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

Chapter 837 The Rabbit's Feet Flutter

"Lord Shi, the Prince of Han truly values ​​you highly. Giving away three of the Wanyan family's great generals like that is quite a generous gesture."

Du Wuji looked at the document that had just been delivered in his hand and clicked his tongue in amazement.

Shi Ju, who was also reading a document, said without looking up, "Of course it is important, otherwise it would not have corresponded with me when I was still the Prime Minister of Jin."

At this point, Shi Ju looked up and asked, "Du Dalang, are you going to address Dalangjun as the King of Han now?"

Du Wuji shrugged and replied, "It is precisely because I am new here that I need to show my sincerity. Otherwise, the others will think that I am only paying lip service."

If others were to think that I had any reservations about the eldest son's claim to the throne, then all would be over.

Shi Ju pressed on, "Is it just you who thinks this way, or do others think the same way?"

Du Wuji laughed and said directly, "There are definitely some people who think that way, but the vast majority of people are still sincere."

At this point, Du Wuji paused: "Besides, the King of Han is, after all, a hero of the Han people, and I admire him. What's so special about being a king? He could be an emperor too."

Shi Ju pressed on, "Then do you think now is a good time for the eldest son to declare himself king?"

Du Wuji hesitated for a moment, then looked around before whispering, "Of course not."

In my humble opinion, now is not the time to turn against the Song Dynasty. After we have destroyed the two Jin states, the eldest son can then declare himself king, and there will be no more worries about the future.

Shi Ju nodded: "My eldest son once told me to stockpile grain, build high walls, and delay declaring himself king. He doesn't care about these empty titles, but that's how things are in this world; you can't just do whatever you want."

Even if the eldest son was unwilling, could he really cut out the tongues of officials and commoners for a few words of address? And when everyone recognizes the eldest son as the King of Han, isn't that the case too?

Du Wuji lowered his voice further: "My lord, be careful with your words. It's fine if I hear these words, but if others hear them, they will be attacked."

Although you, my lord, have known the King of Han for a long time, you are ultimately a newly submitted person, no different from us. At this time, you should instead loudly proclaim the King of Han's achievements and acknowledge his status.

Shi Ju knew this was a well-intentioned gesture from his confidant, but he still smiled and shook his head: "Brother Du, if you were a ruler who was over forty and had already established the status quo, I would still be careful to protect myself even without you telling me."

But he's only just over twenty, and a ruler who's conquering the world on the battlefield. How could he be afraid of an old man like me?

After thinking about it, Du Wuji could only nod in agreement.

Nowadays, when people in the north talk about it in private, they all say that the person most similar to Liu Huai is not his ancestor Liu Bang, the King of Han, who wasted half his life, but Li Shimin, the King of Qin, who shone brightly in his youth.

too young.

The advantage of a young monarch is that ministers generally do not outlive the monarch, so there is no need to worry about their merits overshadowing the monarch.

Especially the founding monarch, who personally fought his way through the enemy lines to conquer the world, would he really worry about an old man rebelling?

After finishing his sentence, Shi Ju looked down at the document in his hand and continued speaking: "The matter of the eldest son for the King of Han is like water bursting its banks and cannot be stopped. The relationship with the State of Song is also very likely to change. Therefore, we need to speed things up."

Did you notice anything strange about the documents and ledgers I gave you the other day?

Du Wuji shook his head: "Haizhou is the place where the King of Han rose to power, so it adopted the new accounting method three years ago, and the accounts are very clear."

The key point is... it's just too clear and straightforward, without the slightest error or omission; it's truly unbelievable.

Shi Ju nodded with satisfaction: "That's right. There are fifty-three large salt fields in Haizhou at the moment, yet the Haizhou Salt Transport Office manages to ensure that not a single pound of salt is lost in the import and export process. Hehe."

Either Sun Huaidu, the salt commissioner of Haizhou, was a great talent in governance, or…

Du Wuji interjected, "Then there will be a yin-yang ledger."

Shi Ju frowned and said, "Assuming Sun Huaidu was greedy for money, then where did that money go?"

Du Wuji could only shake his head.

It has been more than ten days since the team arrived in Haizhou, and the people of Haizhou have been very cooperative, providing whatever they need.

However, by now, the group had only found minor errors in the ledgers, purely based on hearsay, which was truly disheartening.

Given Shi Ju's penchant for taking unconventional approaches, even if he didn't directly imprison Sun Huaidu and interrogate him first, he would at least find a rogue to accuse Sun Huaidu of petty theft, thus creating an opening for Shi Ju to intervene in the judicial process.

But wasn't this Liu Huai personally instructing Shi Ju to be mindful of his methods? And wasn't Shi Ju also determined to become a prime minister during a peaceful era, wanting to demonstrate his own methods in this way?
To put it bluntly, if everything is about using force to overcome skill, then what's the point of having an Imperial Censor? Why not just expand the Embroidered Uniform Guard tenfold and start some secret police politics?
Shi Ju stroked his beard and said, "Since that's the case, let's be frank and let Sun Huaidu answer in person."

Ah, it's always best to stir up trouble before you can scare the snake away.

"Here!"

News of the summons of Sun Huaidu by the Imperial Censor Shi Ju quickly spread throughout Haizhou, causing a great uproar. Even in later generations, it would be difficult to escape the conflict between host and guest, let alone now.

