Chapter 169

Xie Chen came out of the military tent, and all he could hear was the shouting of the generals from the Duwei Mansion. He was extremely annoyed. The Duwei Mansion held the highest military power in Dingyuan County, and now that Duwei Zhao was dead, everyone wanted to get involved, hoping to go further. There were even a few people who secretly united with everyone else to exclude Xie Chen.

Xie Chen knew that Yandu would carefully consider the candidate for such an important position. Besides, there was no news from Envoy Wei yet, so these people didn't know why they were in such a hurry.

He strode out and looked at the sky being high and the clouds being light in the distance. The round setting sun was slowly sinking to the west, dyeing half of the sky orange-red, and imprinting itself on the vast border, majestic and magnificent. His mood suddenly eased a little.

I wonder if my brother has received the letter?

A clear eagle cry was heard in the sky, and Xie Chen's lips curled up into a smile. He raised his head slightly, opened the corners of his mouth slightly, and blew a crisp whistle, with a bit of casualness and unruliness in his brows.

When Xiao Hei heard his master's call, he circled in the air for a moment, then folded his wings, dived toward the ground, and landed steadily on Xie Chen's shoulder with a proud and confident posture.

"Where's the letter?" Xie Chen tilted his head and knocked on its head.

The little black cat rubbed its claws on Xie Chen's shoulder and reluctantly revealed the letter tied to its leg. Xie Chen didn't bother with it and reached out to take the letter from its leg.

Why is it so heavy? He was just wondering why, when his men opened the letter, they saw that Lin Shuge had wrapped the letter and a jade pendant in a handkerchief.

Xie Chen picked up the jade pendant and looked at it, then put it in his arms with a puzzled look, then unfolded the letter and began to read it carefully.

The letter was not long, but Xie Chen read it for a long time. Lin Shuge's concern and instructions in the letter dispelled the depression in his heart for the past few days. Seeing that he mentioned weapons in the letter, Xie Chen thought for a moment and decided to wait until there was news from Yan City, otherwise he would be at the center of the storm and it would be too conspicuous.

Xie Chen read the new letter again. It still contained only official business and deep concern. His brother didn't even say that he missed him. Forget it. His brother was too shy to say it. He would ask him in person when he got back.

He folded the letter contentedly and was about to put it into his arms together with the handkerchief, but Xiao Hei snatched the handkerchief from his hand with one claw.

Xiao Hei flew straight up into the sky with his trophy. No matter how angry his master was, he remained unmoved. He even rolled happily in the air a few times, completely ignoring his master.

Xie Chen was so angry that he was about to cut off its food rations.

"Sir, there is news from Yandu." He Xin looked for Xie Chen everywhere but couldn't find him. He ran over here and saw him. He saw that Xie Chen still had a hint of anger on his face. He thought that he was upset because of what happened in the past few days, so he carefully picked out the important things to report to Xie Chen.

"The battle report with the Huns has reached Yandu. Captain Zhao was rash and reckless this time, resulting in the loss of many soldiers and generals. He should have been stripped of all his official positions and titles before being sent to another place. However, Your Majesty considers that he has made great contributions to the country and has guarded the border for many years. This time he can be regarded as a loyal sacrifice for his country. In addition, his clansmen are willing to give up all their wealth in exchange for Captain Zhao being exempted from punishment. Therefore, Yandu has pardoned Captain Zhao to preserve his reputation after his death." He Xin said.

"As for the position of commander, it will be temporarily held by Marquis Jingyuan. Your Majesty personally appointed Marquis Jingyuan Qin Qian as the General of the Western Expedition, and he will arrive in Dingyuan soon." He Xin added.

"Marquis Jingyuan?" Lin Shuge exclaimed, and Lu Yuechuan nodded. "There are constant struggles in the court, but Marquis Jingyuan is upright and honest, and he is indeed qualified to shoulder this important task."

"It seems that although our Majesty is young, he is decisive and courageous. He chose Marquis Jingyuan from many candidates with ease. I think the Ding family must be very angry. Marquis Jingyuan has been operating in the northwest for a long time and has military merits. Those arrogant and powerful generals always obey him." Lin Shuge also breathed a sigh of relief and sighed.

"Sir, are you afraid that Lord Wei will suffer a loss?" Lu Yuechuan raised his eyebrows.

"I am indeed afraid that Zhongxuan will suffer, but fortunately, Marquis Jingyuan is a man of integrity, and Zhongxuan can display his talents under him." Lin Shuge admitted decisively this time.

Lu Yuechuan just smiled and said nothing, "Sir, Yandu appointed Jingyuan Hou as the General of the Western Expedition and appointed Wei Shijun as the General of the Anhu Army. Are they going to fight the Xiongnu again?"

After hearing what he said, Lin Shuge also said, "I think so too. This time Zhongxuan severely damaged Muxie Chanyu. It would be best to pursue the victory and completely defeat the Xiongnu. Otherwise, when Muxie regroups, I'm afraid it will be another fierce battle."

"Marquis Jingyuan has not yet arrived in Dingyuan County, so we can just talk about these things in private. There has been no news from Zhongxuan, and we don't know what's going on." He thought about this reward. Xie Chen had made great contributions, but he had not been promoted for a long time. Either something happened, or Yandu had other arrangements.

"Of course, I was just chatting with you, sir. Sir Wei fought brilliantly in this battle. I heard that the Xiongnu Chanyu was forced to flee in panic." Lu Yuechuan laughed a little loudly, and Lin Shuge glanced at him.

