Chapter 374: Summer Rain (Continued)

Ren Baozhong and Liu Hongdao's weeping like this, in the rain and mud, clearly caught Zhao Jiu somewhat off guard... because he hadn't seen such an extreme loss of composure in a ruler-minister drama for many years. The last time was eight years ago during the escape journey when he decided to go see Han Shizhong, or was it four or five years ago before the Battle of Yaoshan at the Yiyou Gate when he entrusted his orphan?

It truly made one feel dazed.

Beyond that, if Ren Baozhong, that scoundrel, had experienced much and had no scruples, so he could put on such an act, then Liu Hongdao, after all, was a proper high-ranking scholar-official—how could he act so convincingly and coordinate so well with Ren Baozhong?

He had only arrived in Hangzhou yesterday.

In other words, these two might not be faking it... and even if they were, could he, the Imperial Majesty, just stand there dry?

"Both ministers, please rise."

Zhao Jiu quickly stepped out from under the umbrella, hurried into the mud, and with the help of two Red Heart Squad guards, lifted them up one by one, earnestly comforting them. "Isn't it just that you turned around and found your own houses collapsed? Why must you two ministers go this far? It was just the leaking side wing, the front hall was also slightly affected, and the bedchamber only lost a few tiles. If Yang Yizhong and the others hadn't forced me, I would have continued waiting in the bedchamber."

The two were clearly beside themselves. After being helped to sit aside by the Imperial Majesty and the guards, they barely heard a few words and took a long while to recover their ability to speak.

Among them, Ren Baozhong was noticeably faster. He directly wiped his face with his mud-soaked sleeve, then sat on the stone steps in the open space behind the hall, speaking with mournful sincerity: "Your minister met his wise lord only at this advanced age, and all his loyalty is tied to Your Majesty. For a moment, I lost my composure; please forgive me, Your Majesty."

This was just listening to too many Romance of the Three Kingdoms storytelling segments.

But in a sense, it was also the truth. Without Zhao Jiu, this old scoundrel might have spent his entire life disappearing into the remote backwater of Hengshan as a decrepit old man who failed in a coup. Both his body and spirit would have turned to dust and been forgotten. How could he have imagined that at the end of his life, he would regain access to core power, and an even higher level of core power?

To put it bluntly, aside from Zhao Jiu, who was thinking of launching a major campaign against the Tanguts for the Northern Expedition, who would use an old Tangut dog like him?

"Your minister simply cannot bear to think what would become of the state if anything happened to Your Majesty," Liu Hongdao said subsequently, clearly much more sincere. Still panicked under the umbrella, he spoke without restraint. "What would become of the Northern Expedition? Would the north and south be locked in a stalemate, like the old Liao story? If so, the hatred of the Jingkang shame and the personal disgrace of Qingzhou—I fear I will never be able to resolve the gloom in my heart in this lifetime!"

This was laying out the stakes.

The greatest hatred and shame of Liu Hongdao's life was none other than that battle at Qingzhou, with its heavy casualties and rivers of blood, after which he could only abandon his hometown and post in disgrace and flee.

In the Great Song Dynasty, Han Shizhong was not the only one who hated Jin Wushu and Jin Talan to the bone.

Regardless, in the rainy night, amidst the chaos, Zhao Jiu understood their loss of composure. So he quickly said some more platitudes: "I have always known the loyalty of you two ministers. Now that everything is fine, please rest assured."

By the light of the lanterns held by the surrounding guards, the utterly disheveled Ren Baozhong and Liu Hongdao exchanged a glance, both seeing a tacit understanding in each other's eyes—they both clearly had the intention of taking the opportunity to ask the Imperial Majesty a question, to ask him why he was hesitating about the Northern Expedition. They even had the intention of using the chance to lay out the stakes and advise His Majesty.

But at the same time, after this incident, both felt that it was fortunate that His Majesty was alive. As long as he was alive, things could be planned for the long term. Some matters were not as urgent as they had previously thought.

Just as they were sharing this tacit understanding, what they didn't expect was that the Imperial Majesty, who had already turned around to watch the rescue efforts, had, following their display, begun to let his thoughts wander.

