"I dare to speak frankly, and if I have said anything inappropriate, please forgive me, Headmaster!"
"Houzhi, please speak freely."
"The Shi and Han families have long lived in barbarian lands. They are called Han people, but in reality, they have long been assimilated into barbarian culture!"
"Houzhi, what do you mean by that?"
Zhao Huan was very satisfied with Li Chongguang, but he looked puzzled on the surface.
"Think of Han Derang, the ancestor of the Han family. A hundred years ago, he had an ambiguous relationship with Xiao Yanyan (Empress Dowager Xiao) of the Khitan. He served the barbarians and made his fortune. After the Liao Dynasty was destroyed, he turned around and surrendered to the Jin invaders, becoming their dog. Now, wherever His Majesty's army goes, everything is like clay chickens and earthen dogs. Han Qixian knows that the Jin invaders' fate is over, so he secretly surrendered to His Majesty. I personally believe that one day, the Han family will surely rebel."
Zhao Huan was slightly startled and began to look at Li Chongguang with new respect.
What he said makes sense.
Those who are fickle and unpredictable are the ones who should be avoided the most.
This is also why Zhao Huan sought out Li Chongguang for a private conversation.
I cannot sleep or eat in peace until the Shi and Han families are destroyed.
I can be capricious and change my mind as easily as turning the pages of a book, but you cannot!
This family, which has been operating in the North for a century, has long since established its influence in all aspects of life.
Keeping it will eventually become a hidden danger.
Zhao Huan pretended to be deep in thought. He couldn't directly agree with Li Chongguang's words, after all, he still had to appear benevolent and righteous in front of his loyal subjects.
After all, he had been emperor for ten years.
Li Chongguang, however, was eager to share the emperor's burdens. He rose, bowed deeply, and said, "Your Majesty, I am unworthy, but I am willing to share Your Majesty's burdens."
Zhao Huan hesitated for a moment before saying, "The ailment in my heart is just as Houzhi said."
Li Chongguang was very satisfied with his bold guess and decisiveness. He believed that being able to guess the emperor's mind would surely give him an opportunity to rise rapidly in rank.
Zhao Huan continued, "Houzhi is loyal to the emperor and the country, which greatly pleases me. You may go ahead and do as he says."
"Your Majesty, I am willing to go through fire and water for you!"
Zhao Huan has done this kind of instigation quite often.
As an emperor, one has a natural advantage in encouraging others.
Almost everyone in front of the emperor was eager to make contributions and had a very strong desire for power.
A person with strong desires is easily swayed.
After a meal and a few drinks, Li Chongguang was instantly energized, as if he had been injected with ten pounds of chicken blood.
When he walked out of the imperial palace, he felt as if he had stood at the pinnacle of power in the world, looking down on all living beings.
After Li Chongguang left, Zhao Huan fell into a simple state of deep thought.
Judging from the governance of Liaodong, the older generation of officials were becoming increasingly disobedient.
Zhao Huan finally understood why Li Longji had changed 33 prime ministers in his lifetime.
When anyone comes to power, they must cultivate their own cronies in order to get things done. Over time, their power becomes deeply entrenched.
Once a faction becomes deeply entrenched, it will affect the emperor and the implementation of many of his ideas.
On the other hand, the older generation of leaders are more familiar with the current situation and can maintain a balance with the new generation.
In February, Liaodong was still bitterly cold, with ice and snow covering the entire world.
The capital city, which had just experienced a bloody battle, was in a state of chaos. Headless corpses that had not yet been collected still lay in the streets, and the blood was frozen in the snow, giving it an eerie red appearance.
On the city wall, rows of heads hung, those were all the generals under Wanyan Zonghan.
Among them were Wanyan Zonghan's two grandsons, Wanyan Bingde and Wanyan Xiege.
These two were only in their early twenties, and just a few months ago they were people who had countless celebrities in the capital lining up to curry favor with them.
But now, their heads are hanging on the city wall, their eyes, now gray, staring wide-eyed, mouths agape, their faces frozen with the terror and despair of their last moments.
Falling from the clouds is so easy.
On other streets, there were pieces of meat chopped into pieces, frozen in ice and snow.
Having endured the ravages of war, the capital city was severely weakened.
Although Wanyan Zonghan was defeated and fled, the people in the capital city were still in a state of panic.
What the various factions were worried about was not Wanyan Zonghan's return, but rather the Song army stationed in Shenzhou.
In two months, the snow in Liaodong will melt, and once the snow melts, the Song army will surely march north to attack Shangjing.
Judging from their current troop strength, they have no ability to resist once the Song army marches north.
Embracing their shamelessness, the Shi and Han families have mobilized various forces over the past few days to continuously instill in Wanyan Zongwang the idea of negotiating peace with the Song Dynasty.
At first, it was only Han Chinese who were lobbying, but after a month, nobles from various Jurchen, Khitan, and Bohai tribes also began to lobby.
Given the current situation, peace talks would benefit all parties and are what the people want.
But after a while, the wind blew more and more crookedly.
The discussion shifted from peace talks to submission.
I don't know which scoundrel was the first to change his mind, but soon everyone felt it was better to just submit.
Given that emperor's temperament, negotiating peace is definitely out of the question.
Even if they surrender and make temporary peace, the next war is only a matter of time.
It would be better to just submit and everyone could be a peaceful nobleman, enjoying the same wealth and honor. Why bother fighting over trivial matters?
It's as if a door to a new world has been opened; the nobles have been unusually active lately.
Not only did they frequently sneak over to Wanyan Zongwang's residence to peek, but they would also occasionally pass by and deliver a gift to inquire about Wanyan Zongwang's entire family, hoping that he would not impulsively oppose the Song army, otherwise he would drag his whole family down with him.
Not only that, they would also write letters to the Song Dynasty's emperor, expressing their admiration for the Celestial Empire and their willingness to be its loyal dogs for life, at the emperor's beck and call.
In a short time, letters of surrender piled up like mountains at Zhao Huan's place.
Zhao Huan was so annoyed that he simply ordered Sima Junru to throw the letters into the backyard and burn them all.
All subsequent letters were forbidden from being delivered to the emperor; they were all to be thrown into the backyard and burned.
To Zhao Huan, what use were the loyalty pledges of those Tom, Dick, and Harry?
In his eyes, they were already dead.
What kind of barbarians are the safest?
Of course it's dead.
Glancing occasionally at the firelight in the backyard, Zhao Huan said indifferently: "To allow me to sleep peacefully, you've all been wronged. Go to hell."
Another month passed, and as the climate in Liaodong began to warm up, the nobles in the capital city were almost going crazy.
Prince of Yan!
What are you trying to do?!
I've heard that our Emperor has been captured by the Song Emperor and is now obediently serving as a dog in Shenzhou City.
Prince of Yan! If you're not willing to surrender, don't drag everyone down with you!
Finally, on a sunny afternoon, Zhao Huan received a letter from Wanyan Zongwang.
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