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After a thorough inspection, Zhao Jiu had a good grasp of the situation.

While Wu Jie was well-intentioned, most of the young men he sent were still offspring of officials from the Western Army. These individuals' futures were already in the military, and meeting the Emperor was more valuable than anything else. People like Wang Zhongfu were in the minority.

Of course, this was both expected and reasonable.

Frankly speaking, talented and intelligent young men, even from respectable families, would naturally pursue studies if they were capable. Why would they bother with martial arts? It's like in later generations: high school students with decent grades would naturally go to college. Who would drop out to write web novels or play esports?

Unless they were truly incapable of studying, or, like Wang Zhongfu, possessed exceptional talent.

This was a matter of centuries-old perceptions. Even though the Jingkang Catastrophe objectively elevated the status of military men, it wasn't enough to shake these deeply ingrained beliefs. Historically, even when Yue Fei reached the pinnacle of military achievement, when his son was granted an official position, the court offered a civil post, which he was embarrassed to accept. He openly stated that civil positions were valued more than military ones, exchanged it for a military position, and even specially requested a civil post for the son of his benefactor, Zhang Suo... In other words, even military men themselves looked down upon their own profession.

And, as a digression, regardless of how diligently Zhao Jiu spent four or five years leading a group of civil and military officials to confine the war between the Yellow River and Huai River, seemingly achieving something remarkable, this accomplishment might have, in fact, lowered the status of military officials even further than it had been historically... because many places only experienced turmoil, and the misuse of military force during that turmoil only made them more disgusted with soldiers, rather than fully realizing the necessity of military power.

Of course, knowing some things didn't mean Zhao, the Emperor, had to acknowledge them.

Not only that, but this Emperor also spent a long time saying things like "The Northern Expedition has not yet succeeded, and all of you still need to strive," and even personally inscribed a couplet for the main hall of the military academy, said to be adapted from the words of the famous general Yue Fei of this dynasty: "Those seeking promotion and wealth, please go elsewhere; those who are greedy for life and afraid of death, do not enter this gate."

And then?

Then, there was nothing after that.

Ironically, Zhao Jiu clearly wrote such words and spoke in such a manner, yet he knew in his heart that, not to mention other martial arts students, even someone like Wang Zhongfu came for the sake of promotion and wealth... And to change this situation, it was necessary to first allow these people to be promoted and become wealthy. Because only when military men could easily rise in rank and become rich, and were no longer considered the lowest class in society, could a strong sense of honor truly be established within the army, as the saying goes, "When the granary is full, people know honor and shame."

In fact, this was why he built the military academy behind the palace, to make it convenient for him to visit. In the imperial era, proximity to the Emperor was the best way to rise in rank and gain wealth.

It was somewhat reminiscent of the licentious Zhengde Emperor.

However, thinking about it this way, compared to Yue Fei, Zhang Yongzhen, and Hou Dan, the one whose name he always forgot but whose ear he remembered vividly, those who had self-generated a concept of national and military honor were even more commendable. But behind this value was the great backdrop of the Jingkang Catastrophe, with countless deaths, humiliation, and the destruction of families and displacement of people in the north. It seemed rather heavy.

Two days later, on the third day that Zhao, the Emperor, changed his daily target practice location to the military academy, and after changing it to the morning, he was about to go practice with the training officers when he suddenly received a request to meet with Zhao Ding, the Duke of the Department of State Affairs. He naturally agreed, but changed the meeting place to the military academy's target range.

However, after a while, when the two sides met, Zhao Ding was very polite, but he only came to deliver a memorandum. Not only that, but when Yang Yizhong stepped forward to receive it, he was politely rejected by the Duke, who publicly stated that, according to the rules, he requested that the Grand Supervisor of the Inner Attendants' Department, Lan Gui, be the one to present it.

This single statement made the atmosphere at the military academy's target range serious.

"Is the Duke being so serious because this is a memorandum requesting his resignation?"

Seeing Zhao Ding's demeanor, Zhao Jiu not only wasn't alarmed, but instead made a joke... He didn't specifically call for Lan Gui, but rather put down his bow and arrows himself and stepped forward to receive it.

But as the Emperor spoke these words, many military officers who had just been displaying their archery skills had some trepidation.

"Your Majesty is joking." Zhao Ding's face tightened, but he still bowed and handed over the memorandum.