To be honest, Zhao Jiu knew full well that today's loss of composure by these two, though genuine, was by no means because he, the Imperial Majesty, was so worthy of devotion... After all, Liu Hongdao was somewhat distant from him, the Son of Heaven, and Ren Baozhong was a man of shallow virtue. So that display of composure loss could not possibly be due to emotional factors... Roughly speaking, three parts were following the momentum of performance, three parts were emotional fluctuation from great shock and joy, and more than three parts were because the political ambitions, future ideals, and even life values of these two men were tied to him, the Imperial Majesty.

Specifically, they were tied to the Northern Expedition he had been preparing for so long and was about to launch.

For both public and private reasons, everyone had formed a community of shared interests.

This community of shared interests also included a Duke who still held political influence, four incumbent Grand Councilors, two Honorary Councilors, plus the six Ministers of the Six Ministries, ten Military Governors, and, besides Liu Hongdao, eleven Vice Ministers, nine Chief Ministers, four Supervisors, plus the public bureaus of the Eastern Capital and the Southeast, the wealthy merchants of the Huai and Jingdong regions, and the temples and monasteries of the Central Plains, Guanxi, and the Southeast.

Of course, it also included him, the Imperial Majesty, and his close ministers who directly depended on him, plus the Imperial Camp Army, which would number three hundred thousand in a few months.

Not to mention, perhaps, millions of common people on both sides of the Yellow River.

Thinking of this, Zhao Jiu, who had finally gotten wet while helping and comforting the two men, smiled bitterly with his back turned in the rainy night. There was no helping it, because when you counted carefully, this year was already the ninth year of Jianyan. Counting from that autumn day of the first year of Jianyan, it was almost exactly eight full years.

In those eight years, he, the time traveler, had never ceased, as the emperor, to emphasize resistance against the Jin, never ceased to encourage war against the Jin, and never ceased to strive to weed out the appeasement faction in the court... from the initial surrender faction, to the peace faction, to the defense faction, and then to the current gradualist faction. Even Li Gang had been respectfully invited out of the court. So, who was left?

Yet, when the court's upper and lower echelons gradually reached a consensus, the opposition gradually fell silent, the populace accepted this demand, the army was roughly assembled and prepared, and military funds and supplies were finally about sufficient, he, the instigator, instead grew timid.

That's right. Zhao Jiu had long been aware of his own "hesitation," and he knew that those around him had also become aware of his "hesitation" and knew they were testing him. But to be honest, his "hesitation" was never about the unrest in Fujian Circuit or the autumn harvest in Liangzhe Circuit.

Because the former was a grassroots problem that the feudal era could never solve. If you wanted to govern the grassroots well in this day and age, you might as well think about how to build cannons and steam engines; it would be easier. As for the latter, it was simply a matter of celestial phenomena. Could he decide the celestial phenomena?

As the saying goes, "If heaven wants to rain, a mother wants to remarry." If the rain truly became a disaster, then simply delay the campaign by half a year to first provide disaster relief. It was actually simple.

So, what exactly was he, Zhao Jiu, hesitant about regarding the increasingly imminent Northern Expedition? Actually, it couldn't be simpler. There was only one answer, and it was the simplest and most direct one—he was afraid of losing the war, and he was also afraid of returning without any achievements.

Because this Northern Expedition, for him, was the culmination of eight years of effort, the ultimate test of his value in this era. He was no different from those who wept and lost their composure, tying their life's ambitions, prospects, and worth to the Northern Expedition.

If others didn't know, did he himself not know? Standing in the rain, pretending nothing was wrong, he had never been a true Son of Heaven. Over the past eight years, his own timidity, fear, incompetence, confusion, anger, shame, and the present "hesitation" had all been objectively real.

Even when the house just collapsed, he had been so scared that he jumped straight out of bed.

It was just that he had always concealed it well and acted the part well.

"Your Majesty."

In the rain, just as Zhao Jiu was staring blankly at the former Wu-Yue palace before him, the slightly strange accent of Ping Qingsheng of the Red Heart Squad came from afar. "Academician Lu has arrived. The monk who came with the Academician has been stopped outside... Your ministers have found seven or eight injured people and handed them over to the monks."

