Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 540: Be a Common Woman

Wang Shuai's fleet was allowed to continue south after replenishing fresh water at the port.

The Samcheok navy was too lazy to provide food for so many people for free.

Since Yang Yuan, the real boss, is here, the original plan is no longer necessary, so the natural thing to do is to get Wang Shuai out.

Wang Shuai left happily, but Yang Yuan and Jin Yuzhen were left behind.

The fleet hoisted its sails and sailed away in a graceful manner. Wang Shuai stood at the bow, looking high-spirited and not even turning his head.

Looking at the sail gradually going away, Jin Yuzhen couldn't help but sigh.

From beginning to end, her man never got off the boat, nor did he care whether it was dangerous for her to stay here.

There is really only a name left between them.

Although she was not sad about this, she still felt a little disappointed when faced with such an ending.

"Master Yang, please be nicer to her!"

Li Mu put his arm around Yang Yuan's shoulders, looked at the lonely figure on the dock, and sighed, "That little girl really likes you, I can see that."

Yang Yuan did not rush to distance himself from the matter, but sighed with deep feeling: "Life is not easy for you, the children of rich and powerful families."

"No! It's not easy for us, so how can others survive?"

Li Mu tilted his head, and his protruding ears became more prominent. "From birth to death, everything we gain in life, others have to struggle for half their lives, work hard, and still may not be able to get it. We are born with it. Is there anyone luckier than us?"

Li Mu patted Yang Yuan on the shoulder and said, "It's just that you can't make the decision on your own as the legal wife. If you make the decision on your own, will you definitely make a good choice?
Is it that he freely chooses to be a commoner or a pariah? It is just the result of his last resort.

If you give him a chance, you will see whether he will choose the noble lady or the beautiful woman, or his current wife. "

Li Mu looked surprised at Yang Yuan's comfort. This guy is very insightful.

……

In the Jin family of Gyeongju, old man Jin has been restless these days.

Before the fleet returned, a speedboat was selected and told the Jin family that Master Yang from the Song Dynasty would come with the ship.

Jin Taigong had already learned about Yang Yuan's situation from Jin Yuzhen's letter.

This person has a huge influence in both the Song Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty.

It was under the planning of Master Yang that the "New Jin" was established and the powerful Jin Dynasty fell apart.

Although the territory of the New Jin Empire was less than a quarter of that of the Jin Dynasty, it happened to occupy the place where the Jurchens were born.

This place has the ethnic foundation that constitutes the core structure of the upper echelons of the Jurchen Jin Dynasty. This alone is enough to pose a great threat to Wanyan Liang.

And as time goes by, the role of this foundation will become more and more important.

He is such a big shot, yet still so young. This person is really worth investing in.

Old Master Jin felt that this Scholar Yang would become a great opportunity for the Jin family.

To this end, he made elaborate arrangements and only treated distinguished guests. Even Yingge and several other girls who were temporarily staying at the Jin family were treated like distinguished guests.

Yingge was fine with it, but Alihu was flattered, as she knew very well that this courtesy and treatment was entirely because of her man.

Her life is so lucky.

But at this time, General Wang returned with the fleet, and the people from the Jin family who rushed to the dock in their best clothes to greet them were disappointed because Master Yang did not come.

Old Man Jin, who was waiting in front of the mansion gate, was so angry that he swung his cane and beat General Wang away.

Will the great opportunity of my Jin family be snatched away by the Li family? Yuzhen, it all depends on you!

After waiting for four days, Old Man Jin finally received good news that allowed him to sleep peacefully.

Yuzhen was returning by land with Scholar Xiao Yang.

Old Master Jin was overjoyed: The kid from the Wang family is unreliable, fortunately I still have a reliable granddaughter.

……

Not only did Old Master Jin's reliable granddaughter bring Yang Yuan back, she also brought a large team with her.

If it weren't for the burden of this huge team, they would have arrived in Gyeongju by now with just a few people.

This team was a "New Year's Day congratulations" team sent by the King of Goryeo to the Song Dynasty, as well as a "congratulations on the change of era" delegation. Most importantly, it was also a "establishment of diplomatic relations and submission of allegiance" delegation.

