Zhao Jiu didn't bother finishing the game of Gomoku he had painstakingly taught Liu Ziyu. Instead, he stood up immediately and issued a series of orders:

Send out scouts to quickly investigate both the north and south banks of the Ru River to the west;

Dispatch officials to the surrounding villages and towns to assist local officials in leading the people into Ruyang;

Send messengers north to find Wang De and Han Shizhong, inform them of the current situation of the traveling palace, and instruct them to act cautiously and prudently, to prevent being ambushed while relieving a besieged city in the wilderness;

Then, because Yang Yizhong was absent, he specifically issued an edict to Hu Yantong, who was currently in the city, to take overall command of the city's defense, to be vigilant, and to incorporate the Imperial Bodyguard into the city's defenses;

Finally, he naturally summoned the four councilors, the Censor-in-Chief Zhang Jun, and the Commander of the Imperial Guard Wang Yuan, among others, to meet him.

By this time, while waiting for the officials to arrive, Zhao, the Emperor, began putting on his armor with assistance, and then asked Liu Ziyu, his military advisor, who was standing beside him, "Yanxiu, are there any omissions in my arrangements?"

Liu Ziyu had been visibly stunned by the Emperor's composure and orderliness. Upon hearing the question, he bowed after a long pause and replied, "Your Majesty is calm and composed, possessing the demeanor of an ancient wise ruler. All assignments are also well-arranged. I am truly astonished…"

Zhao Jiu sat on the porch, allowing a eunuch to help him put on his armor. He couldn't help but chuckle, "It's become a habit. After sitting idle on the front lines for two months, even a fool would understand something."

"However, Your Majesty," Liu Ziyu hesitated before speaking earnestly, "I believe Your Majesty doesn't need to wear armor, to avoid complications."

Zhao Jiu paused slightly and immediately signaled the eunuch beside him to stop for a moment. Then, he stared at Liu Ziyu and asked, "Why is that?"

"Your Majesty… Just now, Your Majesty gave five orders. I dare to ask Your Majesty five questions," Liu Ziyu replied seriously. "May I?"

"Speak."

"Firstly… is Ruyang City fortified?"

Of course, it is fortified!

The Junior Scholar Lin, standing nearby, had already caught his breath. His old habit of interjecting naturally resurfaced... but for some reason, this time he only instinctively replied in his heart, without further thought, and seemed somewhat dazed.

"Of course, it is fortified," Zhao, the Emperor, with his arm still draped with armor chains, sighed softly and replied seriously, "Ruyang City is a famous city under heaven. Although the ancient prefecture was called Runan, this city is clearly located north of the Ru River, so it is called Ruyang… The Ru River flows from the north and then circles south and east around the city, making it surrounded by water on three sides and a high wall on one side. If such a city cannot be called fortified, then there are few proper major cities in the world."

"That is precisely the case," Liu Ziyu nodded repeatedly. "In fact, if it weren't so, Grand Commandant Han would not have insisted on Your Majesty coming here first when Cai Prefecture was still in disarray… Then I dare to ask, how could such a fortified city have been easily captured by the Jin people before?"

"Naturally, because it wasn't defended at all," Zhao Jiu shook his head repeatedly. "You forgot, the Prefect of Henan, Sun Zhaoyuan, wanted to recruit fleeing soldiers under the city, but the fleeing soldiers killed him instead."

Liu Ziyu did not comment, simply remaining silent with his hands clasped.

"It has nothing to do with that," Zhao, the Emperor, realizing this, immediately changed his words. "Ultimately, it's because the Jingxi region collapsed completely and never recovered. In the face of such a massive defeat, nothing could be done… It's not like I haven't seen fleeing soldiers before."

"Then I ask again, are the two thousand soldiers of Commander Hu Yantong and the Imperial Bodyguard currently in the city the kind of fleeing soldiers who are terrified at the slightest sound?"

Zhao Jiu finally chuckled, "I understand. Yanxiu is trying to say that this battle is not very dangerous, so military matters can be safely left to Hu Yantong, and I should sit quietly in the city and reassure the people? Just like in Huaishang, where I only needed to sit on the city walls and prevent others from interfering in military matters to do my best?"

