I am Emperor Shizu of Song

Chapter 127 The Fourth Year of Xuanhe: No Way to Serve the Country

The wheels of history turned to the fourth year of Xuanhe.

This year was destined to be a turbulent one for the Song Dynasty, as the date for Tong Guan's campaign against the Liao Dynasty had been officially set, but it had not yet been announced to the public for military secrecy.

Under Zhao Ji's repeated urging, Tong Guan had secretly submitted a memorial, swearing that he would immediately enter Liao territory to fight after the spring plowing season ended at the end of April and seize Yanjing as soon as possible.

Although the supplies for the Northern Expedition were still insufficient, at least the basic rations for the fighting army could be secured. The soldiers tightened their belts and managed to eat two meals of porridge a day.

As for the lack of weapons and equipment, and the inability to replace rusty and rotten inferior goods, these minor issues can no longer be taken into consideration.

The emperor had waited too long; if he didn't attack Tong Guan soon, his political career would be over.

With Tong Guan forced to take the field by the emperor, the civil and military officials in Hebei, Hedong, and Jingdong were also having a hard time. As they were close to the front lines, everyone had to contribute money, grain, and soldiers.

Within the territory of Jingdong Road, Zhang Shuye devoted most of his energy to supporting the Northern Expedition.

Even Zhao Zicheng, who was in charge of the two prefectures of Dengzhou and Laizhou (Dengzhou was only under his temporary control), had to squeeze out some money, grain, and ships to give to Zhang Shuye to send to Tong Guan's army.

Zhao Zicheng knew in his heart that sending these things would be like throwing good money after bad; given Tong Guan's abilities and the corruption and inadequacy of the Northern Expeditionary Army, they would most likely be wasted. But Zhao Zicheng had no choice; he was still in that position and had to support Zhang Shuye, and even indirectly support Tong Guan.

Fortunately, as a member of the imperial clan, Zhao Zicheng was still viewed with suspicion by Emperor Huizong, who did not expect a prince from the imperial clan to participate in foreign wars. Therefore, Zhao Zicheng's contributions were limited to providing a small amount of money and provisions, mainly supplying ships.

The civil and military officials of the neighboring Jinan Prefecture and Qingzhou were not so lucky. Guan Sheng, who was able to fight alongside Zhao Zicheng last year, as well as Qin Ming and Huang Xin, who had just abandoned the darkness and returned to the light, would all be transferred by Tong Guan to participate in the Northern Expedition.

As for the Western Army generals who had cooperated with Zhao Zicheng earlier, needless to say, both Liu Guangshi and Han Shizhong, who had previously cooperated quite well, had to go to the outskirts of Yanjing to experience a calamity. These generals might be able to fight their way back alive, but how many of their old troops would return alive was unknown.

Only Zhao Zicheng's direct subordinates, Huyan Qing, Huyan Zhuo, Xu Ning, and Yue Fei, are temporarily exempt from participating in the Northern Expedition. Their main tasks this year are dealing with pirates on the coastal islands of Dengzhou and Laizhou, as well as the Goryeo region.

In addition, Yang Zhi, Lin Chong, and Lu Da, who had served Zhao Zicheng since the time in Jiangnan, were still stationed in the Zhenhai Army of Liangzhe Road, responsible for maintaining coastal security in Liangzhe and Jiangnan, and suppressing the remnants of Fang La's forces on the islands and along the coast of Fujian. These people could also escape the doomed Northern Expedition.

Emperor Huizong both valued and guarded against his capable distant nephew. Every time his nephew trained a capable general, he would promote those generals and then transfer them elsewhere. This was not the first or second time he had done this.

Until the Jingkang Incident, Zhao Zicheng could only endure this wariness and transfer, and had no way to resist directly.

All he could do was keep a low profile, such as having military officers like Yue Fei report their merits less so that the emperor wouldn't notice, while Zhao Zicheng would secretly reward them handsomely.

Unfortunately, this frustration and difficulty cannot be shared with outsiders, which can be incredibly frustrating at times.

……

This day was the sixteenth day of the first month of the fourth year of Xuanhe, just after the Lantern Festival.

Since it's still before the end of the first lunar month, civil and military officials in Dengzhou and Laizhou are relatively free from official duties, and the people don't start working on farm work until after the Dragon Head Raising Festival on the second day of the second lunar month.

