You have truly caused me great suffering!

In Jinling, the grass grows lush and the orioles sing.

The lack of news from the army that was about to launch the spring campaign really startled Chen Shao.

He thought about it carefully, but he couldn't imagine what kind of accident might happen.

The name Yue Fei still gives him a sense of security.

Until news arrived from the Ongud forces, the wounded soldiers who had been withdrawn finally brought battle reports, and Yue Fei led everyone to continue the Northern Expedition.

Chen Shao was finally relieved.

But then I realized that such a general indeed requires a ruler with some courage to employ.

For example, myself.

The troops Yue Fei is leading now represent only a small fraction of the forces under the Great Jing dynasty.

From Zhao Gou's perspective, he was facing Yue Fei, who commanded an army of 100,000 (including combat troops, auxiliary troops, logistics troops, naval troops, and agricultural settlers).
The elite direct troops numbered twenty to thirty thousand, including eight thousand Beiwei soldiers, each one incredibly fierce.

The Northern Expedition to destroy the Jin Dynasty was not just empty talk, but a highly probable event. This is precisely why his daily pronouncements about welcoming back the two emperors only intensified Zhao Gou's fear.

However, it must be said that Yue Fei was truly audacious.

He already commands such a large army; the imperial court orders him to accept Liu Guangshi's 100,000 troops—does he really dare to go?
They even seriously considered how to incorporate them.

If this were Guo Ziyi, he would have to submit eighty memorials a day to decline.

Now that he knew that Yue Fei's spring expeditionary army had not suffered any mishaps, Chen Shao felt relieved.

There's another matter to attend to today: Yuwen Xuzhong is returning.

Chen Shao also felt that he had stayed at the Tangshan Palace for a while, so he took this opportunity to return to the capital and welcome Yuwen Xuzhong back.

Chen Shao always cherished such capable officials.

To help him better handle affairs in Japan, he actually went and stayed there for half a year. Who wouldn't like such a minister?

Moreover, based on Chen Shao's understanding of him, he must have thoroughly investigated the customs and culture of Japan over the past six months.

In fact, Chen Shao was not very clear about the situation in Japan at this time.

All I know is that the place is in chaos now, society is quite dark, and the nobles are inhuman, but the common people are tough and resilient.

Early in the morning, Chen Shao got up and ordered the Imperial Household Department to prepare ceremonial guards to escort the Empress and concubines back to the palace.

As for himself, he left first with the guards.

Before leaving, Chen Shao looked back at the Tangshan Palace one last time, and had to admit that it was a really comfortable place.

I'll come back next winter myself!

He still had many things to do at this time and couldn't spend his days soaking in hot springs like that grandson of Li Longji.

Chen Shao is a good rider and has never fallen behind in his practice over the years. He often practices riding and archery with Da Hu.

It only took a little over an hour to get back to the capital.

Chen Shao summoned officials from the Secretariat of the Forbidden City to the Funing Palace. Upon seeing this, everyone knew that His Majesty was about to return.

Everyone had a happy expression on their face.

Their relationship with their ruler was relatively harmonious and close, which surpassed that of most emperors.

Especially during the Ming Dynasty, the relationship between many emperors and their ministers was like that of enemies. As for the Manchus, there was no such thing as the affection between ruler and subject; they were treated like household slaves.

Chen Shao exchanged pleasantries with the group and listened to their discussions on government affairs, but he hardly interrupted.

One of the purposes of hiding in Tangshan Palace was to extricate himself from the heavy political affairs.

Chen Shao was cultivating a system, not people; he needed a bureaucratic system that could function on its own.

Now is the time to fill in the gaps and make improvements little by little, leaving a relaxed team for future generations.

Even if some of the later generations are not very bright, they can still rely on this group to keep the empire running.

At noon, Chen Shao ordered the imperial kitchen to prepare some wine and dishes as a small imperial banquet to celebrate his return, and he ate lunch with only a few officials from the Secretariat and the Chancellery.

Halfway through the meal, Chen Chong came over and said that Doctor Yuwen had returned.

Chen Shao smiled and asked the eunuchs to bring over a small table and a set of bowls and chopsticks.

They ate several plates of seasonal vegetables and a soup of fresh bamboo shoots and old duck, which tasted pretty good.

The Song Dynasty marked a watershed moment in the history of Chinese culinary culture, often hailed as the "Renaissance of Chinese gastronomy." Driven by a combination of factors, including economic prosperity, urban development, a growing urban class, and active overseas trade, Song Dynasty cuisine achieved unprecedented levels of systematization, refinement, accessibility to the general public, and even artistry.

The iron smelting industry was highly developed in the Song Dynasty, and craftsmen were able to cast thin, uniform, heat-conducting, and inexpensive cast iron pots, providing the hardware foundation for high-temperature stir-frying.

The technology for pressing sesame and rapeseed oil is mature (wooden oil presses are widely used), and the output of rapeseed oil has increased significantly, making "stir-frying" possible.

Soy sauce, vinegar, wine, ginger, garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, fennel, and other seasonings also appeared in turn.

The Song Dynasty, aside from its poor military prowess, was quite robust in other aspects, especially in the products of its urban culture.

When Yuwen Xuzhong entered, he saw Chen Shao smiling at him, and his eyes couldn't help but redden. He stepped forward and bowed, "Your subject Yuwen Xuzhong greets Your Majesty!"

"Sit down, let's eat together."

Upon seeing the imperial banquet in the Central Plains again, Yuwen Xuxin's feelings were indescribable.

He sat down at his small table. The dishes in front of him were very simple, but they looked, smelled, and tasted delicious.

