Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 117 Officials, run! Song Shi'an is back!

The women in the Song family were too frightening. The scene before him made Shen Kang feel somewhat helpless, and he wanted to leave as soon as possible.

However, just as he was about to leave, the youngest daughter of the Song family suddenly asked anxiously, "Master Shen, after my brother Song comes back, does that mean my father is innocent?"

This is also a problem for Madam Cui and Madam Jiang.

The three women all looked at him.

"Gentlemen, please stop asking these questions."

Suddenly, Shen Kang said in a serious tone, "All I've told you about is the victory that the whole city knows about. I haven't promised anything else."

Since the leader of the Embroidered Uniform Guard said so, they dared not ask any more questions.

"As for what will happen to Lord Song and Song Shi'an, it depends on the handling of the case by the officials of the Dali Temple, and ultimately the Emperor will make the final decision." Shen Kang clenched his fists and raised them to one side, paying homage to the Emperor from afar.

"Please forgive me, Master Shen. My sister is only missing her father dearly," Song Ce said, bowing respectfully to Shen Kang.

"I understand." Shen Kang nodded, then bowed slightly to Song Ce before leaving the hall.

And then, close the door.

"What does this mean?" Madam Cui asked Song Ce. "Is there anything that is still uncertain?"

“Hmm…” Song Ce shook his head after thinking for a moment. “No matter what, we still have to go through the procedures. After all, some things have really caused trouble.”

"Are you referring to Shi An persuading the Sixth Prince to mobilize troops?" Jiang asked with some concern.

“My father once said that many things can be big or small. Big or small, it all depends on what His Majesty needs.”

After saying this to himself, Song Ce fell into thought and then said, "These past few days, although some people have come to question, entice, and even warn us, we haven't been imprisoned, which speaks volumes."

"Please explain more clearly," Song Qin urged.

“My father has been in officialdom for many years and is as wise and insightful as the sea. Even if he is imprisoned, he will not panic. If we really want to get to the bottom of things, we should arrest all of us, including some other people from the Song family, and interrogate them separately.”

Song Ce increasingly sensed how deep the waters were in this matter, so he lowered his voice and whispered, "I just said that His Majesty was waiting for the result and was taking a fair stance. But now I feel that His Majesty is even... biased towards us."

After saying this, he put his finger to his lips, signaling the others to be quiet.

He explained it so clearly that everyone understood.

Yes, the fact that the old man has been in prison for so long without being sentenced means they are waiting for the outcome.

But the others, even the Imperial Guards, kept their posts still, which means they didn't want the matter to progress at all.

Thinking about it this way, the so-called "unauthorized troop deployment" was an act of treason...

The emperor didn't care at all!
Therefore, Song Qin muttered softly, "Your Majesty is wise."

She said it in a veiled way, I wonder who she's sucking up to.

"Master is certainly wise and insightful."

Madam Cui glanced at Jiang Shi briefly, then said to Song Ce, "But even if we are arrested and taken to the Dali Temple, no one will speak out of turn. We understand the importance of uniting against external threats."

Faced with such flattery, Jiang didn't even glance at her, her lips twitched slightly, and she twisted her body in a strange, sarcastic way.

.........

"A great victory at the north wind! The Qi rebels suffered heavy casualties and fled north in panic!"

"A great victory at the north wind! The Qi rebels suffered heavy casualties and fled north in panic!"

Throughout the entire city of Sheng'an, cavalrymen were everywhere, loudly announcing the good news, which spread to every corner.

Whether in the outer city of the imperial palace, the examination hall, or the brothel, this was a carnival for the entire nation.

From royalty to beggars, everyone was thrilled by this exciting news.

After the crushing defeats at Tongmen Pass, Zhao Xiang, and Wuwei, this victory was desperately needed.

"This Shuofeng City, it actually managed to hold out against hundreds of thousands of people for almost five months, half a year has passed. This Sixth Prince is simply a god, and Song Shi'an is truly capable!"

"Why shouldn't a man carry a Yu hook and seize fifty states beyond the passes? Such a fierce line of poetry, and it's not just boasting. He really meant it! Lord Song didn't lie to us!"

"That's Ji Yuan! A ruthless man who has suppressed our Great Yu for over a decade. No nobles or military generals are his match. Only our Sixth Prince and Lord Song can defeat him!"

"Now that Song Shi'an has returned from the north wind, won't the Song family of Huai County rise to an even higher level? Will they become even more wealthy and powerful?"

"That wealth and honor should belong to someone else. A perfectly good rich young master should not be indulging in music and wine in brothels, but instead go to fight in the north. Shouldn't he be rewarded?"

"Young Master Song isn't entirely without experience of listening to music in brothels; he's listened to music at my house before..."

"I hereby declare that Lord Song may enjoy free music at my family's brothel for life!"

"Come to my house to listen, come to my house to listen!"

Everyone in the streets and alleys is talking about the north wind.

Chunhou and Zhang Ji, those two idiots in the restaurant, were completely dumbfounded when they heard this.

"Indeed, Song Shi'an managed to hold out."

It's hard to believe that the good-natured friend who was drinking and carousing with me last year, and even fell into the water, is now a national hero.

This...isn't right!

"He really risked his life, and he still managed to save it," Zhang Ji exclaimed. "Now, the Song family is going to be rich and powerful." "Then when Song Shi'an comes back, won't he become a high-ranking official overnight?" Chunhou asked.

