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

Chapter 905 The Cause of Yesterday, the Effect of Today

"What a fine city it is, and now it's going to be handed over to that traitor Liu."

Jing Sihui drove his horse slowly along Zhuque Avenue, gazing at the surrounding scenery and sighing repeatedly.

Even in winter, and even though the number of people in Bianliang City had greatly decreased due to war and food shortages, the prosperity brought by that major commercial city could not be erased.

Moreover, this is a newly built city that was just built a few years ago. Even though it has experienced a fire, it still exudes an air of wealth and luxury.

Wanyan Guangying, however, took it in stride: "Prime Minister Jing, in the struggle for the world, one must use both kindness and force. Destroying Bianliang City now may bring temporary benefits, but it will make the entire Kaifeng Prefecture regard the Great Jin as an enemy, creating hundreds of thousands of mortal foe."

In that case, it's uncertain how long it will take to win back the hearts of the people in Henan.

Jing Sihui could only sigh: "Your Highness, I am old after all, and can only look at the present. Unlike Your Highness, who is full of vigor and can plan for the future."

However, this old minister has some things to say that are unpleasant to hear, and I'm unsure whether I should say them or not.

"Please speak freely, sir."

"Now that Your Majesty has destroyed the Western Xia and driven out the Song traitors, the Great Jin should also take Guanzhong as its core and expand to the southwest, in order to achieve the situation of the pre-Qin and post-Zhou dynasties."

Even if everything goes smoothly, Your Majesty and the Crown Prince should not consider attacking the Central Plains. Decades later, a great ruler will emerge in the Jin Dynasty; who will remember the fate of a single city then?

After a moment's thought, Wanyan Guangying asked seriously, "Prime Minister Jing, do you mean that it would be alright to destroy Bianliang City at this time?"

Jing Sihui nodded emphatically, but after a moment's hesitation, he shook his head slightly: "Your Highness, this is not only my idea, but also the idea of ​​the Grand Marshal."

Wanyan Guangying seemed to have expected this, but still turned to the other person and asked, "Qingchen, do you think so too?"

Gu Qingchen was completely stunned upon hearing this.

In that instant, he actually started looking up at the sky, with only one question in his mind: "What am I doing?"

Yes, after a series of recent events, this former Dongjin general has fallen into a state of confusion.

Gu Qingchen originally intended to use his good looks to attract some Meng'an and Mouke households and save them from the war. However, he encountered Wanyan Guangying at Mutuogang and was persuaded to join his side.

Then, during an attack targeting Wanyan Guangying, Gu Qingchen rescued him, truly making him a hero who saved the emperor.

From then on, Wanyan Guangying seemed to have forgotten that Gu Qingchen was a envoy sent by the Han army, and simply took him by his side. Rather than putting him under house arrest, it was more like reappointing him.

Logically speaking, given the Crown Prince's courtly treatment and their shared Jurchen ethnicity, Gu Qingchen should have readily surrendered to the Jin Dynasty.

The key point is that Gu Qingchen did not surrender to the Han army because he harbored rebellious intentions. He fought repeatedly and was eventually driven to despair before finally surrendering.

In other words, Gu Qingchen knew the strength of the Han army and the formidable power of Liu Huai, and he didn't think the two Jin states could pull any more tricks.

What about Heshilie Liangbi? What about Heshilie Zhining? Didn't they all die because of one wrong move?

What good is loyalty and righteousness if one abandons one's post?
Having been repeatedly defeated before, isn't he the one who's now being played like a frightened bird?
Surrendering while the Jurchen nation still had value in terms of political maneuvering would actually be the best outcome.

Gu Qingchen had previously worried that Liu Huai would destroy the cultural heritage of the Jurchens and turn them all into Han Chinese.

Now his worry is that he will not be able to become a Han Chinese in the future.

