Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 536: Desperate Dogs Jump Over the Wall and Make Foolish Plans
As the commander of the Imperial Guard Infantry Division, Zhao Mi was naturally not as leisurely as Zhao Shen and Liu Huai. After escorting Zhao Shen back to the palace, Zhao Mi came to the office where Yang Yi Zhong was to hand over the order.

"I'm here to pay my respects to the Prince!" Zhao Mi bowed deeply to Yang Yi Zhong after seeing him, and kowtowed deeply despite still wearing armor.

"Zhao Er, don't act like that." Yang Yizhong said coldly from the main seat without even raising his eyelids, "It's a good thing you're here, saving me some trouble."

Zhao Mi stood up and placed the military order and token for escorting the crown prince on the table in front of Yang Yizhong. He then stood solemnly with his hands folded: "I wonder what the prince wants me to do. I will go through fire and water without hesitation!"

"You don't need to go through fire and water." Yang Yizhong took out a document from the table and said, "There is an imperial decree."

Just as Zhao Mi was about to kneel again, Yang Yizhong held out the document and said, "Two things. One is to set out in ten days to escort the Jin lord Wanyan Liang to Lin'an. The other is that after arriving in Lin'an, you will hand over the troops and horses, and I will give you 3,000 infantrymen to station in Huaibei and garrison Shanyang."

When Zhao Mi heard the first order, he thought it was only natural. However, when he heard the second order, he was shocked and looked at Yang Yizhong in disbelief: "County...County Prince...Isn't it that the County Prince cannot go out to govern Lianghuai and serve as the Jianghuai Envoy? Why should I lead the army out of the town?"

Yang Yizhong's eyes narrowed. "Are you saying the emperor is at fault? Or am I forging the imperial edict?!"

Zhao Mi immediately lowered his head, sweat on his forehead: "I dare not, I dare not."

As he said this, Zhao Mi hurriedly picked up the document and read it carefully. The more he read, the more frightened he became, and the more chilled his heart became, until at the very end he was sweating profusely.

Originally, if he was sent out of the town, it would not be a big deal, because now Yang Yi Zhong is unable to govern Lianghuai, so the Palace Front Office cannot stay away for a long time. Zhao Mi can return to the center after being sent out for one or two years.

But now it’s different. There is a sentence in the imperial edict that makes Zhao Mi shudder.

Since Zhao Qing is on good terms with the Shandong rebels, it would be a good idea to get closer to them in Shanyang, Huaihe River.

What does this mean?
This means that Zhao Mi has been suspected by Zhao Gou!

This means that Zhao Mi may never be able to return to the center!

Thinking of this, Zhao Mi couldn't help but feel great hatred. Although he didn't dare to glare at Yang Yi Zhong, he still lowered his head and gritted his teeth, with veins bulging on his forehead.

If it wasn't for Yang Yi Zhong's order that day, would he have had nothing better to do than to attend the Shandong rebels' banquet?

At this time, Yang Yi Zhong still favored the emperor, but Zhao Mi was about to be expelled from the central government. How unfair was this?

And where is Shanyang?
That was the capital of Chuzhou, the northernmost province in Huaidong, close to the Huai River and the Grand Canal. If the Jin army wanted to cross the Huai River, they had to attack Shanyang first.

Lan Shiji, the prefect of Chuzhou, died for his country there. He had just been commended by the court and ordered to be honored in Chuzhou. How could Zhao Mi not know about this?

When Wanyan Liang invaded the south this time, Liu Qi led the main force of Huaidong but failed to stop Tushan Zhen. How could Zhao Mi have the virtue and ability to lead 3,000 palace guards to guard such a dangerous place?
It should be noted that although the 30,000 households of the Jin army in Huaixi were completely wiped out and Tushan Zhen's 30,000 households in Huaidong also suffered a blow, they still retained the organization of 30,000 combat soldiers. They deployed defenses along the Sishui River, whose course was taken away by the Yellow River, and stationed in strong cities and towns such as Xuzhou, Suzhou, and Pizhou. Shanyang was still under the attack of the Jin army.

