Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

Page 2523

Abu demonstrated his extensive knowledge.

"The Ming Dynasty was the Upper Qin, and the Liao Dynasty was the Middle Qin."

"If the Jurchen bandits were able to destroy Zhongqin, then they must be extremely ruthless."

The Goryeo envoy, Choi Jeong-hwan, leaned closer and said, "More than just fierce; the Jurchen barbarians frequently raid southwards, and a few years ago they even captured our western capital."

Goryeo was occupied by the Ming Dynasty in Pyongyang and the area to the north. Goryeo did not dare to resist with force and sent envoys every year to demand its return.

Their reasoning was also sound: the Ming Dynasty was invited to station troops in these areas in order to protect Goryeo.

Now that the Jin Dynasty has weakened, Goryeo is capable of protecting itself, so there is no need to trouble the Ming Dynasty's troops anymore.

The Ming court's response was, of course, out of fear that the Jin army would make a comeback.

No sooner had the Goryeo envoy finished speaking than the Western Xia envoy chimed in, denouncing the Jin dynasty for going back on its word and taking back the land it had promised to Western Xia.

Seeing that Japan, Korea, and Western Xia were all cursing the Jin Dynasty, Abu's view of the Jin Dynasty became even worse.

He returned to the house and wrote:

"The Qin state of Taohuashi was formerly known as the Liao state."

"The Liao and the Shang Qin and Song states were brother states, and they were generally friendly, but conflicts occurred from time to time."

"Western Xia and Goryeo were vassal states of the Liao Dynasty of the Middle Qin, and Western Xia frequently fought wars with the Song Dynasty of the Upper Qin."

"The Jurchen barbarians from the Northeast were originally slaves of the Central Qin Liao Kingdom."

"But they betrayed their master, annexed the Liao Kingdom, and seized the Qin legal system from the Peach Blossom Stone..."

"The barbarians of the Jin Kingdom were extremely brutal and also very brave in battle."

"They attacked all the surrounding countries, and even reached the capital of the Shang Qin and Song states..."

"The emperor of Song was a foolish and cruel ruler, so the people of Shangqin abandoned him."

"The great Khan of Peach Blossom Stone, the Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty of the Upper Qin Dynasty, was originally just a scholar, but he was invited by countless generals, scholars and common people to Kaifeng, the capital of the Song Dynasty, to be crowned as the new emperor."

"The great Emperor of the Ming Dynasty does not personally fight on the battlefield, but everyone is willing to be loyal to him."

"Upon receiving the emperor's order, the generals led their soldiers to drive out the barbarians of the Jin Kingdom and recaptured the capital and all of Shang Qin's territory..."

"In the land of Qin, on the Peach Blossom Stone, one can become emperor simply by having the Mandate of Heaven, rather than through bloodline inheritance."

"The Mandate of Heaven is the favor of the Sky God. It is said that if an emperor loses his virtue, the Sky God will no longer favor him, but will choose another hero of high moral character."

"Even a slave, if he possesses the Mandate of Heaven, can gain the loyalty of everyone..."

Abu also drew a map of Peach Blossom Stone based on hearsay and by subtly inquiring at the Hanlin Academy.

Upper Qin (Ming Dynasty) and Middle Qin (Jin Dynasty) were both vast in area, while Lower Qin (Xinjiang and parts of Central Asia) was only a tiny fraction of the total.

In Abu's writings, even Korea and Japan are much larger in area than Xinjiang.

……

After being driven out of the Sifangguan, Zuo Guangqing led the Western Xia delegation to seek lodging at the nearby Daxiangguo Temple.

The Xiangguo Temple had always operated as an inn, but the monk in charge of receiving guests stopped the Jin envoys, saying, "Amitabha, Xiangguo Temple does not welcome you."

Zuo Guangqing said, "We are willing to pay more for the accommodation."

The monk in charge of receiving guests shook his head: "We have heard that the Jin envoy threatened His Majesty to his face. Although we are monks, we are also citizens of the Ming Dynasty."

"Your Majesty is like a father, and your subjects are like children."

“How can a son receive a neighbor who insults his father?”

"Please leave, Your Excellency. Xiangguo Temple will no longer shelter Jurchens."

After being rebuffed at Daxiangguo Temple, Zuo Guangqing went to the nearest Qingfenglou Inn.

