The Happy Life of Small Officials in Northern Song Dynasty

Although Su Jin was unwilling, he had to keep his promise and hand over the witnesses and material evidence to Xia Song and Du Yan. The fate of these witnesses and material evidence is naturally conceivable, and they are all destined to be destroyed immediately.

Su Jin can't disclose these things, one is because of Xia Siling, he can't personally send Xia Song to the guillotine regardless of Xia Siling's feelings, and the other is that he is also guilty of concealing and covering up, and he can't explain clearly about this matter, it is easy It made people feel that he was using this matter to blackmail Du Yan and Xia Song to achieve a certain purpose. In fact, this did not wrong Su Jin, and he thought so at the beginning.

As for the envoys of Fuyan and Huanqing, Su Jin had an intriguing conversation with Zhao Zhen after the court that morning.

……

The air in March is filled with the breath of spring. There are already early spring flowers blooming in the palace, and the afternoon sun is quite warm and comfortable. Zhao Zhen met Su Jin in the imperial garden in the back garden uncharacteristically, and the two were on the swing Sitting on the bamboo chair beside the frame, there is a celadon teacup on the small bamboo table in front of you, with the faint fragrance of tea wafting out. [

"It's another spring. Counting it, I have been on the throne for 22 years. Every March, I like to sit in the imperial garden in the afternoon and watch the maids play swings, fly kites, and play cuju. I used to be with them Playing, in the past few years, I have lost my mood, am I getting old?"

Su Jin looked at the figures of the female officials in the palace laughing and running in the distance in the spring, her graceful figure exuded a youthful atmosphere under the sun, and she was looking at Zhao Zhen, her face was pale and her brows were deeply furrowed. But this cannot be said.

"Your Majesty is in the prime of life. If I remember correctly, Your Majesty Gui Geng should be 35 years old, and he is in the prime of life."

Zhao Zhen smiled and said: "Sure enough, if you don't mention it, I will forget that I am only in my 30s, Yan Xiang is 70, and Lu Xiang, who died last year, is also more than [-] years old, and Du Shumi is also about [-] people. Counting the ministers of the court, more than half of them are much older than me; Su Jin, how old are you this year?"

Su Jin said: "The minister is nineteen, and he will be twenty when he celebrates his birthday in October this year."

Zhao Zhen clicked his tongue and said: "You are almost twenty. I remember the first time I saw you. You were only 16 years old. Four years have passed in a blink of an eye. The days go by so fast."

Su Jin smiled and said: "Yes, I have a son, and it's really unacceptable."

Zhao Zhen pondered and said: "You will have a watch at the age of 20, how about I get you a watch?"

Su Jin hurriedly said: "How dare you do this, how dare you let the emperor worry about such trivial matters."

Zhao Zhen looked up at the white clouds in the sky and said: "You always give me a very qgu impression, and I always feel that there is something unclear about you, as if you are always unpredictable about some things, I will give you a reminder How about the word 'Zicong'?"

Su Jin was startled, cupped his hands and smiled calmly: "Thank you, the emperor, for giving me the inscription, but how could I give the emperor this feeling? I am so stupid, how can I have the ability to predict."

Zhao Zhen looked at Su Jin and said: "Maybe it's because I'm superstitious, maybe it's just a coincidence. That year in Yingtian Mansion you said that the Taizu entrusted you with a dream and told you about the legacy of the Taimiao. I felt this way at the time, and I also I believe in Buddhism, but I know very well that the so-called theory of entrusting dreams is not credible. If the deceased can entrust dreams to future generations, why my beloved mother, queen and father never entrusted dreams to me. I have done thousands of them. Nothing in dreams can correspond to reality, but you can learn the last instruction on the stone tablet of the Taimiao from your dream, and the narration is accurate, isn't it strange."

Su Jin didn't expect that Zhao Zhen still couldn't forget this matter, and he didn't expect Zhao Zhen to be so clear about the theory of ghosts. He thought that everyone in this era is superstitious and ignorant, but it turned out to be his own wishful thinking.

"Maybe it's just like what the emperor said, it's just an exceptional coincidence. There are no wonders in the world. Some things are illusory but real. I don't want to explain this. I really want to know why."

Zhao Zhen smiled and said: "It's true, there are no great wonders in the world, but nothing can't happen, but you seem to really have the ability to predict, such as the New Deal, you were the one who first proposed the ten evils, But you are resolutely unwilling to participate in the New Deal. On the contrary, you discouraged Fan Zhongyan and Han Qi from carrying out the New Deal. My impression is that you seem to have predicted that the New Deal would die prematurely, and you do not want to step into this quagmire. Facts have proved that the New Deal is indeed difficult. Okay, and Fan Zhongyan, Han Qi and others have also become people who are criticized by thousands of people because of the New Deal, tell me, how do you judge that the New Deal will fail in the end?"

Su Jin's heart skipped a beat, and he said calmly: "The emperor is too good at what he said to me. It's not that I don't want to participate in the New Deal, but that I don't think I can play much role in it. Master Fan and Master Han are enough to lead the way. They can’t do it, and it’s useless for me to gossip; I’m really not optimistic about the success of the New Deal, it’s not that there’s something wrong with the content of the New Deal, but there are other reasons.”

Zhao Zhen said: "What is the reason?"

