Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 195 Negotiating with the Emperor

"Of course, His Majesty will cover all expenses for the mission. But what I'm saying is that you should keep some money for yourself, in case it's crucial to save your life."

This is why, even though the golden tiger had already been given to Zhu Qing, he took it to Beiliang, a place that was almost his burial ground.

In ancient times, even if you were rich, without anyone to protect you, orphans and widows had no sense of security.

Zhu Qing is their source of confidence.

As long as they were alive, even if they were officials in Beiliang and not by their side, no one would dare to bully them.

Therefore, such a precious item was given to someone who might never return. Even if the item was given away at a critical moment, it might not save one's life. But as we who have read history know, the 'trust' of some ancient people was truly pure, and this tiger that buys life might actually be able to buy life.

"No, no, I still have a great need for the money at home," Song Shi'an said. "This time, the money to save my life will also have to come from His Majesty."

"Don't let a small matter cause you to lose a big one," Song Jing warned. "Don't underestimate this mission."

“Father, I’m not being presumptuous,” Song Shi’an said with a slight smile, “but even a tenth of this amount is probably beyond the means of my household.”

Song Jing frowned, somewhat suspiciously asking, "You want so much money to do this..."

Before he could finish speaking, there was a knock on the door: "My lord, young master, it's me."

Upon recognizing Song Gan, Song Jing immediately said, "Come in."

"Yes." Song Gan reported after opening the door, "The people from the palace have arrived, but they are not here to arrange a banquet. They want to summon the young master to the palace."

“Father, it seems His Majesty is looking for me,” Song Shi’an said to Song Jing.

"Go ahead."

Song Jing knew that this guy would make her worry no matter what he did, so she simply stopped asking him questions.

Since the mission can be accomplished in his own way, then let's do it.

"Yes, son has gone."

After bowing to Song Jing, Song Shi'an left the room.

Along the way, I saw that everyone in the mansion was immersed in a lively atmosphere and was extremely happy.

That's right! People from the palace will come to help with cooking and decorating, so they won't have to do anything. They might even get a lot of reward money.

He went directly to the gate of the mansion.

A smiling eunuch had been waiting for a long time: "Young Master Song, please."

"Father-in-law, you've been waiting for a long time."

Song Shi'an smiled faintly, then boarded the carriage.

The moment the carriage curtain fell, his face became as deep and somber as the sea.

Is this finally the time to meet the emperor?

Although he had no interest in the emperor himself, only the emperor could satisfy his current demands.

He's about to touch that core thing.

This meeting will not actually grant us any power.

But they will know how much power they will ultimately gain.

It was negotiation, probing, and competition.

Throughout the journey, he remained deep in thought with a solemn expression.

Finally, we arrived at the palace.

After alighting from the carriage, he was led by the eunuch to the palace gate. There, a high-ranking and powerful old eunuch was already waiting for him with a smile.

"This humble official greets Eunuch Chen." Song Shi'an bowed.

"Young Master," Chen Bao bowed slightly after Song Shi'an stood up. "Was the last time we met when the top scholar was being appointed and dismissed?"

"Yes, Eunuch Chen."

"Do you still hold a grudge against me?"

“Father-in-law is joking. Shi’an knows perfectly well that you were protecting me and teaching me at that time,” Song Shi’an said.

“But you don’t need anyone to protect you,” Eunuch Chen joked. “You were born to do great things.”

“Shi’an is willing to die for Your Majesty, without hesitation,” Song Shi’an said earnestly.

“Our family also believes that the young master is loyal.”

Eunuch Chen extended his hand, gesturing for Song Shi'an to go first.

But he gently took the arm of the old man, the venerable one, signifying that they would walk together.

Chen Bao smiled rather 'gently', and the two of them slowly walked into the palace.

Shingoku-no-kyo (Divine Palace).

A magnificent hall, the emperor's usual office.

After stepping down the steps, Song Shi'an stopped.

Chen Bao ascended the steps, pushed open a corner of the door, quietly entered, and after announcing his arrival, slowly walked out and announced, "Vice Envoy Song, please enter—"

Song Shi'an bowed slightly to him, then lifted the hem of his robe and slowly walked up the steps.

Step inside through the open door.

The glazed gold bricks reflected the fragmented shadows of twenty linked palace lanterns. As Song Shi'an's official boots stepped over the third brick, the palace door behind him slowly closed.

Before him was a large screen that stretched across the hall.

Behind the screen, you can see a figure sitting on the dragon throne.

Song Shi'an, who was initially nervous and somewhat apprehensive, is now completely relaxed.

Is this old bastard a lunatic?
You were seen by so many people at the morning court session, and you're still here pretending to be all coquettish and masked?

What's wrong? Are you afraid to see me?
"His Majesty has caught a cold, so he asked you questions from behind the screen," Chen Bao said.

No problem, just don't infect me with your genitals.

No, the last time it was behind a screen too, and it's been stuck there ever since.
"Oh... Your subject Song Shi'an greets Your Majesty."

Song Shi'an pretended to be so nervous that he suddenly realized something, and slowly bowed to the screen.

Standing to the side, bowing slightly, Chen Bao, who could see the emperor's instructions, relayed the message: "Lord Song, please rise."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Song Shi'an stood up.

Then, Chen Bao said, "Please give Lord Song a seat."

Soon, a eunuch brought a small round stool and placed it behind Song Shi'an.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

After thanking him again, Song Shi'an sat down. The two men faced off at the central gate.

"Song Shi'an," Chen Bao addressed him directly, "Do you think we can win this battle?"

"Your Majesty," Song Shi'an replied without hesitation, "I believe we should absolutely not fight against Northern Yan in this battle."