“If nothing else goes wrong, he will definitely enter the imperial court. However, he won’t be promoted so quickly. Logically speaking, his family should be elevated first,” Zhang Ji said.

“The Cui family of Kyoto and the Song family of Huai County are both prominent families. What more do you want to promote them?” Chunhou said. “Could it be that we want to grant them marquises?”

But this is too difficult.

The most prestigious titles in the Great Yu Dynasty were hereditary marquises and hereditary dukes.

The founding nobles were dukes of two states and marquises of seven counties.

Passed down through generations.

Among them, Marquis Xun, Marquis Huai, and Marquis Liangzhong were all county marquises.

Xun County, Huai County, Liangzhong County.

The "Marquis of Ten Thousand Households" that Song Shi'an mentioned refers to these county marquises.

These nobles could choose one of their sons to join the army. After the sons made certain military achievements, the court would grant them the title of Marquis of a Township as a transitional title. After the noble's death, the title of Marquis of a County would be inherited, just like Zhao Xiang and Ran Jin.

Besides them, there was only one hereditary marquis left, the Marquis of Zigui (County) and Minister of Works.

However, Sun believed that his achievements were comparable to those of the Duke of Li and the Duke of Zhangping, and therefore he was always ashamed of being ranked as a county marquis.

As for others, the highest rank for those who made significant contributions was earldom, and after death, they would be posthumously granted the title of marquis, which could not be inherited, and be honored with a place in the Imperial Ancestral Temple, which was the pinnacle of a minister's career.

Very few marquises lived.

For example, in the current dynasty, there is not a single living marquis who is not a noble or a minister.

There's nothing we can do; the cake's all been divided up.

If Song Jing could live and be ennobled...

Upon realizing this, Chunhou was dumbfounded: "Isn't this the new noble family?"

.........

"How could we let him come back alive? How could we let him come back alive!"

At the residence of the Left Vice Minister of the Imperial Household Department, all the civil officials were extremely worried about the great victory of the north wind.

Among them was Chen Kefu, a military officer of the second rank.

Because of the excessive expansion of the power of aristocratic families, the succession of meritorious officials from generation to generation, and the need to consider the interests of the imperial clan, the official ranks in the Great Yu Dynasty were all inflated.

The Grand General, General of the Cavalry, Minister of Works, Minister of Agriculture, and Grand Tutor (vacant) are all of the highest rank, but the Three Dukes are honorary titles.

The governor, the nine ministers, and the commander-in-chief were all first-rank officials with real power.

In addition, there were a large number of nominal positions such as Left and Right Assistants of the Nine Ministers, who appeared to have high rank but little real power.

In comparison, Chen Kefu, a military officer of the second rank, was truly quite capable.

However, when he had previously tried to curry favor with nobles by offering gifts, Zhao Xiang insulted him, calling him a country bumpkin who dared not enter the main hall of his mansion. From then on, he became enemies and began to associate with civil officials.

Earlier in the imperial court, he had taken the opportunity to ruthlessly trample on Zhao Xiang.

Later, when civil officials such as Sun Situ suppressed Song Shi'an, he also joined in, following Song Shi'an's lead. He even submitted a very harsh memorial after Song Shi'an had purged the rebels and brought all the laborers into Shuofeng City, seemingly gaining some advantage, and replaced Song Shi'an.

It belongs to the category of protruding rafters.

Now, he's very panicked.

I'm terrified of being purged.

“That kid wrote the ‘Tuntian Strategy’ and even dared to rebel against his own father. What will happen when he comes back?” Thinking of this, some people felt despair. “Even if a child’s reckless behavior doesn’t amount to much, the initial waves of killing will be very heavy.”

These old foxes all came from their youth, and one principle is generally agreed upon—children are the most bloodthirsty.

“But it was the officials who impeached him. Does he intend to kill them all one by one?” someone said, quite indignantly. “This isn’t a unified and prosperous era. There’s still Ji Yuan to the north. Southern Yue and Northern Yan are also troublesome. Does he really disregard the shattering foundation of the nation and wantonly kill loyal and virtuous officials?”

"Moreover, we also have Minister Sun," one person said, then added quietly, "Prince Jin is also a benevolent and righteous king."

"General Chen," someone said to Chen Kefu, "doesn't the army need such a madman who would recklessly risk other people's lives for his own wealth?"

Everyone turned to look at him.

Chen Kefu frowned, looking somewhat conflicted.

He had previously joined in criticizing Song Shi'an, and even submitted that memorial in the name of a military officer.

If there really is retaliation, he might be targeted.

“The nobles have all lost the battle. If he wins, will the nobles accept it? He wants to establish military farms and rebel against our aristocratic families. Will our aristocratic families accept it?” A man stood up, walked to Chen Kefu who was sitting, put his hand on the back of his hand, and said in a low voice, “General, we have people behind us.”

"But now that he has won the battle, it's different."

Chen Kefu continued to struggle.

“Then I have a brilliant plan.”

The shrewd civil official, known for his resourcefulness, suggested, "We have never impeached the Sixth Prince. So, if we attribute all the credit for this victory to him, it won't stop us from criticizing Song Shi'an. I'm sure His Majesty will accept that."

(End of this chapter)