I said, "Why bother with borrowing? Just cut and paste it directly onto the screen. Who can sue you for copyright infringement?"
Jin Shaoyan said regretfully, "It's a pity that the scenes from the past few days weren't filmed." He was in such a hurry the past two days that he didn't have time to film them.
At this moment, Tong Yuan fiddled with her phone and said, "Is it okay if I take a picture with my phone?"
Jin Shaoyan peeked over and saw a five-minute video on Tong Yuan's phone showing Jin soldiers raiding a camp. Although it was a long shot and the clarity wasn't great, the sheer scale of the battle and the fall of the enemy was something no big-budget production or director could replicate. After watching it for a while, Jin Shaoyan excitedly said, "Give me your phone."
Tong Yuan said shyly, "I can send you the video, but I can't give you the phone."
Jin Shaoyan looked at Tong Yuan's ordinary phone number and said, "I'll trade you a diamond version."
Fang Zhenjiang said, "How can you be so unromantic? No amount of money can replace it. There's a photo of me and Xiaoyuan on it."
We all exclaimed in surprise, "Oh—" Tong Yuan's face turned even redder. I laughed and said, "Then it's settled. I'll send you the video later, but you can't give me your phone number—we can't afford to create a new sex scandal."
Tong Yuan narrowed her eyes, chopped two mud bricks used to weigh down the tent right in front of me, tossed her hair, and walked away.
Fang Zhenjiang laughed and said, "As far as I know, Xiuxiu also took a lot of photos at the Mongolian camp, but not during the charge, because she is afraid of blood."
Jin Shaoyan rubbed his hands and said, "I will put your name in the cinematographer's column when the film is released."
I sighed and said, "It's a pity that Brother Ying isn't here, otherwise I could have used an MP4 to film a scene full of desolation for you."
Because the first shipment of goods was purely experimental and the quantity was insufficient for distribution, it was only given to a few generals to try. They took a bite of the bread and exclaimed, "Mmm, this bread is really fluffy!"
After an afternoon and a night of moving, the newly arrived food was piled up like a mountain at the Liangshan base. Wang Yin had 20 flatbed trucks hooked up to the Jinbei van, its transport capacity equivalent to 20 railcars. The goods weren't heavy, and the slightly mutated Jinbei van could easily handle them; besides, once inside the timeline, it was all about gliding. As for the source of the goods, as Wang Yin said, once the money arrived, it was a huge amount; a food factory in an ordinary prefecture-level city could provide stable support.
During this period, the total strength of the Song army rapidly increased to 400,000, and the Ming army was about the same, but Zhu Yuanzhang's secret weapon was still nowhere to be seen. We don't know what Jin Wuzhu thought, but judging from the lifeless atmosphere, the Jin soldiers' morale was definitely low. At first, they could roughly estimate our numbers, but later they could only see an endless expanse of enemies. At this point, there was indeed no difference between 3 million and 8 million.
One night later, Grand Commandant Wang suddenly returned with his men. When asked what had happened, Grand Commandant Wang replied, "Guess who I ran into on the way?"
I asked him, "Who is it?"
Grand Commandant Wang said, "Emperor Huizong of Song, it turns out he had already set off from Kaifeng to negotiate with Wanyan Wuzhu."
I said, "What did you say to him about the grain supplies?"
"He heard that 8 million troops suddenly appeared outside Taiyuan Prefecture and insisted on talking to you in person."
I laughed and said, "Hey, isn't that pretty bold?"
Wu Yong said, "If we hadn't interfered, the Jin army would have already captured Taiyuan. Emperor Huizong of Song would have been forced to come and negotiate with the Jin army. The timeline is about the same, only the negotiating partners are different."
I said, "So you're saying the Northern Song Dynasty will fall within this year?"
Wu Yong nodded.
I asked Grand Commandant Wang, "Where did the painter Zhao go?"
Grand Commandant Wang said, "He has already detoured into Taiyuan Prefecture. Now we are undecided whether to invite you or have him come to our camp."
I simply said, "I'll go!"
Wu Yong asked, "So how many people do you plan to bring?"
Grand Marshal Wang interjected, "Just bring a few as a token gesture; bringing too many will make our allied forces look weak..."
I glared at him, and was just about to order hundreds of thousands of people to go with me, when Liu Dongyang suddenly said, "Just take me alone."
I glanced at him and asked skeptically, "You think you can withstand ten thousand men?"
Liu Dongyang whispered in my ear, "Before His Majesty came here, he gave me a secret letter, saying that all descendants of the Zhao family who see this letter will see their ancestors, and there will be no mistakes. I think Emperor Huizong would not dare to deny his ancestors."
I didn't believe it: "Let me see what it says first." We've all learned from movies what to do if a secret letter says "Kill this person for me."
