Chapter 313: This Is No Puppet Emperor, This Is a Groveling Grandson (Two Chapters Combined, Seven Thousand Characters)

The party soon arrived outside the Mingde Gate. Pei Yuan suddenly sighed; in his heart he truly felt a little sympathy for this Emperor, Shi Jingtang.

Luoyang was ruined and could no longer serve as the capital, but how much better could Kaifeng be? It too had suffered war after war, and been ravaged again and again!

Especially in the war that destroyed Liang over a decade ago, when Kaifeng Prefecture bore the brunt of it and was swept clean by the Silver Lance Loyal Army, which had rendered great service in the Later Tang's destruction of Liang.

Then Emperor Zhuangzong Li Cunxu's the the Shatuo Crow Army grew resentful, as if no one else had rendered any service, and so they in turn plundered the area around Kaifeng.

The reason Li Cunxu ultimately made Luoyang his capital, apart from showing that he was the legitimate successor of the Great Tang, was in truth that Kaifeng had been so badly damaged that it could not bear the role of an imperial capital.

What he had not expected was that Luoyang was already beyond saving; after more than ten years of Later Tang repairs, it was in the end overtaken by Kaifeng, which had restored itself.

The palace where Shi Jingtang now lived was the imperial palace of the Later Liang's Zhu family, and this palace had originally been rebuilt from the office compound of the Xuanwu Military Governor at the end of the Tang; it was low and cramped.

Although it was presently the only brick-and-stone building in Kaifeng, it could not compare in the slightest to a true palace.

After entering the Mingde Gate, they had walked only a few steps before arriving outside the Daning Hall. This palace, rebuilt from the Xuanwu Military Governor's office compound, had been called the Jianchang Palace under the Later Liang.

Shi Jingtang had renamed it the Daning Palace two months earlier, and even the Wende Hall, where the Emperor had originally rested during court sessions, had been renamed the Daning Hall.

No dynasty in history had ever changed the Wende Hall to such a strange name, but Pei Yuan knew the reason.

Daning, Daning — Shi Jingtang was seeking peace and tranquility for himself!

"Officer Song, I observe that the palace eunuchs and attendants are all hurrying about with grave expressions. Could it be that Yecheng..."

The "Officer Song" Pei Yuan referred to was a eunuch Shi Jingtang had brought from Luoyang to Kaifeng.

This man had originally served the Later Tang Emperor Mingzong, Li Siyuan. After Li Congke killed his own sworn younger brother Li Conghou and a great number of his adoptive father's descendants, he found Eunuch Song an eyesore and sent him away.

After Shi Jingtang entered Luoyang, Eunuch Song, relying on his old acquaintance with Shi Jingtang, set about currying favor, and before long became one of Shi Jingtang's close attendants. He did not yet have much power, but his information was still very well informed.

As he asked, a small jade pendant was slipped into Eunuch Song's hand by Pei Yuan. Eunuch Song stared levelly into the distance, his right hand quickly squeezing it once, then with a slight lift, the jade pendant swiftly vanished into his wide sleeve.

This had been specially arranged for Pei Yuan by Zhang Zhao. Apart from the value of the jade pendant itself, it could also be exchanged at any Sogdian shop in Kaifeng that sold Hexi goods, for ten jin of Hexi white sugar and one jin of rock sugar.

These two things were extremely valuable hard currency in the present Central Plains; one could earn more than ten strings of cash just by reselling them, to say nothing of the fact that this cost nothing.

Eunuch Song looked at Pei Yuan with a beaming smile, and also with a trace of admiration.

"Vice Director Pei's calculations are divine. That Fan Yanguang of Yecheng has indeed shown a traitor's heart. He has now raised the banner of rebellion in Yecheng, and the mutinous troops are marching south. The Sage has been so worried that he has not eaten properly for days."

As he spoke, Eunuch Song let out a long sigh. Clearly Fan Yanguang's rebellion was something even he, a man who did not understand much of military affairs, found somewhat frightening.

