Moreover, at this point, with the situation as it is, the Song dynasty is on the verge of collapse—who even cares about that anymore? Back during the Jingkang era, there were already people openly proposing the establishment of regional military governors in Hebei. As for all those messy official systems, just don’t let John Harrison get a chance to seize power, or he’ll definitely cut them all down in one stroke and replace them with something straightforward and clear-cut.

“What is Liu Qing’s courtesy name?” After thinking for a moment, feeling out of sorts and afraid of giving himself away, John Harrison decided to cut to the chase.

“My courtesy name is Pingfu, Your Majesty.” Matthew Lewis was so ashamed he didn’t even dare lift his head.

“Pingfu, I know you’re uneasy. Here’s what we’ll do—go get yourself ready.” Standing at the tent entrance, John Harrison simply put on a stern face and spoke seriously. “From today on, fifty riders from the Chixin Squad will be assigned to attend me, receiving the same treatment as the other Imperial Guards… Anyway, it seems all the Imperial Guards have been reestablished, so let’s just call this a new unit! This will show that I have never doubted your loyalty or that of the Chixin Squad. And Michael, you’ll have to work a bit harder, taking care of both duties at court and here… The weather is gloomy, so quickly get a fire going—don’t delay everyone’s meal.”

As soon as these words were spoken, not only Matthew Lewis and the few Chixin Squad officers behind him were overjoyed, even Charles Young was stunned on the spot, his heart churning.

Soon after, Michael Lewis naturally hurried off to get busy, but on this day and night, the usually taciturn Charles Young couldn’t help but rest his hand on his sword and sigh:

“The lord’s conduct this day and night truly has the heroic spirit of the Han and Tang!”

John Harrison had been listless, but after reassuring Matthew Lewis and the Chixin Squad, the gloomy weather and lower temperature outdoors brought him a bit of energy. Who would have thought that, upon suddenly hearing the words ‘heroic spirit,’ he’d feel his teeth ache… What kind of heroic spirit is this? If he really had that Han and Tang heroism, he would have just ordered Matthew Lewis to kill Charles Young right here, then led eight hundred cavalry to storm Mingdao Palace and wipe out Kang, Huang, Wang, and the rest in one go.

Would he need you to talk about heroic spirit here? What era is this—should he flex his ‘tiger’s body’ or something?

Of course, Charles Young was tall and imposing, fully armed, and looked like someone not to be trifled with. It was said he came from a family of generals and had long held prestige among the Imperial Guards. John Harrison, a college student who had only recently transmigrated, had only ever killed chickens and beaten up cats—he really didn’t dare make up his mind to draw a blade against someone like this… What if, within five paces, this man could take on a whole nation?

Thinking of this, he could only shake his head in silence—last night, he’d spent another sleepless night overthinking things. If he wanted to resist the Jin, he first needed power; to gain power, he had to effectively control what was left of the country and build his own strong team; and to build his own strong team, he first had to break through the barrier formed by Kang, Yang, Huang, Wang, and the others to take charge of the court and personnel; but to break through their isolation, he first needed to gather a small group of his own.

After today’s events, being able to win over Matthew Lewis in front of Charles Young could be considered a blessing in disguise.

“Your Majesty treats Michael Lewis so generously—are you valuing his cavalry?” Seeing that John Harrison didn’t react, and taking advantage of the surrounding commotion so no one would notice, the upright Charles Young spoke again. “And the troops from Liaodong have no connection with the court?”

John Harrison finally fixed his gaze on Charles Young, or rather, he finally realized something was off with his personal bodyguard, though he still didn’t understand the reason.

Did he see that I was deliberately muddying the waters, dividing his authority in the palace, and so he’s warning me?

Logically, that would make sense, but clearly, the other’s odd behavior had started last night, which made it even more intriguing.

“What do you mean, Yang Qing?” In any case, John Harrison was starting to feel a bit wary.

“I just wish to remind Your Majesty.” At the tent entrance, Charles Young rested his hand on his sword and bowed slightly. “Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven—there’s no need to be so guarded against your own ministers.”

This was almost like directly exposing the tacit standoff between them, and it even seemed rather well-intentioned.

But this still couldn’t put John Harrison at ease, because he had no idea what kind of person Charles Young really was. Who knew if, in the next second, the man would ‘punch the emperor three times and leave’? Who knew if he’d just cut him down and take his head to defect to the Jin?

Was he a traitor or a loyalist, was his surname Wang or Jiang, what was his true nature—John Harrison was completely at a loss!

In fact, as a transmigrator, John Harrison kept running into walls yet never stopped searching for those ‘historical celebrities’ he knew—not just because of their outstanding abilities, but often because he already knew their character and stance, which gave him a comforting illusion of control… a sense of security!

But Li Gang, Zong Ze, Yue Fei—he knew who they were. Charles Young? John Harrison really had no idea.

“Your Majesty need not worry.”