Chapter 1 The Beginning

“Beyond the hills, more hills, beyond the tower, more towers, when will the West Lake’s singing and dancing cease?

The warm wind intoxicates the revelers, they mistake Hangzhou for Bianzhou.”

Because of the existence of West Lake, the layout of Hangzhou city has always been different from other places. For example, the city is long and narrow, and there is an open space south of Yongjin Gate, the main west gate of the city. Ordinarily, this should be outside the city limits, and no matter what, it couldn't compare to the prosperity of the city center. But in reality, because it is close to West Lake, with distant views of Su Causeway and Leifeng Pagoda, and it is also the location of the sluice and dock where the moat connects to West Lake, there have always been rows of restaurants and merchants gathering here, making it even more lively than the city center.

Now, in the winter of Jianyan 8 (1134), Emperor Zhao of Bianzhou is on a southern tour. Admiring the scenery of West Lake, he directly established a long-term residence in the old palace of Wuyue on Phoenix Mountain in the southwest of the city and southeast of West Lake. This has made the area the political center of the entire southern empire, and the area outside Yongjin Gate has become even more splendid.

Not to mention anything else, just the ‘in-consultation’ types who come and go to plan the establishment of local public cabinets, eight out of ten are wealthy Jiangnan old nobles. A little reward is enough to give the common people a little more to chew on.

What's more, in addition to these people, there are officials and messengers from all over the country coming and going, and thousands of imperial guards suddenly appearing around Phoenix Mountain, all of whom need to spend money. This is enough to bring the prosperity outside Yongjin Gate to a new level.

So, back to the poem at the beginning, it is said that it was written by an unknown poet. Because he was unable to enter the public cabinet himself, he inscribed it on a restaurant outside Yongjin Gate to mock those ‘in-consultation’ types who thought that entering the public cabinet and having a political status meant entering officialdom.

That's right, this is a sour poem of jealousy towards the ‘in-consultation’ types. Zhao, the Emperor, who had come to this restaurant to watch the sunset at Leifeng Pagoda after sending Li Gang, the Duke of State, back to his hometown the day after the Martial Arts Assembly, had caught sight of it!

For this reason, this Zhengdian restaurant, which is said to have a history of fifty or sixty years, was specially renamed Lou Wai Lou (Outside the Tower) yesterday, and its business instantly became the best in West Lake... I don’t know how many idle poets and writers are specially coming to climb this Lou Wai Lou in the afternoon, specifically to learn from Emperor Zhao and watch some damned Leifeng sunset.

It really is some damned Leifeng sunset. You must know that since the Leifeng Pagoda was destroyed by the government and bandits during Fang La's uprising more than ten years ago, the entire pagoda has been broken and dilapidated, and there is no longer the grand scene of the past. Only people with strange aesthetics like Emperor Zhao would specifically point to a broken pagoda and say that it is worthy of the scenic West Lake.

Enough idle talk. This afternoon, the weather was clear, and it should have been another day when Lou Wai Lou was packed, but there were not many distinguished guests climbing the tower. On the contrary, the location of the scenery itself, but not the viewing point, the Leifeng Pagoda, now renamed Xizhao Mountain, was crowded with people for a while. It turned out that this afternoon, whether it was the ‘in-consultation’ types or other scholars and heroes seeking official careers, they all flocked here to prepare to watch the ceremony… Interior Attendant Lu Benzhong, under imperial order, was here to erect a monument to record the grand occasion of the Jianyan Martial Arts Assembly.

“Indeed, a monument should be erected.”

Seeing Lu Benzhong talking from afar under the Leifeng Pagoda, two older scholars who couldn't squeeze past had to stand on the periphery of Xizhao Mountain and chat idly. "The Emperor's words made Li, the Duke of State, request to return to his hometown to preserve his long-term reputation, and also made Zhang Jiucheng have the heart to be a vanguard for the King, and then enter the officialdom in Tokyo. Just for these two people, it is worth erecting a monument to make a conclusion."

