Wang Kai nodded but did not agree. It was as if he knew in his heart that what Jin Fushi said was true, but he still had some doubts.
"Your Majesty." Jin Bushi knelt directly in the palace. "This is not only a private matter between me and Zheng Zhichang, but also a nearly one-hundred-year feud between the Kaesong Yangban and the Seokyeong (Pyongyang) Yangban... If things go wrong, I will die without a burial place, but it is not impossible to directly provoke a civil war from Seokyeong to Kaesong. What I am asking for today is not my own position as commander-in-chief, but a way for me to survive and live in peace with Your Majesty!"
Wang Kai took several deep breaths and finally nodded: "I trust Jin Xianggong, so I will follow his words and appoint him as the Marshal and the commander-in-chief of the war against Jin. I will immediately send secret messages to the border of Jin and allow him to send a special envoy to Xijing!"
Jin Fu Shi kowtowed heavily, and when he raised his head, his eyes were already filled with tears, and Wang Kai was also moved.
Just like that, on the last day of February, Kim Bu-sik, the well-prepared ruler of Goryeo, did not hesitate to mobilize more than 20,000 people who had been prepared in the vicinity of Kaesong in the afternoon of the same day after receiving the belated report of the battle of Huolu. He marched westward and arrived at Xijing (Pyongyang) in a hurry in just six days. Then he displayed the ceremonial guard of the Prime Minister and the Marshal, took over the city defense, and controlled more than 10,000 people in Xijing.
Then, after a brief settlement, on the morning of the sixth day of March, Kim Bu-sik sent out a large number of documents to the small town northwest of the city where his troops were stationed, informing the slightly wary Xijing (Pyongyang) gentry that the Song emperor had won a great victory over the Jin army in Huolu, and that the 16 Jin army commanders were almost unable to return north. The court had decided to follow the order of Emperor Zhao last year, launch a surprise attack on Liaodong, and participate in the war against Jin. It demanded that the Xijing gentry immediately join the army, prepare to accept positions, and join the northern expedition.
At the same time, he specifically asked Zheng Zhichang to come and receive orders, prepare to go on a diplomatic mission to the Song Dynasty, express his submission, and discuss post-war matters. He also asked the monk Miaoqing, who was particularly favored by the King of Goryeo, to arrive at the same time to report the situation here to the King of Gaekyeong... It was said that the King specifically asked to see the latter.
Besides, Seogyeong was originally a big city that Goryeo had painstakingly built up. After the palace was burned down that day, there were frequent discussions about moving the capital. Otherwise, there would not have been factional struggles between Seogyeong Yangban and Kaesong Yangban for hundreds of years.
This factional struggle, from culture to foreign policy, to power struggle within the country, plus regional economic foundation, is almost an all-round struggle, but because the capital is in Kaifeng, Xijing has always been at a disadvantage. Today, we can borrow such a foreign "east wind" to force Jin Bushi, the first person to submit to Jin, to go to the city to invite his old enemy Zheng Zhichang to a banquet, which is really gratifying.
Therefore, the two groups in Xijing (Pyongyang) were caught off guard by the sudden arrival of Kim Bu-sik with the imperial edict, but they were overjoyed when they saw these consecutive announcements. They then each got in a sedan chair, mules and horses, and agreed to form a team to leave the city and go to the small town.
At noon, about seventy or eighty people arrived at the same time. Although Jin Bushi himself never drank, he could only put on a stern face and host a banquet to entertain them. He also announced the positions of these people in the army according to their qualifications and titles... Although he showed dissatisfaction in his words, he was at a disadvantage in his actions.
When the news came back, Zheng Zhichang and Monk Miaoqing, who still wanted to pretend to be leaders, could no longer hold back and finally arrived together late.
"You two are finally here!"
Seeing the arrival of the people, Jin Fushi stood up in the middle of the town hall in a rage. "Especially you, Zheng Zhichang, did I ask you to come? When the country needs you to contribute, you are putting on airs?"
When Zheng Zhichang heard this, he was not angry. Instead, he smiled and pointed at him, "Jin Lizhi (Jin Fushi's pen name), if you had listened to me earlier, the country would not be in such a predicament today. Are you qualified to be a marshal? When I see Emperor Zhao, Master Miaoqing will go to see the king, and I will definitely persuade the emperor and the king to severely punish you!"
Jin Bu Shi sighed helplessly, then nodded: "If that's the case, I shouldn't have expected anything from the beginning."
Zheng Zhichang laughed even louder, and before he died down, he heard cries of surprise from all around him. He looked around and realized that Jin Bushi had just waved his hand and his trusted generals and soldiers rushed out to seal the main hall gate and protect 'Marshal Jin'.
"Old thief...what do you want to do?" Zheng Zhichang had seen a lot of big scenes. When all the monks and generals around him were panicking, he was the only one who had a clear mind. "If I make a mistake, how will you explain it to Emperor Zhao?"
"How come you still take yourself seriously until your death?!" Jin Bushi was speechless. "Zheng Zhichang... The Zhao Song emperor showed you favors in order to make connections in Goryeo, which is equivalent to showing power to me, and showing power to me is also equivalent to showing you favors... What do Xijing, Kaijing, Jin Bushi, and Zheng Zhichang have to do with big shots like him? What they want is just to hold on to our Goryeo and force us to send troops to conquer the Jurchens when necessary! Do you really think that your poetry talent is comparable to that of the great scholar Su, and that the Zhao emperor has taken a fancy to you? For a person like that emperor, even if the great scholar Su was still alive, believe it or not, he would be forced to become the master of the original school?"
After saying this, Jin Bushi turned around and said, "Seventy-eight people, leave no one alive. After we have rooted out the weeds, we will enter the city and confiscate their homes for military supplies!"
Jin Bu Shi had been the Prime Minister for many years and had great prestige in the army, so as soon as he said this, the hall was filled with swords flying and blood. In just a few moments, 78 men from the Xijing yangban were chopped to the ground, and then they were stabbed one by one.
However, seeing Zheng Zhichang being stabbed twice, covered in blood, wailing but still looking up at him, Marshal Jin suddenly felt the resentment that had been pent up in his heart for many years, and regardless of his age, he personally picked up his sword and stepped forward, ready to finish him off.
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