Pirate Song

While Gao Huaiyuan was still accepting congratulations from his colleagues for his success in suppressing the bandits, thousands of miles away in Lin'an City, Hangzhou, there was still a scene of singing and dancing everywhere. So nervous, although there are some people who are paying attention to this protracted war, most people have recovered from the initial panic, and they don't want to pay attention to this war anymore, because the performance of Jin Guo this time It's not worth worrying about.

Shi Miyuan, who was the prime minister of the right court, could feel more at ease, because what he was worried about did not happen. Although the Kingdom of Jin invaded south, it was blocked by the Song army in the north of the Jianghuai River and could not advance an inch. This was exactly what he wanted, so he It also turned its attention back to controlling the government.

In his opinion, there are still many people who oppose him in the court. He also knows that after the Kaixi Northern Expedition failed, and after he conspired with Empress Yang to execute Han Tuozhou, the Jiading Collegiate Agreement signed with the Kingdom of Jin was a complete humiliating treaty. It is also the most contemptible treaty signed between the Song Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty since the Song Dynasty. Therefore, some people in the government and the opposition have always been dissatisfied with his actions. In the following year when Jiading signed a collegial agreement, the military officer Luo Riyuan and Dianqian Secretary were born. , Infantry Division officers Yang Ming, Zhang Xing and others murdered him.

Although the murder ended in a miscarriage and all those involved were arrested and executed, this incident sounded a wake-up call for Shi Miyuan, so he needed to control the government more closely and monitor threats to him at any time.

And what he did was also very successful. In order to achieve his goal of controlling the government for a long time, he first firmly controlled the way of speech in his hands, and used Xuan Zang and Xue Ji to his heart, Wang Yu as his eyes and ears, Sheng Zhang, Li Zhixiao, etc. As an eagle dog, the power is good at government affairs, and the power is poured into the government and the public.

However, the current emperor, Zhao Kuo, has been disheartened since the failure of the Kaixi Northern Expedition. Since then, he has completely given up the idea of ​​the Northern Expedition and restored the country. For a while, no one in the court could disobey him, but he himself was indulging in sensuality, basically he didn't hear what was going on outside the window, and went to have fun, and he didn't listen to the discussions about Shi Miyuan's dictatorship in the court and the public. I don't hear it, and even about the battle between Song and Jin, I rarely ask about it.

Shi Miyuan is very satisfied with the current state. Now he is a big tree in the Song Dynasty. It is basically impossible for anyone to bring him down.

There is only one thing, he is still a little uneasy. Although the current Holy Majesty has favored him over the years, his health is getting worse day by day, and this year is the 13th year of Jiading. The original Prince Zhao Xun However, he fell ill and died earlier than the current emperor Zhao Kuo passed away, so he had no choice but to make Zhao Gui, the adopted son of the current emperor's younger brother, King Yi, the crown prince and give him the name Zhao Mian. As a result, Shi Miyuan felt a little uneasy.

Speaking of it, it may be due to retribution. The emperors of the Southern Song Dynasty have never had a prosperous heir. After Ningzong's generation, Zhao Kuo has always been weak and sick, and his heirs are not prosperous. He didn't even keep a prince. It turns out that he still raised a Zhao Xun Acting as a prince, but unexpectedly at the young age of 29, he let go of his hands and went away. He wanted to establish a prince, but he couldn't find anyone. As a last resort, he had to establish the adopted son of King Yi, the younger brother of Ningzong. Zhao Gui (Zhao Hong) is the prince.

If Zhao Xun is not dead, Shi Miyuan has nothing to worry about. After all, when he and Empress Yang conspired to kill Han Tuozhou, he supported Zhao Xun as the crown prince. If one day the emperor dies, Zhao Xun will succeed him. The Right Prime Minister, who has power over the government and the opposition, can continue to flourish.

But when this Zhao Mian was established as the prince, Shi Miyuan couldn't sit still, because as far as he knew, the new prince Zhao Mian didn't seem to be on the same path as him. Before he was made the crown prince, he walked around a lot. Others didn't know that Shi Miyuan was in charge of the government, but this son didn't necessarily know about it, and since Zhao Mian was made the prince, he seldom talked with him, who is in the middle of the court today. Shi Miyuan's worries were further deepened by the fact that the uncompromising right minister had contacts, and Shi Miyuan had been restless for a long time because of this matter.