"Yes, but it's more than that," Liu Ziyu rarely smiled, but bowed again and asked, "Your Majesty, I still have two questions…"

Before he finished speaking, the courtyard outside became noisy. Zhao Jiu quickly pulled the armor chains off his shoulders and stuffed them under the chessboard. Feng Yi, who had been listening for half a day, drove the eunuchs holding the armor back into the room before Zhao Jiu could even speak.

As expected, after a moment, Yuwen Xuzhong, one of the four councilors, appeared in the courtyard first.

These people had arrived so quickly because the traveling palace was still on the road and hadn't treated Ruyang City as a proper place to settle down.

For example, Zhao, the Emperor, naturally resided in the backyard of the government office, while the main hall of the government office served as the council chamber, making the entire government office the palace. The two councilors of the East Secretariat occupied the county government office across the street. The two councilors of the West Secretariat of the Privy Council, for convenience, occupied a vacant residence that was close to both locations. As for the commanders of the Imperial Guard, they simply followed Zhao, the Emperor's excellent tradition and seized a Buddhist temple in the city…

"Your Majesty!"

Yuwen Xuzhong stepped into the courtyard, glanced at the still somewhat dazed Junior Scholar Lin and the newly promoted close official Liu Ziyu, who was bowing to him. Without returning the courtesy, he quickly cupped his hands and asked, "I was summoned here, and on the way I saw dozens of Imperial Guards suddenly galloping out of the Imperial Guard's office in various directions. May I ask if something has happened?"

"It can be considered that something has happened, but it's not urgent,"

In the morning sun of spring, the shadows of trees danced in the courtyard. Zhao, the Emperor, dressed in ordinary clothes, sat cross-legged on the porch, holding the chessboard steady, and answered calmly, as if he were a master of Chinese studies teaching the *Three Character Classic*. "Let Councilor Yuwen know that Zhao Zongyin, the monk from Wuguan, the one we talked about before, went out of the pass to aid Fan Zhixu in Nanyang, but was defeated on the way and lost all his troops. Now he has fled to Xiangyang, and Scholar Lin has been forced to return overnight. I am only having this news conveyed to Han Shizhong and Wang De, and summoning you to discuss the matter."

Yuwen Xuzhong nodded slightly, then sighed after a moment's thought, obviously thinking about the consequences of losing Wuguan.

Soon after, Wang Boyan, Xu Jingheng, Zhang Jun, and Wang Yuan arrived one after another. After a while, Chancellor Lu, who had been particularly busy recently, also arrived. It was rare for the important officials and dignitaries of the traveling palace to be gathered together again, amounting to an informal meeting of the Political Affairs Hall.

Junior Scholar Lin, after waiting for Chancellor Lu to arrive, under Zhao, the Emperor's prompting, set aside Liu Yan's reminder and only spoke of the glorious deeds of the monk Zongyin, without elaborating further.

The councilors, upon hearing this, naturally expressed their own sentiments.

"In that case, is the plan to annihilate this force now just a bubble in the dew?" Councilor Wang Boyan, who had reportedly been communicating with several monks who had been driven out of their temples recently, unconsciously used Buddhist language. Upon hearing this, he stamped his feet repeatedly, as if there had been a great loss. "Wuguan is now empty. This person can easily return from there to Guanzhong and join forces with Wanyan Loushi."

"Let's just not fight then," Councilor Xu Jingheng looked relieved. "It's good not to fight, let him go… The land is a mess, it should be cleaned up."

"Very well!" Lu Haowen, who had been in good spirits recently and was the actual prime minister of the traveling palace, nodded repeatedly after a moment's thought. "Actually, this is also good."

Zhao Jiu opened his mouth to speak, but didn't know what to say… because with the current attitude of these councilors, if Wanyan Yinshuke were to suddenly raid and arrive under the city, wouldn't they truly panic and abandon the city?

At this thought, Zhao, the Emperor, instinctively looked at the young close officials.

However, their performance at this time was also somewhat disappointing. Zhang Jun only cared about looking at Liu Ziyu, clearly worried but also not understanding the situation because he only had a vague idea, so he only wanted to get an accurate assessment and a reminder. As for Junior Scholar Lin, he was no longer the eager warrior he had been before, and didn't even have his usual deep composure. After saying a few words, the Jade Hall Academician, who knew the inside story, became somewhat absent-minded again, making people suspicious…

Of course, considering that a scholar had ridden back and forth overnight to deliver the message, it was not appropriate to demand too much. He was the one who deserved the most consideration at the moment.

