Bai Shizhong, Liu Changqing, and Huang Shu'ao looked extremely grim. Clearly, the emperor had already investigated thoroughly and all the evidence was irrefutable.

Zhao Huan slammed the memorial in his hand onto Bai Shizhong's face: "My Grand Chancellor! You actually colluded with my Privy Councilor and the Minister of Revenue to embezzle the Song Dynasty's defense funds! Have you all read the classics to the point of being useless?!"

"Your Majesty, I am innocent!"

"Shut up! Throw them all into the dungeon!"

Seeing that the enraged emperor was about to execute three high-ranking officials, Wang Boyan hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, this matter is of great importance. I believe that killing the Privy Councilor before the war is a grave taboo and should not be done. I request that Your Majesty demote or exile these three men."

"Yes, Your Majesty. Hebei is currently in turmoil, and the Jurchen invaders have already moved south. We must not allow any further internal strife to occur and must stabilize the people's hearts."

The ministers said, "We hope Your Majesty will reconsider!"

Zhao Huan said coldly, "War? The Jurchen invaders are marching south? It's as if the death of those three men means the fall of Bianjing (Kaifeng) and the end of the Song Dynasty!"

Before the ministers could object further, the emperor declared forcefully, "Remember this: it is not these three men who protect the Song Dynasty, but the countless soldiers who shed their blood! The money these three men use to support their families has been embezzled. If I do not give them an explanation, it will be a sign of the nation's downfall!"

Upon hearing this, the courtiers were speechless, unsure how to defend themselves.

Arbitrary! Tyrannical! The emperor is far too reckless!

The ministers thought to themselves that the Song Dynasty was probably doomed and it would be best to retreat.

Bai Shizhong, Huang Shu'ao, and Liu Changqing were taken away by the Imperial City Guard. The emperor had no intention of attending court anymore; his mind was elsewhere.

After hastily leaving the court, Zhao Huan met with Li Gang alone.

One advantage of having someone like Li Gang is that you don't have to worry about him doing anything out of line, so he's the perfect person to handle things like setting things right.

Zhao Huan ordered him to quickly reorganize the entire Imperial Guard's structure, abolish any vacant positions, and leave those that were not in compliance with regulations alone for the time being.

Once the Jin invaders were driven beyond the Great Wall, Zhao Huan would personally oversee the reorganization of the Song Dynasty's already dilapidated military.

After discussing the matter with Li Gang, Zhao Huan went to the imperial prison.

Wei Wuqing was torturing Bai Shizhong, while Huang Shu'ao and Liu Changqing on the side were almost incontinent from the beating.

The principle of "no punishment for high-ranking officials" has been a national policy since the founding of the Song Dynasty. These scholar-officials thought that even if they messed around all they wanted in their lives, they would at most be exiled. However, they never expected to encounter a rogue emperor who was now capable of anything and would use all sorts of despicable and vile means at will.

Upon seeing the emperor arrive, Wei Wuqing quickly bowed and said, "Your Majesty, may you be well!"

Zhao Huan gestured for everyone to dispense with formalities, and Wei Wuqing presented a list.

"Have they confessed everything?"

"Your Majesty, everything has been reported."

"Wei Wuqing, wait outside and don't let anyone in."

"yes!"

The three ministers, paralyzed in prison, saw Zhao Huan arrive and hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, we know our crimes! Please spare our lives, and we will confess everything!"

"Bai Shizhong, you've disappointed me so much!"

"Your Majesty, I know my crime! I am willing to serve Your Majesty with my life, even unto death!"

Zhao Huan's expression was indifferent, and he glanced at Huang Shu'ao and Liu Changqing, who were crawling on the side, trembling with fear.

"I ask you, has the court mistreated you?"

"The imperial court has been incredibly kind to us, and has never mistreated us in the slightest."

"If that's the case, why do you still form cliques and do such heinous things? I don't understand, answer me!"

