Frost for a Thousand Years

After returning to Sheng'an and entering the imperial city, Xin Yue's first action was to go directly to the Song residence.

The Song family has been on high alert these past few days, and any news is reported to the Song father and son immediately.

So as soon as she arrived, a servant went to inform Song Jing and Song Ce.

Because of her special status, Xin Yue was not allowed to stay outside the mansion. Instead, the servants took her directly to the main hall to wait for the arrival of the Song father and son.

Not long after, the two of them arrived.

"Dutang, Jingming." Upon seeing them, Xinyue stood up and greeted them with a bow.

"You've worked hard." Because of this delicate relationship, even such a high-ranking official as Song Jing seemed a little awkward, and could only address her with considerable reluctance, "Xin Yue."

Song Ce bowed awkwardly to her, performing the etiquette of an elder sister-in-law, but did not say a word.

"Please sit down." Song Jing extended his hand and then sat down at the head of the table.

Xin Yue and Song Ce sat on either side.

“Shi An has already gone to the palace alone,” Xin Yue said.

Upon hearing this, Song Ce was very surprised and said, "Why would you do that? And at night like this, it's too dangerous."

He was indeed somewhat worried, but his reaction was entirely within the normal range of emotional fluctuations.

In other words, it wasn't the shock of the sudden event, but rather a lack of understanding of the event itself.

"Du Tang and Jing Ming already know that Shi An and I went into the city together, right?" Xin Yue asked.

They arrived rather quickly, and they were dressed impeccably and very formally.

Clearly, they weren't woken from their sleep. They had been up long ago, waiting for news.

“Yes,” Song Jing said. “All the captains and officials under the command of the magistrate of Sheng’an are now under my control. The news of your entry into the city was reported by the night watchman immediately, whether it was the outer city or the imperial city.”

Song Jing was the former magistrate of Sheng'an, and those officials already recognized this old leader.

Now that Ye Changqing is cooperating with him again, these people are even more useful.

It can be said that he can now mobilize almost all the security forces in the city, except for the military.

In such a sensitive period, the police are far more useful than the military.

Because the conditions for dispatching police officers are much simpler than those for dispatching troops.

“Shi An said…” But after returning to that question, Xin Yue frankly said, “He has to go.”

These three words were spoken with considerable conviction.

It makes people not see arrogance.

Song Shi'an is indeed an arrogant person, but it's never just for the sake of showing off.

"Hmm." Song Jing leaned back in his chair and said quite calmly, "It's fine."

Song Jing knew what Song Shi'an was going to do.

Demonstration.

Indiscriminate intimidation without any substantial action has virtually no deterrent effect.

No one is intimidated by people who talk big.

The Empress Dowager had spread the word that Song Shi'an should return to see her and properly explain the death of the Prince of Wu, otherwise she would not allow them to return to Sheng'an.

Many people are watching what Song Shi'an will do.

He needs to figure out how to handle this woman's emotions.

If Song Shi'an can be easily appeased, it means he is skilled and capable of stabilizing the court and leading the way.

If it's extremely difficult, and he's barely managed to appease her through persistent pleading, then everyone will have to question Song Shi'an's competence as regent. If even a woman can restrain him, then in the future, the other ministers will know where his bottom line is.

But if we could just scare the old empress dowager and make her obey obediently, that would be even better.

Then the new official's three bold moves have completely achieved their purpose.

This wave of arrogant and murderous aura alone was enough to keep the officials in line for quite some time.

"I'm afraid the Empress Dowager isn't entirely rational," Song Ce said uneasily. "After all, the King of Wu is truly dead."

Xin Yue said, "Although the King of Wu is dead, he did indeed commit suicide, and eight hundred Imperial Guards witnessed it. There must have been someone who leaked the information to the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

The Imperial Guards were under control, but after all, Song Shi'an and Wei Wusheng had only been supporting them for a short time.

For the previous ten years or so, they were the emperor's personal guards.

Although one dares not defy the general trend, the most complex emotion in the world, 'human feelings,' cannot be easily extinguished by the word 'fear.'

