Chapter 485: Zhang Zhao: Shi Chonggui, Why Don't I Become Your Grandfather Instead!

The third year of Kaiyun of the Later Jin, the fifteenth day of the first month in the year 945 CE — the Shangyuan Festival.

In this era, the Shangyuan Festival held the supreme place among all festivals; it was the most important festival of the year.

But on this Shangyuan Festival, the atmosphere in the Eastern Capital was like the dense clouds massed overhead — not a trace of festivity, only an extreme oppressiveness.

Because Hucile, the Military Governor of Wuning in Xuzhou, had sent back news that struck like a bolt from the blue.

Du Chongwei, Northern Front Commander-in-Chief of the Jin state, brother-in-law of the Jin founder Shi Jingtang, and uncle by marriage of the reigning Son of Heaven Shi Chonggui, had gone over to the Khitan ruler Yelu Deguang by the Hutuo River with an army of a hundred thousand.

This bolt from the blue instantly felled Shi Chonggui.

When the great army set out, the plan had been first to take Youyun and then pacify the great desert; yet in the space of a few months the situation had collapsed so swiftly that the state now stood on the verge of destruction.

Alas, among all the Jin generals on the northern campaign, there were only two loyal ministers — Huangfu Yu and Guo Lin.

Apart from them, men like Wang Zhou, who wished to kill himself to preserve his integrity as a subject, and Hucile, who before fleeing back to his Wuning Army territory in Xuzhou still remembered to send word — such men already counted as having considerable conscience.

All the other generals had by now come to regard Yelu Deguang as the Son of Heaven.

What was even more astonishing was that the Jin court, with its two and a half loyal ministers and one Hucile who still had some conscience left, already possessed more loyal ministers than any dynasty since the Liang and Tang.

North of the city, amid everyone else's panic, Feng Dao very methodically sent his old wife and son away to a fortified manor in the mountains outside the city.

He then dismissed most of the servants, telling them to leave the Eastern Capital to escape the coming calamity, keeping only his eldest son Feng Ping in the residence to attend him.

Toward the servants of his household, Feng Dao was extremely considerate; every manservant and maidservant received money and goods according to their usual rank and standing.

Some got as little as one or two strings of cash, others as much as ten or more; the whole body of servants and maids all wept with gratitude.

But when it came to the coachman who ordinarily followed him everywhere, and the personal maid of his wife, Lady Sun, Feng Dao gave them nothing at all, showing not the slightest intention of paying them severance.

The coachman was a simple, honest man, habitually taciturn; when others had tried to bribe him with gold and silver to put in a good word before Feng Dao, he had not dared keep any of it and handed it all over to Feng Dao, and so he was deeply trusted.

The maid was a pious woman who could read and chant Buddhist sutras; she had formed a bond with Feng Dao's wife, Lady Sun, through Buddhism, and was likewise highly regarded by the whole Feng household.

The coachman was not surprised, because he was Feng Dao's trusted man; although the household servants had all been dismissed, a carriage would still be needed in the ordinary course of things.

Only the maid was somewhat puzzled; she was the maid of Feng Dao's wife, not Feng Dao's own maid.

Could it be that Feng Dao, past sixty, was still young at heart and wanted her to stay and attend him?

At once the maid gave a light bow and asked in a soft, gentle voice, "Would my lord care to retire early tonight? This slave will go first and warm your bed."

"Go and keep Cook Sun here for now." Feng Dao waved a hand, sending his son Feng Ping out to make the arrangements.

The manservants and maids of the household had all been dismissed, but the kitchen cooks and the stove-tenders could not be let go — otherwise they would all go hungry.

After watching Feng Ping leave, Feng Dao, who sat upright in the room as though half asleep, suddenly shot out a sharp gleam from his eyes.

He looked at the maid — who, though she could already be called a woman past her prime, still retained an alluring grace — and smiled faintly.

"I have heard that in the Eastern Capital there was once a remarkable woman, supremely skilled in the art of disguise, who could make a man into an old crone and a sturdy woman into an old man. Later she was taken into the household of a wealthy man of Shu for ten thousand in gold. I did not expect to meet her today.

I would not dare let you attend me; otherwise Ambassador Zhang would certainly not spare me."

The maid's expression did not change; instead she looked at Feng Dao with some bewilderment, as though she could not understand a word he was saying.

But the honest-looking coachman's mouth quirked upward — so Feng Dao had deliberately not dismissed the two of them because he had already seen through their identities.