However, Zhao Jiu took the memorandum but didn't open it to read. Instead, he held it by the target range and pondered, "Duke Zhao, do you know why I made you the Prime Minister of the Department of State Affairs?"

Zhao Ding was extremely intelligent. He was only slightly stunned before fully realizing that his actions had incurred the displeasure of the Emperor before him... This large-scale joint memorial from colleagues could not be hidden from anyone, even if the Imperial Guards didn't specifically investigate... Not only that, he had originally invited the Public Duke Lü Haowen and the Privy Councilor Zhang Jun to come together, but they both declined. It seemed they had either already received instructions from the Emperor or had already guessed the Emperor's thoughts.

At this thought, Zhao Yuanzhen couldn't help but feel heavy-hearted, but he suppressed his unease and stood there, facing him solemnly: "Your subject is ashamed. At times, I have indeed had doubts. With my ordinary abilities, how could I have received such deep imperial grace, to rise from a minor official in Kaifeng Prefecture to the Prime Minister of the Department of State Affairs in four or five years?"

"If Duke Zhao has ordinary abilities, then there are few capable people in this world." Zhao Jiu sighed with his hands behind his back, holding the memorandum. "You showed outstanding ability when you moved the people of Shunchang Prefecture across the Huai River. Although I didn't say anything, I knew you were a capable person. Then, in the Battle of Xiacai, you defended the city with Zhang Jun as an envoy of the court, which was also a great achievement for stabilizing morale. Later, when you were appointed to Huainan, you did an excellent job in transporting military supplies to Huaidong and Huaixi, as well as managing the livelihoods of the two Huainan circuits. After taking office as the Prime Minister of the Department of State Affairs, you are not self-serving, not partisan, have a simple style, and act with moderation... If I may be blunt, among the important officials I have experienced, only the previous Duke Xu Jingheng Xu can be compared with you in terms of ability. As for virtue, you are like Yue Pengju in the military, like a crane standing out from a flock of chickens! I would not hesitate to say these words even in front of Duke Lü and Duke Zhang. As for what you said about rising in four or five years, the Jingkang Catastrophe was like the destruction of a country. Is Zhao Qing the only one who has risen in four or five years?"

"Your subject... is ashamed." Zhao Ding could only say this.

"However, I didn't know about your virtue when I appointed you." Zhao Jiu continued to laugh. "At that time, I appointed you, first, because your rank and merit had both reached the point, and you were someone I always kept in mind, so I didn't even need to write it down. Second, there were two aspects of your resume that I particularly valued..."

At this point, Zhao Jiu paused slightly, and then, after regaining his composure, continued, "One is that you are from Hedong and a displaced person; the other is that you, a Jinshi graduate, actually lingered in the positions of Magistrate of Luoyang and Minor Official of Kaifeng Prefecture for nearly twenty years... The former made me not have to worry about your position and feel that I could advance and retreat with you; the latter truly made me feel at ease with your ability to handle affairs and trust you to entrust the affairs of the world to you."

Zhao Ding finally sighed... The problem lay in advancing and retreating together.

"Duke Zhao, you are good in every way, but you should not be so selfless." Zhao Jiu became even more serious. "Such selflessness only makes it difficult for me... because I used you precisely to suppress the pro-peace faction with your identity as a northerner, not to unite hundreds of officials and act as a repairman here! You brought such a thing to see me, I can't not accept it, but if I do, will the people below think that I have tacitly agreed to make concessions in other areas? When you were in Huainan, Li Gang, the Duke Li, wrote to me, saying that you were knowledgeable, talented, fond of talent, and good at handling things, but that you didn't clearly distinguish between righteousness... He clearly had foresight."

"Your subject wishes to resign!"

"There is no such thing." Zhao Jiu became even more serious. "The policy that prime ministers cannot resign due to empty formalities was established at the beginning of Jianyan. A prime minister who resigns at every turn is merely seeking fame... It is easy for you to resign from the position of prime minister, but who will be responsible for the turmoil in the country? If you resign, will the Minister of Personnel, Liu Dazhong, and the Minister of War, Hu Shijiang, also resign? Besides, this time, I was also at fault for not being frank with you and clearly stating my intentions to you earlier. Why would you be in this situation?"

