Chapter 1120
The King of Han Takes the Initiative
Chapter 1120 The King of Han Takes the Initiative
Perhaps it was because of the dark clouds outside, but the sunlight inside the Qianqing Palace suddenly dimmed. Upon seeing this, Dai Quan waved his hand, and Xiao Yunzi nodded. Then, eunuchs lit palace lanterns around the hall, and golden lanterns hung high on the dragon pillars, restoring the brightness.
But then King Song shouted, shattering the tranquility of the palace.
How to fabricate military intelligence?
Emperor Wu's face was gloomy. The hand holding the wine bowl was hidden under his sleeve. He seemed to be answering King Song's question, but his eyes were always on King Zheng. His words just now clearly indicated that he had few children.
"Your Majesty, everyone knows about Marquis Luoyun's report of the great victory, but now he's saying that remnants of the traitorous sect still exist. This is clearly deceiving Your Majesty and is treasonous. Your Majesty, I..."
The King of Song blushed and wanted to say something, but was stopped by the Empress.
"The report of the great victory has long recorded this event. The three prefectures in Lingnan are deep in the mountains. The annihilation can be temporarily suspended."
Why bother with such nonsense? Little did he know that these words would cause the retired emperor, sitting to one side, to shake his head.
"Your Majesty, this statement is somewhat inaccurate. If the enemy is not killed outright, they will rise again. Although the three prefectures of Lingnan may seem desolate, they still represent the face of the court, and the court cannot simply ignore them."
The Emperor Emeritus's sudden remark silenced all the civil and military officials in the hall. Even the Empress Dowager hesitated, unsure of what to say. Everyone was still speculating about the Emperor Emeritus's intentions.
But before he could even react, Zhang Jinyu, not to be outdone, declared loudly;
"The Emperor Emeritus is indeed wise. The remnants of the cult should not be left unattended. Since the princes are so brave, why not have them use the soldiers of their fiefdoms to form a joint army and set off from the three counties of Jingzhou to wipe out the cult and demonstrate the might of our Great Wu Army?"
"I second the motion,"
"The general seconded the proposal."
Whether it was due to the previous favors bestowed by Marquis Luoyun, many nobles connected to the capital garrison and some officials from the Six Ministries nodded in agreement. This left Prince Song and his entourage looking embarrassed. Yet, in the end, it was Prince Han who rose and bowed.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Emperor Emeritus, I believe it is feasible. Since we are located in the heart of the three counties of Jingzhou, we should form a joint army to annihilate them. I am willing to lead the army."
His words carried a subtle hint of unease, surprising King Zheng, King Song, and the others, who wondered what King Han was planning.
But in this situation, even if I wanted to ask, I couldn't.
The retired emperor waved the whisk in his robes, his eyes sparkling, and turned to look at the Martial Emperor, asking;
"Your Majesty, what do you think?"
"Very well, since the Prince of Han is willing to take on this responsibility, then I agree. The Southern Route Army shall be formed, with the Prince of Han as commander-in-chief, Ma Fei of the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs as supervisor, and the Imperial City Guard as assistant. They shall coordinate and command the armies of the various princely residences to recover the three counties of Lingnan."
After a moment of contemplation, Emperor Wu considered the various connections involved. Judging from the expressions of Prince Song and the others, it was clear that Prince Han had acted on his own initiative. In that case, it was time to make a move regarding the Directorate of Ceremonial.
With this remark,
The entire hall was shocked. Even Dai Quan shifted slightly. It seemed the Emperor was about to make his move from the Directorate of Ceremonial.
The King of Han was delighted to see what he had tasted, but a glance at the King of Zheng's expression brought a touch of sarcasm. He thought to himself, "It's all thanks to my quick action. Now that I had the chance, why let it slip by?" Remembering Military Advisor Xu's instructions, he bowed again to the surrounding civil and military officials.
"Thank you, Your Majesty and the Emperor Emeritus. I will certainly live up to your trust and wipe out the remaining forces of the rebel cult. I have specially selected twenty-four women from Jingzhou to present the 'Celebrating a Bountiful Year' dance. I humbly request Your Majesty's appreciation."
Seeing that the King of Han was talking to himself, even the King of Song and the others sensed something was wrong and temporarily kept quiet.
"Very well, since the King of Han is interested in this matter, I am relieved. As for the Jingzhou female dancers, they are a unique skill in the southern border region, and I would like to see them as well."
Emperor Wu smiled slightly. He had seen the actions and expressions of these people clearly from his high seat. It was obvious that the matter was not pre-arranged. Since the Prince of Han had such thoughts, this situation had become interesting. Furthermore, it was still unclear whether Prince Yizhong was still in the three prefectures of Lingnan. Since someone had taken the lead, it was not impossible to discuss the matter further and go with the flow.