It would be fine if peace could be negotiated, but if the war continued, Zhao Mi would most likely die in Shanyang.

Thinking of this, Zhao Mi no longer cared about anything else and knelt down and kowtowed: "Prince, I hope you will save me for all the times you have served me so well in the past. I will definitely reward you handsomely in the future!"

After kowtowing dozens of times, Zhao Mi didn't hear any sound from the leader. He looked up, but saw that there was no one behind the desk.

Yang Yizhong left without even saying a word.

Zhao Mi knelt there, stunned for a moment, then finally gritted his teeth and stood up.

Since there is no way out, I must save myself! Save myself at all costs.

If you can't save yourself, you should drag everyone down with you. It's a gain to have one more person buried with you!

Thinking of this, Zhao Mi's steps gradually became firm, and the expression on his face became more and more ferocious.

Since you won’t give us a way to live, let’s die together!
After returning to his camp, Zhao Mi summoned Tian Zhuo. "Azhuo, we have ten days left before we escort Wanyan Liang off! Are you ready?"

Tian Zhuo was shocked: "Why is it so urgent? Isn't there at least ten days to prepare?"

Zhao Mi shook his head impatiently. "The emperor will depart for Lin'an the day after tomorrow. In order to receive the Jin envoy, he has moved very quickly this time. When the emperor is about to arrive in Lin'an, we will set off immediately. This is the emperor's order. What can I say? Just tell me if you are ready."

Tian Zhuo's breathing became heavy, and then he said, "I'm ready. I have a few trusted brothers. Counting the ones the general gave me, there are a total of 300 trustworthy soldiers and armored men. Their fighting power is also quite good. We will be used as bait. If anyone attacks, as long as the troops are less than a thousand, we can naturally meet the enemy."

Zhao Mi's breathing was also heavy. "Don't worry. Even if Liu Dalang of the Jingnan Army has some ability and skills, he can't possibly gather a thousand soldiers in Jiangnan. Moreover, if he is attacked by the army, it will be easy for him to talk to the emperor."

Tian Zhuo still felt it was unreliable, not because this mixed plan was unreliable, but because he felt that no troops would come to kidnap Wanyan Liang.

All of this came from Zhao Mi's imagination. When Tian Zhuo reported Zhao Mi to Yang Dan that day, it was not because he thought Zhao Mi had any big plans, but because Zhao Mi was about to deal with Yang Yi Zhong at that time.

However, Tian Zhuo changed his mind and thought that since it was a big matter like transporting the financier, it would not be excessive to be cautious, so he nodded in agreement.

Not to mention the conflict between Zhao Mi and Tian Zhuo, this plan went wrong from the very beginning.

On April 2nd, the day after Zhao Mi and the others had discussed the matter, the emperor set out for the palace. Unexpectedly, Liu Huai led his own cavalry and followed the emperor! Now, not only Tian Zhuo, but even Zhao Mi began to doubt his own speculation.

Could it be that I really am judging others by my own standards?

But now that things have come to this, we can only take it one step at a time.

The day drew closer and the weather grew hotter, until finally it was April 11th.

This day was the first day of the Beginning of Summer. The sky was gloomy, and it seemed that the Jiangnan region, which had been dry for a winter, was about to be moistened by the rain. However, Zhao Mi was not happy at all, because in the pouring rain, even the marching of troops would be a big problem, not to mention that Wanyan Liang was among them in a carriage.

The environment in the past few days has made Zhao Mi feel uneasy. I don't know if it is a psychological effect. Although both politically and militarily, everything is calm, Zhao Mi still feels an imminent sense of oppression, as if something big is about to happen. He has not been able to sleep for two consecutive days. With dark circles under his eyes, he came to a mansion in Jiankang City where Wanyan Liang was imprisoned.

It should be said that Wanyan Liang and his subjects were treated very well at this time, and their lives were much more comfortable than in the prison in Chao County. However, neither Wanyan Liang nor his son Wanyan Yuanyi were happy, because they had roughly guessed their fate.

If the officials in Bianliang had been able to grasp the situation for such a long time, they would have sent envoys long ago. And no matter what conditions the envoys put forward, the Song court would have negotiated with Wanyan Liang anyway.

