The evil forces roaming the heavens

Chapter 1292 Jia Jue: "Your subject shall die on the battlefield, his body wrapped in a horse's hide!"

A somber atmosphere was spreading within the Dragon Head Palace.

After entering, Zhang Cheng first paid his respects to the two emperors, and then he saw the Hongde Emperor's barely concealed smile.

Seeing the other person's trembling shoulders, Zhang Cheng immediately knew that he had come to put his father under pressure. How "filial" he was!

Zhang Cheng was also aware of the recent border situation. The Liaodong Jurchens had temporarily ceased hostilities because, after several consecutive battles, their Eight Banners organization was on the verge of collapse.
As for the Japanese, Zhang Cheng was even less worried, because the troublesome Toyotomi Hideyoshi was dead, and the entire Japanese island was now in chaos!
With Zhang Cheng's support and Yi Sun-sin's naval assistance, Mori Terumoto even wanted to compete with Tokugawa Ieyasu for the position of "Shogun"!

If the reason for summoning him to the palace wasn't because of Liaodong, then it must be a problem in the Western Regions, specifically the Rus' people, which is Kazakhstan, as Zhang Cheng had heard of.

"Your subject, Jia Jue, pays his respects to the Emperor Emeritus!"

With a broad smile, Zhang Cheng bowed respectfully.
"Alright, no need for formalities. I summoned you here today to ask for your opinion on the matters concerning the Western Regions!"

Looking at Zhang Cheng before him, the Emperor Emeritus's eyes were filled with seriousness.
"I do not know what the Emperor Emeritus is thinking, but I believe that we should strike hard and let these foreigners know the majesty of the Heavenly Kingdom's court!"

He spoke with a serious expression, and Zhang Cheng couldn't help but become serious as well.
You know, China used to be a land of autumn leaves and crabapple blossoms, but it has gradually changed into what it is today.

Now that Zhang Cheng is here, he certainly won't repeat the same mistakes.
"If I order you to fight, victory is assured!"

Looking at Zhang Cheng with a serious expression, the Emperor Emeritus couldn't help but ask,
"Your subject shall die on the battlefield, wrapped in a horse's hide, to repay the kindness of the Emperor Emeritus and Your Majesty!"

Zhang Cheng cupped his hands in a respectful gesture and spoke, his face filled with seriousness.
Upon hearing Zhang Cheng's words, the Emperor Emeritus couldn't help but admire him and said, "Jue'er, I didn't send you to die in battle. What I wanted to ask was, what are the chances of victory!"

"Your Majesty, I am not entirely confident of victory. After all, if we were to reach the capital of a foreign country like Russia, I would only have a less than 90% chance of winning!"

With a smile on his face, Zhang Cheng raised his head and explained.

"puff!"

He spat out a mouthful of tea, and Emperor Hongde looked on in astonishment, saying, "My dear minister, what did you just say? How confident are you?"

"Ninety percent, Your Majesty, but if I'm not absolutely certain, I'll consider the odds of victory to be extremely low!"

With a serious expression, Zhang Cheng couldn't help but spread his hands.

"You want to fight your way to the Russian capital?"

Staring at Zhang Cheng in shock, the Emperor Emeritus was stunned. He simply couldn't believe what this young man was saying. Was this even human language?

"Your Majesty, if I lead an army of 50,000, I have a 60% chance of success; if I lead 100,000, I have a 90% chance. I will surely conquer the capital of Russia."

Speaking to the retired emperor, Zhang Cheng couldn't help but smile.
"Can we avoid attacking the capital? I just want to teach the Rus' a lesson!"

Looking at Zhang Cheng, the Emperor Emeritus was also covered in cold sweat.
Because this young general is really something else! He and Emperor Hongde only wanted to play a defensive counterattack, but Zhang Cheng already wanted to conquer the enemy's capital!

"If it's about teaching them a lesson, I can lead 30,000 men from the Divine Pivot Camp. We'll make sure they dare not look eastward!"

When addressing the retired emperor, Zhang Cheng remained calm.

Since it's not a war to destroy a nation, why call him here? Just to chat?

"In that case, go and make preparations. We'll set out in a few days and teach the Rus' a lesson!"

As he spoke to Zhang Cheng, the Emperor Emeritus's eyes shone brightly.
Since his trusted general had said so, what was the retired emperor afraid of? It was just war, wasn't it? Who was afraid of whom! Come on, close the gates and release Jia Jue, let's fight on the border, and whoever loses will be executed!

