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

Chapter 835 The Han and the Traitor Cannot Coexist

Just as the Han army was launching an anti-corruption and spring plowing campaign within its sphere of influence, the capital city of Yanjing was shrouded in gloom and despair.

That's how militarism works; everything is built on military victory.

The advantage of such a country is that as long as it can win battles, it can cover up all its shortcomings. However, once it suffers a major defeat, it will be completely finished, and in severe cases, it may even lead to the destruction of the country.

This is what the Jin Dynasty is like now.

What made Wanyan Yong even more anxious was that he had no idea that this political upheaval had started with that pedantic scholar Liu Zhan.

Wait a minute, aren't the Wanyan men usually quite fierce and prone to causing trouble, always stirring up trouble even when they're being unreasonable? Why haven't they rebelled yet?

On the contrary, the Han officials, whether genuinely feeling a sense of shared fate because of Liu Zhan's misdeeds or simply using it as an excuse, were in a frenzy and insisted on killing Wanyan Yong's close advisor, Yila Zijing, who was also the one who reprimanded Liu Zhan.

Even a fool would know that these Han officials' goal was to continue suppressing Wanyan Yong's prestige and even the imperial power. Even if Yila Zijing was dealt with, there would be an even more intense political upheaval afterward.

Therefore, Wanyan Yong decisively rejected the joint petition submitted by those Han officials.

Originally, Wanyan Yong intended to deal with some of the Han officials in the court at this point, but who would have thought that just ten days later, the demand to execute Yila Zijing would become even stronger.

In a new joint letter, Wanyan Yong surprisingly saw the names of Han Chinese officials from Youyan and Liaodong.

Now Wanyan Yong dared not be negligent even more.

Having traversed the diverse ethnic landscapes of Youyan and Liaodong, even the Han Chinese were influenced by the Hu (non-Han) culture. Their scholar-officials differed from those of the Central Plains and Hebei; they were truly skilled at drawing strong bows and riding spirited horses.

Therefore, if we want to deal with the Han officials of Youyan and Liaodong, we must do the same as we did with the Wanyan clan, and be prepared for a civil war in order to succeed.

But now Dongjin only has this small piece of land left. Can it really fight another civil war?

On the night of the second day of the second lunar month, after eating the meal served by his son and daughter-in-law, Wanyan Yong sat in the main hall and sighed deeply. He said to Wugulun Yuanzhong in front of him, "Yuanzhong, do you think these Han officials are really standing up for Liu Zhan, or are they just using this as an excuse?"

Wugulun Yuanzhong, like Wanyan Yong, shook his head and said, "Liu Zhan is nothing at all."

Back then, Shi Yisheng was boiled in a large pot by the rebel Liang for tipping off the Song state. Did those Han officials dare to speak out?

Today, it's nothing more than the fact that this Liu Bei traitor over there has raised the banner of the Han people and talked about restoring China. With him backing them up, the Han people feel their status is different from before, so they've started causing trouble.

Wanyan Yong sighed, but then smiled and said, "In that case, I haven't exactly missed out on a wise man."

Wu Gulun Yuanzhong shook his head and replied, "Liu Zhan is nothing but a pedantic scholar. After serving in office for many years, apart from having a reputation for teaching without discrimination, what insights or actions has he taken regarding the important affairs of the nation?"

Wanyan Yong looked up at the roof of the main hall: "It's not his fault. I was helpless at this time as well."

"Yuanzhong, there should be no falsehoods between us, father-in-law and son-in-law. Since I ascended the throne, although I cannot say I have worked tirelessly day and night, I have certainly devoted myself to the affairs of state. What did I do wrong to deserve this fate?"

Wugulun Yuanzhong felt a lump in his throat, then lowered his head and said, "It was not Your Majesty, but I who made a mistake."

On that day in Bianliang, I surprisingly did not coerce the Jin officials to kill Wanyan Guangying, thus preventing Wuzhe from abandoning darkness and embracing light, which allowed the rebel Liang to regain his footing.

This led to the country being divided into two, unable to unite against the Shandong bandits, which is why we are in this predicament today.

Thinking of this, Wugulun Yuanzhong was almost heartbroken.

Ever since returning from Bianliang, Wugulun Yuanzhong has been filled with remorse for this matter.

If he had been more careful and ruthless that day, could he have calmly established himself in Bianliang after killing Wanyan Guangying and thus retained Pusan ​​Zhongyi?

If things had developed that way, would the entire Jin army already besiege Shandong? Or have they even beheaded Liu Bei?

However, there are no "what ifs" in the world.

Wanyan Yong stood up and stepped forward, patting Wugulun Yuanzhong's arm: "Yuanzhong, you were outnumbered and outmatched at the time, and to have achieved that level was already a remarkable feat. Afterwards, no one criticized you, simply because we were in a different place and felt that we couldn't have done any better than you."

If we're talking about the real culprit, it's none other than Ni Liang! If this fellow hadn't insisted on attacking the Song Dynasty, and subsequently suffered a crushing defeat, how could the Jin Dynasty have fallen to such a state?

Wugulun Yuanzhong wiped away his tears, then bowed deeply and said, "Your Majesty, I have another plan. If it succeeds, I dare not say that it will restore the Great Jin Dynasty to its former glory, but it will at least give us a much-needed respite."

Wanyan Yong smiled and helped Wugulun Yuanzhong up: "Yuanzhong, don't keep me in suspense now, tell me what happened."

Wugulun Yuanzhong looked up rudely and scrutinized his father-in-law closely. After a moment, he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I wish to go to Shandong to negotiate peace with the traitor Liu."

Wanyan Yong immediately shook his head.

What a joke.