"This is also because we have met a wise ruler, so Li Boji (Li Gang) can have such a good result, and Zhang Jiucheng can have such a good opportunity." The person next to him then sighed with emotion. "A commoner, not confused at forty, can actually jump from a commoner to a Vice Minister because of an audience with the Emperor and be ranked in the Secret Pavilion. Where could such a thing be seen before Jianyan?"

"Who says it isn't?" The previous person also sighed. "It's just a pity that Zhang Jiucheng's opportunity is only for one person after all. Even the rest of the people in the public cabinet who have obtained positions and assignments are only Su Bai, Li Tao, and other mere ten or so people. And if this local public cabinet is established, the specific rules, what level it can have, and what assignments it can do are still a bit vague... Could it be that it is really just an empty name like the satirical poem written by that vagabond, and the Emperor will directly abandon it when he returns to Bianzhou?"

"Not necessarily." Another middle-aged scholar in his forties who had been listening carefully to the two men's discussion suddenly interjected. This person spoke with a local accent, obviously from Zhejiang, but he was actually wearing a sword, which was also strange. "This Emperor's southern tour, to clear Li Boji's name and promote Zhang Jiucheng, were just casual acts. The key is to promote the major policies of 'never increasing taxes' and 'merging the poll tax into the land tax'. If these two methods can be successful, then the grievances of the people of Jiangnan will be resolved, and many of the filthy and unbearable things at the bottom can also be washed away. The great task of pacifying Jiangnan before the Northern Expedition can be considered complete..."

"But what does this have to do with the powers and responsibilities of the public cabinet?" The previous person still didn't understand.

"Of course it does." This sword-wearing middle-aged scholar smiled on the spot. "To implement this major policy, especially merging the poll tax into the land tax, the fundamental thing is to transfer the money originally paid by the poor people to those powerful households in the locality... And if you want to suppress the powerful households, according to the usual practice of this dynasty, you must use the power of the scholars to pull the scholars to suppress these powerful households; In addition, although the Emperor and Prime Minister Lu have always been tough, even to the point of publicizing that they want to transfer the imperial army to the south, who among the Emperor and Prime Minister Lu is willing to really force those powerful households to rebel? So they will inevitably want to win over one or two... As for how to win them over, it is still that sentence, everything must have a beginning, just look at what the purpose of establishing this public cabinet is at the beginning and you will understand."

"I understand." Before the two could respond, another middle-aged scholar who had been silent all along suddenly spoke up and joined in, and he was also wearing a sword... In this place of Southeast, or rather, in the Great Song Dynasty, encountering two sword-wearing scholars at once was inevitably amazing. "Brother, what you mean is that although the Emperor is the Son of Heaven and possesses all the land within the four seas, unless he is forced to do so, it is not good to directly suppress people with force, and he should try to follow the rules as much as possible... So this public cabinet must be permanent, and there must be some real methods for discussing matters and communicating with the Emperor, and perhaps there will be some specific assignments specifically divided down."

"That's right!" The third scholar was overjoyed to see that the other party was knowledgeable and, like himself, was wearing a sword.

"If that's the case, then we should use some means to stabilize Jiangnan from below and not cause trouble for the court, so as to avoid causing disaster; and from above, we should persuade the Emperor not to really send a large army south... If another ten thousand or even tens of thousands of imperial troops arrive in the southeast, that would be a complete silence!" The fourth scholar saw that the conversation was going well, quickly stepped forward, holding his sword, and cupped his hands in salute. "May I ask your name, brother? Why don't we jointly submit a memorial?"

"Please wait a moment, you two..." The two who had originally started the topic became increasingly confused, and after looking at each other, they felt that they couldn't keep up with the thinking of the two who had come later. However, the conclusion they had reached made them feel itchy. "This joint memorial..."