A dish of stir-fried spring chives and mushrooms, with bright colors, clearly made from freshly harvested first-harvest chives paired with fresh mountain mushrooms, stir-fried into a dish of emerald green and tender yellow, with a fragrant aroma.

There was also a cold dish, made by blanching wild shepherd's purse shoots and mixing them with sesame paste and a little minced garlic, which was refreshing and appetizing.

"Uncle Tong, what did you eat in Japan?"

Yuwen Xuzhong chuckled, "The food in the army is decent; there's often fish and shrimp to go with the wine."

Li Tangchen asked with a smile, "Shutong, what is the climate and customs of that island nation on the East Sea like? Is there anything worth seeing?"

"It's a stinking place. They spout nonsense about propriety, righteousness, loyalty, and trustworthiness, yet they're not even as good as barbarians." Yuwen Xuzhong's low evaluation made Chen Shao perk up to listen to his profound opinions.

Yuwen Xuzhong looked disgusted. "The land of Japan is mountainous and barren, and its people are not yet enlightened. Their country is called 'Japan,' and they claim to be descendants of Amaterasu, yet the hierarchy among the people is as vast as the heavens and the earth."

"When the common people saw a samurai crossing the street, regardless of age, they would all kneel down in the mud, bow their heads to the ground, and not dare to lift their eyelids. If anyone accidentally looked directly at him, he would be whipped at best and have a finger cut off at worst. The people of the city were used to this and considered it a blessing to avoid the samurai's carriages and horses."

"The so-called 'public' and 'military' families live high in the city, enjoying fine clothes and sumptuous food; while farmers and fishermen toil all year round, unable to even get enough to eat. The nobles are unaware of the people's suffering, and the common people dare not look up to the nobles. There is no communication between the upper and lower classes, the people's hearts are like scattered sand, and loyalty and righteousness have no roots."

"Such a country, outwardly polite but inwardly rotten, is not worth mentioning. In reality, it is a group of wicked gentry who have raised a large number of powerful slaves to help them enslave the people like dogs and sheep."

"As for the local people, they are ignorant and foolish, like weeds. They dare not resist even with a knife to their necks, but if provoked, they become extremely ferocious, which shows that their bestial nature has not been eliminated."

As Chen Shao listened, he realized that Yuwen Xuzhong had discovered the real thing.
These words really struck a chord with me.

The other ministers also nodded frequently.

They don't care about the people in this place, as long as the gold and silver production can be guaranteed.

Since they are so incompetent, they pose no threat to Da Jing.

Speaking of policies towards Goryeo and Japan, most of them were personally implemented by His Majesty, and everyone else could be said to have benefited from them.

After all, everyone benefits once the gold and silver are brought back.

Yuwen Xuzhong's words deeply moved Chen Shao.

He knew that Yuwen Xuzhong must have put in a lot of effort to understand Japan so thoroughly in just a few months.

They will definitely be of great help when dealing with affairs in Japan in the future.

"After the Kitada clan established themselves in Ise Province, they have been requesting to become part of the Chinese empire. What does Your Majesty intend to do about this?"

Chen Shao picked up his wine cup, took a sip, and said, "Ise Province can be incorporated into Dengzhou Prefecture. In the future, all the old powerful families will be eliminated, the Japanese will be driven out, and the population of Dengzhou will be moved to fill the area."

Yuwen Xuzhong shook his head slightly and said, "Such a procedure is far too cumbersome and costly. The local people don't even have names. We only need to burn Japanese books, change their language, and give them Han surnames and order them to choose names. In less than three generations, within a dozen years, they can become ordinary people."

Yuwen Xuzhong felt that spending money to drive away the local people was a huge waste of manpower.

Those who stayed to work were all highly skilled.

If the oppressive methods employed by those powerful figures in Japan were applied to any prefecture in the Central Plains, it would have long since led to widespread uprisings.

Such obedient people are not worth driving away.

Furthermore, in future plans, the entire Japanese island will be gradually incorporated into the grand vision.

Kicking them out wouldn't help; it would only be a waste of time.

Chen Shao's greatest virtue is that he listens to advice, and he nodded upon hearing this.

The matter of switching to Chinese is a major undertaking that Chen Shao plans to undertake in Goryeo, and he has been planning it since last year.

Choi Soon-jeong, who put forward this theory, can be said to have risen to prominence overnight, from a fallen nobleman to one of the most influential people in Goryeo.

But it's obvious that this will provoke huge opposition in Korea.

It would be a good opportunity to conduct a pilot program in Ise Province.

Liu Jizu was a very pragmatic man. After listening to the story, he frowned and said, "If people cannot understand each other's languages, then education will not be effective. In the past, the Qin Dynasty standardized the written language, and the Han Dynasty promoted the elegant language. Now, I do not object to changing the Japanese people to speak Chinese. However, it is easier to move mountains than to change customs. I am afraid this matter will take at least ten years to complete."

“A serious illness requires drastic measures!” Chen Shao’s expression turned somewhat cold as he said, “I will issue an order to Bei Tian to complete this task, or I will not let him off lightly.”

Yuwen Xuzhong knew those powerful families; the Kitada clan was also a powerful family from Ise Province.

Since this matter threatens the lives of their people, they will certainly stop at nothing to change the language spoken by the people.

Is it difficult to change customs? Just kill off all the lowly people who can't be changed, and things will get back on track quickly.

Do you really think the Kitada gentlemen would have the patience to teach them one by one? Whether they can even save their own lives is another matter entirely.

The fact that Chen Shao could now utter the words "I will not let him off easily" carried immense weight. (End of Chapter)