Emperor of the Red Chamber

Chapter 165: War Poems of Three Emperors
In the blink of an eye, it is already April 11th.

More than a month has passed since the Jianrui Battalion, the Dragon Cavalry Battalion, and the Imperial Medical Service Team A left the capital.

It will take more than a month for the Jianrui Battalion and the Dragon Cavalry Battalion to reach the camp of the Western Northern Army.

Shenjing City is really far away from the northwest, thousands of miles away. There were no advanced means of transportation in that era, so the march would take three months, and that was if the march was accelerated. Otherwise, it would take even longer.

Today is the day when a new issue of "Da Zhou Bao" is published.

As the Minister of Rites, Jia Zheng went to the Ministry of Rites to perform his duties as usual in the morning.

In the morning, Jia Zheng couldn't wait to read the new issue of "Da Zhou Bao" which had just been delivered to the yamen.

Compared with the war in the northwest, he was more concerned about the "Da Zhou Bao".

What he pays most attention to is not the "News" section or the headlines, but the "Supplements".

Although the "supplement" is a cultural and entertainment section, its influence cannot be underestimated.

Every issue of "Da Zhou Bao" would be reviewed personally by Yuan Qingbai before publication, including the supplements.

The poems and lyrics in this supplement are only of the best quality, regardless of the status of the author.

Even if one was a prince, a military minister, or a grand secretary, if he submitted his poems to the Da Zhou Bao, they would not be published if the poems were not good enough.

Even if a scholar from a poor family wrote a good poem and submitted it to the Da Zhou Bao, it could be published and he would be paid a good amount of money.

Many poor scholars have become famous for their poems because of this.

Nowadays, many readers all over the world are proud to be able to publish their works in "Da Zhou Bao".

Don't underestimate the supplement of "Da Zhou Bao". If the supplement is well managed, it can expand the influence of "Da Zhou Bao".

Jia Zheng is good at poetry but has little talent, and he likes to pretend to be cultured.

Seeing that any poem published in the supplement of "Da Zhou Bao" would attract widespread attention and become famous, Jia Zheng had been itching to try it.

However, due to his status as the father-in-law of the emperor and the head of the Rongguo Mansion, Jia Zheng felt that he should not publish his poems in the supplement of the Da Zhou Bao so as not to attract attention.

Just a month ago, Jia Yucun, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, published a poem in Da Zhou Bao, which attracted widespread attention. Jia Zheng could not help but discuss this poem with Jia Yucun.

Jia Yucun flattered Jia Zheng, saying that although he had talent in poetry, he might not be as good as Jia Zheng. If Jia Zheng contributed his articles to the Da Zhou Bao, they would surely be published.

Jia Zheng was moved and finally could not hold back and decided to submit his manuscript to give it a try.

So Jia Zheng submitted a poem he wrote to the Da Zhou Bao, but it was not published.

Fang Shuwei had a difficult job as the president of the Da Zhou Bao newspaper. As the influence of the supplement of Da Zhou Bao grew, it was able to make him famous as a poet, and many princes and ministers could not help but submit their own poems.

Fang Shuwei could not afford to offend these princes and ministers.

Therefore, whenever a prince or minister submitted a poem, even if it was poorly written, Fang Shuwei would give it to Yuan Qingbai for review and have Yuan Qingbai personally approve it. In this way, Fang Shuwei could say that it was Yuan Qingbai who approved the manuscript.

This is the case with Jia Zheng's submission this time.

Fang Shuwei specially gave Jia Zheng's poem to Yuan Qingbai for personal review. Yuan Qingbai rejected the poem. Fang Shuwei was afraid that Jia Zheng would hate him, so he went to Jia Zheng to explain and encouraged Jia Zheng that as long as Jia Zheng could write a good work, the emperor would definitely approve the poem.

For nearly a month, Jia Zheng practiced poetry writing diligently and finally produced a poem that he thought was very good, which he once again submitted to the Da Zhou Bao.

Jia Zheng was looking forward to seeing his own poems in the supplement of this issue of Da Zhou Bao.

