The chill of night swept in, and the same information was brewing different atmospheres in different places. The death of Zhang Jue in the north was the result of a series of complex reasons pushing from within the Wu Dynasty, but in terms of information feedback, no one was actually happy about it.

Inside the Yanfu Palace of the imperial city, burning candles created a warm atmosphere. Eunuchs, guards, and palace maids stood watch, but in the night, only the sound of chess pieces falling could occasionally be heard. The Emperor was not in a good mood, and the Empress, who was accompanying him to play chess to relieve his boredom, was also discreetly silent.

"I have done something... I don't know if it was right or wrong."

After a long while, Zhou Zhe spoke slowly and softly, holding a chess piece in his hand, not moving it for a long time. The Empress waited for a moment: "What Your Majesty does will inevitably have right and wrong aspects, but I know that whether right or wrong, Your Majesty chooses what must be done."

Speaking of the Emperor's wrongdoings in front of him would probably be punished immediately. But the Empress was deeply affectionate with him and knew that Zhou Zhe liked this kind of statement. Sure enough, after she finished speaking, Zhou Zhe slightly raised his eyebrows, and after a moment, he showed a wry smile.

"I killed Zhang Jue. Others don't know, and may think I am昏庸 (hūn yōng - muddle-headed), but how do they know the difficulties in my heart? All the civil and military officials, Cai Jing, Li Gang, Qin Siyuan, Tong Guan, Li Bangyan, Wang Fu... every single one of them! They... mislead me..."

He dropped the chess piece, speaking of this matter with gnashing teeth, encompassing all the civil and military officials. The Empress remained silent, not wanting to chime in: "They... probably also have their difficulties..."

"Difficulties! I placed them in the positions of high-ranking officials in the court, I gave them power, I paved the way for them to do things, but in the end, what did they give me? A... messy mess—" Zhou Zhe waved his hand forcefully, "In the end, I have to take the blame for them, these... old things!"

He gnashed his teeth, the bitterness in his heart hard to express. As early as when he was actively raising troops and promoting the Northern Expedition, he had a great ambition in his heart—this ambition began when he ascended the throne, provoking internal strife among the Liao people, infiltrating the Northern Kingdom with the Secret Intelligence Division, and investing a lot of financial and material resources to arouse greed, and later the Black Water Alliance. He very much wanted to be a renaissance hegemon, and the requisition of various rare stones was indeed because the imperial court needed money to invest in the north. Although he left a lot behind later, that was also because the north no longer needed investment. As an emperor, he had painstakingly done many things, and in retrospect, these things did indeed play a role.

When the Jurchens raised their troops, the Wu Dynasty waited for a good opportunity. He made great use of Li Gang, re-established Qin Siyuan, and allowed Cai Jing and others to make way for them, actively promoting Tong Guan's Northern Expedition. Of course, there were many obstacles and unsatisfactory things. Only six of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun were recovered, but Guo Yaoshi's achievements still gave him face. This was originally a strategy of buying bones with a thousand gold, and before Guo Yaoshi had made great contributions, he gave him countless rewards, including forgiving him for his mistakes in attacking Yanjing. Later, Guo Yaoshi's slaying of Xiao Gan proved the correctness of his vision to the world, and he was very happy.

As for the Jurchens who were proud and domineering, Zhou Zhe did not like them in his heart. At least he was thinking of taking back the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun. Once they were taken back, the north would have many passes and mountains, and it would be impossible for the barbarians to go south. He could also comfort the spirits of his ancestors in heaven and become a pioneering master of his generation. This idea made him have an aggressive side in his attitude towards the Jurchens. Accepting Zhang Jue's surrender was a follow-up to the surrender of Guo Yaoshi. However, after this, huge problems still had to pull him back to reality.

If the Jurchens had an excessive reaction to Zhang Jue's defection, should this battle be fought now, or not?

After Zhang Jue's defection, the Wu side was initially very happy: I used to talk to you about the Sixteen Prefectures, but you wouldn't talk, now we can sit down and talk, right? The Wu Dynasty was not without precautions against the Jurchens, but there was a consensus on some things, that is: the Jurchens were few in number, and it would not be easy to conquer the entire Liao Kingdom and manage it, and there was no energy to go south. At the same time, Guo Yaoshi was training troops outside Yanmen Pass, defeating Xiao Gan and destroying Xiao Gan's deployment. At this time, Zhang Jue was not a pushover either. Logically speaking, both sides had a certain deterrent effect, and we were qualified to talk on the table.

But facts proved that these considerations of the civil officials were really overthinking. You can weigh it a thousand times and think that the Wu Dynasty's strength has greatly increased, but for the Jurchens, if they are unhappy, there is only one way to solve it: come, let's fight once and see who loses and who wins.