Liu Dongyang firmly stated, "His Majesty has said that if this letter falls into the hands of someone outside the family, whoever it is, they will be silenced!"
I shuddered.
Liu Dongyang comforted me, saying, "Please rest assured, Duke Anguo. His Majesty had long anticipated this day and made meticulous preparations accordingly. If I may be so bold as to speak, even if His Majesty harbors intentions to harm you, Duke Anguo, he cannot possibly abandon our 600,000 Song soldiers, can he?"
That's true. Zhao Kuangyin valued his soldiers above all else; he wouldn't be willing to sacrifice 600,000 elite troops to accompany me in death.
After thinking it over, I said, "Alright then, it'll be just the two of us—that strategist, let's start distributing the supplies to everyone once Wang Yin and the others bring back another batch."
Liu Dongyang and I, on two horses, crossed the allied forces' lines and arrived at the gates of Taiyuan City. After such a long standoff, we had almost forgotten that the Northern Song Dynasty's Taiyuan Prefecture still existed behind us. I looked up at the city walls and saw that the defending soldiers were all cowering and pale as paper, clearly terrified. I gave my name, and the soldiers hurriedly lowered the drawbridge. The difference between the Song army led by Zhao Kuangyin and the Taiyuan Prefecture's garrison was like heaven and earth. Liu Dongyang looked at the undisciplined Northern Song army and said with heartache, "I never imagined that the foundation His Majesty built would fall to such a state."
At that moment, an officer cautiously led us to see Emperor Huizong of Song. Along the way, people hid in the corners of the doorways, pointing and whispering about us, their fear palpable. I murmured to Liu Dongyang, "It seems we still need to print a batch of leaflets to reassure the people."
After Emperor Huizong arrived, he temporarily stayed at the residence of the Prefect of Taiyuan. As we hurried there, we saw eunuchs in bright red robes lined up in two rows at the gate to greet us. Another eunuch stood on the steps and, upon seeing us, announced in a shrill voice, "His Majesty the Emperor requests that General Xiao enter the residence for an audience."
I nodded in satisfaction. Emperors generally didn't like using the word "please," so I was an exception. Just as I was about to go inside, Liu Dongyang suddenly pulled me back. His face was ashen, and he suddenly pulled out a small scroll of paper from his robes, holding it up carefully at eyebrow level, and said sternly, "His Majesty's decree: seeing this letter is as if seeing me in person. Immediately order Zhao Ji to sweep the steps and welcome His Majesty!"
The group of eunuchs and guards were all taken aback. I wiped my sweat and whispered, "Isn't this a bit much?" Theoretically speaking, Emperor Huizong of Song was, after all, the emperor. Power is power, and rank is rank. If I were to argue based solely on the rank of Duke Anguo, I would have to kowtow to him. It's simple: no matter if you're a veteran of three reigns or more than ten, you're still a subject—of course, I wouldn't argue with him like that.
Seeing no response, Liu Dongyang shouted again. The eunuch hurriedly ran inside. Luckily, our supposedly 8 million-strong army was still stationed outside Taiyuan Prefecture; otherwise, we would have been torn to pieces long ago.
I glared at Liu Dongyang and whispered, "What will you do if they don't come out to pick you up?"
Liu Dongyang, who was feigning bravado with his eyes bulging, remained expressionless when I asked him this, but replied through gritted teeth, "I don't know either."
Chapter 164 Multinational Forces
Historically, there have been several types of emperors. The first type is the enlightened ruler, skilled in political maneuvering and personally diligent in governing. You could call them cunning and treacherous, but in terms of their primary duties as emperor, they were outstanding. Li Shimin and Kangxi belong to this category. The second type is the licentious and incompetent type. Having finally gotten the job, they indulged in all sorts of debauchery, doing whatever pleased them. This type is quite common, from King Zhou of Shang and King You of Zhou to Emperor Yang of Sui. The third type is the incompetent and hardworking type. They are diligent during their reign but unfortunately lack talent. Some emperors were destined to be emperors, but ultimately met a tragic end with their deaths and the ruin of their families, a prime example being Emperor Chongzhen. The fourth category is quite intriguing; these emperors fell somewhere between incompetent and lazy. They generally possessed exceptional talent in a particular area, but were neither adept at nor inclined to govern effectively. Some of these emperors were skilled carpenters, others poets, and still others painters. Due to their own shortcomings, they brought ruin to their countries, a classic example of tragic fate. Had they not become emperors, they might have made greater contributions to society. Emperor Chen Houzhu and Emperor Huizong of Song belong to this category.
Emperors like Chen Houzhu and Song Huizong, who possessed exceptional artistic talent, were initially quite melancholic after their dynasties fell. When they were powerless to reverse the decline, they experienced intense guilt and regret. This not only inspired the refinement of their art but also compelled them to do something for themselves in their final moments…