However, as the de facto ruler of Dengzhou and Laizhou, Zhao Zicheng had already entered a phase of diligent governance. Early that morning, he arranged a full schedule for himself, meeting with many civil and military officials, partly to hear work reports and partly to make plans for the new year's goals.

If he doesn't make arrangements, all the civil and military officials in Dengzhou and Laizhou will be confused—now all the other states in the Jingdong East Circuit are fully cooperating with Tong Guan's upcoming Northern Expedition, but Zhao Zicheng is making an exception here.

Some officials who were not his confidants, while pleased to see this situation, still found it somewhat incomprehensible.

Zhao Zicheng needs to spend time unifying their thinking.

So early that morning, he summoned military officers such as Huyan Zhuo, Xu Ning, and Yue Fei, as well as civil officials such as Huyan Qing.

Hu Yanqing came all the way from Dengzhou to report to Lord Zhao. They celebrated the Lantern Festival together yesterday, and Zhao Zicheng even treated everyone to a feast to strengthen their bond.

Besides Hu Yanqing, another important civil official who just took office this year was also present at today's meeting. He was also a target that Zhao Zicheng had to win over and appease this year.

This man, named Chen Guoting, was originally the Vice Censor-in-Chief, a very high-ranking official in the central government, and the second-in-command of the Censorate system. However, he was demoted at the end of last year and is now the Military Commissioner of Laizhou, a significant demotion.

Even high-ranking officials in the central government during Emperor Huizong's reign were not valuable; they were frequently promoted or demoted, and could be dismissed at any time due to losing in factional struggles.

The reason this person was demoted was that after Fang La's rebellion last year, the court wanted to hold those responsible for Fang La's chaos accountable and discussed which of the key officials in the central government should take the blame for Fang La's disaster.

As the Vice Censor-in-Chief, Chen Guoting impeached Cai Jing and Wang Fu, arguing that if they hadn't failed to address the local impeachments against Zhu Mian promptly, dismissed Zhu Mian earlier, and abolished the Bureau of Imperial Sacrifices, Fang La would not have rebelled.

Such impeachment naturally provoked a joint counterattack from Cai Jing and Wang Fu. In the original history, Chen Guoting should have been demoted to the neighboring Haizhou (Lianyungang) as a militia commander, but in this life, due to Zhao Zicheng's butterfly effect, the tasks of naval construction and coastal defense against bandits in Laizhou were heavier, and there was more work to be done in terms of supervision. As a result, Chen Guoting was transferred to Laizhou as a militia commander.

Zhao Ji and Cai Jing had another reason for sending him to Laizhou: they wanted someone to keep an eye on Zhao Zicheng and see how well he had done in the past two years in Dengzhou and Laizhou in preparing for war, suppressing pirates, and guarding against changes in Goryeo, and whether he had any ulterior motives.

The supervision of a fifty-something-year-old man who had served as the Censor-in-Chief and was demoted to a local militia commander after committing a crime was more than enough. There was no fear that Zhao Zicheng would cause a huge uproar.

Moreover, this Chen Guoting later rose to prominence immediately after Emperor Qinzong of Song ascended the throne in the first year of the Jingkang era. This was because he had been demoted and sent to a remote post due to suppression by Cai Jing and Wang Fu, two of the Six Traitors. After Emperor Qinzong eliminated Cai Jing and Wang Fu, he naturally had to recall Chen Guoting.

This person later recommended other officials who had been suppressed and exiled by Cai Jing's faction to Emperor Qinzong of Song, including Zong Ze, who later took charge of the defense of Henan.

How could someone who could recommend Zong Ze for a reinstatement in the future have little influence in the court? Zhao Zicheng had no choice but to deal with him carefully.

……

Therefore, at the first work meeting of the year after the Lantern Festival, Zhao Zicheng frankly announced the main tasks for the year.

"The Emperor has appointed me to take charge of Dengzhou and Laizhou, to coordinate the coastal defense forces, and to eliminate the remaining followers of Song Jiang. We must not fail the Emperor's trust."

However, amphibious operations are difficult, and we have no prior experience in this area. We need to prepare and practice our ships and tactics from scratch, so we cannot rush things.

We will strive to complete the several important tasks assigned by the authorities within one or two years, which will be considered fulfilling our mission.

After Zhao Zicheng finished speaking, he first glanced at the people present. Sure enough, he saw that most of his subordinates were convinced, while Chen Guoting, who had just arrived and was responsible for monitoring him, had a calm but disdainful expression. He knew that this man was not convinced yet.