Grand Chancellor Bai Shizhong said with tears in his eyes, "Your Majesty, I deserve to die a thousand deaths. I know this is against the law, but I have no choice. For ten years I have studied diligently, hoping to serve my sovereign. After passing the imperial examination, I have great ambitions and have even vowed to reform the world and serve in the court, to bring happiness to the people and share Your Majesty's burdens. However, the matter of embezzling military funds has been going on for a long time and is not my doing. Since entering officialdom, if I want to be promoted to the central government, I can only participate in it. I have lofty ambitions, but I have no choice but to painfully follow the trend. I suffer day and night, but when I think of being able to share the burdens of the Holy Emperor, I have no regrets!"

Upon hearing Bai Shizhong's righteous words, Liu Changqing and Huang Shu'ao, who looked as listless as two toads about to die from the sun, immediately echoed, "Your Majesty, we are all doing this for the sake of the country and to share Your Majesty's burdens!"

Zhao Huan almost laughed out of anger. This was the first time he had ever heard someone speak of embezzlement with such righteous indignation. Damn it, so you guys couldn't have kept my empire if you hadn't embezzled my military pay? Should I thank you properly?

Zhao Huan has witnessed firsthand these past few days how utterly shameless the ministers of Emperor Huizong's reign are.

Zhao Huan kicked the three of them hard, feeling much better afterward.

Zhao Huan had considered whether he had gone too far in killing his ministers, but now it seemed that he hadn't gone too far at all; these people deserved to die!

"Have you never considered why the military strength of my Great Song Dynasty is so weak? Why, despite possessing a million imperial guards, does my Great Song Dynasty have to cede territory and pay reparations to the Jin and Liao dynasties?"

"Your Majesty, our Great Song Dynasty is a celestial empire, guided by the teachings of the sages. The Jin and Liao are nothing but barbaric lands, greedy for petty gains. Our celestial empire is benevolent and does not wish for the suffering of the people in remote areas, so we bestow rewards upon them every year, thus ensuring peace and prosperity throughout the land."

Zhao Huan couldn't help but kick Bai Shizhong again. Damn it, these bastards are indeed scholars; they can even make their twisted logic sound plausible.

It seems that there are quite a few officials in the court who think like Pai Shih-chung; it's truly a distorted logic!

They clearly can't win, yet they're still indulging in self-congratulatory euphoria within China.

"Let me tell you, it is all because the dynasty has treated the scholar-officials too well that you shameless people have become so lawless! I will use your heads to tell the world that anyone who dares to embezzle national defense funds, no matter who they are, I will behead them!"

"Your Majesty, spare my life!"

"Your Majesty, I have said everything I needed to say, I have confessed everything..."

Zhao Huan turned and left, not wanting to see them again.

The next day, three more heads appeared at the north gate of Tokyo. Yesterday, they were still wearing official robes and entering and leaving the court. Today, their heads hung on the city wall, still dripping blood, their eyes wide open.

Zhao Huan was quite troubled. The matter of the Imperial Guards being paid without working was too far-reaching, and a considerable number of officers in the army were involved. Wanyan Zongwang was only four days away, and it was clearly not the right time to deal with this matter.

They could only make Bai Shizhong, Huang Shu'ao, and Liu Changqing scapegoats, let Li Gang cover up the shortfall, and then take half of the extra money and allocate it to the war-torn areas such as Hedong and Hebei.

Zhao Huan suppressed the matter for the time being, deciding to reorganize the new army before taking decisive action to clean up the mess.

The emperor's special envoys began to travel around again, announcing the execution of Bai Shizhong and others, and conveying the emperor's will. The reaction in Hebei was extremely strong, with everyone praising the emperor's wisdom.

While Zhao Huan was troubled, Wang Kui'an had already arrived in Hebei with his imperial decree to quell the rebellion. Wang Kui'an couldn't understand what the emperor was thinking, that at such a critical moment, he would come to find a young man named Yue Fei.