"Did you force him to do that?" Song Jing asked Xin Yue.

“…” Xin Yue paused for a moment, then continued, “Shi An said it’s optional to keep them, but I think there’s no benefit in keeping them.”

“You’re absolutely right,” Song Jing agreed. “A legitimate former crown prince living would not be a good thing for the Song family.”

Killing him does have its downsides, namely leaving room for gossip, but at least it's only in name.

However, keeping it has its downsides, namely, it introduces real political uncertainty.

A seasoned politician's tactic is to make a firm decision to eliminate the threat.

Even if it's your own brother, you'll still get poisoned at the airport.

“The Empress Dowager understands her son, and I understand her son too,” Song Jing said. “The King of Wu is indeed a decisive and courageous man, but he does not have that kind of integrity.”

“If it were true, I wouldn’t be wary of you, brother,” Song Ce chimed in.

Compared to a wise ruler, the King of Wu seemed more like he was cosplaying a wise ruler.

All that boldness and daring in the early stages was simply a gamble on the winner becoming emperor.

But once they actually took the gamble, many of their pre-existing flaws gradually came to light.

From the very beginning, King Jin and King Zhongping pointed out King Wu's character flaws.

He's very generous, but what he's willing to give you isn't what he truly cares about. What he truly cares about, he'll hold onto tightly.

This personality flaw is somewhat similar to that of Xiang Yu.

He seemed magnanimous, willing to reward his subordinates and treat his soldiers like brothers. However, whenever he won a victory and it was time to reward his trusted confidants with cities and military power, he would take out the seals and tallies in his hands, reluctant to part with them, and tossing and turning in bed.

Later, when Chen Ping used a divisive tactic to sow discord between Fan Zeng and him, he also fell into suspicion.

Of course, the biggest difference is that Xiang Yu was a true hero and a true overlord.

The King of Wu only had the same shortcomings as Xiang Yu.

"In short, the Empress Dowager will definitely be difficult to deal with. In this matter, all we can do is trust her," Song Jing said.

"What about other things?" Song Ce asked. "In case the Empress Dowager happens to you, we need to take some protective measures for him."

"At this point, there's no need to protect him."

Song Jing's eyes darkened, and he decided, "If he wants to show off, then he'll do it for show."

.........

"Father, Song Shi'an is something else! He's led his troops into the city."

Sun Heng said to him very excitedly.

Upon hearing the news, Sun Yan, who was still asleep, quickly got up, dressed, and went to his study.

He rubbed his eyes, sat down in the armchair, and said, "This Empress Dowager is indeed rather tactless."

The news of the Empress Dowager's fury had already spread among the upper echelons of Sheng'an.

She even personally probed the opinions of some veteran officials.

What could these veteran officials say?

All I could do was listen to her rambling and offer a few perfunctory replies.

Of course, it's impossible to say whose responsibility it is.

But they were all deeply saddened by the death of the King of Wu.

The Empress Dowager probably thought that if everyone sympathized with her, she would have a reason to hold them accountable.

It's like when you want to pick a fight, you ask some rational and objective people for their opinions beforehand. Because you don't get any clear opposition, it gives her some courage.

"First, he led his troops into the outer city, and no one dared to stop him. Then he led his troops into the imperial city, and he was still unstoppable," Sun Heng said. "Finally, I heard that only Song Shi'an entered the palace, but he still had a sword at his waist..."

"This... this is swords and shoes in the palace!" Sun Yan's eyes widened, utterly shocked.

Even the powerful ministers who treated the old emperor as a puppet did not dare to wear swords and shoes in the palace.

Even the Duke of Li, who was the most powerful person under the emperor, did not have this privilege.

This can be considered standard equipment for traitors.

“Song Shi’an is really foolish,” Sun Heng said. “A woman, especially one who has just lost her son. If he keeps acting so strong and gets killed, all that he’s earned will be for nothing. Is it worth it?”

Can your ambition compare to his?

Then Sun Yan shut him down with a single sentence.

Sun Heng was dumbfounded.