The other party simply didn't want to escalate the conflict in public upon their arrival, which is why they didn't choose to directly refute.

However, Zhao Zicheng was also too lazy to escalate the conflict, so he first instructed Hu Yanqing: "Brother Hu Yan, you are in charge of the Pinghai Army. The warships and personnel training needed for the amphibious operation are all in your hands. Last year, we built a new shipyard in Laizhou, and we have prepared enough timber and other materials."

At the beginning of this year, Grand Commandant Tong transferred many of our old ships. It's a case of out with the old, in with the new. Those old ships, only suitable for coastal navigation, were given to Grand Commandant Tong; you are responsible for building some new ones suitable for long voyages. During the Sui Dynasty, Emperor Yang Guang was able to order Lai Huer to build seagoing vessels in Dengzhou and Laizhou for expeditions against Goguryeo. Our Song Dynasty's craftsmanship and wealth far surpass those of the Sui Dynasty; we cannot afford any mistakes in this matter.”

Hu Yanqing respectfully accepted the order, stating that he would be fully responsible for shipbuilding, maritime training, and the development and use of supporting maritime equipment, ensuring that everything would go smoothly.

Zhao Zicheng also set a progress requirement for him to align with the timeline: "Spring plowing and farming will be busy in February and March, and the army will be fighting. It will be at least April or May. Your work must show results by April or May. If there are not enough craftsmen, it is better to produce fewer, but they must be ready to use by May. I do not want to see a lot of half-finished products in May."

Subsequently, Zhao Zicheng gave instructions on land combat training and military construction, and finally mentioned the livelihood work plan for Dengzhou and Laizhou this year.

In terms of people's livelihood, the most significant move this year is that Zhao Zicheng will finally promote cotton planting on a large scale in the Dengzhou-Laizhou region.

To this end, he prepared a large amount of cotton seeds and other production materials in advance last year, and also improved the production tools of subsequent supporting industries such as spinning machines and cotton cloth looms.

The idea of ​​expanding cotton cultivation was conceived by Zhao Zicheng as early as when he was in Jiangnan. However, the humid and rainy environment with insufficient sunshine in Jiangnan was not suitable for cotton cultivation. At that time, he could only develop the down industry as a small-scale economic supplement.

Shandong was later known as the second-best cotton-producing region after the Northwest. After arriving in Shandong, Zhao Zicheng devoted himself to planning and implementing policies to improve the people's livelihood and ensure the government had sufficient funds and supplies to support the military. However, he arrived last year in June or July, missing the cotton planting season. This year, he can finally plant cotton with full force.

Before Zhao Zicheng arrived, there was a small amount of cotton growing in Shandong. After Zhao Zicheng arrived last year, although he did not have time to expand the planting area, he used his official authority to go to the countryside to purchase cotton seeds at a price higher than in previous years.

All the cotton seeds harvested last year should be used for this year's expanded planting, so the planting area can be expanded by at least ten or even dozens of times compared to last year.

In the era before the government purchased cotton seeds, people would often extract oil directly from the cotton seeds after cultivating small amounts of cotton. By the late Northern Song Dynasty, rapeseed oil and cottonseed oil had already appeared, although they were not yet widespread. This was mainly because the corresponding crops were not cultivated on a large scale, and not because of any technological bottlenecks.

Wherever crops are grown, people will make the most of them, so oil extraction technology is generally quite advanced and nothing is wasted.

Zhao Zicheng gave a general overview of the relevant arrangements, but since this work required the attention of civil officials, and most of the attendees were military generals, Chen Guoting, who had just arrived, didn't participate in the discussion. Zhao Zicheng then pretended to talk to himself, saying that he would personally oversee this work, so domestic affairs would take up more of his energy this year, and military matters would be left to the generals. The generals readily agreed, needless to say.

After the meeting was largely over and tasks were assigned, Zhao Zicheng ordered a banquet to be held so that everyone could get to know their new colleagues.

Throughout the process, Chen Guoting, the new person in charge of monitoring Zhao Zicheng, naturally remained out of place.

……

Two full days passed after the meeting and banquet ended before the newly appointed military commissioner of Laizhou, Chen Guoting, finally found an opportunity to meet with Prefect Zhao Zicheng privately.

"Chen Zhongcheng, you've come a long way and must be tired. Have you adapted to the climate and water of Laizhou these past two days?"

When Zhao Zicheng met Chen Guoting, he maintained a respectful attitude towards his elders and appeared very humble.

