Delong

Chapter 580 Crossing the Sea (4)

The May rains fall steadily, always arriving on time.

As the month drew to a close, before the rain had even stopped, the Eastern Capital began to stir. Countless leaders arrived from all over the country, and the streets and markets were filled with people speaking strange Hebei dialects. Come to think of it, there were supposedly nearly four hundred leaders in the Eastern Capital, which wasn't much, but these leaders didn't come alone. Many of them brought entire teams of clerks and soldiers, and since they had arrived, they couldn't help but greet each other and inquire about each other privately.

According to some people, the last time Dongdu was this lively was at the end of four years ago. At that time, the Chulong Gang had just seized Jiangnan and the world was relatively stable. Because many of the war veterans and those who surrendered needed to be posthumously recognized, almost all the leaders, except for a few generals, came to Dongdu to report on their duties and participate in the year-end conference.

At that time, it was truly a vibrant scene where everything was thriving.

Of course, it's pretty much the same now... but it's a little different. The main reason is that these four years have been too busy. Everyone was so busy that they were dizzy and disoriented, and four years just flew by.

It is said that the previous Wei dynasty perished because of two rulers: one was harsh and stingy, who over-exploited and oppressed the people; the other liked to cause chaos, often involving millions of workers and causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people, and later even millions of workers and millions of people scattered. So, shouldn't the new dynasty's good governance be based on allowing the people to rest and recuperate?

It's really not.

Moreover, the reason why the people's livelihood is not affected by war is not just because of war.

Thinking back, the Chulong Army entered the Eastern Capital four years ago, before the May rains arrived. They launched their campaign in the autumn, with five armies sweeping through Jiangnan in just two months, without much fanfare. Only two things from that war seem particularly memorable: First, Xiao Hui, the ruler of Southern Liang, committed suicide by burning himself on a dragon boat outside Jiangdu, with only one of his six concubines, Consort Han, following him to her death; second, Cao Shiyu, after being besieged at the True Fire Sect's headquarters, attempted to jump into the True Fire to commit suicide, but the fire didn't even touch him, and he was ultimately dismembered on the spot by several Chulong Sect masters… It's said that this was because the Crimson Emperor was angry again, hating Cao Shiyu for his incompetence.

Even so, the Red Emperor did not interfere with the unification of Jiangnan. After two months of war, the people of Jiangnan, who had suffered for decades and then been in chaos for ten years, cheered for unification and sincerely welcomed the Ming army.

Wang Longtou, who had finally won the position of commander of the Southern Expedition, was said to have tasted nothing but gluttony. When he boasted about his achievements while drunk, he dared not argue with Li and Xu about it.

Further on, there were still battles.

For example, the Wu tribe fought two more battles in two years, but neither was large in scale. The main reason was the rebellion triggered by the reform, and the scope of mobilization did not exceed Longshang. Even now, there are still rumors about the last rebellion. It is said that Dulan Khan wanted to follow Tuli's example and become the leader, but Zhang Lao Xiang Gong kept sending people who wanted to rebel to him. In the end, he was shot to death by Xu Shiren Xu Longtou on the shore of Beihai without surrendering.

The old Master Zhang, who was admitted to the Southern Court under two dynasties, paved his way to the Southern Court with the countless white bones of the Wu tribe.

In addition, there was a rebellion in the southwest, which could not even be called a rebellion, but was just a disturbance caused by road construction and land redistribution.

That's right. In the last three years of those four years, the biggest impression that ordinary people had of the new dynasty was that it was all about building rivers and roads... The equal land distribution system didn't even count, as that had been established for two or three dynasties. Unless the current dynasty was stricter and fairer, people didn't really feel anything... The biggest impression was that it was all about building rivers and roads!

In these three years, there has never been any benevolent policy of reducing corvée labor; it's all about repairs! Moreover, they haven't even repaired the city walls; it's just these two things. In addition to the fixed 28-day corvée labor period each year, they also have to frequently spend money to recruit workers for repairs.

Chief Zhang himself used to personally practice in Hebei, but he no longer does. However, the first thing newly promoted cultivators do after being selected to join the White Riders is to go to various places to practice this. The sect masters also have to take turns practicing every six months. Newly appointed scholars also have to practice after their first year. Local officials also check how well you practice while they are in office. Of course, practicing like this will inevitably lead to problems.