Dad, didn't you hate this kid the most?
Why are you praising him so much while scolding your own son?
“If the Empress Dowager makes a fuss, Song Shi’an will have to compromise. Then, when he arrives in Sheng’an City, how will he be able to enforce his orders and gain the trust of these veteran officials?” Sun Yan said. “This is a test, a test of the Empress Dowager’s bottom line. If her bottom line is established, then we can keep pushing it lower in the future. Or, at most, we can keep it above the bottom line.”

“Father is a hero.” Sun Heng understood and nodded, then said with great relief, “Fortunately, Father was in the court back then, and joined forces with Ouyang Ke to suppress those nobles. Song Shi’an won, so we can say we won too.”

“Although they are all wins, there are differences,” Sun Situ said. “Big wins, medium wins, small wins—how can they be the same?”

"It seems we still need to think of a way to arrange a marriage with Song Shi," Sun Heng said. "If my younger sister could marry Song Shi..."

Sun Yan suddenly hesitated and asked, "Wait, how did you know he wore a sword and shoes in the palace?"

“Father, there are quite a few officials from the Dali Temple who are on night duty. They came to report to me specifically.” Sun Heng said, “The matter of entering the outer city and then the imperial city has caused quite a stir. I’m afraid many important figures already know about it. Especially at this critical juncture, no one can afford to be indifferent to this matter.”

"Do I need you to teach me?" Sun Yan rolled her eyes at him and asked, "I mean, how did you know that Song Shi'an entered the palace with a sword on such a dark and windy night?"

This is at least the palace gate.

Even if such news could spread, it wouldn't be this fast, would it?
"I don't know, but that's what I heard from someone, and they seemed to be saying it with great certainty," Sun Heng said.

"You heard it from someone?"

Sun Yan increasingly felt that this matter was somewhat deliberate.

Just then, the steward of the Situ residence rushed over and reported, "Master, young master, someone from the Song family has come. They say they want to invite Lord Situ to plead with the Empress Dowager on her behalf regarding the matter of summoning Song Shi'an to the palace at night!"

"Huh?" Sun Heng was even more puzzled. "What's going on between this father and son?"

However, Minister Sun figured it out. After scoffing, he sighed, "This Song Jing wants all the officials to come and see the Empress Dowager's predicament."

"...Lord Song, the Empress Dowager is also grieving because of His Highness's matter, and is currently in a fit of anger, so..."

The eunuch who led Song Shi'an into the palace said reassuringly to Song Shi'an.

"Angry?" Song Shi'an immediately interrupted, asking very seriously, "Empress Dowager, are you angry because of me?"

The eunuch trembled at these words and hurriedly explained, "My lord, that's not what I meant. What I meant was that the Empress Dowager was angry because Prince Wu was upset about the traitor Wu Qing and was grieving the loss of his son, which caused her to be so agitated. Please forgive her, my lord."

“How can you ask for forgiveness? The Empress Dowager is the mother of the world, and we are all her subjects and sons,” Song Shi’an said. “If the Empress Dowager is truly angry because of me, I will definitely apologize and accept all punishment. It is against the principles of Heaven for a subject to anger the Empress Dowager.”

What a fine example of carrying thorns to apologize!

All I saw was the sword you were carrying.

"Lord Song's loyalty and devotion are truly touching," the eunuch said with a forced smile. "How could the Empress Dowager possibly blame you? The Empress Dowager simply wishes to speak with you about what she had to say."

"Yes, that's what I came here to say."

Song Shi'an strode forward with his head held high.

Finally, we arrived at the Taiyuan Hall.

"My lord, please." The eunuch stood outside the palace gate and extended his hand.

Song Shi'an stepped over the threshold and went inside.

The Empress Dowager, who was sitting behind the curtain, flashed anger in her eyes the moment she saw him.

However, the curtains concealed her true expression.

"Song Shi'an pays respects to the Empress Dowager."

Song Shi'an stood in the center of the hall without lowering his head an inch and asked the question.

"Paying homage? What is there to pay homage to?" the Empress Dowager said with some emotion.

Upon seeing the Empress Dowager, he didn't even kneel, let alone clench his fist in greeting.

