Chapter 285: The Candle

"If you say the Jin don't care much about the Two Emperors and the various nobles, then how could they so easily return the five prefectures of Jingdong?" After the Jin envoy brought the peace terms, the discussions within Dongjingcheng naturally escalated to another level.

"I don't agree... As I see it, the overall situation is clear now. The key lies along the Yellow River line. Places like Shanbei and Jingdong might take us time to wear down, and we might even suffer a defeat or two, but sooner or later we can take them. Especially Jingdong, just a few hundred li east of Dongjing, is a vital area we must capture no matter what. For the Jin, however, these two places are like chicken ribs—tasteless to eat yet a pity to discard. If they want to fight, it would have to be a major battle, but crossing the river for a big battle risks another Yaoshan. If they fight small, it's just futile effort... So they might as well be generous, seek a few years of openly stable peace, especially since Aguda's sons need to stabilize their own interior."

"...When you put it that way, it does make some sense."

That day, downstairs at a main tavern that had only been open for business a few days outside Donghuamen, a group of Imperial Academy students were arguing heatedly. Upstairs in a private room, Minister of Justice Wang Shu, eating cold porridge to escape the heat, listened for a while before sneering to the Director of the Imperial Academy Chen Gongfu sitting across from him: "There is indeed some sense. The insight of today's Imperial Academy students is not what it used to be!"

Chen Gongfu, the direct manager of those students downstairs, just shook his head: "Where is that their own insight? They're just copying others' words... His Majesty issued the Gazette to Hu Quan, and since he took over the matter hastily, he could only seek assistants from among the Imperial Academy students who copy the Gazette. But with the Gazette's current momentum, even the chief ministers have to gradually state their positions clearly in it... So it's inevitable that these students know a bit more inside information."

"That's true." Wang Shu nodded in agreement.

As the two spoke, another round of lofty discussion came from downstairs.

"So then, these terms of peace are not much of a concern for the Jin?"

"I disagree. In my view, the five prefectures of Jingdong don't matter, but returning the Two Emperors is a major concern for the Jin."

"You're talking nonsense... The Jin envoy Wulinda came up so casually, making it clear that returning them or not is up to His Majesty to demand. Everyone knows this, so how is it a concern?"

"You're the one talking nonsense. Whether the Two Emperors return or not is naturally no concern, but whether this matter is brought up or not is the critical point... The Jin have people like Qin Gui and Han Fang who understand our internal affairs. How could they not know that once the Two Emperors are mentioned, His Majesty, no matter how frustrated, must endure and demand their return? And once that happens, whether the matter of the Two Emperors succeeds or fails, it becomes a huge trouble for our court and His Majesty. And if His Majesty has trouble, isn't that a huge profit for the Jin..."

"Watch your words!"

"Why watch my words? This matter is already all over the common talk. People say the Two Emperors will return to seize the throne, and some say the ministers have placed His Majesty under house arrest. We're not in the Imperial Academy, so why can't we speak..."

"Indeed, some insight." Upstairs, Wang Shu couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this.

"This time, you can't blame them for shallow insight." Chen Gongfu now defended his students instead. "Downstairs, they're all saying the Two Emperors will return to contend for the throne, while the ministers are worried His Majesty will instead do something big. But ordinary people, after thinking it over, feel neither side is reliable, yet they don't know His Majesty's mind... Even you and I are just guessing wildly, aren't we?"

"That's true."

"Let's take it one step at a time!" Chen Gongfu shook his head again. "No matter what, what must come will come. It'll be within these next two months anyway."

Hearing this, it was Wang Shu's turn to shake his head repeatedly: "Yesterday at the Hall of Governance, when Wulinda Zanmo was summoned, you weren't there, so you don't know. That fellow agreed to everything readily, only quibbling a bit over the annual tribute, but after being scolded by Zhang Jun face-to-face, he dropped it. He was clearly well-prepared... My guess is that Liu Yu in Jinan has already been captured by them, and the Two Emperors are already on the road. It won't take two months."