Zhao Jiu nodded and was about to respond, but unexpectedly, Lu Benzhong, supported by Ping Qingsheng, came near the firelight. Seeing the Imperial Majesty's face, he reacted exactly like the previous two, directly collapsing with a thud into the mud, then covering his face and weeping loudly.

Seeing this, Zhao Jiu had no choice but to re-transform into the Imperial Majesty, learning from the previous situation to go forward and help him up, then comfort him well, going through another round of the ruler-minister drama.

Of course, at this time, Liu Hongdao and Ren Baozhong behind him gradually calmed down, but the difference between them became increasingly apparent—Vice Minister Liu was already somewhat embarrassed, while Secretary Ren continued to wipe away tears in accompaniment.

This wasn't the end. In just a moment, Zong Ying and Guo Zhongxun also arrived one after another, also sitting down on the ground with two thuds... Even the surrounding Imperial Guard were embarrassed. Only Ren Baozhong kept wiping his face, making it seem as if he were being splashed with water under the umbrella.

But even so, Zhao Jiu still dared not leave, because Lu Yihao, who was within Hangzhou city, had not yet arrived. He absolutely had to wait for this Grand Councilor to come and report the news before he could leave.

Sure enough, after waiting a while longer, seeing a line of torches rushing from Hangzhou city against the rain, Yang Yizhong, who had been waiting in the front hall, hurried back to report: "Your Majesty, Grand Councilor Lu has arrived!"

Having said this, Yang Yizhong hurried back to welcome him. Zhao Jiu, upon hearing this, originally wanted to go forward directly in the rain, but unexpectedly, the crowd behind him all rose and stopped him... The middle part of the palace had collapsed. Zhao Jiu had retreated to the rear, and Lu Yihao was coming from the front. At this moment, it was truly a case of "a gentleman does not stand beneath a crumbling wall."

However, although separated by a rear hall and a pile of bricks and tiles, once Lu Yihao came near, his aura was completely different from the others. The man's voice was full of vigor, calling out from afar in the rain amidst the noise: "The Honorary Councilor of the Southeast, Lu Yihao, is here! Where is His Majesty? Your minister pays his respects and asks His Majesty to return on his own!"

As soon as this voice rang out, the originally noisy scene immediately fell silent, with only faint crowing and the sound of rain remaining.

Zhao Jiu did not dare to be negligent and immediately responded from a distance: "I am here and unharmed... The palace has become a dangerous wall. Grand Councilor Lu need not come over. Return to Hangzhou city to reassure the people. I will go to Shengguo Temple to rest."

"Your minister receives the decree." As soon as these words were spoken, Lu Yihao's full-of-vigor voice rang out again from the other side. "A few more questions, I beg Your Majesty to answer frankly... Are there any casualties this time?"

"It's hard to say in the dark, but several people have been rescued, all with minor injuries. Most of the injuries were actually caused by the slippery roads in the rainy night, as various ministers rushed here from their respective places." Zhao Jiu answered crisply.

Immediately, another sentence came from the other side: "Have any court documents, memorials, or secret letters been lost? Have the imperial treasures and private seals brought by Your Majesty been lost?"

"The bedchamber and main hall are both largely undamaged. No documents, memorials, or secret letters have been lost. The imperial seals are all here." Zhao Jiu also raised his voice without pause.

Soon, the final sentence came from the other side: "If so, I request that the Imperial Guard Commander Liu Yan escort Your Majesty to move the imperial carriage to Shengguo Temple, Commander Yang Yizhong remain to guard the palace, and your minister return to Hangzhou city to rest!"

As soon as these words were finished, there was some commotion on the other side, presumably Lu Yihao turning back directly. On this side, upon hearing this, the Imperial Majesty immediately set off for Shengguo Temple without even listening further.

Liu Hongdao and the others hurriedly followed in a fluster, but could only click their tongues at the crispness of this pair of ruler and minister.

To make a long story short, the Imperial Majesty's party moved to Shengguo Temple. The imperial carriage directly entered a bedroom belonging to the abbot himself, and then he took off his clothes and went to bed... This was unavoidable. Even though the Imperial Majesty had no desire to sleep at this moment, he had to put on a show to reassure people.

