Aoyama

Chapter 485 Cowardice and Seeking Peace
May 12th, the 32nd year of the Jia Ning era.

In Changping County, at dusk, the setting sun was like blood.

Just as the evening drum sounded in the county town, the foot soldiers guarding the city inadvertently caught sight of a cavalry slowly approaching from the end of the official road.

The foot soldier shaded his eyes with his hand over his brow bone and squinted to see that the leaders of the cavalry were a young man and woman, riding side by side.

Behind the two, a group of Imperial Guards clad in silver armor and white robes protected Princess Liyang, while Imperial Guards drove carriages behind them, with sixty-seven coffins on the carts pulled by horses.

The foot soldiers below the city gate exchanged glances: "They've arrived. Go and report."

When the cavalry arrived at the city gate, a deputy general guarding the city blocked their way and said expressionlessly, "Ministry of War fire warrant."

Li Xuance stepped forward, looking exhausted, and took out the Ministry of War's fire warrant from his pocket.

The lieutenant bowed his head and inspected the baggage for a long time. After confirming that everything was in order, he beckoned to the foot soldiers behind him: "Inspect their baggage."

Li Xuan calmly replied, "What luggage do we have?"

The lieutenant said, "Then let's search them."

Qi Zhenzhuo angrily said, "You've got some nerve! You even dare to make things difficult for the Imperial Guards?"

The lieutenant general, however, was not afraid. He looked up at Qi Zhenzhuo and sneered, "The Imperial Guards? They are nothing but slackers who take bribes and fawn on the enemy for peace. Our border troops are not afraid of the Jing Dynasty. If they want Yuancheng, let them attack. Why should our dynasty hand over Yuancheng just because the Jing Dynasty asks for people?"

The area in front of Changping County town gate quieted down, and Chen Ji frowned.

strangeness.

They rushed from Chongli Pass to Changping County without stopping. Logically speaking, no one in Changping County should have received the news before their arrival... unless someone rushed back to report the news.

Moreover, it was clearly the Jing Dynasty that took the initiative to seek peace, and even offered the city as a marriage alliance, but suddenly it turned into the Ning Dynasty being afraid of war and wanting to hand over Yuan City.

Chen Ji sensed something unusual; someone was deliberately distorting the facts.

He ignored the lieutenant and spurred his horse toward Changping County: "Relaxation of defenses, accepting bribes, and appeasing the enemy for personal gain—these eight words are not something a military man could come up with. I don't want to delve into who taught you this, but this is not something you can interfere with. Get out of the way."

The lieutenant was about to block him when Chen Ji said again, "Get out of the way. You can't stop the Governor-General of the Capital Garrison. The Chen family of Fuyou Street is not someone anyone can mess with. Although it sounds like you're a treacherous official, for the sake of your family, send someone with more influence."

The lieutenant stood there stunned; the five characters "Chen Family on Fuyou Street" served as a wake-up call.

Chen Ji spurred his warhorse to the lieutenant general, his enormous shadow looming over the general's head.

The general looked up from the shadows, only to see that Chen Ji's face was hidden behind the setting sun, making it impossible to discern his emotions.

He hesitated for a long time before finally stepping aside, but still stubbornly insisted: "We are not afraid of a battle. If the Jing Dynasty marches south, we will rush to the border and make sure that the Jing Dynasty army never returns. We will never be cowards who are afraid of death."

Chen Ji spurred his horse and led the Imperial Guards into the city. Without turning his head, he said softly, "Perhaps you are right, but behind me are the coffins of the Imperial Guards who died in battle outside Chongli Pass. They are not the cowards you describe, and they are braver than you. Don't say you can't stop them, no one can stop them either."

Having said that, he stopped arguing and walked straight through the shadows of the city gate.

As I walked along the rammed earth road in Changping County, pedestrians would occasionally stop and stare, casting ambiguous glances at me.

Zhang Xia whispered to Chen Ji, "It seems someone wants to use this opportunity to incite a conflict between the pro-peace and pro-war factions. In recent years, the Hu family has advocated war while the Chen and Xu families have advocated peace, and things have already gotten out of hand... Be careful, lest the fire spread to you."

Chen Ji hummed in agreement.

As we passed a teahouse, the storyteller stood behind his table and slammed his gavel: "Let's talk about this man, Yuan Cheng..."

The audience was filled with tea drinkers and people cracking melon seeds.

Chen Ji and Zhang Xia exchanged a glance but did not linger.

After the group had gone some distance, he and Zhang Xia dismounted at the same time.

Chen Ji tossed the reins to Li Xuan: "You two take Princess Li Yang to the post station to rest. I imagine officials from the Court of State Ceremonial will come to oversee her journey to the capital early tomorrow morning." After saying that, the two turned back to the teahouse they had just left and ordered two plates of melon seeds and a pot of tea in a corner.

But then the storyteller slammed his gavel: "Ladies and gentlemen, today we shall tell you about the Northern Kingdom, where a savage and universally hated god of war, Yuan Cheng, has emerged!"

The storyteller lowered his voice: "This man was born with a heart of stone. When he was seven, his mother died suddenly. Relatives and friends wept in front of the mourning hall, but this little boy alone clapped his hands and laughed. The clan elder sternly questioned him, and guess how he answered?"

The storyteller leaned forward slightly, paused for a moment, and then said, "He actually said that this woman was vulgar and, three years ago on the Mid-Autumn Festival, had spoken recklessly about the late emperor's campaign against Goguryeo, deserving of divine punishment!"