Chen Guoting was already over fifty years old and had served as a high-ranking official in the central government. His demotion to a local post was merely a temporary "dragon in shallow waters being teased by shrimp," and could not be regarded as an ordinary prefectural-level militia commander.

Just like in the TV series "Yongzheng Dynasty", when Nian Gengyao was demoted to a local official in Hangzhou, other local officials in Hangzhou who were of higher rank could not look down on him.

However, Zhao Zicheng's use of his former official title to address him displeased Chen Guoting, who coldly clarified: "Lord Zhao is joking. I am already the militia commander of this prefecture, why would I mention the position of vice minister! Is Lord Zhao trying to make fun of me?"

Zhao Zi said, "I dare not. Yesterday, I saw that Commander Chen seemed dissatisfied with the various work arrangements for this year in this prefecture. I thought you were still immersed in the glory of the past and had difficulty adapting."

Chen Guoting scoffed, "What a joke! Am I the kind of person who covets wealth and honor and cares about personal honor and disgrace? If I cared about personal honor and disgrace, would I have impeached Cai Jing and Wang Fu?"

Zhao Zi said, “So I am also very puzzled as to why Chen Tuanlian seems unable to get along with me and other civil and military colleagues after arriving in Laizhou. I originally thought that since Chen Tuanlian dared to criticize Cai Jing and Wang Fu for not wanting to abolish the Yingfeng Bureau early, and I have always advocated that Chen should abolish the Yingfeng Bureau, abolish the Huashi Gang, and execute Zhu Mian, we should be in the same boat.”

Chen Guoting: "I have always been objective, not personal. During the Fang La Rebellion, you disregarded your personal safety and stood up against Zhu Mian, which I greatly admired and argued for on your behalf! But now the country is in dire straits, and the imperial court is about to launch a northern expedition. You have the troops and supplies of Dengzhou and Laizhou, yet you disregard the overall situation. That is why I disdain cooperating with you!"

Zhao Zicheng couldn't help but laugh: "How am I not considering the overall situation?"

Chen Guoting sighed deeply, as if recalling some painful events: "I also know that many people in the court are unwilling to let Tong Guan launch a northern expedition, and they are still holding him back."

Now is indeed not a good time for a northern expedition, but those who are hindering him may not necessarily be wholeheartedly for the country. Perhaps they just do not want such a great achievement to be taken away by Tong Guan, a eunuch!
But since the Emperor has made up his mind to launch a full-scale Northern Expedition, we can only do our utmost and cooperate as best we can! Dengzhou and Laizhou already have surplus troops, horses, and provisions; why waste them all on preparing for a sea crossing operation? Shouldn't we be reinforcing the Northern Expeditionary Army in Hebei?

Zhao Zicheng also turned serious and said righteously, "Where have I not supported the Northern Expeditionary Army? I have done my best to help Grand Commandant Tong send documents to the Eastern Route of Jingdong and Magistrate Zhang to allocate resources. Dengzhou and Laizhou are mountainous and not known for their grain production. What I have been assigned are mostly ships and other supplies. I have collected all the civilian and cargo ships in Dengzhou and Laizhou that can navigate the coast and provided them as much as possible. What more does Commander Chen want me to do?"

As for my planning of the sea crossing to suppress the remnants of Song Jiang's pirate gang, that was also an imperial decree. Am I wrong to obey the imperial order to punish the traitors?

Chen Guoting also knew that Zhao Zicheng's strategy, if you were to nitpick, was absolutely correct. He did produce what Tong Guan demanded of him, and he also did what the emperor asked him to do.

It's just a matter of slightly different approaches to prioritizing and balancing tasks, but fundamental errors will definitely not be overlooked.

Therefore, Chen Guoting only pointed out in a tactful way: "If we insist on nitpicking the wording, these actions are certainly not wrong. But His Majesty's request to pursue and suppress the remnants of the pirates is only to clear out the islands near the coast, such as Shamen Island, so that Song Jiang will not cause trouble in the coastal prefectures of Jingdong East Circuit. His Majesty may not know that Song Jiang may have already fled to Goryeo!"
If the goal is merely to pacify places like Shamen Island, why build large, fast ships capable of crossing the sea? Moreover, Goguryeo is far away, thousands of miles across the sea. Back in the Sui Dynasty, the tyrannical Emperor Yang Guang ordered Lai Huer to build seagoing vessels in Dengzhou to launch a pincer attack on Goguryeo by sea; you know what happened to him! In the year Tong Guan campaigned against Liao, instead of using surplus funds for important tasks, they insisted on building large, sea-crossing ships—isn't this just fostering a bandit and increasing their own power?

