You have truly caused me great suffering!

These days, Chen Shao has kept his schedule very relaxed.

He was either going to Baozhen Temple to offer incense and cultivate immortality, or going to Xuanwu Lake to secretly meet Xiao Ting, and he would also wander around the harem from time to time.

It wasn't just about being busy with that; in fact, there was a lot of fun being with them.

These women were multi-talented, each possessing their own unique talents, whether it was writing calligraphy, painting, composing poetry, singing and dancing, or indulging in vocal music.

It can be said that Emperor Dajing took a New Year's holiday in November.

In fact, the most important matters of the court are indeed handled at this time. After a busy year, it is not suitable to do any more important things, so it is time to take a good rest.

Today, something serious finally happened, and Chen Shao led his men to the Imperial Academy.

Thanks to the care and treatment from Li Shishi and Lin Niangzi, coupled with his own exercise, Chen Shao's physique became increasingly upright and robust. Moreover, he was still very young and had even grown taller.
As the emperor's carriage finally arrived, the officials and scholars of the Imperial Academy came out to greet him. They led Chen Shao to a study, where the guards immediately set up their guards and began clearing the area.

Near the window stood a desk, complete with the Four Treasures of the Study. Chen Shao sat down casually, resting his hands on his knees as he looked down.

Everyone stepped back to stand at the lower end, but since everyone was moving forward, Cui Shunting and the others were squeezed to the side.

Chen Shao looked around but couldn't see anyone who looked like they were from Korea, and couldn't help but mutter to himself.

Are the scholars of Goryeo the same as those of Daegeung?
"Which ones came from Korea?"

Only then did everyone remember Cui Shunting and the others, and hurriedly pulled him to the front of the palace. When Cui Shunting saw Chen Shao, his Adam's apple bobbed, and his head felt dizzy.

This is the most powerful man in the world. When he wrote the letter to Wei Danian in Baozhou Prefecture, he never imagined that things would turn out this way.

"This humble foreign subject pays homage to His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Jing Dynasty!"

Chen Shao nodded and said, "Stand up and speak."

After Cui Shunting stood up, he realized that Wei Danian was standing next to His Majesty, looking at him with a smile.

In his eyes, Cui Shunting was a good person who helped him come from a desolate and cold place to the capital, Nanjing.

Wei Danian himself felt an urge to kowtow to him.

It was only after he arrived that he realized how wonderful Jinling was, even more prosperous than the former capital city of Bianliang!

“Cui Shunting, His Majesty just mentioned you to me.”

Wei Danian said with a smile, and Cui Shunting shuddered upon hearing it.

He was a member of the Poro clan of Goryeo. If King Wang Kai of Goryeo had treated him with great courtesy, Choi Soon-jung might have been excited, but he would never have been so passionate.

Having witnessed the power of this behemoth, he felt even greater awe for Chen Shao.

His one thought is worth more than several generations of your struggle.

"This humble foreign subject, Cui Shunting, is deeply grateful and is willing to go through fire and water for Your Majesty, devoting himself to the utmost!"

"I'll remember what you said." Chen Shao chuckled, then asked, "Where are the men you brought?"

That one sentence made Cui Shunting feel lightheaded, as if every pore in his body was relaxing, and he was about to ascend to immortality. He quickly turned around to find the thirty poor scholars he had brought with him.

A group of Korean scholars stepped forward, bowed, and stood in the hall.

Chen Shao's gaze swept over them, and he chuckled slightly. These scholars from Goryeo, who had come from afar, immediately felt that His Majesty's gaze was like warm jade, making them feel comfortable all over.

"Looking at you all, you are all dressed in hemp and straw sandals, your faces covered in dust, and you are not wearing a single piece of silk or satin. From this, I can tell that your parents must not be wealthy. Yet they still supported you to learn to read and write. You yourselves know better than anyone how hard it was for you. Why? Nothing more than hoping that their children would become successful."

