The process of returning to Qufu went smoothly. After two or three days, Shen Yi rushed back to Qufu City.
At this time, there was only one day left before the emperor offered sacrifices to Confucius, and Mr. Shen finally made it in time.
He had just returned to Qufu, and before he had time to rest, he followed the emperor's guard of honor to the Confucius Mansion. The "Emperor" on the dragon chariot had just got off the chariot, and the uncle and nephew of the Kong family knelt on the ground to pick him up. After that, Mr. Shen was led by Eunuch Gao all the way to a study in the backyard of the Kong family, where he met His Majesty the Emperor, who had been in seclusion for a long time.
Shen Yi had just been brought in by Eunuch Gao, and His Majesty the Emperor, who was looking through the Kong family's collection of books, threw the only copy aside and looked up at Shen Yi overjoyed, even a little rude.
"Shen Qing is finally back!"
His Majesty the Emperor took Shen Yi's hand and sat down, he was a little busy talking.
"I heard that Shen Qing left from Ningyang two days ago, why did you come back now?"
Mr. Shen bowed slightly and said with a smile: "Your Majesty's guard of honor is here. Even if I can come back alone, I must always take care of Your Majesty."
Ningyang is not too far from Qufu. If you ride a horse, you can get there in half a day.
But Shen Yi couldn't ride back.
Because he was accompanying the driver on the expedition.
At this time, it would be inappropriate for him to rush back by himself, but he still had to go back with the emperor's guard of honor.
After all, you have to do a good job in acting and give the leader face.
If you don't give the leader face, then you are in vain.
If you are distracted, no matter how many things you do, it is very likely that the leader will write it down in the notebook. Even if he doesn't fall out with you now, one day the notebook will be full and you can't write it down anymore, so he will probably take it out. I've had a good talk with you.
His Majesty the Emperor was startled, and then he laughed dumbly: "You scholars just think too much. It doesn't matter whether my guard of honor comes back or not."
Mr. Shen shook his head and said with a smile: "Your Majesty's dignity is the dignity of Da Chen. This is the time when the conflict between the two countries is most intense. Da Chen's dignity is very important."
"In my opinion, this is a competition."
"It's not just military competition, but also competition in national power."
Mr. Shen paused and continued: "Besides, we also have to fight for some things that are hard to see in daily life."
Hearing this, the emperor touched the beard on his chin and thought thoughtfully: "What is Shen Qing referring to?"
"There are some private forces that are not visible on the surface, but are indeed very powerful."
"Or local forces."
Shen Yi cleared his throat and continued: "These people can be local gentry or wealthy businessmen, because they are not as poor as ordinary people, and most of them are powerful, so..."
Having said this, Master Shen narrowed his eyes and said softly: "I'm used to sitting on the fence."
"Whether it is our current Dachen territory or the north occupied by the puppet Qi, there are such people. They must be staring at the battlefield between the two countries now, ready to wait for opportunities to make bets."
Hearing what Shen Yi said, His Majesty the Emperor snorted and said coldly: "When Shen Qing said this, I understood that when Zhu Li entered the customs seventy years ago, there were many such people in the customs."
He was also a little annoyed and whispered: "Shen Qing said these four words very well."
"them…"
"I'm used to sitting on the fence."
The group of people Shen Yi was talking about did not simply refer to businessmen, but to those who occupied a large amount of social information. Among them were local powerful people and families with hundreds of years of history.
What this group of people pursue is that the country will perish but the family will not perish. In order to achieve this goal, they can only sit on the wall.
Even place bets in advance.
Because if the situation has been decided, there is no need for them to bow and bow. When the winner needs something, he can get it himself.
Shen Yi smiled and said: "Your Majesty, there is no need to be angry. Back then, there were these fence-sitters who turned against the Qi people. Now that our army is at its peak and invincible, naturally some people will turn to our Chen."
"These people they are riding on the wall are the most sensitive. Maybe it won't be long before someone goes to Jiankang to donate money and gifts to His Majesty, and even offer a map of the northern border."
His Majesty the Emperor curled his lips with some disdain: "I have always looked down upon these people."
Mr. Shen lowered his head slightly and said: "These people and ministers also look down on them, but at this time, it is difficult to reject them."
The emperor said "Yes", shook his head and sighed: "I understand this truth. Don't worry, Shen Qing. If these people really come to Jiankang to look for me, I will pinch my nose and give them a share of wealth." ."
At this point, the emperor snorted: "When the mountains and rivers are unified..."
