Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 74: A Common Man's Rash Comments on the Past and Future (Part )
Lu You was silent for a moment, ignoring Liu Huai and continuing, "My good friend Du Xinlao was promoted to Imperial Censor in April. He once told me that he would get rid of the two thieves, Zhang Quwei and Wang Jixian, even if it cost him his life."

After a pause, Lu You continued, "In May, Du Xinlao impeached Zhang Quwei on the grounds that he had 'taken 200 men from the Western Army of the Imperial Horse Court and shaved their heads,' and had the Imperial Guards disguise themselves as Jurchens. This caused an uproar in the court and the public, and the emperor was forced to retire Zhang Quwei."

"In early July, Wang Jixian told the emperor that there was no trouble on the border, but that the generals were eager to use their troops and seek credit. He said that if they killed one or two of the leaders, they could negotiate peace with the Jin people again. The emperor was furious and asked Wang Jixian if he wanted to kill Liu Qi."

"When the news broke, the court panicked. This was because the Song Dynasty's famous generals were dwindling, either old or dead. So far, only Wu Lin, Liu Qi, Cheng Min, and Li Xianzhong are capable of significant service. If Liu Qi is murdered, the Lianghuai Commandery will remain vacant, and the Song Dynasty will be in danger."

"As a result, Du Xinlao once again impeached Wang Jixian on ten counts and finally had him expelled from the palace."

"But this was not the emperor's original intention. It was the emperor, under pressure from external officials, who demoted the internal officials. As a result, Du Xinlao's future is ruined. Before we set out, I received news that he had been demoted to a prefecture."

Everyone in the tent looked at each other in confusion, still not understanding what the elimination of treacherous officials in the court had to do with whether Wei Sheng would be the commander-in-chief. Wei Sheng seemed to understand, but when he opened his mouth, he found that he had no idea where to start.

Liu Huai explained again, "Mr. Lu, everyone in the tent is a butcher. They won't understand what you're saying. Why don't I explain it to you?"

Seeing Lu You's tacit approval, Liu Huai couldn't help but laugh again and said loudly, "The Jin army is about to arrive, but our Emperor Zhao has not even made any strategic preparations, and instead wants to abandon the country and flee. If he flees to Bashu, Zhang Quwei will be in charge; if he flees to Huzhou, Wang Jixian will be in charge."

"If we want Emperor Zhao to be resolute in his resolve to fight the Jin with all his might, we must first eliminate those two escape routes that could lead to him abandoning his country. Only when he has no other options will he consider a desperate struggle. Therefore, Censor Du would rather ruin his own future than expel Zhang Quwei and Wang Jixian."

Liu Huai shook his head, a look of derision on his face. "Censor Du did succeed, but it was too late. Wang Jixian was not expelled until July, which means Emperor Zhao only made up his mind to fight the Jin invasion with all his strength before we set out."

The Jin have been preparing for years, arriving in the autumn. With only two months left, the Song Dynasty's defenses must be fragile. A single misstep could lead to the collapse of the nation, the decline of the Hu people, and the sinking of the Chinese nation. "Mr. Lu, am I right or wrong?"

Lu You took a deep breath, and amidst the frightened and hesitant looks from those around him, he nodded with difficulty: "That's right."

"That's why Duke Wei shouldn't bother with formalities and simply declare himself informed of Haizhou's affairs." Lu You looked up and gazed directly into Wei Sheng's eyes. "In this war against the Jin, the Song Dynasty is at a huge disadvantage. We must seize every ounce of our strength. Duke Wei, the situation is more pressing than we imagined."

After that, Lu You looked at Liu Huai again and said, "Liu Dalang, I am a few years older than you, so I will give you some advice."

"Mr. Lu, please speak."

"Liu Dalang, when I was your age, I was also very angry and often spoke nonsense. But as I grew older, I finally understood the difficulties of life." Lu You said sincerely, "Dalang, you are a man of both civil and military talents, a leader among the younger generation. You should be more cautious in your words and actions. It's better to avoid making irresponsible remarks about the government."

Liu Huai was speechless for a moment. After all, he still had some awe for such a loyal minister.