Just like the founding emperor of the Great Wei Dynasty who liked to investigate the hidden lands of powerful clans, resulting in an amount of land several times greater than that of previous dynasties, once the irrigation works were completed, everyone accepted them! However, the roads were the most prone to problems. So, before the autumn harvest two years ago, there were incidents of young officials forcing people to build roads within the specified time, which led to people being driven to their deaths, as well as local officials building roads haphazardly on the plains to curry favor with Shangguan.

After a great deal of turmoil and a huge uproar in the court, coupled with the fact that the rewards for meritorious officials had been so low, everyone was already dissatisfied. So this time, they tried to take advantage of the situation and almost brought down Prime Minister Chen. In the end, the court took some people from the Ministry of Military Affairs' Carriage and Cavalry Department, the Jing'an Terrace's Post Station Department, and the Clerical Department to establish the Official Roads Department. Together with the newly established Water Conservancy Department, they brought the power to revise the official roads and water conservancy to the Eastern Capital, and only then did the matter calm down.

Of course, the common people of Dongdu were all well-informed and knew that those were external actions, but internally, Emperor Zhang was furious. This included three senior leaders, Liang Jiading, Cao Chen, and Guo Jingke, who had extremely deep seniority, foundation, and merit, as well as seven or eight other leaders who were forced to retire along with four or five newly appointed county magistrates.

Following this incident, Liang Jiading's remark that "no meritorious official in history has ever been so ruthless" and Shan Tonghai's slapping of him on the spot became a catalyst, leading to the passage of the "Internal-National Examination Law" at the end-of-year conference. This law began to use actions to pressure people and also removed any legal restrictions on the elimination of meritorious officials within the gang.

At the time, it seemed like nothing had happened, and the matter was over.

However, Huainan suddenly suffered a severe drought last year, which caused unrest again. In particular, Yin Tianqi, the Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, voluntarily resigned. The newly appointed Junior Censor-in-Chief, Bai Jingang, was far less reliable than the Vice Censor-in-Chief, Dou Lide. As a result, he impeached as many as seven major leaders, eleven leaders, and twenty-nine officials who had served as prefects, magistrates, and heads of departments in the imperial court, claiming that they had failed in their disaster relief efforts. This caused a public uproar, to the point that dozens of leaders of all ranks went to the Southern Office to request an early meeting to review the performance evaluation system and impeach Bai Jingang in return.

This time, the one who lost was the famous upright official known as "Little White Emperor". He was so honest and incorruptible that he was removed from his newly promoted position as the chief of the county due to excessive impeachment and poor performance of his duties. He was demoted to the position of prefect of the former Jiangdu, now Yangzhou.

When they left, half the city saw them off. The dozen or so leaders who had been impeached were trembling with fear, as if walking on thin ice. Many of them were so frightened that they resigned at the end of the year.

Actually, this matter happened less than half a year ago, and now they are hastily gathering at the mid-year conference, claiming that the Grand Commander of the Eastern Barbarians is confirmed to be dead, so they want to attack the Eastern Barbarians... But isn't this campaign against the Eastern Barbarians going to cause even greater chaos?
Have you already forgotten why the Great Wei Dynasty perished after only a few years of peace?

What if a major war breaks out? Why did you, Chief Zhang, rebel back then?

"Chief, I don't want to do this anymore." Amidst the drizzling rain, on the small white pagoda in the willow grove of the West Garden, Prime Minister Chen Bin, panting, arrived on the fourth floor and found Zhang Xing wiping the Imperial Edict Stele. He spoke frankly.

"What do you mean?" Zhang Xing, who seemed to have aged no more in recent years, turned and glanced at Chen Bin, whose hair had turned quite gray, without much surprise. "What happened again?"

"No, I'm just too tired and lack the energy. There's a big meeting coming up, so I took the opportunity to switch to something easier." Chen Bin found the only chair and sat down, speaking quietly. "As for what I'm talking about... actually, thinking about it carefully, these past few years have been incredibly peaceful and prosperous. Those previous messes, which seemed like big issues at the time and difficult to handle, have become clear in retrospect. Especially when you look at history books and compare them with other dynasties at the beginning, we're practically a model of a golden age... It's been four or five years, and we haven't lost four or five leaders, let alone killed dozens of chieftains."

