Chapter 48: Do You Press Me to Ask If the Sword in My Hand Is Sharp?

The imperial court officials?
Heh!
Zhao Ning took three steps forward and unhooked the Sword of the Son of Heaven.
This action nearly caused Zhao Ji and Zhao Kaif to go weak at the knees and collapse to the ground.
Ignoring them entirely, Zhao Ning strode outward.
"Your Majesty..." Wang Huaiji hurried to keep up, closely followed by the attending eunuchs and palace maids.
As soon as the Emperor emerged, the Imperial Guard outside the Wende Hall quickly fell into step, surrounding the Emperor in their midst.
Zhao Ji and Zhao Kai were filled with a mixture of terror and bewilderment.
Zhao Ji muttered, "What is this unfilial son trying to do?"
With that, he followed them out.
Naturally, Zhao Ji had his own calculations in mind.
After the Jin army's previous attack on the city, they had proactively proposed peace negotiations, and the majority of ministers in the imperial court had secretly favored peace.
However, intimidated by the prior execution of Xu Bingzhe, none dared to voice it openly.
Yet amid that chaos, several ministers had submitted secret memorials urging Zhao Ning to launch proactive offensives.
The crucial point here lay in the word "secret."
A secret memorial meant the individual had not publicly advocated for an offensive, nor did other ministers know he belonged to the war party.
Yet before those very same ministers, he appeared to be a peace advocate.
Take Mo Chou for instance.
This allowed him to cater to the Emperor while simultaneously flattering other officials, playing both sides and hedging his bets.
At its core, however, his stance remained one of appeasement and surrender.
To make it clear, this was by no means high emotional intelligence; it was sheer shamelessness.
Virtually all the ministers who submitted secret memorials advocating offensives shared this exact mindset.
They had never expected the Jin army to launch a massive assault today.
Once the Jin army initiated the full-scale attack, panic set in.
And when they realized the sheer scale of this siege far exceeded their worst imaginations, they were no longer merely panicked—they were completely out of their minds.
They had run out of alternatives.
Their only remaining option was: surrender immediately! Cede territory! Pay indemnities!
In their eyes, the common people of Bianjing were no longer human beings; they were cash machines—automated teller machines for war reparations!
Holding the sword in one hand, Zhao Ning walked with rapid strides.
Along the way, the palace eunuchs, maids, and female officials all retreated to the sides.
Even Jing Chao could feel the simmering wrath radiating from the Emperor at this moment.

Zhao Ji and Zhao Kai followed behind.
They were eager to see what further tricks Zhao Ning had up his sleeve at this juncture!
With so many officials gathered at the palace gates to pressure the throne into peace talks, they wanted to see how he would clean up this mess!
Upon reaching the palace gates, Zhao Ning saw that the civil and military officials had indeed all assembled there.
Snowflakes fell upon Zhao Ning's shoulders, yet he paid them no mind.
In the distance, a chaotic murmuring persisted.
Seeing the Emperor finally emerge, the officials instantly regained their spirit.
"Your Majesty! The Jin army is attacking the city! The Jin army has launched a massive assault!"
It was Wang Xiongyong, the Minister of Personnel, who spoke.
Wang Xiongyong appeared utterly flustered, his voice trembling slightly.
Still gripping his sword, Zhao Ning swept his gaze across the crowd, his eyes finally landing back on Wang Xiongyong. He said coldly, "I know."
"Your Majesty! Hurry and negotiate peace! For the sake of our ancestors' dynasty and state, if we negotiate now, there is still time!"
Wang Xiongyong spoke without a moment's hesitation, and the officials behind him wore expressions indicating they would soon chime in with similar exhortations.
Wang Xiongyong held the post of Minister of Personnel, an office wielding immense power, as it governed the performance appraisals and promotions of officials across various departments.
He was effectively one of the human resources vice presidents of the Great Song Dynasty.
Why one of them?
Because the Great Song was notorious for its bloated bureaucracy and mutual checks and balances. There were actually two Ministers of Personnel, with Mo Chou being the other, each overseeing different portfolios.
That, however, is a story for another time.
Zhao Ning stood steadfastly as the wind and snow whipped past him, the biting cold cutting like a knife across his face, yet he remained entirely insensible to it.
He looked coldly upon this scene, gazing at these ministers, when suddenly a villager's words echoed in his mind:
Within the imperial court, rotten wood serves as officials; beneath the palace steps, beasts partake in the distribution of official salaries.
Those with the hearts of wolves and the conduct of dogs run rampant through the path of power, while servile and obsequious sycophants monopolize the government.
To the extent that the state is reduced to ruins and the common people are plunged into misery!
Was the Great Song Dynasty today not precisely like this?
The Great Song had pooled the resources of the entire nation to support a privileged class known as the literati.
Yet what had this class produced? A pack of cowards devoid of backbone, ungrateful and utterly devoid of shame!
And now you dare question whether the sword in my hand is sharp?
Fixing his cold gaze on Wang Xiongyong, Zhao Ning called out, "Mo Chou!"
Mo Chou stepped out from the ranks, "This official is here!"
"If I recall correctly, did I not say that anyone who dared speak of peace again would have his head severed?"
Mo Chou hesitated, not daring to utter a word.

