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

Chapter 882 A Great Villain Appears Loyal, Yet Conceals Cleverness and Deceit (Part 1)
Just as the situation in the Central Plains was turbulent and a new round of war was brewing, the insects hidden beneath the fierce waves also began to move in secret.

Lin'an City.

Song State Right Chancellor Shi Hao personally tidied his sideburns in front of a bronze mirror, while his elderly wife adjusted his court robes and adorned him with jewelry and other ornaments.

"Why are you dressed so formally today? It's not like it's a grand court assembly."

After all, his wife was old and frail, and her court robes were extremely heavy and cumbersome to wear. Before long, she was sweating and her arms felt weak.

However, it's not a big deal for husband and wife to complain to each other in private; even the emperor can't control that.

Shi Hao stroked the white hair at his temples, then turned to his wife and said gently, "My dear wife, you have suffered the most these years with me, without any happiness. I'm so sorry for you."

His wife didn't know why Shi Hao suddenly brought this up, but she was also a little embarrassed: "We've been married for so long, why are you saying these things?"

Shi Hao smiled and said, "Today I am here for the sake of the country, and also for my own selfish reasons, to risk the lives of my entire family. If it really doesn't work out... please don't blame me, Madam."

The old woman's expression changed slightly, but then she smiled and said, "My lord, you are overthinking it. The Song Dynasty treats scholars and officials well. With your current status, even if you commit a terrible crime, you will only be sent to a local prefecture as a vice-prefect."

I'm getting tired of staying in Lin'an City, so I'm going out for a walk to clear my head.

Shi Hao listened quietly, but only shook his head: "What kind of ancient history is this, not killing scholar-officials? How did Zhao Ding die? And how did Yue Fei die?"

However, this is now a life-or-death struggle for the country, and I, as the husband, have no choice but to step forward.

The old wife paused for a moment, her round face full of determination: "You should be like a rock, and I should be like a reed. The reed is as resilient as silk, and the rock will never move."

Since it's for the sake of the country, then Ah Lang shouldn't let personal feelings get in the way, and I absolutely won't hold you back.

Shi Hao nodded slightly, straightened his court robes, and walked out of the hall with the gait of a prime minister, then got into the carriage.

The winter wind in Jiangnan was still biting, but Shi Hao did not close the carriage door, instead letting the cold wind fill the entire carriage.

He seemed to have never really seen the scenery of Lin'an before, constantly turning his head to look around, occasionally bowing his head in deep thought, as if recalling the past, or perhaps contemplating the future.

The Shi residence was not too far from the palace. Soon, Shi Hao entered the palace gate, then stepped off the carriage, tightened his court robes, and slowly walked towards the inner palace.

Today was not a grand court assembly, and officials at all levels were working in their government offices. Therefore, there were not many officials in the palace. However, when the eunuchs saw the Right Chancellor of the court arriving in such neat court attire, no one dared to stop him. They cleared a path for Shi Hao while hurriedly reporting to the Emperor.

The prime minister could enter and leave the imperial palace without prior notification, making it impossible for eunuchs to separate the inner court from the outer court, and even less likely to profit from the information gap between the inner court and the outer court. This was one of the powers of the prime minister in the Song Dynasty, and also the fundamental reason why the Song Dynasty never had an extremely powerful eunuch.

Shi Hao arrived at the Funing Palace, the emperor's daily residence, without any obstacles. Zhao Shen was already dressed and waiting for him.

He didn't know why Shi Hao was taking it so seriously, but he still respected the prime minister's authority and allowed Shi Hao to drive all the palace guards, eunuchs, and female officials out of the palace.

Only after Zhao Shen and Shi Hao were left alone in the Funing Palace did Shi Hao bow and speak: "Your Majesty, I have come here with important matters to report!"

Zhao Shen also became a little nervous: "Master, please sit down. Since the sky hasn't collapsed yet, we can still speak freely with each other."

Shi Hao shook his head, then took out a thick document from his bosom and presented it with both hands: "Your Majesty, I impeach the current Left Chancellor Yu Yunwen, the Sichuan Military Commissioner Lu You, and the Military Governor of the Jingnan Army Liu Huai. The three of them are in cahoots and disregard the national decrees, causing the Great Song Dynasty to be in danger of collapse. I hope Your Majesty will investigate thoroughly."

When Shi Hao uttered the first name, Zhao Shen was stunned. It took him a moment to catch his breath and regain his composure.

After looking at the document that Shi Hao presented with both hands, he sighed slightly and said, "Master, do you know what the consequences will be if I accept this document?"

Shi Hao responded with a similar sigh: "Of course I knew, in fact, I already knew when I wrote this impeachment memorial. However, as a high-ranking official and the current prime minister, I could never have known that the country was in danger of collapse, yet I turned a blind eye."

After a long silence, Zhao Shen finally took the memorial, but did not open it immediately: "Master, I made an agreement with you today. Since you came to see me in private, this is not a question between a ruler and his subject, but a discussion between a teacher and student. Regardless of whether this memorial is right or wrong, let's let it go and make a big deal out of it, okay?"

Shi Hao felt a slight sense of relief, but his expression remained as resolute as ever: "I will obey Your Majesty's command."

Shi Hao's impeachment this time was tantamount to a direct battle with Yu Yunwen, and he also dragged Liu Huai and Lu You into it, showing a do-or-die attitude.

To be fair, this is not the standard way to start a political struggle.

As the saying goes, "a storm begins with a ripple," meaning that all great storms are caused by a small incident. By following the clues, more people are implicated, and the target's support is weakened. Only when everything is in place will a fierce attack be launched.