Zhang Xing nodded, but remained noncommittal, and continued wiping the other stone tablets.

“But in recent years, I’ve been dealing with all sorts of trivial matters, which has gradually made me tired and a little anxious,” Chen Bin continued. “Especially these past few days, when Yin Longtou and Lao Xie came over separately, seeing their complexions and hearing them talk about their tour of Jiangnan and their experiences on the Demon Island, I was incredibly envious! Then I suddenly had a daze and remembered the promise I made with Xie Minghe to travel the world together.”

Zhang Xing, who was looking down to decipher the inscription on the Imperial Edict Stele, finally chuckled: "But back then, when you and Xie Minghe made a pact to travel the world together, wasn't it because you saw Yang Bin's power and ruthlessness in destroying Chen that you realized your life's ambitions were over, and that's when you got the idea?"

Chen Bin gave an awkward laugh: "But isn't this an achievement? It far exceeded my expectations back then... At most, all I could think about was assisting the Emperor Chen, working hard to govern the country, and in my later years, dreaming of conquering the world in the north. I never imagined that I would be able to govern the four seas after the founding of the country."

"Old Chen, let's skip the small talk." Zhang Xing finally stood up, tossed aside the rag, and walked over with his hands behind his back. "Let me ask you first, are you truly exhausted?"

“If I really keep going, I can manage, but I am truly exhausted. This resignation is not a pretense.” Chen Bin stood up and said solemnly.

“Alright, I have two conditions.” Zhang Xing approached the other person, took out a new cup from somewhere, poured a glass of chilled plum juice from the table, and handed it to him. “First, delay your departure for two years… at least until after the battle against the Dongyi people. For the public good, after the war, we will be completely unified and internally stable. Any major personnel changes will not shake the situation. For the private good, although you haven’t offended anyone these past few years, you have still taken on a lot of resentment for me. With the merit of being prime minister who ultimately pacifies the Dongyi and the Demon Island and unifies the world, no matter who succeeds you after you leave office, they cannot easily overthrow you or criticize you.”

Chen Bin held the cup, thought for a moment, and then nodded.

"Secondly, if you're leaving, regardless of everything else, you need to have two people in mind... One is someone from the surrendered people in the southeast or the original government troops in Hebei, someone who can take the lead. Otherwise, with all our founding heroes still here, there will be an imbalance within the government." Zhang Xing continued to instruct. "The other is to decide who will succeed the leader. Whether it's my own idea or yours, we need to give him support. We can't let him make a forced handover."

Hearing this, Chen Bin was speechless and nodded repeatedly: "The Chief's idea is more appropriate... But since the Chief has said so, I wonder if you have any thoughts on these two candidates?"

“Of course I have ideas.” Zhang Xing admitted, but then slowly shook his head. “But if I tell you, wouldn’t it be difficult for you to suggest candidates? You think about it first, especially the first one. Once you’ve thought it through, tell me, and I will naturally try my best to cooperate with you.”

Chen Bin nodded repeatedly: "Actually, the first choice is simple... Xie Minghe is just right! He has prestige and merits. After the Southern Liang was pacified, he became a Grandmaster. Moreover, I have talked with him these past few days and I can see that since he has worked in the gang for so many years, when he goes out to travel, even if it is for travel, he can't help but observe the local customs and understand the management of people's livelihood. He knows the hardships of the people. I don't expect him to succeed as prime minister or anything, but it is always feasible for him to enter the Southern Government and manage a region."

"Weren't you going to travel with someone?" Zhang Xing listened with difficulty, but still couldn't quite grasp the situation.

"He's finished swimming, it's my turn now." Chen Bin didn't feel guilty at all.

“Then let him come in. Come in first. You can try to persuade him during the conference arrangements. If that doesn’t work, tell him to come to me.” Zhang Xing didn’t hesitate at all… This candidate was indeed perfect.

Chen Bin finally managed to down the chilled plum juice.

After he finished drinking, Chief Zhang, who had already turned back to continue looking at the inscriptions, suddenly spoke up again: "Since you're here, Old Chen, let me ask you one more question... Chief and Emperor's succession, do you, as the Dragon Head Commander and Prime Minister, have any thoughts?"