"Since my lord has suddenly spoken plainly today, it seems you have already made up your mind. But you have guessed wrong — the one before you is not the Fourth Chief, but this humble one's little sister, Zan Niang."

Zan Niang was still putting on an act, but the coachman suddenly laid it bare. Hearing this, Zan Niang stopped pretending as well; her eyes swiftly changed from bewilderment to shrewdness, and she cast a glance full of charm at Feng Dao.

"Since my lord saw through us long ago, why not say so plainly? There was no need to toy with us."

As she spoke, Zan Niang produced a small booklet bound together with cord, and from somewhere produced a strange little writing brush.

"My lord, do tell us where you spotted the flaws, so that this slave may sum them up and avoid giving ourselves away next time."

At these words, Feng Dao was stunned for a long moment.

These two, having been exposed by him, neither immediately knelt to beg for mercy nor hurried to blurt out the truth to save their lives; instead they acted as though chatting idly with close friends, and even wanted to sum up their lessons right in front of him.

At once Feng Dao's face turned cold. Though he was a civil official, he was no ordinary civil official; he was one who had long stood at the center of state power, a civil official before whom even ordinary military men had to be courteous.

The successive rulers of the Tang and Jin had all treated him, Feng Dao, as a chief minister of the realm; no one had ever dared be so flippant in his presence.

"Are you two not afraid that I will report you to the authorities?"

The coachman chuckled. "My lord, you yourself are the authority. You are the most talented and clever man under heaven; if you meant to report us, you would have done so long ago, not waited until now.

And does my lord not wish to know who sent my sister and me to your residence?"

Feng Dao gave a bitter smile. "Who else could it be? Apart from that bold beyond measure and exceedingly patient Prince of Liang, who else could recruit such talent and plant them in this old man's household to spy?

If you two had not been sent by the Prince of Liang, and had not come with no intent to harm, how could you have been allowed to live until today?"

As he spoke, Feng Dao clapped his hands, and dozens of sturdy men armed with swords and spears instantly burst into the room from outside.

So Feng Dao's sending his eldest son Feng Ping out had not been to make arrangements for the cook, but to summon the guards.

"Seize these two, throw them into the dungeon, and keep them under strict watch."

At the same time, in the residence of Liu Tao north of the Eastern Capital, the scene was quite different.

In recent years, although Liu Tao still held the post of Director of the Bureau of Works, everyone knew what he really did.

He was a nail planted in the Eastern Capital by Great King Zhang of Liang, so much so that Liu Tao's residence had almost become a relay station for Liang state intelligence.

Even Shi Chonggui, deep in the palace and paying little attention to affairs, knew that Liu Tao was working for Zhang Zhao.

Yet despite such a status, the Later Jin court not only did not throw Liu Tao into prison, it even preserved his post as Director of the Bureau of Works, and his salary grain was never short.

And Liu Tao was tactful enough; he did nothing else but one thing.

He continually sent the Central Plains' scholars, physicians, and even carpenters, stonemasons, and farmers skilled in cultivation — such talents from the lower rungs of society — in a steady stream to Hexi.

Had this been any normal ruler — never mind the First Emperor of Qin, Emperor Wu of Han, or Taizong of Tang — even with men like Li Siyuan and Shi Jingtang on the throne, if they did not have Liu Tao beheaded, they would long since have driven him off to Hexi.

This is fucking digging at the very foundations of our Great Jin!

But Shi Chonggui felt little about it. Liu Tao sent only one or two thousand people a year to Hexi, not even a tenth as many as the natural and man-made disasters under Shi Chonggui's rule killed off, so Shi Chonggui simply did not care.

Instead, he used it as leverage, repeatedly issuing instructions in the name of Empress Feng to Liu Tao, ordering him to contribute Hexi white sugar, cotton cloth, and all manner of rare treasures from the Western Regions to the palace.

Heh! So it had even turned into a business.

But it was precisely because of this that Liu Tao's position in the Eastern Capital was so secure — for behind him stood the support of the Liang Kingdom.

Even if the Khitan entered the Eastern Capital, what of it? The Khitan ruler Yelu Deguang was the sworn elder brother of the King of Liang. What could he possibly do to his sworn younger brother's vassal?

At this moment, Liu Tao had just finished receiving the flattery of a group of minor officials from the Ministry of Works.

These men had come seeking psychological comfort; they hoped that after the Khitan entered the Eastern Capital, they could obtain Liu Tao's protection.

