li on the plain, for a fast horse that didn't need to spare its strength, was only a little over an hour.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, traveling at night, unfamiliar with the road, the speed naturally slowed considerably. Moreover, the accompanying imperial guards were all wearing armor, and though the few civil officials were commendably brave and loyal, their horsemanship was clearly inferior to Zhao Jiu's and the cavalry's, so it slowed them down even more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, Zhao Jiu and his party spent nearly two hours, approaching the third watch of the night, before they finally reached Jingou Town. In the name of imperial envoys, they made their way to Han Shizhong's \"central army headquarters tent.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The town had been silent, but now it was in an uproar, with chickens flying and dogs jumping, and lights blazing everywhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the street at the center of the market town, several civil officials were panting heavily, nearly slumped over their saddles. Zhao Jiu, however, managed to maintain an upright posture on his horse, relying on his physical advantage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for Yang Yizhong beside him, fully clad in Wenshan armor, he had lost all his usual dignity and composure. He was sweating profusely, looking left and right, gripping the long spear in front of him tightly as he faced the countless curious knights, armored soldiers, and archers all around… and his hands were trembling slightly!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It must be understood that if this Han Po Wu truly had rebelled, the situation would be irredeemable!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Heaven have mercy, Yang Yizhong had not tried to stop the Emperor. He had once again verified his own opinion: this Emperor's horsemanship was truly no joke! At the very least, he himself, wearing armor, could not catch up!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After about the time it takes half a stick of incense to burn, the door of a two-story inn on one side of the road—which was Han Shizhong's central army headquarters—finally opened. Before anyone was even seen, a stream of cursing came out first. Then, a man wearing only silk undergarments and shorts, draped in a white cloak made of some unknown animal fur, staggered out the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The lamplight flickered, making it hard to see the man's specific features. One could only tell that his frame was unusually large, his build extremely sturdy, and a faint smell of alcohol could be detected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jiu turned his head to look at Yang Yizhong, who, amidst his tension, nodded repeatedly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this, the Zhao Emperor completely relaxed. He called out from a distance, his voice loud enough to echo throughout the entire street: \"Liangchen! Han Qing! The vanguard of the Left Army of the Imperial Guard, under the command of Han Shizhong, has rebelled and killed my censor. I am forced by circumstances, with nowhere left to turn, and have no choice but to abandon my wife and children, leave behind the civil and military officials of the temporary imperial residence, and come to seek refuge with you!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Poor Han Shizhong, who had first been woken from his wife Lady Liang's arms in the middle of the night, now heard these words. He looked up at the man in the round-collared red robe on the horse, and was so startled that his cloak fell to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>PS: Two chapters end here. I got up yesterday afternoon, sat down to write, and wrote intermittently until 4 AM, totaling 13,800 words… I'll definitely catch up on sleep when I get back tonight. I don't know when I'll wake up, so this is today's two chapters. Everyone, don't wait tonight.\u003C\u002Fp>",2361,"2026-06-06T07:45:46.639Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","78ae3559129927aedd622a7952e46c9f13ddf30a7f147095027695261a547aeb","shao-song-chapter-18","shao-song-chapter-16",489,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fshao-song-cover.jpg"]