"If that's the case, then the Jin are truly harboring malicious intent." Chen Gongfu frowned even more. "Otherwise, why would they send them in batches like this? Isn't it deliberately to cause chaos in His Majesty's court?"

"It's already in chaos." Wang Shu sighed even more. "Aren't the two Empresses Dowager supposed to arrive in a few days? The Secretariat asked His Majesty to go to the riverbank to welcome them, but His Majesty didn't even respond and stayed put in the rear palace... I heard that even when Imperial Consort Pan suggested going to the riverbank to welcome them, she was rebuked."

Chen Gongfu didn't know what to say.

Wang Shu continued: "There's another matter. It will probably be brought up at today's Secret Pavilion meeting. Yue Fei sent a secret memorial, but it was written openly, requesting to go to war..."

"What's that about?" Chen Gongfu was unimpressed. "Yue Fei is from Hebei. He rushed back from suppressing bandits, learned of the peace talks on the way, and hasn't received any reassurance from His Majesty, so naturally he hastily submitted a memorial..."

"Han Shizhong and Wu Jie are already on the road." Wang Shu blurted out in response.

Chen Gongfu was silent for a moment, but still shook his head: "The Two Emperors are about to arrive. His Majesty can't avoid it. Then the entire court will have to go welcome them. Han and Wu are not like Yue Fei, who was still suppressing rebels at the time. They should come too, but being far away in Guanzhong, they had to call out in advance."

"You can argue it either way!" Wang Shu sneered again, standing up directly. "Alright! Let's go... It's about time."

Chen Gongfu nodded slightly and also stood up.

Both were wearing purple robes. As they went downstairs together, the seven or eight Imperial Academy students who had just returned from the Gazette were startled into standing up. Two of them, probably the ones who had spoken of 'profit' and 'why can't we speak,' even jumped up in fright.

But fortunately, these two high officials paid no attention to the students. They simply left the tavern and headed toward Donghuamen, which then drew a wave of envy from the students who had narrowly escaped death... Although the Secret Pavilion had suffered a siege, the court and public could see that those who could participate in Secret Pavilion meetings were already elevated beyond ordinary officials.

Especially since this form of organization had received tacit approval from Zhao Jiu in the rear palace... So perhaps in future extraordinary times, it would become a precedent, granting certain political status to those involved.

In fact, after this incident, a new saying had emerged among the people: that since His Majesty ascended the throne, he had been deliberately weakening the power of the inner officials and the Eunuch Directorate, delegating authority to the two administrations, six ministries, nine courts, and five directorates, precisely to buy off the court's upper and lower ranks in advance to guard against the Two Emperors' restoration.

Of course, as always, the premise was wrong, so the inference was naturally absurd... But the people were convinced, or rather, they liked to spread the ridiculous notion that the Two Emperors would return and be restored, which gave rise to such rumors.

Turning back to the present, Wang Shu and Chen Gongfu left this newly reopened main tavern, entered the palace city, passed through Chongwen Institute, went by the Hall of Governance, and ascended to the Secret Pavilion. Before long, the other central officials all arrived, and Liu Ji once again opened and presided over the meeting.

However, as soon as Liu Ji opened his mouth, everyone in the pavilion was stunned: "The two Empresses Dowager are trapped by the Jin army on the north bank of the Yellow River. Who will go to receive them?"

"Are the Jin mocking us?!" Wang Shu immediately flushed with anger. "How dare they do such a thing?!"

Not only Wang Shu, but Li Guang, Liu Dazhong, and others also changed color, and the Secret Pavilion fell into chaos.

However, seeing the chaos, Liu Ji, who had spoken, along with several chief ministers, Grand Master of the Court of State Ceremonial Zhai Ruwen, and Minister of Rites Zhu Shengfei—those clearly in the know—looked embarrassed instead... There was obviously more to the story.

After a long while, Liu Ji finally had a chance to explain the truth.

It turned out, as Chen Gongfu and Wang Shu had discussed earlier, whether deliberately by the Jin or due to confusion in information channels, the Jin were releasing captives in batches... First came several imperial princesses and noblewomen from Yanjing, who had probably already arrived in Yangzhou. Then came a batch of imperial princesses and noblewomen from Wuguocheng, along with a group of younger imperial clan members, also already on the road to Yangzhou. Next came a batch of captured ministers' families and children, who had just arrived a few days ago, and the court was discussing commendations and favors. The current wave was mainly the Empresses and consorts of the Two Emperors... Among them, the most important were naturally the two Empresses Dowager: Empress Dowager Zheng of the Retired Emperor, and Empress Dowager Wei, His Majesty's 'birth mother' in the rear palace.

However, perhaps happiness came too suddenly. As they were being sent south, they could hardly believe it... The others were fine, just holding their breath and waiting. But Empress Dowager Wei had some issues. Whether she thought she had leverage, was terrified of her northern experience to a certain degree, or had been made Empress Dowager passively without basic political sense, she ended up doing something exasperating.

Specifically, on her journey south, she first collected some jewelry that the Jin had returned from the accompanying consorts, and rewarded or bribed the Jin soldiers escorting them, just to hurry the crossing of the river in the sweltering summer heat... This was actually nothing, and even completely understandable.

But the key was, after giving away the last of the jewelry, she was still worried. So she actually borrowed two thousand taels of gold from the leading Jin general, continuing to reward and bribe without stop.

Because Empress Dowager Wei had a special status and promised to repay three thousand upon crossing the river, the meng'an commander was naturally happy to oblige.

However, when they reached the river, where was Zhang Rong to get three thousand taels of gold? Not just Zhang Rong, but even Quan Bangyan, the welcoming envoy who had just returned from mourning, didn't have that kind of money. And even if they did, they wouldn't dare give it.

So the Jin general detained both Empresses Dowager at Xiaowusao and jumped up and down on the Yellow River's bank, cursing the Song for breaking their word.

"Even if we had the money, we wouldn't give it!" Wang Shu waved his sleeve in fury after hearing the story. "I'd like to see who dares to give that money?!"

The chief ministers looked at each other, speechless... This wasn't about three thousand taels of gold at all. It was a fundamental issue of the state's position of not paying any price in these peace talks. After all their efforts, enduring pressure from His Majesty's nonviolent non-cooperation, from the military, and from the people, how could they dare show any weakness on the surface?

And after finally managing to produce a peace treaty that ranked first in the history of the Great Song for its equality, who would have thought that Empress Dowager Wei and three thousand taels of gold would pop up?

But the other side of the coin was that it was Empress Dowager Wei who had caused the trouble, and it was somewhat understandable, so it was hard to blame anyone.

"What does His Majesty say?" Li Guang also looked like his head was splitting. "Since it concerns the Empress Dowager, he should have responded by now, right?"

"His Majesty says to ask the Ministry of Rites to handle it according to regulations," Liu Ji replied helplessly. "But if money is needed, he has saved for four or five years and only has a few thousand strings of cash, not enough to pay three thousand taels of gold... If forced to pay, according to the rule of a mother's debt being repaid by the son, he naturally cannot refuse, but he asks for a few days' grace to borrow from relatives."

Too absurd!

The officials present almost all felt the same way... And this absurdity referred not only to His Majesty's attitude toward his birth mother and his sarcasm toward everyone, but also to the fact that everyone present knew His Majesty was telling the truth.

Unless the rear palace issued government bonds or borrowed from the Empress's father, there really wasn't three thousand taels of gold in cash!

Then, everyone instinctively looked at Minister of Rites Zhu Shengfei.