"Sir, you don't know that everyone in the county has been talking about this matter recently. The people also talk about how Sir Wei fought against a hundred people alone and saved Captain Zhao among thousands of soldiers. It is said that Ganzhou County even wrote a play about it." Seeing Lin Shuge's face change slightly, Lu Yuechuan hurriedly said, "But they concealed Sir Wei's name and only said that it was a battle between a general of the previous dynasty and the Xianyun."

When Lin Shuge was the county magistrate of Ganzhou County, he vigorously developed the cultural industry, and various plays about gods and saints were performed one after another. Xie Chen's great victory over the Huns not only boosted morale, but the people were naturally impressed and excited when they learned about it. Talented people compiled it into plays for the people to watch, and every show was packed. Even the actor who played the "famous general of the previous dynasty" became famous, and people would rush to see him whenever he traveled.

Lin Shuge was a little worried. "I'll write a letter to Zhou Du to tell him to be careful. The first bird to stick its head out gets shot. Before Jingyuan Marquis arrives, the Xiongnu will come back at any time. Zhongxuan has such a great reputation. The tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind. This is not good."

Lu Yuechuan also restrained his expression and understood what Lin Shuge was worried about. "I will pay more attention these days and find other things to do. Naturally, the people will not think about these things."

"Thank you, young hero. Naturally, people will pay more attention to Zhongxuan. But he is fighting alone in the Duwei Mansion, and I can't help him." For the first time, Lin Shuge hated himself for not being a high-ranking official.

"Your Excellency and Lord Wei truly have a deep and loyal relationship." Lu Yuechuan sighed sincerely.

"Let's not talk about this anymore. Where is the gunpowder made during this period? I haven't seen Xiangli Gu for many days. I wonder if he is having a leisurely life." Lin Shuge said jokingly.

"Sir, please forgive him. When Lord Wei went to war, you almost plundered all the gunpowder stored in the county. Xiangli Gu looked at the empty warehouse and couldn't even cry. We just stored a batch of goods, and you still want to look for him." Lu Yuechuan thought of the sad expression on Xiangli Gu's black face and felt quite sympathetic.

He kindly comforted Xiangli Gu with a few words at that time and promised to say a few words to Lin Shuge if he asked him for gunpowder or weapons again.

"Really? I remember I still kept a batch. The craftsmen under Xiang Ligu are now more skilled. Ordinary gunpowder is no longer a difficult task for them. But you reminded me that since they work so hard, I should double their wages every month."

As for working, if the money is paid, there will be no complaints. Besides, Xiangli Gu knows where the gunpowder will be used. He knows the limits when it comes to matters concerning the country and the people.

"Xiang Ligu and the others will definitely be happy, but Fang Yuan didn't see that. I used to think that this person was just a fraud, but now it seems that he has some Taoist style of saving the world."

Lin Shuge laughed too. At that time, Fang Yuan came to Qingquan County and was fooled by him into blowing up the furnace every day. Lin Shuge had promised him that he would introduce him to Envoy Wei.

Later, when Lin Shuge brought up the topic with Fang Yuan, Fang Yuan said that he found refining elixirs and cultivating immortality not as interesting as blowing up a furnace. He declined Lin Shuge's offer to introduce him, and instead spent every day studying with Xiang Ligu how to blow up the furnace even louder.

"Sir, someone has come from the county magistrate's office, saying that Envoy Wei has an urgent order." The officer outside the door came in and interrupted their conversation.

What could be the reason for someone coming to the county magistrate's office at this moment? Lin Shuge looked at Lu Yuechuan, and Lu Yuechuan made a gesture to him. Could it be because Marquis Jingyuan was coming?

"Let him in." Lin Shuge said.

"Greetings to Magistrate Lin and Deputy Magistrate Lu. Envoy Wei has urgently ordered the two gentlemen to collect food and fodder as soon as possible in case of emergency." said the visitor.

Are they really going to press on to win?

"I understand. Does Envoy Wei have any other instructions?" Lin Shuge asked.

"Envoy Wei only said that you know what it means, and there is no need for him to say it clearly."

Lin Shuge smiled helplessly and said, "You have worked hard on the journey. Someone, send this gentleman to rest."

After they left, Lu Yuechuan looked thoughtful, "It looks like a major war. Your Majesty, do you want to use the victory over the Xiongnu to boost your reputation and bring down the Ding family in one fell swoop?"

Lin Shuge shook his head, perhaps Zhongxuan had more accurate information.

Dingyuan County, Duwei Mansion.

Marquis Jingyuan stood upright in the hall and announced the imperial edict from Yandu to everyone. He rewarded the meritorious officials, especially Xie Chen. He defeated the 50,000 Xiongnu cavalry with only 10,000 cavalry, which was a great achievement. He was named General Po Lu. His subordinates such as Huo Xin and Lao Zhang naturally received rewards.

As for Han Jue, he underestimated the enemy and advanced rashly, falling into the trap of the Huns, which led the army to mistakenly believe in the opportunity to fight. As a result, he was punished and demoted three levels. It was only after he raised tens of thousands of coins in fines that he was exempted from punishment.

After Marquis Jingyuan finished reading the imperial edict, he looked around at the kneeling people and suddenly saw Xie Chen. He became so excited that he almost lost his composure.

After his personal guards reminded him, he let the others leave, leaving only Xie Chen.

Jingyuan Hou stared at the young general in front of him, moved his mouth, and saw that Xie Chen had no expression on his face, as if he had never seen him before. He sighed, "I lost my composure. Seeing you today is like seeing an old friend of mine."

Xie Chen said respectfully: "People look alike, so I guess the Marquis must have made a mistake."

Marquis Jingyuan raised his head to the sky and sighed, "I understand. If that's the case, General Wei should withdraw."

Xie Chen looked up at him, said nothing, and quietly walked out.