"If you think it's inappropriate, then report it to the court. Anyway, I have a clear conscience." Zhao Zicheng didn't explain further, but simply admitted it frankly.

Chen Guoting was taken aback: "You actually feel you have a clear conscience?"

Zhao Zicheng said, "What do I have to be ashamed of? I would be happy if you reported this to the court so that the Emperor would know that I have no intention of assisting the Northern Expedition. Have you forgotten that I am a member of the imperial family? Such a major event as the Northern Expedition is not my concern."

Chen Guoting then remembered that Zhao Zicheng had another sensitive aspect regarding his identity, and it seemed that he had already been suspected before.

Chen Guoting also had a keen political sense. When he recalled Zhao Zicheng's previous official career, he quickly realized that this was indeed the case. Although Zhao Zicheng rose quickly, each time he made a meritorious contribution, his military power was weakened, but his rank and title were artificially increased. This was a typical way to be wary of him.

"I see... So, it's not really my fault that I can't give my all for the Northern Expedition. It's just that I'm new here and didn't think about this aspect carefully beforehand." Chen Guoting was quite frank, and having put things out there, he finally admitted that his previous perspective had been limited.

He estimated that Zhao Zicheng might not really want to seriously pursue and kill Song Jiang in Goryeo, but perhaps he was just using the excuse that "the remaining money, grain and supplies should be used to build large ships to cross the sea" to avoid all the manpower and resources of Dengzhou and Laizhou being diverted to the Northern Expedition.

Of course, in this process, Zhao Zicheng could not only avoid suspicion, but also genuinely reduce the burden on the people of Dengzhou and Laizhou. Since building the large ferry might just be a pretext, it might not actually cost much money or grain. Thus, the people of Dengzhou and Laizhou would certainly live much better lives in the next year or two than the people in other parts of Hebei Road and Jingdong Road.

Given this situation, Chen Guoting felt he should help Zhao Zicheng cover it up. For example, he could report that "the pirate problem near the coast of Dengzhou and Laizhou is indeed serious, and the remnants of Song Jiang are hiding and fleeing everywhere, making it difficult to eradicate them all at once." This would also prevent any other tasks or burdens from falling on Zhao Zicheng and the people of Dengzhou and Laizhou.

After all, Chen Guoting and Zhao Zicheng originally had no conflict, and both of them had suffered for opposing the Huashi Gang (a tribute of rare stones and flowers) and the Fengju (a government agency). In this respect, Chen Guoting was quite similar to Wei Xian, the former Tongpan (prefectural magistrate) whom Zhao Zicheng had met in Suzhou. Wei Xian had also been punished for opposing Zhu Mian.

After both sides had a complete talk, the previous misunderstandings were forgotten.

However, despite clearing up the misunderstanding, Chen Guoting remained a very straightforward person, and he quickly raised several points of objection regarding Zhao Zicheng's political views, addressing the issues at hand:

"Although Your Excellency has your reasons, I believe that the previously established governance strategy for Dengzhou and Laizhou still contains some flaws, and I must speak out!"

Zhao Zicheng also adopted a humble and receptive attitude: "Speak freely."

Chen Guoting: "Now that it is the year of the Northern Expedition, Hebei and Shandong are already short of food and fodder. After we conquer Yan, we may have to divert food and fodder from Shandong to Yan for disaster relief. The people's livelihood in Liao territory will only be worse than that of our Great Song."

In these times, why the rush to promote cotton planting, cotton cloth weaving, and the production of so-called "cotton-padded jackets"? While cotton-padded jackets may provide warmth, they are useless for hunger. The most urgent task right now is to increase food supplies!

Zhao Zicheng, however, was confident: "Since ancient times, governing a region has always required adapting to local conditions and being pragmatic. Dengzhou and Laizhou are mountainous, so how can we grow more grain? The best fields suitable for growing grain are already being used for grain. The land we can raise this year for cotton cultivation is not suitable for grain cultivation; it's mostly poor-fertility land, though irrigation is relatively convenient. Growing cotton is a perfect choice for the soil and water conditions of Dengzhou and Laizhou!"