Hearing this, Zhao Ding was silent for a moment, but then bowed in response: "Your Majesty, if that's the case, then your subject also has a few words to say today."

"That's good!" Zhao Jiu nodded in response. "We, as ruler and minister, should be frank with each other."

Yang Yizhong immediately turned around and signaled the military officers present to withdraw.

"There's no need for that. There is nothing that cannot be shown to others in the words of the Emperor and the Prime Minister." Zhao Jiu turned around and stopped Yang Yizhong, and then turned back to face Zhao Ding. "Duke, please speak."

"Your Majesty, what your subject is worried about is not only that the officials, scholars, and people of the South are unwilling to launch the Northern Expedition, but also that I am worried that if we launch the Northern Expedition hastily, perhaps even a slight setback will arouse even greater popular resentment. It would be better to..."

"It would be better to reorganize and recuperate for several years before launching a large-scale Northern Expedition?" Zhao Jiu blurted out almost involuntarily.

"Yes!"

"Do you believe that as long as I put down the words 'temporary peace' or stop the agenda of suppressing rebellions and advancing, a sense of complacency will arise in the court, and it will be difficult for the world to even move when we want to launch the Northern Expedition again?!"

"..."

"As for slight setbacks... it is simply doing our best and leaving the rest to fate!" Zhao Jiu laughed again. "I naturally know that I am just a person of average ability, and a hastily appointed extra-territorial Emperor who does not understand imperial tactics. I also know that this court is riddled with holes after this great change, and that the shortcomings of the Great Song Dynasty for hundreds of years are difficult to clean up. But I don't believe it. I have reduced the expenses in the palace to the minimum, treated you important officials as frankly as possible, given military generals and officers as many preferential treatments as possible, and provided soldiers with the most complete equipment possible. I will tell as much national righteousness as possible in the court gazettes and in the mouths of those Jinshi who accompany the army. If the pro-peace sentiment in the court can be suppressed for one day, it will be suppressed for one day. If I do things one by one, even if it may not be worth the loss if I single them out, or may backfire, but if I keep doing it, keep doing it, can it still be worse than not doing it?!"

"Your Majesty..."

"Zhao Qing." Zhao Jiu said solemnly. "I will say something that will pierce your heart... If you want me to stop the idea of destroying Jin, there is only one way, and that is to drive me down and replace me with someone else as Emperor!"

"Your Majesty, don't be angry!" Zhao Ding quickly stopped them before the military officers were completely frightened. "With your authority and virtue, no one can shake Your Majesty now, and no one will ever have this intention!"

"Authority and virtue won't work, but propriety and law might work." Zhao Jiu still stood with his hands behind his back. "If the two Emperors are welcomed back, won't there be someone who can shake me? Or rather, two people directly... At that time, the pro-peace faction will support them and take this position, wouldn't everyone be happy? Perhaps those who are clamoring to welcome back the two Emperors have some ulterior motives because they see that my determination cannot be shaken!"

The Emperor's tiger-like words were unrestrained and excessive. The target range was already silent, and everyone around was pale, except for Yang Yizhong, whose expression remained unchanged, only slightly bowing his head.

As for Zhao Ding, he still maintained his demeanor, only sighed slightly: "Why does Your Majesty have to go this far?"

Zhao Jiu didn't speak directly, but officially opened the memorandum behind his back and carefully examined it in front of him: "I have received the intentions of all of you. Duke Zhao might as well go back and tell everyone that I will definitely follow their wishes and be determined to launch the Northern Expedition without wavering."

This time, Zhao Ding was silent for a long time, and finally could only bow and take his leave.

"That little Emperor of Song said that?"

In Yanjing, in the Grand Commandant's mansion, the powerful official of the Great Jin Dynasty, Nianhan, sat on a Taishi chair and listened to Wulinda Zanmo's report, but only frowned: "Does he really think he's invincible just because he won a battle?"

This wasn't a proper question, so Wulinda Zanmo didn't answer, but stood respectfully with his head bowed.

"Forget it, it's been a hard trip back and forth, so go and rest!" Nianhan waved his hand to indicate.

Wulinda Zanmo only immediately took his leave upon hearing this... This scene made Qin Gui, who was observing coldly in the corner of the hall, twitch his eyes slightly.

Speaking of which, the Wulinda clan has now become an important political force within the Jin Dynasty. Wulinda Zanmo with his writing, and Wulinda Taiyu with his martial skills, are all top officials second only to the Wanyan clan. Even so, Wulinda Zanmo was as docile as a family slave in front of Nianhan.

In fact, the Wulinda clan was really considered Nianhan's family slave, because their own tribe was completely conquered after being defeated by the Wanyan clan, and it was Nianhan who led the troops at that time. According to the Jurchen rules, wasn't the Wulinda clan Nianhan's servant family? Or, it could be said that it was precisely because the Wulinda clan was Nianhan's servant family that they had their current status.

But conversely, the Great Jin had already become a country of thousands of miles, and it had been established for a long time. How could it still have such a style?

"What does the Fourth Prince think?"

Just as Qin Hui was lost in thought, Nianhan finally asked Wanyan Wushu beside him.

Wanyan Wushu, who had been seriously ill after crossing the Yellow River earlier, was pale and didn't seem to have recovered yet. He frowned when he heard this: "I only listen to the Grand Commandant's words."

After asking Wushu, Nianhan nodded and skipped over the Grand Prince Wobben, the Third Prince Eliduo, and Wanyan Talan, Wanyan Yinshuke, and Wanyan Xiyin, who were also in the hall, and made a conclusion: "In my opinion, the Song people are so tough, so let's forget about the peace talks. Anyway, the Song people still have to quell the rebellion in the south and take Shaanxi and Jingdong. It will take them a year or two to reach Hebei. Let's take the opportunity to recuperate for a while and manage the country and the army well. If we're fast enough, we can also deal with the Mongolians. Then, on the Hebei Plain, we can give the rash Song people a big lesson and avenge Olidian (Wanyan Loushi)!"

Many people in the hall looked at each other, but Yinshuke took the initiative to frown and responded: "Grand Commandant, if that's the case, how should we deal with Huonü? He is leading more than 10,000 troops in Yan'an and is not listening to Bali Speed's dispatch."

Nianhan's face darkened, and he sighed: "Let's give him a few good days for the sake of Olidian. When Yanjing is cleaned up, why don't one of us personally make a trip and talk to him? He can't rebel, can he?"

Yinshuke hesitated to speak, but finally didn't dare to say more, and everyone around was completely silent.

Nianhan didn't take it seriously when he saw this: "Let's do it this way. Let's dismiss today, and come to me to deal with matters again in a couple of days according to the rules."

The people, from the three princes down, got up together, bowed their hands, and took their leave, then left the hall gloomily in groups of three or five, each with their entourages.

Speaking of which, the spring in Yanjing is different from other places. The so-called short spring, first it's cold, then it's windy, strong wind, and the wind carries sand and dust. When the wind stops, it suddenly gets hot, and it's summer.

At this moment, Yanjing was in the midst of a roaring wind.

Without mentioning the others, only Wanyan Wushu took Qin Gui and the Third Prince Eliduo and others, and walked side by side to an intersection, but suddenly smelled a sweet fragrance in the wind. They were all refreshed and looked at the smell, but saw that there was a stall selling fried chestnuts at the intersection. The stall owner was a young man, only about twenty years old.

"Are there fried chestnuts at this time?" Wushu was stunned on his horse for a moment. "These chestnuts must have been stored for half a year, right?"

"Half a year is nothing." Qin Gui smiled behind him. "Let the Fourth Prince know, there was a man named Li He in Bianjing who was best at frying chestnuts. His family's chestnuts had secrets in their storage and frying methods. The chestnuts could be stored for half a year, only the second half of summer and early autumn were without them. The fried chestnuts were also recognized as the best, and others couldn't learn it... I think this Yanjing is much further north than Bianjing, and the winter is long, so it's normal to have chestnuts at this time."

Wushu nodded, and Eliduo was even more interested, so he pointed at random.

Immediately, two Jurchen cavalrymen dismounted, directly went to the chestnut stall and took all the fried chestnuts tied with hemp grass into bundles, and cut the hemp grass bundles with a knife, and turned back to offer them to the two princes, as well as guests who were treated with courtesy like Qin Gui, and the accompanying officers one by one.

However, one of them came up to send it to Wushu, but Wushu didn't take it himself, but directly raised his horsewhip and whipped the person's face.

The Jurchen cavalryman was stunned and didn't know what to do. He didn't dare to dodge and didn't know what mistake he had made. He could only stand there holding half a bundle of fried chestnuts in a daze... In fact, not to mention this Jurchen cavalryman, even Eliduo and other Jurchen Xi-Han followers were at a loss.

It was Qin Gui who understood and immediately dismounted, first took the fried chestnuts from the cavalryman's hand, and then walked to the stall and took a melon seed gold from his sleeve pocket and gave it to the pale stall owner. Only then did everyone look at Wushu and realize slightly.

"The fourth child did the right thing." Eliduo was embarrassed for a moment. "They are all people of this country and should not be taken by force at will."

But Wushu just shook his head and sighed, and then left first without eating chestnuts. Most of the people behind felt bored, so they dispersed at the intersection, only Qin Gui held half a bundle of fried chestnuts and followed Wushu back to the mansion... It should be noted that after Qin Gui set off to Huguan to meet Wanyan Wushu and persuaded him to go to Daming Prefecture to pick up Nianhan, Wushu regarded him as a strategist and felt sorry for each other.

As for Qin Gui, he had originally intended to use the Fourth Prince to achieve his goals, so he naturally welcomed him with all his strength. In addition, he no longer dared to go south, so he simply stopped hiding it and officially took up the position of the Grand Commandant's mansion provided by Wanyan Wushu and became his confidant and strategist.

Back to the present, Wanyan Wushu and Qin Gui returned to the mansion together, still with heavy hearts, so they simply ordered to set up wine, and then chatted with Qin Gui while eating fried chestnuts.

"I really didn't expect that once the Emperor had a stroke, everything would be over!" Wanyan Wushu sighed first.

Qin Gui also smiled wryly.

Yes, it must be emphasized here that Wanyan Wu Qimai was not placed under house arrest by Nianhan, but really had a stroke!

Historically, this guy was in bad health. He had a stroke around that time about two years later... In fact, Loushi was right. People of their generation were malnourished when they were young and fought all day long, leaving them with a body full of problems. It was just these few years that something would happen sooner or later... With such a body, plus Loushi's defeat at Yaoshan and death in Guanshan, Nianhan went south to take refuge and seized military power in Daming Prefecture, the continuous military and internal affairs caused great psychological pressure on Wu Qimai.

As a result, when Nianhan was persuaded back by Wushu, it was the beginning of spring and the weather was getting warmer. According to the rules, a group of people went north to Wuguocheng. As a result, in the big wind in Yanjing at the beginning of spring, Wu Qimai was blown crooked in the mouth in full view of the public, and then lay down and half of his body had no reaction.

Helpless, everyone had no choice but to stop the established practice of returning north and settled Wu Qimai back in Yanjing.

Objectively speaking, it's normal for an old man whose body has been gradually collapsing for a long time to have a stroke. However, the problem is that stroke is stroke, but this old man is the ruler of a country, at least a core figure of one of the three major factions of the Jin Dynasty. As long as he is alive, he is the only candidate who can compete with Nianhan.

But this only candidate suddenly became hemiplegic, so there was no balance.

Therefore, rumors soon spread in Yanjing that Nianhan had poisoned him... mutinied... assassinated him, otherwise why didn't he become paralyzed earlier or later, but paralyzed when Nianhan was in the worst situation? And when he was about to leave Nianhan's sphere of influence, Yanjing?

As for Nianhan, he was a little flustered when he first encountered this situation and heard these rumors... because it was really not him who did it. But later he immediately discovered that it was a great thing that fell from the sky, because once Wu Qimai lost his political ability and could no longer fulfill his political promises, his Grand Commandant was almost winning while lying down!

Really winning while lying down!

Nianhan sat at home, and the garrisons, marching divisions, local officials, and generals of the garrison troops, and the hereditary Meng'an and Mouke in various places all became loyal to him openly or privately.

There was no way, although the three princes were also a faction, their personal prestige and strength were not comparable to Nianhan, the first founder of the country, not to mention that the Grand Prince and the Third Prince had turned against each other before, and there were great problems internally, and the three princes had also forced the palace with Nianhan's subsidiary image!

As for the Emperor, his sons were not as useful as Wushu put together. The few cousins who were originally trusted, such as Talan, had also come to Nianhan's house early and sat there with their hands tied.

In short, in just a few days, Nianhan's power became great, and then he simply overturned the table and really put Wu Qimai's sons under house arrest, so that they could take good care of the Emperor's 'decoction', regardless of the fact that Wu Qimai could still say three sentences after resting for three days.

"Now the Grand Commandant strongly praises the Fourth Prince and consults with you alone, which makes the other two princes a little embarrassed." Qin Gui stroked his beard and smiled wryly, further analyzing the current situation. "It also makes you the target of public criticism."

"The Grand Commandant had the strength to compete with the Emperor Taizu even before, let alone now?" Wushu shook his head while twisting a chestnut. "He is a capable person. As for me, I'm not afraid of becoming the target of public criticism, but I'm afraid of delaying the important affairs of the country."

Qin Gui also picked up a chestnut, peeled it open and tasted it, and felt that it was unusually sweet, but when he heard Wushu's words, he smiled wryly: "Does the Fourth Prince still remember the previous words?"

"I always felt that something was wrong before, but I was always unclear. Fortunately, Mr. Qin explained it to me thoroughly in Huguan that day... The Jin Dynasty is naturally a country of thousands of miles, but it cannot combine the financial resources of thousands of miles with the Jin cavalry, but instead has a state of two defeats." Wushu became more and more emotional after eating a chestnut. "If you want to make the two increase each other, you should separate the Meng'an and Mouke cavalry from the Han people, and then take the central government as the link, take the Han people's manpower and material resources to supply the Meng'an cavalry, and use the Meng'an cavalry to protect the Han people. But now the Meng'an are enfeoffed to the local areas of Hebei, the result is that the cavalry is gradually degenerating, and the Han people are also disturbed by the cavalry. Not only can they not produce and supply well, but also regard each other as enemies... No wonder the South is getting stronger day by day, and the North is getting weaker day by day."

"In fact, since the Grand Commandant is a capable person, why not tell him?" Qin Gui suddenly interjected.

"Why does Mr. Qin say these idle words?" Wushu spread his hands and sighed. "If you want to separate the Meng'an cavalry from the local area, you have to make great efforts to rectify it, both to establish the authority and unified system of the central government and to gather the military power in the local area... However, to make such a big move, you must first stop the Emperor in the South, that is, to make peace... This is what you said! But now, the Emperor in the South does not want to make peace, and the Grand Commandant in the North is unwilling to make peace, isn't it just sitting and waiting for death?!"

"It may not be impossible to make peace with the South." Qin Gui suddenly said again. "The student is willing to guarantee with the lives of his family that the people, scholars, and officials from Jiangnan, Huainan, and even the Central Plains all want to make peace... In other words, at least half of the people in the Southern court are willing to make peace, but the Emperor above is holding on, so they have to follow."

"It's just that the Emperor above is holding on?" Wushu took another chestnut and couldn't help but sneer. "That Emperor himself is the backbone of the South. If he is unwilling, what can the people below do?"

"Why not give him a condition that he can't refuse..." Qin Gui said casually. "In terms of defense, Shaanxi and Jingdong are both on the other side of the river. If you want to truly make peace, it is impossible not to give them away, and you really can't defend them."

"Everyone knows this." Wushu shook his head and said. "Even Nianhan, look at his words today, it is obvious that he is using the two corners as pawns to delay time... Only Wanyan Huonü, I don't know whether he is afraid that the court will deprive him of his military power or really wants to 'avenge his father', he has to hold on to more than 10,000 elite troops, guarding an isolated Yan'an on the other side of the river."

"Pretend to ask for more positions in the Western Route Army." Qin Gui smiled. "This is not worth mentioning. If the central government is cleaned up, it can naturally be managed."

"That's true."

"And if the two places can be returned, and those in Wuguocheng can be released, the Emperor in the South will not be able to hold on." Qin Gui continued to say casually. "The Han people have always ruled the world with filial piety. If this condition is put forward, he cannot refuse it openly..."

"What are those people in Wuguocheng?" Wushu couldn't help but laugh when he heard this. "Now that the South is stable, those people are useless. There are only a few hundred of them. It's okay to return them... But others are okay, where can the two be placed after they are sent back? Is that Emperor disgusted? According to me, putting forward this condition will only make that Cangzhou Zhao Jiu in the South more unwilling to make peace."

