The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 236 Stay and See
Yue Wenxuan gave the eunuch a strange smile and said, "Your Majesty's idea is really good. It doesn't cost a penny. Just copy the imperial edict dozens of times and give one to each leader of the rebel army. Then we can fight against the Jin army. The abacus beads are clacking loudly."

Eunuch: "..."

Yue Wenxuan spread his hands: "Unfortunately, it is of little use. Even if the bandits who are unable to resist the Jin army receive this imperial edict, they will still be vulnerable to the Jin army's attack. Even without this imperial edict, the righteous men who are capable of resisting the Jin army will not compromise with the Jin army. It is meaningless for the government to try to get something for nothing."

Eunuch: "..."

Yue Wenxuan: "I have a suggestion for the emperor. Quickly allocate a large amount of financial resources to a general who will not flee without a fight if he encounters the Jin army. Build him a large number of divine arm bows, build him a large amount of heavy armor, and give him all the good horses to form a cavalry unit... This way, he can barely hold off the Jin army."

In fact, Yue Wenxuan was deliberately telling a joke, because he didn't need to raise this opinion. It wouldn't take long for Zhao Gou to think of it himself and then invest a lot of resources in Yue Fei.

Equipping Yue Family Army with a large number of Shenbi bows, and providing them with a large number of good horses and heavy armor, they formed the Beiwei Army, armed Yue Family Army to the teeth and created the glory of Yue Family Army.

but……

Zhao Gou armed Yue's army only because he hoped that Yue's army could "protect him", but he did not want to use Yue's army to "kill the Jin Kingdom". When Song and Jin negotiated peace, Zhao Gou felt that he no longer needed Yue's army to protect him, so he got rid of it.

There are many folk conspiracy theories saying that Zhao Gou was afraid that Yue Fei would welcome back the two emperors and threaten his throne. In fact, this is overthinking. Even if the two emperors were really welcomed back, it would not affect his throne.

If Zhao Gou could truly defeat the Jin and bring back the two emperors, his political prestige would be at its peak, and he would undoubtedly become the ruler of the Song Dynasty's revival. Why would the two emperors seize power from him? None of the civil and military officials in the court would agree.

The fundamental reason for killing Yue Fei was that he was cowardly and wanted to negotiate peace.

He regarded his powerful army as a tool for peace negotiations rather than a weapon for dominating the world.

The eunuch had a strange look on his face, thinking: "What qualifications do you have to offer advice to the emperor? Do you think you're the prime minister or the minister of state?"

However, he did not dare to say this out loud. He only dared to think about it in his heart, and he had to pat Yue Wenxuan on the back: "Sir, what you said is very reasonable. After I return to the capital, I will definitely report it to the emperor."

When you are in a den of thieves, you have to bow your head.

This is called "He who knows the times is a hero."

Yue Wenxuan just said it casually and immediately returned to the main point: "With or without this imperial edict, we will fight against the Jin Dynasty. If you have nothing else to do, we will not entertain you."

The eunuch bowed and said goodbye, saying to his followers, "This official thief is much more clever than the other local thieves. Let's go to Jimo and meet the fake prince."

He rode at full speed all the way and arrived at Jimo County.

The request to see the prince was easily granted.

After a while, he met the fake prince in the lobby of the temporary palace.

As a eunuch who had been in the palace for a long time, he didn't even need to take a second look to recognize that Wang Zhaokuang was a fake. But like Qi Chongli, he had no intention of exposing the lies. He respectfully paid his respects to the prince and asked him to send his attendants away.

Only he and Yue Wenxuan were left in the hall, and the eunuch reached into his bosom and took out a secret decree.

He lowered his voice and said, "Your Highness, whether you are real or fake, people outside may not know, but those living in the capital can see at a glance that your fake identity as a prince will not last long." Yue Wenxuan pretended to nod, "I understand that too."

The eunuch whispered, "The Emperor's intention is that if you can help him control the palace thieves and resist the Jin thieves, he will treat you as the true Prince of He, Zhao Zai. The specific arrangements are all written in the secret decree."

Yue Wenxuan unfolded the secret decree and read it carefully. He saw that the decree told him to control the palace thieves and tie down the Jin army. If he succeeded, he would be regarded as the real Zhao Shi from then on. When he returned to the south in the future, he would be made a prince and guaranteed to live a life of wealth and glory.

After reading the secret decree, Yue Wenxuan was speechless.

This guy Zhao Gou is really having fun getting something for nothing!
You want to be able to become a hero in the world just by writing letters without spending a penny? What the hell are you thinking?

"Alas!" Yue Wenxuan sighed deeply. "Eunuch, this secret decree should be the last letter of your trip to Shandong, right? After delivering it, will there be nothing else to do?"

The eunuch nodded: "Yes!"

Yue Wenxuan: "Why don't you stay here and see how we fight the Jin army? After a while, go back and report to Zhao Gou. Wouldn't that be a more detailed report?"

This remark actually made the eunuch's heart stir. He thought to himself: That's true. If I return to the south now, I won't have anything to report to the emperor, and I can only say empty words. If I can see with my own eyes how the palace thieves fight against the Jin thieves, I can report something meaningful when I return, and the emperor will definitely be happier.

He quickly said, "Then I'll bother you here."

Yue Wenxuan nodded: "Come here, arrange a place for my father-in-law to live."

Ji Menghan, the palace's chief steward, came in and, smiling, arranged lodgings for the eunuch. After everything was settled, Ji Menghan returned to Yue Wenxuan and whispered, "Your Highness, why did you keep this eunuch here? He's got a pair of eyes here, watching our arrangements. If you rebel in the future, wouldn't he be able to pass all the information back to Zhao Gou?"

Yue Wenxuan: "Oh, you predicted that I would rebel?"

Ji Menghan whispered, "The small Ministry of Works, the small Ministry of Revenue, if they continue like this, it would be strange if they don't rebel in the end. Now who doesn't want to be a loyal minister if they stay here instead of heading south?"

Yue Wenxuan laughed: "That's right! Hey! The reason we keep this eunuch here is so that when we rebel in the future, he can pass on his experiences here to Zhao Gou."

Ji Menghan was surprised: "Why didn't they keep the military deployment secret and deliberately passed it on?"

Yue Wenxuan: "This has to do with Zhao Gou's personality. Zhao Gou is a person you should let him know how strong you are. Show him your muscles."

Ji Menghan: “???”

Yue Wenxuan: "The stronger you are, the more afraid he will be. The more he sees you, the more afraid he will be. The more afraid he is, the more cowardly he will become. After we show off our muscles, we will pin the Jin Kingdom to the ground and beat them up. Then we can go and intimidate Zhao Gou. There is no need to fight him. He will kill all the famous ministers and generals on his own and help us clear the obstacles to unification."

Ji Menghan didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Is it really like this?"

Yue Wenxuan blinked and said, "Let's wait and see."

After saying this, Yue Wenxuan sighed again and said, "Actually, I don't want him to kill all the famous ministers and generals. They are all talented people, and it would be a pity to kill them. I hope Zhao Gou will raise the butcher knife first, and then I will spare their lives and take all those famous ministers and generals into my pocket. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

(End of this chapter)