"Young Master Shaoyou, there's no time to delay. I won't keep you here today. After you return, draft the memorial immediately. Tomorrow morning, submit it without fail! Make your tone firm, and this task will naturally fall to you!"
After draining the wine in his bowl, Han Mo didn't hold back. He lowered his voice and whispered his instructions.
"Brother Han, from now on, my life is yours. If you need anything, just send word!"
Wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes, Zhang Shaoyou said resolutely.
"Brother, speaking like that makes us strangers. We share a kindred spirit, and in the officialdom, we should naturally help each other!"
After a few pleasantries, Han Mo personally escorted Zhang Shaoyou to the door.
Only after watching him disappear into the night did Han Mo slowly return to his room.
"Young Master, getting those bald donkeys out of Bianliang City seems to be rather difficult..."
After Zhang Shaoyou left, only Han Mo and Yuan Xingchi remained in the room.
"What can be done? Now that it's come to this, I can only resort to some underhanded tactics..."
Picking up a piece of braised beef and chewing it, Han Mo said leisurely.
"Aren't you afraid of pushing them too far by doing this?"
As Yuan Xingchi spoke, he reached out and adjusted the charcoal in the brazier.
"What if they are pushed too far? This time, I want to use power to suppress them. No matter how unwilling they are, they can only comply. In the face of the overall trend, what is a mere Buddhist sect?"
Han Mo didn't take Yuan Xingchi's worries to heart.
At this moment, his greatest concern was Yelü Dashi, hoping he wouldn't come up with any more unexpected moves!
History had already been trampled beyond recognition. Yelü Chun had died early, but Yelü Dashi and his men were still holding strong, and even seemed more capable than in the original history.
Things that should have happened in the fourth year of Xuanhe had already occurred ahead of time. Even Han Mo, a transmigrator, felt an immense headache.
"Then what does Young Master plan to do?"
"You don't need to worry about this. You go and deploy all our men. Gather as much intelligence as possible from Hebei. I want to know everything about Yanjing!"
"Yes!"
As Han Mo and Yuan Xingchi were meticulously strategizing, the Emperor in the palace was furious.
He had gathered hundreds of thousands of troops, essentially emptied the national treasury, and collected all the taxes from Hebei for the next three years. Yet, in the end, Tong Guan had only presented him with such a report. This made him feel utterly deceived.
"Your Majesty, I believe victory and defeat are common occurrences in warfare. Although Commissioner Tong lost this battle, the commander of the troops was Guo Yaoshi..."
Regardless, Cai You firmly stood by Tong Guan. The two of them shared both prosperity and ruin, and he had to protect Tong Guan no matter what.
"Victory and defeat are common occurrences in warfare? I gave him hundreds of thousands of troops. Were the rest just watching the show? So many people are not as good as a surrendered general. The way they fought this battle, where does that leave my face?"
As Zhao Ji spoke, he angrily kicked the imperial desk in front of him.
In his rage, the Emperor seemed to have forgotten one thing. Even though everyone in the world believed him to be the true Son of Heaven, his mortal body was still no match for golden nanmu.
With that kick, even through his thick shoes, the toenail of his big toe flipped over.
"Are all of you dead men? Don't you see His Majesty is injured?"
Seeing the Emperor's furrowed brow, Liang Shicheng quickly reprimanded the young eunuchs by the Emperor's side.
"Quick, summon the imperial physician!"
After a few young eunuchs checked Zhao Ji's injury, they hurriedly began to attend to him.
"Your Majesty, you must take care of your dragon body!"
After glancing at Zhao Ji's injury, Liang Shicheng quickly knelt on the ground.
"May Your Majesty take care of his dragon body!"
The few ministers in the hall also quickly lowered their heads in unison.
"Take care of my dragon body, take care of my dragon body. The war has turned out like this, how can I take care of my dragon body?"
Zhao Ji became more and more upset. He grabbed the memorials in front of him and hurled them at the ministers.
Fortunately, the ministers present had long been thoroughly tamed by Cai Jing. If it were any other emperor of the Zhao family doing something like this, it would be strange if the prime ministers didn't berate his entire lineage!
"Your Majesty, I request to go to the front line to assist Commissioner Tong in stabilizing the situation!"
Just as everyone was lowering their heads and playing ostrich, Cai You suddenly stood up straight.
Hearing Cai You's words, Prince Yun, Zhao Kai, who was standing by, was taken aback.
Going to the front line at this time was extremely risky!
If they could stabilize the situation and turn the tide, then everything would be fine. But if they failed, things would truly become troublesome. Not only would he be unable to save Tong Guan, but he might even drag himself down!
Moreover, at this moment, Cai You had just suffered a significant setback. As the leader of the new Cai faction, if he left the capital now, it was hard to say what Cai Jing would do next...
"Are you truly willing, my dear minister, to go to the front line at this time?"
However, unexpectedly, the Emperor, who had just been in a rage, suddenly quieted down and asked Cai You seriously.
"It is my duty to share Your Majesty's worries! The front line has just suffered a defeat, and Commissioner Tong must be under immense pressure. I am willing to go to the front line at this moment to share Your Majesty's and Commissioner Tong's burdens!"
As Cai You spoke, he raised his head and met Zhao Ji's gaze.
"Good! This is truly a pillar of the state, this is truly my trusted minister!"
After scanning everyone present, Cai Jing, who had been half-closing his eyes, suddenly had a flash of brilliance in his gaze.
Others didn't understand, but he did. At this very moment, he even felt a little gratified.
Despite their differing political views, he had to admit that his eldest son's growth rate was indeed quite fast!
This ability to assess the situation and seize opportunities was already no less than his own in his prime!
This trick of putting himself in a desperate situation to find a way out was truly played to perfection by Cai You.