"Now that you have come to Jinling, I have a word to say to you, and I hope you will remember it: Do not feel inferior because of poverty, and do not give up on yourselves because of distance."

"Being born into poverty is not a disgrace. One should not fail one's parents' kindness, but should study the classics and understand loyalty, filial piety, and righteousness."

After speaking, Chen Shao smiled and waved, and Chen Chong led a group of eunuchs forward, carrying a wooden tray.

Inside were thirty jade pendants. Chen Shao smiled and said, "Today, I bestow upon each of you a jade pendant. I hope you will take this stone as your motto and learning as your guide, so that you may become the pillars of the nation!"

After saying that, he stood up and prepared to leave to take a stroll around the Imperial Academy.

The Korean scholars behind him had long since prostrated themselves on the ground, tears streaming down their faces. Some who couldn't yet understand Chinese also wept after their companions translated for them.

The next thing to do is to study hard. These poor scholars who came from the lower classes of Goryeo, if you say they had the opportunity but didn't study, no one would believe it.

In their land, there's still a lot of stories about poor families studying hard and then defying fate to change their destiny.

While it is true that loyalty, filial piety, and righteousness are learned in Jinling, Confucian loyalty does not necessarily mean loyalty to the King of Goryeo.
Even the great Korean scholar Kim Bu-seok believed that loyalty meant loyalty to the sovereign emperor.

These scholars come every year in such large numbers. After they return to their homeland, with a little support from the Great Jing Dynasty, it will be easy for them to infiltrate the Goryeo bureaucratic system.

Once you've accumulated enough 'disciples in Jinling', some things will fall into place naturally.

Chen Shao's move, if you look at it as insidious, is indeed insidious; if you look at it as overt, it can be considered a calculated scheme.
This is still for Goryeo; when Dali arrives, the favor will be even greater.

After all, the various tribes of Dali were all Han Chinese descendants who had been scattered abroad.

Chen Shao truly had no intention of waging war against these two countries that were not subject to his conquest; in other words, these scholars were his soldiers.
-
Chen Shao took a stroll around the Imperial Academy and found it rather uninteresting.

Reforming the imperial examination system was also part of his plan. At present, the imperial examination system is still the best solution, but it can be modified appropriately.

Ideally, we should select talented individuals from all walks of life to govern the country together.

But this is a huge and complex project, just like the infiltration of Goryeo, and it cannot be rushed.

However, if we are patient and work on this matter slowly, it will be a great achievement for future generations. Chen Shao suddenly realized that he still had a lot to do, and the accompanying officials, seeing that he was not in high spirits, were all considering leaving.

Taking the opportunity, Wei Danian said, "Your Majesty, why don't we go and take a look at the Academy of Engineering?"

He was trying to please Chen Shao, knowing how much he valued the engineering college, but Chen Shao shook his head and said, "No, thank you."

He's the first to know about any progress the engineering institute makes. Every time he goes there, it's a huge commotion, which actually slows down the craftsmen's progress.

Today's engineering colleges are not only filled with craftsmen, but also with many learned scholars like Shen Kuo who record their creations and skills for others to learn from.

In fact, until the Northern Song Dynasty, the Central Plains reached an unprecedented peak of prosperity in many fields such as astronomy, mathematics, physics, geography, medicine, and engineering technology.

The Imperial Observatory of the Song Dynasty was dedicated to astronomical observation and calendar revision, and was equipped with precision instruments such as armillary spheres and gnomons.

Shen Kuo once served as the chief official of the Imperial Observatory, where he presided over large-scale astronomical observations. He observed the stars for several consecutive months and accurately determined the position and magnetic declination of Polaris.

There are even resonance experiments (paper doll string testing), magnetic declination recording, and pinhole imaging studies. It is the world's earliest acoustic resonance experiment, 500 years earlier than in Europe.

In geographical surveying, Shen Kuo's "Map of the Provinces and Counties" also innovatively adopted cartographic methods such as "ratio and accuracy", achieving extremely high precision.