Zhu Shengfei's expression didn't change, but his back was drenched in sweat... His Majesty had specifically mentioned the Ministry of Rites, leaving him no one to pass the buck to. And he had previously been slippery, pushing big matters up to the chief ministers and small matters down to the Court of State Ceremonial, keeping the Ministry of Rites, which was supposed to handle this, completely uninvolved.

But such behavior naturally meant no one was willing to lend him a hand now.

"The Ministry of Rites will go to Huazhou in person." After a staring contest for a while, Chief Councilor Zhao Ding finally issued a hall order.

Zhu Shengfei had no choice but to step forward, but he still resisted: "Could the ministers please speak plainly? If the Jin are brutal and rude and insist on holding the two Empresses Dowager to extort these three thousand gold, what should I do?"

"You are the Minister of Rites; you should have your own arguments." Privy Councilor Zhang Jun also couldn't stand it anymore and preempted others in brushing him off.

With no other choice, Zhu Shengfei could only clasp his hands and turn to face Director of the Court of State Ceremonial Zhai Ruwen behind him: "Director Zhai, could you first go and inform the Jin envoy?"

Zhai Ruwen had long been driven to his wit's end by Zhu Shengfei these past days, and upon hearing this, he couldn't be bothered to dissemble: "Minister Zhu, wouldn't informing the Jin envoy be exposing our own weakness? How is that any different from begging the Jin? The face we spent two months building up would be lost in a single morning!"

Zhu Shengfei was utterly at a loss.

At that moment, Wang Shu on the side shook his sleeves and stepped forward: "If the Ministry of Rites is unwilling to go, the Ministry of Justice can go. We must not let the state lose any face whatsoever... What is there to hesitate about? If there's no money, just refuse! This matter of sharing a bowl of soup was already made clear back in Nanjing back then. Why are we hesitating now?! Just because it's His Majesty's birth mother?!"

Hearing this, the others might have wanted to let Wang Shu go, but no matter what, this task couldn't fall to the Ministry of Justice, could it?

Thus, going back and forth, Zhu Shengfei had no choice but to nod, yet he publicly put forward a condition: "I will leave shortly, but before I go, there is one matter for which I need the assurance of you several lords..."

Zhao Ding and the others furrowed their brows together, feeling that this fellow was truly going too far.

Unexpectedly, Zhu Shengfei sighed and shook his head right there in the Secret Pavilion: "I have no other request. I only ask that you lords permit me to resign and retire to private life after this matter is concluded."

Everyone was startled, all somewhat taken aback.

To be honest, these days of peace negotiations had indeed been torturous, but the feeling of the Emperor delegating great power and a group of them manipulating state affairs without restraint in the Secret Pavilion was also utterly addictive. Not many were actually thinking of resigning and returning home. So for a moment, they didn't know if he truly felt wronged or was using retreat as a tactic to bargain with the chief councilors.

After a pause, Zhao Ding frowned helplessly: "Minister Zhu, you are a high-ranking Minister. Your resignation must be approved by His Majesty."

"I am naturally aware of that." Zhu Shengfei replied frankly. "His Majesty's side is His Majesty's side. I will submit my own official memorial. But I need you lords to first give your consent, allowing me to claim illness and stop coming to manage affairs in the Secret Pavilion, just like the Grand Master of Imperial Clan Affairs."

Just as he was about to speak, Councilor-in-Chief Zhang Jun cut in first, waving his sleeve: "We have no objection, but may I ask the Ministry of Rites to first welcome the Empress Dowager back?"

Zhu Shengfei, instead, looked relieved.

With this matter settled, the other issues seemed insignificant... of course, only theoretically. Yue Fei's memorial, Han Shizhong and Wu Jie's sortie from the passes, His Majesty's self-abandoning attitude—which of these could be considered insignificant?

But as the saying goes, when debts pile up, one stops worrying; when lice pile up, one stops itching. If they could endure even the last riot, what couldn't they endure?

