"What are you talking about?" In the dark night, Yue Fei pinched the hard bow behind his back, and for some reason he was solemn. "At this point, the Fourth Prince wants to talk to me about reason and current affairs?"
"Even if we are at war, why can't we talk about reason?" Wuzhu said disapprovingly. "Besides, we are meeting at the dike slope at midnight today. Although we cannot meet face to face, it is a rare opportunity. Moreover, even if we say something wrong or bad, we don't have to worry about losing morale or being impeached."
"Your Highness, you misunderstood me." Yue Fei replied with a sigh. "It's not that I think we can't talk here, but there are some things that really don't need to be said... The Jurchens invaded China, killed our people, robbed our property, destroyed our cities, and seized our territory... Is there any reason for this?"
"General, you just said something stupid." Wuzhu sneered. "The two rivers were once the territory of the Song Dynasty, and now they are the territory of the Jin Dynasty. You used to call yourself China, but after losing the two rivers, what kind of China are you? You can only be considered half of China. On the contrary, the Jin Dynasty now occupies the two rivers, establishes systems, opens imperial examinations, respects Confucius and values Confucianism. Isn't it also a Chinese country?"
"How can a bunch of Diyi, who are monkeys in human clothing, claim to be Chinese?" Yue Fei said with disdain.
"This is even more confusing." In the twilight, behind the shield, Wuzhu on horseback was still not angry. "The Khitan people only occupied the land of Yanyun, but they can be called a great Chinese nation and inherit the Chinese tradition. You all admit it. But the Great Jin now occupies the two rivers. Why can't it be called China? You must know that the source of this orthodoxy is in the tradition, not in the orthodoxy... During the so-called Southern and Northern Dynasties, the Northern Wei occupied Han land and was assimilated to Han culture, which was the orthodoxy. The Sui and Tang dynasties inherited it and ruled the world. The Song, Qi, Liang and Chen dynasties, on the contrary, became separatist and rebellious nations. How similar is it to today? Even if we ignore these, you say that we invaded from outside, but your Great Song Taizu did dirty things and seized the foundation of the Chai family. Do you have the right to say that the Great Jin did not get the country legitimately?"
"What the Fourth Prince said seems to make some sense." Unexpectedly, Yue Fei was frank. "But speaking of this, I have to make it clear to the Fourth Prince... You said that the source of orthodoxy lies in the order rather than the order. Then I dare to ask, the Jurchens stole the two rivers, treated the people as slaves, and implemented harsh laws, causing the people to abandon their homes and businesses, or cross the river to survive, or go up the Taihang Mountains, all of which were no less than a million. Is it true? Not to mention that you used to slaughter people here on a regular basis, making the fields bloody... Is this also considered orthodoxy?"
"That was when I first arrived. When a country rises, war is inevitable. The Great Jin was also built day by day." Wuzhu blurted out a sophistry, but he regretted it as soon as he opened his mouth.
“So, the Fourth Prince thinks that the massacre by the Jin Kingdom is inevitable, and that the abdication of the Song Dynasty more than a hundred years ago was not legitimate?” Yue Fei sneered.
"My original intention was just that the eldest brother, let alone the second brother, is ridiculous. " Wuzhu responded with a wry smile.
"Yes." Yue Fei continued to sneer. "The Fourth Prince thought that the orthodoxy of the country was based on the rule rather than the rightness. As a result, the Song Dynasty has been in power for more than a hundred years, with a flourishing culture and a population of hundreds of millions. However, it is as ridiculous as the Jin Dynasty, which ruled the two rivers for ten years, slaughtered people for three to five years, and was tyrannical for three to five years... But who is the one who is ridiculous?!"
Wuzhu avoided the question and remained silent.
"Besides." Yue Fei's voice became clearer. "Even if I admit today that the Song Dynasty came to power illegitimately, so what? Is the orthodoxy of the Song Dynasty still in the same place as it was a hundred years ago? Wasn't it our government that led hundreds of millions of people to drive out the Tartars, restore China, and rule the world? After the White Horse Shaoxing, our government made it clear that the country was gradually divided into the old and the new. Your so-called Jin Kingdom is ridiculous compared to the old Song Dynasty. How dare you compare it with the new Song Dynasty today? Why don't you compare insects with bears and tigers and say that they are the same?"
"Marshal Yue." Wuzhu finally responded solemnly. "I thought you were a marshal of a country, so you must have profound ideas. Who would have thought you would say such vulgar words?"
"It was the Fourth Prince who wanted to talk to me!" Yue Fei said across the river bank without any politeness. "Besides, if your Great Jin has any merit, why would you humiliate yourself?"
Wuzhu was so angry that he was choked with anger. Both sides were silent for a moment on the other side of the embankment.
After a moment, Wuzhu calmed down and changed his words: "These fancy things are the words of scholars. We are all in the army and should not be as talkative as those in the court reports. As for whether the Great Jin Kingdom has support, Marshal Yue, of course our Great Jin has support. Aren't these hundreds of thousands of elite Jin Kingdom soldiers in front of you and behind me our support and foundation? The current situation is that the two countries' military forces are actually equal, and the confrontation across the river has become a fact. However, we have repeatedly wanted to negotiate peace with you, but you have ignored us and instead want to cross the river to attack with all your strength... I read your court reports and know one thing, that is, you have almost exhausted all the means of plundering for this war, wasting people's money and resources, and draining the pond to catch fish. Moreover, the imperial camp in front and the literati in the back are completely in opposition, and the country is almost divided. Is it worth it? Even if it succeeds in the future, how much effort will it take for you to stabilize and unify the country?"
Having said this, Wuzhu stopped and waited for a while. After hearing no response for a long while, he paused for a moment and continued:
"Moreover, if they really cross the river to attack, can the Song army defeat my army? Let's not talk about other places, just take you here. It's cold in winter. The soldiers and civilians should all stay at home and celebrate the New Year with a heated kang. As a result, you dragged more than 100,000 soldiers and civilians into the wilderness and asked them to work hard to break ice along the river in the middle of the night... And breaking ice is just a perfunctory measure. The key is that your army has been trapped in a place of internal and external difficulties. After three or five days, the river will freeze over as usual. If my army attacks, let's not talk about the outcome. Let's just say that by then, countless innocent people from both armies will die. How can you feel at ease?"
Wuzhu waited again, but the other party remained silent. This encouraged the Fourth Prince, and he continued to speak: "I also know that Marshal Yue is from Hebei, from Xiangzhou... Ten years ago, when the army marched south, it was me who conquered Xiangzhou... So I know Marshal Yue wants to recover his hometown, but for his own selfish reasons, he caused bloodshed all over the world. Is this considered a virtue as a general?!"
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