The Water-Powered Astronomical Clock Tower, built by Su Song and Han Gonglian, is the world's first astronomical clock, integrating observation, demonstration, and timekeeping, and containing the prototype of an escapement mechanism.

These are all invaluable assets, and Chen Shao specifically sent people to organize them. Even during the later Mongol Yuan dynasty, when their control was relatively loose, the Han people still made many technological advancements in astronomy, calendar systems, mathematical algorithms, agriculture, and medicine.

The most regrettable thing is that it was completely cut off by the Qing Dynasty.

Such a deep-seated hatred could not be completely settled—
Japan, Ise Province, Taira House.

The army was delayed due to the demolition of the shrine, and it was not until mid-November that they besieged the Taira clan residence.

The navy landed at Anonozu in Ise Bay, where they joined forces with Guo Hao's cavalry to encircle them.

At this point, because Guo Hao had killed everyone at Ise Grand Shrine, including Toba and Fujiwara no Tadashi, he could no longer deceive them and had no choice but to declare war on Ōkage in anger.

After all, Shintoism, represented by the Ise Grand Shrine, was the foundation of their nation.

However, by this time, the power held by the Emperor Emeritus and the Regent had waned considerably.

Chen Shao didn't care anymore.

They were at most the size of two local warlords.

When the mob grew larger and larger and stormed into Kyoto, that was the time when this so-called Shinto Empire would be destroyed.

In Chen Shao's plan, they had to die. Destroying this so-called unbroken lineage was the first step in conquering the island nation.

It's important to me even without you.

Inside the besieged Taira clan residence, Taira himself had lost all will to fight, but his loyal followers were still clamoring to fight to the death.

After staging his farcical nation-building event, Taira no Tadamori dejectedly spent his days and nights drinking in his mansion.

All major matters were handled by Taira no Kiyomori.

Taira no Kiyomori was only thirteen years old, but he had to shoulder the responsibility and eat and sleep with the assassins every day, earning them great affection.

After all, he was still young and impetuous. Unlike Taira no Tadamori, who had seen the Central Plains, he still fantasized about being able to come back to life.

As long as we hold the city and prevent them from breaching it, reinforcements will arrive from Kyoto.

I heard that the Emperor Emeritus and the Regent have already declared war on the Great Kage.

They also massacred the Ise Grand Shrine, which will inevitably provoke resistance from everyone!
Unfortunately, he had no idea how destructive the White Lotus Religion was to local religious beliefs.

Their Shintoism is riddled with flaws, obscure and difficult to understand, and the stories they create are abstract.

The teachings of Maitreya's descent into the world and the Unborn Mother are so down-to-earth and straightforward that they are a devastating blow to Shintoism and Buddhism in Japan.

The Japanese people, who had lived like pigs and dogs for generations, could never go back once they came into contact with this White Lotus doctrine.

Even the most resilient and hardworking ordinary people can be transformed into the most ruthless mobs with just a few words of brainwashing.

Crucially, these rioters also have a stronghold, continuously sending out various temple leaders and shrine masters from Iwami and Tsukushi provinces to develop their followers.

Their goal was to storm Kyoto, cut off the heads of all the nobles, and offer them to the Eternal Mother to welcome the final blooming of the White Lotus.

After besieging the Ping family mansion, Guo Hao did not immediately attack the city, but instead built warehouses there.

This clearly shows that even after wiping out the Ping clan, they have no intention of stopping.

After all, the Taira clan residence is only 90 kilometers away from Kyoto, and it is very suitable for cavalry deployment.

The only strategic pass was Suzuka Pass, which had long been captured by the Jing army.

Since Toba has declared war, all attacks are justified.

Guo Hao was happy to help the rioters clear away the surrounding obstacles so that they could successfully storm into Kyoto.

His Majesty decreed that the mob should kill the Emperor; this decision cannot be changed.

Only in this way can the authority of the Emperor's lineage be weakened to the greatest extent.

And so, November came to an end in this terrifying atmosphere of siege without attack. (End of Chapter)