Su Jin shook his head and said: "I don't want to say it, I don't want to make the emperor unhappy."

Zhao Zhen contemplated for a while and said, "You mean I'm the reason?" [

Su Jin shook his head and said: "If you don't say anything, it's all over, so don't mention it."

Zhao Zhendao: "Su Jin, I met you in the Royal Garden today, because I hope that you and I can be open and honest like friends. As the king of the world, although all officials look up to all the people, but the ones who can really be called friends are friends." No one, I don't want to have no one who can tell the truth to me in my life; it is very likely that the relationship between you and me will develop into a relationship between friends rather than monarchs and ministers, but I feel that recently, there has been a rift between us, and many You don't want to tell me about it, does it happen after people enter the officialdom?"

Su Jin smiled and said: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for looking at it differently. The emperor is the emperor and the minister is the minister. The sages have set the three guides and the five constants. How can we mess up the rules? The relationship between the emperor and me will always be the relationship between the monarch and the minister. We can't be friends without talking. It's not that the minister doesn't want to, but It's the minister who can't."

Zhao Zhen nodded slightly and said: "Then I will order you to speak your mind in the name of the emperor, will you say it?"

Su Jindao: "I can make up some false words to deceive you. You know people and faces but don't know your heart. Even if the emperor is the master of the world, he can't guess what I really like in my heart."

Zhao Zhen sighed: "This is my pathetic point. Sitting in the world, it is difficult to know my true heart. This is my pathetic point."

Zhao Zhen said a few sad words in succession, with a desolate look on his face, and his eyes were empty looking at the swaying figures of the laughing court ladies in the distance.

Su Jin smiled and said: "The emperor doesn't have to be like this, these are not important."

Zhao Zhen turned his head and smiled and said: "You're right, none of this is important. My mission is to make my Great Song Dynasty permanent, and pass it on in my hands completely, until it lasts forever. what I really want to do."

Su Jindao: "The mission of the ministers is to assist the emperor to achieve this goal, and at the same time to honor the ancestors and make contributions, and leave a name next to the emperor's name in the history books. This is the whole purpose."

Zhao Zhen smiled and said: "You are telling the truth. Some people confess to me that they are not for fame and fortune but only for the sake of my country. I know that is a lie. One of the purposes of Guangzong Yaozu's history books is also one of the purposes. I don't doubt their loyalty. , but I don’t like their nonsense either.”

Su Jin said: "It's good that the emperor understands, why bother to say it out, the courtiers are human, how can they not have human desires, this is not something to be ashamed of."

Zhao Zhen said: "That's right, otherwise I would have taken it for granted why the New Deal failed. I only wanted my subjects to serve the country loyally, but I didn't expect to hurt their interests."

Su Jin nodded, Zhao Zhen was not confused, he understood the crux of the matter, but it was a bit late.

"I know, you came to the palace to see me because you wanted to resign from your position as the envoy of Yanhuanqing Lianglu?" Zhao Zhen sat up straight, took a sip of the green tea on the table.

Su Jindao: "This minister has this intention. Let me tell you the truth. The minister's ability is not enough to allow the people of the four directions to live and work in peace and contentment. Besides, the emperor's placing this courage on the minister's shoulders is not a compliment to the minister, but a compliment to the minister... ...Punishment of ministers. Ministers did prevent the emperor from coming to power in certain matters, but the emperor did not have to punish ministers in this way. The emperor ordered the ministers to die and the ministers had to die. Why should it be so?"

Zhao Zhen stared at Su Jin and said, "That's how you see me? In your heart, how is I different from those foolish lords of the previous dynasty?"

Su Jin hurriedly said: "It's not the emperor's fault that I offended you first, the emperor has been very tolerant to me."

Zhao Zhen sighed: "This is why I just said that I feel that there is a rift between you and my monarch and ministers. No wonder you think so. I might as well tell you clearly that the Northwest Yanhuanqing Road will be handed over to you. I am indeed Selfishness, the location of the Northwest Gateway is self-evident, and the Northwest is not stable, and our Great Song Dynasty cannot develop safely. I know you have a way. I found a coal mine on the Internet, and I also know that you are refining kerosene. I am afraid that you have stored tens of thousands of barrels. I don't want to ask how you know there is coal there, and I don't want to ask how you know about kerosene. The method of refining, I know that you will not answer; but I believe that you will not sit back and watch the people of Song Dynasty suffer and flee."

Su Jin hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, don't be suspicious. The kerosene reserves are prepared for the invasion of Western thieves. The reason why I didn't report it to the emperor is because kerosene is too expensive. If I report it, it seems that I will force the court Suspected of procurement; I have distributed the fire oil to the northwestern states and have not taken any money. You can hear about this, Lord Di Qing, the magistrate of Yanzhou."

Zhao Zhen smiled and said: "No need to explain, I doubt you, if I doubt you, can you still sit here and drink with me?"

Su Jin's heart was pounding. This matter was indeed dangerous. It seemed that Zhao Zhen's eyes and ears were not in place. Maybe Zhao Zhen got the news just after Baoshan's refining of kerosene began. Although he had no other intentions, this Once someone made a fuss about the matter, it would be impossible to argue; Su Jin secretly made up his mind that he must be cautious and cautious in doing things in the future, and the people around him must be absolutely reliable, otherwise, sooner or later, he will die inexplicably. [