After giving the grasslands a sound beating, Zhao Huan withdrew his troops and returned to the capital.

It's already late August, and the weather is gradually getting cooler.

The defeat of the various nomadic tribes on the steppe shocked the Jin Dynasty court.

Wanyan Sheng held a flintlock musket in his hand. Wanyan Gao said, "Your Majesty, this is a firearm from the Song Dynasty. Its maximum range is 70 feet."

Wanyan Shengzai carefully examined the flintlock musket that Wanyan Gao's spies had brought back from the Song Dynasty, but he really couldn't understand what it was used for.

Wanyan Gao said, "Your Majesty, please allow me to demonstrate for you."

Wanyan Sheng handed the flintlock pistol to Wanyan Gao, who then held the pistol in one hand and placed the other hand on the trigger, aiming forward as if shooting a crossbow.

He suddenly pulled the trigger, and with a bang, the bullet flew out, hitting the artificial hill in front of him and shattering a small piece of the rock.

Wanyan Sheng was immediately alarmed and said, "This thing is amazing. If it is shot into a person, wouldn't it pierce through their internal organs?"

"Your Majesty is wise. According to the people of the Qiyan tribe who fled to our Great Jin territory after their defeat, the Song army used these firearms to kill many of them."

"Wanyan Zongpan."

"Your subject is here!"

"You must order the Imperial Armory to manufacture this item immediately. If the Song Dynasty has this firearm, its combat power will surely increase greatly. Our Great Jin cannot fall behind."

"yes!"

On the fifth day after Zhao Huan arrived in Tokyo, he received a secret letter from Sima Junru: the Jurchens had acquired firearms.

This cast a shadow over Zhao Huan's heart.

However, such things are hard to avoid and will eventually pass.

However, it would take a long time for the Jin Dynasty to mass-produce flintlock muskets.

Even Zhao Huan's flintlock musket production line underwent three full years of refinement before achieving its current status.

Therefore, he was not worried that the Jin state could now mass-produce flintlock muskets.

After returning to Tokyo, Zhao Huan didn't have a moment to rest.

After carefully reviewing the report on the Song Dynasty's grain production this year, he mainly checked the amount of grain supplied by the Southern Continent and then confirmed that this year's grain production was six times that of last year.

Therefore, the emperor decided to formally launch a war against the Jin Dynasty!

Launching a war against the Jin dynasty requires a multi-step approach.

At the very least, outposts on both the eastern and western fronts must be established.

Then find another reason to start a war. The reason is simple: the Jin state does not respect the trade agreement signed between the two countries and does not respect the patent law of the Song Dynasty.

The emperor has already suppressed the barbarian tribes on the western front, and the Goryeo strongholds on the eastern front need to be established more quickly.

On this day, Jiang Shaobin had just finished preparing the goods when he received a secret letter: Add more goods!

What does "adding goods" mean?

As for Jiang Shaobin, he knew.

We need to give Miaoqing more supplies.

Why increase supplies for Miaoqing?

The authorities ordered Miao Qing to expedite the uprising.

Now, almost all of Jiang Shaobin's businesses in Korea are handled by Miao Qing's people.

Therefore, his words still carry considerable weight with Miaoqing.

Upon receiving the notification, Jiang Shaobin quickly packed his bags and personally made a trip to Goryeo.

After arriving in Goryeo, he first went to Gaegyeong, the capital of Goryeo, and then turned back from Gaegyeong to the southwest to see Myo-chung.

Miaoqing was an ambitious monk who made a lot of money from Jiang Shaobin, a merchant from the Song Dynasty, during the two months he had known him.

“Master Miaoqing, I heard some negative comments about you during my trip to Kaijing.”

"What remarks?"

"There are rumors that the monk has been advising Your Majesty to launch a northern expedition against the Jin Kingdom, and that Your Majesty intends to deal with you, monk."

Miao Qing, her expression unchanged, asked, "How will the King deal with me?"

"Master, I am merely a novice merchant who has only heard some rumors in the capital. I cannot take them seriously, but I am concerned for your safety and would like to remind you to take precautions."

“Lord Jiang, we are good friends, and of course I believe what my good friend says.”

Jiang Shaobin performed a Buddhist salute to Miaoqing before shifting the topic to business.

He knew it was impossible to get Miaoqing to believe him so quickly.

Therefore, the Imperial City Guard's spies infiltrated the princes and nobles of Kaesong a month ago, using a huge sum of money to win over several high-ranking officials.

The rumors of Miaoqing's rebellion were merely hearsay among the princes and nobles of Gaegyeong.

Soon, the rumor spread like wildfire and reached the ears of King Wang Gae of Goryeo.

After Jiang Shaobin finished dealing with his business matters, Miaoqing sent someone to Kaijing to inquire. As a result, she found that many people in Kaijing were spreading rumors that he was plotting a rebellion.

Upon learning of this, Miaoqing quickly became restless.

When someone intends to rebel but has not yet taken any action, and is discovered, there are two ways to handle the situation.

One option is to deny it outright and resolutely refuse to go to the capital.

The second option is to directly raise an army.

Usually, if the first situation worsens, it will develop into the second situation.

A crucial factor in deciding whether to launch a military campaign is whether one has sufficient resources.

Of course, the situation in Goryeo is more complicated now because Song troops are stationed there.

Therefore, another important factor in deciding whether to launch a military campaign was the attitude of the State of Song.

Less than half a month later, Jiang Shaobin reappeared in Goryeo.

This time, he sent a letter, a handwritten letter from Duan Zhijie, the military commissioner of Jingdong Road.

One of the core ideas in the letter was: to purge the court of corrupt officials.

Miaoqing immediately knew what to do.

The rumors that Miaoqing is plotting a rebellion have spread like wildfire in Kaijing recently, and even old ladies on the street know that Miaoqing wants to rebel.

This is a done deal.

Even if Miaoqing doesn't rebel now, she will still be killed.

So, he still has one path.

Fortunately, the State of Song has already made its stance clear.

Furthermore, he made a lot of money doing business with Jiang Shaobin, which was more than enough to cover his military pay.

So, in late September, Miaoqing began recruiting soldiers and horses and launched a grand rebellion!

Didn't you, Wang Kai, say I was going to rebel?

I'll rebel right now and show you.

When Zhao Huan, who was sitting in the palace, received the news of Miao Qing's rebellion, he was very excited.

Myo-cheong's rebellion foreshadowed a period of turmoil in Goryeo, where the political landscape would be redistributed.

The biggest winner in this process was the Song Dynasty.

Regardless of who wins, the Song Dynasty can use the pretext of suppressing the rebellion to actually send its troops to Gaegyeong, or rather, infiltrate Goryeo, instead of simply stationing them there.

This means that the Song Dynasty will increasingly influence the national situation of Goryeo.

The emperor gave Duan Zhijie a task: before the New Year, Miaoqing must fight with Wang Kai, and there was no room for negotiation.

If this matter is handled well, Zhao Huan plans to transfer Duan Zhijie back to the central government to serve as the Military Commander of the Censorate.

Qin Hui was transferred to the Northwest to take full charge of the Northwest's supervisory military police.

The Northwest is now extremely important to the emperor. It is not only a stronghold in the war against the Jin Dynasty, but also the outpost for the Song Dynasty to penetrate deeper into the Western Regions.