But once Liu Tao returned to the rear courtyard, his expression immediately turned indifferent.

For a powerfully built Sogdian man was waiting for him — none other than the adopted son of Great King Zhang, the Embroidered Uniform Envoy Zhang Liecheng.

"Feng Dao has detained Old Leopard and Zan Niang. I sent a few men to investigate. The four gates of the Feng residence are shut tight, and no one even answers when called."

Zhang Liecheng turned back with a brilliant smile. The reason he had risked coming to the Eastern Capital at this moment was precisely for Feng Dao.

Zhang Liecheng had recently been badly provoked by Murong Xinzhang. Murong Xinzhang and his wife had both thrown themselves into the effort, venturing to Guanzhong to lobby and persuade for Zhang Zhao's sake, so wholeheartedly devoted — then he could not let Murong Xinzhang monopolize all merit before his father.

"The old fox is waiting for us to come up and lay out our terms!"

A look of surprised delight flashed across Liu Tao's face. "The Elder of Everlasting Joy would submit to the Great King?"

Feng Dao was a man of tremendous standing in the minds of the civil officials of this time. Among the literati, whether worthy or foolish, all privately revered Feng Dao as their foremost.

One could say that Feng Dao was the figurehead the civil officials had put forward at this time. If he could be won over, it would be an enormous boost to the prestige of the Liang Kingdom.

Zhang Liecheng slowly shook his head. "The time is not yet ripe. Feng Dao is a man who has moved among all parties without ever falling. He does not lightly offend anyone, and naturally he does not lightly submit to anyone either.

And whether Feng Dao will submit does not rest with him, but with the military might our Great Liang is about to display."

Liu Tao nodded in agreement. "Is the Envoy going to the Feng residence? Should I arrange men to support you?"

Zhang Liecheng grinned. "No need. In the Eastern Capital today, the man who would dare kill me has not yet been born."

Feng Dao had expected the visitor to be Liu Tao, but he never imagined that the man before him would be a powerfully built Sogdian. The moment he saw that face, Feng Dao knew at once who it was.

"The Envoy Zhang is the son of the Great King. There seems no need for you to risk yourself so."

Whether in admiration or bewilderment, Feng Dao looked at Zhang Liecheng and said slowly.

"The Elder of Everlasting Joy is my senior. You may simply call me Zhang Dalang."

Zhang Liecheng cupped his hands. "I stand within the residence of the Chief Minister of the reigning court — what danger could there be?"

"Truly a bold spirit. This old man admires it. Since the Envoy has come in person, please take your subordinates away. Feng is old and frail; I am not worth so much of the Envoy's effort."

Zhang Liecheng waved a hand. "The Elder of Everlasting Joy has already dismissed his servants and has no other coachman. Let them stay."

Feng Dao smiled bitterly, the wrinkles on his forehead deepening. "Why must the Envoy Zhang press so relentlessly? The Khitan will march south any day now. The Great King is far away in Hexi; even if he mustered his army and set out now, he would not arrive in time. This old man truly cannot help."

"With the Elder of Everlasting Joy's wisdom, you cannot fail to see the general trend of the realm. Do you truly think that uncle of mine will set up another child emperor?"

As he spoke, Zhang Liecheng supplied the answer himself.

"Of course he will not. A single Shi Chonggui has already caused the Khitan such great difficulty. If Zhao Yanshou became master of the Central Plains, in five or ten years, could the Khitan still hold Yan-Yun?

As for Du Chongwei, that man's head is merely on loan to his shoulders for the time being. How could he be made Son of Heaven of the Central Plains?"

Feng Dao looked at Zhang Liecheng in surprise. He was thoroughly familiar with Yelu Deguang, Zhao Yanshou, and Du Chongwei, which was why he could conclude that Yelu Deguang would likely not set up another child emperor.

But how had Zhang Liecheng reached that conclusion? Could it be that the Embroidered Uniform Envoy's spies had already penetrated the upper ranks of the Khitan?

While Feng Dao was puzzling over this, Zhang Liecheng continued. "If he does not set up Zhao Yanshou or Du Chongwei, then this throne of the Central Plains — perhaps my uncle Yelu will have to sit on it himself.

It is only a pity that the Khitan are not the the the Shatuo. They have never been a people of the great dynasty, and with their shaved-head barbarous customs besides, they will find it hard to win the allegiance of the people of the realm. I fear they will not sit steadily either."