Do they really think it's so easy to be a Han Chinese? During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Di people of Longyou dutifully farmed for the Han court for a hundred years. They had become Sinicized in both culture and language, and petitioned to submit to the Han people every year, but the Han Dynasty never agreed until its demise.

It's already a great favor that the Jurchens still have a road to take. Gu Qingchen even had a premonition that once the north was pacified, such good fortune would not be available again.

However... and there is a "however," the favor Wanyan Guangying bestowed was genuine, and Gu Qingchen ultimately could not persuade a crown prince to surrender.

What's the difference between that and the Jin dynasty surrendering their entire clan?
Therefore, Gu Qingchen could only live in a daze during these days, caught in a battle between his conscience and his conscience. Even his companions who came with him became restless.

"Qingchen?" Seeing that no one answered for a long time, Wanyan Guangying turned his head and looked at Gu Qingchen, who was still in a daze: "What do you have to say?"

Gu Qingchen snapped out of his daze, glanced at Jing Sihui, and was about to speak when he heard a horn sound coming from the alleys on both sides of Zhuque Street.

Having survived an assassination attempt, Wanyan Guangying was already on guard: "Form the formation!"

More than a thousand palace guards immediately formed a battle formation, with armored men and swordsmen standing on the outer perimeter, protecting the ministers and their families in the middle.

"Capture and kill the young prince! Present him to the King of Han!"

"Kill the thief!"

Hundreds of armored soldiers with white cloths tied around their arms swarmed out, shouting various slogans, and charged towards the square formation formed by the Eastern Palace guards.

The already sparsely populated Zhuque Avenue was now completely deserted, with people crying out in despair and fleeing in all directions.

"Lou Wangsun! I knew it was you, you coward, causing trouble!" Jing Sihui, his hair and beard bristling, pointed at a general wearing a mask under the black banner and shouted, "Do you really think I can't kill you?"

Before Lou Wangsun could speak, a Han Chinese general roared, "You old dog! Come and kill us then?! Didn't you kill our brothers so easily back then?! Why don't you kill them now?!"

As he spoke, this Han Chinese general actually shouted to his comrades-in-arms on the eve of battle: "Back then, Brother Liang Jiu wanted to recruit Old Dog Jing to his side in order to find a way for the brothers to survive."

But who knew that not only would this guy disagree, he would actually kill Brother Liang and the rest of them! How could I face anyone if I didn't avenge this?!

"Brothers, please help us kill this bastard!" The Han army had already made a desperate gamble, risking everything. Hearing this, their anger, which had been fueled by the oppression they had suffered at the hands of the Jurchens, was further aroused. They immediately launched a fierce attack on the Eastern Palace guards as if their lives depended on it.

Although the Crown Prince's guards had a numerical advantage, they also had to attend to escorting high-ranking officials, so for a time the two sides were evenly matched.

Time dragged on, and after a quarter of an hour, both Lou Wangsun and Wanyan Guangying began to feel uneasy.

The main Jurchen army had been led out of the city by Pusan ​​Zhongyi, and now the city was mostly filled with Han soldiers.

This Han army can be roughly divided into two parts: one part consists of local soldiers under Lou Wangsun, whose combat strength is average.
The other part consisted of several thousand Han soldiers under Zhang Shousu's command. Most of these Han soldiers were trained together with the Chenzhou army and were also veterans who had seen blood, making them significantly more powerful.

Zhang Shousu and Lou Wangsun could agree on the issue of protecting Bianliang City, but they could not make up their minds to capture Wanyan Guangying together as a means to advance their careers.

Wanyan Guangying's concerns were even more direct.

It is true that Zhang Shousu was his teacher, but didn't his other teacher, Wugulun Yuanzhong, also want to kill him?

In today's climate of discontent, talking about past relationships is just ridiculous.

Although Wanyan Guangying and Zhang Hao reached a tacit agreement, on the condition that those loyal to the Jin Dynasty would safely withdraw from Bianliang City, the Jin army would guarantee that it would not cause widespread destruction in Bianliang City.

