"Isn't that ridiculous? Emperor Huizong of Song wasn't Wu Sangui or King You of Zhou—" At this point, I suddenly slapped my forehead and said, "Wait a minute, wasn't Jin Wuzhu the one who attacked the Southern Song? How did he end up in the Northern Song?"
Jin Shaoyan said dejectedly, "The Northern Song and Southern Song dynasties were originally connected, Brother Qiang, you have to think of a way!"
My head was throbbing, and after a pause, I said, "You're on Liangshan, right? Let strategist Wu Yong talk to me."
A moment later, Wu Yong's voice rang out: "Xiao Qiang."
I said, "That kid is about to break down. Strategist, please tell me the details."
Wu Yong calmly said, "That's the situation. Li Shishi was captured by accident, and her identity was later exposed. The Jin army now sees her as a valuable commodity and is determined to exchange her for the Song Dynasty's throne without bloodshed."
"Then, strategist, what should we do now?"
Wu Yong said calmly, "I've already analyzed it. Although the Jin army has achieved some minor victories in their battles with the Song Dynasty, they still don't know the Song army's true strength. Their so-called exchange of Li Shishi for the throne is just a bargaining chip. I think this is how it works: we, as members of Liangshan, should negotiate with Wanyan Wuzhu. We can ignore his affairs with the court, but Li Shishi must be released. Otherwise, Liangshan, together with Brother Fang La, will mobilize all 250,000 troops to resist the Jin. Is it worth risking such a great transgression for a woman? He should weigh the pros and cons, right?"
It must be said, true heroes are true heroes; they don't hesitate when it matters. Jin Shaoyan and Li Shishi had a very close relationship with them, but to go to such lengths just because of their shared journey through time together was truly the epitome of kindness and righteousness. Jin Shaoyan was so moved that he couldn't help but sniffle.
I asked, "Have you found a candidate?"
Wu Yong said, "For now, we've chosen Dean Dai and Yan Qing to handle this. You don't need to worry about it."
I felt a little more at ease and said with a smile, "Won't that kid be jealous if I let Yan Qing handle this?"
Wu Yong said, "Let's leave it at that for now. There aren't many telephones with electricity left on the mountain. Next time you come, bring a few with long standby times."
I said, "Alright, then I'll trouble you, strategist, to take good care of that heartless pretty boy. Tell him not to worry, everything is organized."
After hanging up the phone, I specifically looked up information about the Northern and Southern Song Dynasties. I then realized that the dividing line between the Northern and Southern Song was exactly in 112 AD, when Jin Wuzhu did lead troops. However, in that same year, they had already captured Bianjing (Kaifeng). Those who escaped this battle, such as Zhao Gou, established the Southern Song Dynasty in Jiangnan. Later, Yue Fei led troops to recover lost territories. The court, while suspicious, also supported him, and finally, more than a decade later, Yue Fei was unjustly executed at Fengbo Pavilion. In other words, if I went back to the Northern Song Dynasty now, I could see Yue Fei, but he would still be a young man in his early twenties. As for the 300 soldiers of the Yue Family Army, the older ones were around ten years old, and the younger ones were three or four. Only Xu Delong was about the same age as Yue Fei.
After eating the noodles, I made plans for the day. I decided to pick up Baozi. I know this woman too well; if she were still in the Qin Dynasty, I'd rip her head off if she wasn't fed up. Besides, I can't think of anything more boring or better than a Grand Marshal without any military power, just wasting his life.
I got into my beloved car, filled up the tank, and this time entered the timeline without much trouble. To be honest, my car is a treasure from every angle, though it looks much more weathered than before. At extremely high speeds, its windows are covered with incredibly stubborn fine dust, leaving two halves of its rear end visible when the wipers are on. Only in our small town like here would it be confiscated outside the Third Ring Road in Beijing—unless I'm going to Beijing 800 years ago.
We arrived in the Qin Dynasty in silence. Upon entering the Xiao Mansion, I found her gone. A servant told me that the Grand Marshal had gone to the palace to discuss state affairs with the Emperor. I was utterly puzzled. What state affairs could she possibly be discussing? Was she planning to open a chain of soup dumpling shops in the Qin Dynasty?
I drove straight to the bottom of the steps of Xianyang Palace and entered the hall. I saw Baozi and Fatty Ying sitting on either side of each other, their eyes fixed on a map on the table, their expressions serious. Little Huhai was half-lying on the table, chin in hand, also looking very focused.
I went over and saw that three people were playing checkers.