Although this inn is a knock-off of Qingfenglou, it has a very good location, situated between Cai Jing's old residence and Taiping Xingguo Temple.

As soon as Zuo Guangqing explained his purpose, the innkeeper came over and said, "Get out of here! How dare you offend His Majesty! You are utterly heartless and audacious!"

"No matter how much money you offer, Qingfenglou Inn will not let you stay!"

"it is good!"

The guests dining in the lobby cheered upon hearing this.

They didn't know what had happened; they only heard that the Jurchens had offended the emperor.

The Emperor is planning to abdicate, and you barbarians from the Jin Kingdom still dare to displease him. It's a miracle you weren't beaten to death on the spot.

Zuo Guangqing went to Banlou Hotel again, but was chased away by the bartender who was carrying a stick.

"That's unreasonable!"

Wanyan Gouying gripped the hilt of his knife, so angry that he wanted to draw it and kill the bartender.

This Wanyan Gouying, whose Jurchen name was Wanyan Talan, was the son of Yinshuke.

The Wanyan Talan who appeared many times before, whose Han name was Wanyan Chang, is not the same person.

There were too many people with the same name among the nobles of the Jin Dynasty.

Zuo Guangqing pressed down on Wanyan Gouying's right hand and reminded him, "Don't be impulsive."

Wanyan Gouying said, "We met the Ming emperor just yesterday, and today the whole city knows. These southern barbarians did it on purpose!"

"They deliberately humiliated our envoy, forcing us to sleep on the streets in the middle of snow!"

"What's the point of killing a few civilians? It only gives the Ming Dynasty more excuses to send troops," Zuo Guangqing said.

Chapter 3360 The Situation of the Jin Kingdom

Wanyan Gouying angrily said, "I have been fighting alongside my father since I was sixteen, and I have always been the vanguard in every battle. Am I afraid of fighting against the southern barbarians?"

"Nianhan was too cowardly, actually ceding territory to negotiate peace."

"If it were up to me, I would mobilize the entire nation's army to fight a decisive battle against the Ming Dynasty!"

This guy is a hothead; he actually dared to call Wanyan Zonghan by his childhood nickname.

He has never fought against the Ming army. In the two battles that Zhang Guangdao commanded in Shanxi, Wanyan Gouying and his father Yinshu were both absent.

Of course, there is no doubt that Wanyan Gouying was a formidable fighter.

Historically, the Jin army was brutally defeated by Wu Jie at Heshangyuan. Jin Wuzhu was indecisive at the time, and Sarihe fled in a sorry state and cried bitterly at night. Only Wanyan Gouying was commendable throughout the entire battle.

If Jin Wuzhu had listened to Wanyan Gouying's advice, Wu Jie would have faced an even more difficult battle at Heshangyuan, and might not have had time to set up his troops.

Zuo Guangqing advised, "I know the general is brave in battle, but the southerners are not easily bullied. Our Great Jin has been plagued by internal strife and often lacks funds and provisions. How can we start a war with the Ming Dynasty?"

Wanyan Gouying pointed at Zuo Guangqing and said, "Whose fault is it that there is a shortage of money and grain? Your father (Zuo Yuan) is in charge of the grain transport, and everyone knows that he is corrupt!"

"You're spouting nonsense!" Zuo Guangqing roared in anger.

Even if my father embezzled money and grain, you can't just blurt out the truth.

The Zuo family was extremely important to the Jin dynasty; they were the true leaders of the Han Chinese in the north.

Even though everyone knew that Zuo Yuan was embezzling, Wanyan Zonghan dared not take action to punish him.

Emperor Wuqimai stole wine and drank it; the nobles of the Jin Dynasty could beat the emperor severely.

Zuo Yuanming openly embezzled grain, but the Jin nobles could only pretend not to see it, because the powerful Bohai clans in Liaozhong were also involved in the corruption.

Punishing Zuo Yuan will throw the Bohai people of Liaozhong and the Han people of Liaodong into chaos!

By the way, Shi Jian, the Jin envoy whose ear was cut off by Zhu Ming, is actually Zuo Guangqing's cousin-in-law.

The group of traitors who defected from the Liao Kingdom all intermarried with each other.

Wanyan Gouying wasn't stupid either. After arguing with Zuo Guangqing, he led the delegation to continue searching for an inn.

