Song Xiu

Chapter 79 Liu Jun's Powerlessness

Having spent a long time in officialdom, Zhao Hua was well-versed in political maneuvering, and he could not rashly step into the fray.

The best approach is for Liu Jun to proactively seek his help.

Achieving this goal is not difficult for Zhao Hua.

The day after meeting with Lü Qiu Zhongqing, several memorials appeared on Liu Jun's desk, thanks to Zhao Hua's secret instigation.

Although Liu Jun was weak-willed, he was deeply aware of the poverty and weakness of the Northern Han Dynasty and was quite diligent in his duties after succeeding to the throne.

A diligent emperor would not tolerate any unread memorials on his desk.

When Liu Jun unfolded and read the newly arrived memorials, his brows furrowed.

These memorials were submitted by some imperial censors, and their contents can be summarized in eight characters:
"A long expedition lasting several months has been exhausting and costly."

After reading the contents of those memorials, Liu Jun was not angry.

He knew that what the censors said made sense.

The Northern Han was far weaker than the Song Dynasty. Although Liu Jiye led only 20,000 soldiers, the manpower and resources required to support them were a heavy burden for the Northern Han at that time.

Even though Liu Jiye received some financial assistance from Li Jun after he went to war, it did not solve the fundamental problem.

Although the censor's words made sense, Liu Jun felt more confident when he thought about the Han army's imminent capture of Luzhou.

If we can recover the five states, then all the sacrifices we've made so far will have been worthwhile.

Liu Jun, filled with anticipation, set aside the memorials from the censors, intending to ignore them.

What Liu Jun didn't know was that Zhao Hua had accurately predicted his reaction.

Two days later, a piece of military intelligence gradually began to circulate in Taiyuan:
"Taking advantage of the country's vulnerability, the Song army intends to divide its forces and march north!"

The source of this military intelligence is unknown, but it spread rapidly to various government offices, causing great alarm among the officials in Taiyuan.

Scholars may be adept at manipulating power and strategy, but when it comes to military tactics, they are generally completely clueless.

The officials and nobles in Taiyuan City felt the same helplessness that Fan Zhi and Wang Pu had in the past.

With the ministers at a loss, they could only report the matter to Liu Jun.

Liu Jun had rarely been on the battlefield, and he was greatly alarmed when he first heard about this military intelligence.

Fortunately, there were still some veteran generals in the Northern Han Dynasty, such as Feng Jinke.

While Liu Jun was in a panic, Feng Jinke wrote a letter to reassure him:
"Li Jun and General Liu's troops are all located on key routes, so the Song army will not risk splitting its forces to move north."

Although not many people supported Feng Jinke's view, Liu Jun felt somewhat at ease after Feng Jinke's reassurance.

Zhao Hua, the mastermind behind the scenes, had been secretly observing the development of the situation.

Knowing the situation in the Northern Han court like the back of his hand, he had long understood that a single fabricated military intelligence report was not enough to trick Liu Jun into falling into the trap.

His purpose in instigating the censors to fabricate military intelligence was to create momentum.

With his covert instigation, an unsettling trend is rapidly engulfing the Northern Han court and its people.

"With the country vulnerable and powerful enemies invading, how can the nation survive?"

This formidable enemy amidst our unease refers not only to the Song army, but also to the Khitan.

Although the Northern Han Dynasty regarded the Khitan as its suzerain state from the very beginning.

However, because the Khitan repeatedly sent envoys to insult Liu Jun as a "son emperor," the relationship between the Northern Han and the Khitan could not be described as very harmonious.

The Khitan were a nation of tigers and wolves; no one knew if they might suddenly decide to annex the land.

After the uneasy sentiments had been rife throughout the court and the public, Zhao Hua, seeing that the time was ripe, finally revealed his true intentions.

Before the rumors of the Song army's intention to divide its forces and march north had subsided, new rumors spread like wildfire. "Liu Jiye, coveting the wealth of the Central Plains, has secretly contacted Zhe Deyi and Yang Chongxun, intending to lead his army in rebellion!"