Baozi, holding a knife-shaped coin, had almost filled up Fatty's round, square-holed coin area. Little Huhai, meanwhile, took ten ant-nose coins and tended to his own. I laughed, "Aren't you going to play your video games?" I knew it; this woman couldn't do anything productive. She dragged Fatty, a busy emperor, into playing checkers. It's amazing how neatly she drew the board; my Baozi has a skillful side, huh?
The fat man, without even looking up, said, "There's no electricity."
Little Hu Hai said, "This one is more fun than that one."
I nudged the steamed bun: "Hey..."
Baozi said seriously, "Stop fooling around, we only have four more moves to win."
Upon hearing this, Fatty Ying was greatly surprised. He used his chubby hand to make calculations on the chessboard, and finally looked up and said, "I'll calculate six moves for you."
Baozi rubbed his hands together, looking ready to get started: "Let's watch!"
...I watched them play checkers. After four moves, Qin Shi Huang's stronghold was captured, and he was about ten moves behind Baozi. Little Huhai was also about to win. Fatty Ying scribbled on the chessboard and said, "Sure enough, it was four moves. Hehehe."
Little Hu Hai cried out, "Father is cheating! I'm going to win!"
Fatty Ying snapped, "Get out of here! Did you memorize the multiplication table I taught you yesterday?"
Little Hu Hai said, "I'll memorize the longest row." He then put his hands behind his back and recited loudly, "One times one equals one, one times two equals two, one times three equals three..." He stopped abruptly when he reached the line "one times nine equals nine." The fat man said, "Keep going!" Little Hu Hai stammered, "Just memorize this row..."
Baozi and I were both overjoyed. I said, "Brother Ying, with this kid's intelligence, he'll definitely be a qualified successor in the future."
Fatty Ying chuckled and said, "All you do is use your petty tricks!"
I asked Baozi, "Shall we go back?"
Baozi quickly said, "Go back, go back. I really can't stand going to bed at eight o'clock every night."
When Xiao Huhai heard that Baozi was leaving, he reluctantly tugged at her clothes. Baozi picked him up and said, "Good boy, I'll come back to play with you in a few days and bring you a little rabbit that can sing."
Fatty seemed rather disappointed when he heard we were leaving, and he saw us off all the way out of Xianyang Palace. I got into the car and waved, saying, "Brother Ying, go back now. Next time I'll bring you a Li Shishi who can sing." As for Li Shishi's misfortune, I didn't tell him. Even if he was the emperor, there was nothing he could do to help. Telling him would only cause him unnecessary worry.
On the way back, I asked Baozi, "Aren't you going to play your chime bells anymore?"
Baozi was taken aback, then said, "Hey, that thing is just for fun, do you really think you can make a living from it?" I don't know who swore that they would become a master of chime bells and teach their children. I don't think she can play chime bells well, but she used to be able to ring the alarm clock perfectly every time she got up early for work.
Just as we passed Li Shimin's house, Wu Yong called: "Xiao Qiang, something's happened. Looks like you'll have to come over."
Chapter 146 Jin Wuzhu
After hanging up with Wu Yong, I immediately felt uneasy. If the usually calm and collected Wu Yong said something had gone wrong, it must be something very serious.
Baozi noticed my expression was off and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Shishi is in trouble..." I explained what happened, and then said, "I'll take you home first, and then I'll go to Liangshan to check on things."
Baozi said, "Why go home? I'll just come up the mountain with you. What else do you have to hide from me now?"
I thought about it and it made sense. It only took less than 20 minutes to travel from the Tang Dynasty to the Northern Song Dynasty. If we sent the buns back and came back, it would take another 8 hours.
I stepped on the gas and said, "Then when you get there, stay put and don't act impulsively. This isn't a trip for fun."
Baozi said, "Don't worry, I am the Minister of National Defense, how could I be so unreliable?"
Knowing I was coming, Wu Yong, along with his heroes and Fang La, waited for me at Zhu Gui's inn. As soon as Baozi got off the carriage, he and Hu Sanniang exchanged excited greetings, jumping and skipping. Wu Yong and Lu Junyi stood side-by-side at the front, Wu Yong smiling as always, which reassured me a little; it seemed the situation was still manageable. I went over to greet everyone, and then I saw Jin Shaoyan standing listlessly behind Wu Yong, his left shoulder wrapped in a thick bandage, probably from a cut he'd sustained while fighting Jin soldiers. When he saw me glaring at him, he forced a smile, and I kicked him twice, finding the thickest spot on his body, to vent my anger.