Of course, if you really cavalry into the city and put a knife to their throats, they will lose their savior-like demeanor and might even kneel down and beg for mercy like dogs!

"A few days ago, your emperor insulted the commander-in-chief, which enraged him. He wanted to attack the city and massacre all the million civilians in Tokyo. Although I am in the Jin camp, I have Han blood flowing in my veins and I couldn't bear it. I have been trying to persuade the commander-in-chief these past few days. I have really gone to great lengths to get him to change his mind a little. But since your emperor has openly insulted the commander-in-chief, he promised not to massacre the city. He only asked for some silver, and my army will return north immediately!"

Geng Nanzhong looked very interested, but he clearly didn't believe Liu Yanzong's words. Originally, there was an agreement between Song and Jin that Song would give Jin an annual tribute. If you only need silver, why did you come all the way to Bianjing? Do you think I'm a fool?

Liu Yanzong did not expect this reason to fool the shrewd Geng Nanzhong. He continued, "In fact, the commander-in-chief is also unwilling to attack Bianjing. If it were not for Marshal Zonghan's order, the commander-in-chief would prefer to coexist peacefully with the Song Dynasty. The commander-in-chief said that as long as the Song Dynasty increases its annual tribute and dismisses Li Gang, the commander-in-chief will immediately withdraw his troops!"

When Geng Nanzhong heard that Li Gang was involved, he immediately became interested. Li Gang had recently gained power and was second only to the emperor. The emperor had given Li Gang a lot of authority, which made the pro-peace ministers very unhappy.

Unfortunately, Li Gang was good at doing things but not at being a good person. He was too straightforward in everything he did, which made many ministers dislike him and want to remove him from office. Geng Nanzhong was one of them. As the emperor's tutor, he should have been the one standing next to Zhao Huan, not Li Gang.

"Prime Minister Li is a key minister of our dynasty, the current emperor's most trusted Privy Councilor, and your number one enemy. How could the emperor possibly dismiss Prime Minister Li!"

Liu Yanzong said meaningfully, "These days, Li Gang's reputation in Dongjing City is quite high, and he controls tens of thousands of imperial guards. Even the militia obey his command. Have you ever heard of the disasters caused by Dong Zhuo and Cao Cao?"

Upon hearing this, Geng Nanzhong was slightly taken aback, as if he had grasped something.

The snow continued to fall. A servant from Geng Nanzhong's residence hurriedly went to the street and found a guard from the Imperial City Guard.

Before long, a secret report was presented to the emperor's desk.

The ministers probably didn't know that the emperor's redeployment of the Imperial City Guard had completely covered the city of Tokyo, and many Imperial City Guards were beginning to extend their reach to the southern part of the empire and the war-torn Hebei and Hedong regions.

Zhao Huan's face turned ashen: "My teacher actually conspired to meet with that traitor Liu Yanzong! What is he trying to do! Sell out the country! He has completely disgraced me!"