And so, the Secret Pavilion meeting that day ended hastily. Nothing else was mentioned, only that Zhu Shengfei would go to Huazhou to rendezvous with Quan Bangyan and Zhang Rong to receive the Empress Dowager. Unexpectedly, things went so smoothly it was almost unbelievable... Zhu Shengfei, in his capacity as Minister of Rites, arrived there, gritted his teeth, and conveyed the central government's unequivocal attitude—that not even a single tael of gold or silver would be given. The moment this attitude was made clear, a certain Gao Jingshan, Commander-in-Chief of the Damingfu Marching Army, who had been hiding somewhere, emerged, and directly lashed the accompanying Bohai-registered Battalion Commander with his whip. The latter then obediently released the person, not even daring to ask for expenses.

The two Empress Dowagers thus crossed the river... things went as smoothly as in a dream.

Since the two Empress Dowagers had crossed the river, the distance from Huazhou to Dongjing was not great. On the third day, Empress Dowager Zheng and Empress Dowager Wei, escorted by Zhu Shengfei and Quan Bangyan, returned to Dongjing City.

His Majesty claimed to be unwell, and also said he missed the Empress Dowagers and Imperial Consorts too much, fearing he would faint from crying upon meeting them and lose decorum, so he did not come to welcome them.

But aside from His Majesty not being present, all other rituals were flawless. Councilor-in-Chief Lu Haowen and below, all the lords led the civil and military officials ten li out of the city to welcome them. Then, Imperial Consorts Pan and Wu came forward, and with the assistance of the lords, formally received the two Empress Dowagers' palanquins at the city gate.

As for the episodes during this time—how the two Empress Dowagers greeted and inquired after the several lords famous in the north, praising them as figures like Marquis Wu of Zhuge; how they wished to see Han Shizhong, the most renowned in the north, but could not, only meeting Yang Yizhong; and finally, how the two Imperial Consorts and the two Empress Dowagers wept bitterly at the city gate, causing the watching commoners to recall the Jingkang Incident and weep along with them... all these minor incidents are not worth mentioning.

By the afternoon, the group finally dried their tears and returned to the palace. They went directly to Jingfu Palace, first watched a performance of "The Legend of the White Snake," and then found Abbot Fahe of the Kaifeng Branch Temple of Shaolin Temple and Chief Priest Zhang of the Wuyue Temple, along with other influential religious figures, waiting there. They led a group of monks and Daoist priests to pray for blessings and ward off calamities for the two Empress Dowagers... After all this fuss until evening, a grand banquet was finally held in Jingfu Palace. It was both to welcome the two Empress Dowagers and the other Imperial Consorts, and to entertain the civil and military officials, serving as a formal celebration ceremony for the Empress Dowagers' return.

And at this time, Zhao Jiu, His Majesty, who had previously claimed to be 'missing them too much, fearing he would faint from crying upon meeting them,' finally appeared, causing the chief councilors and other accompanying high officials to be almost overjoyed.

Now, people like Empress Dowager Zheng, Imperial Consort Dowager Wang, and Imperial Consort Dowager Qiao—each of them could have been the protagonist of a female-centric novel back in Zhao Ji's terrifying harem. They were exquisitely perceptive. They didn't mention the wind and snow of the north, but instead focused on their journey here. How could they not carefully inquire about the new customs here and the new Emperor's habits? Even Empress Dowager Wei, after the incident on the river, had become much more cautious.

Moreover, with all the officials present, everything was naturally proper, and neither side lost face... Empress Dowager Zheng didn't even dare let His Majesty kneel to perform the ritual. She had the two Imperial Consorts Dowager support him early on, fearing His Majesty might 'faint from crying.' Empress Dowager Wei wanted to step forward and speak, but after several years apart, she felt that aside from his appearance, almost nothing about him was the same as before, and she felt somewhat timid.

Thus, the banquet finally began as usual.

