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◎Deng Chong was appointed General of Yunzhou, and Zhang Jie was appointed Commander of the Western Camp.◎

After Fu Daonian was dealt with, the performance review banquet still had to continue.

After the military officers had returned to their laughter, Emperor Xingwu mentioned the vacant post of Yunzhou General. "Because of Fu Daonian's indulgence, the Pyu Kingdom has probably come to believe that my Great Qi generals are all lustful and idle. The people of Yunzhou who have been attacked by the Pyu Kingdom also believe that I am as weak and incompetent as the previous emperor, unable to protect them. Therefore, I must send a powerful general to rectify the military conduct of the Yunzhou army and deal a heavy blow to the Pyu Kingdom on my behalf, deterring them from ever invading Great Qi territory again."

A fierce general?

As soon as Emperor Xingwu finished speaking, Prince Yong, Deng Chong, Fan Zhong, and Li Yu rushed to stand in the hall and volunteered to go to Yunzhou. Even the newly appointed Prince Jing Qin Bing, Deng Chong's son Deng Kun, and Deng Tai followed suit.

Because there were already enough generals who volunteered to fight, Lü Zan, Zhang Jie and others did not join in the fun. Lü Zan knew that he was not as brave as the King of Yong and his men, and generals like Zhang Jie had the important task of guarding the border. Blindly volunteering would only make them look hypocritical.

Emperor Xingwu ignored the young man and looked at the four generals, warning them, "The south is hot and humid, with many mountains and trees. It's very different from the battlefields of the Central Plains. Whether defending Yunzhou or sending troops to Pyu State, it will be a tough job. Don't try to be so arrogant."

The four generals sneered almost simultaneously. Prince Yong was the first to speak, "Who is your Majesty looking down on? Where Fu Daonian can defend, we can defend as well. If Fu Daonian thinks the conquest of Pyu is tedious and fruitless, then we will conquer the entire Pyu Kingdom for your Majesty!"

Deng Chong: "That's right. When the time comes, I will go to Fu Daonian with the head of the Emperor of Pyu, and see if he still has the nerve to argue!"

Fan Zhong: "Your Majesty, please let me go. I am the youngest and can handle any hardship!"

Deng Chong and Prince Yong joined forces to beat him.

Li Yu stepped back and bowed, "Your Majesty, I believe that although Fu Daonian is guilty, he has not gained any advantage in his several campaigns against the Pyu Kingdom. This shows that conquering the Pyu Kingdom is indeed not that simple. Therefore, I believe that no matter who Your Majesty sends to guard Yunzhou, they must not underestimate the enemy. Even if you send troops, you must first explore the situation of the Pyu Kingdom. Only by knowing both ourselves and the enemy can we have a chance of victory."

Qingyang laughed. Look at Li Yu. He didn't say a bad word about Fan Zhong and the other two, but he pointed out their shortcomings and used this as an opportunity to recommend himself.

Before Prince Yong and his two companions attacked Li Yu again, Emperor Xingwu said, "Li Yu's words make sense. Deng Chong, have you taken note of this?"

Deng Chong was overjoyed and said loudly, "Your Majesty, don't worry. I'm just not as good at talking as they are. As for leading troops, I have fought with Your Majesty all the way here and have never suffered a defeat!"

Emperor Xingwu smiled and nodded, motioning everyone to return to their seats.

Qin Bing didn't leave. He raised his head and said, "Father, I beg you to go to Yunzhou with Duke Dingguo!"

Deng Kun and Deng Tai also meant the same thing.

Emperor Xingwu said: "You three firecrackers will only cause trouble for Duke Dingguo if you go. I have other places to arrange for you, Zhang Jian and Zhang Su."

The Zhang brothers who were sitting at the front table immediately came to the center of the hall. Zhang Jian, who had many years of experience in the Jizhou Army, was already thirty years old. Although Zhang Su was only eighteen, his height was not inferior to his brother who started to grow a beard in his thirties. His appearance and restraint resembled his father, making them look like two young Dukes of Wei.

It must be said that after just seeing Fan Zhong and a few other rough generals, Emperor Xingwu felt his eyes brighten and his mood became much more relaxed when he suddenly saw a pair of brothers as handsome as bamboos.

With a smile on his face, Emperor Xingwu asked, "I would like to send you brothers to Yunzhou Army for training. Are you willing?"

Zhang Jian and Zhang Su said at the same time: "We are willing to go!"

Emperor Xingwu addressed Deng Chong, whose face fell, and said, "You generals naturally do not need my concern, but you are all getting older, and it is time to cultivate the younger generation. I plan to have you lead Zhang Jian and Zhang Su, and have Peng Ying take Deng Kun to the Fuzhou Navy to learn naval warfare. Guo Yanqing will lead Li Xingyuan to the Jizhou Army, Chen Chong will lead Xue Chuzheng to the Jinzhou Army, Li Yu will lead Zhang Heng to the Qingzhou Army, and Xue Ye will teach Meng Changhe in the Imperial Army... If these young men can learn all your strengths, Da Qi will still have talented generals available for the next thirty or forty years."