However, such tacit understanding is bound to be superficial and cannot withstand the slightest disturbance.

Now, under Lou Wangsun's surprise attack, all the previous tacit understanding has vanished.

If Zhang Shousu arrives and sees that it is indeed a good opportunity, he can immediately dispatch all the Han soldiers to rush forward and capture and kill Wanyan Guangying on the spot.

"Stop it all!"

"By order of Prime Minister Zhang, all of you cease fire!"

"Ambassador Zhang has arrived in person!"

Sure enough, such a major event could not be kept secret from Zhang Shousu, the defense commissioner of Bianliang. He quickly mobilized more than a thousand soldiers and swept along Zhuque Street.

Lou Wangsun was filled with resentment upon seeing this, but he also knew that since Zhang Shousu had come in person, the great undertaking was unlikely to succeed.

However, when he saw the Five Virtues Banner of the Crown Prince more than ten meters away, his heart was still in turmoil.

Feeling a sense of frustration, like a cooked duck flying away, Lou Wangsun drew his bow and fired an arrow at the banner in the distance: "Little prince! This is a gift from us Han people to you. Do you like it?!"

Wanyan Guangying was surrounded by armored cavalry in the middle. His armor and robe were the same color as the others. After removing his face armor, Lou Wangsun could not recognize who the crown prince was.

However, whether it was due to some divine intervention or some other reason, the arrow actually shot straight at Wanyan Guangying.

At the critical moment, Gu Qingchen, who was standing to the side, used his spear to deflect the arrow. However, he was only shocked for a moment before regaining his composure.

If you have too many lice, you won’t be itchy. If you have too many debts, you won’t have to worry.

Since you don't know what to do, just follow your heart.

"Stop!" Zhang Shousu, his hair and beard bristling, spurred his horse forward and roared, "Lou Wangsun, do you take my military orders for granted?!"

More than a thousand Han soldiers lined up in battle formation on the wide Zhuque Avenue. After forming a military formation, they used long weapons to strike the ground, producing a uniform "thump" sound to boost the morale of their commander.

Under pressure from the fresh reinforcements, the confrontation between the two armies came to an end. Both sides withdrew their troops but dared not relax their guard in any way.

Seeing that the battle had subsided, Zhang Shousu, accompanied by three personal guards, rode out from under the protection of the armored soldiers and said, "Please leave quickly, Your Highness. I will keep watch over this place, and there will be no further trouble."

Upon hearing this, Wanyan Guangying visibly breathed a sigh of relief, while Lou Wangsun's faction was filled with resentment and began to hurl insults.

Relying on his seniority, Zhang Shousu turned around and scolded Lou Wangsun: "You scoundrel, you are so ignorant! Don't you understand that for the King of Han, the great cause of the world is the most important thing!"

Do you know that fighting with the Crown Prince's guards here will destroy Bianliang City?

No sooner had Zhang Shousu finished speaking than a sudden change occurred.

A junior officer under Lou Wangsun slowly rode his horse closer to Zhang Shousu. After the man cursed a few times, he suddenly sprang up, raised his spear high, and thrust it into Zhang Shousu's neck.

Blood gushed out instantly, and an incredulous look flashed across Zhang Shousu's eyes before fading completely.

Amidst the horrified expressions of the crowd, the young junior officer effortlessly dismounted, severed Zhang Shousu's head, and hoisted it high onto the tip of his spear.

"I, Zhou Hua, will today slay the traitor Zhang to comfort the spirits of the people of Huaibei who died in the war!"

The junior officer, Zhou Hua, roared with all his might.

Some people remained confused, some suddenly realized the truth, and some even cheered.

Gu Qingchen, standing in the crowd, had a livid face. Looking at the different reactions of the people around him, he suddenly realized something.

It seems that chaos in Bianliang City is inevitable.

His next move was to reach for the hilt of the knife.

(End of this chapter)