The Second Master of the Red Chamber

Chapter 892 Request
As the burly man charged into the group of civil officials, scattering them in all directions, the once orderly court assembly instantly descended into chaos.

Military generals are not afraid of causing trouble, especially now that there is an opportunity to take advantage of the chaos to beat the bandit leader.

So, while the Jurchen Han and Shi Ding were entangled in a fight, they took the opportunity to sneak into the group of civil officials, shouting words of mediation, but their black feet and fists showed no mercy.

Emperor Ningkang sat high on his dragon throne, coldly watching this farce unfold.

His gaze swept over Jia Lian, who stood at the front of the military officers.

Surprisingly, this hothead just watched the scene silently and didn't go up and beat someone up.

Not wanting to see this foreign envoy beaten to death in the Golden Hall, Emperor Ningkang gave Dai Quan a look.

Dai Quan understood, stepped forward, and shouted, "Silence!"

As Dai Quan's voice rang out, the sounds of fists and kicks, along with the angry shouts, gradually subsided.

Several military officers glanced at Emperor Ningkang above, and could only kick the big man a couple more times before reluctantly returning to their ranks.

With the help of his teammates, Shi Ding had already gone from being on the defensive to taking the initiative.

He had already flipped over and pinned the burly man who could only cover his head and take the beating. Seeing that things were not going well, he jumped away.

Only then did the middle-aged scholar dare to step forward and help the burly man, loudly rebuking him: "You people of Wei are truly rude."

Our General Murhazi is here on the orders of our Chief Beile, with good intentions to negotiate peace with your country.

"With peace talks still unresolved, how dare you assault General Murhaji? Aren't you afraid of the wrath of the Jurchen people?"

Faced with the middle-aged scholar's accusations, those who had intervened whistled and pretended to look up at the sky...the palace roof.

The rest mostly watched coldly.

Even those who advocated for peace talks mostly disliked these Jurchen people.

Murhazi wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and roared angrily at the scribe.

The scholar said, “Our general said that it seems you Wei people have not learned anything from your previous crushing defeat, so you have no sincerity in negotiating peace.”

"In that case, let's meet on the battlefield."

After saying this, the two prepared to leave one after the other.

Although Emperor Ningkang was displeased, he thought that they hadn't even exchanged a few words yet and hadn't tested each other's bottom lines.

In negotiations, as the saying goes, the other party asks for an exorbitant price, while you sit back and negotiate.

The other party is a barbarian, and can be willful, but I am the emperor of the Celestial Empire, and must have magnanimity.

Emperor Ningkang then quickly gave the Minister of Rites a look.

After understanding the situation, the newly appointed Minister of Rites, Kong Si, stepped forward to stop them, apologizing and reassuring them with profound words of wisdom.

Unfortunately, the other party didn't buy it at all. After saying a few words, he pushed Kong Si aside and left quickly.

Only the scholar remained to explain: "Our general said that he was injured and had to return to the post station to recuperate."

Since you are not prepared for peace talks, let's wait until you have reached an agreement before talking about it.

However, our general also said that the Tatar royal court had already sent someone to give gifts to our chief prince, inviting us to join forces to attack the Wei Kingdom.

Therefore, whether your Wei Kingdom desires the goodwill of our Jurchen people or wants us to join forces with the Tatars to march south is up to you.

Goodbye.

As the other party's chief and deputy envoys departed one after another, the civil and military officials looked at each other in bewilderment.

Although they had read many stories of negotiations and peace talks with foreign countries in history books, for most ministers, the actual peace talks with foreign envoys in the Golden Palace were still a first for them.

I never expected it to turn out like this.

Emperor Ningkang's face was ashen. Suddenly, he stood up from his dragon throne and stormed off.

This left the ministers even more baffled.

……

After returning to the palace, Emperor Ningkang became increasingly agitated.

Suppressing his anger, he summoned the Minister of Rites and ordered him to lead a team to investigate the Jurchens. However, still unable to vent his frustration, he then proceeded to Kunning Palace.