He did not continue speaking, but looked up at Shen Yi and asked: "Shen Qing, how is the war in Ningyang going now? Is there no result yet?"
Hearing this question, Mr. Shen glanced at the emperor silently, and couldn't help but want to complain.
He personally received news from Ningyang, often through the internal guards. Even if it was through the Di Reporting Department, the internal guards could not be unaware of it.
And if the internal guards know about it, it means that His Majesty the Emperor knows about it.
Regarding the specific situation of Ningyang, His Majesty the Emperor in front of him may know better than he, Shen Yi, but now he is asking questions knowingly.
However, the leader asked a question, so there was no reason not to answer. Shen Yi thought for a while, organized his words, and replied: "Your Majesty, the fighting on the Ningyang battlefield is still going on."
"But what is certain is that we must have taken advantage."
Shen Yi lowered his head and replied: "That night, after the Qi people attacked the ministers at night to no avail, on the second day only, they began to retreat decisively."
"It is for this reason that the Huai'an army did not have time to keep them all."
"However, there were more than 10,000 of them before and they did not have time to retreat to Jinan Prefecture. Now the vanguard army and the left route army of the Huai'an Army, as well as the two thousand-house battalions of the Chinese Army, are encircling and annihilating this group of Qi people who were left behind. ."
"According to the news I received this morning, it has basically come to an end. It will take about five or six days for it to be completely over."
After listening to Mr. Shen's report, the emperor nodded slightly, then glanced at Shen Yi and said, "I still have lingering fears when I mention the attack on you that night."
"Later I heard from Gao Ming that there was a spy in your army that night, and he fired an arrow to notify the people of Qi of your location, which led to that night attack, right?"
Shen Yi nodded.
"Yes, at that time, a Qi Ren dish beside me fired a loud arrow into the sky."
Upon hearing Shen Yi's confirmation of the news, His Majesty the Emperor narrowed his eyes with murderous intent in his eyes.
He slapped the table hard, with a rare hint of anger in his tone: "Have you found out the matter?"
Shen Yi nodded: "The Purity Department has buried many spies around me. This time I caught five people and I have already dealt with them."
The emperor asked again: "How to deal with it?"
Shen Yi paused and continued: "Purpose it as treason."
The emperor nodded and said in a low voice: "You can deal with the people in your army yourself, and I will not interfere. However, you must write the names of these people on a document and report it to the court and their families. , must be punished according to the laws of the imperial court."
Having said this, His Majesty the Emperor looked at Shen Yi's expression and said in a serious tone: "You must not be soft-hearted."
Mr. Shen was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I may be soft-hearted."
"But I won't be soft."
The emperor said "hmm", then a smile appeared on his face again, and he asked.
"Shen Qing, do you think this time, did the Qi people see through my hidden secrets?"
Shen Yi thought for a while and replied: "I guess Qi Ren has seen through it, otherwise this time it would not be an attack on Wei Chen, but a night attack on the emperor."
Hearing Shen Yi's words, His Majesty the Emperor thought for a moment, and then smiled dumbly: "Maybe they didn't see through it, and they will attack you at night, Shen Qing."
Shen Yi quickly stood up, lowered his head and said, "I am scared."
His Majesty the Emperor shook his head, pulled him to sit down, and said with a smile: "I am chatting with you, why are you nervous?"
After the two people talked for a few more words, the emperor asked: "After the battle of Ningyang, how confident is Shen Qing about the battle of Shandong?"
Mr. Shen thought carefully for a moment and replied: "I am 10% more sure than before."
The emperor laughed dumbly and asked again: "How sure were you before?"
Mr. Shen answered honestly: "About 40 to 50%."
He then added: "It turns out that before I attacked Xuzhou, my confidence was even lower, and the odds of victory were all determined. I still adhere to this principle now."
The emperor nodded, deeply convinced.
"I can trust Shen Qing in battle."
He smiled and said: "When I sent you to the southeast, I didn't actually have much hope for you, but Shen Qing, you gave me a big surprise."
His Majesty the Emperor was very happy and said with emotion.
"Looking back on these past few years, it has been like a dream."
The emperor and his ministers, who were of the same age, sat together and talked for a long time. It was not until it was almost dark that the emperor came back to his senses and ordered Eunuch Gao to prepare meals. He wanted to have dinner with Shen Yi.
After the two people sat down at the dinner table, they chatted for a while. When Master Shen stood up to leave after having enough wine and food, His Majesty the Emperor also stood up, walked him to the door, and then reached out and patted his shoulder. .
"Shen Qing tomorrow."
His Majesty the Emperor breathed out a breath of wine.