CH 63.4

Meng Huan only now remembered to ask, “Why are you not going to court?”

“A few days ago, when Huan Huan was kidnapped, this husband asked His Majesty for permission, and he granted me a few days’ leave.” Lin Bozhou picked up a piece of chicken. “I could have rested for a few more days, but there is an urgent report from Liaodong that the Jurchen tribe is in rebellion, so I will return to the cabinet after eating with Huan Huan.”

Meng Huan let out an “Oh,” and his mood was quite complicated. He felt that staying with Lin Bozhou was inappropriate for children, but Meng Huan’s heart was unhappy when letting him out of the house.

Lin Bozhou remembered something and raised his eyes. “By the way, His Majesty was very worried when he heard that Huan Huan was kidnapped and wanted to talk to him at the palace when Huan Huan’s health was better.”

Hearing these words, Meng Huan was stunned. “Why?”

“Huan Huan is His Majesty’s imperial sister-in-law,” Lin Bozhou smiled, “what’s wrong with caring?”

That was true.

But Meng Huan subconsciously didn’t like anyone outside this prince’s residence.

Even this little emperor.

He did not like the people who made Lin Bozhou hurt.

Meng Huan was a more emotional person.

But on second thought, it seemed good to go to the palace and see the world. He took his chopsticks and tapped the bowl, saying, “Okay.”

Lin Bozhou gave him another bowl of soup. “Eat more and get well.”

Thinking he would leave next, Meng Huan was not too happy to eat. Lin Bozhou saw this, pinched his jaw, and promised like a child. “This husband will be back earlier this afternoon.”

Meng Huan then nodded and continued to eat.

When the meal ended, Lin Bozhou went to the bed chamber to change into his court uniform and got on the carriage to drive to the imperial palace.

–

In the cabinet, without Elder Cui, Deputy Chen Que was temporarily in charge of cabinet affairs. When he saw Lin Bozhou’s carriage, he hurriedly welcomed him. “Greetings, Your Highness.”

Lin Bozhou did not go to court in the past few days. The matter of the princess being kidnapped, although not publicized, most people knew in their hearts. In particular, Lin Bozhou mobilized the capital army and the Jinyi Guards to search the whole city and finally searched directly for Elder Cui’s house.

Those who knew nothing thought these two must have fallen out.

Therefore, as a Qingliu party member, Chen Que had a better attitude toward Lin Bozhou. “Your Highness, I heard that the princess was attacked by criminals a few days ago. Is he feeling better now?”

“Better,” Lin Bozhou’s tone was warm, but his attention was obviously not on this. “Where is the urgent letter from Liaodong?”

Chen Que hurriedly handed it over.

Elder Cui wasn’t in the cabinet.

The matter of An Chui kidnapping the prince regent’s wife was known to everyone. As An Chui was also a member of Elder Cui’s family, he could not escape blame, so he consciously wrote a letter to the court, closed his door, stayed at home, and refused visitors, just like Lin Bo Zhou when he was first impeached, quietly waiting for His Majesty’s investigation and sentencing.

Lin Bozhou read the urgent letter over.

“Jianzhou’s guards were killed, Jurchen’s people plundered the city, but Mao Chengchang didn’t do anything?”

Chen Que hastily picked up another letter. “This is a 600-li* urgent letter just received. Mao Chengchang said that he had dispatched troops to suppress it.”

*A form of express letter delivery in ancient China which used a fast horse with the speed of 600 li per day.

*1 li = 0,5 km.

Lin Bozhou read the letter once more. “He also did not forget to press for military pay in the letter. How dare Mao Chengchang, who appeased the traitors in his territory so that the foreigners are strong, send a letter and think about asking for money?”

The prince regent was angry, and the other cabinet ministers were also angry, nodding their heads, feeling extremely pleased in their hearts.

This Mao Chengchang had always been close to Elder Cui, and both angered Lin Bozhou. It seemed their chances of downfall this time were high, so they were very happy.

Chen Que sighed and said, “Then we can only wait for good news from General Mao. We can’t let this Jurchen tribe stir up the whole Liaodong, can we?”

But the possibility wasn’t out of the question.

In the six years since Lin Bozhou’s regency, there had been rebellions in the south, but it could not be compared with the foreign invasion in the north.

If the foreign forces were some idle, wandering, small tribes, they had no supply lines when their iron cavalry stepped into Han’s territory. They wanted nothing more than money and living goods. They would loot like a whirlwind and immediately withdraw to their territories.

But if the tribe had already become a large one, with sufficient horses, food, armaments, and strong combat power, they would be like a gale and penetrated Han’s territory, invading the Shanhai Pass, entering the Central Plain, even overthrowing the Great Zong Dynasty and establishing a foreign regime in the Central Plains.

Lin Bozhou frowned.

At any time, they should try not to go to war.

Going to war would only make a country poorer and weaker, known as militarism.

However, since the border conflict had begun, it was better to fight once than a hundred times.

He frowned long before saying, “Give a decree to Mao Chengchang that all the letters have been seen and order him to raise the army immediately. Then, send some Jianjun eunuchs* to Liaodong to supervise the army. Tell him that if he can’t suppress Jianzhou’s chaos, he should settle the old scores with the new and come to meet me with his head.”

*Jianjun eunuch: a trusted eunuch appointed to supervise the army.

These Jianjun eunuchs were Lin Bozhou’s eyes and ears and would inform him of the real military situation so that Mao Chengchang would not hide anything.

Chen Que responded and started to prepare the decree.

Lin Bozhou sat in his chair; a painful feeling rose in his head. The Great Zong was already very poor and had improved a little in the past few years, but nobody knew there would be foreigners’ rebellion in the border area.

To go to war, you need weapons. Weapons need money. To collect money, you need taxes. To collect taxes, you must oppress the people.

To go to war, Great Zong’s economy would fall back a few decades, the bones of the dead were exposed in the wild, no rooster was crowing for thousands of miles, only one of the hundreds of lives remained, and the thought of it broke people’s hearts.* The things written in books weren’t jokes.

*Part of Cao Cao’s poem <<A Journey in Haoli>>, recording the reality of the warlords’ melee at the end of the Han Dynasty and the suffering of the people.

Lin Bozhou sat with a headache for a moment. When he looked at the table, there was a memorial there.

–This was Elder Cui’s self-statement on An Chui’s incident.