Chen Bin, who had just finished drinking plum juice, was slightly surprised, but after a moment he still whispered, "Actually, this is a country that has been ruled by hereditary monarchy for thousands of years... especially Your Majesty's achievements and prestige, which are incomparable to those of everyone below combined. So, I still think Your Majesty should not take risks. According to blood ties, even if Your Majesty has no biological children, you still have a nephew. You can adopt him as your son and let Bai Longtou oversee the country as Empress. That would be good enough... But there is no rush. After all, the Chief and Bai Zhongcheng are both so young and healthy. If you really want to have offspring in the future, it would be better if they had legitimate bloodlines."

“Indeed, I know that everyone outside recognizes my nephew right now. If he ascends to the throne, all of you senior leaders, scholars, and people from the North will give your full support,” Zhang Xing said earnestly. “But I think we should try to avoid the position of Chief as a mere figurehead, and it would be best if he were aligned with the Emperor… So, if something goes wrong during this campaign against the Eastern Barbarians, how about letting Third Sister serve as both Regent and Chief?”

Chen Bin then realized what the other party meant by "personnel changes" at the beginning, and couldn't help but feel nervous: "Will there be any danger in this campaign against the Eastern Barbarians? Even if it's an opportunity to depose the emperor, we now have the Three Thousand Extraordinary Scriptures!"

“Two dragons, huh?” Zhang Xing laughed. “I’m confident, but we still need to consider things… And even setting aside the two dragons, we need an explanation. To put it bluntly, with my nephew looking like this, what makes him think he can compete with Third Sister?”

“Since the chief says so, I naturally have nothing to say.” Chen Bin thought for a moment and then spoke frankly. “Bai Zhongcheng is not only His Majesty’s only wife, but also a meritorious official in the inner circle, and a Grandmaster. Her foundation is not weak either. The Eastern Capital, Dengzhou, and Jingxiang all recognize her. Sima Zheng and Li Ding also want to follow her… Xiong Tianwang is also a man of great understanding. With him around, Xu Dalang can be suppressed, and I can suppress Dou Lide. There is no reason for anything to go wrong.”

"That's good." This time it was Zhang Xing's turn to nod. "Then let's leave it at that for now... I'll ask the others, and if they all agree, we'll set up a system at this meeting to let Third Sister serve as the deputy chief or something."

Chen Bin nodded immediately and was about to turn around and go downstairs.

They had already reached the top of the stairs when the man stopped again, turned around, and said, "Chief."

Zhang Xing looked up, slightly surprised.

"I've thought about this more than once, Chief." Chen Bin, his white hair plastered to his temples, stood on the stairs, letting the rain soak his feet. "I'm not really suited to be a prime minister. The only reason I'm holding on is because of the good system of the Chulong Gang. A bunch of talented people are supporting me, and the Chief is protecting me. Otherwise, I would have been overthrown by those scoundrels long ago... Even if I hadn't had the opportunity to establish the gang's base in Hebei, I wouldn't have been worthy of participating, let alone managing the world now. But on the other hand, how fortunate I am to have met the Chief, joined the Chulong Gang, and fulfilled my long-cherished wish! So, I am truly grateful to have served as prime minister for these five years, and I shouldn't be blocking the path of those heroes and talents anymore... This request to leave is my sincere wish."

As he spoke, the man knelt down respectfully and kowtowed on the spot.

Zhang Xing remained silent and made no extra movements, simply watching the other person quietly. After the other person stood up, he nodded slightly.

The emperor and his ministers then took their leave. In the afternoon, as the closing drums sounded, a man from the Southern Court left the Ziwei Palace and went to visit the emperor's residence, the Jicui Palace in the Western Garden. There, he met Emperor Zhang and his family having a meal in the artificial hill, platform, and pavilion that Emperor Zhang had personally designed.

Specifically, it was Emperor Zhang having a meal with a group of children.

"Get Xu Dalang a pair of chopsticks," Zhang Xing called out, but he was actually assigning the task to Bai Youli, his brother-in-law, who was the oldest among the children.

Bai Youli didn't say a word, ran over to add a bowl and chopsticks and placed them on the table, then bowed his head in greeting before returning to his seat to eat with the other children. He was indeed very polite.

Xu Shiying glanced at the child's back with a strange look, then looked at Emperor Zhang: "What does the Chief summon me for?"