"This matter is simple." The sword-wearing scholar who had interjected at the beginning smiled casually and explained slightly. "Nothing else, do you two remember when the Emperor went to Lou Wai Lou to drink alcohol before? When the Emperor came in person, it was fine not to pay, but Shao Yaban, who was traveling with him, still paid the money as usual. This is a more appropriate move... And now that the Emperor wants the local wealthy to pay for the poor, he will inevitably have to use the position and status to exchange for the scholars to return to their hearts in order to suppress the wealthy, and slightly give the wealthy some way out, so that they don't have to react too strongly... And this public cabinet is the place where the Emperor pays the bill."

The two who had started were overjoyed... It turned out that this public cabinet was a place where the Emperor was doing business with people like them with their positions. Once they said this, they naturally woke up.

Immediately, the four quickly exchanged names. The first two were just ordinary useless scholars who had never said anything in their lives, but this third person turned out to be from the famous Lu family in Yuezhou, named Lu Bao. The fourth person was a little more ordinary, just a down-and-out scholar from Wuzhou, named Chen Yi.

After the four exchanged names, they naturally elected Mr. Lu to be the leader, preparing to submit a memorial to speak out on matters and see if they could get some profit from the Emperor's business... However, just as the four were about to discuss it in detail, they heard another commotion in front of the broken Leifeng Pagoda where the monument was being erected. After asking for a long time, they finally figured out what was going on.

It turned out that after Interior Attendant Lu Benzhong came forward to erect a monument to commemorate the previous Jianyan Martial Arts Assembly, he directly threw out an event, saying that the Emperor was determined to reside in Jiangnan until the major policy of merging the poll tax into the land tax was successful before returning to the capital. He was determined to use the traveling palace as a base and temporarily create a traveling palace gazette, which was to be handled by him, scholar Lu, and he was just looking for the three good scholars in the public cabinet who understood the original studies, loved the country, and were loyal to His Majesty to help him do this assignment together... Jiangnan had been yearning for a gazette for I don't know how many years. As soon as this statement came out, some scholars with poor style couldn't help but disregard their manners and recommended themselves on the spot, which then caused a commotion.

Being so far away, the four of them could only watch. However, none of the four of them were talented and romantic people, and Lu Benzhong's actions obviously verified their previous guess that the Emperor was indeed going to carry out a certain amount of political buying of the scholars and wealthy of the Southeast.

So, the four of them looked at each other and instead strengthened their determination to take this opportunity to ascend Phoenix Mountain. So they turned back and prepared to return to their lodgings to discuss it briefly... Among them, Chen Yi only rented idle rooms from farmers in the countryside outside the city because his family was a bit dilapidated. Then, he was invited by Lu Bao to live in his own villa. Gradually, he learned about the other party's similar difficulties and twists and turns. In addition, the other party was also a rare scholar who practiced martial arts. When the two of them discussed current affairs and practiced swordsmanship, they immediately became close, which is not necessary to mention.

Two or three days later, with Lu Bao's great stroke, he barely put together a memorial and even had his nephew help him look for typos. It was officially presented to the Emperor.

The document arrived at Phoenix Mountain. Since the entire article was about the matter of merging the poll tax into the land tax, it was naturally classified by Ren Baozhong and sent to the Emperor.

After Emperor Zhao finished reading it, he did have some fluctuations in his heart. Then, on the next day, when Lu Yihao and Xu Jingheng routinely came to Phoenix Mountain to report, he mentioned this matter:

"If I understand correctly, the meaning of this document is probably that the scholars of the Southeast will do their best to cooperate with the major policies and hope that I will not send the imperial army south, right? What do you two think?"

"I think this statement is pertinent. As far as the current situation is concerned, the scholars and wealthy of Jiangnan are still quite sensible." After Xu Jingheng finished reading the document, he was the first to express his opinion. "Including the current investigation of the fields of temples and Taoist temples, it is still going smoothly. It may not be necessary to send the imperial army south to garrison in Jinling..."