When Wanyan Zhamu directly attacked Zhang Jue, Zhou Zhe had to seriously consider the matter.

In those one or two months, he subtly asked many people for their views and opinions, including Tong Guan, Cai Jing, Gao Qiu, Li Gang, Qin Siyuan, various high-ranking officials of the Ministry of War, and some ministers who were familiar with the situation of Jin and Liao and had served as envoys. The overall impression in the end chilled his heart.

On the surface, when asked if we could fight, of course they said we could. But Zhou Zhe was not a fool, at least he could hear some of the subtext of these ministers. He could see that Tong Guan, Cai Jing, Gao Qiu, and others had doubts about the combat effectiveness of the army, while Li Gang and Qin Siyuan expressed that no matter what, we have to hold on now and must fight!

What a joke, you can hold on now, even if you die, you can be a straight minister with a stiff neck, can I, the Emperor, be so rash? Putting the situation together, he suddenly realized that after preparing troops for so long, we still look like a paper tiger. If we really fight the Jin, have we prepared everything?

So he issued a secret decree in the capital, notifying Wang Anzhong that if the Jin were not too excessive, he must not lightly start a war. When necessary, Zhang Jue could be abandoned—and could only be abandoned. Behind this, who could understand his painstaking efforts.

He hated Cai Jing and Tong Guan for these people, who controlled the overall situation, at least in the army, it was still like this. He also hated Li Gang and Qin Siyuan for these people. He gave them so much support, but in the end, they did not do anything decisive and satisfactory. If the army has difficulty winning, they only know to shout to fight and hold on. What if we lose the first battle?

He thought about these things, and also remembered that he had really given Qin Siyuan and the others too much power and convenience in the matter of disaster relief. During this recent period of party strife, he was inclined towards them, suppressing a lot of opposing voices, and the influence of the two prime ministers in the capital was getting higher and higher, and Grand Tutor Cai and the others had to avoid the limelight, which was also a bit too much.

After weighing it, disaster relief still had to be done, but the matter of Zhang Jue was a means to suppress them. Otherwise, it would be their credit for attracting Zhang Jue's surrender, and after the surrender, to fully support Zhang Jue, and to start a war with the Jin with the power of the whole country for the sake of a Zhang Jue, would ultimately seem too reckless. Wouldn't this Emperor of mine look like a puppet? I can support all the ministers in doing things, but this kind of move that puts the country's fate on the line should not be made recklessly.

On the other hand, the matter of disaster relief is not too small, but compared to the Northern Expedition, there is a distinction between the important and the less important. It is a good thing that Li and Qin invested great efforts in disaster relief, but they also offended too many people. After this matter, if I suppress the power of the two prime ministers Li and Qin and let Grand Tutor Cai and the others rise up a bit, in a way, it is actually to preserve their positions. A few hints in private, they should also understand my painstaking efforts...

All kinds of mental journeys, all kinds of considerations, even in front of the Empress, some could be said, and some could not. In the end, it could only be turned into a sigh. As the Son of Heaven, it was really lonely at the top. He only hoped that his painstaking efforts would eventually bring good results in the future, and that he could get a fair evaluation in the history books...

****************

Receiving the news of Zhang Jue's death, Zhou Zhe's mood was complicated. In the right prime minister's mansion, Qin Siyuan almost fainted on the spot due to the shock. After seeing the news, the left prime minister Li Gang was also stunned and speechless. In the Grand Tutor's mansion, Cai Jing sighed after writing a calligraphy and looking at the news. Tong Guan looked at the map in his mansion for half the night with his hands behind his back, and sighed to others: "In the end, it was an unavoidable move." He had already retired, and his merits and demerits had been determined, so he had no psychological pressure.

In the Censorate, Qin Hui had not yet returned home when he received the news. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at the news, his teeth clenched, and his throat trembled slightly: "Stupid, stupid..."

He returned to the room where he handled official business, unfolded a blank sheet of paper, and wrote the beginning of a memorial of remonstrance. He had been captured by the northern people, and because of this, he knew the ferocity and wildness of those people. For such people, how could he retreat and show weakness? Showing weakness to the enemy would only arouse the other party's ferocity, and in the end, it would be difficult to clean up the situation.

Acting with great passion and righteous remonstrance was his usual state, and many senior officials had been pulled down by his impassioned memorials. However, there were always more things that he needed to consider. Halfway through writing the memorial, he already felt that the wording was too激烈的 (jī liè de - intense) and stopped. He took out a few new sheets of paper and started writing twice again, but the following two articles did not even pass the beginning.

He knew in his heart who the promoter behind this matter was, and he also knew that since the matter had already happened, the Emperor would not want his like to offer advice like after-the-fact strategists.