The teahouse was filled with uproar. One onlooker angrily exclaimed, "A seven-year-old child actually uses his own mother as a stepping stone to advancement! How unfilial!"

The storyteller smiled slightly and unfolded his folding fan: "By the time he turned thirteen, this demonic star had already shown his ferocity. During the banquet, he tore apart a yellow sheep with his bare hands, specifically choosing the raw liver to dip in salt and drink with his wine. Even more terrifying, he ordered his men to set up a hundred-pound iron bow in the courtyard, and fired three arrows in quick succession, each hitting the willow branch. Then he turned around and tied his archery teacher to the target, laughing and asking: 'Sir, do you think I can hit the silver hairpin in your hair?'"

The teahouse erupted in uproar once again, with one of the guards angrily shouting, "This scoundrel is so arrogant, treating the life of his mentor as a joke? Unrighteous and inhumane!"

The storyteller, dressed in a black coat, closed his folding fan: "To say that he truly became famous throughout the world, it was in the winter of the twenty-fifth year of the Jianing era. This man led his army to conquer the mountains of Dama, and actually shaved the captured scouts into human pigs and put them into urns! Behind him was a mound of three thousand heads, and this devil even put a bright pearl in the mouth of each human pig, which he called the 'Exquisite Array'."

The storyteller's voice suddenly turned sinister: "The most bizarre thing was last year's Lantern Festival. This fellow set up thirty-six oil cauldrons in front of the battle lines and fried our prisoners in batches. Why did he count them? It turned out he wanted to make up a total of three hundred and sixty, saying he wanted to refine some kind of flesh and blood elixir!"

Just then, the storyteller sighed and changed the subject: "But this very same fiend, now captured by our dynasty's Sage of Literature, Wang Daosheng, is about to be handed back to the Jing Dynasty... Do you all know who did this? It was none other than Zhang Zhuo, the Grand Secretary and Minister of Personnel! This man used to sell official positions, and when Grand Secretary Xu was seriously ill, he was in Xu's residence reviewing draft documents on his behalf. Now he has accepted bribes from the Jing Dynasty..."

Chen Ji felt a chill run down his spine.

He turned his head and saw Zhang Xia gripping the teacup so tightly that she almost crushed it.

Chen Ji finally understood why someone was spreading the idea of ​​"cowardice and seeking peace." The other party wasn't after him, but after Zhang Zhuo!

Grand Secretary Xu was ill and could not even go to Renshou Palace.

Logically, the position of Grand Secretary should have been changed long ago, but Emperor Ning felt that Zhang Zhuo was the most suitable candidate. However, Zhang Zhuo himself lacked the qualifications and could not win the respect of the people.

Therefore, Emperor Ning could only temporarily retain Grand Secretary Xu's position and allow Zhang Zhuo to review and approve draft proposals, thus exercising the power of the chief minister in the name of a cabinet minister.

However, no one wants the cabinet to remain like this. Some people want to incite public opinion, and next, countless memorials will likely fly into the capital to impeach Zhang Zhuo.

Even new policies are being halted.

Zhang Xia said softly, "The Grand Secretaries' counterattack has arrived. They were forced to implement the new policies and endured for a long time without taking any action, but in the end, the Grand Secretaries still managed to seize the opportunity."

The word "legitimate" carries immense weight, and no one dares to confront Emperor Ning directly. Therefore, no matter how powerful the Grand Secretaries are, within the Forbidden City, if the Emperor doesn't bestow upon them an embroidered stool, they have no choice but to kneel and speak.

But once you leave the Forbidden City, the state of the world is uncertain.

Chen Ji looked at Zhang Xia: "It was indeed Lord Zhang's idea to return Yuancheng this time. I think the person who did this has other tricks up their sleeve. They will not stop until Lord Zhang's reputation is ruined."

Zhang Xia remained silent, pondering how to reverse the overwhelming public opinion, which seemed like a dead end.

She whispered, “My father once told me that after his first wife passed away, he was heartbroken and resigned from his official post to return to his hometown, intending to live a life of despair. But after seeing the suffering of the people in the south, he decided to return to the capital to marry my mother, using the Xu family’s influence to carry out reforms. So my mother has always resented him, resenting that he only married her to achieve his goals. My father told my mother not to resent him, that he had too many things to do in this life, and that he would repay my mother in the next life.”

Chen Ji pondered for a moment: "So, Lord Zhang amassed wealth for His Majesty, bearing the infamy of selling official positions, yet he sent all the money from those sales to the imperial treasury, all for the sake of seizing power."

Zhang Xia nodded: "Father said that power has always been inseparable from money. War requires money, disaster relief requires money, palace repairs require money, money is needed everywhere, and there are holes everywhere. Therefore, whoever can make money for His Majesty will become the Grand Secretary. Infamy? Father doesn't care. He only wants to implement new policies, give the people a way to live, and give Ning Dynasty a way to live."

Zhang Xia looked up and listened to the noisy cursing in the teahouse: "But if Changping is already in such a mess, who knows how it is in the capital. After such an incident, I'm afraid he'll have to wait a while longer to do what he wants. I don't know if he'll ever get another good opportunity in his life."

Chen Ji remained silent for a long time. He looked at Zhang Xia with a worried expression, then suddenly smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'll think of a way."

Zhang Xia was slightly taken aback: "What method?"

Chen Ji threw ten copper coins on the table, turned around and left the teahouse: "I can't say."

(End of this chapter)