"How is the situation at the front?"
"As expected, yet entirely unexpected..."
Seeing Han Mo's question, Zong Ying could only offer a wry smile.
"Has it been settled without a fight?"
"How did you know? Did you hear about it?"
Hearing Han Mo's words, Zong Ying looked at him with suspicion.
"Didn't you just say it yourself? The Jurchens are advancing like a broken bamboo, only Yelü Dashi can offer some resistance in the entire Liao dynasty. A small city like Yanjing has become an isolated city, and they just drove away the Song army. What else can they do?"
"Alas..."
After Han Mo finished speaking, Zong Ying could only sigh.
The current situation was developing in an unpredictable direction, yet the entire court was still dreaming of peaceful coexistence with the Jurchens.
"Alright, I'll prepare to return to Mingzhou tomorrow. What do you say? Are you going back to Bianliang with the Prince?"
After a slight sigh, Han Mo immediately changed the subject.
Up to this point, his greatest concern was the situation in Fuzhou.
In Mingzhou and Quanzhou, there were the influences of several major families, and his position was unshakable in the short term. Even if someone else took his place, they would have to follow his rules.
However, Fuzhou was different. The lands of Lin, Fu, and Sanzhou were the lifeblood of the Zhe family.
The efforts of generations could not be easily abandoned.
But the problem was, once the two countries went to war, they would truly become a battlefield for all four sides.
If the court suffered a major defeat, it would be almost impossible to defend with the three prefectures!
What should be done?
Han Mo was now hesitating...
At this moment, he faced two of the most difficult paths.
To prepare for a full resistance against the Jurchens in a short period, to make the Emperor and the entire court of officials realize that the Jurchen nation was like a wolf, and that they would inevitably march south, he would need the power of Cai Jing at his peak.
But was this truly possible?
Clearly, it was extremely difficult to do so.
The second path was to provide enough deterrence to the Jurchens, to let them know that the Song army was not to be trifled with, and that the Song people were not to be provoked.
Only then might he have enough time to maneuver.
Otherwise, he could only watch helplessly as the Jurchens marched south, and the land fell into ruin! Famous generals did not die on the battlefield, but in the power struggles of civil officials, and finally, the Jingkang Incident would erupt.
Other than that, he really couldn't think of anything else he could do.
The torrent of worldly affairs was too vast, and it was not something that individual strength could resist...
"I actually don't want to go back to Bianliang anymore!"
After a moment of silence, Zong Ying suddenly spoke.
"Have you thought it through?"
Hearing his choice, Han Mo was stunned. This was not a wise decision.
After Zhao Zhen returned, his prestige would soar. As one of his absolute confidantes, as long as he succeeded in ascending the throne, it would be natural for Zong Ying to become a minister in the future!
"I've thought it through. The Prince has also been subtly seeking my opinion these past few days!"
"Does the Prince want you to be a spy by his side?"
After looking at Zong Ying again, Han Mo asked with a smile.
"You guessed that too?"
Zong Ying asked in surprise.
"This is not good news!"
After receiving his confirmation, Han Mo said meaningfully.
"How could I not know? He thinks I'm too close to you, so..."
Zong Ying stopped speaking here.
"And under what pretense?"
Han Mo did not dwell on this issue. After all, Zhao Zhen was clearly trying to pressure Zong Ying and test him.
But he had forgotten one thing. Zong Ying was not like Wang Xiang.
He was a true scholar-official. Even though he had only a rough understanding of political maneuvering, his inherent pride could not be changed in a short period.
If you treated such a person sincerely, he would die for you. But if you made him feel that you suspected him, he would leave you without hesitation.
Fame, profit, and power were nothing in their hearts!
What they needed was respect and trust!
Zhao Zhen never understood this. However, he had done a good job before. But now, influenced by Wang Xiang, he began to learn the art of political maneuvering, and he wanted to use power tactics to manipulate people's hearts.
When you only have a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
Therefore, his clumsy power tactics could only lead to alienation and discord.
"Judge of the Transport Office of the Two Zhe Circuit..."
"This position is truly..."
After hearing his answer, Han Mo couldn't help but laugh.
Zhao's move seemed quite clever, if one didn't consider human nature.
Han Mo was now the Commissioner for Coastal Defense of the Two Zhe and Fujian Circuits, a position that had never been established before and was created specifically for Han Mo.
Since it had never been established before, it was naturally not easy to restrain him.
Previously, due to the war in the six southeastern circuits, the entire Song court, from top to bottom, was eagerly awaiting Han Mo to send money back.
The Emperor had not considered this aspect. Now that the war was over, the most suitable person to balance Han Mo would naturally be the Transport Commissioner of the Two Zhe and Fujian Circuits.
Zhao Zhen sending Zong Ying to this position at this time was indeed a move with a double purpose!
On one hand, it could observe the relationship between the two and discern Zong Ying's feelings towards him, and on the other hand, it served as a warning to both Zong Ying and Han Mo.
It was a pity that he never expected that before the official appointment was even finalized, it had already completely pushed Zong Ying towards Han Mo.
In all fairness, this was truly a case of losing the wife and the soldiers!
"Ridiculous, lamentable, infuriating..."
After saying this, Zong Ying sat down opposite Han Mo, appearing preoccupied and losing interest in speaking further.
"Never mind, let's not talk about this. I have good news for you. The first batch of spices from the reorganized Maritime Trade Bureau is about to arrive."
"The first batch of spices?"
"That's right. Once this batch arrives, the conditions I promised the Emperor should be met."
Han Mo stretched his arms long as he spoke.
"But it's only March..."
Zong Ying's eyes widened. Zong Ying knew how Han Mo had obtained his official position. He had originally thought that Han Mo's plan was just talk.
But he never expected that this young man would actually complete it so easily...
"So what? Isn't making more money a good thing?"
"With the current state of affairs, what's the point of making so much money?"
"What do you mean, 'what's the point'? Of course, it's to train troops and accumulate strength!"