You have truly caused me great suffering!

When Tong Guan attacked Liao, Guo Yaoshi, who was stationed in Zhuo and Yi prefectures, was the first to surrender.

Thus, Tong Guan, holding the two prefectures of Zhuo and Yi, amassed his troops at the Baigou River, using Ba and Xiong prefectures as his rear, and began his northern expedition.

Now the Dingnan Army has reached this point again.

With the two prefectures of Zhuo and Yi in hand, they stationed troops in Ba and Xiong prefectures, confronting the Jurchen army at the Baigou River.

The two generals from the foreign tribes, Zonghan and Zongwang, vaguely remind people of Xiao Gan and Yelü Dashi in the past.

Time has come full circle, and five years have passed, it seems like we've come full circle again.

But those once influential figures are no longer the same.

Xiao Gan was defeated and killed, and the Great Xi Kingdom was like a dream.
Tong Guan was executed for his crimes, and he obtained the title of king, but it was a ridiculous trick to buy a fake king.
Yelü Dashi fled to the west, preserving a spark of Khitan civilization. However, historically, only those who were defeated in the east and fled to the west, such as the Xiongnu and Turks, had done so.
I've never heard of them managing to fight their way back from the west.

After the battle lines stabilized, just like in Yunnei, the two sides resumed their fierce fighting.

This time, the war moved from the mountainous Yunnei region into the border area between Hebei and Youyan.

The terrain here is low, flat and open, with dense waterways and crisscrossing rivers. The Baigou River and its tributaries, such as the Liuli River, Xiaoqing River and Huliang River, flow through the area, with alternating "rivers, beaches and depressions".

Such places are easy to lose in a war, but neither side showed any restraint, and they fought almost every day.

The soldiers at the front were eager to fight, and Chen Shao did not stop them, because doing so would be a drain on the country's resources.

Now the Song Dynasty is half-controlled, and the Jin Dynasty cannot outlast it.

Since the two sides have been able to reach a stalemate militarily, it is tantamount to the foreign race losing.

Because unless they crash into the Central Plains, just like during the Jingkang Incident in history, they can't possibly break through the Central Plains and plunder it.

Otherwise, given their production capacity, what could they possibly use to wear down the Song Dynasty?

Let alone the small Jin Dynasty, even if we include all the dynasties in the Central Plains throughout history, disregarding military combat strength and forcibly equalizing military capabilities, in terms of sheer national resources expenditure, the Song Dynasty was far superior.

The annual tribute saved by our Great Song Dynasty is enough to keep us at bay for ten or eight years.

Because the Dingnan Army had recovered Hebei, the imperial court specially appointed Prince Chen Shao of Dai as Grand Commandant and Pacification Commissioner of Yunnei and Yanshan. Three days later, he was promoted to Grand Tutor and Pacification Commissioner of Hedong and Hebei.

Just as Li Shishi had predicted, people came in an endless stream to offer their congratulations at the Prince of Dai's residence.

The gentry and powerful families who fled from the east did not want to leave. They stayed in Hedong, hoping to have a chance to infiltrate the Dingnan Army.

This was their shared idea.

The Song Dynasty was reduced to a skeleton, having been twice driven to the vicinity of the capital, causing it to lose all prestige and popular support.

The sense of despair felt during Zongwang's first southward journey was a huge blow to the scholars of the Central Plains.

With no ability to resist, all the troops collapsed at the first touch, making one wonder what kind of court and army all those years of taxes had produced.

The humiliating and shameful events during the campaign against Liao are all embarrassing.

In the end, Youyan was bought with money to maintain appearances, but after squeezing everyone dry, they bought back an empty shell, which was then taken away again every year.

It's one thing if you can't fight, but then someone who's exceptionally good at fighting suddenly appears, making the contrast even more striking.

Outside Taiyuan City, Chen Shaohe and a group of officials were chatting and inspecting the harvest.

As expected, this year was indeed a bumper year, but with many laborers from Hedong on the front lines, the harvest became a problem.

To avoid a bumper harvest but no profit, Chen Shao urged his officials to find ways to free up manpower.

Finally, the idea was to have each prefecture in Hedong count the number of farmers without labor power, calculate the yield per mu, and then have the local soldiers and yamen runners harvest the crops, deduct taxes based on the acreage of the land, and distribute the grain directly to the people.

Chen Shao nodded in agreement and allocated funds to compensate the officials and soldiers who collected the grain.
-
In a house not far from the Cai residence, Li Qingzhao was doing her hair and makeup in front of the mirror.

Maode invited her to the Prince of Dai's residence. Considering her current financial difficulties and her frequent reliance on Maode's assistance, Li Qingzhao agreed.

Zhao Mingcheng watched as she pinned the wooden hairpin he had given her into her hair, and sighed, saying, "Now that the treacherous officials in the court have fallen and the Tartars have withdrawn from Hebei, I wonder if we can ever return to Laizhou."

Li Qingzhao was dissatisfied. "The Tartars have left, and you're going back? What kind of behavior is that?"

And why would they leave you an official position?

She glanced back at him, about to speak, but then remembered that her husband had been unwell and in a bad mood lately, so she didn't say anything.

The Zhao family has declined, and now that they no longer have official positions or salaries, they are struggling to make ends meet every day, which makes Zhao Mingcheng quite anxious.

Moreover, his illness has been getting worse these days, and getting medicine has become quite expensive.

Even his wife's hairpins were changed from gold and silver to wood.

She pawned her last hairpin a few days ago to buy herself some tonics.

Fortunately, his wife did not complain, but lived a simple life with him.