This Fan Yanguang was no ordinary man; he was a fierce general who had gone to war alongside the Later Tang Emperor Mingzong, Li Siyuan. Yecheng was the territory of the Tianxiong Army, and the Military Governor of the Tianxiong Army had once gone by another name: the Military Governor of Weibo.

Although Weibo's Silver Lance Loyal Army had essentially died out by now, after successive emperors repeatedly dealt it heavy blows because its military democracy had been taken too far,

even with the military democracy gone, the fighting strength of the Weibo Tianxiong Army was still terrifying.

Moreover, they bore a deep grudge against the Hedong troops of Shi Jingtang's faction. Mention fighting Hedong troops, and the Weibo Tianxiong Army could surely erupt with two hundred percent of its fighting strength.

At the same time, Fan Yanguang was also in-laws with the last Tang emperor, Li Congke, who had burned himself to death at Luoyang's Xuanwu Tower a few months earlier; his daughter had married Li Congke's crown prince, Li Chongmei, as his princess consort.

When the self-immolation at Xuanwu Tower occurred, Fan Yanguang's daughter and son-in-law died together. In his heart he had long hated Shi Jingtang to death, and should the rebellion succeed, could anyone connected to Shi Jingtang expect to drink good fruit juice?

Inside the Daning Hall, Shi Jingtang still kept his composure fairly well; at least from his expression, not the slightest tension or anxiety could be seen.

But Pei Yuan still sensed something unusual, because Sang Weihan, who ordinarily found fault with him at every turn, had not only refrained from pulling a long horse-face, but had even made an exception and squeezed out a faint smile.

"A few days ago the Vice Director presented Hexi delicacies. Today I have finally found a little leisure, and so I have invited the Vice Director to enjoy them together with Chief Minister Sang."

Shi Jingtang said to Pei Yuan with a smile. It had to be said that this manner of humbling himself to worthy men did indeed bear some resemblance to an enlightened ruler.

The so-called presenting of delicacies had always been a way for vassals to express respect to the Emperor of the Central Plains.

Of course, presenting delicacies did not mean cooking the food and then delivering it to the Emperor; rather, the ingredients, the cooking methods, and even the cooks were sent to the imperial palace, and then the cooks prepared the delicacies under the supervision of the Emperor's trusted men and presented them to the Emperor.

The delicacies Pei Yuan presented on behalf of Zhang Zhao were actually very simple. One dish was Anxi cheese lamb chops, made in the Anxi style, quite different from the lamb chops of the Central Plains.

Another was rock-sugar red-braised pork. This was a novelty brought by Zhang Zhao, in fact a sweet version of Dongpo pork.

Historically, it was invented by Su Dongpo, that gluttonous old fat man, and refined by famous chefs through the ages, only reaching full development by the late Qing.

The last was a beverage: salty milk tea and sweet tea made from Hexi brick tea and butter.

Can you see it now? In saying he was presenting delicacies to the Emperor, Zhang Zhao actually wanted to borrow the Emperor's golden signboard to open up sales for Hexi's three great specialties: white sugar, rock sugar, and tea bricks.

Among them, the white sugar and rock sugar were intended to open up sales among the wealthy households of the Central Plains, while the tea bricks were intended to use Shi Jingtang to open up sales among the Khitan and other northern nomadic peoples.

After all, given Shi Jingtang's status as a puppet emperor, every year he had to send all manner of gifts from the Central Plains to his lord Yelu Deguang. Zhang Zhao hoped that, among these gifts worth tens of thousands of strings each year, the tea bricks could go north as the main item.

At this time, separate dining was still practiced, and the rules between ruler and minister were not as strict as in the Ming and Qing periods. All three sat down rather casually, and the food had been portioned out in advance and was brought up dish by dish by the eunuchs.

Shi Jingtang first tasted the salty milk tea. This milk tea was not much different from the butter tea of later times.