"My lord, take the order!"

Zhang Cheng bowed to the retired emperor before him, glanced at the Hongde Emperor beside him, and then turned and left. Leaving the Dragon Head Palace, Zhang Cheng went directly to the Imperial Study.
Not long after, Emperor Hongde also returned.

When he saw Zhang Cheng, he was immediately shocked and asked, "You really can fight your way to the capital of Russia?"

"Your Majesty, have I ever been defeated in a battle? I can kill Daishan with three hundred men, I wouldn't even dare to imagine killing one hundred thousand!"

Zhang Cheng smiled as he addressed the Hongde Emperor.

He's not like that guy next door who just stands around with his hands in his pockets; he's a strategist when it comes to warfare!

Zhang Cheng: You guys can get killed even when you're outnumbered 3 to 1? What are you doing?
Hearing Zhang Cheng's words, Emperor Hongde nodded and said, "You're right, it seems there are no problems with this battle. However, I discussed it with the Retired Emperor, and the Ministry of Revenue is short of funds."

"Your Majesty, I will share your burdens. No matter how much the Ningguo Mansion owes, I will certainly present the outstanding amount tomorrow!"

When Zhang Cheng addressed the Hongde Emperor, his face was full of seriousness.
Because he already knew that he couldn't escape this situation.

You can owe money outside, and if you have a bigger fist, no one will dare to ask you for it. But the problem is, you owe the emperor money. Do you think you can beat him?

The reason Zhang Cheng initially didn't want to accept the Ningguo Mansion was because the Ningguo Mansion also owed the emperor money.
And it wasn't just Ningguo Prefecture; among the four kings, eight dukes, and twelve marquises, who didn't owe the Ministry of Revenue money?

After all, the situation was that everyone else had lent money, and if you didn't, wouldn't you be considered rebellious?
But now, it's easy to borrow money, but hard to repay it!

The retired emperor is still alive, so Emperor Hongde certainly can't take it back. But if the retired emperor passes away, what are you going to do about those who owe money?
Fortunately, in Liaodong, Zhang Cheng crippled the Jurchens and drove out the Japanese pirates. Otherwise, when the country was in dire straits, Emperor Hongde would not care about the means and would have dared to confiscate property!
After all, you didn't give the Emperor any face when the Emperor Emeritus was alive, but he'll give you face now that the Emperor Emeritus is gone.

Emperor Hongde: When you're out in the game, you have to admit your mistakes and stand up straight when you get beaten!

"My dear minister, you are truly a pillar of the nation!"

Looking at Zhang Cheng, Emperor Hongde admired him more and more. Apart from being a bit ruthless in beating his relatives, Zhang Cheng really had no flaws!
"This is all I should do, Your Majesty. I have also managed to get Xue Pan out of trouble!"

When Zhang Cheng addressed the Hongde Emperor, he couldn't help but smile.
"Xue Pan? You mean that idiot from the Jia Yucun case?"

Looking at Zhang Cheng with suspicion, Emperor Hongde stared at him in astonishment.
Given his relationship with Wang Ziteng, he shouldn't be trying to save Xue Pan!
"Your Majesty, Xue Pan has a younger sister."

As he slowly uttered those words, Zhang Cheng immediately looked up, his face filled with embarrassment.

Looking at Zhang Cheng with sudden realization, Emperor Hongde pointed at him and said, "You brat, hahaha, hahaha!"

Unable to suppress a laugh, Emperor Hongde slammed his hand on the table and said, "Alright, go down. The Ministry of Revenue will send someone to find you tomorrow!"

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will take my leave now!"

Looking at the Hongde Emperor, who was laughing through his tears, Zhang Cheng couldn't help but feel helpless.
He only meant to say that Xue Baochai was very beautiful, but he didn't expect that Emperor Hongde would misunderstand and think of him as a "devil"!

As they left the palace, Zhang Cheng and Xia Shouzhong walked arm in arm, their faces beaming with smiles.

Following behind, watching Zhang Cheng leave, Eunuch Luo looked at the gold beads in his palm and said, "The Earl is really polite to his godfather!"

With a twitching smile, Xia Shouzhong hid the silver notes and said, "You're right. After all, not everyone can treat us all the same!"

After saying this, Xia Shouzhong turned around and said, "From now on, if there's anything going on in the palace, you'll have to run around more often!"

"Understood, Godfather!"

Nodding to Xia Shouzhong, Eunuch Luo quickly bowed.

(End of this chapter)