Chapter 10: You Leapt to Your Own Doom; Do Not Blame Me

Mo Chou continued, "In my humble opinion, the most egregious offense here is the deception of His Majesty. Certain treacherous villains in the court, driven by selfish interests, have hoodwinked the Emperor and disregarded the safety of the court and the very survival of our nation! These are heinous traitors who intend to destroy our Great Song! They must be severely punished!"

Mo Chou’s words carried two layers of meaning:

First, when Guo Jing rose to power, it was with the Emperor’s permission, and his official post was authorized by the Emperor himself. However, this was not the Emperor's fault; His Majesty had merely been misled by deceitful scoundrels. This was a clever way to preserve the Emperor’s dignity, marking him as a truly competent courtier.

Second, He Li and Sun Fu were treacherous villains who deserved to be dealt with immediately and severely.

As soon as he spoke, many ministers echoed his sentiments: "We beseech Your Majesty to punish them severely!"

The atmosphere in the court was instantly whipped into a frenzy. The strategy was clear: two heavyweight ministers from the pro-peace faction would initiate the movement, using inflammatory rhetoric to manufacture anxiety, and then the "atmosphere team" would take the stage.

The officials of the pro-war faction, who had been in high spirits only a short time ago, now looked panicked and were rendered speechless. After all, Guo Jing’s charade had been exposed on the spot by the Emperor himself. Since Guo Jing was a figurehead pushed forward by the leaders of the pro-war faction, how could they possibly defend themselves?

Xu Bingzhe wanted to say something, but he held his tongue; he was clearly a reed swaying in the wind, and he quickly pulled his head back.

He Li, his face flushed with indignation, steeled himself and said, "Your Majesty! I, too, was misled by Sun Fu!"

At this moment, in order to protect his position as Grand Councilor, He Li had no choice but to shift all the blame onto Sun Fu, who was currently languishing in the Ministry of Justice prison. Since Sun Fu wasn't present to defend himself, he was the perfect scapegoat—a timeless political tactic.

Wang Shiyong sneered, "May I ask, Lord He, do you have any feasible strategy to defend against the enemy?"

Watching this scene, Zhao Ning could not help but smile inwardly. It was said that the civil officials in the Great Song court were vicious fighters, and that reputation was well-deserved.

In the Song Dynasty’s bureaucratic system, the hardest position to hold was precisely that of the Grand Councilor—especially the heads of the Executive Secretariat and the Bureau of Military Affairs. Countless eyes were fixed on you, waiting for the slightest opening to tear you down. Was Wang Anshi, who enjoyed the full support of Emperor Shenzong for his reforms, not formidable? Even he was attacked by so many that he could neither eat nor sleep.

This was, in fact, a political game tacitly approved, or even encouraged, by the Song Emperors to prevent the rise of powerful ministers. During the Northern Song period, almost no Grand Councilor met a peaceful end, and thus, no so-called "powerful minister" ever truly emerged. If the Song Dynasty ever saw such figures, it would only be Qin Hui and Shi Miyuan in the Southern Song, and that was only because the office of the Grand Councilor had seized control of both financial and military power.

During the Northern Song, the Grand Councilors lacked control over finance and the military, serving mostly in administrative roles. Wang Shiyong’s words struck at He Li’s weakest point. If he had a strategy to repel the enemy, he wouldn't have been relying on Guo Jing.

Before He Li could respond, Mo Chou, who had been fully prepared, added, "Lord He, this matter concerns the survival of our Great Song. Do not speak lightly; deceiving the Emperor is a capital crime!"

He Li was so enraged he nearly choked, unable to utter a single word.

The pro-war faction, unsure of the Emperor’s true thoughts, stood like scolded children, heads bowed in silence. Officials like Li Ruoshui, Vice Minister of Personnel, and Mei Zhili, Minister of Revenue—both renowned statesmen and core members of the pro-war faction during the late Northern Song—could no longer speak a word. The blame lay entirely with He Li and Sun Fu for ruining the cause of war.

The pro-peace faction clearly held the upper hand. Finally, He Li could only muster one sentence: "Your Majesty, I am guilty!"

"You are indeed guilty!" the Emperor finally spoke.