Zhao Ning's tone deepened, his gaze as sharp as a blade, pinning Mo Chou in place. "Did I say those words or not!"
Mo Chou shuddered and remained silent, knowing that at such a moment, it was best not to speak recklessly.
Mo Chou was a remarkably cunning man.
At that moment, a military officer stepped forward. His name was Fan Qiong, the Grand Inspector of the Four Walls of Bianjing.
During the Humiliation of Jingkang, it was this very man who wielded a sword to force the women of the Zhao family out of the city to present them as tribute to the Jin army.
Later, during the Jianyan period, the mutiny led by Liu and Miao was likewise caused by him condoning his subordinates' rampage and pillaging within the city.
Fan Qiong spoke up, "Your Majesty did indeed say that, right after executing Xu Bingzhe. But circumstances change with the times. Now the Jin army has launched a massive siege, posing an imminent threat of breaching the city. If we still do not negotiate peace now, we face the peril of national extinction. We do this purely for Your Majesty's dynastic realm!"
Both a civil official and a military officer had now stepped forward.
Zhao Ning looked at him and asked, "Lord Fan, why are you stationed here?"
"This official..."
"As the Grand Inspector of the Four Walls, should you not be at the ramparts defending the city right now?"
"This official's heart is consumed by concern for Your Majesty's safety."
"Very well. Since you are well aware of what I said, you cannot complain if your lives are taken today!"
The moment the Emperor uttered these words, the expressions of everyone present shifted dramatically.
Wang Xiongyong cried out loudly, "Your Majesty, you cannot continue to vent your anger arbitrarily upon your ministers! Otherwise, the state will perish! The state will perish!"
Seeing that the surrounding officials who had followed him were also reacting, Zhao Ning immediately shouted, "Guards! Drag Wang Xiongyong aside and behead him! And Fan Qiong as well!"
The Imperial Guards paused for a fraction of a second.
Suddenly, Zhao Ning drew the Sword of the Son of Heaven. Despite the freezing cold, veins bulged visibly across his forehead, and he roared like an enraged dragon: "What are you dallying for! Execute them!"
Jing Chao moved with lightning speed. Instantly flashing his blade, he pressed it against Fan Qiong's neck in the very next breath.
Fan Qiong froze, not daring to move another inch.
Two guards immediately stepped forward, twisting Fan Qiong's arms backward so he could no longer resist.
He yelled at the top of his lungs, "Your Majesty! You cannot do this! This will bring about the ruin of the nation!"
Wang Xiongyong was likewise seized and subdued by the guards.
The rest of the officials never imagined the Emperor would dare to execute men right at the palace gates; their expressions turned ashen.
Zhao Ji had not anticipated this either, but inwardly he rejoiced. If Zhao Ning went so far as to kill officials here today, the rest of the administration would surely no longer remain silent and would rise in rebellion.
If things went as expected, he could ascend the throne today.
Wang Xiongyong shrieked, "Your Majesty! If you slaughter your ministers today, you will lose the hearts of the people!"
"Shut your mouth! You servile and sycophantic wretch! As a Minister of Personnel who has perused the books of sages, you know nothing of employing the right men. In times of crisis, you prove cowardly and devoid of righteousness, yet you still dare prattle before me!"
"Do you truly believe I dare not kill you?!"