Let me add a sentence here. Whether it is to merge the poll tax into the land tax or never increase taxes, the prerequisite is that there must be a unified land severance and a large-scale field investigation... Land severance is to unify and reorganize the population, and field investigation is to inspect the land. This is a necessary prerequisite for any large-scale tax reform.

After Emperor Zhao made his decision at the Martial Arts Assembly, and Li Gang let go of everything and completely retired to his hometown, the activities of full land severance and a small number of land inspections starting from temples and Taoist temples were carried out under the leadership of Lu Yihao and Xu Jingheng.

"Temples and Taoist temples are temples and Taoist temples." Returning to the present, in the Phoenix Mountain Palace full of crow sounds, Lu Yihao was indeed dismissive of Xu Jingheng. "In temples and Taoist temples, the monks can't escape the temples, and Taoism has always been the property of the royal family, and can be kneaded and rounded at will. The monks are bald after all, and they can be seen at a glance. They can't escape even if they hide. Even if they are dissatisfied, they will at most play tricks and act cunningly. How dare they really confront the government? But after the temples and Taoist temples, a large-scale and comprehensive land inspection will be carried out starting from Liangzhe. This move is tantamount to directly seizing food from the mouths of those powerful households (wealthy)... If something goes wrong at that time, the Emperor only has three thousand soldiers on Phoenix Mountain. Who dares to take responsibility for the worst-case scenario?"

The last sentence was obviously to remind Xu Jingheng that you are just a retired person who has been rehired, and I am the real Southeast Envoy.

In response, Duke Xu hesitated for a moment, but did not respond to Lu Yihao directly, but instead cupped his hands and spoke to Emperor Zhao:

"Your Majesty, it is true that wealthy people are prone to causing trouble since ancient times, and it is also true that we cannot forget the soldiers in today's world, but Liangzhe and Jiangdong (Jiangnan East Road) have always been rich and populous, and there are many scholars. In addition, there are many cities and few villages, and Your Majesty and Prime Minister Lu are directly supervising here, which can be called serving Wang Hua (the Emperor's influence) in many ways... This memorial is evidence... If you say that land inspection in Liangzhe will lead to rebellion, I am afraid I think it is a bit of an overreaction."

"What Duke Xu means is..." Of course, Zhao Jiu saw that these two dukes had never gotten along with each other, but he interrupted before Lu Yihao could refute. "You can let the soldiers and horses in the north be prepared, but you have to slow down a little? Or stay away, such as garrisoning in Yangzhou or Huaidian, and not cross the river for the time being?"

"That's exactly what I mean." Xu Jingheng earnestly cupped his hands. "Your Majesty, if this matter can be done without using soldiers and causing chaos, it is also a kind of comfort to the hearts of the people in Jiangnan, and it can also slightly increase the authority of the central government in Jiangnan. Otherwise, even if it is suppressed by soldiers, I am afraid that it will be like the Fang La Rebellion, causing the southeast to become estranged from the country... In the Fang La Rebellion, the Western Army's suppression of the rebellion was even more harmful than Fang La, to the point that the scholars and people of the southeast turned pale at the mention of government troops. Later, Li Gang, the Duke of State, caused a military rebellion in the southeast, which could not be quelled for a long time, further adding to the southeast's resentment towards military affairs... Therefore, unless it is absolutely necessary, I don't think it is necessary to increase the army to Liangzhe."

Zhao Jiu did not say a word and looked directly at Lu Yihao, obviously having been somewhat persuaded by Xu Jingheng, but still wanting to respect Lu Yihao's position.

Let me say, within a small space, the two dukes had already exchanged blows.

Lu Yihao wanted to emphasize that he was a proper duke, while the other party was a rehired person, but he did not expect that Duke Xu was not at all bothered by Lu because he was rehired, making it impossible for Lu to know how to resolve a grudge overnight, and he had already fallen into a complete disadvantage.