In particular, the difference in status between Shi Ju and Sun Huaidu was far too subtle.

Shi Ju, a well-known new surrendered official, needs no further introduction. Sun Huaidu, on the other hand, came from the Northern Expeditionary Army and, as a scholar, personally participated in a series of arduous battles in the early stages of the Northern Expedition.

When Wei Sheng was attacking Yidu Prefecture, Sun Huaidu was the military's finance officer. He was injured by a group of bandits while traveling and broke his leg, which led him to become a local official.

Such things are actually quite common in Shandong, and this is not considered an institutional innovation, but rather a continuation of the old system from the Tang Dynasty.

During the Tang Dynasty, the imperial examination system was not yet fully developed. Scholars who wanted to become officials needed to be recommended. Although this required examinations, the imperial court could not simply appoint an inexperienced scholar as the head of a county based on a single examination paper. They would conduct further evaluations before granting him a substantive post.

The quickest way is to join the army, serve as a military advisor, and manage the army's logistics. After three to five years of success, one will naturally be recommended by the military governor to serve as a local official.

The logic behind it is very simple.

If you have the ability to manage the logistics of thousands of able-bodied men, arrange their lives, and prevent them from causing trouble or rebelling, then you will certainly have the ability to manage the people of a county.

This is the fundamental reason why many Tang Dynasty poets had military experience.

Although this greatly expanded the power of the military governors, it must be said that it was a good time-saving measure, which greatly alleviated the pressure of the lack of officials in the early stages of the Northern Expedition.

By this calculation, Sun Huaidu is certainly a highly experienced person, yet he is being investigated by an outsider. Even if this outsider comes with the orders of the King of Han, it is still not enough to completely convince people!

This is because Sun Huaidu was originally a scholar. If he were a warrior, he would probably have immediately rushed up to Shi Ju and started cursing.

Shi Ju, I'll curse your mother! You're just a wretched old man, a former surrendered soldier with nowhere else to turn. What gives you the right to act so arrogantly? You want to check the accounts? Let me tell you, I have no accounts to settle. If you want my life, go ahead! I've already died several times over following the Prince of Han!

On March 1st, the joyous day of Liu Huai's wedding, several prominent officials from Haizhou gathered at the Haizhou government office.

Among them were not only Huang Yue, the prefect of Haizhou, but also the two county magistrates of Qushan and Donghai, Zheng Yun, the military commander of Haizhou, and even the newly appointed Shandong East Circuit Transport Commissioner Kai Zhao and Shandong Maritime Trade Office Director Wang Shijie, who sent their confidants to listen in.

This was meant to bolster Sun Huaidu's reputation.

"Old Liu, why are you only arriving today? I've already drunk all of Old Sun's rice wine."

In response to Huang Yue's question, Liu Zheng, the official in charge of the Maritime Trade Office, first bowed to Sun Huaidu and then replied loudly, "When can't we drink the wine from Old Sun's house?"

However, the Spring Festival travel rush was just around the corner, and things were incredibly complicated. Then, Imperial Censor Shi came to question them, causing everyone, from top to bottom, to feel insecure and scramble to get things done.

Haizhou military commander Zheng Yun sneered, "Perhaps it's because your own hands are dirty."

"Old Liu, Imperial Censor Shi is here with the King of Han's military order. If you've truly committed a mistake, confessing now might still get you some leniency. The people present won't turn down a word of advice for you."

Liu Zheng retorted angrily, "Old Zheng, you can spew filth from your mouth! The Maritime Trade Office was personally set up by the Prince of Han. Doesn't your statement imply that the Prince of Han was also involved?"

Seated at the head of the table, Shi Ju smiled as he watched the Shandong officials arguing amongst themselves, occasionally raising his teacup to drink. Standing beside him, Du Wuji gripped the hilt of his sword, a tense look on his face.

Anyone with eyes could see that although these Shandong officials were attacking each other, their words were laced with barbs and were aimed at Shi Ju at every turn.

However, unlike Du Wuji, Shi Ju was a high-ranking official, so why would he be afraid of being ostracized by a group of local officials?

To be honest, all these tricks you've used are things that Master Shi has already mastered!

After watching the show for a while, Shi Ju patted Du Wuji's arm, then stood up and said, "Gentlemen, I am a newcomer here. Although I have been corresponding with the eldest son for several years, I am still not very familiar with Shandong. I will have to rely on you all for this inspection."

Upon hearing this, the conversation in the hall immediately ceased, and then, led by Huang Yue, everyone stood up, bowed, and said, "This humble official dares not."

After calming the situation down with a few words, Shi Ju showed no smugness, but simply nodded slightly, then looked at Sun Huaidu: "Ambassador Sun, I have summoned you here for questioning in front of so many people. Do you have something to say first?"

Sun Huaidu stood up, limped to the center of the hall, and nodded sincerely: "Yes."

Everyone jolted.

However, the next moment, Sun Huaidu pointed at Shi Ju and shouted, "My loyalty to the King of Han is as clear as day! I am in this state because you, you old scoundrel, forced me to this!"

Before anyone could react, Sun Huaidu pulled a dagger from his pocket and plunged it into his chest.

"I will take my heart out and show it to the King of Han!"

After uttering his last words, Sun Huaidu collapsed to the ground in full view of everyone. He twitched a few times and then lay motionless, with only dark red blood seeping from beneath him.

Everyone in the hall was dumbfounded.

(End of this chapter)