They went straight out of the city and asked two different houses, but were refused by both.

Finally, they had no choice but to brave the snow and head to the outskirts of the city. They found a few farmhouses and said, "We would like to borrow a place to stay. This money is for lodging."

The farmers were terrified and dared not accept the money, so they quickly vacated their houses.

Then, these farmers, supporting the elderly and carrying the young, hurriedly ran towards the city gate.

He said to the soldiers guarding the city gate, "Sir, there is a group of bandits with knives and guns, forcing us to give up our houses."

"Their clothes don't look like those of Han Chinese. Go and take a look; they might be Jin spies!"

The soldiers said, "The Jin people's hair is different; have you noticed?"

The leading farmer said, "They're all wearing hats, so you can't see their hair."

The soldiers immediately reported the incident, which quickly alarmed the Court of State Ceremonial, the Capital Garrison Command, and the Five Cities Garrison Command.

The Capital Garrison arrived the fastest, quickly gathering several hundred soldiers who trudged through the snow towards the rural outskirts.

The misunderstanding was quickly cleared up, but the Jin envoys were driven away, and officials from the Court of State Ceremonial ordered them not to harass the people.

Out of anger and resentment, the Jin envoys stopped looking for houses to stay in and instead collectively hid in the sewers of Tokyo.

Because the soldiers' actions caused quite a stir, all the shops in the city knew that the Jin envoy had offended the emperor, and they even encountered obstacles everywhere when trying to buy food.

Chapter 3361 The Battle Is About to Erupt

Not all merchants avoided doing business with the Jurchens out of respect for the emperor; more often than not, they were afraid of getting into trouble.

Wanyan Gouying, who was huddled in the sewer, heard footsteps and quickly asked, "Did you buy the food?"

Zuo Guangqing entered with several attendants: "I bought it in a remote alley; the food stalls on the main street don't sell it."

"Eat sparingly. If the snow stops tomorrow, we'll head north immediately, otherwise we'll starve or freeze to death here."

Wanyan Gouying huddled in a corner, gritting his teeth as he gnawed on a flatbread: "These southern barbarians have humiliated me like this. When I get back, I will definitely lead my troops to kill them!"

The temperature was even lower that night.

A group of Jin Dynasty envoys huddled together in a sewer, trying to keep warm by sharing their body heat, and nearly froze to death inside.

The Jin Dynasty delegation arrived in Chenqiao Town, traversing the frozen Yellow River.

The merchants here still refused to sell them food and clothing, clearly indicating that the imperial court had already sent someone to give them instructions.

"Ta-ta-ta-ta!"

The sound of hooves rang out, and a troop of cavalry galloped in.

Yan Ping, a cavalry general under Li Yanxian, was ordered to return to the capital during the major case and is currently stationed near Chenqiao Town.

Yan Ping rushed to the Jin delegation and scolded them, "Since you want to leave, don't dawdle and harass the people of Ming along the way."

"Someone, give them some food."

"If we starve to death in the Ming Dynasty, it would make the Celestial Empire seem too stingy."

More than a dozen cavalrymen arrived with spare warhorses, took food from their backs, and casually threw it on the snow.

"Thank you!" Zuo Guangqing led his men to collect the grain bags, and bowed to Yan Ping with a smile.

Wanyan Gouying clenched his fists, feeling a deep sense of humiliation.

He used to give food to slaves in the same way, throwing food on the ground.

Yan Ping said, "If you dare to offend His Majesty to his face, what else wouldn't you do?"

"Barbarians are barbarians after all. The Crown Prince is afraid that you will plunder along the way, so he has ordered me to lead troops to escort you out of the country. Once you have eaten your fill, hurry up and get going."

Zuo Guangqing's smile vanished, and he said solemnly, "Our Great Jin Dynasty, by the mandate of Heaven and in accordance with the people's will, has inherited the great lineage of the Liao Dynasty."

"The Jin and Ming dynasties have established diplomatic relations, how can you, General, refer to them as barbarians?"

"A barbarian is a barbarian, does changing their skin change them?"

Yan Ping said disdainfully,

"Your ancestors were Han Chinese, and you yourself were educated. Haven't you ever heard of a monkey wearing a crown?"

"Too deceiving!"

"Qiang!"

Wanyan Gouying drew his sword, and his soldiers also drew their weapons.