Of course, Lu Yihao was a man of action after all. After being silent for a while, he nodded slowly and made a conclusion in the crow's call: "Your Majesty, I am not very worried about Liangzhe and Jiangdong (Jiangnan East Road), because there are far more scholars here than wealthy households, and even the wealthy households have a literary style. As the saying goes, 'A scholar rebels, it won't be accomplished in three years', so there is no need to be afraid of them... But what about Lianghuai, Jiangxi, and Fujian Roads? There are places where the people are fierce and there are places where there are licentious sacrifices and witchcraft. Who knows if there will be trouble? Therefore, I think Your Majesty should at least let an imperial army of more than 10,000 go to the north of the Yangtze River, and prepare ships and make all preparations... And it must be the imperial vanguard with the best military discipline."

"Then let's do that. Officially issue an imperial edict to let Wang Gui, the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Vanguard, lead an army of 10,000 to garrison in Wuwei Army. They have marched north here before and are familiar with the area." Zhao Jiu then made a decision. "Prime Minister Lu, please work hard and make sure that the local government in Wuwei Army is honest and doesn't cause the incident of suppressing the rebellion in Qianzhou that day, not allowing the imperial soldiers to stay and not providing supplies."

"I know." Lu Yihao immediately bowed slightly.

"Since you two have come, do you have any other words to remind me about the matter of merging the poll tax into the land tax?" Zhao Jiu thought for a while and continued to ask.

"Yes." Xu Jingheng said seriously. "I want to ask Your Majesty, since the Tang Dynasty, the equal-field system has been a precedent. The silk used to pay for the service money of the ding (adult male) is combined with the grain of the land rent, which is the result of small households with men plowing and women weaving, so it can last for a long time. But after merging the poll tax into the land tax, the silk that the people pay less will be transferred to the wealthy households, but where do the wealthy households get so much silk? If there is no silk itself, whether it is bought or directly collected in money, there will inevitably be worries about the lack of silver and copper. Not to mention that if we talk about unifying the system and preventing slippery officials from harassing the people, even ordinary small households should abolish the collection of silk after never increasing taxes and merging the poll tax into the land tax and switch to collecting money and grain... But switching to collecting money and grain is equivalent to forcing the people to sell the silk. At that time, the price will be suppressed by the wealthy households and wealthy merchants. What should we do then?"

Listening to the other party's narration, Zhao Jiu's mind instinctively thought of another term, which was the Single Whip Law.

It can only be said that since ancient times, those important reforms have been inevitable historical trends... However, the problem now is that the Great Song Dynasty lacks precious metals to an unprecedented degree. Relying solely on the few ships of precious metal barter trade from Japan is simply a drop in the bucket.

Not to mention that Xu Jingheng's final reminder was also correct... Any act of forcing the common people to participate in abnormal trade will result in the common people being exploited once more for nothing.

Therefore, this Single Whip Law is just going around in my mind. If I really want to do it, I will be seeking my own death.

However, Zhao Jiu, who has been the Son of Heaven for seven or eight years, is not a newbie. After thinking for a moment, he gritted his teeth and said, "I don't have a very good way to deal with this matter, but there are two principles... The so-called principles are the unshakeable clauses like the basic phenomena and laws in the original studies... First, no matter what, we cannot put the cart before the horse and let the benevolent government of reducing the burden on the common people become a bad government. If it doesn't work, we can push the trouble to the wealthy households, because the wealthy households will not suffer any losses no matter how much trouble they cause. Compared with this, if it really doesn't work in the poor households, we can continue to collect silk. Second, no matter what, we must promote this major policy of never increasing taxes and merging the poll tax into the land tax. We must not let the matter be afraid because of this derivative trouble and create a situation where the old party attacks the new law."

Xu Jingheng quickly smiled and said, "Your Majesty is thinking too much. I don't mean that..."