What is the use of writing such a thing? It only makes people dislike it...

Rubbing his forehead for a long time, he moved his pen again. This time, he wrote a memorial impeaching Qin Siyuan for attracting Zhang Jue's surrender without careful consideration. He quickly wrote halfway through it and stopped again: his thinking was still wrong. Prime Minister Qin's surrender of Zhang Jue was not wrong at the time. Although it was the Emperor who killed Zhang Jue, with the current Emperor's wisdom, he would not necessarily be complacent about it. He could not impeach Qin Siyuan too much, but if he wanted to quell some doubts, what should he do?

After thinking about it for a while, the content of the third memorial was changed to impeaching Wang Anzhong, the pacification commissioner who killed Zhang Jue, but the wording was not too激烈的 (jī liè de - intense). He understood that the Emperor did not want Wang Anzhong to be questioned for doing something wrong. He could not really nail Wang Anzhong to the pillar of shame. Using milder words would leave room for discussion. Once it could be discussed, he could lead Wang Anzhong to the image of being correct and painstaking. At that time, he would be the villain, but the Emperor could take Wang Anzhong and himself out of it. He believed that the Emperor would scold him, but he would remember his intentions in his heart.

At the same time, in the imperial court, this matter could also be defined, and everyone could calm down again and work together to plan for the future. After thinking it through, this memorial was also written very fluently and quickly. So he finished the memorial and submitted it the next day.

In Yanjing City, Wang Anzhong was also in a huge entanglement.

Regarding the killing of Zhang Jue, he was also equally helpless and wronged. Guo Yaoshi was shouting all day long to fight the Jin, but whether he could win the fight was the real problem. After Zhang Jue was killed, the atmosphere in Yanjing City was very bad. The atmosphere in the Ever Victorious Army was bleak. Feeling sympathy for their own kind, they also regarded these civil officials as treacherous villains. In the beginning, Guo Yaoshi almost wore white clothes to mourn for Zhang Jue. Wang Anzhong visited several times, but the other party claimed to be sick and closed the door. Wang Anzhong felt a burst of fire in his heart. If it were in the south, a military general like you, see what I would do...

But being unhappy in his heart was one thing, he still had to try his best to quell the impact of this matter. Thinking about being this official, he had really done his best. He ran to visit Guo Yaoshi every day, putting a warm face on a cold ass. What was he doing for? Wasn't it for the peace of this northern land?

Fortunately, Guo Yaoshi did not get angry for too long. Three days later, he opened the door to see him. Wang Anzhong told him the stakes, compared the strengths of the two sides, and also told him the court's order not to lightly start a war. With a haggard face, Guo Yaoshi finally said: "In the end, it was this little general who did not think carefully enough and made Wang大人 (dà rén - a polite title for officials) suffer."

"We are all working for the country. General Guo is dissatisfied with this matter, and Wang can also empathize with it, but it is about the fate of the country, and we cannot be rash and quick. We can only seek stability. After this, I hope General Guo can still do his best and work hard for national affairs. Wang will definitely fully cooperate with General Guo."

"Wang大人 (dà rén - a polite title for officials) is noble, it was Guo who was stingy. After this, Guo will definitely offer local products and come to apologize in person. I also hope that Wang大人 (dà rén - a polite title for officials) will forgive me..."

Guo Yaoshi replied in this way, and later prepared a large amount of gold and silver to send to Wang Anzhong's mansion. Wang Anzhong knew that the other party must have a grudge in his heart, but these things could only be slowly resolved, and there was no way to think of it for a while.

****************

The waves caused by the death of Zhang Jue were not calm piece by piece. Most of the people in the Wu Dynasty, north and south, who were qualified to understand this matter had complex and unspeakable feelings. And in this complexity, in the north, in the royal court of the Jin, it was another kind of appearance.

Shangjing, the city that had recently experienced war was not as prosperous as it used to be. After the Jin people invaded, most of the original Liao nobles were killed or became slaves. Now the imperial city is also dilapidated. The Jurchens are still busy fighting and have not put the repair of the city on the agenda, but as the end of the year approaches, when the wind and snow come, they still returned to this originally prosperous city, waiting for the wind and snow to pass before making new plans for the new year.

Wanyan Zongwang's triumphant return was a surprise to all the Jurchens.

Although recently, the Jurchens have looked down on the Wu people who can't fight, the impression that the other side is a strong country is still in their subconscious. Zhang Jue's rebellion made Aguda furious, and everyone clamored to show the Wu some color, but when it came to fighting, everyone was still cautious.

Everyone was waiting for the result of this battle.

