In the Funing Hall, Zhao Zhen had already ordered people to warm the angelica and red date soup, waiting for Zhao Shu's arrival.
"Greetings to my father." Zhao Shu walked into the palace, bowed and saluted, "I, my son, have done a great sin by knocking on the altar late at night."
"It doesn't matter, the rule is that the dead are alive. If you have something important, it won't be delayed until tomorrow..." Zhao Zhen smiled and said: "Besides, my father has been suffering from insomnia recently and can't fall asleep even if he lies down." He said to Hu Yan.
Dui said: "Give King Qi a cup of soup. It is easy to catch cold at night, so you will feel relieved after drinking it."
"Thank you, Father." Zhao Shu took it, ate it in a few mouthfuls, rinsed his mouth, and said in a low voice: "My son just received a secret report, and he was worried about not being able to delay it, so he had to report it at night."
"Oh?" Zhao Zhen waved his hand, and Hu Yandui led all the palace people to retreat. Fang asked softly: "What's the matter?"
"According to reliable information, among the Liao envoys is the leader of Liao, Yelu Hongji, Bailong Yufu." Zhao Shu approached his father and reported in a low voice.
"Oh?" Zhao Zhen was also stunned for a moment, then smiled and said: "How is that possible?"
"It's absolutely true." Zhao Shu whispered, "This is what Chen Zhongfang sent to tell me." Then he relayed what Chen Zhong said to the officials.
After listening, Zhao Zhen fell into deep thought, clapped his hands on his knees, and said strangely: "The emperor of the Liao Kingdom is willing to take extraordinary risks to sneak into our country. His intentions must be profound?"
"It is said to be so." Zhao Shu said: "I heard that on the night they arrived in Xiongzhou, the Pishi Army of the Liao Kingdom suddenly went south and made a gesture of attacking Xiongzhou. However, when they approached the border, they suddenly turned back...
Chen Zhongfang said that this may be an order from the emperor's uncle of the Liao Kingdom who pretended to be the lord of the Liao Dynasty, intending to put him to death."
"You said he came to our country to ask for help?" Zhao Zhen frowned slightly and said, "We can't interfere with Liao's domestic affairs."
"That doesn't mean that the Pishi Army, the strongest combat force in the Liao Kingdom, is loyal to the emperor alone." Zhao Shu said: "With this army in the hands of the Liao Lord, what kind of rebellion can't be quelled?"
"Yes." Zhao Zhen said: "Then why did he leave the Pishi Army? Isn't this a dangerous situation?"
"The Lord of the Liao Dynasty, Yelu Hongji, was very reckless. He often abandoned his guards and rode alone into the dense forests to hunt tigers. It is said that one year, he took only a few guards with him and went to the Liao River to catch Haidongqing. He was captured by the Jurchens. Well.
The Jurchens only thought that he was an ordinary nobleman of the Liao Kingdom, so they asked for a ransom and released him." Zhao Shu frowned and said, "Although this man is a noble king, we really can't guess with common sense."
"you mean?"
"He probably has no serious purpose," Zhao Shu said softly: "He just came to the Song Dynasty to have fun..."
"Are you having fun?" Zhao Zhen was taking a sip of the soup and almost sneered at Zhao Shu. It is unimaginable that the Emperor of the Song Dynasty, who grew up with Confucian education since childhood, could have any peers who would treat the country, the country, the country, and the body of a thousand gold as child's play.
"Although it is unbelievable," Zhao Shu said awkwardly, "but I think this is the most likely possibility." He spread his hands and said, "Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain why he came to the Song Dynasty."
"There is another possibility." Jiang was still very old. Zhao Zhen thought for a while and whispered: "He is playing hard to get."
"Play hard to get?"
"Yes." Zhao Zhen nodded and said: "He may have noticed that Yelu Chongyuan and his son have evil intentions, but Chongyuan is his uncle and the heir apparent to both father and son generations. It is really difficult to handle. Yelu Hongji wants to reduce the resistance.
, the best way is to let Yelu Zhongyuan take action first. The crime of treason is obvious to the world, and then it will be logical to deal with them."
"So Yelu Hongji deliberately left the Liao Kingdom to make Yelu Chongyuan think that he had encountered a God-given opportunity!" Zhao Shu said softly: "After he openly causes rebellion, and then turns back to deal with him, everyone will have nothing to say." Although.
In this case, he deeply doubted whether the Lord of Liao had such a conspiracy. "Isn't he afraid that there will be no return?"
"It shouldn't be a big problem. He is a smart man. He understands that the most dangerous place is actually the safest." Zhao Zhen said slowly: "Who would have thought that he would sneak into the envoy and come to our Song Dynasty? If it weren't for me.
It happened that Chen Ke was sent to be the escort. We must still be in the dark. To say the least, even if we find him..." The official said with a self-deprecating smile: "He will return safely.
.”
"Why?"
"Because the emperor of the Song Dynasty is called Zhao Zhen..." The self-mockery on Zhao Zhen's face became more and more serious. "He knows that the Song Dynasty has no confidence to go to war with the Liao Kingdom. He only needs to threaten death. I will definitely let him go."
If the leader of Liao died in the Song Dynasty, the whole country of Liao would definitely avenge him. If it were another emperor, he might be impulsive and kill him first, and wait until he feels more comfortable. But Zhao Zhen, a peace-loving benevolent king, would never do that.
It would hurt a hair on his head.
Does Yelu Chongyuan have such a scheming mind? Zhao Shu couldn't help but murmur to himself. He felt that the most likely possibility was that the officials thought of the other party too complicatedly. But in any case, the top priority was how to deal with the Liao Emperor who came to his door.