Then he looked at Liu Ziyu. Clearly, this young official, who had grown up in the military camp since childhood and had experienced almost the entire Jin-Liao War, was also somewhat disappointed with these people… even though he had just reminded Zhao Jiu that the best way for the Emperor to truly play a role in military affairs was to restrain certain people from interfering.

Seeing that everyone was silent, Zhao Jiu was about to dismiss these people and just muddle through.

However, at this moment, someone who had been overlooked by Zhao, the Emperor, suddenly spoke, "Your Majesty, I dare to say, since Wuguan is now vacant, and Wanyan Yinshuke has a clear path to retreat, why would he easily go west? If I were Yinshuke, I would naturally break through Deng Prefecture and plunder Nanyang before leaving! I might even turn around and use the advantage of cavalry to seek a battle. If I could win, I would win. If I couldn't, I could leave later, anyway, we can't catch up."

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw that it was Wang Yuan, the Commander of the Imperial Guard. They were all silent… Obviously, most people here didn't trust Wang Yuan politically, but they still had some trust in him militarily.

After a moment, Lu Haowen's face was ashen, and he opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly thought of something and paused, "Yinshuke is who? Isn't it Nichuhe?"

Zhao, the Emperor, and Liu Ziyu exchanged glances, secretly thinking that things were not good.

"Let Chancellor Lu know that I have been collecting the official documents of the righteous armies from various places in Cai Prefecture these past few days, and I took the opportunity to inquire about some things…" Wang Yuan quickly reported. "That Nichuhe is a phonetic corruption. The person who came is precisely Yinshuke, the Jin Dynasty's clan general who captured the Liao Emperor Tianzuo and the Xiwang Xiamo alive, and participated in the Battle of Taiyuan! And I was thinking today, should I compile a proper translation book of Jin people's names to rectify the situation!"

Lu Haowen was immediately shocked.

"To hell with Jinshuke, Yinshuke!" Zhao, the Emperor, suddenly spoke. "Our army has tens of thousands of troops stationed in front, are we still afraid of him? As for Deng Prefecture and Nanyang, we can only do our best and leave the rest to fate… Anyway, I have already sent the Imperial Guard to tell Han Shizhong and Wang De about this, and they, as experienced generals, will make their own judgments."

"Your Majesty's arrangements are so appropriate, I have been overthinking it," Wang Yuan heard that things were not going well and quickly bowed in response.

"That's right, it would be a merit for you to focus on making your translation book!" Zhao, the Emperor, became increasingly annoyed.

"It's time to inform Han Shizhong and Wang De sooner," At this moment, Yuwen Xuzhong, who had not spoken for a long time but had directly communicated with Jin dignitaries, suddenly spoke. "Because Wanyan Yinshuke is no ordinary person. He is good at using cavalry and often takes unexpected actions… Liao Emperor Tianzuo and Xiwang Xiamo, some say were captured by Wanyan Loushi, which is true, but in reality, since the Jin people started their campaign, Yinshuke has often been Loushi's subordinate and deputy general. The two often worked together, so in detail, Tianzuo and Xiamo were actually captured by Yinshuke's rapid assault, and he can be called a famous general. As for the Battle of Taiyuan, he followed Loushi and completely destroyed 200,000 of the Western Army's main force, and his troops can also be called strong. Therefore, I believe that according to his past experience, now that he has no worries about the rear, he may not even bother looking at Deng Prefecture, but instead lightly ride to Cai Prefecture to spy on the reality of the traveling palace! Please Your Majesty prepare early!"

The other councilors and Zhang Jun were all flustered.

Seeing this, Zhao Jiu, sitting cross-legged there, sighed slightly and turned to seriously ask, "Councilor Yuwen, you only know that Yinshuke captured Tianzuo Emperor and Xiwang Xiamo alive, and you also know that Yinshuke made great contributions in the Battle of Taiyuan, but do you know how he captured those two people? And how did he fight the Battle of Taiyuan?"