Like his adoptive father Wei Sheng, like Lu You before him, and even before him, like Yue Fei and Yue Pengju, like Han Shizhong and Han Liangchen. They stood up to foreign invaders and were willing to sacrifice their lives for the Han people. Should we mock them for their blind loyalty, or their inflexibility, simply because they were loyal to the Song Dynasty?

In this era, if they are not loyal to the Song Dynasty, who else can they be loyal to?

Are you loyal to the people?
How could it be possible? This wasn't the era of the great intellectual liberation that would come hundreds of years later. Yet, when I think of Yue Fei, Han Shizhong, Liu Qi, Wei Sheng, Xin Qiji, who was as famous as Lu You, and even more distant figures like Zong Ze and Li Yanxian, I think of how they were unjustly murdered, abandoned, discarded, and humiliated.

Thinking about the tragedies that have happened or are about to happen, Liu Huai still feels uneasy.

"Does Mr. Lu know Shi Yisheng?"

Lu You didn't know why Liu Huai suddenly mentioned this person, but after thinking for a moment, he said, "It seems he was an envoy from the Kingdom of Jin."

"Indeed." Liu Huai nodded. "In the 29th year of Shaoxing, two years ago, Lord Shi was sent as an envoy to the Song Dynasty. A Song minister mocked him with the term 'Shouqiu'. Lord Shi was moved and said, 'The north wind is very strong today.' He then knocked his pen on the table and said, 'Pen, pen!' This was a coded message that revealed military secrets and indicated that the Song Dynasty should begin its alert. Do you know what happened to this man?"

Lu You shook his head.

Liu Huai spoke sincerely, enunciating each word, "After the delegation returned to the Jin Kingdom, the deputy envoy, Yelu Pilila, reported Shi Yisheng to Wanyan Liang for leaking military secrets. Then, Shi Yisheng was boiled to death in a large cauldron by Wanyan Liang."

Lu You's face turned pale.

"Mr. Lu, after hearing the news that Lord Shi risked his life to deliver, how did Lord Zhao respond? Was he deceiving himself and others, pretending nothing had happened? Was he making no military preparations at all? With the world at this point, was Lord Zhao right? If Lord Zhao was right, then what did Lord Shi's death mean?"

As he spoke, Liu Huai, regardless of Lu You's shaky condition, drew a circle in the tent with his finger and pointed at his chest.

"Everyone in this tent, including the thousands of loyal and righteous soldiers and Dongping troops outside, are mostly ruffians. The country has shown them no favors, yet at this critical moment, they are needed to fight tooth and nail to protect Emperor Zhao. Don't they deserve to know who has brought the world to this point? Are they willing to remain ignorant even until death?"

Lu You's breathing became heavier. Seeing that everyone around him looked up, he opened his mouth but was speechless. He could only stand up, clasped his hands and bowed to everyone, and said with difficulty: "Everyone, I... I don't mean to let you die, it's just..."

Before he had finished speaking, someone could no longer hold back and shouted, "Mr. Lu is wrong, and General Liu is also wrong."

When everyone looked over, they saw that it was Li Xiu who had led the Dayishan bandits into the gang this morning and became the team leader.

"Mr. Lu, there's no need to feel guilty, and General Liu, there's no need to remind us. We Shandong men didn't rebel just for Emperor Zhao. We would fight the Jin bandits whether Emperor Zhao was around or not." Li Xiu had been listening for a while, growing impatient. He stood up and shouted, "The bottom line is, it's because the Jin bandits won't give us Shandong people a chance to live. Since we're going to die anyway, we might as well die gloriously!"

"Commander Wei, I know you're a cautious man, but look at the crops out there. The grain that's about to be harvested will be used as rations for the Jin invaders' southern expedition, and the farmers who grew it won't even harvest a single grain. This winter, when the Jin invaders' army invades the south, all the young and strong men in Shandong will take up swords and become bandits, and all the women and children in Shandong will starve to death."

"Commander Wei, this is urgent. There's no time for hesitation. If you don't save them, you're killing them!"

By the end, Li Xiu's eyes were red.

(End of this chapter)