Wanyan Zhamu's duel with Zhang Jue, with two wins and one loss, was not something that everyone paid much attention to. What was really waiting in the rear was the behemoth in the south. The first battle with the Wu Dynasty really concerned everyone's thoughts. Therefore, Wanyan Zongwang, the most warlike of the Jurchens, took over the command of the army. At this time, the wind and snow had arrived, and it was not easy to attack the city. If the southern people defended the city, in theory, this battle would not have a result until next spring.

Therefore, most people thought that Wanyan Zongwang would spend the year under Yanjing City.

Who knew that the result was so easy to force the other party to concede, even they were a little surprised.

In the golden hall of the imperial city, a huge cauldron burned with a raging bonfire. In the banquet with clinking cups, Wanyan Zongwang laughed and strode forward. At this time, those who could participate in this banquet, in addition to Aguda's family, Zonggan, Zongyao, Zongbi, etc., also included many ministers who had risen up with Aguda in the beginning, such as Gushen Wanyan Xiyin, Lou Shi, Yin Shuke, Bali Su, etc. In a sense, they will be the most shining stars of this era.

Of course, as people in the game, they may not see themselves that way, but as members of a new dynasty, the barbarism of drinking blood cannot hide the spirited vitality on their bodies. Although it is in the golden hall, this kind of banquet does not pay attention to too many rules. Everyone drinks and sings happily. When Wanyan Zongwang came in, several brothers jumped up to greet him and spoke to him one after another.

Wanyan Zongwang laughed and walked forward to a table, put a human head in his hand on the table, and raised his chin: "Haha, how about it!" Then he went to the side to greet his father, Aguda.

On the other side of the table was the only person in the golden hall who ate in a more refined manner. He wiped his greasy mouth and smiled at the human head on the table. Wanyan Zongbi walked over: "Haha, Zhang Jue... Wushi, how is it? I told you earlier that the southern people are weak and incompetent and cannot withstand a single blow. How is it? Dumbfounded, right?"

Wushi was Wanyan Xiyin's Jurchen name. He was the most proficient in Chinese studies among the Jurchens. He was tall and talented in both civil and military affairs. Recently, under Aguda's orders, he directly created a set of characters belonging to the Jurchens. In the past, because he admired Han Chinese culture, he most respected the Wu Dynasty, and told everyone not to take it lightly. At this time, he was also a little helpless: "Maybe I was wrong, find a place to bury him."

"What's the use of burying him?" Wanyan Zongbi waved his hand, and Zhang Jue's head flew out of the golden hall with a bang. He supported himself on the other side's table, "Wushi, you have nothing to say... Hey, I say, brothers, after we take down the Liao Kingdom, let's take down the Wu Dynasty as well."

This sentence made everyone noisy. Some said: "After all, we have few people." Some also said: "After all, it's too far to go south." In the crowd's discussion, they ultimately looked at Aguda above. At this time, Aguda, who was in his fifties, was wearing a fur coat and sitting on the throne. He said a few words to Wanyan Zongwang and smiled: "Although this time Olibu let the Wu people send up Zhang Jue, after all, we haven't really fought. We have few people. You can just talk about it, don't be too arrogant. Careful warriors will not be eaten by bears, and arrogant warriors will be eaten by bears."

Everyone happily agreed. Not long after, the banquet ended, and everyone walked out of the golden hall in twos and threes. Wanyan Zongbi looked at Wanyan Xiyin over there and coldly哼 (hēng - snorted) and in later generations, people were more familiar with his intimidating Jurchen name: Wuzhu. But at this time, he would even be afraid of Wanyan Xiyin, who was talented in both civil and military affairs. Jin Wuzhu had been warlike since childhood, and had a good impression of many brothers and clansmen with high martial arts skills. Only this Wanyan Xiyin, who read too many Han Chinese books, made him uncomfortable with his bookishness, but even in martial arts, he couldn't beat him.

At this time, those who came out, in addition to them, were also one after another people who would leave their names in the history books of later generations, either pioneering a career, or being an emperor of the Jin Dynasty. Most of them had experienced mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Outside the golden hall, the white snow was everywhere, and the north wind was whistling. No one frowned at such weather. For them, such coldness was the norm in this world.

On this day, this group of people turned their eyes to the Wu Dynasty in the south, and then indifferently withdrew them, focusing on the piece of fat that was still on their lips.

After all, the Liao Kingdom is still big...

The snow fell silently, only Zhang Jue's head rolled down the steps, at this time, it was lonely buried in the white snow, facing the sky alone,无人理会 (wú rén lǐ huì - no one cared).

Soon after, the servants who cleaned the head took it away with a bamboo basket and threw it into the wild.

****************

In the south, in the Zuo family's mansion, it was quiet. Zuo Duanyou finished reading the intelligence in his hand, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes...