【After Zhao Gou ascended the throne, everyone discussed where to establish the capital. Wang Bo Yan and Huang Qian Shan advised him to avoid the south of the Yangtze River, while Li Gang opposed moving south and recommended moving to Xiangyang or Dengzhou. Zong Ze suggested returning to Kaifeng. For a time, everyone argued endlessly.】
【Later, Zhang Jun returned to the court and soon impeached Li Gang, who was demoted from office. Zhao Gou and his followers fled south to the Yangtze River. Zong Ze led his troops to Kaifeng, successively putting down the rebellions around Kaifeng. Afterwards, he recruited tens of thousands of rebel soldiers, rebuilt the city, and strengthened the defenses. In a short time, Kaifeng was recaptured and the army intended to advance north to fight the Jin army.】
【This year, Zhao Gou and his ministers escaped to Yangzhou. Due to the constant wars in various places, Zhao Gou had no choice but to make Yangzhou his temporary residence.】
【At this time, Zong Ze had already rebuilt Kaifeng, and the military strength in Kaifeng was extremely strong. Therefore, he sent a letter to advise Zhao Gou and his ministers to return to Kaifeng. However, Zhao Gou was as scared as a tiger, and despite Zong Ze’s repeated letters, totaling more than twenty, Zhao Gou remained unmoved1.】
【Zong Ze cried and begged, finally writing until he had nothing more to write. Yet, Zhao Gou and his ministers remained unmoved and silent. Under this blow, Zong Ze became disheartened and fell seriously ill. Soon, his illness worsened, and he developed boils on his back, nearing his death.】
【Before his death, Zong Ze lay in bed and cried out, “Cross the river! Cross the river! Cross the river!” before dying in regret. Throughout his life, he never saw Zhao Gou return to Kaifeng.】
…
Seeing this, Zhao Kuangyin and his ministers were stunned.
Initially, they were pleased and excited when they saw Zhao Gou proclaim himself emperor in Nanjing!
But then, he avoided battle in the south and settled in Yangzhou, which made Zhao Kuangyin’s heart burn with anger!
Finally, when facing Zong Ze’s more than twenty blood-stained letters, he remained unmoved, watching as such a loyal minister died in resentment. Zhao Kuangyin’s anger blazed, his teeth clenched, and his fists clenched tight!
“Beast! Zhao Gou, this beast! Is he so afraid of the enemy? Is he still a descendant of my Zhao family?”
Everyone’s mouths twitched. Just now, the emperor praised Zhao Gou for being a man of the Zhao family with blood in his veins. In the blink of an eye, he was cursing Zhao Gou and expelling him from the family lineage!
It wasn’t so difficult to understand. At the beginning, when they saw Zhao Gou’s actions, everyone thought he had the nation at heart and wanted to reclaim Kaifeng and restore the Song dynasty!
But unexpectedly, he was so afraid of the enemy. Despite having such a large army, he didn’t even fight and directly abandoned Kaifeng!
To put it politely, he settled in Yangzhou. To put it bluntly, he abandoned the city and lost territory, and he did it voluntarily!
It would be fine to abandon Kaifeng City, but Zhao Gou settled in Yangzhou. Wasn’t this a declaration to the world that the Song dynasty was going to abandon Henan and Shandong completely?
Don’t forget, the tombs of the Song dynasty’s ancestors were still there!