To an ordinary person, the taste was slightly odd; butter was a flavor one had to keep being exposed to before one could grow accustomed to it.

But Shi Jingtang was of the the Shatuo origin, and it was even possible his ancestors were Sogdian, so he was quite accustomed to this flavor. He drank several mouthfuls in a row. Pei Yuan found it a little cloying, but Shi Jingtang did not think so at all.

"I hear this brick tea was made by order of Troop Commander Zhang himself? Not bad! The flavor is very good, and the brick tea keeps well.

The taste of this milk tea is considerably better than boiled tea broth, though the quality of the tea leaves is a little lacking." Shi Jingtang even began critiquing it as he drank.

The tea broth of this time was truly boiled broth: besides tea leaves, one had to add coarse salt, mutton fat, pepper, nutmeg, ginger, garlic, tangerine peel, evodia, and the like. That flavor could kill a man!

What Zhang Zhao had made was called milk tea, in fact the thing known as butter tea; compared with the tea broth of the present, it was simply a fresh, delicate little thing that could be salty or sweet.

Although he found Pei Yuan disagreeable, Sang Weihan still had to admit that this Hexi brick tea, milk tea, and sweet tea were indeed better to drink than tea broth, and not so cloying.

"Hexi is a bitter, cold frontier region; how can it compare with the Central Kingdom? Hexi brick tea is only sold to the various barbarians. However, if it could be made from some famous teas of the Central Kingdom, it might perhaps be sold to the nobles of the Liao state!"

A faint smile appeared on Shi Jingtang's face; he quickly understood what Pei Yuan meant.

That is, fine tea leaves could be used to make superior tea bricks, to be sent to Yelu Deguang and other Khitan nobles. Pei Yuan had not said it directly, out of consideration for his face.

Pei Yuan glanced at Sang Weihan, and seeing that Sang Weihan seemed about to speak, he hurriedly opened his mouth before Sang Weihan could.

"Now that we have drunk the milk tea, please allow everyone to taste the Hexi rock-sugar red-braised pork. This is also a dish invented by Minister of Works Zhang. Hexi is barren, but this dish is rich and splendid beyond measure!"

Sang Weihan was cut off, and could only lower his head and continue drinking tea, while inwardly calculating that since this brick tea, milk tea, and sweet tea suited the people of the northern grasslands and kept well, the method of making them must be made to be handed over by the Hexi people.

Shi Jingtang had not yet thought of that. Hearing Pei Yuan's enthusiastic recommendation, he gently lifted the lid of the clay pot containing the rock-sugar red-braised pork before him, and at once a rich meaty aroma mixed with an intense sweetness surged out of the pot.

"It is actually pork?"

Shi Jingtang poked at it in surprise with his chopsticks, not expecting that the delicacy presented by Hexi would actually be pork.

Although pork was already fairly common by this time, the upper classes did not really eat the stuff.

This was because in ancient times pork was considered a lowly meat. For one thing, the rearing conditions were poor, far less clean-looking than sheep grazing on hillsides.

As a result, pork was more susceptible to all kinds of parasites, and if one was not careful to cook the meat thoroughly, it could make a person ill.

Moreover, the technique for castrating live pigs was still immature at this time, and it often happened that a pig would fail to survive after being gelded.

This was fatal: if gelded, the pig was hard to keep alive; if not gelded, the meat had a rank, urine-like stench.

And if not gelded, a pig's estrous cycle was rather short. Once in heat, it would not only grow thin, but also could not be penned in, and sometimes even injured people. Thus pork could never become a stable and reliable meat supply.

"Oh! How is this pork so plump and rich?" Sang Weihan had also lifted the lid off the rock-sugar braised pork, and his gaze was drawn to the thick layer of fat on the meat.

In this era, fatty meat was a fine thing indeed. Three catties of ordinary lean meat could not buy even one catty of fat.