"Then turn it around and use this as a condition, don't send them back, to talk about how to do it?" Qin Gui didn't care, just continued to peel chestnuts with his head down. "Keep the two Emperors, and return everything else, or return everything, and even the righteous army in Taihang Mountain and other descendants of Bianliang who are willing to return to the South can also be sent to Henan with courtesy... Anyway, we can talk."

Wushu was stunned for a moment, and then suddenly smiled, and then nodded slowly.

But soon, the Fourth Prince shook his head again: "Even if there is something to talk about in the South, the Grand Commandant here is going to pretend to be tough, how can he be willing to make peace? No one can persuade others."

"Although the Grand Commandant is smart and decisive, and has prestige and knowledge, his temperament has always been fierce. People say that when he was young, he could treat his subordinates, friends, and even surrendered people with courtesy, but I don't know if it's because he is getting old. When the student first saw him in Jingkang, I felt that he was a little serious. In the past four or five years, I have felt that he is gradually not forgiving his subordinates and colleagues." Qin Gui continued to lower his head and said casually. "Now that he is in sole possession of power, he is even more unscrupulous. It seems that no one can stop him, but in fact, he may have already attracted resentment from the left and right, but no one dares to express it in person... Moreover, although the Emperor's stroke was an accident, can people who were not there at the time believe it? What is the matter with imprisoning the still conscious Emperor and several princes? In this case, according to the student's humble opinion, the Grand Commandant seems to be dangerous."

Wushu only ate chestnuts at first, but when he heard the end, he couldn't help but look up in astonishment. However, the white-faced scholar on the opposite side just kept eating chestnuts, and lowered his head to continue eating chestnuts.

It was as if he hadn't heard anything just now.

In this way, probably because the chestnuts were really fragrant and sweet, the two actually ate half a bundle, and then used some wine and vegetables, and felt bloated, so they each dispersed.

And Qin Gui now has a position in the Grand Commandant's mansion, and also has the big house sent by Talan before, so of course he will return to his own house.

However, in the evening, Qin Gui rode his horse to the front of his house, but unexpectedly saw someone waiting in front of his door... It was the young man who sold chestnuts, with a whole bundle of newly fried chestnuts beside him.

"Mr. Qin." When the man saw Qin Gui, he called out timidly from afar.

Qin Gui knew that he was afraid of the Jurchen cavalry escorting him behind him, so he directly let the Jurchen soldiers go back, and then dismounted and greeted him alone, and said awkwardly: "How dare a person who is still alive in a destroyed country call himself Duke?"

"I heard people say that Mr. Qin was an Imperial Censor a long time ago, which is considered half a Duke, and you saved me today... How can you not be called Duke?" The man said, bowing his head and bowing deeply, and then picked up the bundle of chestnuts from his side and respectfully offered them. "This is the last basket of chestnuts this year, and it's fried to be snacks for Duke... I called the door, and the people inside said they don't see outsiders, so I'm waiting for Duke here at the door."

Qin Gui wanted to refuse, but found it funny, so he simply took it: "Your family's chestnuts are fried well, almost catching up with Li He's family in Bianjing, I'll take it..."

Halfway through his words, the stall owner suddenly burst into tears, which surprised Qin Gui for a moment.

But the stall owner saw that he had frightened the other party, and quickly sobbed: "To tell you the truth, Li He is my father. During the Jingkang, the whole family was looted and brought here. My father died on the way, so I mixed in Yanjing and resumed my old business!"

Qin Gui also lost his voice.

And the stall owner cried for a while, and then couldn't help but ask: "Duke, do you think we can go back to Henan in this life? You should know that people are cheap when they leave their hometown. If we can go back to Henan to be a peaceful merchant, it would be great, why should we be bullied here every day?"

Qin Gui was still silent.

The stall owner didn't say anything anymore, but covered his face and burst into tears.

It was getting late, and the evening wind rose again, and there was a sound of whistling. And Qin Gui received that bundle of chestnuts, and was also touched by his heart, so he was filled with emotions. He looked up and stood in front of his door for a long time, but finally didn't call the door, but directly carried the bundle of chestnuts, got on his horse, gritted his teeth, and grabbed the reins, and walked back on the way he came.

Speaking of which, Qin Gui has had enough of this careful life where he doesn't even dare to speak loudly. No matter who it is, even Nianhan, can't block his way!