xymnovel Chapter 128 Official Gazette
Chapter 128 Official Gazette
Nothing was said that night, until dawn.
Xie Wenyu woke up from her drowsy state and instinctively reached out to the side.
Nobody here?
Opening her sleepy eyes, Xie Wenyu saw a person sitting at a table not far away.
Her pretty face flushed, Xie Wenyu asked, "Why did you get up so early, my lord? You didn't even wake me up."
Her husband was already up, but she was still fast asleep in bed, which made Xie Wenyu feel somewhat ashamed.
Li Chong looked up, nodded and smiled, "Madam, you must be tired from your journey. How could I bear to wake you? Seeing that you are sleeping soundly, I got up first. Anyway, I have nothing to do, so I'll just read the official gazette to pass the time."
Li Chong gestured to the official gazette in his hand, then looked down and continued reading. This was one of the few channels through which he could learn about the movements of the Northern Song court.
Although it's been a long time since it was developed, something is better than nothing.
It was delivered a few days ago, but because of Xie Wenyu's upcoming visit, Li Chong hadn't had the heart to examine it closely. Now that he felt he had almost settled the matter, Li Chong was ready to take a good look at it.
Let's see what absurd things Emperor Huizong and his ministers have done this time.
Of course, besides that, Li Chong was still intentionally avoiding Xie Wenyu.
He woke up first and looked at the woman in his arms; Li Chong was deeply moved.
The sight of crabapple blossoms in spring slumber is something even a saint might find hard to resist, let alone Li Chong.
He was a vigorous young man, holding a beautiful woman he could have her way with, and it was the morning when he was full of energy. Li Chong was really afraid that he would lose control.
Let's hang in there for a few more days.
Describing himself, Li Chong quietly got out of bed and sat down at the table to read the newspaper.
Seeing Li Chong studying so diligently, Xie Wenyu smiled, put on her outer robe, and prepared to get up.
"Nothing's wrong? Didn't my lord say last night that he wanted to go to court?"
Upon hearing her question, Li Chong paused for a moment before replying, "Well, I misremembered. Today we're not in court; we're going to the countryside to check taxes. It's not urgent, so there's no need to rush. I'll spend a little more time with you."
A warm feeling welled up in Xie Wenyu's heart.
"My husband has really changed. Now we can truly be called husband and wife."
Feeling grateful, Xie Wenyu was even more determined to serve Li Chong attentively. She quickly got up, washed, and prepared to serve Li Chong breakfast.
Li Chong had only given Xie Wenyu a perfunctory reply, but when his attention shifted to the official gazette, he couldn't help but concentrate and ponder it carefully.
"This...this...this is trying to fool an idiot!"
After reading the contents of the official gazette, Li Chong was both amused and exasperated.
Although Li Chong was mentally prepared for the absurdity of Emperor Huizong and his ministers, he still couldn't help but feel that his eyes had been opened.
The Imperial Gazette was originally an official news report used by the imperial court to transmit government documents and political intelligence. It was a tool for local officials to understand the emperor's intentions.
But even such a tool seemed to become a toy in Zhao Ji's hands.
If local officials all understood his meaning, the Song Dynasty might be doomed.
Although the Song Dynasty is not far from its demise.
"My lord?"
Xie Wenyu, dressed neatly, noticed Li Chong's unusual expression and approached to ask, "What's written on this? Why has it caused you to lose your composure, sir?"
Li Chong chuckled and shook the official gazette in his hand: "There's quite a lot written on this, for example, the will of Heaven!"
"Huh?" Xie Wenyu was taken aback. "Fate?"
"Yes, it's fate."
Li Chong nodded, then picked up the official gazette and began to read: "The Taoist priests of the Shenxiao Sect claim that tens of thousands of cranes are flying and calling in the sky, indicating that a wise ruler is on the throne and the world is at peace. Officials from Jianzhou have reported that bamboo in their prefecture has blossomed, but instead of fruiting, it has produced rice, yielding hundreds of thousands of bushels, which has amazed the people. Rang County has also submitted a memorial, saying that as many as 50,000 Ganoderma lucidum plants have grown in the county, to congratulate the emperor."