However, although it was called a grand banquet, due to the palace's genuine frugality, there were no formal ceremonies. The several Empress Dowagers and Imperial Consorts Dowager sat at the head, His Majesty and the two Imperial Consorts, along with the miscellaneous imperial clan members who had returned, sat on one side, while the several lords and high officials sat opposite as companions. The lower-ranking civil and military officials had been dismissed early... This scene truly resembled a family banquet in an ordinary official's household, where female elders who didn't need to be avoided were present.

Interestingly, once the banquet began, without those perfunctory procedures, everyone—high and low, left and right, male and female—didn't touch their chopsticks or bowls. They just stared at His Majesty, lost in thought. But His Majesty himself had nothing to say, sitting sideways in his seat in silence. The atmosphere was truly awkward.

Finally, after a long pause, Empress Dowager Zheng, who had a task to complete, had to speak no matter how difficult it was. She gritted her teeth and said: "Your Majesty... when we set out from Wuguocheng a few months ago, the two Retired Emperors did not yet know the situation of the peace negotiations. They clung to the carriage shafts, repeatedly entrusting words to Your Majesty, begging Your Majesty not to forget the letter sent by Zheng Yinian. They truly only need a single position as Director of the Taiyi Palace to settle down... Your Majesty doesn't know, your elder brother almost fainted from crying in front of the carriage back then, and was even whipped by the Jin. We had no choice but to swear on the spot that if we didn't rescue him, each of us would go blind."

Zhao Jiu was stunned for a moment, then nodded, but said nothing.

Seeing this, the men and women, civil and military, high and low, all felt their scalps go numb and their hearts turn cold. They truly didn't know how to continue. Empress Dowager Zheng tried to speak, but the moment she opened her mouth again, she couldn't stop her tears from flowing.

Empress Dowager Zheng was, after all, the Empress Dowager. Having returned this time, she had no more worries, only thinking of the wind and snow in the north. As for the other Imperial Consorts Dowager and Imperial Consorts, they too thought of the wind and snow in the north and couldn't help but weep profusely. Yet they dared not cry too much, fearing they would anger His Majesty and their sons would not be able to return, leaving them with no one to support them in their old age.

The scene froze for a moment.

After another moment, just as Lu Haowen and Zhao Ding were helplessly rising to respond, Empress Dowager Wei, who had the most confidence, forced a cheerful expression to mediate the situation: "Ninth Brother has been too wronged... On the way here, I heard people say that in the palace, you only light one candle. I thought it was just a rumor, but now, at the banquet in Jingfu Palace, sure enough, each table has only one candlestick with a single candle. The food is all pork, chicken, and fish. It's nothing like your father's time, when evening banquets were as bright as day, and a single feast would use a hundred sheep."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere turned frighteningly cold.

Not only did several chief councilors, ministers, and directors sigh faintly in the twilight, but even Empress Dowager Zheng and others with political acumen knew that Empress Dowager Wei had said the wrong thing.

However, after all, she was Empress Dowager Wei, the birth mother of this body. After a pause, Zhao Jiu finally spoke, leaning sideways with a smile: "The Empress Dowager is absolutely right. If evening banquets weren't as bright as day, and one feast didn't use a hundred sheep, how could one become a ruler of a fallen state? And drag the whole family to Wuguocheng? And if I didn't find even lighting a single candle to be wasteful, how could I have started anew and become a restoration ruler?"

"His Majesty is frugal." In the dead silence, it was Empress Dowager Zheng who spoke up to deflect for Empress Dowager Wei, whose face had turned pale. "That is why he can accomplish great things."

"It's not frugality." Zhao Jiu put away his smile and sighed from his seat. "It's that whenever I do the opposite of Cao Cao, things can be accomplished!"

This time, even Empress Dowager Zheng's face turned pale. As for Empress Dowager Wei, her political acumen was truly poor. Even after recovering her composure, she still didn't understand.