"Is the Envoy saying that in all the realm, only the King of Liang is the true lord of men?" Feng Dao revealed a noncommittal smile and asked in a low voice.

Zhang Liecheng chuckled. "Does the Elder of Everlasting Joy think there is anyone else? Meng Chang? Li Jing? Such men merely feign strength. How could they withstand the elite troops of Hexi?"

At this time, Meng Chang of the Later Shu was exerting himself in governance. Though his exertions deserved a very large question mark, to outsiders, the Shu kingdom had fine troops and ample grain, with a thousand li of fertile land — a powerful and prosperous state.

The Southern Tang ruler Li Bian had died the year before last, and the now-reigning Li Jing was extremely similar to Meng Chang — both were the sort of young, promising rulers who appeared to be in the full bloom of their vigor.

Moreover, the Southern Tang had recently exploited the internal strife of the Wang Min to conquer the Min kingdom, carrying the air of a great southern power.

Had anyone else said this, Feng Dao would certainly have thought the man was boasting. But coming from Zhang Liecheng, Feng Dao found it somehow only natural.

One need not fear not knowing the goods; one need only fear comparing goods. Meng Chang and Li Jing appeared to be wise rulers, but set beside Zhang Zhao, they seemed to amount to nothing.

But for Feng Dao, he still did not wish to submit to Zhang Zhao so quickly.

For no other reason than this: the Khitan ruler was about to enter the Eastern Capital, while Zhang Zhao was far away in Hexi and could not reach the Central Plains any time soon.

If he submitted to Zhang Zhao now, even secretly, it would be extremely dangerous. If Yelu Deguang discovered it, he might well cut him down with a single stroke.

For a man like Feng Dao, whether it was Yelu Deguang or Zhang Zhao, whichever of the two entered the Eastern Capital would need to rely on men like Feng Dao, He Ning, and Li Song to govern the realm. Therefore, submitting to neither was the safest course.

Zhang Liecheng sneered inwardly. Father was indeed wise — from far-off Hexi he had seen through the true faces of these men.

Zhang Zhao had told him then that Feng Dao would never lightly place his bet, and that recruiting such a man was almost entirely impossible.

And the reason Zhang Liecheng had still come, knowing Feng Dao was such a man, was that recruiting Feng Dao was in fact Zhang Liecheng's highest objective.

Since it was his highest objective, he had naturally long been prepared for the possibility of failing to achieve it. So Zhang Liecheng swiftly adjusted his objective, and his expression gradually grew calm.

"The Elder of Everlasting Joy truly lives up to the name of the Man Who Never Falls. But I must remind Lord Feng of one thing: my father is not the same as the Khitan ruler. The Liang Kingdom has not only loyal and brave warriors, but no shortage of men capable of governing the realm.

Lord Zhang Xichong, Pei Yuan, Fan Zhi, Xue Juzheng, and others all have the ability of chief ministers.

The Hexi civil examinations have already been held twice, and this year's session even drew candidates registered in Yanzhou and Qingzhou. The Elder of Everlasting Joy should not be overconfident."

It was called a reminder, but in truth it was a threat, for after five or six years of Zhang Zhao's tireless efforts to draw in talent from the Central Plains, the Liang Kingdom already possessed a small administrative corps.

"Many thanks for the Envoy's reminder." Faced with the threat, Feng Dao was not the least bit angry. He even cupped his hands toward Zhang Liecheng, as though Zhang Liecheng truly had come only to remind him.

"This is the very reason I asked the Envoy to call upon me. For the sake of my family's lives, I cannot submit to the Great King at this moment. But I, Feng Dao, am still a man of Huaxia. How could I willingly become a slave to the northern barbarians?

I have long understood that the Great King's difficulty lies in how to enter Guanzhong without harming the great cause of righteousness. Therefore I have a plan, and I ask the Envoy to assist me in it. It will surely allow the Great King to have both."

"Oh? Please, Lord Feng, speak."

What Feng Dao said was exactly what Zhang Liecheng wanted to hear.

His highest objective in coming this time was to recruit Feng Dao; his lowest objective was to have Feng Dao step forward and resolve this difficulty for Zhang Zhao.

"What the Great King worries about is simply this: if he enters Guanzhong now, he will be seen as conspiring with the Khitan, as an accomplice of the northern barbarians.

But what if, at this moment, the Son of Heaven in the Daning Palace issued a state letter inviting the Great King to lead his great army into the Central Plains to resist the Khitan?"

