Since the new emperor ascended the throne, Imperial Censor He has not had a single night of restful sleep. However, he is very clear that his life is more important than a good night's sleep, and to save his life, he must keep a close watch on this emperor.
Li Gang had just finished inspecting the entire defense system of Tokyo when he received a message from a palace eunuch: the emperor in the palace had something urgent to discuss with him, and according to the eunuch, the emperor was furious.
When Li Gang and He Ye arrived, they saw Xie Dahai standing at the door like a cold door god. The two of them did not speak, but after announcing their arrival, they entered the emperor's study.
Upon entering, one would see that the emperor's face was so gloomy it could have been wrung out several basins of water.
He dared not utter a sound, waiting for the emperor to speak. Li Gang, however, was straightforward and outspoken. He said, "Your Majesty, why have you summoned me here so late at night? What important matter is it?"
Zhao Huan handed the secret report to Li Gang, who was greatly alarmed upon reading it. After reading it, Li Gang then handed it to He Ye.
He Ye breathed a sigh of relief after reading it. He had thought it was something serious, but it turned out that it was that old scoundrel Geng Nanzhong courting death.
He Ye also has very obvious characteristics. He is the emperor's dog, specializing in biting people. As long as he doesn't bite himself, everything is fine. But now the emperor is clearly very angry. If he acts indifferent, wouldn't he be asking for trouble? Of course, he must immediately show righteous indignation.
He Ye said solemnly, "Your Majesty, the nation pays high salaries to its officials, yet it has produced such a treacherous scoundrel. I beg Your Majesty to immediately imprison the old thief Geng Nanzhong in the Imperial Prison to uphold the law!"
Zhao Huan did not immediately respond to He Ye's suggestion, but instead asked Li Gang, "Minister Li, what do you think?"
“Your Majesty, this matter is of great importance. To punish someone simply for meeting with Liu Yanzong would hardly convince the public. We cannot be certain what they discussed. Perhaps Liu Yanzong deliberately came to meet with Prime Minister Geng to create a rift between Your Majesty and Prime Minister Geng, thus putting Your Majesty in an unjust position!”
He also sneered from the side, "That's simple, just arrest him and interrogate him, and you'll know."
"Imperial Censor He, Prime Minister Geng is a high-ranking official and also the Imperial Tutor. Where do you place the majesty of the Emperor!"
He was not convinced and retorted, "Lord Li, Geng Nanzhong is meeting with that traitor Liu Yanzong in private at this time. Needless to say, he is definitely selling out the country!"
"Insufficient evidence!"
"The evidence is conclusive!"
"Your Majesty, I think it would be better to observe first and see how things develop."
Zhao Huan placed one hand on the imperial desk, his fingers tapping incessantly. He had originally planned to imprison Geng Nanzhong directly, and then use various forms of torture to force Geng Nanzhong to reveal his reasons for secretly meeting with Liu Yanzong.
But after thinking it over, he realized that Li Gang's words made sense. He decided to see what Geng Nanzhong was up to and what kind of people these supposedly upright gentlemen, who were being paid high salaries by the Song Dynasty, really were.
"Granted! This matter must not be leaked, or I will take both of your heads!"
"Yes, sir!"
Tonight is another snowy night. It is said that the Jin invaders have retreated to dozens of miles away. The people of Tokyo are overjoyed. At this time, everyone in the night market is talking about Li Gang organizing the soldiers on the city wall to defend against the enemy.
Many ordinary people also went to the gate of Li Gang's residence to give him gifts in order to express their heartfelt gratitude.
There were also students from the Imperial Academy discussing in the night market restaurants how Prime Minister Li repelled the enemy, all saying that Prime Minister Li was a hero of the Song Dynasty.
After leaving Geng Nanzhong's residence, Liu Yanzong did not rush to leave the city. He dared to enter the city because he was confident in his own safety.
In fact, during the reign of Emperor Huizong of Song, he was very familiar with Bianjing (Kaifeng) and the Song Dynasty. The Song Dynasty had a million-strong imperial guard, but they were all incompetent. The most fatal flaw of the Song Dynasty was its terrible intelligence system.
The Jin emperor had long intended to destroy the Song, but the Song emperor and ministers were still discussing the Yan-Yun region with the Jin. What a load of rubbish! They had already drawn their knives, yet you still thought they were your allies.
Based on these points alone, Liu Yanzong dared to enter Tokyo alone.
In Liu Yanzong's mind, the Song Dynasty was bound to be destroyed. The Jin Dynasty was so powerful that the people of the Song Dynasty at that time could not even imagine it. The prosperous city of Bianjing was filled with decadence and debauchery, which was depressing and would soon fall into enemy hands.
But then again, if we've come all this way to Tokyo, wouldn't it be a huge waste to leave without having a good time here?
Liu Yanzong rode in a carriage and soon arrived at a brothel in Bianjing. He swaggered inside, but no one there recognized him as a minister of the Jin Dynasty.
Night had fallen, but the wind and snow had not stopped.
Inside the Spring Moon Pavilion, some scholars were indulging their hormones, embracing beautiful women and reciting poems.
The storyteller was passionately describing in the center of the stage the scene of Lord Li repelling the enemy on the city wall in the past few days, and the people around him kept clapping and cheering.
A scholar exclaimed, "The current emperor is truly a sage emperor. If it weren't for his wisdom and his personal encouragement of the troops from the city walls, this battle would have been much more difficult to win!"
"Yes! The current emperor possesses the grand vision and spirit of the founding emperors Taizu and Taizong!"
"I believe that this time, Prime Minister Li deserves the most credit. Even now, Prime Minister Li is probably still patrolling the city tower!" The speaker was a young man in blue robes named Liu Ji.
"Yes! I also believe that Minister Li deserves the most credit!"
"Brother Hao is right. Compared to the officials in the court, Prime Minister Li is the true pillar of the nation!" The young man who responded to Liu Ji was dressed in a black robe and had a wealthy appearance, clearly a scion of a prominent family.
"Tch! In my opinion, Li Gang is just standing on the city wall giving orders blindly. The greatest credit belongs to generals like Chen Keli who are defending the city. Li Gang is just trying to gain fame and reputation!" A very unfriendly voice came from a young man in a long robe.
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