"Thank you, Your Majesty,"
King Zhou Lingguang of Han smirked, clapped his hands, and immediately the palace maids slowly withdrew. The musicians had already tuned their instruments, and twelve women from Jingzhou stood in the hall, their skirts lifted.
With a tinkling sound of jade pendants, everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw twelve more palace maids entering, dressed in crimson dance gowns with phoenixes embroidered in gold thread at the collar and cuffs. Two melodious jade pendants hung at their waists, clinking together as they moved.
The lead dancer, a tall woman with a gold hairpin tucked behind her ear, swayed gracefully as she danced. Her swaying figure was so captivating that it was hard to look away.
Especially Jia She, who was sitting there, found the sights appealing. But when he thought of the courtesans he had bought in his mansion, he realized how they could not compare to these women. It was simply a matter of different tastes, like wine and wax. However, when he thought of the top courtesans in the brothels and the money required to redeem them, he felt hesitant and his eyes darkened. Where else could his mansion raise the money? He felt quite restless.
Zhang Jinyu, on the other hand, sat there calmly. Regardless of what kind of dance it was, the scene and the music were absolutely stunning. She thought back to the day she went to Yang Hanyu's courtyard, only to be captivated by the beauty and not to appreciate the choreography properly, which made her feel a little regretful.
Looking at
Prince Bei Jing, Shui Rong, suddenly spoke.
"The King of Han was indeed well-prepared; this 'Celebrating a Bountiful Year' dance was not a spur-of-the-moment decision."
"Of course. Before coming to the capital, I had already carefully selected and rehearsed at the Prince's residence for more than three months, specially to present to the Emperor Emeritus's birthday banquet to add to the festivities. But I wonder what Prince Bei Jing has prepared?"
No sooner had the words been spoken than the chime bells at the corner of the palace suddenly rang out.
With a resounding "clang," the clear and melodious sound lingered in the hall for a long time. Immediately afterwards, the pipa, flute, and guzheng played in unison, their music rising and falling, like a stream flowing over bluestone, melodious and echoing. The dancers in the hall then quickened their movements, their red skirts coming to life like phoenixes.
now,
The eldest son, Li Chaosheng, sitting at the very front, lowered his head and asked;
"Father, today's banquet may not be peaceful. The princes' words were loaded with meaning, and there are some strange things going on with the Emperor Emeritus."
Looking around, the cabinet elders, though watching the dance unfolding in the hall, had tense expressions, seemingly sensing something amiss.
"You just watch, this is just a test, it's not time to reveal the true intentions yet, what's the rush?"
The Grand Secretary closed his eyes slightly; he was old, his spirits were failing, and he disliked crowds.
"Yes, father,"
The eldest son's eyes flickered. Since his father already knew the inside story, it meant he had made preparations in advance. Just when everyone was watching the climax, the dancer in the hall suddenly took off her skirt, changed her dance steps, and revealed the moon-colored gauze skirt underneath, which showed the ears of rice, making the women of Jingzhou appear even more delicate.
Perhaps due to the unexpected jump, Jia She, sitting among them, was already blushing furiously. He didn't even notice his wine cup tilting. He felt that he had wasted all these years in the manor. If he could buy these women and keep them in his manor, he would live a life of luxury.
"Lord Jia En, the wine has all been spilled."
A call snapped Jia She back to his senses. He glanced at the face of the Marquis of Xiangyang beside him and immediately felt embarrassed. He could only cup his hands in thanks, then looked back into the hall. Bai Guangju smiled helplessly.
Perhaps it was the atmosphere that made the music gradually slow down. In the end, all the dancers from Jingzhou in the hall spun around, stopped, knelt down, and shouted in unison.
"Your servants wish the Emperor Emeritus good health and longevity, and may the Great Wu Empire be forever secure and prosperous year after year."
"Haha, Your Majesty is very kind! Here's a reward!"
The Emperor Emeritus finally smiled, and the eunuchs immediately stepped forward with a tray, bestowing upon him a pair of red-gold earrings and a bolt of brocade. After the dancers expressed their gratitude, apart from the Prince of Han, who was in a relaxed and cheerful mood, the other princes clearly looked displeased.
King Zheng gave a soft sigh of praise.
"It seems that Third Brother has other ideas. You just saved the day for Marquis Luoyun, but I don't know if he will remember your kindness. If you don't act today, you will miss your chance."
While seemingly full of praise, the phrase "turning the tide" was emphasized with extreme force, implying that the promising situation had just begun to unfold, only to be disrupted by this mishap, rendering all the plans futile.
"Second Brother, don't say such things. What's the point of asking questions so casually?" The Prince of Han sighed lightly, unconcerned.