However, at this moment, when he couldn't wait to read the "Da Zhou Bao" issued today, he was a little dumbfounded, he saw that this issue of "Da Zhou Bao" was a special issue on the Western Expedition.

The front-page headline was an article titled "Whoever offends the Great Zhou will be punished, no matter how far away they are."

The article was written by the new Grand Councilor Qi Zizhang at the behest of Yuan Qingbai.

The article details the hatred between the Great Zhou and the Dzungar Khanate, and the harm that the Dzungar Khanate had caused to the Great Zhou over the years.

The article points out that the destruction of Dzungar Khanate was the unfinished wish of two generations of Great Zhou emperors, Emperor Jing'an and Emperor Chengtai. The current Emperor Tianlong vowed to fulfill this wish for the two predecessors, and the people of the Great Zhou should work together to fulfill this wish.

The article also details the generous rewards and preferential treatment that the Great Zhou gave to the Jianrui Battalion and the Longqi Battalion.

One of them is that the Great Zhou will build a Heroes Garden to bury and honor all the sacrificed soldiers.

This is truly a heroic feat.

In the past, soldiers who died in the Great Zhou Dynasty, especially ordinary soldiers, would be simply buried, and some were even buried in the wilderness and forgotten by people.

During this Western Expedition, all the soldiers who died can be buried and enshrined in the Garden of Heroes.

Moreover, the relatives of the sacrificed soldiers can not only receive a lot of financial compensation, but also enjoy various preferential treatments.

The article also emphasized that if any official dared to embezzle or neglect such generous rewards and relief, he would be severely punished.

This would naturally boost the morale of the soldiers on the Western Expedition. The supplement of this issue of Da Zhou Bao published war poems by three emperors: Emperor Jing'an, Emperor Chengtai, and Emperor Tianlong. Each emperor wrote one poem, for a total of three poems.

Yuan Qingbai also personally wrote annotations for the three war poems.

Among them, the one by Emperor Jing'an was "An Untitled Poem" which Emperor Jing'an gave to Yuan Qingbai in person before Yuan Qingbai set out on the western expedition to Qinghai.

His poem says:
He drew his bow and rode his horse to talk about heroes, and rolled up the yellow sand to destroy the imperial palace.

Wen Zhi and martial arts are really rough, and Pei Wen Xinpu Mo Lin Chong.

Yuan Qingbai commented on this poem: "In the past, the Holy Ancestor and the late Emperor entrusted me with the post of General Fuyuan and asked me to quell the rebellion in Qinghai. When I was leaving Beijing, the Holy Ancestor wrote this poem in person to encourage me. The Holy Ancestor meant that a man who can win on the battlefield with a bow and a horse is a true hero, and is also the foundation of building a career. A man of great talent and strategy is both civil and military. The Holy Ancestor led the army many times and made great military achievements. He hoped that I could do the same. The Holy Ancestor also said that I should be a military general. It is a pity that I have not been on the battlefield to make military achievements in this life. The reason why I was able to quell Qinghai is due to the Holy Ancestor's exhortation and the encouragement of this poem."

Emperor Jing'an wrote many war poems, and "Untitled" is just one of them.

Even Emperor Chengtai wrote many war poems, several of which involved the Dzungar Khanate.

This time, Yuan Qingbai selected one of Emperor Chengtai's war poems involving the Dzungar Khanate and published it in the supplement of this issue of "Da Zhou Bao".

His poem says:
The general rides on his horse and holds a spear, while the warriors drive for a long time without stopping.

A letter of victory has arrived early, and a golden seal is cast to await the title of nobility.

Yuan Qingbai also annotated this poem: "In the time of the late emperor, the country was in turmoil because of the Junggars, and had no choice but to use military force. The generals and soldiers, with their weapons and shields on their backs, slept in the wild and ate in the open air. The late emperor was worried about this and could not eat or sleep well. He lived in a side palace and stopped holding banquets. He planned military supplies with court officials every day, hoping that God would bless him and that the troops would return home early and rewards would be given according to their merits. I wrote four excerpts to express my thoughts. Unfortunately, the late emperor passed away before he could complete this ambition. Now I have selected one of them and published it in this issue of the "Da Zhou Bao" together with the poem of the Holy Ancestor, so that the people of the world can read it."