Seeing that his wife remained silent, Zhao Mingcheng hesitated for a moment before saying, "I heard you're acquainted with Li Yumei. Could you ask her father for me? He's quite influential these days."

Li Qingzhao sighed inwardly, stood up and forced a smile, gently pressing his shoulder and saying softly, "You should just focus on recovering first. Otherwise, even if Li Tangchen arranges an official position for you, I wouldn't want you to go and do all the work."

Zhao Mingcheng was moved and said, "We can't just sit around and do nothing."

"You can think about these things once you're fully recovered."
-
When Chen Shao returned to his residence, he heard the noise of guests in the front yard. He thought that Li Shishi's room was quiet because she was pregnant.

Upon entering the courtyard, one sees Chun Tao playing Cuju (an ancient Chinese football game) with several maids.

Although it is already autumn, the air is still warm; the occasional breeze that blows in is not cool at all.

Li Shishi leaned back on the soft couch, watching them play, looking incredibly relaxed and content. Chen Shao couldn't help but smile, and seeing Li Shishi about to stand up, he quickly waved his hand to signal her not to move.

Chun Tao was having fun, but she just winked at Chen Shao and didn't stop.

Chen Shao sat beside Li Shishi and was talking to her when he suddenly noticed a small Buddha statue on the table. It was very clear and bright, and he wondered what kind of beautiful jade it was made of.

"This is?"

"This was specially delivered by someone from the Daxiangguo Temple."

"Daxiangguo Temple?" Chen Shao was somewhat surprised. "It's kind of them to send it from so far away."

I do have some connection with the Great Xiangguo Temple, but it was all by chance.

They thought they were selling jade artifacts on behalf of Tong Guan, and in order to curry favor with him, they bought all the things Li Shishi had given them at high prices.

To be honest, it did me a huge favor back then.

This money can be considered my start-up capital.

Without this money, he wouldn't have been able to bribe Tong Guan's important confidants, and thus wouldn't have been able to get the opportunities he later had.

“They’ve returned all the things you sold.” Li Shishi rolled her eyes at Chen Shao and said, “So you sold all the dowry to the monks. No wonder I’ve never seen them.”

Chen Shao chuckled and shook his head slightly. This Daxiangguo Temple really has something special about it.

No wonder he has always been able to make a fortune.

Although those items are quite valuable, it would be a worthwhile deal to establish a connection with them.

I wonder if I could have the chance to bring together the Zhai family, my Buddhist representatives in the Western Regions, with the Daxiangguo Temple and make a fortune together.

People can't be stopped from praying to gods and Buddhas, but the money from incense offerings shouldn't all go to the monks.

"Let's go in and take a look."

Chen Shao helped Li Shishi up and into the room. Seeing all the wonderful things in the room, he couldn't help but laugh.

Seeing the first few items that were sold brought back a flood of memories.

"Without you, my little rich girl, I wouldn't be where I am today."

Li Shishi's eyes were full of sweetness as she smiled and said, "It's all thanks to my husband's greatness. I'm just lucky to have met you."

Chen Shao noticed a painting hanging on the wall: magnolias were just beginning to bloom, crabapple blossoms were vibrant and colorful, and behind a beautiful rock, several clusters of peonies were in full bloom, with a wild pheasant wandering among them.

"Hey, this looks like a peony painting."

"Yes, this is Xu Xi's 'Magnolia and Peony Painting,' also known as the 'Jade Hall of Wealth and Prosperity Painting.'"

Chen Shao was slightly taken aback, remembering someone. It seemed that Li Qingzhao had taken a liking to this painting and he had even accepted a hairpin from her as a deposit.

Then the next day, we set off for Yokoyama.

Chen Shao vaguely remembered that after resigning from her official post, Li Qingzhao and her husband did not seem to be doing very well.

He rolled up the painting and said, "Give it to me."

Li Shishi nodded, her smile a mixture of sweetness and doting affection. "Whatever my young master wants, I will give you everything I can."

Chen Shao held her hand and saw that Li Shishi's face was flushed, charming and beautiful, with full lips. He couldn't help but lower his head and kiss her.

A pleasant fragrance enveloped him, making him feel as if he were enveloped in a fog.

After a while, Li Shishi parted from him, smoothed her hair, and said somewhat awkwardly, "I'm not feeling well, my lord, please go find him."

Li Shishi glanced at Chun Tao, who was still playing Cuju (an ancient Chinese football game), and called out from the window with a smile.

Chen Shao watched her leave, and he was indeed somewhat tempted. When Chun Tao came in, he asked in a daze, "Where's my older sister?"

Chen Shao waved, and Chun Tao immediately ignored her older sister and ran over with a grin.

After exercising, the girl's skin looked exceptionally rosy and radiant, just like a ripe peach.

Chen Shao held her in his arms, sat her on his lap, and kissed her.

Chun Tao felt a little uncomfortable. She felt sticky all over and was wearing a short, mushy outfit for playing Cuju (ancient Chinese football), with her hair tied up and her forehead bound, making her look like a tomboy.

He then twisted his body and said, "I'm all sweaty, can I go wash up first?"

"This is exactly what I wanted."

Back in his room, Chen Shao asked Cui Die to bring out the old cabinet, which they searched for a long time.

Sure enough, there was another hairpin in the cabinet.

Cui Die found a wooden box, put it in, and then wrapped it together with the peony painting.

"Go to the guest room in the front yard and see if Madam Zhao is there."

"Which Madam Zhao?"

“It’s Zhao Mingcheng’s wife, the Lady Zhao who is often with Princess Maode,” Chen Shao said. “Whenever she arrives, give her these two items and also convey my apologies to her.”

They essentially took the deposit and then ran away. (End of Chapter)