"No rush." ​​Zhang Xing glanced at the children and calmly ate his meal.

Seeing this, Xu Shiying also followed suit.

After a while, the children finished eating and, led by Bai Youli, said goodbye to Zhang Xing. Then they all ran down the ladder at the back in a chaotic manner. Only then did Zhang Xing speak: "I called you here to entrust my children to you."

Xu Shiying remained silent for a moment, showing no excessive surprise or doubt, and calmly asked, "Why does the Chief say this? Are you worried about the Lords of Fenshan and Bihai?"

“Of course we have to settle this score. These days, the only ones who can hurt me are probably these few dragons.” Zhang Xing replied seriously. “However, if we’re really going to settle this score, we can’t just settle it this once. We have to lay out the rules, explain the current situation and the proposed solutions, so as to avoid any real turmoil. And you are younger than me, or rather, you are the youngest among the founding heroes… Entrusting you with my affairs is only natural.”

Xu Shiying nodded: "I think so too."

"If anything goes wrong this time, I want Third Sister to assume the position of Chief Administrator and continue overseeing the country. In this instance, she will be the Deputy Chief Administrator for now," Zhang Xing said succinctly. "What do you think?"

"Is this to legitimize the White Dragon Head?" Xu Shiying asked without hesitation. "If it were before the founding of the nation, there might have been some grumbling, but there's no such thing now. The Chief is in charge, so there won't be any problems... There's really no need to ask me to be his successor."

“It’s not what you think.” Zhang Xing waved his hand. “When I said entrusting the children to someone… I meant that if, after Third Sister has chosen someone, some of these children still cause trouble, you should deal with them directly and prevent them from causing chaos… Compared to the stability of the country, they are nothing, and it’s best not to let Third Sister get her hands dirty.”

Xu Shiying was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled bitterly: "I was overthinking it. I thought the chief... Oh well."

“At your age…” Zhang Xing continued to instruct. “There’s no need to occupy certain positions indefinitely. Once we’ve conquered the Eastern Barbarians and the Demon Island, go out and serve as the Grand Commander of the Witch Clan and the Eastern Barbarians, and then come back. That will be perfectly legitimate. This is a path that others can’t learn even if they try.”

"I will follow the Chief's orders." But he still managed a wry smile. "So, for this campaign against the Eastern Barbarians, does the Chief still intend to appoint Li Longtou as the war commander?"

“Excellent. Li Ding will be the commander, you the deputy, and San Niang will be the rearguard after entering Dengzhou. The entire White Cavalry will be assembled, with Wang Shuyong, Xu Shiren, and Wu Jingfeng as the vanguard and left and right wings, Sima Zheng as the central army, Niu Da and Zhou Xingfan leading the navy in the south, and the various armies in the north as the northern flank... Including Yin Longtou, I also want to try to invite Daoist Chonghe and Master Sun to accompany us, which is why Yin Longtou, despite having retired, still came.” Zhang Xing said solemnly. “150,000 troops and 300,000 laborers, three years of accumulation, reorganization, and pacification. We will use all our strength, even when hunting a rabbit, and will not give the Eastern Barbarians any chance! We aim to unify the four seas, leaving no trace of foreign lands!”

Xu Shiying nodded: "That's exactly right! That's exactly right!"

As evening fell, the rain continued. Bai Yousi returned from her busy work at Jing'an Terrace and immediately noticed that Zhang Xing was waiting for her. She then jumped onto the artificial hill and sat down next to Zhang Xing, standing shoulder to shoulder with him, and asked him questions.

Zhang Xing, of course, did not hide anything and recounted in detail his two meetings with people today: "This afternoon at the Little White Pagoda, Chen Bin came looking for me... After this incident, I feel that we should discuss the follow-up."

After listening, Bai Yousi did not object, but instead asked a strange question: "Do you think this will be a success?"

“Even with the achievements of unifying the world and establishing a new system, adding two more dragons would still be insufficient,” Zhang Xing replied earnestly. “But with Chen Bin’s arrival today, I have indeed had a sudden urge.”