Cotton doesn't require very good fertilizer, but it still needs sufficient water. Irrigation conditions in the mountainous areas of the Shandong Peninsula aren't great, but because of its long coastline, frequent monsoons, and the fact that warm, humid air currents from the sea tend to bring rain when they hit the mountains, direct irrigation from natural rainfall is quite good. It's sufficient to simply dig some reservoirs and small ponds, adapting to local conditions.

The sunny conditions on the Shandong Peninsula are also ideal for cotton cultivation. Chen Guoting had never served as a local official in Shandong before and was unaware of this situation. After Zhao Zicheng explained, he realized that Zhao Zicheng's plan did not encroach on much prime farmland.

After explaining the favorable conditions for cotton cultivation, Zhao Zicheng further brainwashed the other party: "With enough cotton cloth and cotton-padded coats, we can also increase cross-sea trade by using the newly built ships. For example, the northern part of Goryeo is mostly mountainous with abundant forests and mineral deposits, but the area south of Yangju is mostly plains with sufficient grain production. If Dengzhou and Laizhou can produce a large quantity of surplus cotton cloth and cotton-padded coats, we can naturally sell them to Goryeo and then purchase large quantities of grain and other specialties from the people in southern Goryeo."

Once the new type of seagoing vessels are built, the transportation costs for coastal trade within a few hundred miles might be even lower than those for canal transport.

Water transport has always been much cheaper than land transport. The ancients disliked sea transport mainly because they feared the dangers of rough seas. However, if it was just sailing in the Yellow Sea, avoiding the typhoon season, and there were new-style large sand barges specifically designed for sailing the Yellow Sea, Zhao Zicheng felt that these were not problems.

Moreover, his subsequent military operations and control over Goryeo could also be concealed under this plan, making it even more undetectable.

Chen Guoting initially found it unbelievable, but after much consideration, he accepted the explanation, taking into account that Zhao Zicheng seemed to have made many outstanding contributions to the country.

Seeing that he had finally gotten rid of the person who had been sent to monitor him, Zhao Zicheng immediately seized the opportunity and said, "Since Commander Chen understands my good intentions, please join me in this endeavor and work together for the country and its people."

I'm not very skilled in civil affairs and finances, and I've only been an official for three years. I'll have to rely on you a lot for future work on agricultural promotion and taxation.

In the few years that Zhao Zicheng served as an official, he really didn't worry much about tax issues, because in the first two years of his tenure, many tax and corvée problems were overshadowed by Fang La's rebellion and the subsequent suppression of the rebellion.

When someone rebelled, the local area no longer had to pay taxes to the imperial court that year. After the war, when there was a shortage of money and food, Zhao Zicheng solved the problem by robbing Fang La and exploiting his criminal activities.

Last year, because of the need to fight Song Jiang, Dengzhou and Laizhou were exempt from paying taxes and could even recoup their losses with some of the spoils from defeating Song Jiang.

This year marks the first time since Zhao Zicheng took office that the territory under his control has not been directly affected by the war. He also has to fulfill all the tasks assigned by the imperial court. At such a time, it would be even better to have a senior official who has served his entire career help to maintain order, especially if that person is an upright official who is at odds with Cai Jing and Wang Fu.

Chen Guoting was still somewhat old-fashioned, and upon hearing this, he merely frowned and retorted: "The court appointed me as the militia commander, so I should be concerned with military training. Being in charge of finances and promoting agriculture is somewhat overstepping my authority..."

Zhao Zi said, “Sir, you have never managed an army before, have you? Since you have experience in governing the people, you should use your expertise. There is a sequence to learning, and everyone has their own area of ​​expertise. We are all doing this for the country, so why be so particular? As for military affairs and shipbuilding, if I may be frank, Hu Yanqing is more professional than you, sir.”

Chen Guoting thought about it in silence for a while, and had to admit that what Zhao Zicheng said was true. In the end, the two could only reach such a tacit understanding and compromise.

When it came time to report to the imperial court, Chen Guoting would certainly still need to report on shipbuilding, naval construction, and deployment issues in the Dengzhou and Laizhou regions. However, he could, as Zhao Zicheng suggested, delegate the specific work to Huyanqing. After Huyanqing had summarized the work, he could then give it to Chen Guoting and submit it in Huyanqing's name.

Chen Guoting believed in Zhao Zicheng's dedication to the country and its people, and also trusted his character, so he turned a blind eye and acted as a rubber stamp.

The last high-ranking official sent by the court to supervise was also tricked and dragged into the mess by Zhao Zicheng.

(End of this chapter)