Chapter 365: King Taizong of Jin Follows the Procedure

In that remote corner, there stood a tent all alone.

All around, a group of fully armed soldiers stood like sculptures, vigilantly watching everything that was happening around them.

The atmosphere inside the tent was extremely solemn. A dozen people sat together, whispering in low voices.

Wanyan Sheng gritted his teeth, his face looked so gloomy that it seemed like water could drip out of it. He said indignantly: “I have lived for so long, but this is the first time I have heard that surrender has to be written in four-six parallel sentences! This is simply too much!”

Someone nearby quickly echoed, “Your Majesty is absolutely right. The other party must be deliberately making things difficult for you!”

Another person shouted angrily, “This is really despicable! Are we just going to let them control us? Otherwise, why not just fight them to the death!”

Before he finished speaking, someone immediately hissed in panic, “Keep your voice down, or someone outside might hear you!”

Wanyan Sheng took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. He said slowly, “I know they are trying to make things difficult for me, but now that things have come to this, do we have any other options? Forget it, let’s just write according to their request for now.”

Although it is just an ordinary surrender letter, if you want to write it with some literary talent, you need to use four- and six-character parallel sentences, which does take some effort.

A dozen people began to rack their brains and think hard.

Time passed by minute by minute, and before I knew it, an hour had passed.

After repeated discussions and considerations by everyone, it was finally accomplished.

Wanyan Sheng carefully picked up the hard-earned surrender letter and walked hurriedly towards Lao Zhao.

After receiving the surrender letter, Lao Zhao first glanced at it casually, then raised the corner of his mouth slightly, revealing a contemptuous sneer.

He taunted in a sarcastic tone, “Look at the so-called cultural level of your Jin country. What kind of things are you writing? It’s just a crude patchwork of formats. Even a rough guy like me is much better than you!”

Zhu Di took it and looked at it, then shook his head and said, “That’s it. I think if I go to your Jin Kingdom, I can also become the top scholar.”

Zhu Ming took a look at it silently and thought it was quite sophisticated, but of course he couldn’t say it out loud.

In the next two days, Wanyan Sheng and others worked day and night to revise and improve the surrender letter, which went through countless revisions and rewrites.

No matter how it was modified, Mr. Zhao could never be satisfied.

God helps those who work hard. Just when everyone was almost in despair, a letter of surrender that was both elegant and full of true feelings was finally presented to Lao Zhao.

Old Zhao nodded and said, “This person’s writing is indeed quite good, but he is a little too flowery! Without a certain cultural background, it would be difficult to understand the deep meaning. In my opinion, it is better to switch back to the first edition, which is more in line with the cultural level of your Jin Kingdom. Even if it is read to ordinary people, they can easily understand it.”

A hint of viciousness flashed across Wanyan Sheng’s eyes.

However, there was still a flattering smile on his face, as if he agreed with the other party’s opinion very much.

“General, you are absolutely right. I was not thoughtful enough and made some mistakes. I will go back and make corrections immediately.”

After saying this, he bowed quickly and left in a hurry.

After he returned to the tent, the ministers who had been following him gathered around him and asked in unison:
“Your Majesty, how is the situation?”

“I think it should pass this time?”

You know, in just two days, this manuscript has been revised countless times.

They have thought of almost every possible way of using various words and expressions.

Every time a manuscript was finalized, everyone present agreed that if it were released into the outside world, it would definitely be considered a peerless masterpiece that would be passed down through the ages.

Of course, it’s not enough for me to feel that it’s good, I also need Lao Zhao to feel that it’s good.

At this moment, these people were already exhausted and mentally drained, and some even had the idea of ​​simply cutting their necks to get rid of this painful torture.

Facing the anxious and expectant gazes of his ministers, Wanyan Sheng just shook his head slightly.

This gentle shake was like a bucket of cold water poured over their heads, causing everyone present to fall into despair in an instant.

For a moment, there was a chorus of groans and curses.

“That old bastard, I seriously suspect he is completely blind and can’t read a single word!” someone shouted indignantly.

“Why should we allow a rough guy who only knows how to wield swords and guns to point fingers at our carefully written articles? This is simply nonsense!” Someone else echoed indignantly.