"I…"

"I have felt the hardships of military affairs deeply in the past six months, so I often eat and talk with the soldiers, and I have learned a lot," Zhao Jiu said slowly. "Tianzuo Emperor and Xiamo were the same. When they heard that Yinshuke was leading light troops to attack, they left alone, and one abandoned the city and the other abandoned the army and fled. As a result, they were easily captured by the small elite forces that Yinshuke had sent to outflank them. As for the Battle of Taiyuan, it was because the reinforcements were forced by the central government behind them to advance in multiple directions, but they were not under the same command and their progress was different, so he and Wanyan Loushi were able to calmly eliminate them one by one around Taiyuan City… Do you understand?"

Yuwen Xuzhong lowered his head and said nothing, obviously understanding, but the other councilors obviously didn't understand.

"Your Majesty, it is better to quickly issue a golden decree to summon Han Shizhong and Wang De back to the city," After the Emperor stopped speaking, Lu Haowen said earnestly.

"Perhaps we can take refuge in Guang Prefecture to the south," Xu Jingheng was also very nervous.

Seeing this situation, Zhao, the Emperor, was really impatient, and he took a long breath, then suddenly lifted the chessboard on one side, revealing the armor chains hidden underneath.

The courtyard was instantly stunned and silent. For a moment, there was only the swaying of the flowering trees, the interplay of light and shadow, and the black and white chess pieces scattered on the green ground. If it weren't for an emperor who dared to kill people losing his temper, it would have been a beautiful spring scene.

"Do you want me to say harsh words?!"

Zhao, the Emperor, stood up with a burst of anger, and walked back and forth on the porch with the armor chains in his hand. Then he suddenly turned around and said sternly, "Do you think you really know military affairs?! If you knew military affairs, how could Taiyuan have been defeated like that?! How could there have been the Jingkang Disaster?! I knew long ago that Yinshuke might arrive, and I was almost about to put on my armor. The reason why I pretended to be fine was just because I suddenly remembered that there are people like you in the city who are easily alarmed! If I force myself to put on my armor, it will only make you panic! I will make things clear to you today! The city's defenses are up to Hu Yantong to handle, don't interfere! If you can turn a deaf ear to these military matters, it will be a blessing for the world!"

"I am terrified, unworthy to be a chancellor, I ask to resign…"

"Resign what?" Zhao Jiu became even more furious and threw the armor chains on the ground. "The Jin people may come at any time, and you want to resign because you are a little aggrieved… You are aggrieved, am I not aggrieved? Every time I fight, I have to coax the front and coax the back, worrying about the soldiers in front being intercepted of their rations by the officers, and preventing you from interfering in the back, reminding the soldiers in front not to worry about my safety, and wondering what you are saying and whether there are hidden meanings… Do you think I want to be this Emperor?! I also want to resign, will you allow it?!"

Lu Haowen and the others stood silently, and the only military officer, Wang Yuan, had simply knelt down.

"Alright, that's the way it is," As if the anger had suddenly dissipated, Zhao, the Emperor, suddenly returned to normal and raised his hand slightly. "According to Yinshuke's past actions, I think he will come eight or nine times out of ten, but the more this is the case, the more we must not be alarmed… Otherwise, it will be right in his trap. Because there are two keys to this battle, one is that we must not be frightened by his reputation and abandon the fortified city. The other is that we must not summon Han Shizhong and Wang De here in a hurry based on the idea of the traveling palace being safe, to prevent being ambushed while relieving a besieged city!"

Lu Haowen and the others were helpless and looked at each other, and could only suppress their uneasiness and obey.

As the councilors left, including the Censor-in-Chief Zhang Jun and the Commander of the Imperial Guard Wang Yuan, they could only disperse due to their status. For a moment, only Junior Scholar Lin and Military Advisor Liu remained… Junior Scholar Lin was a Jade Hall Academician and originally belonged to the close officials, while Liu, with his dispatch from the Ministry of War's Bureau of Functions, had recently been retained by the Emperor to become a newly promoted close attendant, assisting in military affairs before the Emperor, known as Military Advisor Liu, which was a well-known fact.

"Your Majesty has worked hard…" After everyone left, Liu Ziyu bowed and sighed, but was inevitably cautious in his words.

"It doesn't matter, as long as it's useful, I'm used to it," Zhao, the Emperor, sat back on the porch helplessly, and shook his head as he looked at the chess pieces all over the ground. "Yanxiu, you still had something to ask before, why don't you speak?"

