Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 229 Asking Ghosts and Gods, Not the People (Part 1)
Shi Shouxin's premonition was correct. The day after Xiang Xiongli came to Mengjin Ferry to deliver a message and then left in a hurry, the newly appointed Sili Commandant Du Yu led a thousand imperial guards to deploy defenses at Mengjin Ferry and Fuping Ferry on the opposite bank of the Yellow River.

There was a battalion on each side of the Yellow River. Although they did not interfere with the daily operation of the ferry crossing, they kept the area around the crossing under tight control. All travelers and merchants had to be searched before they could pass.

Shi Shouxin pretended not to see these things; he simply kept surveying and mapping in silence, preparing for the future construction of the bridge.

However, he kept pondering that strange thing in his mind:

The Sima family's sacrifice to the River God is somewhat of a dark comedy, and the image of Sima Yi swearing an oath by pointing to the Luo River is still fresh in our minds.

Now Sima Zhao is going to offer sacrifices to the River God, who controls the Yellow River, on the banks of the Yellow River. I wonder if the River Gods of these two rivers are the same deity. If they are, then it's a bit awkward.

Seeing that Shi Shouxin was somewhat distracted, Du Yu, who was sitting opposite him, coughed lightly. At that moment, the two of them were drinking on a large rock on the bank of the Yellow River.

"His Majesty will arrive at Mengjindu tomorrow. No matter what happens then, you must not act rashly."

If you're not careful, you might become a scapegoat.

Du Yu said with a troubled expression.

He was Sima Zhao's brother-in-law, so he was naturally valued and trusted by Sima Zhao and knew some inside information that others did not.

"impulse?"

Shi Shouxin was taken aback, completely not understanding what Du Yu meant by saying that.

Sima Zhao was offering sacrifices to the River God; why did this bystander act so impulsively?

"Have you ever read 'The River God' from the Nine Songs in the Chu Ci?"

Du Yu asked slowly, his tone somewhat strange, his expression somewhat helpless.

Shi Shouxin nodded slightly. As a "cultured person" who has been in this world for several years, the "Chu Ci" is a must-read.

Otherwise, when chatting with powerful and influential families, those idiots would tell you a story, and if you haven't read the relevant classics, you wouldn't understand what they were saying.

That would be very awkward.

"Of course I have read it. It is about a love affair between a human and a god, which can also be understood as the love affair between the female goddess Luo and the male god Hebo."

Shi Shouxin explained that, regardless of what Qu Yuan meant, this poem at least conveyed that meaning on the surface.

Du Yu sighed and said, "The ancients dared not say some things directly, but could only convey them to later generations in a roundabout way. I dare say that Ximen Bao dealt with the witch when he governed Ye. Qu Yuan's unspoken words should be very clear, right?"

Shi Shouxin's expression changed slightly. If he couldn't even see this, he might as well not bother working and just find a poor, remote place to farm and at least survive.

"Yuan Kai, are you saying that His Majesty intends to offer a live sacrifice to the River God?"

Shi Shouxin inquired.

Du Yu nodded; this was clearly what he meant.

Shi Shouxin remained silent.

With a new dynasty and a new emperor, the River God naturally wouldn't recognize him, so Sima Zhao would inevitably have to pay his respects and offer generous gifts.

What kind of gift is considered a "generous gift"?

Sima Zhao offered cattle and sheep as sacrifices, but did the River God even care about that? He accepts them every year, doesn't he? There's not a shred of so-called "sincerity" in that!
What makes a "generous gift"? A generous gift is one that brings you joy and surprise upon receiving it!

Just like couples in love, giving each other milk tea is just an everyday thing, and giving each other perfume is just a holiday gift. These are not big gifts, and they are not surprising at all!
But if you give her a luxury house or a sports car, wouldn't the chaste and virtuous woman become charming and affectionate after receiving the gift, and give you whatever you want?

Only surprises can be considered "thick". In contrast, people often talk about being heartless and ill-fated. Isn't the "thin" part precisely what is disappointing?
To please the River God, a living sacrifice is what we call a "surprise"!
"The new era of the founding of the nation was actually achieved through the sacrifice of young girls."

"Your Majesty's move was rather clumsy."

Shi Shouxin sighed deeply.

However, Du Yu shook his head.

He said seriously:
Emperor Wen once said, "I do not ask about the common people, but about the spirits." Although the human sacrifice was cruel, it was not offered to the River God for his enjoyment, but to the civil and military officials and to be seen by the people of the world.

There is an ancient saying that massacring a city is a way to demonstrate force. Massacring a city is a way to warn the people of all the surrounding cities and make them submit.

His Majesty's live sacrifice was to inform the people on both sides of the Yellow River that he was very devout to the River God and prayed for the River God to bless them with favorable weather and abundant harvests.

The people will only be grateful. Except for those chosen as sacrifices…

Upon hearing this, Shi Shouxin was speechless.

Putting himself in their shoes, if he were a resident of the area along the Yellow River, and learned that the emperor had already offered sacrifices to the River God this year, and even sacrificed living people to please the River God, he would surely be grateful to the court and the emperor.