Just as a war consists of scouting, vanguard, and main battles before the final decisive battle, starting with small things can conceal one's intentions, lull the enemy into a false sense of security, and protect one's key figures—a win-win situation.

Shi Hao's actions today are tantamount to a general personally leading his personal guards to charge at the enemy marshal at the very beginning of a great battle, without any probing or provocation, attempting to kill him.

This method is not ineffective, nor is it without successful precedents, but it is clearly too reckless.

Now that Zhao Shen has personally guaranteed not to spread the word, it has given Shi Hao some room to maneuver.

Zhao Shen looked at the thick memorial in his hand, took a few deep breaths, and then slowly opened it. After reading for only a moment, Zhao Shen began to tremble all over.

To be fair, Zhao Shen knew most of what was in this document, and in fact, Yu Yunwen had explained most of it to Zhao Shen in person.

However, this memorial connected all the previous events and, after explaining them from another perspective, revealed a terrible truth.

The Left Chancellor of the Song Dynasty, the Envoy of Bashu, and the General who occupied the north had colluded to overthrow the Song Dynasty.

For example, in the recent case of Lu You settling scores with the Wang family, during a private questioning session with the emperor before his departure, Lu You asked Zhao Shen for the authority to act expediently in order to raise funds for Wu Lin's army, and even explicitly stated that he wanted to do something outrageous.

Zhao Shen could roughly guess that Lu You wanted to exploit the rich, but he did not expect his methods to be so ruthless.

However, since it was agreed beforehand that Lu You had the right to take advantage of others, what could he do?

Zhao Shen had no choice but to accept it, even if he felt guilty.

However, in Shi Hao's writings, Lu You's behavior takes on a different meaning.

The Song Dynasty ruled the world together with its scholar-officials, who were the Song's allies in controlling the world.

After arriving in Sichuan, Lu You immediately targeted the scholar-officials who were loyal to the Song Dynasty. What was he trying to do? Was he trying to undermine the Song Dynasty's political foundation in the region?

In particular, the Sichuan and Chongqing region was too isolated. As long as a few key roads were blocked, the Song state would not be able to send troops. At that time, Lu You could naturally become king and hegemon.

In addition, there was the issue of Liu Huai declaring himself king.

Anyone with eyes to see knows that the situation between the North and the South is beyond repair.

Yu Yunwen naturally understood this, but as a mature politician, he didn't strictly distinguish between friend and foe, especially with the Jin Dynasty, a mortal enemy, still at large.

Therefore, Yu Yunwen kept using excuses such as "Liu Huai was coerced by his subordinates, the situation in the north was complicated, and he harbored resentment towards the court due to Wei Sheng's death" to evade the issue.

Shi Hao clearly stated in his document that Liu Huai was bound to rebel, and even if he didn't rebel today, he would rebel tomorrow, and the court needed to prepare in advance.

As a result, Yu Yunwen, who had been speaking up for Liu Huai, was seen as a treacherous and scheming individual!
Lu You's journey south to return to the Song Dynasty was transformed from an act of loyalty and righteousness into a despicable act of secretly colluding with Liu Huai.

These alone are already considered bombshells.

Upon seeing the simplified map of the world drawn by Shi Hao in the document, and the territories of various forces marked by him, Zhao Shen was so shocked that he stood up from his chair.

Liu Huai, who occupied most of the north on this map, needs no further introduction.

Yu Yunwen, who governed Xiangfan and Nanyang, and Lu You, who governed Bashu, combined with the northern regions to form a vast sphere of influence that was enough to exert immense pressure on the Song state.

The emperor was a true embodiment of power, and at this moment, Zhao Shen felt nothing but fear and unease.

However, having served as an official for several years, Zhao Shen had developed some self-restraint.

"No, Master Chef. If you say that Liu Dalang has harbored ambitions after being sent abroad for so long, I am aware of that. But how could Minister Yu and Minister Lu possibly betray me?"

At this point, Zhao Shen seemed to regain some confidence. After all, Yu Yunwen had made great contributions to his ascension to the throne, and his contributions were not just empty words, but real achievements in saving the world, and he also gained the clear support of the pro-war faction.

Later, in order to stabilize Zhao Shen's throne, he continued to lead troops into battle, personally braving arrows and stones in several major battles. It is said that at the most dangerous time, the Jin army had already rushed to his side.

More importantly, Yu Yunwen had no intention of cultivating his sons and nephews. His nephews couldn't even become officials under the prime minister, clearly only wanting to achieve fame and fortune for one lifetime, not for lasting achievements.

Besides, Yu Yunwen has already reached the pinnacle of his position as the Left Chancellor, wielding both military and political power. Why would he want to pledge allegiance to Liu Huai?
Could Liu Huai possibly appoint him as emperor?

Shi Hao sighed and replied, "Because of the crisis in the Song Dynasty, and their unwillingness to die for the country, they naturally want to seek refuge with Liu Dalang."

Zhao Shen shook his head repeatedly, finding Shi Hao's words even more absurd: "Then they would have done it long ago. Just like Minister Lu, why did he return to Song? If he had stayed in the North, wouldn't he have been the rightful first prime minister if Liu Dalang had really rebelled?"

Shi Hao closed his eyes in pain, slowly shook his head, then removed his official hat and bowed deeply: "Since Your Majesty does not trust me, then please dismiss me from my position as prime minister."

Zhao Shen panicked and quickly got up to help Shi Hao up: "Master, please don't say such things. Now is the time to prioritize national affairs. How can we easily dismiss the prime minister?"

After a long silence, Zhao Shen asked, "According to Master's opinion, how should we deal with this now?"

Shi Hao remained bowed, but a smile finally appeared on his lips.

(End of this chapter)