“I think so too.” Bai Yousi nodded slightly. “Actually, besides Sima Zheng, there are two other obvious sources of usable resources…”

“I know, one is the elusive Lord Huyun, and the other is a sinful dragon from the Sea of ​​Bitterness… The former is alright, but the latter is certainly capable of great use,” Zhang Xing said earnestly. “If this succeeds, we can consider this matter upon our return… But Third Sister, if things turn out this way, what will you do?”

Bai Yousi laughed upon hearing this: "If you can truly become the Supreme Being, I will become the Empress. When I achieve both literary and martial prowess, I might just have to depose your nephew, which will not delay my own transformation into a dragon and departure. I can even accomplish what you have not yet achieved and become the Supreme Being myself."

Zhang Xing chuckled and suddenly asked, "If you were to choose, who do you think should replace Chen Bin?"

"Dou Lide," Bai Yousi blurted out.

"Why him?" Zhang Xing asked curiously.

“First and foremost, he has ability,” Bai Yousi said earnestly. “He has his own foundation, and only with a foundation can one find capable people. He was somewhat short-sighted before, but over the years in the Censorate, he has gradually come to understand how the country operates. With his intelligence and the degree of his research, he is naturally capable of being used. Secondly, although he has some foundation, he is not enough to shake anyone… At the very least, he has no experience in leading an army independently, and his cultivation is insufficient. Finally, he himself will certainly be willing to take on this responsibility.”

Zhang Xing remained noncommittal and continued to ask, "What happened after Dou Lide?"

"Xu Shiying?" Bai Yousi seemed to be deep in thought.

"What happened after Xu Shiying?"

Bai Yousi finally laughed out loud: "You're telling me to choose, which means you've attained enlightenment soon and I'll take charge. But if I take charge, and the two of them still can't establish prestige so I can choose for myself, wouldn't that be ridiculous?"

“If you choose for yourself,” Zhang Xing suddenly put his arm around the other person. “Which children should you choose?”

Bai Yousi's thoughts wavered, and her body swayed slightly: "Right now, he is naturally your nephew, that's the closeness of blood ties... But if we have our own offspring, they will naturally be our offspring... In the end, what happens to our descendants is actually none of our business... Do you want a child?"

In the end, even though both of them had reached the pinnacle of their cultivation, they still acted like children, leaning close to each other's ears to ask questions.

"Let's leave it to fate!" Zhang Xing's answer was as casual as ever, but this time he hugged the other person tightly.

The rain was drizzling.

Several days later, in the main hall of Xuanren Palace, because the death of Li Ziqi, the Grand Commander of the Eastern Barbarians, was finally announced, the Chulong Gang officially convened a general meeting of all gang leaders to discuss the war.

Inside and outside the Eastern Capital, among the local armies, the number of leaders and above who gathered at one time reached an astonishing 402. After restoring the former territory of the Great Wei, the Chulong Gang was actually very cautious and did not expand the number of leaders. As a result, even after adjusting the size of each prefecture, there were still situations where it was difficult for non-senior prefects to even become leaders. However, even so, the total number of leaders in the Chulong Gang has now reached an astonishing 500.

All I can say is that we have done our best to gather information today in order to ensure the weight of the resolutions of the conference.

“We know that Li Ziqi is definitely dead, but since he hasn’t announced his death, we’re willing to wait…”

"The corvée labor isn't that heavy; 300,000 people are enough. The main thing is that the supplies have all arrived... If there's any shortage somewhere, it's probably the sailors, right?"

Why not attack the Demon Island first?

"The key lies with the two Supreme Beings, but since the Supreme Beings will not participate, the decisive battle in this war actually lies with the Dragon Extermination."

"Have you heard? Sima Longtou might become a war commander?"

"You've done a good job in Dongping these past few years."

After eating in the corridor, Dou Lide entered the main hall ahead of time. In broad daylight, he felt a wave of humid heat hitting him, even more humid than when it was raining outside. Looking around, he saw leaders gathered everywhere, some in groups of seven or eight, others in groups of three or five. Even the maverick Bai Jingang had several other leaders huddled together talking.

In fact, after spotting Bai Jingang, Dou Lide was ready to go over. After all, the other party had been his deputy, and his actions that day were both unpopular and popular. It was time to show some respect.

However, when he broke through the crowd, the people around him greeted him with applause, including several enthusiastic individuals and old comrades who had been there before.