Although there were many concubines in the harem, Emperor Ningkang could only shed some of his imperial dignity and occasionally confide his grievances in front of his first wife, the Empress.

The Empress naturally knew a lot about the affairs of the previous dynasty, and judging from Emperor Ningkang's expression, she knew that the peace talks were not going smoothly.

She didn't ask any more questions, but instead chatted with Emperor Ningkang about everyday matters, waiting for him to speak for himself.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before Emperor Ningkang couldn't hold back any longer and briefly explained his predicament to the Empress.

Finally, he said bitterly, "Three years, no, just one year! Just give me one more year to allow the court to recover some of its strength. How can I let a mere Jurchen bully me!"

And then there are the Tatars, a pack of spineless dogs whose spines were broken by the Great Ancestor. Instead of cowering in the northern deserts and barely surviving, they actually dared to try to invade the Central Plains again.

Just wait, give me ten years, and within those ten years, I will make them feel the pain of national subjugation once again…

Hearing Emperor Ningkang's angry declaration, the Empress said softly, "Your Majesty has devoted yourself to the country and the people, but you must also take care of your health."

This scourge of barbarians has plagued every dynasty. Your Majesty can emulate the wise men of the past, addressing it gradually and patiently, without being hasty.

Emperor Ningkang nodded and said, "The Empress understands me best. It is hateful that some self-proclaimed virtuous ministers in the court use ancestral rules and filial piety to obstruct and oppose me all day long, while turning a blind eye to the current difficulties of the court."

If they possessed even half of your profound understanding and righteousness, Your Majesty, I wouldn't have to work so hard.

Upon hearing this, the Empress glanced at the gray hairs sprouting at Emperor Ningkang's temples and couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache.

Emperor Ningkang had endured for so many years, finally wresting power back from the retired emperor. Before he could completely suppress the opponents, the Tatars and Jurchens came in with great force.

One can imagine the pressure he faces every day.

He then comforted them, saying, "Your Majesty need not be too harsh on the ministers; they surely know Your Majesty's difficulties."

However, since His Majesty is their ruler, even if they are worried about him, they have no way to mention it.

His Majesty naturally wouldn't be able to sense it.

Emperor Ningkang sneered, "Do they know my difficulties? Right now, there's this wretched child who keeps coming to the palace to bother me just because he wants to go to the battlefield."

Hmph, if it weren't for his past merits, I would have ordered him thrown out long ago.

I haven't seen him so many times, I'm afraid he's still cursing me in his heart as a weak and incompetent ruler, afraid even of the Jurchens.

Will he understand my difficulties?

The Empress couldn't help but smile upon hearing these resentful words. She had also heard about Jia Lian's repeated requests to the palace to request permission to lead an expedition.

When the country is in trouble, isn't it a good thing that there are ministers willing to step forward and share the burden with their ruler?

How did it become a wicked creature in Emperor Ningkang's mouth?

However, he was aware of Emperor Ningkang's unusual attitude towards Jia Lian, so he refrained from commenting.

Seeing that Emperor Ningkang showed no sign of leaving anytime soon, the emperor ordered the imperial kitchen to prepare a few more dishes and invite him to dine with them.

……

Furthermore, Kong Si, having received Emperor Ningkang's imperial decree, led several colleagues to the post station to request an audience with the envoy.

After several twists and turns and after performing all the proper courtesies, I finally met Murhazi.

After a "friendly" exchange, Kong Si returned to the palace with trepidation to report to Emperor Ningkang.

Emperor Ningkang had just returned from Kunning Palace and was preparing to take a short nap.

Upon hearing that Kong Si requested an audience, he immediately summoned him.

"So, have you found out the Jurchens' bottom line? Is there any chance of a successful peace negotiation?"

Kong Si looked troubled: "Your Majesty, I personally spoke with Namurhaji for an hour and learned some of his demands."

According to Murhaji, if the court truly could not accept Liaocheng as the border, they could make a slight concession.

As a high-ranking official of the court, Kong Si naturally knew which of the conditions proposed by the other party that morning was the most unacceptable to the court.