Because as long as the Jin Dynasty remains loyal to Wanyan Liang, Wanyan Liang's words will count.

To put it bluntly, even if it was treason, only the Jin emperor could sell out the country most thoroughly.

Now that the Song people are no longer willing to pay attention to Wanyan Liang, it can only mean one thing.

Someone whose words were more trustworthy appeared in the Jin Kingdom.

During their private discussions, Wanyan Liang and Wanyan Yuanyi both felt that this person was probably Wanyan Yong, who was in his ancestral land of Liaodong. He was the only one with the prestige and the qualifications to make those old Jurchen ministers surrender.

Whenever he thought of this, Wanyan Liang could not help but feel remorseful. Besides feeling that it was a serious mistake to force the southern expedition before the government was in order, he also felt that his biggest mistake was being soft-hearted and not killing all those royal family members.

For the past few days, Wanyan Liang had been trying to get the Song guards to speak to the court, offering to release him in exchange for ceding territory and paying compensation, perhaps even giving up Henan. But perhaps because he was too aggressive that day, or perhaps because the court didn't trust him, all his requests fell on deaf ears, as if the court had completely forgotten his existence.

It was not until today that the arrival of Tang Situi, the garrison commander of Jiankang, gave Wanyan Liang a glimmer of hope. He immediately expressed to Tang Situi his idea of selling out his country to survive.

Wanyan Yuanyi also agreed.

But who is Tang Situi?

He was a talent valued by both Qin Hui and Zhao Gou. He was a peace advocate among peace advocates, a traitor among traitors, and a smart man among smart men. How could he not see that this was just a stopgap measure of Wanyan Liang?

If he were sent back to Bianliang, he would definitely not be so easy to talk to.

And if there is any possibility that Wanyan Liang was frightened, then he must not be allowed to go back!
Wouldn't all the territories ceded by then have become the spoils of the pro-war faction? What would the peace faction even be for? Wouldn't it be even harder for Tang Situi to recover?

Therefore, Tang Shitui did not even intend to report it. He just perfunctorily said that he would naturally have something to say after returning to Lin'an.

Wanyan Liang felt somewhat desperate upon hearing this.

What statement?
Is it the saying of being imprisoned until death?

Or will you still be tortured by a birdman like Zhao Gou?

As the two sides were arguing, Zhao Mi arrived with dozens of armored soldiers. He first bowed to Tang Shitui, then to Wanyan Liang and said, "I am here to escort the Jin lord back to Lin'an. This is a military order and imperial decree. I hope that Lord Tang will make it easier for you."

"Okay, okay." Although this matter had been agreed upon before, Tang Shitui still carefully checked the documents and tokens before saying with a smile, "I'll trouble you, General Zhao, this time."

Dozens of soldiers came forward, tied up everyone except Wanyan Liang with chains, and then pushed them into the prison van.

When Wanyan Liang saw this, he immediately got angry.

Zhao Mi said to Wanyan Liang, "After all, the Jin Lord was once the ruler of a country, and he still has a carriage to ride in. We, the tough guys, dare not humiliate the Jin Lord, but we hope that the Jin Lord will give us some convenience. This is Jiangnan. No matter how powerful the Jin army is, it cannot easily cross the river. The Jin Lord cannot escape. Please do not make mistakes, otherwise we, a bunch of rough men, may do something."

Wanyan Liang's face turned ashen, and he got on the carriage without saying a word. Then the carriage and the prison car set off under the escort of knights and soldiers, heading towards the city gate.

In addition to Zhao Mi's most trusted 300 armored soldiers and cavalry, there were more than 800 ordinary Song army infantry waiting outside the city. It can be said that Wanyan Liang was given full face.

"Prince Tang." Zhao Mi watched the carriage drive away, then bowed again to Tang Situi and said, "Since that's the case, I'll take my leave first."

Zhao Mi was about to turn around when Tang Si retreated and said, "Wait a minute. Since I am involved, I will send the gold owner out of Jiankang City."

Zhao Mi turned around and looked at Tang Shitui, speechless.

(End of this chapter)