"In answer to Minister Sang, this pork comes from a black pig unique to Hexi. The meat is rich and tender, most suited for braised pork, and it has no rank or gamey smell at all. Please, everyone, and Minister Sang, do try it!"

Pei Yuan looked at the two men's astonished expressions and said with some pride. When he had first come into contact with Zhang Zhao, he too had been just as dumbfounded, almost believing Zhang Zhao was some deity descended to the mortal world.

How could there exist in this world a scion of a great clan who could lead troops in battle, understood the way of rulership, could produce tea bricks, milk tea, and braised pork, and on top of all that could castrate pigs?

Why could Zhang Zhao geld pigs? In truth, he could not actually do it himself, but he knew how it was done!

Because before his transmigration, he had often followed some strange uploaders on the Mouse-Mouse video site, among them one oddball who specialized in performing sterilization surgeries on wild boars in areas overrun by them.

Therefore, although he had never done it hands-on, he knew how it was performed. Wasn't it just a matter of sterilizing the blade, then grabbing the piglet directly, pinching the scrotum holding the balls, cutting open a slit, and squeezing the balls right out?

No anesthetic was even needed, and not much blood would flow. One only had to make sure the blade was sterilized and then stitch it up a little.

And so, under his guidance, after killing or crippling over a hundred innocent piglets, the pig-gelding craft of the Liangzhou region advanced by leaps and bounds, and there even arose professional pig-gelders who made their living solely from castrating pigs.

For the time being, however, they could only geld boars. The more complicated craft of gelding sows was still in the process of accumulating experience.

Since Pei Yuan had said this was Hexi black pig, Shi Jingtang no longer made an issue of it being pork.

He reached out with his chopsticks and lightly picked up a piece, and a cube of rock-sugar braised pork wrapped in red glaze entered his mouth.

At once, this child-emperor's eyes lit up. The braised pork in his mouth was a perfect mix of fat and lean. The lean meat was not coarse and rough like ordinary pork, but rather chewed somewhat soft, with an excellent texture.

As for the fat, there was even less need to speak of it. It was soft and yielding, like a fully ripened red apricot, dissolving with the slightest press of the tongue.

Rich, full oils burst open in his mouth, and a sense of fatty satisfaction attainable only by creatures at the top of the food chain surged through him from inside out.

Riding on this explosive fatty flavor, another light press of the tongue brought the sweetness of the orange-red syrup flooding his entire mouth in an instant.

This sweetness was utterly beyond comparison with the faint sweetness of ordinary brown sugar. It was a rich sweetness entirely different from honey.

The diet of people in this age differed considerably from that of later generations. The great slabs of fat that later ages would deem too greasy, plus cloyingly sweet syrup, were in later times the chief culprits of caloric overload and ruined figures, the standard bywords for unhealthiness.

But in this era, when most people could not even eat their fill, fatty meat and extreme sweetness represented the highest form of enjoyment.

Shi Jingtang finally understood why Pei Yuan had said this dish was one of extraordinary wealth and honor. Because only households of great wealth and rank could obtain, and afford, such a dish.

The room fell silent at once. Although Pei Yuan had eaten it a few times in Hexi, even he could not have this dish often.

As for Shi Jingtang and Sang Weihan, there was even less to say. Although the two had seen much of the world, faced with such culinary refinement, centuries ahead of its time, they were still shocked into speechlessness.

After a long while, only after Sang Weihan had polished off an entire large jar of rock-sugar braised pork did he set down his chopsticks and heave a long sigh.

"Hexi has such fine syrup, and such fine pork. Minister of Works Zhang is surely destined for great wealth and honor!

Yet our Central Kingdom today is a hundred undertakings waiting to be revived, with money and grain in short supply. Governing the state is far more difficult than governing Hexi. I wonder when the Sage will be able to enjoy wealth and honor like Minister of Works Zhang?"