If peace could be negotiated, not only after the Battle of Daming Prefecture, but also when the Han army captured Jinan Prefecture, the Eastern Jin would have to negotiate peace with the Han army.

The key issue is that Liu Huai committed an extremely heinous act: killing an envoy.

The details of his killing of the Jin envoy are now known to the entire world.

Typically, Liu Huai would first sincerely ask the Jin envoy if they were willing to surrender. If the envoy refused, Liu Huai would not listen to what the envoy had to say and would directly order the envoy's execution to establish his authority. Of course, Liu Huai's behavior was not due to an uncontrollable bloodlust, but rather to tell the Han people of the world that he would not make any peace talks with the Jin and that they would be irreconcilable enemies.

Similarly, Liu Huai's message to the Jin state was accurate: you only have two paths before you, either surrender or die.

If nothing unexpected happens, Wugulun Yuanzhong will probably go through the same process when he arrives in Jinan Prefecture.

Whether Wugulun Yuanzhong surrendered or died, it would be a huge blow to the Jin state and even to Wanyan Yong himself.

Seeing this, Wugulun Yuanzhong was not surprised and earnestly said, "Your Majesty, I am still confident that we can succeed."

Firstly, Liu Bei's power had grown so great that he was bound to be suspected by the Song court. If he did not want to be attacked from both the north and the south, he should at least slow down one side.

Besides, given this man's character and abilities, it's not hard to imagine that if our Great Jin were to perish, the Song traitors would inevitably target him. If Liu doesn't want to be pulled out of the fire by the Song traitors, he should carefully manage the situation.

The balance between the two sides is where Da Jin has a chance to breathe.

"Secondly, we can't just abandon the generals and troops of the Great Jin trapped in Daming Prefecture. We should go and give it a try. We also have some bargaining chips. Even if we can get some people back, that would be good."

"Thirdly, as long as I can return alive, it will prove that the Shandong bandits were also severely weakened in last year's great battle and will find it difficult to march north for a while. At that time, those Han officials will also give up."

"Finally," Wugulun Yuanzhong looked up again, his eyes fixed intently on Wanyan Yong, "if the country perishes, I will also die. Since that's the case, why not seize the opportunity while there's still a chance and fight with all our might?"

Wanyan Yong opened his mouth to offer advice, but after a moment's thought, he felt that his son-in-law's words made such a lot of sense that he couldn't refute them at all.

War is nothing more than war and peace. Since both sides are exhausted from last year's great war and cannot launch a war immediately, then trying to negotiate peace is a good option.

Once the emperor and his ministers had reached a decision, they immediately began to act.

The gift that Wugu Lun Yuanzhong brought for the meeting was quite simple.

All of Shi Ju's collateral relatives in Dingzhou were captured by this fellow and escorted to the north bank of the Hutuo River.

Last year, since Shi Ju had decided to switch sides, he naturally sent people to fetch his family members.

Because of the communication barrier between the north and south, they had plenty of time and were able to act at their own pace. In addition, it was a time when the Jin state had just suffered a defeat in Hebei and people were in a state of panic. Therefore, Shi Ju's family escaped from Yanjing City without anyone noticing.

After learning of his great deeds, Shi Ju's immediate family members also flocked south.

However, some lucky individuals remained in Dingzhou, and this time Wugulun Yuanzhong seized the opportunity to capture them and use them as bargaining chips.

Seeing this, Wang Shilong, who was stationed on the south bank of the Hutuo River, had no choice but to welcome Wugulun Yuanzhong, who was carrying an envoy's flag, across the river and wait for Liu Huai's military order to see if he should be beheaded on the spot.

Whether it was because the hostages played a role, or because Liu Huai felt that the situation was settled and it was time to maintain decorum, in any case, Wugulun Yuanzhong successfully passed the first test and was put into a carriage and sent to Jinan Prefecture.

When Wugulun Yuanzhong arrived in Jinan Prefecture, it was February 20th, the time for a formal military meeting.

Although it was called a military council, it was not much different from a grand court assembly. Moreover, because of the arrival of the Jin envoys, the number of civil and military officials was even more complete than usual.

Holding the imperial tally, Wugulun Yuanzhong slowly entered the Jiedushi Mansion. Amidst the chilling gazes of armored guards and civil and military officials, he arrived at the main hall.

He knew that if Liu Huai continued to ask him whether he surrendered or not, and then dragged him out and chopped him up if he didn't, he wouldn't be able to do anything, and his trip south would just be a pointless death.

Therefore, Wugulun Yuanzhong decided to take the initiative and divert the topic from the choice between surrender or death before Liu Huai could speak.

He only had one chance to say it.

Wugulun Yuanzhong, as expected of a high-ranking official of the Jin Dynasty, managed to save his life temporarily with just one sentence.

"you……"

Liu Huai had just started to sing when he saw Wugulun Yuanzhong kneel down, put down his staff, then place his hands on the ground and bang his head heavily on the bluestone floor with a dull thud.

That wasn't all. To everyone's astonishment, Wugulun Yuanzhong slid his legs down, spread his arms, and lay face down on the ground.

This is the standard prostration.

However, the shock this etiquette brought to the Shandong emperor and his officials was far less than the shock of the next sentence.

“Your subject, Wugulun Yuanzhong.”

The powerful voice resonated throughout the entire lobby, then reflected back, amplifying to an incredibly loud tone.

"Greetings, King Han!"

The hall was silent for three moments, then as if a thunderclap had appeared out of nowhere, the ministers were immediately in an uproar.

Liu Huai paused for a moment, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword. Then, he looked with interest at Wugulun Yuanzhong, who was still sprawled on the ground, and laughed.

(End of this chapter)