However, after she finished speaking, Song Shi'an slowly walked forward.

We kept going up the steps.

They've all walked the dragon throne.

The Empress Dowager's heart was pounding.

It wasn't until Song Shi'an abruptly lifted the curtain that the Empress Dowager, sitting on the couch, tensed up, her cheeks burning with fright.

"Shi'an greets the Empress Dowager."

Song Shi'an walked up to her, knelt down on one knee, clenched his fists, and said.

Arrogant, utterly arrogant!
This curtain marks the dividing line of etiquette between subjects.

Let alone entering the palace at night, even when meeting the Empress Dowager during the day, one must maintain an absolute distance.

Now, the emperor's woman is sitting on the couch, and you're almost in front of her...

Are you trying to cuckold the emperor?!

Song Shi'an had never seen the Empress Dowager so closely before.

The Empress Dowager was about ten years younger than the Emperor, around fifty-three or fifty-four years old, but because she lived such a comfortable life, she looked like she was in her late forties.

"Get up," the Empress Dowager said.

"Thank you, Your Highness." Song Shi'an stood up and stood in front of the Empress Dowager.

"How exactly did my son die?" the Empress Dowager demanded.

“Your Highness,” Song Shi’an replied, “whether you believe it or not, he really did commit suicide. I specifically told my subordinates that they must protect the Prince of Wu, but we couldn’t stop him.”

"..."

The Empress Dowager bit her lip, somewhat angry.

Although she received the news that several of the Imperial Guards present at the time said that it was indeed the King of Wu who snatched the woman's sword and then committed suicide in front of the entire army.

But they also said that before the King of Wu committed suicide, the woman clearly talked to him about something.

“My son is not such a stubborn person.” The Empress Dowager did not believe his nonsense. “If you hadn’t forced him, he would never have committed suicide.”

“Your Highness, I promise you,” Song Shi’an said, “the death of the King of Wu was not coerced. I did have Xin Yue say something to him, but it was nothing more than for him to say in front of the battle that everything was coerced to him by the villain Wu Qing.”

“Nonsense, how could such a thing possibly drive my son to his death?” the Empress Dowager retorted.

"Of course, we also hope that he can admit his mistake, acknowledge his status as the new emperor in front of everyone, and kneel before His Majesty," Song Shi'an added.

Such humiliation is indeed infuriating.

The King of Wu would certainly not do that.

"So, if he doesn't do this, you'll force him to his death, right?" The Empress Dowager asked, tears welling in her eyes.

"Everyone can admit their mistakes, so why can't the King of Wu?" Song Shi'an asked. "If the former crown prince, the King of Wu, doesn't admit his mistakes, how can the King of Jin secure his position as emperor? Must fratricide and infighting occur again in my Great Yu?"

“This is my Great Yu, this is my family’s land, you are not the emperor.” The Empress Dowager pointed at Song Shi’an and said, “You are a subject, even if the emperor allows you to assist the country, you should still act like a subject!”

"Empress Dowager," Song Shi'an smiled, reminding her, "this is not your empire, but the Wei family's empire."

"How dare you!" The Empress Dowager blushed at the words and angrily pulled the jade hairpin off her head and smashed it on the ground.

Immediately, a crisp cracking sound rang out.

Suddenly, the female servants who had been lying in ambush on both sides rushed out, each with a sword, and placed them against Song Shi'an's neck and the back of his neck respectively, very quickly.

At the same time, he drew the sword from his waist and threw it aside.

"If you want to imprison my son, then I will imprison your father's son in return," the Empress Dowager said with a smug smile. "If your father doesn't come to exchange, then you'll stay here and never be able to leave!"

That was her plan.

A life for a life.

No matter how arrogant Song Shi'an is, now that the sword is at her neck, she has to think twice about the anger of a mother.

"Do you think that if I stay here forever and can't leave, I can get your son back?" Song Shi'an retorted.

"Then they'll all die!" the Empress Dowager roared. "My son dies, his son dies too! At worst, they'll all die!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Song Shi'an lifted his foot and walked forward.

