Chapter 925: Vomiting Blood
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Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Anyone could tell that it was not easy for King Yue Fei. Even the Imperial Court had temporarily put down their doubts and fears about the va.s.sal lords and issued a national policy in the North to appease the refugees.
At this moment, if the Ye family continued to drag him down, all their years of studying would have been in vain.
“The Northern Barbarians must know a little about the situation in the North. If the refugees cause trouble and the Di people start a war with the Great Zhou at this time, I’m afraid King Yue Fei won’t be able to attend to other affairs.”
Elder Ye’s expression was very serious. “If the Ye family doesn’t do anything, I’m afraid they’ll become sinners for thousands of years and suffer eternal infamy. It’s better to choose the lesser of the two evils.”
It was impossible for the Han Clan not to know this, but the Han Clan also had no choice. King Li of Zhou’s death was an irreconcilable hatred between the Han Clan and King Yue Fei.
Once King Yue Fei gained power, the Han Clan would not have a good ending.
Of the two bad outcomes, they chose the less harmful one.
Compared to their own interests, what was the righteousness of their country?
Elder Yu also sighed. “The n.o.bles of the North are too outrageous.”
All of them had been in power for a long time and had become politicians who only cared about themselves.
They had also forgotten that cultivating themselves, managing one’s family, running a country, and bringing peace to the world were the original intentions of scholars.
They blindly guessed what the emperor was thinking, but they didn’t even look at opportunities.
The Imperial Court’s failure to provide disaster relief had already damaged the dignity of the Imperial Court.
The Imperial Court was carrying out the national policy with great fanfare. Everyone in the world was watching Liaodong, and everyone was paying attention to the implementation of the national policy. Whether the Imperial Court could regain its dignity depended on whether the implementation of the national policy of the North could go smoothly.
If something happened in the refugee camp, it would reflect the inaction of the Imperial Court.
It was no wonder that the Empress Dowager was so angry.
Elder Ye did not want to say such vexing words anymore. “Tell me, the current situation is really worrying. Take Quanzhou for example. There are j.a.panese pirates every other day, and it’s still under martial law. We can’t even get news clearly. It’s really worrying!’
Rome wasn’t built in a day. Ye Hanyuan had always led the defense of the southeast coast, but his foundation in the navy was too shallow. In a short period of time, he couldn’t control the navy and let them be used by him.
Pirates had colluded with the j.a.panese pirates and caused trouble along the southeast coast. Even within the Zhejiang capital, there were people who had colluded with pirates and j.a.panese pirates.
Ye Hanyuan had no one to use, and he only had two troops of navy soldiers he had trained. For a moment, he was a little busy, and the navy soldiers below him were even more exhausted.
So far, he could only barely control the situation along the southeast coast.
It was also because of this that there were j.a.panese pirates in Quanzhou from time to time. It seemed reasonable for Quanzhou to be under martial law and for the city to be locked down.
However, Elder Yu and Elder Ye were both old court officials. From the situation along the southeast coast, they acutely sensed an ominous feeling.
However, Quanzhou was Concubine Lan’s money bag, so others naturally couldn’t reach in.
Elder Yu shook his head. “Previously, the Marquis of Zhen proposed to send an inspector to patrol the defense of the southeast coast to understand the exact situation in Quanzhou, but he was strongly opposed by Concubine Lan’s family. In the end, it was left unsettled.”
At the mention of this, the two of them looked at each other and shook their
heads helplessly.
Song Mingzhao had been placed in Dehua, which was in Quanzhou. It was obvious that the Marquis of Zhen had sensed that something was amiss in Quanzhou through some unknown family channels, so he had made this suggestion.
However, because the information was not detailed and could not be used as evidence, it was not convincing, so it could not be said explicitly.
He was also worried that if he rashly revealed the true situation of the news, it would expose Song Mingzhao, causing him, who was far away in Quanzhou, to be in danger.
It was also because of this that the Marquis of Zhen’s suggestion was criticized by others for being “selfish.” They felt that the Marquis of Zhen was using his official position for personal gain and using the resources of the Imperial Court to inquire about the heir.
Now, the entire court was worried about the drought in the north. The entire country was worried about the national policies, and the Imperial Court did not have the energy to engage in other matters.
Quanzhou was not the only city in the southeast coast that was sealed off and under martial law. Quanzhou was the most prosperous area in the southeast coast. It was normal for the j.a.panese pirates to target Quanzhou. Lord Ye could temporarily control the situation in the southeast coast. When he completely controlled the navy, the situation would definitely improve.
What was the use of sending an inspector?
Would the inspector exterminate the pirates, or could they help Lord Ye reorganize the navy and train a strong navy?
After the inspection, Lord Ye still had to divert a portion of his energy to cooperate with the inspector to patrol and maintain coastal defense. Did they think that the southeast coast was not chaotic enough to cause trouble for Lord Ye?
These words were extremely sharp.
Even the censors of the Imperial Court could not refute. There were priorities. The defense of the southeast coast was indeed not critical at the moment.
From time to time, news of victory came from the navy led by Ye Hanyuan.
As soon as she returned to the Longevity Palace, the Empress Dowager’s forced spirits immediately withered. She covered her mouth with a handkerchief and leaned against the soft couch, coughing violently.
As Auntie Shen instructed the eunuch to invite the imperial physician, she took out some pear paste and added water. “The spring air is dry. Princess Shaoyi has prepared some pear paste and sent it to the capital with the memorial presented to the Imperial Court to show filial piety to you. After the Imperial Physician’s examination, it was sent to the Longevity Palace. The pear paste stops coughing. Try it and see if it’s effective.”
As she spoke, she reached out and took the handkerchief from the Empress Dowager’s hand.
Suddenly, a shocking bright red color on the white handkerchief made Auntie
Shen’s expression change. She knelt on the ground with a thud. “Empress Dowager…”
“Cough, cough…” The Empress Dowager’s face was sallow. She coughed and reprimanded in a hoa.r.s.e voice, “Why are you panicking? How dare you?!”
Auntie Shen calmed down a little and said in a trembling voice, “I— I’ll get someone to invite Imperial Physician Shi into the palace…”
“It’s about time.” The Empress Dowager had a dispensable att.i.tude and only said, “It’s rare for a person to reach 70 years old. I’m not even 70 years old. I’ve lived a long life compared to most people,”
Auntie Shen knelt on the ground and immediately sobbed.
The Empress Dowager sighed softly. “During this period of time, I often dreamed of the previous emperor.” She looked stunned, as if she had recalled deeply. “The previous emperor accused me of not saving Xinger.”
Auntie Shen lowered her head and cried silently.
The emperor was suspicious by nature. Although he treated King Li of Zhou quite well because of the Empress Dowager, he still had a grudge against him because the Empress Dowager treated him well.
Back then, King Li of Zhou had become a va.s.sal lord because the Empress
Dowager had secretly facilitated it. She had originally hoped that King Li of Zhou could stay away from the troublesome places in the capital and avoid the emperor’s suspicion.
Liaodong was relatively close to the capital, so the Empress Dowager could still take care of King Li of Zhou.
Although the border was a little bitterly cold, King Li of Zhou and the Princess Consort received a lot of salary. The Empress Dowager had also helped to buy many businesses, which was enough for the couple to squander their days.
The generals guarding the North were also from the royalist faction, so they would take care of them.
However, she never expected…
The next year, at the beginning of spring, King Li of Zhou personally went to the battlefield, causing the You army’s reputation to rise greatly. Reports of success came from the border..