Zhang Liecheng's eyes lit up. Indeed! Just as the Liang army's first entry into Guanzhong had come at Shi Jingtang's invitation, this time too it could be at Shi Chonggui's invitation.

That way, it would be entirely legitimate!

But Shi Chonggui was no fool — why would he open such a door? Hexi's Heavenly King Zhang's desire to enter the Central Plains with proper justification was plain for any clear-sighted person to see.

"Elder Feng, how confident are you in this plan?"

"If the Ambassador is willing to risk his life and enter the palace with this old man, and further claim he was entrusted by his younger brother, Young Lord Murong, then I am ninety percent confident!"

Zhang Liecheng felt a surge of intense discomfort rush from his dantian straight up to the Baihui acupoint at the crown of his head, instantly making him extremely irritable.

Why could he never escape Young Lord Murong's shadow anywhere?

Feng Dao also saw that Zhang Liecheng's expression had turned somewhat grim, and hastily explained.

"Young Lord Murong is the Son of Heaven's own paternal uncle by marriage. In his days in the Eastern Capital, he aided the distressed, his word carried the weight of nine cauldrons, and his reputation was outstanding.

More than three years ago, during the late Emperor's funeral, Young Lord Murong greatly overawed the Son of Heaven.

Though the Son of Heaven inwardly resents Young Lord Murong's discourtesy, he also knows him to be a reliable man. If the Ambassador can vouch with Young Lord Murong's good faith, the Son of Heaven will surely believe it."

Son of a bitch! So only Murong Xinzhang has a good reputation, is that it? Zhang Liecheng suddenly felt somewhat deflated.

He had been born a mule on the outskirts of Samarkand, while Murong Xinzhang was a 'thoroughbred' born with a golden key in his mouth — the difference in treatment was truly too great.

What was even more infuriating was that Murong Xinzhang was also more capable than him.

He had no choice but to accept it!

And this was not the time to dwell on such things. So, I, Ambassador Zhang, gritted my teeth and asked, doing my utmost to appear composed.

"How exactly would this guarantee work?"

"The Ambassador, young lord, may tell the Son of Heaven: if he desires the Liang army's aid, he may cede Guanzhong, pay an annual tribute of one hundred thousand bolts of brocade, send the Duke of Xun's adoptive mother Lady Wang to Liangzhou, and the Son of Heaven shall address the Heavenly King as 'Grandfather.'

So long as he agrees to these four terms, the Liang kingdom's great army will set out at dawn and arrive by dusk."

Hiss! Zhang Liecheng drew in a sharp breath, his eyes wide, staring at Feng Dao in utter shock.

Who would have guessed! This ever-smiling, unshakeable old man, when he finally made a move, was so utterly ruthless!

The Duke of Xun was named Li Congyi — one could tell from the name that he was of the former Tang imperial house, and indeed he was: he was the only surviving youngest son of Tang Mingzong Li Siyuan. Li Congyi's adoptive mother, Lady Wang, was none other than the famed Consort Wang.

This Consort Wang was no ordinary woman. She also had a nickname: Hua Jianxiu — "Ashamed the Flowers." From that nickname alone one could tell how stunningly beautiful she was.

Hua Jianxiu was acclaimed as the foremost beauty of the Five Dynasties. The likes of Lady Huarui and the Elder and Younger Zhou Queens all had to step aside for her.

Though she was now twenty-eight, she still possessed a face like a flower and a countenance like the moon.

Even in history, when Yelu Deguang entered the Central Plains, Hua Jianxiu was already thirty-one, yet still irresistibly beautiful.

At the time, Yelu Deguang had made offerings at Li Siyuan's tomb that very morning and told Hua Jianxiu that Li Siyuan was his elder brother and she was his sister-in-law, and that Brother Guang had decided to treat her with propriety.

But by that afternoon, Yelu Deguang found himself itching with desire, changed his mind, and took Hua Jianxiu into his chambers.

One must understand that a man like Yelu Deguang could never have lacked women around him. Hua Jianxiu was not even Shi Chonggui's consort, so taking her into his chambers carried none of the conqueror's thrill.

Moreover, Shi Chonggui's Empress Feng was famed as the most gorgeous woman in the entire harem, and Yelu Deguang had seen her several times.

That he could hold back from taking the young Lady Feng, yet insist on taking Hua Jianxiu — already thirty-one and by then able to call herself an old woman — shows just how extraordinary her beauty was.