Generals Peng Ying and Guo Yanqing, who had taken the young man in, immediately expressed their willingness to teach him everything they knew.

In this way, no matter how much Deng Chong disliked the brothers Zhang Jian and Zhang Su, he had to accept the order.

Qin Bing, who was not called upon, was stunned and asked, "Father, who did this son learn from?"

Emperor Xingwu said with disdain, "You have just finished your studies. First, study hard in the Ministry of War. When I feel you are ready to leave the capital, I will find a place for you to gain experience."

Qin Bing turned his head to look at Zhang Su, who hadn't finished reading yet: "He..."

Emperor Xingwu said: "Zhang Su is a man of both civil and military talents, and a man of integrity and steadfastness. It would be a waste of his talent to continue to serve as your third brother's study companion. The battlefield is more suitable for him."

Qin Bing wanted to say more, but Emperor Xingwu glared at him and said, "You act rashly. First, temper your character in the capital."

His Royal Highness Prince Jing, who was criticized in public, returned to sit beside the Crown Prince in embarrassment.

Emperor Xingwu announced three more transfer orders, ordering Zhang Jie to take over the command of the Western Camp after Deng Chong left, Meng Ji to continue to serve as the general in Liaozhou, and to promote the current general of Liangzhou, Ge Dayong, and Meng Ji's eldest son Meng Changchuan to continue serving in the Liangzhou Army.

At this point, all the important matters that needed to be arranged at this performance review banquet had been explained. He Yuanjing clapped his hands, and a palace servant went to call the musicians and dancers in.

The military officers were all thinking about their own things. Qin Ren felt extremely reluctant to leave. He would occasionally glance at Zhang Su through the gaps between the dancers and said to his sister sadly, "I don't know when Zhang Su will come back. I've been inseparable from him since I can remember, and we've never been apart for more than two weeks."

Qingyang was reluctant to let him go, but Zhang Su was the son of a military family, and it would be good for him if his father arranged for him to go and gain experience. He believed that Zhang Su would also prefer to go to Yunzhou rather than practice the martial arts he had already mastered at his third brother's house.

.

It was almost 3 p.m. when the banquet ended. Except for Emperor Xingwu, the Crown Prince and the little princess, Qin Bing, Qin Ren and the military officers all had to go out of the palace.

It had been a long time since they had such a good time. Deng Chong and Prince Yong were both about 70% drunk and walked together arm in arm. Finally, Deng Chong pulled Prince Yong into his carriage and insisted that Prince Yong go to his house to continue drinking.

However, as soon as they got on the carriage and fell into the compartment together, Deng Chong looked at Prince Yong, and Prince Yong looked at him, and they both saw the clarity in each other's eyes.

Deng Chong was a little scared. Although he had little education, he had heard the saying "When the birds have all flown away, the bows are put away." Yuan Zhaoxiong's rebellion was seeking death, but Deng Chong had not thought about it at all. Now he witnessed with his own eyes that Emperor Xingwu stripped Fu Daonian of his title while he was having a meal. How could he, who was also a founding hero, remain indifferent?

"Tell me the truth, what does the emperor mean?" Deng Chong asked, grabbing Prince Yong's collar.

Prince Yong pondered the matter while drinking, and tried to appease Deng Chong, saying, "No, I'm not a heartless person. Look, Fu Daonian deceived the emperor and collaborated with the enemy. You had every reason to sentence him to death, but you let him go. I'm his biological brother, and you're even closer than him. We haven't done anything wrong. What can you do? He'll still send you to fight the Pyu Kingdom."

Deng Chong let go and stared at Prince Yong, saying, "Pyu State deserves an attack. Only you and I dare to penetrate into Pyu State. Everyone else is an outsider. Who would be willing to trek through mountains and rivers in this peaceful time to gnaw on a bone with only a few pounds of meat? Fan Zhong is brave but not wise, and Li Yu is too weak. He can't walk more than a few steps without gasping for breath. There's no way he can do it."

Prince Yong: "Yes, only brothers are willing to risk their lives for their elder brother. I think you know this, so don't worry, I will never let you down."

Deng Chong lay flat on his back, lost in thought for a moment as he stared at the slightly swaying roof of the car. He frowned and said, "The Emperor previously allowed the younger generations to stay in the capital, under his watchful eye. Now that he wants to train them, he won't allow them to follow their father. Tell me, is the Emperor really as nice as he says, or does he have other plans?"

Prince Yong scoffed, "At least your son can go and gain experience. My son Qin Liang has been in the North Camp for three years, and the emperor hasn't mentioned giving him any experience."