Shi Miyuan walked back and forth in the study room, opening a book from time to time, but he was always restless and couldn't read it with peace of mind. He was so irritable that he lost it: "Come here! Go and invite Xue Ji to come to the mansion." one trip!"

After the servant got the instruction, he didn't dare to be negligent, and immediately rushed out of the prime minister's mansion to look for Xue Ji to see Shi Miyuan.

After Xue Ji got the news, he didn't dare to be negligent, and immediately rushed to Shi Miyuan's Prime Minister's Mansion in a sedan chair, and saw Shi Miyuan tasting wine in the warm pavilion in the very elegant back garden.

"Please refer to Shi Miyuan for the lower officials! I wonder what your lord's order is for recruiting the lower officials?" Xue Ji immediately bowed to Shi Miyuan as soon as he saw Shi Miyuan.

Shi Miyuan glanced sideways at Xue Ji, then waved his hand lightly and said, "Your Excellency Xue, you don't have to be polite, sit down and have a drink with this old man! Come here, give me a seat!"

Xue Ji carefully sat next to Shi Miyuan, his buttocks only sat on the small half of the brocade stool. For Shi Miyuan, he knew that he was a person who would never be disobedient. It can be said that he was able to get to where he is today, it can be said that it is all thanks to Shi Miyuan's support , so he treated Shi Miyuan with great gratitude and awe at the same time.

"Come on! Try this wine. It's a good wine that has just been released recently. It tastes pretty good!" Shi Miyuan ordered someone to pour a glass of wine for Xue Ji, and then waved his servants out of the warm pavilion.

Xue Jiqian tasted the glass of wine in front of him, nodded again and again, and said, "It really is a good wine! This wine tastes very sweet, and it has an endless aftertaste!"

"Of course, this is the Immortal Drunk that has been very popular in the market recently. It is really not easy for ordinary people to drink this kind of wine at home! It really is true to the name of the wine, and it makes people feel a little giddy when they hear it Really good!

Today I invite you here because I want you to give me some advice. You are someone I can trust, and I don’t want to hide anything from you. Now the East Palace is under Xinli. I heard that Prince Xinli treats me and you and others. I am very dissatisfied, but right now I don't know what His Royal Highness is thinking. I have been very irritable for the past two days. I know that you usually have the most tricky ideas. You might as well give me some advice and see if there is any way to find out what His Royal Highness thinks about you. My real opinion is not! "Shi Miyuan is very relieved about Xue Ji. Among the cronies he appoints, Xue Ji is loyal to him, which makes him feel at ease. Otherwise, he would not tell Xue Ji what he thinks in his heart. Extremely.

After hearing this, Xue Ji felt a little terrified in his heart. He didn't expect how long it would take for the new prince to be established. Shi Miyuan began to focus on the prince. But he is a smart man, and after a little thought, he figured it out. The truth of it.

The current Holy Majesty's health is getting worse day by day, and it is not certain that he may die at any time. If the new crown prince is dissatisfied with Shi Miyuan and them, then their prosperous life will also follow the death of the current Holy Majesty. If the smoke disappears, sooner or later, the old accounts will be liquidated. If it is good, they will be swept out of the house and driven out of the court.

After Xue Ji wanted to understand this matter, he had to admire Shi Miyuan's foresight. No wonder Shi Miyuan was able to control the government for such a long time. At least in terms of vision, Shi Miyuan did have his unique side.

After Xue Ji listened to Shi Miyuan's question, he didn't dare to answer immediately, but lowered his head and pondered carefully, then raised his eyebrows, thoughtfully, smiled slightly and clasped his fists to Shi Miyuan and said, "What's so difficult about this?" I heard that the current crown prince likes drums and zithers, my lord, why don't you find a woman who is familiar with the rhythm and is good at playing the qin, and present it to His Royal Highness. If you want to know what His Royal Highness thinks in the future, wouldn't it be easy to catch it? Yet?"

After Shi Miyuan heard this, his tugged heart suddenly became clearer, and he clapped his hands on his knees and said with a smile: "Xue Ji, Xue Ji! You really have a seven-aperture exquisite heart! You can also think of such a way , It is indeed the person that the old man values! Good! Very good! I will do it as you said! Since His Royal Highness likes drums and pianos, why not give him a beautiful woman? You can arrange this matter, the candidate Be sure to be more careful, don't attract other people's attention, it is best not to let the prince know, it is the best arrangement of the old man!"