The war poem by Yuan Qingbai published in this issue of "Da Zhou Bao" is the "Man's Journey" that he once wrote in response to Emperor Jing'an in person.

His poem says:
A man goes to the battlefield for his health, and his self-love takes the stage without looking back at home.

Taibai is as high as five feet in the sky, and the sword and the moon shine together.

Yuan Qingbai annotated his poem, "In the past, the Holy Ancestor personally wrote "An Untitled Poem" to encourage me. I was inspired and wrote a poem in person, titled "A Man's Way" to reply to the Holy Ancestor. The Holy Ancestor read it and was very pleased. Today, I wrote "A Man's Way" again in front of the late emperor, and the late emperor also praised my ambition. When I went to Qinghai, the Holy Ancestor and the late emperor both hung this poem in the warm room, hoping for my triumphant return. Now I specially publish this poem together with the poems of the Holy Ancestor and the late emperor in this issue of "Da Zhou Bao", expressing my deep gratitude and remembering the deep kindness of the Holy Ancestor and the late emperor. It is my wish that the soldiers in the western part of the Great Zhou return triumphantly, and I also hope that the millions of subjects of the Great Zhou will work together."

At this moment, Jia Zheng carefully read the three war poems written by three generations of emperors, and also carefully read Yuan Qingbai's personal annotations to the three poems.

Jia Zheng felt that the war poems of the three generations of emperors were all excellent works, and with Yuan Qingbai's annotations, they were even more wonderful.

Moreover, even someone like him who had never cared about wars, after reading the special issue on the Western Expedition in this issue of "Da Zhou Bao", could not help but feel his blood boiling, and felt that Da Zhou should destroy the Dzungar Khanate.

However, he still cares more about his poetry.

"This issue of the Great Weekly is a special issue, and the supplement contains war poems by three generations of emperors. My poem is not suitable to be included. I hope that the next issue of the supplement will include my poem."

Jia Zheng was looking forward to it.

However, ten days later, when another issue of "Da Zhou Bao" was published, Jia Zheng still did not see his poems in the supplement, which made him feel disappointed.

"How strict is the review process for the supplement of the Great Weekly? Could it be that my poem has been rejected by His Majesty again?"

Jia Zheng was confused.

This is the fact.

The second poem Jia Zheng submitted was also rejected by Yuan Qingbai himself.

The reason for rejecting the manuscript was that, although Jia Zheng's second poem was well written, it was not a masterpiece and did not meet the publication standards of the supplement of "Da Zhou Bao". The Jia family was already prosperous and flourishing, and publishing Jia Zheng's poems that were not excellent would cause controversy.

In addition, Yuan Qingbai was somewhat dissatisfied with Jia Zheng.

Jia Zheng has been the Minister of Rites for nearly a year, but the ability he has demonstrated is really limited, and he cares even less about national affairs outside of his job.

For example, regarding the Western Expedition, Jia Zheng never said a word in front of Yuan Qingbai.

Jia Zheng was still the same as before, still indulging in idle chatter, playing chess, discussing literature and philosophy, and being flattered by others.

In terms of official duties, Jia Zheng is far inferior to his son Jia Zhu.

Fortunately, Jia Zheng is loyal to Yuan Qingbai and obeys his orders, so Yuan Qingbai can still be used.

……

……

The Western Expedition special issue of "Da Zhou Bao" published on April 11 was delivered to the camp of the Western Northern Army in less than a month.

The missionary general of the Northern Army led other generals to study the special issue of the Western Expedition together, and also preached the special issue of the Western Expedition to the soldiers, which once again boosted the morale of the soldiers.

A few days later, on May 18, the Jianrui Battalion, the Dragon Cavalry Battalion, and the Imperial Medical Service Team A finally arrived at the Northern Army’s base. It had been exactly three months since they left the capital on February 18.

The arrival of this group of troops undoubtedly means that the war is about to begin. Wang Ziteng will lead the northern army to open up the main battlefield...

(End of this chapter)