The blade embedded itself in his neck, startling the waitress so much that her eyes widened in shock.

The Empress Dowager nearly suffocated.

But Song Shi'an didn't hesitate at all. Just as he was about to be injured, the Empress Dowager raised her hand: "Let him speak first!"

The two swords immediately separated.

Song Shi'an had already taken a step forward.

Even threatening him with a sword couldn't stop him.

This is what it means to push the bottom line down.

The reason?
Very simple.

That's a mother who would never think that exchanging her son for someone else's is a fair deal.

Even if Song Shi'an's mother were here, she would not agree to her son being swapped with someone else, even if that person were an emperor.

“Your Highness, I can feel your sadness,” Song Shi’an said. “You must not do anything that others will regret because you are sad.”

"Do you think I wouldn't dare? Huh!" The Empress Dowager remained stubbornly defiant.

"The Empress Dowager is the mother of the nation, of course she dares. She could kill Shi'an right here," Song Shi'an said. "However, Prince Jin was put to power by me. As long as I am here, Prince Jin will be here. It's not that you kill me to save his life. It's that if I fall, Prince Jin will be gone. Therefore, you shouldn't hate me, and you should even treat me like your own son and take good care of me."

"You shameless scoundrel!"

The Empress Dowager never expected that he would do something as simple as calling someone "Mom" just to save his own life.

Damn it, are there any humans left?
“The death of the King of Wu was not so simple. Why did the King of Zhongping die? It’s the same reason,” Song Shi’an said. “Furthermore, the entire family of the Duke of Li was executed, so why was the Zhao Yi family, who also rebelled, spared? It’s all because of the emotions of the living.”

"Then Zhao Yi's family can live, why can't my son!" the Empress Dowager asked, her voice trembling with tears. "Isn't there supposed to be human compassion? What about your compassion for him? Can't you treat him like a child? If he does something wrong, isn't forgiveness enough?"

King Wu was older than Song Shi'an in age, but compared to him in terms of mentality, he was like a child.

"If I had no feelings, more than just a few people would have died!" Song Shi'an suddenly roared.

The Empress Dowager shuddered, nearly bursting into tears.

“Hua Zheng, your kinsman, he’s a member of the Prince of Jin’s faction, and he even rebelled with him. Now that the Prince of Jin is emperor, why would I keep this confidant? Why?” Song Shi’an pointed at her angrily, “Because the Prince of Jin is a close friend of mine, and he puts my mind at ease. Therefore, I won’t kill his people. If it were the Duke of Li, he would definitely slaughter your entire Hua family!”

He is right about that.

The fact that Li Guogong established Wu Wang as emperor and then killed Zhao Yi is enough to illustrate this point.

"Your Highness," Song Shi'an said, looking at her tearful eyes, "Even in this state, you still have a son by your side, in the palace, to spend your twilight years with you. Hua Zheng has given away his entire fortune to show his loyalty to me. In the future, even if all the nobles fall, your family will be safe and sound. Is that enough?"

Stop acting like this.

The Empress Dowager closed her eyes and choked back a sob.

She didn't want the Prince of Jin to die.

She just wanted the Prince of Jin to come to her side and let her hold him.

The Emperor Emeritus's condition is unknown; she only has this one son left.

But what about my Zisheng?
"Song Shi'an," the Empress Dowager said, looking at him with great pain, "swear that you didn't force my son to his death!"

“Your Highness, I swear,” Song Shi’an raised his hand and said, “His Highness the Prince of Wu’s death has nothing to do with me.”

"Fuck you, isn't that obvious? Do you think I'd admit to something like this?"

A tear rolled down her cheek, and the Empress Dowager lowered her head.

"Then, do as you please."

Song Shi'an gave her a way out, even though she didn't save face at all.

However, it was just a superficial consolation.

But what can we do?
She can't do anything.

Song Shi'an extended his hand expressionlessly.

The maidservant presented the sword to him with both hands.

Song Shi'an sheathed his sword, turned around, and walked out of the Taiyuan Hall.

now,

Several high-ranking officials in Kyoto were also waiting outside the palace gates. (End of Chapter)