Before the fourth year of Chunhua in the Northern Song Dynasty, Goryeo was a vassal state of the Song Dynasty.

Starting from the fourth year of Chunhua in the Northern Song Dynasty, Goryeo was conquered by the Liao Kingdom and forced to become a vassal of the Liao Kingdom. Although it had exchanges with the Song Kingdom from time to time, it was already a de facto equal relationship, and the King of Goryeo was no longer enthroned or confirmed by the Song Kingdom.

Today, the envoys of the King of Goryeo will go to the Song Dynasty for the first time to celebrate the New Year and the change of the reign title after many years of severance of diplomatic relations. They will also bring letters of credence to express their allegiance and pay tribute to the Song Dynasty.

The King of Goryeo did not dare to make a bet easily between the Jin Dynasty and the New Jin Dynasty.

But he was very clear that as the war between Jin and New Jin entered a stalemate, both sides would force it to take sides and even force it to send troops and offer food.

At this time, the head of the Li family appeared in the palace with Yang Xue Shi from the Song Dynasty. They discussed the general situation in the world and gave him guidance.

After some analysis and persuasion from Scholar Yang, who was very familiar with Song, Jin and New Jin, the King of Goryeo happily made his choice: to become a vassal state of the Song Dynasty again.

By becoming a vassal of the Song Dynasty, it had a position, and the two Jin Kingdoms, which were fighting each other to death, had no way to deal with it.

The Jin Kingdom was certainly not satisfied, but with the Song Kingdom to the south and the New Jin Kingdom to the north, and no longer bordering Goryeo, the Jin Kingdom would definitely not send troops to cause trouble.

Xinjin should not be very satisfied either, and the two countries are bordering each other, so it is easy to send troops.

However, with the Jin Kingdom as a constraint, the New Jin would not make another enemy.

What's more, Goryeo surrendered to the Song Dynasty, which is now the benefactor of the New Jin.

I want to be your younger brother. Is there any problem with that?
The King of Goryeo was very satisfied because the trouble that troubled him the most was solved.

The Li family was also very satisfied that the chief envoy to the Song Dynasty was a member of the Li family.

Next, the chief envoy of the delegation to be sent to Xinjin will also be from the Li family. As a result, the political resources that the Li family will obtain will completely allow it to no longer covet the gains from the Jin family's maritime trade.

Moreover, the two families even formed a relationship of sharing weal and woe and supporting each other.

Once the Wang, Jin and Li families reach a tacit understanding, it will be difficult for other families to do anything unless they unite.

But if they do that, the benefits that each family can get are not worth it.

What's more, the source of all this lies in the Song Dynasty.

Scholar Yang of the Song State has made it clear that he will only give this business to the Wang family and the Jin family. So what is there for others to fight for?

"I remember when we first met, I was a prisoner, and the scholar was in a similar situation."

Jin Yuzhen sat in the car, looking at Yang Yuan opposite, and said with emotion.

"I didn't expect that within such a short period of time, the scholar would be able to change the world and give advice to various countries. Now he has even helped my king to submit to the Song Dynasty. With such a great achievement, he should be crowned a king or a marquis when he returns."

Yang Yuan smiled and said, "If Wanyan Liang had not been so eager to succeed and caused the Jurchen nobles to become alienated from him, I would not have succeeded so easily."

Jin Yuzhen smiled and said, "But, the scholar succeeded after all."

"Maybe I'm lucky."

In response to Yang Yuan's humble words, Jin Yuzhen smiled lightly, and the breath she exhaled turned into a cloud of misty white fog, blurring her pretty face.

Snow-covered mountains meander along the road.

Jin Yuzhen scooped up her hands, blew on them a few times, and whispered, "We are almost in Qingzhou. After the scholar picks up Yingge, he will return to the Song Dynasty, right?"

"Yeah!" Yang Yuan couldn't help but feel homesick after hearing what she said: "I really miss home a little bit."

"After this separation, I'm afraid we will never meet again in this life. I wonder if the scholar will occasionally think of me after he returns home?"

Jin Yuzhen stared at Yang Yuan with a burning gaze and a faint glow flickering in her eyes.