After all, it wasn't their relatives who were sacrificed!

If the Yellow River continues to overflow, then it's the River God's own fault for being foolish. It only proves that he's a lewd god, and has nothing to do with the emperor.

Sima Zhao's little scheme was quite shrewd.

Will His Majesty's children be sacrificed this time?

Suddenly, Shi Shouxin asked in a low voice.

Du Yu was taken aback, completely unexpected that he would ask such a question.

"Well... of course not."

Du Yu shook his head and said.

"Sacrificing other people's children is cruelty."

Only sacrificing one's own child is considered benevolent.

If the River God is a tiger, then Your Majesty is acting as an accomplice to a tiger.

"With Your Majesty so cruel, I don't think the Great Jin Dynasty will last long."

Shi Shouxin stood up, gazed at the shimmering surface of the Yellow River in the distance, and sighed softly.

"Shi Gandang!"

Du Yu stood up, grabbed his arm, and warned him anxiously, "You can say whatever you want in front of me, but watch your mouth tomorrow! Don't say anything unnecessary!"

How many?

Shi Shouxin turned to Du Yu and asked.

His slightly frivolous gaze was somewhat like that of someone looking at monkeys in a zoo.

"How many?"

The other party changed the topic so quickly that Du Yu hadn't caught up yet.

"I asked Your Majesty how many virgins you wish to sacrifice."

In those days, young boys were not sacrificed, because they were precious and scarce laborers and soldiers, and Shi Shouxin didn't even need to think about it.

"The emperor resides in the center, representing the number nine and five. Nine horizontally and nine vertically, there is a total of eighty-one."

They then selected eighty-one young girls to be offered as a sacrifice to the River God at noon the next day.

They boarded a large boat with the same number of turtles and fish as the girl, and together they sank into the Yellow River.

An altar was set up on the shore, and the worship began at noon. I arrived here early to prepare for this.

Du Yu said in a deep voice.

Sacrifices must be prepared in advance. We can't say we'll perform the sacrifice at noon tomorrow, but then rush into the ceremony at noon tomorrow. All preparations must be completed before dawn tomorrow.

"They actually want to sacrifice so many people?"

Shi Shouxin was shocked. He originally thought that, like when Ximen Bao first arrived in Ye City, he would just need to offer a few girls as a token gesture. He never expected that he would have to offer eighty-one people in one go!
"After Zhuge Liang's campaign against the Southern Regions, on his return journey, he led his troops across the Lu River, but the wind and waves were too strong to cross the river."

Meng Huo said that human heads must be sacrificed to the water god in order to calm the storm.

Zhuge Liang said that killing prisoners was inauspicious, so he made steamed buns by wrapping beef and mutton in dough and threw them into the Lu River to worship the water god.

Why does Your Majesty want to kill so many young girls?

Shi Shouxin countered, "It's not killing, it's a human sacrifice."

Du Yu sighed and corrected Shi Shouxin's statement.

From a ritual perspective, killing someone and throwing them into the river is completely different from throwing a living person onto a boat and sinking them into the river, even though the final result is the same.

Seeing that Shi Shouxin had fallen into his old habit of being overly sentimental, Du Yu earnestly advised him, "I dare to say that this will not happen again. This is the first and the last time."

If you stand up to stop this, you'll be in big trouble. You're slapping the Emperor in the face; he won't forgive you!

Du Yu certainly knew how cruel it was to do such a thing.
However, the most important matters of state are sacrifice and war. Sacrifices are just like war; as the saying goes, "a merciful man cannot command an army." Those who deserve to die must be sent to their deaths without hesitation!
"If a country's founding decision is to consult ghosts and gods instead of the people, then that country is better off not existing!"

Where are those virgins?

Shi Shouxin looked at Du Yu and asked, his expression solemn.

“In my… camp, all the girls are there.”

Du Yu was overwhelmed by his imposing presence and looked away, not daring to meet Shi Shouxin's gaze.

He had barely opened his mouth when his momentum weakened by eight-tenths.

“Yuan Kai, you can keep one of them to participate in tomorrow’s sacrifice, and release the other eighty.”

Shi Shouxin advised.

Du Yu looked troubled. If he let these eighty people go after listening to Shi Shouxin's few words, his position as the Commandant of the Capital Region would be over.

Seeing that Du Yu remained silent, Shi Shouxin continued, "Tonight my men raided your camp, causing all the girls to escape, leaving only one. Tomorrow, you can simply tie me up and send me before His Majesty; it won't cause you any trouble."

The reason for leaving one person behind was to maintain the overall framework of Sima Zhao's "human sacrifice," which was crucial to the success or failure of the ritual and was by no means a joke.

Even the most fake wine can't be just water.

Fewer people are acceptable in terms of appearances, but if there are no human sacrifices, the nature of the situation changes. At that point, Emperor Sima Zhao's reputation will be completely trampled on, leading to a lose-lose situation.

Shi Shouxin was neither a saint nor a saint; he did not have the habit of sacrificing himself to save others.

Du Yu remained silent, a look of struggle on his face.