Pei Yuan inwardly cursed Sang Weihan with deep contempt. This Sang Guoqiao was not sighing at all, nor was he praising anyone. In truth, he was stirring up Shi Jingtang's covetous desire for Hexi's white sugar and rock sugar.

Perhaps even without this man's instigation, Shi Jingtang had clearly noticed the point as well. He fixed his burning gaze on Pei Yuan, and though he said nothing, his meaning was plain.

Pei Yuan could only rise from his seat. He bowed to Shi Jingtang. "When I departed Hexi, the Minister of Works gave me instructions. Although the techniques for making Hexi white sugar and rock sugar are secret family formulas that may not be lightly shown to others,

the Central Kingdom is the Minister of Works's homeland, and the sons of Tang of Hexi and Longyou all take pride in serving their motherland.

Now that the state is newly founded and the court needs money on all sides, the Minister of Works, in his profound understanding of righteousness, is willing to hand over to the court the exclusive right to sell Hexi white sugar and rock sugar within the Central Kingdom.

Henceforth, east of the Eastern Capital, white sugar and rock sugar shall no longer appear in the hands of any other merchants."

At this time, the Central Kingdom in the narrow sense referred to the Central Plains. And because Shi Jingtang had conferred on Pei Yuan the office of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue in the Bureau of Review, Pei Yuan could address himself as "your subject" to Shi Jingtang.

Shi Jingtang and Sang Weihan exchanged a glance. Zhang Zhao was clearly using the exclusive right to sell Hexi white sugar and rock sugar east of the Eastern Capital in exchange for the smooth sale of Hexi rock sugar and white sugar in all other regions.

Sang Weihan considered for a moment, then nodded faintly. Shameless as this man was, in matters of statecraft his ability was actually quite good.

Before Shi Jingtang had entered Kaifeng, he had already offered Shi Jingtang counsel.

He had said: devote effort to agriculture and sericulture to fill the granaries; open trade routes to enrich goods and wealth; train farmers and nurture troops; build strength slowly and bide one's time; and serve the Khitan humbly so as to keep the realm at peace.

In truth, although Shi Jingtang and Sang Weihan were indeed quite shameless, this shamelessness was born more of helplessness.

The two of them were not born with base bones, eager to submit to the Khitan. Rather, they were driven by fear of death and the pressure of circumstance.

Both of them knew very well that if they wanted to keep their heads, and if they wanted to keep their seats secure, the greatest threat was not the Khitan, but the unruly military officers and yabing guards.

The Khitan might insist on being Shi Jingtang's father and extort large sums of money, but they would not rashly come to take Shi Jingtang's life or seize his throne.

But the soldiers surrounding Shi Jingtang, men long accustomed over decades and centuries to rioting and rebellion, to surrounding and killing their superiors and even plundering the Son of Heaven, were the demons who could take Shi Jingtang's life at any moment.

For example, at present, although Shi Jingtang had entered Kaifeng and become Emperor, this emperor's lot was even worse than when he had been Military Governor in Hedong.

In just a few short months since entering Kaifeng, Fan Yanguang had already raised the banner of rebellion at Yecheng, north of the Yellow River.

And within the city of Kaifeng itself, Yang Guangyuan, the turncoat general who had killed the Later Tang's Northern Front Campaign Commander Zhang Jingda and helped install Shi Jingtang, had already effectively taken control of Kaifeng's defenses.

Shi Jingtang's Hedong yabing guards, having been badly depleted in the war, were utterly incapable of opposing Yang Guangyuan. Yang Guangyuan even openly sought out physiognomists in Bianjing to have them read whether he had the face of an emperor.

So brazen that he might as well have written "I want to rebel" on his face, and yet Shi Jingtang could not punish him.

And among the military provinces outside, besides Fan Yanguang directly raising the banner of rebellion, An Zhongrong, who resented his groveling service to the Khitan, had long harbored rebellious intent. Fu Yanrao, the Military Governor of Huazhou and elder brother of Fu Yanqing, the Military Governor of Tongzhou, had also been swept into rebellion by mutinous troops.