"Xiaguan understands! Please don't worry, Mr. Xiang. I will arrange it immediately, and I will definitely not let others know about it!" After Xue Jiyin smiled, he quickly got up and responded.

After Xue Ji was ordered, he did not dare to be negligent, and immediately began to search for suitable candidates in private. As expected, his hard work paid off, and he found a beautiful woman who was very good at temperament and played the piano well. It's a pity that because of the family's decline, her father was originally a petty official, but he committed a crime, was ransacked and executed, and ended up living in the village. Xue Ji happened to find him and ransom her. After receiving some training, she was entrusted and sent to the East Palace and became a maid of Zhao Mian.

Zhao Mian didn't know anything about this girl, and accidentally discovered that she was beautiful and very good at music, so she took her into the house and became a concubine. She was especially loved by Zhao Mian, only because of her His status is low, so of course he has no status, but this does not affect Zhao Mian's doting on him in the slightest. He often takes her by his side and often plays a song with him, which is very warm.

After all, Zhao Mian was young, and he was quite vigorous. Before he became the prince, he had already learned about Shi Miyuan's monopolizing power and controlling the affairs of the court, so he was very dissatisfied with Shi Miyuan.

Although Zhao Mian also knew about Han Yuzhou's dictatorship in the past, he held a sympathetic attitude towards Han Yuzhou. Originally, Zhao Mian was not the son of King Yi. He was just a clan member, and the position of prince could not be beaten by eight poles, but by accident, he was selected by the sage Zhao Kuo, entrusted his name under the name of King Yi, and became the adopted son of King Yi.

And King Yi was originally Zhao Kuo's brother, and he had a deep relationship with Ningzong Zhao Kuo. Unfortunately, King Yi also died young. Zhao Kuo thought of their brotherhood, so he chose Zhao Mian as his brother among the clan. The adopted son of King Yi intended to leave incense for the lineage of King Yi, but in the end he made Zhao Mian the emperor's successor unintentionally.

And Zhao Mian is also based on the identity of the descendants of the Zhao family. Since he was a child, he has longed for the Northern Expedition of the Song Dynasty to restore the country and reproduce the grand events of the founding of the Taizu. At least for the sake of the Song Dynasty, he advocated the Northern Expedition to restore the country. In the end, it was only the wrong timing that led to the failure of the Kaixi Northern Expedition. In the end, it ended up being murdered by Shi Miyuan. After Shi Miyuan came to power, he quickly used When Ningzong was disheartened, he firmly controlled the government, and reached a peace agreement with the Kingdom of Jin in the first year of Jiading.

In this regard, the famous Jiading contract of humiliating power and humiliating the country was signed in the history of the Song Dynasty. In the name of the chief culprit, Han Yuzhou was beheaded and sent to the capital of the Jin Kingdom, and

And he also heard about the collusion between Empress Yang and Shi Miyuan, so he was even more dissatisfied with Shi Miyuan, especially after Shi Miyuan killed Han Tuozhou, he immediately reversed the case for the former traitor Qin Hui and restored Qin Hui's posthumous title. He hates it even more, so after he became the prince, he never pretended to Shi Miyuan, and he was not too close to Empress Yang. He just played with his drum and piano in the East Palace all day long, leading the people in the East Palace to sing and dance. , rarely expressed any closeness to Shi Miyuan, a power minister in power.

Either Zhao Mian is still younger, he still underestimated Shi Miyuan's energy too much, he never imagined that in the heavily guarded East Palace, the person next to his pillow was actually a person placed by Shi Miyuan His eyeliner, his every move was under Shi Miyuan's strict monitoring.

Seeing that the Spring Festival was approaching, Prince Zhao Mian played the zither with his concubines in the East Palace after the luncheon. He was very excited, so he accidentally looked up and saw a map of the Song Dynasty on the palace wall. So I didn't know what evil I had committed, and suddenly became arrogant, got up and came to the front of the map on the palace wall, waved my hand, pointed to the map on the palace wall, and said with a loud smile: "If I succeed in the future, I will definitely hold the whole country. With the power of the Northern Expedition to restore the old land, Shi Miyuan must be placed here! Haha!"