"It is not necessary to unify and change to silver and copper. We can set a rigid law to make grain, silk, and money the same status." At this moment, Lu Yihao suddenly interjected coldly. "A bolt of cloth is two strings of cash, which is about two dan of new rice! At least in Liangzhe, no one can say that this price is unfair! If money, grain, and silk can be interchanged, the lack of silver and copper is not a big problem."

Zhao Jiu and Xu Jingheng were both stunned, and then reacted differently.

The former was overjoyed for a while, while the latter sighed and shook his head immediately.

"Each year when collecting taxes, the various Route Pacification Commissioner Offices will come forward to adjust the average price of money, grain, and silk in the previous year and give a fair price." Zhao Jiu quickly explained to Xu Jingheng. "If there is a disaster, then we will abandon this kind of universal price, delineate the disaster area, and deal with it specifically... To be honest with Duke Xu, when I was in Tokyo, Minister Lin told me about this matter, which is to unify the measurement and calculate the national income, but the country is still at war, so it is not good to implement it rashly, but if we can first combine the most important money, silk, and grain, it will be a great progress."

"I am not saying that it is bad or impossible." Seeing that Emperor Zhao had misunderstood, Xu Jingheng quickly explained. "I was actually going to say this strategy as a backup, and I even thought about allowing the people to purchase national bonds with grain and silk from now until the end of the war... After all, grain can be used as military food, and silk can be used as military supplies. The soldiers will not complain, and we can also use the credibility of the national debt to stabilize the price of grain and silk..."

Zhao Jiu was stunned for a moment: "Why didn't Duke Xu say this good strategy earlier?"

"Because this kind of thing is a temporary solution and not a permanent cure, and at most it is a backup temporary strategy." Xu Jingheng seriously confronted him. "Please think about it, Your Majesty. If we use this kind of strategy for a long time, sooner or later, if we encounter a Cai Jing in power, or a Zhu Mian as the Pacification Commissioner, who can imagine what extent they will do in this pricing power strategy in order to plunder the local area? And the Great Song is so vast that a nationally unified price is unfair to many places. Therefore, in the end, we still need the free flow of silver and money so that the people can naturally circulate silk and grain."

Zhao Jiu nodded suddenly, first looked at Lu Yihao, then looked at Xu Jingheng, and then smiled bitterly for a moment: "In this way, Duke Xu was prepared long ago, just wanted to remind me that debts must be repaid in the end?"

Xu Jingheng bowed slightly: "I am just trying to do my best as a courtier... I don't mean to accuse Your Majesty, the imperial court, and Prime Minister Lu."

Zhao Jiu then smiled again.

But Lu Yihao suddenly spoke: "Your Majesty, now that you have made a decision and have backup strategies, you should let go and do it! What happens after the Northern Expedition can wait until after the Northern Expedition. This matter itself was started for the sake of the Northern Expedition!"

"I want to borrow Prime Minister Lu's strictness!" Zhao Jiu then cheered up, and then thought of one more thing. "Since we are going to do this, can we give these four memorialists an assignment as a gesture?"

Using political power to buy off the scholar-bureaucrats and the wealthy and powerful households in order to reduce the resistance to the implementation of tax reform is a tacit thing for Emperor Zhao and the chief executives. Moreover, although Lu Yihao is harsh on his colleagues and subordinates, he still pays some attention to the Emperor, so he nodded in response:

"I know the bottom line of these four people. Lu Bao is from Yuezhou, the son of a chief executive. He started from the county and did things as a magistrate, vice magistrate, and even as a salt controller in the capital. He even defended Chenliu during the Jingkang period, so he has enough practical experience... I think it is better to be generous and give him a vice magistrate so that he can go to the front line to investigate the fields; As for Chen Yi, although his father was just a local wealthy person who could not read books, he did die in Jingkang as a loyalist, so he can be considered the son of a meritorious official. We can give his father an explanation and send him out as a magistrate. He will definitely be grateful to the imperial court; As for the other two, they are chaotic people. Let them go to Scholar Lu to run the gazette..."