Even Liu Zhiyuan, whom Shi Jingtang himself had left in Jinyang in Hedong, had developed disloyal thoughts. Earlier, in order to weaken Yang Guangyuan's power, Shi Jingtang had secretly sent an imperial envoy to Jinyang, demanding that Liu Zhiyuan transfer four thousand Hedong yabing guards into Kaifeng to balance Yang Guangyuan's forces.

But more than five months had passed since the order was issued, and not only had Shi Jingtang not seen a single Hedong yabing guard, Liu Zhiyuan had not even offered an explanation.

Within, soldiers ran rampant; without, military governors rebelled. The moment a trusted subordinate was posted away, he immediately became unreliable.

Under such circumstances, Shi Jingtang, who had already suffered the bitter experience of being driven nearly to hang himself by Li Congke, naturally would not concern himself with saving face.

Still less would he consider how much harm he would bring to later generations. What he and Sang Weihan were thinking of now was simply how to stay alive.

Only after stabilizing the Khitan and clinging firmly to the Khitan's thigh would Shi Jingtang have the time to slowly build up his strength.

This is called hugging the Khitan father's thigh to command the feudal lords.

"Lord Zhang is so deeply righteous and understanding of the greater good — truly a model for external subjects. In former years, the late Tang enfeoffed Lord Zhang's great-grandfather, Grand Guardian Zhang, as Founding Duke of Nanyang Commandery. The Sage may follow that precedent and enfeoff Lord Zhang as Duke of Nanyang Commandery."

They had already trotted out the family's secret recipe, so of course they couldn't demand he share it — but Zhang Zhao had granted exclusive operating rights, and they still had to show some appreciation. So Sang Weihan thought of the title of Founding Duke of Nanyang Commandery that Zhang Yichao had once received.

Pei Yuan was practically speechless. Exclusive sales rights for white sugar and rock sugar, and all it bought was a meaningless Duke of Nanyang Commandery — worth only a few dozen dan of salary grain a year, and even that subject to deductions.

A commandery duke title that can't even be passed down hereditarily, let alone without reduction each generation — what use is it?

"Your servant, on behalf of Lord Zhang, kowtows in thanks to Your Majesty. Lord Zhang often says that his life's ambition is to emulate his great-grandfather, Grand Guardian Zhang, and return the six commanderies of Hexi to the nation.

He never imagined that before the six commanderies have even been returned, he would receive the generous bestowal of the title Duke of Nanyang Commandery — truly he is ashamed to accept it! After your servant returns to the post station, he will send men at once to report back to Lord Zhang in Liangzhou.

However, knowing Lord Zhang as your servant does, the Lord has always honored the principle of not accepting reward without merit — he may well submit a memorial declining the title."

Sneering and dodging the real issue, is that it? As if no one else knows how to play that game. What worthless talent!

Shi Jingtang's pupils contracted slightly. Pei Yuan's words were needles hidden in silk — on the surface praising Zhang Zhao's noble character and refusal to accept reward without merit.

In reality, he was telling Shi Jingtang: the white sugar and rock sugar of Hexi are produced in Hexi — not something just anyone can make.

Zhang Zhao could grant the court exclusive operating rights, but he could also revoke them at any time, or simply refuse to carry them out.

The so-called "returning the six commanderies of Hexi to the nation" — on the surface it told Shi Jingtang of Zhang Zhao's life's ambition, but in reality it said: Zhang Zhao's demand is the post of Military Governor of Hexi, nothing more. He would not covet Longyou after gaining Hexi.

Zhang Zhao, who commands several thousand elite troops and governs a million subjects, wants only to be a Military Governor of Hexi like his ancestor, Grand Guardian Zhang Yichao.

If the court cannot satisfy even such a small request, then why should he return the six commanderies to the nation — and why should he give Shi Jingtang so many benefits?

"Ah! Right — your servant has one more matter he has not yet reported to Your Majesty!"