"Even if we win, it's not okay?" Chen Bao asked.

"In a war of conquest, casualties will inevitably exceed those of the enemy. Even if we win, it will be a hard-won victory. Unless we can achieve our goal in one decisive battle and completely occupy Liaodong, Ji Yuan will not stand idly by. He will definitely mobilize all his forces to fight a decisive battle with our army in Liaodong," Song Shi'an said. "It is impossible to take over the entire Liaodong within a year. By then, winter will be upon us. Our army will be caught in a dilemma and will have no choice but to strategically abandon our position."

"So, according to you, no matter how much land our Great Yu conquers, we still can't occupy it?" Chen Bao asked.

"With grain, we can conquer. As long as we have enough grain to garrison troops in Northern Yan for a year, we can gradually pacify and conquer them."

Song Shi'an raised a very practical issue.

When attacking other countries, once the enemy's defenses are breached, a scorched-earth policy is inevitable. And before capturing a city, the warehouses are burned, and the troops are forced to break out and retreat.

To hold on, we need enough food to last at least until the next crop growth cycle.

It is usually available.

However, in Dayu, there was a famine and a peasant uprising the year before last, and last year Beiliang fell and tens of thousands of soldiers died in battle. These are all major events.

If we could launch a war now and occupy land, then we would truly be disregarding all objective laws.

Cao Cao controlled the entire north, and after his defeat at the Battle of Red Cliffs, he rested for more than three years.

"Then why not annex Northern Yan?" Chen Bao asked again.

He was referring to the extreme case.

That is, after a great victory, to occupy the territory with the full strength of the nation.

“Your Majesty,” Song Shi’an raised his head, his eyes resolute, and said, “It is meaningless to attack Northern Yan at any time or in any place.”

mad.

However, the emperor, upon hearing this, was quite interested and glanced at Chen Bao.

Chen Bao asked, "Why?"

“Human weakness cannot be changed. Kang Xun has no ambition and will never be a great ruler in this lifetime,” Song Shi’an said confidently. “As for Sun Tuo of Nan Yue, our Great Yu can support a new king to counterbalance him. As for Kang Xun of Liaodong, we can use both kindness and force, pursue trade, and demoralize his people. If we want to devour the world and unify the universe, our Great Yu only needs to defeat Ji Yuan three times.”

"Which three times?" Chen Bao asked.

"The first time, we recaptured Beiliang and Tongmen Pass. The second time, we marched north to fight them and occupied a large area of ​​their territory. The third time, we led a million-strong army to capture the puppet capital, Leyang."

Song Shi'an has always thought this way.

Ignore everyone else; focus on resolving the main contradictions and the main adversaries.

The emperor smiled.

"So, in other words, we should never go to war, no matter what?" Chen Bao said.

"After breaking the Yan-Qi alliance and making Yan hostile to Ji Yuan, we will directly start the military-agricultural colonies, and within three years, we will reach a scale of more than one million people," Song Shi'an said.

"Do you have a good plan to break the Yan-Qi alliance and make Yan antagonize Ji Yuan?" Chen Bao asked.

"I need two things, and I will surely succeed," Song Shi'an said. "If I fail, I am willing to sign a military pledge."

The emperor looked at Chen Bao and shook his head slightly.

“Lord Song’s sincere heart is enough. Whether this trip succeeds or fails, it’s not your fault,” Chen Bao said. “But there are two things you can mention.”

“Your Majesty, these two items are far too valuable. If I were to use them, I would certainly succeed,” Song Shi’an said.

"Which two?" Chen Bao asked.

“Firstly, there is Kang Yi, the hostage prince of Northern Yan, and his wife and son,” Song Shi’an said.

“Alright, you can use that as leverage to negotiate with Conson,” Chen Bao said.

"Your Majesty, I wish to have Kang Yi, his wife, and son accompany me."

Upon hearing this, Chen Bao was startled. However, the emperor nodded quite calmly.

"You're not going to just give Kang Yi to Kang Xun, are you?" Chen Bao asked to confirm.

“Your Majesty, Kangxun will never receive a hostage,” Song Shi’an said.

"Okay." After confirming, Chen Bao agreed and asked, "What about the second one?"

"I want ten thousand gold pieces."

"?!" Chen Bao was completely stunned.

The national treasury's gold reserves probably total less than 30,000 taels.

Does opening the door mean taking away a third of it?

The emperor was also slightly shaken.

Why would you want so much?
“Even if you bribe all the important officials, three thousand taels of gold would be the maximum. What do you need so much for?” Chen Bao asked.

"I intend to use this money to completely antagonize the states of Yan and Qi," Song Shi'an replied.

Completely antagonistic, never to be allied again.

If it were truly possible, let alone 10,000 taels of gold, even 30,000 taels would be given by the emperor.

After all, the national treasury had silver and copper coins in addition to gold, but gold was too hard as a form of hard currency.

If it could cause a rift between the two countries, it would be worthwhile.

With his brows slightly furrowed, the emperor gazed at Chen Bao and nodded.

"Since you want so much money, you have to tell me what you want to do with it."

"kill."

The atmosphere froze instantly.

With a sudden, chilling change in expression, Chen Bao pressed, "Who?"

After Song Shi'an answered, the air fell into a long, frozen silence.

Finally, a deep, weathered voice spoke: "Ten thousand is not enough, I will give you twenty thousand."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

This timbre perfectly matches Song Shi'an's imagination of the emperor.

"If you can't kill anyone, what will you do?"

"Your subject shall die."

"Alright." The emperor had been waiting for Song Shi'an to say this. His tone was cold and serious. "If you kill someone, all the remaining gold is yours."

(End of this chapter)