"Father, the Lord of Liao will enter the capital tomorrow." Zhao Shu said: "The reason why Zhong Fang is reporting now is to avoid alerting the enemy and ensure that the Lord of Liao cannot escape from our hands." After a pause, he said: "As for how to deal with it.
, it all depends on Father’s Holy Judgment.”
"Chen Ke is reliable in his work." Zhao Zhen nodded and said, "As for Lord Liao... what do you think?"
"I think there are two options." Zhao Shu said: "One is to greet him with the highest courtesy tomorrow to show that we have seen through his identity. From now on, we can do whatever he wants without losing our etiquette. The other is to pretend
He doesn’t know anything, let him come quietly and leave quietly, and we will just pretend he has never been here.”
"The first plan is not good." Zhao Zhen thought about it and said: "Although the two countries are now good neighbors and friendly, they are still basically enemies. Ever since Shi Jingtang ceded Yanyun, the Han people have been bullied miserably by the Liao people. Now it is easy for them to
If the king throws himself into a trap, many people will definitely demand that he be detained. When the time comes, we will be very passive if we have to protect him."
"Then pretend not to know?" Zhao Shu said softly.
"Yeah." Zhao Zhen nodded and said, "Chen Ke guessed that I would do this, so he kept silent. This person's deep scheming is evident. If you feel that he is no longer with you in the future, you should get rid of him as soon as possible."
"No." Zhao Shu immediately shook his head and said, "Chen Ke has noble ambitions and does not pursue his own selfish interests. If a scholar like this is at odds with me, I must have done something wrong."
"Haha..." Zhao Zhen looked at him with some envy and said, "I have never had friends, and I thought the emperor had no friends. I hope you can prove me wrong..."
"Definitely." Zhao Shu nodded heavily.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Early the next morning, the mission set off for Bianjing City. When they arrived five miles away from the city, officials from the Ministry of Rites came out to greet him, and the etiquette remained the same without any increase. Chen Ke was not surprised at all. Chen Zhong was not seen this morning.
When he returned, he had already explained the attitude of the officials and the King of Qi.
Logically speaking, if the mission successfully arrived in Beijing, his merits as the escort would be considered complete. The next accompanying work should be taken over by the ambassador. But Chen Ke looked around and saw no one coming to pick him up.
Colleague, Hu Su, the minister of the Ministry of Etiquette, came over and said with a smile: "You have worked hard all the way, Bachelor Chen, and I have an edict."
"I accept the decree."
"I ordered Chen Ke to be the envoy to accompany the embassy. I appreciate this." Hu Su smiled and said: "If you don't bother the two masters, Chen Ke will be responsible for it to the end."
"I accept the order." Chen Ke was not surprised. It was indeed more appropriate for him to be responsible for this matter.
So he led the Liao envoys to stay at the Liao embassy in the northeast of the city. After the two countries became brotherly countries, they established embassies for each other in their respective countries for the envoys to live when they came to Beijing. The Liao embassy in Bianjing occupied
Every time a Liao envoy came, the Kaifeng Prefecture and the Ministry of War would send troops to guard the entire street to prevent Song people from approaching.
After settling in the Liao envoy, Chen Ke said to Yelu Yixin: "I will send the certificate of credence to the Yintai Department for you. There is still half a month before the Qianyuan Festival. It is estimated that the officials will summon you before April 14th.
.I will inform you in advance when the time comes, and please feel free to do whatever you want for the rest of the time.”
"It all depends on the bachelor's arrangement." Yelu Yixin said: "If the bachelor is busy, you don't need to come over these days. If anything happens, we will go to the house to look for it."
"I'm afraid that won't work." Chen Ke shook his head and said, "As a rule, while your envoy is in Beijing, your envoy must accompany you throughout the whole process."
Yelu Yixin frowned when he heard this. He wanted to accompany Cha Cha. If Chen was with him all the time, wouldn't he meet Cha Cha often? The secret would most likely be revealed! Think about it, and you would have a look that any man would understand.
He smiled and said: "That's great. Xiao Wang has heard about the boundless beauty of Bianjing for a long time, and has long been obsessed with flowers. I heard that the bachelor is the leader of the romantic class of the Song Dynasty..."
"This," Chen Ke said, "there are rules in the Song Dynasty. Officials are not allowed to enter and leave the brothel. I'm sorry that I can't accompany you."
"That's it..." Yelu Yixin said with a pity on his face: "The bachelor is accompanying the deputy envoy. Mr. Xiao is not a womanizer and will not put the bachelor in trouble."
"That's fine, I won't disturb the prince's pleasure." Chen Ke said with a smile.
After coming out of the Liao embassy, Chen Ke went to the Yintai Department to hand over credentials to the Liao people. After two days, he and Xiao Feng spent time playing chess at the Liao embassy. But Yelu Yixin saw no one all day long. It is said that
It was just crazy to have fun outside.
Xiao Feng was normal at first, but starting from the second day, his eyes started to flicker and he hesitated, as if he had something to say but found it difficult to say it.
If he didn't say anything, Chen Ke would definitely not ask. Why turn other people's troubles into his own? But Chen Ke also had questions that he was concerned about, such as what is the situation of the second prince of Liao Kingdom now?
Of course, he would not ask the second prince directly, but first ask the Lord of Liao, and then the eldest prince, and then naturally ask: "That year, I heard that the emperor of your country gave birth to a second prince, who is now two years old.
.”
"His Royal Highness is two years old and his birthday is coming soon."