And the term "addressing as Grandfather" was no simple matter either. If used together with a surname, it was akin to the later "old grandpa" — "Elder Feng" was roughly the meaning of "Old Master Feng."

But using "Grandfather" alone, without a surname, meant directly calling the other party one's grandfather.

Although by generational reckoning Shi Chonggui did indeed have to call Zhang Zhao "Grandfather," that was not the same as directly addressing him as "Grandfather."

Zhang Liecheng could not help swallowing. These four terms struck even him, the head of a secret-service organization, as going too far.

"Would the Son of Heaven truly agree? Isn't this too excessive?"

Feng Dao chuckled, once again resuming his kindly-old-man appearance, showing not a trace of the ruthlessness from moments before.

"Terms, after all, are always negotiable. Besides, this is a great service of saving the dynasty from ruin — if the terms don't seem ruthless enough, how would anyone believe them?

However, for the first proposal, I fear the Ambassador, young lord, will have to take some risks."

Sure enough, after Zhang Liecheng revealed his identity and entered the Daning Palace, and laid out these terms, Shi Chonggui flew into a towering rage and nearly had Zhang Liecheng dragged out and beheaded.

But not long after Zhang Liecheng was driven away, danger descended upon Shi Chonggui.

It turned out that after Yelu Deguang learned of Huangfu Yu's suicide, he immediately dispatched Zhang Yanze and the Khitan Fu Zhu'er with four thousand cavalry southward.

Zhang Yanze exploited his advantages as a Jin army general the whole way, bypassing Xingzhou, Xiangzhou, and Weizhou as he pressed south, reaching the banks of the Yellow River directly.

But the cold weather at this time saved Shi Chonggui's life.

Historically, Zhang Yanze had marched south in the ninth month, and because the journey went smoothly, he had crossed the Yellow River at Baima Ford before the Jin court even reacted, and three days later stormed the Eastern Capital.

But this time, by the time Zhang Yanze reached Weizhou, he could go no further. The wind and snow along the way had been especially heavy, and many of his soldiers suffered frostbite.

After nearing the Yellow River, the snow was knee-deep, making further advance utterly impossible. He could only have the Yicheng Army soldiers call open the gates of Weizhou and remain there to rest and recover.

In his terror, Shi Chonggui summoned Feng Yu, Li Song, He Ning, Feng Dao, and others to deliberate.

Feng Yu and Li Song advised summoning Liu Zhiyuan to the capital to rescue the sovereign.

Shi Chonggui feared Liu Zhiyuan even more than he feared Zhang Zhao. He looked at Feng Dao and asked in a low voice.

"As matters stand, must we truly summon Liu Zhiyuan to court? Is there no other way?"

Just when everyone expected Feng Dao to agree, Feng Dao stepped forward and said.

"The Hedong troops are in Hebei, and the Khitan forces are also in Hebei. Even if Liu Zhiyuan obeys and leads the Hedong troops south, can they defeat the Khitan?

And even if they could defeat the Khitan, once they enter the capital, would they still obey the court's edicts?"

Shi Chonggui and the others were left speechless. Feng Dao continued: "If Liu Zhiyuan enters the capital, we ministers can certainly keep our high offices, but how would Your Majesty manage?"

There was in fact nothing wrong with Feng Dao's words, and Shi Chonggui knew it in his heart. He glanced at Feng Yu and Li Song, and immediately felt these two men could no longer be trusted either.

Even though Feng Yu was his wife's elder brother, so long as Feng Yu did not court death, Liu Zhiyuan would most likely not kill him. But Shi Chonggui himself would be doomed without a doubt.

At these thoughts, a sorrowful expression appeared on Shi Chonggui's face.

"My father was the Child Emperor — must the son now become the Grandchild Emperor? Even if we cede Guanzhong and drive back the Khitan, how much longer can we cling to survival?"

Feng Dao forced out a few tears. "When the lord is humiliated, the minister should die. I am willing to follow the example of Sang Guogiao, go seek out that Zhang Liecheng, weep and plead, and make certain the Liang kingdom relaxes its terms."

But everyone should also understand that whether the Khitan or Liu Zhiyuan enters the capital, even if our lives are spared, we will all become prisoners.

If the King of Liang sends troops to our aid, Your Majesty may still remain the Son of Heaven south of the Yellow River."

Upon hearing this, Shi Chonggui also wept like rain. He respectfully performed a solemn bow to Feng Dao, for what Feng Dao had said was entirely for his sake.

"Then I must trouble the Venerable Youdao."

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