From a son-in-law to a favorite of the empress

Chapter 1089

It was dark and late at night, with no wind or moon.

The lights in the Ziwei Palace were still on, and the desk was still the same, still piled with memorials.

Empress Zhaojing stretched and shook her head, saying, "This life is unbearable. I really want to throw all these things away, go to a place where no one is, and fall asleep, and sleep for a year or two without waking up."

Xiaozhuang poured a cup of tea, handed it to Empress Zhaojing, and said with a smile, "Isn't your majesty forming a new cabinet? Isn't it effective yet?"

Empress Zhaojing sighed and said, "How can it be that simple? Every carrot has a position, and every position is a piece of fat meat. Who is willing to share the meat in their mouth?"

"When this matter was mentioned, the court quarreled fiercely, and officials pointed at each other's noses and cursed each other, and the Golden Palace became a vegetable market."

"Who took in a few concubines?" They all want to criticize it, and some people say that "the traitor has jumped out by himself", which is really unbearable to listen to. "

"Especially Zeng Cheng, he has a very bad temper. The day before yesterday, he even beat a subordinate in the Golden Palace. Alas..."

Xiao Zhuang scratched his head and said, "I don't understand these either."

Empress Zhao Jing said, "After all, the war between the East and the West is still unclear, and the handover of power lacks persuasiveness and execution. Everyone has their own ulterior motives and is unwilling to give in."

"Also... the royal family can't hold it back any longer."

"Once the war between the East and the West becomes a crisis, they will probably take action immediately and launch a coup to usurp the throne of the empress. Overthrow them and regain control of the country."

"This country is in ruins and in chaos both inside and outside. It is not easy to deal with it."

"I promised my junior brother that when he comes back, I will give him a clean Jin Dynasty. So I will not focus on the cabinet reform for the time being. I will deal with it after I have dealt with the royal family."

Xiaozhuang said softly: "Or I can just kill them all."

Empress Zhaojing smiled and said: "It's not that way. It's like a tree. You cut off all the branches, but what about the roots deep in the earth?"

"Wait until they jump out by themselves, and then we can clean up those dirty things one by one."

"I'm ready for them to make their move. I hope they won't take too long."

At this point, she stood up, stretched, and said, "It's difficult for my junior brother, but I believe he can win in the end. I'm worried about the west. The Ma family there is too dangerous. Once something happens, it will be a catastrophe."

"The fate of the Great Jin has reached a critical juncture of survival."

"If we win, we will completely embark on the road of revival without any obstacles."

"If we lose, all our previous efforts will be wasted and our country will be broken."

...

Standing by the river, feeling the wind blowing from the east, watching the river surging and the waves rolling, my mood calmed down a lot for a while.

There was no fog in the morning, but there was no sunshine either. Zhou Yuan stood with his hands behind his back, not knowing what he was thinking.

Xingyao stood beside him, almost as tall as him. She was very happy, like a girl without worries. She said softly: "You sent all your women away. Are we going to fight a few big battles next?"

Zhou Yuan smiled and said: "Don't you always want us to fight side by side? We will cross this river and go to the Jurchen land in Donghai. In that vast wilderness, we will start a real war."

Xingyao said excitedly: "Of course I am ready, and our Yehe warriors are also ready. No matter how hard the battle is, we can hold on."

Zhou Yuan said: "The situation is not optimistic, Xingyao. The Jurchens don't have many troops left. You have exactly 20,000 left, and Huang Taiji has at most 30,000. This is an overdraft. The foundation for the whole clan to survive."

"The situation in Dajin is also very critical. The war in the west is at stake, and the domestic situation is devastating. We really need a big victory."

"If I have enough time, I am unwilling to fight a bloody war with the Tsarist Empire. I can grind them down slowly."

"It's a pity. Time is running out. I have to end the battle before winter."

"After all, this place is too far north. It may snow at any time in October. Now it is early August."

"There is not much time left."

He turned his head to look at the bright woman in front of him. She was tall, with a slender neck, a palm-sized face, wheat-colored skin, and a pair of huge silver hoop earrings. The wild temperament came to her face.

He said slowly: "Xingyao, let's go, let's fight."

Xingyao saw that a number of rafts had been built on the river, tied together tightly to form a simple bridge.

Teams of people were walking towards the other side of the river.

Xingyao doesn't understand war, she only knows how to fight the enemy. She doesn't understand why Zhou Yuan wants to transfer troops to Songhua River.Yidong, and she didn't know how to fight the future war.

But she believed in her man.

"My Lord."

Guan Lu hurried over, panting and said, "The news that should be spread has been spread, and all the troops are ready."

Zhou Yuan nodded and smiled, "Guan Lu, do you think we can win?"

Guan Lu was silent for a moment, and said solemnly, "Of course we can."

Zhou Yuan said, "Why are you so confident?"

Guan Lu smiled and said, "The war is so difficult. If you don't even have confidence, you really can't win."

Zhou Yuan stretched out his hand and said slowly, "I believe in your talent, I believe in my ability, and I believe that the soldiers we lead can withstand the pressure."

"I have confidence that I can get through the difficulties like before."

"When the time comes, we will get together to drink and get drunk a few times."

Guan Lu also stretched out his hand, and the two hands met in the air and clasped together tightly.

No sunshine, no oath.

Zhou Yuan turned around and walked up the wooden bridge slowly with Xingyao.

Guan Lu took a few steps forward and couldn't help shouting, "My Lord! Take care!"

Zhou Yuan didn't look back, but just waved his hand and laughed.

Guan Lu stared at his back, lost in thought.

Then he turned around resolutely and said in a deep voice, "Someone! Someone!"

A spy came running over.

Guan Lu took out the letter from his arms, hesitated for a moment, and then gritted his teeth and said, "This is a top-secret letter. Arrange someone to send it to Seoul, Goryeo as quickly as possible and hand it over to General Xiang Yong or the new Goryeo Queen."

"Change horses and people along the way, gallop day and night, and travel 800 miles a day without interruption. Be quick!"

The spy immediately took the letter and said solemnly, "I obey your order! Do it immediately!"

Guan Lu nodded, looked at the scenery around him, and sighed helplessly.

He said softly: "My lord, please forgive me for making a decision on my own and sending a letter to Goryeo. Many things cannot be changed by human will. I only believe in one thing, that is, only Miss Li can protect you, no one else can."

"If you don't shout, I will!"

"We must win this battle! My lord, you must also stay alive!"