Seeing this, Wanyan Sheng clapped his hands and signaled everyone to be quiet: “My dear ministers, please be patient and don’t be discouraged. In fact, General Zhao was quite impressed with the final draft this time, and praised its literary talent, saying that it was outstanding.

It’s just that this article may be difficult for ordinary people to understand.”

Hearing this, everyone was stunned at first, and then began to savor the meaning.

This is true.

No one had ever thought about this issue before.

After all, who among the common people would care about this?

Even if an announcement is posted, someone will help read it out.

Even an ordinary scholar would find it difficult to fully grasp the profound meaning of such a profound and exquisite article, let alone ordinary people who are illiterate?
“Your Majesty, things have come to this point, why don’t we just fight them! It’s better than suffering this humiliation here!” a minister shouted angrily.

“I never dreamed that I would be tortured to death by a mere article in my life! What a thing!” Another old minister complained with a sad face and sighs.

At this time, the tent was filled with resentment and anger, and the noise of the crowd was heard one after another.

At this moment, Wanyan Sheng suddenly shouted loudly: “Don’t panic! Although we failed to pass the review this time, General Zhao has already spoken and decided to adopt our first draft!”

As soon as these words were spoken, the originally noisy tent suddenly became silent, so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

Just a few seconds later, the entire tent erupted in an even more violent roar of curses, accompanied by the crackling sound of various objects being thrown to the ground, which was endless.

“Fuck!”

A scream suddenly rang out, as if it was about to break through the sky.

“I have worked so hard and stayed up for two days, but what is all this for?”

Everyone present couldn’t help but feel resentful.

In my mind, I began to greet Lao Zhao’s ancestors for generations.

Wanyan Sheng frowned slightly and asked, “My dear ministers, does anyone still remember how we wrote our first draft?”

As soon as the words fell, everyone looked at each other.

You look at me, I look at you, and we all stare at each other, and no one dares to speak first in response.

For a moment, there was dead silence.

Seeing this, Wanyan Sheng could not help but raise his voice and asked sternly: “Could it be that all of you have forgotten it?”

Faced with Wanyan Sheng’s questioning, the dozen or so ministers suddenly felt panic and lowered their heads in embarrassment, not daring to look at him.

After a long while, a minister finally stood up and said, “Your Majesty, please forgive me and let me think about it carefully. After all, I have written too many manuscripts in the past two days, so I am a little confused.” Then, another minister echoed, “I seem to be able to vaguely remember two sentences…”

Everyone was talking and piecing together the fragments of memory.

Time passed by minute by minute, and after half a day, the first draft was roughly restored.

Old Zhao casually picked up the reduction table that had just been sorted out on the table, looked at it carefully, and said slowly: “Well, it’s okay. Although it’s not perfect, it can still be used.”

After hearing this, Wanyan Sheng felt relieved and breathed a long sigh of relief.

If the stalemate continued, he might be able to hold on, but the ministers under him would probably not be able to bear the pressure and would be driven crazy one after another.

Old Zhao stared at the tablet in his hand without blinking. The screen clearly displayed all the preferential treatment that Zhao Huan had once enjoyed.

After reading it, Lao Zhao raised his head, his eyes shot straight at Wanyan Sheng, and said in a serious tone: “Since there is already a surrender letter, it should be read out in front of everyone! How about this, in order to fully demonstrate your sincerity in surrendering, you might as well read out all the finalized surrender letters you sent over before.”

The smile on Wanyan Sheng’s face froze for a moment, but soon returned to normal. He nodded slightly and said with a forced smile: “This is a matter of course. I will do it right away.”

After the incense table was prepared, Wanyan Sheng personally walked to the front of the table and bowed respectfully several times facing south.

Then, he carefully took out the surrender documents that had been prepared long ago from his arms, cleared his throat, and began to read them aloud in public.

One, two…

There were so many versions of the surrender table that it took more than an hour to finish reading them all.

Wanyan Sheng’s throat had already become hoarse.

I couldn’t hear clearly what was being read.

Lao Zhao waved his hand to signal a pause: “Well, considering your sincerity, let’s forget it this time. You can go back now, but the remaining surrender letters must be read out one by one in the city. This general will send someone to supervise this matter. If there is any mistake, don’t blame our army for being rude!”

Wanyan Sheng gritted his teeth, swallowed his anger, and replied timidly: “Thank you for your kindness, General. I will follow your orders.”

