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墨書 Inktalez
In the Imperial Garden, I stayed for quite a long time, probably a few hours! First, we discussed the military and political affairs of the Song State.
Later, I accompanied the Emperor to appreciate his famous poem, written by a renowned poet of the Tang Dynasty. It depicted the romantic relationship between a man and a woman, both alluring and subtle.
Qin Feng looked at those characters and found some of them quite unfamiliar; he could barely recognize more than half of them. From those characters, he could guess the general meaning.
When the Emperor invited him to appreciate it together and help understand the poem's essence, he took it in a positive direction and even exaggerated a bit, not wanting to show his ignorance.
The Qin Emperor was indeed very pleased. Qin Feng was truly well-rounded; he had always enjoyed poetry and had come to understand much more.
The Emperor even specially sent someone to bring over Wang Xizhi's calligraphy. It had been a long time since they appreciated calligraphy together, so why not enjoy it again?
Qin Feng could only brace himself and carefully observe that vigorous and powerful technique. Indeed, it was imposing, with dragons soaring and phoenixes dancing, showcasing immense strength.
No wonder it was the work of the calligraphy god Wang Xizhi. The writing was truly magnificent and forceful; one could tell that the heart behind it must also possess such grandeur.
However, as someone who had traveled from the future, I really did not have much fondness for these antiques; looking at them made me feel like an old relic myself.
I also pointed out the good aspects and praised them highly, even though I hardly understood much.
The emperors of the Song Dynasty were indeed all fond of literary pursuits, each one more skilled than the last in playing with words, yet they neglected military affairs, leading to a weak military that could only passively endure attacks.
The Qin Emperor was naturally very happy; he also enjoyed Poetry and Lyrics and loved beautiful women. Although he had ambitions for governance, those lengthy discussions about politics and war gave him headaches. In his spare time, he still liked to dabble in literature.
It seemed that although Qin Feng had become somewhat rougher, his true nature still appreciated literature; there was indeed some truth to that.
Preparing to have the Imperial Guards bring over more poetry, calligraphy, and paintings for appreciation, since the military and political discussions had concluded.
Qin Feng naturally disagreed; he couldn't understand the essence of those works and only saw their surface, finding them boring.
To be forced to look at more poetry and calligraphy was truly exhausting for him. He just smiled and declined, stating that he had just taken office as Deputy Commander and had many important matters to attend to, so he must return.
The Qin Emperor, dressed in a Golden Dragon Robe, felt somewhat dissatisfied. As the emperor, it was a privilege for him to invite Qin Feng to appreciate these works, yet he dared to refuse.
However, seeing him clad in black armor, he was no longer his Civil Official but a third-rank Military Official.
It was better to handle those important matters! He sighed a couple of times and decided to let him go, hoping he would come by often to appreciate them when he had time.
Qin Feng hurriedly walked away; he truly did not want to look at those poetry and calligraphy pieces—they were just too dull.
He had visited the Imperial Garden before and remembered the way out. There were quite a few Imperial Guards in Black Armor stationed along the path.
Soon, he arrived outside the Imperial Garden and headed toward the palace gates.
"Disciple, slow down. Wait, I have important matters to discuss with you."
Qin Feng heard a familiar voice coming from his left ear, sounding somewhat recognizable as if he had heard it somewhere before.
Turning toward the left, he saw a man wearing a Purple Official Robe with some white hair on his head. Despite that, he appeared spirited and wore a broad smile.
Wasn't this Song Qing? His so-called Mentor. During the Morning Court yesterday, although they were together, Song Qing looked down on him, fearing that associating with him would bring trouble.
People are inherently hypocritical, especially those high officials in the court who are adept at shifting with the wind, only seeking personal gain, with no real sense of mentor-student loyalty.
I originally wanted to call him "Mentor," but when I recalled his cold words from yesterday, which seemed friendly on the surface but were actually very treacherous, those words truly broke my heart.
He said, "Song Qing, what do you want from me? Are you afraid that I will drag you down and not walk with you anymore?"
Song Qing smiled as he approached, appearing amiable, but his heart was already plotting something sinister.
He continued, "Beloved disciple Qin Feng, how can you think this way? Yesterday was a special situation; things were unclear, so I intentionally avoided you. In truth, I still care about you. Wasn't I just trying to guide you?"