Zhao Kuangyin’s anger had not subsided when he saw the next point on the golden list. His breath hitched, and his heart ached:
【After Zong Ze’s death, Zhao Gou appointed a new Tokyo garrison named Du Chong. Du Chong was able to assume this position because he understood Zhao Gou’s fear of the various rebel armies in Hebei!】
【In Zhao Gou’s eyes, although Zong Ze had recovered and rebuilt Kaifeng, Hebei was full of rebel armies. These troops were not under the control of the court, and they were essentially local warlords, which made Zhao Gou apprehensive.】
【Therefore, after Du Chong took office, he first orchestrated a conflict between the rebel armies, manipulating Wang Shan to attack another rebel army led by Zhang Yong. Both rebel armies had been subdued by Zong Ze, but Du Chong disregarded this. After the two armies clashed, Zhang Yong and Wang Shan were driven out of Kaifeng and became outlaws.】
【The military strength in Kaifeng was greatly weakened. After witnessing Zhang Bangchang’s death, Zhao Gou’s ascension to the throne, and the conflict between the rebel armies, the Jin army invaded south again in the first year of Jianyan. Wanyan Zong Han launched an attack from Datong, aiming directly at the weakened Kaifeng City.】
【At this time, Du Chong had millions of rebel soldiers at his disposal, but instead of using them, he came up with a cunning scheme. He broke the dikes of the Yellow River, flooding the river and causing millions of people to become refugees. Hebei became a flooded wasteland!】
【News of the flood and the defeat on the frontlines reached Yangzhou, but the two treacherous ministers Wang Bo Yan and Huang Qian Shan suppressed the news. The entire Yangzhou City was immersed in a peaceful and prosperous atmosphere, and Zhao Gou and his ministers were oblivious to the reality.】
【It wasn’t until the eunuch Kuang Xun informed Zhao Gou of the war report that he was terrified, so much so that he lost his ability to have children. However, his first reaction was not to send troops to resist but to flee immediately, even without waiting for the officials and people of Yangzhou City!】
【Zhao Gou crossed the Yangtze River, leaving behind more than 100,000 people on the other side who cried out to heaven and earth for help, but their pleas were unanswered. A day later, 5,000 Jin cavalry bypassed Kaifeng and reached the gates of Yangzhou City. When they failed to find Zhao Gou, they slaughtered the people and plundered their gold and silver treasures.】
【Zhao Gou regained his senses after the catastrophe. In the face of overwhelming public opinion, he first issued a self-reproaching edict and then demoted the treacherous ministers Huang Qian Shan and Wang Bo Yan. However, even so, Zhao Gou did not order their deaths.】
【Later, at Wang Yuan’s suggestion, Zhao Gou fled to Hangzhou. However, as soon as he arrived in Hangzhou, he ordered his trusted eunuchs Kang Lü, Lan Gui, Zhang Qu Wei, and others to plunder the people’s wealth, occupy official residences and luxurious mansions. Wang Yuan, by currying favor with the eunuchs, not only escaped punishment for the tragedy in Yangzhou but also received a promotion, becoming a high-ranking official in charge of the Privy Council.】
【Zhao Gou’s misconduct soon aroused public discontent. Miao Fu and Liu Zheng Yan, generals of the Imperial Guard, led a rebellion. Zhu Sheng Fei, the new Prime Minister, discovered the plot and informed Zhao Gou in advance. Zhao Gou was shocked but only revoked Wang Yuan’s authority to issue orders from the Privy Council, hoping to quell the unrest with this.】
【However, Zhao Gou’s efforts were in vain. The rebels first killed Wang Yuan and then approached the imperial palace, demanding an explanation from Zhao Gou. Zhao Gou was terrified and hurriedly sent Zhu Sheng Fei to negotiate with the rebels. The rebels told Zhu Sheng Fei that they wanted Empress Meng to take charge of the government and establish the three-year-old crown prince Zhao Tan (fu) as emperor. Zhao Gou would abdicate and become the retired emperor.】
【Zhao Gou had no choice but to accept these conditions. In that year, Zhao Tan ascended the throne, the rebels changed the era name to Ming Shou, and this event became known in history as the Ming Shou Incident, or the Miao Liu Rebellion.】
…
“Hmph!”
A gentle breeze blew past. As they looked at the words on the golden list, the monarchs and ministers from all dynasties fell into silence.
The Qin Dynasty realm, outside Xianyang Palace.
Ying Zheng’s brow was furrowed, his face full of shock and sorrow.
Zhao Gao’s voice broke through Ying Zheng’s thoughts: “Your Majesty, the sorcerers have arrived!”
Ying Zheng snapped out of his reverie. His eyes sharpened, and his entire being radiated the majesty of an emperor!
The sorcerers knelt down, the leading man loudly proclaiming:
“The sorcerer Lu Sheng and his fellow sorcerers pay homage to Your Majesty!”
Ying Zheng’s eyes narrowed, his face calm and composed. He coldly asked:
“Lu Sheng, how is the elixir of immortality I asked you to refine?”
Lu Sheng’s heart skipped a beat, but he still forced a smile and replied:
“Your Majesty, the divine elixir is difficult to make. This humble servant is diligently refining it but has yet to achieve any results!”
This excuse was quite effective. Whenever Ying Zheng inquired about the progress of the elixir, Lu Sheng would give the same explanation, and Ying Zheng easily believed it.
After all, the elixir of immortality was difficult to make. It was understandable that it would take a long time to create!
…
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