Relatively speaking, the other civil and military officials were much more practical. Having experienced such an exciting event, rolling in mud and water, and going through great sorrow and great joy, who could possibly sleep? Regardless of civil or military status, they hastily gathered in the main hall of the temple to "protect His Majesty."

At this time, the topic of conversation inevitably turned to Lu Yihao.

There was no helping it. This Grand Councilor Lu was too dazzling. Not only because of his status, but more because of his style of doing things. That straightforwardness and efficiency just now had truly overshadowed everyone else.

However, after a few casual compliments, the topic could go no further. Or rather, this Lord Lu's reputation was truly poor; all the anecdotes about him involved his ruthlessness and his habit of taking revenge without delay. So as they talked, it turned into a session of bizarre tales.

"I once heard someone say that back when Lord Lu was Vice Commissioner of Military Affairs in Nanyang, a commander failed to salute him in time and was fined half his salary that very day."

"What's that? Still in Nanyang, they say a clerk in the Bureau of Military Affairs wrote a document poorly, and he went straight over and slapped the clerk's headwrap off with his palm. The clerk felt wronged and said, 'Since ancient times, there has been no rule for a Chancellor to strike a clerk's headwrap.' Lord Lu replied on the spot, 'It begins with me.' After that, order prevailed in the Bureau, and no one dared shirk their duties."

"What's that again? Later, when Lord Lu was sent out as a Commissioner-General to pacify the Southeast, he once inspected a prefecture. A Prefect argued with him, and he directly slapped the document into the man's face and cursed him out... If a Prefect can have a document slapped in his face, what's a clerk getting his headwrap knocked off?"

"The most famous incident was when he pacified the mutiny in the Southeast, right? He replaced Lord Li Xiang as the pacifying commissioner there. The mutiny wasn't fully quelled yet. He once summoned a certain commander to surrender, and when the reply was awkward, he, in his dignity as Commissioner-General, went straight into the rebel city, entered their camp, and ordered the man to kneel and remove his cap, reciting his own crimes... The rebel general dared not disobey and surrendered the entire city on the spot."

"I know about that. Actually, it didn't end there... After the rebel general surrendered, Lord Lu directly asked why he hadn't surrendered with a formal document. The rebel general pointed to an officer and said it was that man's advice. Lord Lu then ordered on the spot that the rebel general have that advising officer's feet cut off and nailed to the bridge in front of the city... The man wailed for days before dying... The remnants of the mutiny, after seeing this, surrendered at the mere sight of him."

"..."

"..."

"In any case, his intentions were good, and the results were good." After a long pause, Liu Hongdao, the highest-ranking person present, awkwardly tried to smooth things over. "Actually, Lord Lu's pacification of the mutiny is not unlike His Majesty's seizure of power at Yanling... The meeting of lord and minister, their mutual understanding, is probably like this."

"Indeed..."

"Naturally so..."

Everyone quickly chimed in agreement.

And for some reason, just as Liu Hongdao was glossing over the matter and about to change the topic to get through the remaining half of the night, a sudden jolt ran through the mind of this Vice Minister of War. It seemed to make him grasp something, and after a moment's hesitation, he spoke in a low, urgent voice:

"Lord Lu's life story is there for all to see. Before the Jingkang Incident, he was captured by rebels and presented to the Jin camp as a prisoner, which he deeply regarded as a shame... His desire to launch a Northern Expedition is clearly no less urgent than yours or mine! Moreover, his temperament is so crude and impatient, and he is the only Chancellor at court since Lords Xu and Li went to Fujian. Given his character, when he sees His Majesty hesitating, he should have offered remonstrance or submitted a memorial, shouldn't he?"

The question came suddenly, and there were quite a few people remaining in the Grand Hall of Great Strength—even excluding the mid-level officers of the Imperial Guard on duty, there were also Lu Benzhong, Liu Yan, Ren Baozhong, Guo Zhongxun, Zong Ying, and six or seven others seated.

Thus, everyone exchanged glances, and for a moment, no one dared to hastily respond to such a sensitive question.

