When the officials and wealthy people escorted from the south entered the capital, the Censorate had already listed hundreds of capital offenses against them, with the documents weighing over ten kilograms, and submitted a memorial to the emperor overnight.

Of course, a final list was given, and the final verdict was: execution.

The procedure was completed very quickly.

So, early the next morning, everyone's crimes were announced, and they were taken to the Five Dynasties Gate.

In Zhao Huan's words, letting these people live a few more seconds would be too good for them.

The people of Tokyo were already used to seeing heads roll outside the Five Dynasties Gate.

Tokyo has entered a strange state. Everyone is busy. Former migrants have found jobs and have stable incomes in Tokyo. Everyone has started to care about their own lives.

Moreover, grain prices have also fallen.

Even rental prices in the south of the city have dropped, supposedly because the current emperor wants to expand Tokyo and has designated large tracts of land around the city, which many wealthy businessmen have come to buy.

As rumors spread, many people stopped rushing to buy houses, and some people in Tokyo who had deliberately held onto their properties began to worry.

This information was secretly reported to Zhao Huan every day.

Besides receiving various good news from the south every day, on this day, Zhao Huan finally received the latest news from the north: a Jin army was hunting in the wild and had intruded into the border of the Song Dynasty, and a dispute had broken out between the two sides.

It quickly escalated into a confrontation between the two armies, and even resulted in a fierce battle.

The Song army suffered 136 deaths, and the Jin army fared no better, with 86 dead.

The report from the division commander clarified that the conflict had escalated further.

As per the emperor's previous instructions, if such a situation were to occur, the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun would enter a state of full alert, with 80,000 of the 100,000-strong Song army deployed for large-scale military exercises on the border.

The Jin dynasty must have sent out a large number of spies along the border; the military exercises were meant to be a show for those spies.

It also warned the Jin emperor and the pro-war faction in the Jin court that the Song Dynasty was ready for battle at any time, and that if anyone wanted to fight, they could come anytime!

The army in the Yan-Yun war zone can be said to be the strongest force in the Song Dynasty at present. The four upper armies of the Imperial Guard, including Gongsheng and Pengri, have all been left in Yan-Yun.

Furthermore, the repair and maintenance of Yanyun's military preparedness have been ongoing for more than six months.

Just kidding. I, Zhao Huan, spend 2 million strings of cash on military expenses in Yan and Yun every month. Every month, every year, the military expenses in Yan and Yun alone amount to 24 million strings of cash, not even counting the current Shaanxi and the military expenses of the new army.

According to Zhao Huan's plan, the size of the new army will be expanded. Soon, not only will Shaanxi be able to deploy a larger army, but the Longyou Protectorate will also be a strategic stronghold for the rise of the empire.

Now, the emperor has turned his attention to the southwest.

Fighting against the Tanguts and Jurchens, and later Yelü Dashi, and even conquering Goguryeo, bringing Japan to complete subjugation, and opening up long-distance trade all required huge expenditures.

Before all this can begin, all strategic territories within the empire must be reclaimed.

For example, the Hexi Corridor, where horses were raised, and Jiaozhi, on the southwestern frontier.

Jiaozhi is located in the tropics. The biggest advantage of the tropics is that things can grow all year round, and the region is very rich in resources. If these resources are utilized properly, there is great potential for development.

For example, Jiaozhi could become the grain and wine base of the Song Dynasty. In the future, the Song Dynasty would not have to use all the grain from the Central Plains or Jiangnan for its wine. With more grain, there would be more food to eat.

The emperor was indulging in some wild ideas again. After thinking for a while, he began to write a letter.

To whom is it written?

Emperor Wanyan Sheng of the Jin Dynasty.

The letter was written quickly.

The gist of it is: Wanyan Sheng, let me tell you, my Great Song has 100 million people, and my Yanyun has 1 million soldiers. I'm worried that I have a lot of energy but nowhere to use it. Should we send 1 million people from each side to counter each other?

When the letter was delivered to Wanyan Sheng, he was so angry after reading it that he exploded on the spot.

"Zhao Huan is arrogant!"

The Song emperor was directly challenging him, his meaning clear: Do you want war? Come on!

I've been annoyed with you for a long time!

Should we take another look and try?

Let's give it a try!

I'll slap you to death!

Because of Zhao Huan's letter, Wanyan Sheng didn't eat well for several days.

He also summoned Wanyan Gao, who had been beating quite a bit lately, and gave him a good scolding.

Didn't you say there was a rebellion in the south of Song?

Where did that dog emperor of Song get the audacity to challenge me?!

Is this emperor out of his mind?

Wanyan Gao looked aggrieved and angrily scolded Zhao Huan, saying that he was just pretending to be tough. There was a rebellion in the south, and Zhao Huan was now besieged on both sides. This was the best time for the army to march south. Your Majesty, don't be fooled by Zhao Huan!

We must continue fighting resolutely.

However, Wanyan Zongpan whispered in his ear, "Father, don't listen to Wanyan Gao. He thinks about war all day long. Only by fighting can he have military power. He only thinks about seizing military power all day long!"

Thus, another heated argument broke out in the Jin court.

It is said that the two not only exchanged insults, getting their faces covered in spittle, but also physically fought, instantly picking up tables and chairs and hitting each other.

Strangely, Wanyan Gao's spy, Huang Yanli, has not appeared for a long time.

However, Wanyan Zongpan's spies kept bringing back messages from the south, saying that the south of the Song Dynasty was being utterly defeated by Zhao Huan's new army, while the north was completely unaffected.

Finally, the conflict on the northern border gradually subsided, and the two sides returned to their previous state.

The main reason they were able to return to their previous state was that, over the past six months, the nobles of the Jin Kingdom had acquired a considerable amount of fine silk and porcelain.

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