He left the military camp in disgrace with a dozen entourage.

Beside them, there were a dozen other soldiers from the Zhao Gou era who were responsible for supervising the entire process to see if they were actually carrying out the requirements.

Just like that, Wanyan Sheng and his party gradually disappeared from people’s sight under the gaze of these shadowy monitors, with hearts full of humiliation and unwillingness.

Along the way, Wanyan Sheng walked at the front of the team with a dead heart, tears streaming uncontrollably down his weathered cheeks.

I came here originally to ask Lao Zhao when he would leave, but I never expected that not only did I fail to get the answer I wanted, but I suffered such a great humiliation.

At this moment, Wanyan Sheng was filled with regret, thinking to himself: If I had known that the situation would be like this today, I should never have provoked the powerful Song Dynasty.

Under the stern supervision of Yue Fei and other generals, Wanyan Sheng had to drag his heavy feet and publicly read out the surrender letter he had written with tears in every corner of Anning Prefecture.

Every time he uttered a sentence with difficulty, someone from the Song Dynasty would always stand up at the right time and translate it into a language that everyone could understand in a clear and loud voice.

At the beginning of this year, the Jin people marched south and forced the Song Dynasty to surrender.

Land reparations.

In just over half a year, everything turned upside down.

The once invincible Jin Dynasty has now become so servile and surrendered to the Song Dynasty. This huge contrast is truly jaw-dropping.

In addition, their previous evil deeds such as crazy looting of gold, silver, treasures, cattle, sheep and livestock made Wanyan Sheng’s prestige and dignity completely destroyed.

After witnessing this scene, the many Jin people who had gathered around to watch the excitement could no longer suppress their anger and dissatisfaction.

Bursts of shouting and cursing broke out from the crowd from time to time. These angry people mercilessly criticized Wanyan Sheng, and even Wanyan Sheng’s ancestors were not spared.

It can be said that Wanyan Sheng completely lost his status and trust in the eyes of the Jin people and became the target of public criticism.

The soldiers responsible for supervising Wanyan Sheng are doing more than just simply carrying out surveillance tasks.

When they stepped into the city, Yue Fei and his companions seemed like different people in an instant. They changed their previous serious and solemn image and turned into a group of thoroughgoing soldier ruffians.

Apart from arranging a group of people to take turns to closely monitor Wanyan Sheng, the rest of the people roamed around the city like wild horses.

Drinking and having fun, all the expenses were charged to Wanyan Sheng’s account!
Such unbridled behavior was truly jaw-dropping, but Wanyan Sheng turned a blind eye to it, pretending he didn’t see it at all.

As night fell, when the moon was dark and the wind was strong, Yue Fei quietly came to a secluded and deserted place.

Holding a small and exquisite intercom tightly in his hand, he lowered his voice and said, “Your Majesty, I have now arrived at a perfect location for teleportation.”

After a short moment, dozens of black shadows suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Zhu Ming led a small team of extremely elite scouts and successfully teleported into the city.

“I will send some more people over later. The important task of running maps in the city and collecting intelligence will be handed over to you.

We must find out where the huge amount of treasure that the Jin people have plundered over the years is hidden.

“Guaranteed to complete the mission!”

Send some soldiers into the city as a teleportation point.

If a war really breaks out, it will definitely give Wanyan Sheng a big surprise.

A few days.

Wanyan Sheng read out all versions of the surrender.

Lao Zhao immediately sent someone to deliver a list.

In addition to gold and silver, cattle, sheep and war horses were all on it.

Wanyan Sheng must gather all the materials within the specified time.

The number was so large that all the officials of the Jin Dynasty were stunned and extremely angry.

“You are so greedy, Your Majesty, you must not agree to this.”

“We’ve already sent a batch before, and this time it’s several times more. If we agree, there will definitely be a next time!”

“Even if we search the whole city, we probably won’t be able to find enough.”

Wanyan Sheng knew that he had lost everything at the hands of the Jin people, so he decided to just go for broke.

Only by holding on to Lao Zhao’s thigh can you survive.

Otherwise, he will be ousted immediately.

In the end, I don’t know at whose hands I will die.

Wanyan Sheng didn’t even think about it. He gritted his teeth and said, “Even if we can’t get everything, we have to search the whole city again. Also, order the surrounding cities to send the items on the list.”

(End of this chapter)