"The Grand Tutor seized the opportunity to submit a memorial to the Emperor, saying that our dynasty is peaceful and prosperous, just as the Book of Changes says, this is a time of abundance and great fortune. The Emperor therefore issued an edict to praise it and proclaim it to the world."
Li Chong wore a sarcastic smile, his eyes devoid of any warmth.
No wonder Zhao Ji lost his throne. Such auspicious omens are just something to fool oneself. Does he really think everyone in the world is a fool?
The common people are easy to fool, but how can those officials be easily fooled? They're probably secretly cursing Zhao Ji for being incompetent.
Moreover, it's one thing to curse in one's heart, but Zhao Ji's actions were undoubtedly a reminder to the officials of the Northern Song Dynasty what the emperor liked.
If anyone wanted to be promoted after that, they could create auspicious omens all they wanted. How could officials selected in this way possibly do good deeds?
The Northern Song Dynasty has indeed reached the end of its lifespan.
Xie Wenyu listened silently and then shook his head.
"Auspicious omens have existed since ancient times, so this is not surprising. Moreover, when I was young, I also heard that auspicious omens frequently appeared throughout the world, which may be a good omen for our dynasty."
Even Xie Wenyu himself wasn't confident in saying that.
But she was the wife of an official, and Li Chong was a county magistrate; they should not have contradicted the imperial court under any circumstances.
Sensing the sarcasm in Li Chong's words, Xie Wenyu could only try to salvage the situation with a few words.
Li Chong sighed and casually tossed the official gazette onto the table: "But this isn't the Zhenzong era anymore. If we keep playing around like this, something bad will happen!"
He was unaware that Zhao Ji had already used the same tactic of using auspicious omens ten years prior.
The second year of the Daguan era, 1108 AD.
Under Cai Jing's instruction or influence, officials from various regions submitted memorials one after another, reporting a variety of auspicious omens such as "the Yellow River running clear," "sweet dew falling," "auspicious clouds appearing," and "oxen giving birth to unicorns and birds producing phoenixes."
These groundbreaking geographical and biological discoveries led to promotions for many people, and Emperor Huizong was overjoyed.
To celebrate this event, Emperor Huizong personally presided over the Daqing Hall to hold a grand "receiving the eight treasures" ceremony, and granted a general amnesty, with all civil and military officials promoted one rank.
As the key figure behind this auspicious wave, Cai Jing himself seized the opportunity to be promoted from Grand Commandant to Grand Tutor.
This set a good precedent for the world. From then on, auspicious omens appeared one after another, and people were promoted as a result. The entire Song Dynasty was immersed in a period of peace and prosperity.
Xie Wenyu didn't know where Li Chong's resentment came from, and thought that he simply disliked auspicious omens, which was normal.
After all, it's perfectly reasonable for any scholar to look down on these supernatural and ghostly matters.
"These things have already happened, and there's no point in discussing them further, sir. You might as well put them aside for now. It won't be too late to submit a memorial to His Majesty when you are promoted and arrive in Bianliang."
"Give it to him..."
Li Chong stopped himself from saying the words.
In front of Xie Wenyu, Li Chong couldn't very well speak disrespectfully to Zhao Ji.
But inwardly he sneered, thinking, "He's not worthy to write a memorial to Zhao Ji!"
"etc!"
Li Chong suddenly stood up, grabbed the official gazette, and read it several times.
"Auspicious omen, promotion! Auspicious omen, promotion..."
After repeating this several times, Li Chong's eyes grew brighter and brighter, as if he had thought of something.
"My lady, you're a genius! I'll prepare and submit a petition to the Emperor in a few days!"
He grabbed the official gazette and rushed out, Li Chong's voice carrying from afar: "Don't wait for me to eat, I have other things to do!"