"You have been promoted to a third-rank Military Official and are now the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guard. That's fantastic! It's far better than being a powerless Civil Official. I'm really happy for you; it's worth celebrating."
Qin Feng could only force a few bitter smiles. He had already seen through him; it was all just flattery. If he truly cared about him, he wouldn't have left him behind and gone in alone yesterday.
The more critical the situation became, the more one could see people's true hearts. Those who genuinely cared for him were few and far between; most were just talk.
He said, "Then let's celebrate together! If there's nothing else, I'll return to my place to handle my affairs. I don't have time to chat with you here."
Of course, Song Qing had matters to discuss with him; the smile on his face faded as he got straight to the point.
"Beloved disciple Qin Feng, the two Left Chancellor and Right Chancellor of the court hold you in high regard. You went from being a powerless Civil Official to a Military Official commanding tens of thousands of Imperial Guards, which has certainly caught their attention."
"I wonder if you would be willing to stand on our side and advocate for peace with the emperor? If you agree, two thousand taels of silver will be delivered to your residence immediately—no empty promises."
Qin Feng had intended to keep moving forward but stopped instead. It was indeed not that simple; this cunning old fox would not flatter him so quickly without an ulterior motive.
It is not flattery; there must be something they want.
The court is divided into the Peace Faction and the War Faction, with the Peace Faction always having the upper hand, both in numbers and influence, while the War Faction is relatively weak.
He wants to pull himself into the Peace Faction, which would strengthen their power and further weaken the War Faction. This must be the intention of those two Chancellors.
What shameless old fools they are! Just yesterday morning at court, they were eager to offer their own heads to negotiate peace with the Jin Kingdom, and now they want to recruit him.
He absolutely will not join the Peace Faction. Working alongside that bunch of useless cowards is not what he wants; he prefers to fight on the battlefield and serve his country.
He looked at Song Qing. If it weren't for him being his former Mentor, he would have already struck him. How could he submit to those who wanted to kill him? That would be worse than a pig or a dog.
He spat on the ground, feeling quite relieved. The bond between mentor and disciple was gone, replaced by this incompetent Civil Official.
He said, "From now on, our mentor-disciple relationship is over. If it weren't for our past connection, I would have already hit you, old man. They clearly want to kill me but still expect me to do their bidding."
"Those two Chancellors must be Bai Shizhong and Li Bangyan! They are truly harmful to the country and its people. Instead of serving the court, they blindly seek peace with the wolf-hearted Jin Kingdom, wasting our resources on them."
A hint of killing intent appeared on his face; he truly despised these members of the Peace Faction for seeking peace with the Jin Kingdom and offering large amounts of silver as compensation. Aren't they harming the common people of Great Song?
Song Qing was greatly frightened by these words. Wasn't he a scholar well-versed in classical texts? How could he utter such filthy language and dare to insult the two Chancellors?
Spitting that big mouthful at him was clearly disrespectful to his Mentor. He had once been very respectful but had now turned into a rogue, showing no difference from a brute.
He also felt extremely angry. If this had happened when he was still a Civil Official, he would have long since struck him and slapped him several times. But now he could not.
Left Chancellor and Right Chancellor clearly expressed their admiration for him and insisted on bringing him into the Peace Faction.
A forced smile appeared on his face, looking quite unnatural.
He said, "My dear disciple! Think it over again. The Chancellors truly appreciate you. The past is the past, and two thousand taels of Silver will be delivered to your residence, as long as you agree."
"You know that the main faction has a lot of power, almost controlling the entire court. The few in the War Faction are just asking for trouble and will end up in a miserable situation. Think carefully!"
Qin Feng suddenly burst into laughter, an odd laugh, and looked at him strangely.
Those Chancellors once wanted his head; he hadn't sought them out, so why should he let them off the hook?
This grudge was definitely established, and he would not forgive them—those useless good-for-nothings who dared to negotiate with the Jin Kingdom using the heads of court High Officials.
He absolutely looked down on such worthless people and would never sink to their level.
"Mentor, this is the last time I call you that. It's better to avoid contact with those in the Peace Faction, or you'll be the one in trouble. The court is about to implement new policies, and those Corrupt Officials won't escape."
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