At his words, the hearts of the ministers leapt, especially those of the pro-peace faction, who were filled with ecstasy. The Emperor had taken a stance; He Li’s days as Grand Councilor were effectively over.

He Li continued, "I beg to resign."

When He Li uttered these words, Wang Shiyong and his cohorts could no longer hide their smiles. Indeed, in the official history, after the capital of Bianjing fell, besides Xu Bingzhe, who worked tirelessly to help the Jin army plunder gold, silver, and women, Wang Shiyong was also present—he was even more servile than Xu Bingzhe. He had forcibly seized women from the populace to present to the Jin. He was a typical opportunist, posing as a man of integrity while the Northern Song remained intact, but defecting to the Jin the moment the capital fell. He later switched to Zhang Bangchang’s puppet regime, and when Zhao Gou restored the Song court, he switched again to him. He was a quintessential traitor and lackey.

Wang Shiyong, wearing a mask of righteous indignation, continued, "Do you think a resignation is enough to atone for your crimes? This matter concerns the survival of the capital! As Grand Councilor, you have been derelict in your duties!"

He Li was furious. "Wang Shiyong, what exactly are you trying to do?"

"Your Majesty, please strip He Li of his rank and cast him into the Ministry of Justice prison! Only then can the public anger be appeased!" Seeing that the Emperor had already signaled his intent, Wang Shiyong pressed his advantage.

The rest of the pro-peace faction immediately chimed in, "We beseech Your Majesty to strip He Li of his position as Junior Grand Councilor and punish him to appease the public!"

Zhao Ning sneered to himself. *Appease the public? You lot only want to eliminate political rivals; you care nothing for the people's fury.*

"Granted!" Zhao Ning waved his hand. He was not angry at the demands of the pro-peace faction; in fact, he wanted to laugh. This was the situation he wanted. He Li had to go; committing such a foolish error meant he could not be kept.

However, since this was a pit left behind by his predecessor, Zhao Huan—and since the Emperor had technically permitted He Li’s actions—Zhao Ning could not simply arrive today and personally execute He Li. He needed to use the hands of the pro-peace faction to eliminate him, and he had calculated that they would be more than happy to do so.

Li Ruoshui, the Vice Minister of Personnel, stepped out, saying, "Your Majesty, this must not happen! Lord He acted out of devotion to the country. With the enemy outside the walls, to vent anger so recklessly will inevitably cause chaos among the people."

Just as Wang Shiyong was about to retort, the Emperor suddenly roared, "Is the public not already in enough chaos!"

The court was startled by the Emperor’s sudden outburst.

"Your Majesty, please calm your wrath, I..." Li Ruoshui tried to speak, but was cut off by Zhao Ning.

"My mind is made up! Guards, remove He Li’s official cap and throw him into the Celestial Prison!"

Imperial guards immediately entered, stripped He Li of his cap, and dragged him away. There were few pro-war officials to begin with, and now that both He Li and Sun Fu had been arrested, the others dared not speak. Even someone like Li Ruoshui was silenced.

Xu Bingzhe’s eyes darted around, and he quickly stepped forward. "Your Majesty is wise!"

The crowd was surprised to see Xu Bingzhe emerge; was he not He Li’s lackey? When He Li had served as the interim magistrate of Kaifeng, he had promoted Xu to the same post upon becoming Grand Councilor.

"Your Majesty is wise! I had long suspected that He Li had ulterior motives. I warned him many times, but not only did he refuse to listen, he even berated me!"

*Aha,* thought Zhao Ning, *isn't this the infamous traitor Xu Bingzhe?*

Seeing He Li lose his power, Xu Bingzhe immediately jumped out to distance himself. He was a textbook political opportunist. If he had talent and integrity, his opportunism might be forgivable—after all, who doesn't want to advance their own career? But did they think he was here today to promote the pro-peace faction?

*Heh,* he thought, *I am actually looking for a pro-peace figurehead to sacrifice to bolster morale. If you had continued to pretend to be pro-war, I truly would have had no excuse to touch you. But since you are so cooperative—afraid that I have no heads to display on the city walls? Since you are so sincere, how can I disappoint you?*

Zhao Ning said, "Lord Xu, what is your wise counsel?"