Pei Yuan acted as though he had just remembered something, even putting on a face full of trepidation.

Shi Jingtang drew a deep breath and waved a hand. "Yuying, speak."

This time, Pei Yuan looked directly into Shi Jingtang's eyes with a touch of boldness and said: "When your servant departed, envoys from the Great Anxi Dynasty, the Great Treasure Great Jin Kingdom — from His Highness the Great Sage and Great Ming King, Li Shengtian — had already arrived in Liangzhou.

His Highness the King of the Jin Kingdom is Lord Zhang's own maternal uncle. That the Great Jin Kingdom has been able to encompass the Western Regions and overawe Persia, India, and other states owes much to Lord Zhang's strength.

It is only a pity that Lord Zhang has not yet been able to open the road back to the homeland, so the envoys of the Great Jin Kingdom cannot come to the Eastern Capital to offer congratulations to Your Majesty.

This is truly lamentable! If Hexi could be linked to the nation, and a flourishing Anxi state like the Great Jin Kingdom — with a population of four million — came to pay court, it would surely magnify Your Majesty's prestige!"

Gulp! Shi Jingtang could not help swallowing. Historically, it was in this very year — before his seat on the throne was even warm — that he had impatiently dispatched envoys Gao Juhui, Zhang Kuangye, and others on a mission to Khotan.

What for? Was it not precisely to use the opportunity of enfeoffing Li Shengtian to show that he, Shi Jingtang, was a virtuous sovereign?

After the Tibetans seized the Four Garrisons of Anxi, Anxi had remained beyond the reach of the late Tang, the Later Liang, and the Later Tang for two hundred years. Its return to the national map — did that not prove that Shi Jingtang held the Mandate of Heaven?

Look at the emperors of the late Tang — Zhu Quanzhong, Li Cunxu — they were simply inferior. It had to be me, Shi Jingtang, to recover Anxi!

At this thought, Shi Jingtang truly could not remain calm. He looked at Pei Yuan and asked: "Is what Yuying says true? Is the Lord's ambition indeed to return the six commanderies of Hexi to the nation?"

"Your servant would never dare speak falsely. Every word is true. If there is any falsehood, strike off my head!"

Pei Yuan said this with a face full of fervor — but inwardly, his heart was utterly unmoved.

Never mind fooling a shameless the the Shatuo whelp like Shi Jingtang — even if it were a virtuous gentleman, for the sake of securing the post of Military Governor of Hexi for Zhang Zhao, he could spin this tale without blushing or skipping a beat.

Shi Jingtang fell silent for a moment, his mind locked in a fierce internal struggle. He truly did not want to enfeoff Zhang Zhao with the post of Military Governor of Hexi.

Because Hexi and Hedong had always been the regions that produced the nation's finest troops and strongest generals. And now Longyou was entirely occupied by the Wenmo, beyond the court's control.

If a powerful Military Governor of Hexi with strong troops and sturdy horses appeared in Liangzhou, swallowing up Longyou would only be a matter of time.

In this realm, one Military Governor of Hedong was already enough of a headache for the Central Plains court. If a jumbo-sized Military Governor of Hexi and Longyou appeared as well, how were they supposed to live?

Just as Shi Jingtang hesitated, a piercing scream came from far away. A burly, imposing man came wailing and crashed headlong into the Daning Hall, startling the three people who were eating.

Shi Jingtang let out a shout and leapt three feet straight into the air on the spot. He stared in terror toward the hall entrance, thinking a mutiny had broken out.

Sang Weihan, even faster, darted behind the screen.

Pei Yuan: "........"

In an instant, of the three who had just been eating and chatting pleasantly, only the less jumpy him was left sitting behind the low table, utterly disheveled.

—————— Off-topic ——————

How's my chapter break? You want to praise me, don't you? (It's really not that I wanted to break it here! It's that I haven't figured out how to write the next part yet.)

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