"you,"
King Zheng's expression changed, and he flicked his sleeve.
"Then you tell me. Otherwise, the allied forces of the three counties of Jingnan can forget about it."
Although it was called a coalition, it was still just a few people providing troops and money. If he didn't participate, the King of Wu and the King of Song would hesitate to advance. Hearing this threat, the King of Han's expression finally changed, suppressing his anger.
"Second brother, don't be angry, the best is yet to come,"
Having said that, he filled a cup with wine, rose, picked it up, and suddenly bowed towards the direction of the King of Chu. Then, he raised the cup and bowed to the Martial Emperor on the dragon throne.
"Your Majesty, today is supposed to be a joyous occasion, but there are some things I'm unsure whether I should say."
"Oh, is there any question?"
Seeing the underhanded actions of the King of Zheng and the King of Han, Empress Wu understood.
"Your Majesty, I recently heard that the King of Chu once lectured at the Imperial Academy in Jiangnan and actually said, 'The people are the most important, and the ruler is the least important.' Although this is a quote from Mencius, it would be quite improper for a member of the royal family to say it."
His gaze fell upon the King of Chu, who sat at the head of the table, and he smiled slightly.
"Your Highness, you have witnessed the chaos in the south of the capital. These nobles, disregarding the law, killed officials and rebelled. If they had read a few books, they would have become so unrestrained in their speech, chilling the hearts of the imperial family and all the civil and military officials."
With just a few words, many people began to look at the Prince of Han with new respect. Even Zhang Jinyu, who was already half full, raised his head. Indeed, none of those who could be princes were fools. Taking the civil unrest in southern Beijing as an example, his words of criticism were a veiled attack on the Prince of Chu, which was nothing short of expressing dissatisfaction with the Emperor.
Upon hearing this, the King of Chu became somewhat uneasy. He had said these words, but they were just empty words; he had never really taken them seriously. Now, he looked at the Eastern King Mu Shi beside him with a questioning look in his eyes.
Prince Mu paused, then stood up to return the greeting.
"The King of Han is mistaken. The King of Chu is speaking of the great principles of Mencius, intending to show compassion for the people and to advise his officials on their conduct. There is nothing wrong with that."
"Cough cough."
Perhaps it was because the joyous occasion in the hall had just exhausted everyone's spirits, but now the hall was quiet. This sudden coughing sound also made Song King Zhou Jiansheng the focus. If we were to talk about the princes of Jingnan, the most active one would be Song King. Because of the location of his fiefdom, when contacting Zheng King, Han King and Wu King, they would inevitably pass through his fiefdom.
Most importantly, he had once served Prince Yizhong. After the new emperor ascended the throne, he returned to his fiefdom and remained depressed for many years. Fortunately, he later became more open-minded, let go of his obsessions, and sided with Prince Zheng and others. At this moment, slightly intoxicated, he spoke without restraint.
"Concern for the people's plight? That's no joke, Your Highness. I've heard that when you were in Jiangnan, officials from all over sent you a lot of good things. Besides, the deficit of the Jiangnan navy was also covered by Your Highness. But later, I heard that the disaster relief funds for Jiangnan were much less. You know best how much less money was given. I heard that in Yangping, every household's belongings were dug up and stored in the Jiangnan camp. Hiccup!"
He let out a hiccup, his face slightly dazed, but his words piqued the interest of many. Gu Yichen, the Grand Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue, squinted at the person opposite him. The taxes in Jiangnan had always been a headache for the Ministry of Revenue, and it seemed that the Eastern Prince's Mansion was involved in this.
Little did they know that these words caused the King of Chu to suddenly look up.
"Uncle Wang, you are wise. The affairs of Jiangnan are under the jurisdiction of the local government. Moreover, some accounts are submitted to the cabinet by the Inspector General and the Provincial Governor. Whether there is a deficit or not, all the cabinet ministers know this, so there is no need for you to worry about it."
A single, decisive word, clean and efficient; Prince Mu echoed his sentiments.
"Yes, matters in Jiangnan are handled by local officials. Although I command troops in Jiangnan, how can I interfere in local government affairs? As for making up for the deficit of the canal transport garrison, with a major battle imminent, how can we lose sight of the bigger picture for the sake of small gains? Misappropriating local treasury funds to make up for military pay is also a matter of expediency. The extortion in Yangping should be used to make up for the local treasury funds. I have already submitted a memorial on this matter."
His answer was word for word, leaving no room for error. It is said that a general in the field may disobey the emperor's orders, and this trivial matter could not shake his position. However, after the battle in Jiangnan, he was to remotely lead various places in the south of the capital to guard against the rebel sect's northward advance. It was a dilemma that was neither satisfying nor worth abandoning. On the other hand, Prince Bei Jing, Shui Rong, got his wish and stayed in Xihe County to take charge of the overall situation. In this way, he felt that he had been busy for nothing. These thoughts flashed by.