She walked with Yang Yuan all the way, and whenever they talked, she would smile sweetly, but Yang Yuan could always sense that she was not happy.

And this time, she didn't laugh.

Looking back, she probably hasn't really laughed since Wang Shuai sailed away without any worries.

Yang Yuan couldn't help but say, "Madam, you have never taken Prince Wang seriously, right? Why should you be bothered by his ruthlessness?"

Jin Yuzhen raised her eyes in surprise and wanted to explain something, but she pursed her lips and finally gave up.

Her elegant neck twisted slightly, and her eyes seemed to have passed through the cold snow peaks, gazing at the unknown in the distance.

Jin Yuzhen said quietly, "Perhaps, I am not unwilling to give up because of him. I just suddenly feel that, with all the wealth and splendor, and being regarded as a favored daughter by others, I have never lived for myself..."

There was a trace of distant loneliness on her expression, and an unspeakable melancholy in her voice. She was as ethereal as a snowflake that could only follow the wind and could not control its own drifting.

Yang Yuan stared at her, then suddenly smiled and said, "Madam, do you know who I hate the most in my life?"

Jin Yuzhen immediately looked at Yang Yuan with a look of curiosity.

Yang Yuan said: "I hate talented women the most."

Jin Yuzhen was immediately filled with surprise and confusion. Hating talented women? Did Master Yang get it wrong?

Yang Yuan said: "Because talented women are sentimental, like to be entangled, like to get stuck in a rut, like to complain about themselves, like to feel sad about autumn and spring. She is like a continuous plum rain. She is unhappy, and it makes others unhappy to see her."

Yang Yuan also looked towards the tall snow-capped mountains. On the other side of the snow-capped mountains was the still green Lin'an.

Yang Yuan said: "Of course, not all talented women are like this. I have seen a talented woman who lives a transparent life. She is free and easy, straightforward, and can take and let go. Although she is a woman, there are many men in the world who cannot match her breadth of mind."

Jin Yuzhen suddenly felt a little sour: "Who... is she?"

Yang Yuan said: "The whole world admires him and calls him the Flying General!"

Jin Yuzhen still didn't know who she was, but for a woman like her to be respected as the "Flying General" by people all over the world, then... Mr. Yang's praise and admiration should not be wrong.

Yang Yuan suddenly recited a poem: "If one day, I die, those who hate me will dance gracefully. Those who love me will shed tears like dew."

Jin Yuzhen had never heard such colloquial yet poetic lyrics.

"The next day, my body was buried deep underground with its head facing west. Those who hated me looked at my grave with a smile on their faces. Those who loved me didn't dare to look back even once."

"One year later..."

"Ten years later..."

"Decades later, my grave was washed away by rain and wind, leaving only desolation. Those who hated me forgot about me, and those who loved me the most also went into the grave."

This is a long poem that begins with the death of a person and continues through decades of changes until everything turns to dust.

"To this world, I have completely become nothing. I have struggled all my life, but I cannot take away a single blade of grass or a single tree. I have been persistent all my life, but I cannot take away a single bit of vanity or admiration."

Jin Yuzhen felt that this seemed to be said to her.

"Live life with your heart, don't use the eyes of others as a measure. Love, hate, and vengeance are actually just admiration for oneself. Three thousand years of prosperity, a blink of an eye, a hundred years later, nothing but a handful of yellow sand..."

After Yang Yuan paused for a long time, Jin Yuzhen finally woke up from her trance and asked, "What is the name of this poem?"

Yang Yuan said: "I forgot. If I had to give it a name, I would name it 'Live in the Present'!"

"Live in the present..." Jin Yuzhen murmured and repeated, and her eyes gradually regained their spirit.

"Thank you, Master Yang!"

Jin Yuzhen looked at Yang Yuan and said happily, "I understand. I will listen to Master Yang. From tonight on, Yuzhen will be a vulgar woman with no talent!"

Yang Yuan was stunned and asked, "Starting from tonight? Why not now? What kind of auspicious day is tonight?"

"I won't tell you!" Jin Yuzhen stuck out her tongue and smiled at him playfully. That smile was as bright as a beautiful snow-capped mountain under the sun.

(End of this chapter)