As expected, Emperor Ningkang was delighted upon hearing this and asked, "Oh, I wonder how many concessions they are willing to make?"

Kong Si took out a map of Liaodong from his robes, placed it in front of Emperor Ningkang, and gestured on it, saying:
"They said that at the very least, the plains area from Yahe in the north to Songyuan and south to Yinmahe should be used as their future horse breeding grounds."

Emperor Ningkang followed Kong Si's gestures and his expression immediately turned sour.

Although it seems better than using Liaocheng as the boundary, dividing it in this way would still mean taking almost half of Liaodong away.

Although Liaodong is now mostly a frozen wasteland with few people, there are hardly any decent cities.

But those were territories that the founding emperor had recovered during his reign. If he dared to sign this agreement, he would likely be met with a barrage of criticism.

Kong Si knew what Emperor Ningkang was thinking, but at this moment he dared not offer any opinions. He could only hand over all the information he had gathered to Emperor Ningkang.

"Namurhazi also said that, given our lack of diplomatic etiquette, we ganged up on him in the court assembly."

He demanded that our country publicly compensate him.

Emperor Ningkang didn't care about this at all.

If one's own people assault another, it's perfectly reasonable for the other party to demand compensation.

"In your opinion, is there any room for negotiation on this first point?"

Kong Si shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid it will be very difficult."

Namurhaji also said that now their Jurchen tribe is strong and powerful, and the place where they originally lived can no longer meet their survival needs.

This is also why they went south to plunder.

If our dynasty is unwilling to give them even this most basic territory for survival, then they will have no choice but to take it themselves.

Emperor Ningkang's face darkened.

Okay, let's play the survival of the fittest game on him.

Seeing that Emperor Ningkang seemed about to get angry, Kong Si quickly comforted him, saying, "Your Majesty, I actually think that the court might as well agree to this point first."

The vast area outside Liaocheng was a barren wasteland with no inhabitants for thousands of miles.

Even if we temporarily ceded the territory to the Jurchens, our dynasty would not suffer any real loss.

Therefore, it is not too late to take it back when our country's strength is restored in the future.

Besides…”

Kong Si glanced at Emperor Ningkang before continuing, "Furthermore, perhaps Your Majesty is also aware that since the late Emperor Emeritus's time, the Tatars have expanded eastward and the Jurchens have advanced southward."

In reality, large areas deep in Liaodong have long been outside the actual control of our dynasty.

Now that the Jurchens are proposing to divide the land among them, it's nothing more than a nominal title..."

Kong Si's words only made Emperor Ningkang's face darken further.

In his later years, the retired emperor indulged in pleasure and lost all ambition.

The imperial court was not entirely unaware of the Tatars' and Jurchens' encroachment on Liaodong.

However, since the other party was doing it in secret and did not provoke them too much in the open, the retired emperor did not bother to pay attention to it.

Although Emperor Ningkang never personally went to Liaodong, according to the reports from the officials he sent to inspect the area.

In the depths of Liaodong, the presence of Han people has long been lost.

The vast majority were Tatars and some Jurchens, and even some Koreans and Russians.

However, having someone else steal it is completely different from giving it away yourself.

Emperor Ningkang's expression was still shifting between gloom and brooding, but Kong Si hesitated before saying, "There's more..."

Emperor Ningkang was taken aback: "They have other demands?"

Kong Si nodded and said, "The other side said that in order to prevent our dynasty from going back on its word and sending troops to conquer them in the future."

They demanded that our dynasty marry our two princesses to their two princes, who were the sons of their alliance leader, the Grand Prince…

Of course, if we only want to marry one princess, then we must specify that it must be the eldest princess.

They will marry our princess with the highest honors…

Kong Si could see that Emperor Ningkang was on the verge of exploding, but he still had to finish what he was saying.

Then he quickly bowed his head and stood aside, waiting for Emperor Ningkang to erupt.

as predicted.

With a loud "bang," the porcelain teacup was swept away by Emperor Ningkang, crashing into a pillar seven or eight meters away and shattering.

(End of this chapter)