"There were two more questions, one of which Your Majesty knows better than anyone else… I was just about to ask about Wanyan Yinshuke's past experience and abilities to remind Your Majesty."

Zhao Jiu nodded in realization, then began to pick up the chess pieces on the ground with Feng Yi.

"However, I do have one last question," Liu Ziyu, seeing that the Emperor was bending down to pick them up and wanted to help, but was reluctant to join in because Feng Yi was also there, could only pick up the armor chains and stand awkwardly on the side, continuing to speak.

"Feel free to speak," Zhao Jiu stopped.

"I dare to ask Your Majesty, does Your Majesty feel that it is time to fight Wanyan Yinshuke at this time, or not to fight him?" Liu Ziyu asked cautiously.

"What do you mean?" Zhao Jiu frowned slightly. "Wanyan Yinshuke appeared here, is it up to me to decide?"

"I don't mean that, I'm asking about Your Majesty's attitude…" Liu Ziyu glanced at the Junior Scholar Lin standing on the side, who was out of sorts, hesitated slightly, but still asked, "Do you feel that having a battle, having Wanyan Yinshuke here, is more enjoyable, at least there is something to do?"

Zhao Jiu was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but chuckle, "Do you think I should be happy? Or let me ask you, Officer Liu, do you think it's time to fight Wanyan Yinshuke at this time?"

"I don't think so," Liu Ziyu replied simply. "I know the enemy's strengths and weaknesses well. Now the traveling palace is unstable, the army is disorganized, and the system is not established. It is really not a good time to fight…"

"But you think I am looking forward to war, thinking that after my successful gamble at Huaishang, I don't want to settle down honestly?" Zhao Jiu interrupted the other party, holding a few chess pieces, and asked with a smile. "Is that what you mean?"

"I only said that the situation is different, and I didn't mean to belittle the achievements of the Huaishang War," Liu Ziyu quickly explained. "The Jin people's offensive is like a tide. Before, at Huaishang, it was high tide. If Your Majesty hadn't succeeded in the Huaishang War, I'm afraid the fertile land of Huainan would have become like Hebei, Jingdong, Jingxi, and Guanxi…"

"Yes, I see the Ministry of Revenue's accounts. Huainan's East and West Routes can submit one million bolts of silk every year, plus taxes and grain, enough to support 100,000 troops. The Southeast can support 200,000, Jingxiang can support 200,000 after settling down, and Sichuan can support 100,000…" Zhao Jiu suddenly started talking about some of the recent popular nonsense in the traveling palace.

"Unless these places also act as feudal vassals, they can't support so many," Liu Ziyu laughed. "I estimate that they can only jointly support 200,000 troops who can fight at the end, but that's enough… but what I want to say is not this, I want to ask Your Majesty, now that the Jin people's tide has receded, why can't you settle down, establish a system, recuperate, and first defend and then fight, spending three to five years to raise an army of 200,000 to recover the Two Rivers?"

Zhao Jiu finally shook his head, "Is this what you think, or is it the meaning of Zhang Deyuan and the others?"

"Both," Liu Ziyu also became serious. "Zhang Xiantai feels that Your Majesty has been working hard to come here, and there is obvious uneasiness in your actions. So-called wanting to do things but not being able to find the way, not knowing how to do things; and I have been with Your Majesty day and night in the past two days, but I feel that the reason why Your Majesty is in such a state is that you have fear in your heart, but unlike others who are afraid of war, Your Majesty seems to be afraid of peace, fearing that once the war stops, you won't know what to do… Let Your Majesty know, Zhang Deyuan has concerns, this kind of thing only exists in his heart, but he doesn't dare to say it to Your Majesty, I am a rough person, please forgive me."

"You are not a rough person at all?" Zhao Jiu sighed and stood up. "You and Zhang Deyuan are both smart people, they are all right, but they are also not right… To me, you people are smarter than each other, but they are often restricted by their vision, and their smartness is used in the wrong place."

Liu Ziyu was stunned. This was not the first time someone had said that his vision was low. The key was that the person who said that his vision was low had now become a person 'restricted by his vision'.