Zhao Jiu nodded slightly, but could not help but be curious: "Judging from the documents, Lu Bao and Chen Yi are at least intelligent people, and Prime Minister Lu said that they are the sons of chief executives and meritorious officials. Why did they end up looking for opportunities in the public cabinet?"

Lu Yihao turned his head to look at Xu Jingheng, without saying a word.

Xu Jingheng, who had gained the upper hand this time, was flustered by the look and asked, "What do you mean, Prime Minister Lu?"

"Just to let Duke Xu know." Lu Yihao cupped his hands slightly. "The reason why Lu Bao ended up in this situation is because of Duke Xu's and Lu Gongxiang's (Lu Haowen) actions..."

Xu Jingheng was confused for a moment.

Lu Yihao did not sell off and directly cupped his hands again and said, "Lu Bao was transferred from the southeast to an official and once worked under Zhu Mian, one of the six traitors. When the Jingkang Incident broke out, Emperor Taishang Yuansheng ascended the throne, and Lu Gongxiang and Duke Xu were suddenly reused and deeply hated the six traitors and the new party. While working hard to resist the Jin, they carried out indiscriminate arrests in the imperial court, identifying Lu Bao and his brothers, who had just blocked the Jin soldiers, as a gang of traitors. Then, they crossed them out with one stroke and drove them out of the imperial court... It is a pity that the people who were personally crossed out by the prime minister in power did not dare to seek a future, especially in the years that followed, when Lu Gongxiang and Duke Xu became increasingly powerful. They had no choice but to abandon their official careers at the age of thirty or forty and have been unemployed for seven or eight years since then. It is said that they only enjoyed swordsmanship at home all day long. His nephews, the oldest of whom were in their teens and the youngest were less than ten years old, were all known as child prodigies, but he forced them to practice swordsmanship at home all day long."

Xu Jingheng was stunned, but he could not refute... Because he must have done this bad thing, and this bad thing was a political stain that he and Lu Haowen could not wash away for the rest of their lives under the new Jianyan dynasty's values.

From the Jingkang period to the early Jianyan period, these two people could not escape the quagmire of party strife, especially Xu Jingheng. At that time, he retired early and thought he was waving his sleeves and not taking away a cloud, but he did not expect that it was better for Lu Haowen to pick up the original studies and gradually become half a saint. Today, he was still caught and brought back to do the 'implementing new laws' that he had always been afraid of resisting... Of course, Lu Yihao probably did not know in his life that his failure to enter the central government to take charge was entirely the result of someone's 'sincere words'.

Fate is really strange.

"As for Chen Yi's father." Just when Duke Xu's mind was wandering somewhere, Lu Yihao, who was slightly more comfortable, continued to sigh in the crow's call. "It has nothing to do with Duke Xu, but it has something to do with Your Majesty..."

This time it was Zhao Jiu's turn to be stunned.

"His father was also unlucky. When the country was in trouble, his family was both wealthy and half a scholar, so he simply donated his family wealth to join the army. As a result, when he arrived in Tokyo, he had no vision and actually joined Liu Yanqing, and then died..." Lu Yihao rarely sighed with emotion. "After Liu Yanqing died, and then Liu Guangshi also died, the imperial court had to be slightly taboo when measuring meritorious officials later."

Zhao Jiu was embarrassed for a moment and did not know what to say.

"However, it is okay to use Lu Bao, but his elder brother Lu Zai cannot be used." Prime Minister Lu continued to remind.

"Oh?" Emperor Zhao quickly responded.

"During the Jingkang period, Lu Zai was appointed as the Deputy Transport Commissioner of Jingxi... He didn't dare to go... If he is used, I don't know how to explain to Liu Ji, Duke Liu." Lu Yihao smiled at each other, but did not know what he was laughing at.

Zhao Jiu nodded repeatedly and followed the advice.