As a result, when he saw Gao Shitong, who was supposed to step down from the position of chief this year, and was about to go over to shake hands and make peace, someone called out to him from the steps on one side: "Dou Longtou, it's been a long time."

Dou Lide turned his head and greeted him with a smile. Seeing that it was Sima Zheng who was smiling and greeting him, he simply changed his target again and called out from afar, "Chief Sima, it's been a long time. Chief Cheng and Chief Qin, what are you talking about? This brother looks unfamiliar... May I ask how he is addressed?"

"Let me introduce you," Cheng Zhili said eagerly. "This is Wang Daiji, the Prefect of Bohai. He was previously in charge of transporting supplies from Hebei to Dengzhou, and rarely reported to the central government. He also missed several meetings, so you don't know him... We chatted for a long time, and we were so close that we wished we could sleep together tonight. Don't try to take it from me."

Dou Lide was greatly astonished: "Brother, you are Wang Jiulang? The Prefect Wang who has achieved the best results in Hebei for two consecutive years?! On behalf of the people of Hebei, I thank you, Brother Wang!"

"Not at all, not at all!" Wang Daiji smiled broadly, his mouth practically splitting open. "The reputation of Minister Dou for his impartiality and integrity is known throughout the land!"

Qin Bao couldn't help but laugh: "Dragon Head Dou, Brother Cheng and I have already thanked you on behalf of the people of Dengzhou. Please say something else."

Dou and Wang didn't take it to heart at all. They stepped forward together to greet him, shook hands tightly, and felt as if they had known each other for a long time... Su Jingfang, who was originally talking quietly with Han Erlang and others in the front row, took the opportunity to slip away when he saw his father-in-law arrive.

The entire hall was in complete chaos.

In this scene, even the Supreme Being would have to shout seven or eight times to restore order.

In fact, a moment later, Chen Bin, Wei Xuanding, Chai Xiaohe, Zhang Shizhao, and several other officials from the Southern Court, along with Wang Shuyong, Xu Shiren, Niu He, Wei Wenda, and several other leaders of the Northern Court's Imperial Guards, plus several chief stewards, entered the room chatting and laughing. This did not stop the noise in the room at all; on the contrary, it made it even noisier.

As the appointed noon approached, Zhang Xing and Bai Yousi arrived hand in hand, only letting go of each other when they reached the seats in the center. Chief Zhang didn't greet anyone, but simply picked up the meeting documents on the side and turned to look at them.

After reading the first page, the surrounding noise gradually subsided. Turning to the second page, the previous cacophony of voices was replaced by the clatter of tables and chairs and the sound of footsteps. By the time I turned to the third page, before I could even properly read the contents, the only sound in the entire hall was the patter of raindrops outside.

Zhang Xing was initially unconcerned and was preparing to carefully read through all the content when Xiong Bonan reminded him, "Chief, we can start the meeting now."

Zhang Xing came to his senses and realized something... He had no personal or official contact with these people, especially the newly appointed leaders, which was why things were like this... And once most people were like this, even those who knew him well would be drawn into it.

This seems like a good thing, but it still makes people uneasy. However, upon closer reflection, it doesn't seem to matter, because it's just human nature and something that should be taken for granted.

After a moment of silence, he suddenly felt a strange restlessness and anticipation for the impending war. He raised his hand to stop Wei Xuanding, who was about to preside over the meeting, and spoke first. His voice, accompanied by a chilling aura that suppressed the heat, resounded throughout the hall: "Gentlemen, let's begin the meeting! I'll ask you a question first. When you ascended the throne outside Chang'an, you swore to me that you would do your utmost to unify the four seas with me, so that the people would not suffer from prolonged division and war. What is your promise today?"

Chen Bin, who usually looked quite tired, stood up, held his sword Tai'a horizontally, raised his head and answered, his voice as loud as a bell, as if he had been there at the time: "Reporting to the Chief and Your Majesty, we have never forgotten for a single day!"

The twenty-one leaders on the periphery, though many were speechless, had no choice but to stand up together and repeat it aloud.

Next came the eighty-four chief leaders and the two hundred and ninety-six chief leaders, who also responded in turn.

Zhang Xing then raised his head: "402nd rank, in that case, let's discuss the personnel arrangements and send out the troops!"

Only then did everyone realize that the decision to send troops had been made.