Everyone looked in the direction of his finger, but saw that the location on the map that Zhao Mian was pointing to happened to be the land of Qiongya, which is also called Hainan by the people of later generations. In ancient times, this place was regarded by everyone as a barbaric place far away from the capital and isolated overseas. It has always been a place where the imperial court deposed criminals and suffered. I think even a great Confucianist like Su Shi was demoted to this place for several years. It can be seen that this place is by no means a paradise for the elderly as the world thinks.

Everyone couldn't help being quite surprised by Zhao Mian's emotion. Zhao Mian didn't pay attention to Shi Miyuan, the current power minister, and Zhao Mian didn't know the taboo of misfortune. Yuankou is called "Xin'en", which means that if Shi Miyuan is exiled in the future, he will definitely be one of Qiongya's Xinzhou and Enzhou.

With Zhao Mian's statement, the news naturally reached Shi Miyuan's ears through his concubine. After hearing this, Shi Miyuan turned pale with shock.

"If the current prince succeeds to the throne in the future, it will be the time when you and I are exiled to Qiongya! How can this be good!" Shi Miyuan said to his hard-core minions in his secret room.

Naturally, this news also came through Shi Miyuan, who was promoted by his subordinates. These people are Shi Miyuan's staunch supporters. Naturally, they all got their glory and wealth from Shi Miyuan. When they heard the news After that, everyone was shocked.

If Shi Miyuan is a big tree at this time, then they are hozens attached to the tree. Once the big tree falls, the hozens will naturally have no good fruit to eat. The treacherous ministers fighting for power and profit couldn't understand it better. They could say that fate and Shi Miyuan were firmly bound together, and one was prosperous and the other was damaged. Therefore, after hearing about this, they immediately became panicked.

"If this is really the case, it seems that my lord must not just sit and wait for death! The officer has a plan, I don't know if it should be said or not!" One of the minions following Shi Miyuan suddenly stood up and cupped his hands and said.

Shi Miyuan raised his eyes and saw that the person who spoke was also his confidant, Xuan Zang, who is now the Minister of the Ministry of Power and Military Affairs. Since I told you to wait, I want you to wait and think of something together, why are you so hesitant, why don't you just speak up if you have something to say?"

Only then did Xuan Zeng lean over, leaned close to Shi Miyuan's ear and began to whisper, but it was true that no one else could hear what he was saying.

But Shi Miyuan's face changed from cloudy to sunny after Xuan Zeng whispered, and gradually revealed a smile.

"Of course! This plan is feasible, but I'm afraid it's not easy to handle! You start to look for suitable candidates from the clan in the next year! At that time, you will go to the court with me to invite the emperor. This is a matter of course." It's about your wealth and lives, I hope you all can work together, and when things come to fruition, once I, Shi, is in power, you will be prosperous for a while! Let's do this!" Shi Miyuan finally stood in front of everyone and gave an order arrive.

His minions immediately bowed and agreed, and accepted Shi Miyuan's order.

And such a secret matter is naturally unknown to outsiders, and it is even more impossible for our Lord Gao Huaiyuan to know these things that are happening in the court. At this time, he is on his way to Ezhou.

It turned out that when the Chinese New Year was approaching, Zhao Fang, who had been sitting in Xiangyang in person, was finally relieved after the crisis in Xiangyang was over, and returned to Ezhou. Because of the great defeat of the Jin army at Zaoyang city last year, he was promoted to the post of direct bachelor of Huanzhang Pavilion after accumulating meritorious service, and was in charge of the military and political power of Jingxi Road. After returning to Ezhou this time, he learned about Gao Huaiyuan from the magistrate, and He thought of Gao Huaiyuan, a young general who had served in his tent, so he invited Gao Huaiyuan to Ezhou to meet him. He really wanted to see Gao Huaiyuan again, and see what Gao Huaiyuan has become after not seeing him for a year or two!

Moreover, he was also very curious about Gao Huaiyuan's appointment as the county captain of Daye, thinking that Gao Huaiyuan, who was only 17 years old, could be a good county captain!

Therefore, after Gao Huaiyuan learned that Zhao Fang had summoned him, he did not dare to neglect, and immediately set off from Daye County to Ezhou to meet Zhao Fang.