This rumor exploded like a bomb in Taiyuan City, shocking everyone in the court and the public.

Because Zhao Hua had created such a good impression beforehand, the people of Taiyuan City were currently in a state of shock and doubt.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Zhao Hua once again mobilized all his political power to deliver another heavy blow to the already weak psychological defenses of his subjects.

In times of chaos, what do subjects fear most?
It boils down to four words: a military coup!
The Chenqiao Mutiny was accomplished almost without bloodshed, which was nothing short of a miracle in the chaotic Five Dynasties period.

Normally, every military coup in the world has resulted in massive massacres.

Who isn't afraid of the word "massacre"?
Suddenly, countless memorials drifted into the palace like snowflakes. The snowflakes gathered together and eventually formed an unstoppable snow mountain, which pressed heavily on Liu Jun's desk.

Looking at the "snow mountain" on the imperial desk, Liu Jun's face turned pale.

Zhao Hua's offensive was like a surging sea, one wave after another, each higher than the last, advancing layer by layer, leaving Liu Jun unable to defend himself.

Faced with this overwhelming tide, Liu Jun, though the ruler of a nation, appeared extremely weak at the moment.

Even if Liu Jun could see some clues about the weakened imperial power, what could he do?
Amidst the powerful political tide, the weak Liu Jun instinctively wanted to find someone to protect him. After much deliberation, Liu Jun ordered two people to be summoned.

One was Zhao Hua, the Left Minister of Works, and the other was Duan Heng, the Privy Councilor.

These two are currently the two most important ministers in the Northern Han Dynasty who assist Liu Jun in managing military and political affairs.

Because it concerned military matters, Liu Jun first looked at Duan Heng.

"The people in the country are in a state of uproar; what should I do?"

Although Liu Jun first asked about Duan Heng, Zhao Hua wasn't worried at all.

Why did the momentum he created spread uncontrollably throughout Taiyuan City?

It wasn't that his political power was strong enough to control the Northern Han court; the key was that the momentum he created was favorable to the local gentry of Hedong.

Liu Jiye's recapture of the "Five Prefectures of Lu and Ze" was a good thing for the country, but for the local gentry of Hedong, it was more harmful than beneficial!
In politics, feelings are irrelevant; it's all about interests. Zhao Hua knew what Duan Heng would choose.

"I remember that Liu Jiye's family is in Daizhou."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Hua looked at Duan Heng in surprise.

On the surface, Duan Heng's answer seemed nonsensical, but in reality, he gave the most scathing response.

The fact that Liu Jiye's family was in Daizhou, not Taiyuan, meant that the imperial court had very few means to restrain him.

As for why the court didn't detain Liu Jiye's family members first, it wasn't that Liu Jun didn't want to, but that he couldn't.

The system of "family members being held hostage in the capital" was beneficial for the court to control military generals, but the implementation of this system required the foundation of centralized power.

During the chaotic Five Dynasties period, centralized power was essentially a joke.

Even during the reign of Emperor Shizong of Zhou, when he had begun to continuously strengthen central authority, he was able to drastically reduce local financial and military power, but he never mentioned the matter of "family members being held hostage in the capital".

Specifically, regarding the situation of the Northern Han, how did its predecessor, the Later Han, perish?
With Guo Wei's example as a precedent, Liu Jun would not dare to mention "family members being held hostage in Beijing" unless he was mentally challenged.

Duan Heng's words made Liu Jun's face darken immediately.

Then Liu Jun remembered that he did have ways to restrain Liu Jiye.

Just as Liu Jun remembered Lu Zan's existence, a eunuch stumbled in carrying a secret report:

"Your Majesty, Military Supervisor Lu has sent an urgent report!"

Upon hearing this, both Duan Heng and Liu Jun were astonished.

Only Zhao Hua lowered his head, secretly delighted—My lord has made his move!
(End of this chapter)