Deng Chong: "...Maybe he can't bear to let Qin Liang go? You see, he didn't arrange for Qin Bing to go out. Just like this time when I went to Yunzhou, no matter how good the odds were, the battlefield is always brutal. If Zhang Jian and the others got into trouble, the emperor would just sigh. But if it was your Qin family's flesh and blood, the emperor would be heartbroken, especially since you only have Qin Liang as a son."

Prince Yong: "...I only have one son, who can I blame? Back then, Mei'er was six months pregnant, and your dear sister had the heart to kill her!"

Deng Chong: "...at least my sister gave you a wonderful son, more promising than the emperor's three. Besides, I only have two sons, so I've endured it all."

King Yong suddenly burst into laughter.

After drinking two more bowls of wine at Deng Chong's house, King Yong was supported by his son Qin Liang and returned to the house, where he fell asleep on the bed.

Mrs. Deng called her son outside and asked if there was anything new at the palace banquet.

Hearing that Fu Daonian had been stripped of his title, Deng was initially gloating, but then she couldn't help but wonder, "Could it be that the Emperor is mad at Fu Kui for wronging the eldest princess and is deliberately targeting the Fu family?"

Qin Liang: "Impossible. Compared to Fu Daonian's collaboration with the enemy, Fu Kui's concubine is not worth mentioning at all. The emperor is not a fool who would sacrifice public office for personal gain."

Deng: "Fu Kui will have a bad life in the future. He previously chilled the heart of the eldest princess, and now even his own father has been banished back to his hometown. If I were to ask you, it's all because of his concubine. Otherwise, the emperor would have known that Fu Daonian was harboring the beauty from the Pyu Kingdom long ago. Why did he wait until this year to make a decision? If Fu Kui had behaved himself, the emperor would probably have tolerated Fu Daonian. After all, there was no major chaos in Yunzhou."

His mother obviously preferred to listen to the Fu family's jokes, so Qin Liang simply concealed his guess.

When the emperor was young and strong, he was naturally not afraid of the founding heroes rebelling against him, but as the emperor gradually grew old, wouldn't he have to pave the way for the kind and weak prince?

Fu Daonian dared to collaborate with the enemy and deserved to be punished. At the same time, the emperor sent Deng Chong away. If my father, Prince Yong, has any ill intentions, which of the new commanders of the three major Beijing camps, Lu Zan of the East Camp, Zhang Jie of the West Camp, and Hou Wanzhong of the South Camp, will help my father again?

So, the emperor is actually still on guard against Prince Yong’s Mansion!

.

In the palace, after the banquet, Emperor Xingwu asked his daughter to follow him to Qianyuan Hall.

On the way, Emperor Xingwu teased his daughter: "I am sending Zhang Su to Yunzhou for training. Will Lin'er be sad?"

Qingyang: "I'm fine. I've gotten used to him not being in the palace. I'm afraid Third Brother will be upset for a while."

Emperor Xingwu: "Don't mention your third brother. Just looking at him makes me angry."

If he scolds the eldest, he will cry; if he scolds the second, he will feel embarrassed and aggrieved. Only the third, no matter how harshly he scolds, will not prevent him from eating and drinking.

Qingyang shook his father's arm and mentioned Fu Kui: "The Fu family is guilty, why didn't you divorce Fu Kui for my eldest sister?"

Emperor Xingwu said: "I want the people of the capital to know that I punished Fu Daonian because of state affairs, not to support your elder sister. If your elder sister wants to divorce Fu Kui, she can do so in a few years, but not now."

Qingyang understood.

Emperor Xingwu patted his daughter's hand and said, "What kind of a consort would you like, Lin'er? You'll be a grown-up girl soon."

Qingyang: "...Can I choose by myself?" She did not forget that the marriages of her elder sister, elder brother and second brother were all arranged by their father at his own discretion.

Emperor Xingwu smiled and said, "You choose first, and I will check it for you. If I think it's good, I will definitely satisfy you."

The younger daughter came at a good time, and the foundation of the Great Qi was already stable, so there was no need to use the younger daughter to marry a meritorious official.

Qingyang: "Then it's settled. Father must wait for my choice first. He cannot make the decision without asking."

Emperor Xingwu: "Okay, do you have a choice?"

Qingyang: "Father, what are you thinking? I'm only thirteen after the New Year. How can I be so young and already thinking about a prince consort?"

She would never let Zhang Su take the risk of being suspected by her father of seducing her too early!

As for Zhang Su, Qingyang had her own way to make him sit back and wait obediently to become her husband.

【Author’s words】

Here we go! This military officer transfer is quite important, so I need to lay the groundwork. After Er Bing's wedding tomorrow, we can start using the time method.

100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow [Three-color cat head]