Shi Shouxin continued to persuade him:

“Yuan Kai, if you believe in ghosts and gods, aren’t you afraid that these eighty girls will turn into vengeful ghosts and come after you in your midnight dreams?”

If you don't believe in ghosts and gods, isn't this treating human life like dirt? People can die, but they should die with value, not in vain.

I don't see any value in throwing these eighty girls into the Yellow River to feed the fish.

The emperor is tyrannical, and instead of advising him to take the right path, you aid and abet his evil. How will future historians, with their scathing pens, judge you?

After hearing these words, Du Yu finally gave in.

He sighed and said, "Take these eighty girls with you. Tonight I'll set a fire and say there was a fire in my camp and your troops took advantage of the chaos. That's all I can do. As for the rest, good luck to you."

He eventually gave in.

Sima Zhao handled this matter very unfairly, and Du Yu was worried that people would criticize him in the future.

"Look, isn't this fine? Why fight and kill each other?"

Those eighty girls, in their next life, will repay your kindness in saving their lives today by carrying rings in their beaks and tying grass in their hair. Such kindness would be immeasurable.

Shi Shouxin chuckled and slapped Du Yu on the shoulder.

"Alright, alright, I'll make the arrangements. Have your men come to my camp to put out the fire at midnight tonight."

"A play has to be performed eventually."

Du Yu smiled wryly, but also breathed a sigh of relief.

While doing this would certainly displease his brother-in-law Sima Zhao, in the long run, it might not be a bad thing for him or his family's reputation.

Ultimately, one should take a longer-term view.

Although Shi Shouxin talked a lot of nonsense, he did say one thing right: Since Sima Zhao likes sacrifices so much, why doesn't he send his children to perform sacrifices?
Sending other people's children to the ancestral rites while tightly protecting one's own child—what is this if not abuse?
A short while later, Du Yu bid farewell to Shi Shouxin and went to make arrangements for the matter.

Shi Shouxin called Zhao Lun and the others together for a meeting, hoping to unite their hearts and minds.

When people are united, they can move mountains; those who share the same goals will prevail!

"Just now, I arranged for eighty girls for you, the kind that can become wives in your home in a few years."

Now I intend to distribute them to you, along with the troops in Qingzhou, as a reward for your long service to me.

What do you think? "

Shi Shouxin looked around at everyone and said.

"My lord! This, this is unacceptable! This is wonderful!"

Zhao Lun and the others were overjoyed and immediately knelt down before Shi Shouxin.

I even get a wife while I'm at work! Just thinking about it makes me happy.

"Oh, these are all minor matters. You risked your lives for me, so this reward is only right."

However... there's a slight problem with this.

Shi Shouxin looked troubled.

Zhao Lun rose, bowed, and said, "A subject dies for his lord's disgrace. Your troubles are our troubles. Your Majesty, please speak frankly."

Others followed suit and expressed their opinions.

Shi Shouxin then told Zhao Lun and the others about the plan to sacrifice the river god alive the next day. After he finished speaking, they all looked at each other in bewilderment.

He actually threw girls into the water, eighty-one at a time! Has Sima Zhao gone mad from being emperor?

These rough men, completely oblivious to the power of divine artifacts, had no idea why Sima Zhao would bother with such a ridiculous ritual as the sacrifice of the River God. It was utterly pointless!
"That's the gist of it."

His Majesty will surely punish me tomorrow, and you may all be punished as well.

But I estimate it will be a close call without any real danger.

Those who do not wish to participate should return to Qingzhou now to avoid being implicated.

Mr. Shi has always been fair in rewarding and punishing, and he will not implicate innocent people.

Of course, in that case, he wouldn't get any of the girls either. The more you work, the more you earn; if you don't work, you don't get anything. Only those who are willing to step forward will get the benefits.

"The choice is yours."

Shi Shouxin looked around at everyone and asked, always making sure to lay out the unpleasant truths upfront. Zhao Lun and the others immediately looked conflicted, wondering whether they should follow Shi Shouxin and take a gamble.

The boss is now taking advantage of women; it's like playing with fire, and the risks are obvious.

However, although the hot potato is hot to handle, it is also incredibly fragrant, not just ordinary fragrant!
Do you want to be a man, stand up for yourself, and take a virgin home as your wife, or do you want to cower like a turtle and be laughed at by others?

There was no difficulty in choosing between these options, and Zhao Lun and the others quickly chose the former.

What kind of dog is the River God! He gets his share of the floods every year! And to send women to this scoundrel is utterly despicable!
"Lord Shi, I, Zhao, will do it! We swear to follow you to the death!"

Zhao Lun clenched his fists excitedly and spoke, and once he spoke, the others followed suit.

Stealing the River God's woman—it sounds pretty exciting.

"Good! When everyone is of one mind, their strength can break even metal!"

"I, Shi, will intercept these eighty young girls!"

Shi Shouxin drew his sword, pointed it in the direction of the Yellow River, and asked, "River God, do you submit?"

The River God did not answer; only the sound of the waves remained unchanged.

(End of this chapter)