However, after a moment, having exchanged looks and recalled their own widespread loss of composure earlier, these people gradually came to realize that their positions were consistent and clear. Or rather, even if someone like Lu Benzhong seemed to have a somewhat opposing stance, before this overarching situation, he could only align with everyone else... Yet still, no one dared to speak up.

But there was no need for these people to reply anyway.

"Then there is only one explanation." Liu Hongdao suddenly felt a sense of relief wash over him, body and mind. "Although His Majesty showed outward hesitation, it was merely caused by events. Inwardly, there is not the slightest intention to halt the grand strategy of the Northern Expedition... On the contrary, it is we who are so anxious, who are actually inferior to His Majesty, to the point of panicking when faced with a great matter."

Everyone still exchanged glances, no one daring to answer, no one daring to respond.

In the bedroom where the incense was being burned, Zhao Jiu, eyes wide open staring at the ceiling, listening to the patter of rain, finally couldn't help but turn over.

After a night of stimulation, this time-traveler had also thought things through thoroughly—the world's great situation is like a galloping horse, and men are like its riders. One can only guide it, not rein it in.

At this point, where was there any retreat?

Or rather, as long as one didn't actively call for a halt, this galloping horse would have to step forward step by step in the predetermined direction.

The next morning, the rain had lessened to a mere drizzle, clearly about to clear up. Zhao Jiu, who had risen and gone to the kitchen to eat, and the civil and military officials in the Temple of Victory Monastery all understood this clearly... If it cleared up like this, it would be just like the rain at the beginning of summer—a reduction in yield, but by no means a disaster.

And this bout of rain across north and south, along with the unrest in Fujian, would at most turn the so-called "the south is pacified, arms and armor are sufficient" into something like "the south is somewhat pacified, arms and armor are somewhat sufficient."

"Minister Liu." Zhao Jiu ate his meal extremely slowly, as if waiting for someone, or as if deep in thought. Only after everyone had finished eating did he slowly finish himself. Then, without rising, he addressed Liu Hongdao directly from his seat. "Military supplies and materials are all arranged. We cannot change the plan on short notice. I am allocating some of your materials and manpower to repair the plank road along the river in Shanzhou."

"Yes." Liu Hongdao quickly stood up. Though his eyes were slightly red, his spirits were still good. "Your subject understands the stakes."

"It's good that you understand."

Zhao Jiu gazed at the sunlight gradually emerging outside the door, listening to the increasingly noisy sounds within the monastery. He shook his head repeatedly, then suddenly raised his hand and knocked his knuckles against the serving board in front of him in the kitchen, muttering to himself.

"In youth, who knew the hardships of the world? Gazing north to the Central Plains, my spirit is like a mountain.

Towering ships in night snow crossed the Huai River plains; armored horses in fragrant wind descended Mount Yao.

Emperor Guangwu's restoration I vainly aspired to; in the mirror, my fading temples are already streaked with gray.

The memorial on the Northern Expedition is truly famed through the ages; after a thousand years, who can match its worth?"

"Ministers." This poem was not good, too hasty, just like the current situation, to the point of having flaws. But having said this much, Zhao Jiu gave everyone no time to think. He turned his head and looked around in the kitchen, his tone clearly filled with emotion. "We already have a sixty percent chance, and yet we are all hesitating like this. What kind of spirit did Marquis Wu of Zhuge have back then? Without reaching this moment, how could anyone possibly understand the weight of his determination in his six campaigns from Mount Qi?"

"Your subject is old and decrepit, and dare not compare myself to Marquis Wu of Zhuge. But fortunately, this worn-out body still remains, enough to fill the ditches of Hebei!" At that moment, Lu Yihao, who had stopped outside the door before Zhao Jiu even began reciting the poem, stepped into the kitchen ahead of Yang Yizhong. Then, before anyone else, he responded resolutely, performing a grand ritual bow, his words impassioned. "To aid Your Majesty in achieving the restoration of Emperor Guangwu!"

Zhao Jiu nodded faintly, then wiped his mouth and stood up.

PS: ...Sacrificing a book, *Reforming Qin*... Continuing to wish everyone an early New Year.