"For example, you people, those who advocate peace, those who advocate war, those who advocate defense, no matter what their position on the Jin is, always talk to me about systems and codes, and talk about established precedents and family laws, as if as long as they settle down and rebuild the system, everything will be fine," Zhao Jiu caressed the chess pieces in his hand and said quietly. "But in fact, in my opinion, just talking about military affairs, the more properly executed the established precedents, family laws, and systems of the Great Song Dynasty, the more things will go wrong! Because the established precedents, family laws, and systems of the Great Song Dynasty in military affairs were designed to defend against internal threats and neglect external ones! Using your method, the Great Song will perish even faster!"

When Liu Ziyu heard the words 'defend against internal threats and neglect external ones', he was struck by lightning, and was about to open his mouth immediately, but didn't know what to say. Junior Scholar Lin next to him also came back to his senses a little, and seemed to want to say something.

However, having said that, Zhao, the Emperor, was like something that had been opened up and could no longer be stopped.

He threw down the chess pieces, stood up from the porch, and looked at Liu Ziyu, who was obviously a little out of sorts, but said sincerely, "Yanxiu, Zhang Deyuan is right, I am indeed uneasy, but the reason for the uneasiness is not that I am at a loss, but that I know too well what to do! You are also right, I seem to be afraid of the situation after the Jin people withdraw, but the reason why I am like this is not because I like fighting and killing people, but because compared to these things, some other things are too difficult! Those things, only one Wang Anshi in this dynasty did his best to do, and he was almost slandered as the culprit of the Jingkang Disaster. In fact, if I could live in peace and scrape together for a hundred years, why would I be willing to do this kind of thing? But isn't this a matter of urgency, isn't this bearing the expectations of so many people, bearing the Jingkang Disaster, bearing the lives of so many people in the Two Rivers and the Central Plains, determined to be a good emperor, determined to act personally, determined to change the world? If I don't do it, what should I do? And if I want to do it, how can I not be afraid?"

Liu Ziyu and Junior Scholar Lin were already stunned, and even Feng Yi next to them was rolling his eyes.

"And this, in fact, is also why I know that Li Xiang and the other two are rare people in the world who really want to resist the Jin, but I put him far away in the Southeast," Zhao, the Emperor, continued to sigh. "It's okay to let him be in charge, perhaps after ten or twenty years, there will eventually be a roughly recovered situation, but since I am determined to act seriously, I can't just watch him go around in circles and waste time… Yanxiu, the Jin people are not that strong, and I also know how to go, you don't need to worry! And let Zhang Deyuan not need to worry!"

"I am terrified, I didn't know Your Majesty's ambition."

"Actually, these words have been held back for a long time, I have long wanted to find someone to talk to, since you are asking on behalf of Zhang Deyuan, I will take the opportunity to tell you," Zhao suddenly smiled again. "Don't worry too much."

How could Liu Yanxiu not care?

However, on the other side, how could Zhao Jiu have really said all of his innermost thoughts?

The overall conservatism of the Great Song Dynasty's scholar-official politics; If the Jin people don't do their best, they won't leave a chance for the Great Song to breathe; The complete corruption of the Song Dynasty's army; The possible crises after the Jin people in the future; And the personal ambition or determination to compete with Yue Pengju for credit… how could he tell all of this to Liu Ziyu, whom he had only known for a few days?

It was nothing more than that this Zhao, the Emperor, suddenly realized the worries of his pitiful team about his performance during this period, so he used this person to pass the words to Zhang Jun, to reassure the people.

"Your Majesty!"

After this Cai Prefecture backyard became quiet again, not even a quarter of an hour had passed. Just as Zhao, the Emperor, was carefully counting the chess pieces, discovering that they were insufficient and looking around for them, suddenly, Hu Yantong, the Commander of the Imperial Guard, who had just received the decree and should not have been long, rushed in from the outside in a disheveled state. "Your Majesty! The scouts just set out and hurried back to report that there are actually bandits in the west!"

"Why are you panicking?" Zhao, the Emperor, picked up the two chess pieces that he had finally found on the ground and put them into the alms bowl that Feng Yi was holding behind him before casually scolding. "What's there to panic about? I'm not panicking! You are the only main general in the city, how can you show fear and panic?"

Hu Yantong was instantly ashamed.

ps: This is a problem with Qidian, it's not my fault, right?! Also, the chapter title is marked wrong, it doesn't affect reading, don't worry about it.