"Prince Mu has quite the eloquence. Misappropriating imperial funds is considered a trivial matter. It seems Your Highness has made quite a fortune in the south, tsk tsk,"
King Zhou Jiansheng of Song chuckled, picked up his wine bowl, downed it in one gulp, and sat back down, seemingly having nothing to say. However, the Empress Wu, seated on her high throne, had already become suspicious. Marquis Luoyun had managed to gather nearly five million taels of silver upon his return from the south. Although it was obtained through plunder, there were no longer any commoners or officials left in the southern part of the capital. And the Xihe Prefecture, along with the major north-south thoroughfares and the port of Yangping, could hardly have yielded much more. Seeing that the two men had remained silent since returning to the capital…
His gaze unconsciously drifted to Prince Bei Jing and Prince Dong Ping, a complex expression flashing in his eyes.
"Alright, today is the Emperor Emeritus's birthday banquet, let's not talk about such things that would spoil the mood, but speaking of which,"
Seeing that the matter was settled, just as Prince Zheng was about to interject with some advice on the major case in Jiangnan, several eunuchs from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs had already carried the congratulatory memorial into the Qianqing Palace. The master of ceremonies announced, "Greetings..."
"We respectfully invite Your Majesty to the palace to read the congratulatory message."
While the Qianqing Palace was bustling with activity and the birthday banquet was in full swing, the sounds of silk and bamboo instruments drifted for miles around. Meanwhile, at the Honglu Temple by the Yunshan Qiushui Lake, a completely different scene was unfolding.
At noon, the front courtyard of the Honglu Temple was already surrounded by carriages and sedan chairs of all kinds. There were wealthy merchants and elders wearing silk jackets, old men in long robes, gentry and wealthy men supported by their grandchildren, and even sixty-year-old farmers who had come to inquire. They had all come to attend the "Eternal Banquet" to receive the Emperor's favor and to share in the Emperor Emeritus's joy.
The Honglu Temple was originally built by the imperial court to receive foreign envoys. Later, out of consideration for the princes, it was expanded at the foot of the mountain, becoming several times larger. For this birthday banquet, the vermilion gate was wide open, with a "longevity" character hanging on both sides.
On both sides of the gate stood a group of minor officials dressed in green robes, holding rosters in their hands, verifying the identity of each visitor one by one. Only those whose names and places of origin matched were allowed to enter.
The courtyard had already been swept clean. Several ancient trees, some over a hundred years old, were lush and verdant. Under the trees, tables were set up in various places. Although the tables were covered with coarse tablecloths, all the bowls and chopsticks were still there. The temporary stove in the southeast corner was already bustling with activity.
"Oh, Brother Zhang, you've come too."
An elderly man in a blue cotton jacket patted the shoulder of the person at the next table, his loud voice drowning out the surrounding noise.
"I thought your leg injury had flared up and you couldn't come."
The old man, addressed as Brother Zhang, chuckled twice, revealing a gap-toothed mouth.
"The Emperor's grace is boundless. Even if we have to crawl, we will crawl here. Look at this meat, stewed until it's tender and soft, and these white flour buns. They're even better than what we eat during the New Year."
As he spoke, he picked up a piece of stewed, glistening pork belly and stuffed it into his mouth. The oil dripped from the corner of his mouth onto Huabei's beard. This was also an instruction from Lord Sun of the Court of State Ceremonial. Now, on each table, there is a basket of steamed buns and a large jar of stewed meat as the base, with the rest of the dishes following. For the common people, the only thing they lack is this meat.
Upon hearing this, the surrounding people burst into laughter in agreement. Some talked about how successful their children and grandchildren were, some complained about the harvest, and others counted on their fingers the age of the retired emperor, lamenting that they had never seen such a scene before. Some even said how majestic the retired emperor was back then, when he stormed into the capital, which drew cheers from the crowd.
Little did they know that this scene, witnessed by those sitting around the locust tree in the west corner, was quite different from the lively atmosphere elsewhere. The food on the table, though touched, was not eaten with gusto like the others, who were slurping it down with grease. Only a few people were seen with their heads down, picking at their food, seemingly watching the spectacle with others, but their eyes held a hint of wariness.
At the innermost part of the room sat an elderly man in gray clothes, his face covered with wrinkles and three wisps of beard on his chin. He looked like a down-on-his-luck private tutor. He picked up a bowl of tea, took a sip, and glanced at the people at the next table across from him, and at the old man wearing a round hat who was fiddling with peanuts in his dish with his chopsticks, tapping his fingers on the table a few times, making a "thump-thump" sound.
Could it be them?!
(End of this chapter)