In the blink of an eye, it was May, and the envoys from the State of Chu arrived in the capital with documents. All the civil and military officials in the court paid close attention to this matter.
News came from the border that the State of Chu was no match for the State of the South and was now suffering a series of defeats, with heavy losses and four cities captured in succession. This time, the envoy must be asking for help from the Jin State.
At the court meeting the next day, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites mentioned the matter of the envoy from the State of Chu, and many old ministers were eager to object.
"Your Majesty, the Southern Kingdom has a strong military force. If we send troops at this time, we will be against the Southern Kingdom and may bring disaster upon ourselves!"
"Yes, although our dynasty has sufficient troops and horses, our financial resources are not as good as those of the Chu State. It is really not appropriate to provoke the Southern Kingdom."
Chu Guang had just ascended the throne and was in high spirits. It was unwise to make an enemy of the Southern Kingdom at this time.
Most civil officials were against sending troops to aid Chu, believing that it was time to protect themselves.
However, many military officers in the court believed that Chu Guang was an ambitious man. If he conquered the State of Chu, gained financial resources, and massively expanded his military, the consequences would be easy to imagine, so they had to take precautions as soon as possible.
The best strategy is to send troops to aid Chu at this time.
The two sides were arguing with each other, each having their own arguments, which were both plausible.
Before the court meeting, the old emperor summoned several minor officials and invited the envoy from Chu to discuss sending troops to aid Chu.
At that time, Su Juan suggested, "Grandfather, I think General Shi from the Huaizhou Camp might be able to do the job."
When these words were spoken, the court officials were shocked!
Su Juan continued, "When Chu Guang proposed the marriage, and acted so low-key in the capital, my grandson found it strange, so he secretly sent people to investigate, and found that no one in your Ministry of War was colluding with the Southern Kingdom."
The courtiers who supported sending troops immediately relaxed, "Your Highness, that war can be fought!"
As for those small ministers now, no matter whether to send troops or not, those people's minds are all for the good of Xiao Jin. Su Juan feels a little bit of comfort and sense of accomplishment.
As soon as I opened my mouth, everyone in the court immediately looked at Su Juan.
After hearing this, the Minister of War felt a chill in his head and thought: That matter must have something to do with you, right?
Su Juan said in a serious tone, "This battle must be fought. Xiao Jin is adjacent to Chu. Once Chu is conquered, Nan Guo will certainly attack Xiao Jin from the south."
Everyone was worried. From a selfish point of view, if they wanted to go to war, it would be a waste of money and manpower.
But based on my understanding of Su Juan, that battle must be fought.
The old emperor's face suddenly heated up, "There is no such thing!?"
The old emperor narrowed his eyes and felt satisfied.
The court officials immediately started talking about it, and they really didn't expect that Chu Guang had no such intention a few years ago!
The old emperor looked at Duke Ping, wanting to hear my opinion, "Thank you, sir, what does he think?"
However, the censor said, "The relationship between your dynasty and the Southern Kingdom is still harmonious. The monarch of the Southern Kingdom has sent envoys to your dynasty in the past two years. He has no intention of marrying a princess. If you send troops now, it may affect the friendship between the two countries." The censor advised earnestly, trying to explain as little as possible so as not to let those people know the seriousness of the matter.
The old emperor coughed heavily, "Jinyang, what does he think about this matter?"
With Xiao Jin, the troublemaker, around, the atmosphere became peaceful.
Just as you were thinking, these generals all stood up and said, "Your Majesty, the Southern Kingdom is so ambitious that it will definitely encourage its arrogance!"
At that point, those who had just supported sending troops remained silent, and the ambitions of the Southern Kingdom were obvious. If they conquered the State of Chu, the next one to be conquered would probably not be the Small Jin.
He looked at Su Juan in the crowd, and almost winked at her.
The old emperor was surprised, he knew everything about the matter. He really didn't expect that the girl did so little and was short-sighted.
She remembered that when Song Qianfan was in power, the State of Chu asked for help, and some court officials even proposed to send troops to attack Chu, taking the opportunity to get a piece of the pie, or to negotiate terms with Chu, sending more troops, and asking Chu to cede eight cities and mines.
"In order to alert the enemy, my grandson used the same trick and switched the blueprints. He secretly had people keep an eye on these spies and repeatedly passed on false information over the past few years."
At that time, all of these people were thinking of taking advantage of the situation. They were short-sighted and only saw the immediate benefits. They never thought about what situation Xiao Jin, which was adjacent to Chu, would face before Chu was conquered.
"I am willing to lead the troops to help the State of Chu defeat the Southern Army!
Is war such a complicated matter?
The old emperor wanted to send troops to aid Chu, but he lacked a strong argument at the moment. Otherwise, how could he send troops if the people were not motivated?
Su Juan: My grandson thinks that the troops should be dispatched.
The old emperor was very pleased when he saw the scene behind him. "I already know what you all think, but there are still many details to discuss about aiding Chu, so we will postpone it until today."
At this time, the Minister of Justice also spoke up, "Your Majesty, this is indeed not the case. I was just about to report this to Your Majesty today. Yesterday, the gang of thieves had confessed, and many people were arrested. Those spies were secretly circling your young man, which shows that the ambition of the Southern Kingdom is definitely not limited to the State of Chu."
Su Juan said in a deep voice, "I, the Imperial Censor, only know that Chu Guang was once an envoy to your dynasty and had no intention of marrying you. However, I know that the spies from the Southern Kingdom had reached out to your Little Jin, intending to steal your dynasty's secrets and border defense maps."
Seeing the atmosphere become so tense, Su Juan thought that no one would come forward to ask for mercy.
The censor was even more stunned. When did that happen?
After several discussions, the commander still had no idea. The importance of the matter required an old veteran with experience in young battles, but the King of Han was now guarding the border, and several old veterans of the Duke of Ping who had fought in the battlefields in their early years were not yet old.
The court was suddenly in an uproar, and everyone stood up to second the motion and request for permission.
The old emperor sighed, "It's ruined the Southern Kingdom!"
The old emperor immediately made the decision and issued an edict to Huaizhou, ordering Shi Yuan to lead troops to accompany the envoys to aid Chu.
The court officials who supported sending troops were immediately relieved, as it was a pity that the crown prince was still quite confused.
Su Juan was watching at this time, wanting to see if there were any troublemakers in the court.
Several junior officials thought about it and decided that Shi Yuan had fought with the Duke of Ping in his early years. They were just dealing with each other. When the war subsided, Shi Yuan was transferred to Huaizhou. This person is ten years older than the Duke of Ping and has a calm temperament. The next time the imperial guards in the capital mutinied, I will lead the troops to quell it. This person is indeed suitable.
Seeing that Su Juan hadn't said a word for a long time, and the ministers on both sides were arguing to the point of almost fighting, the old emperor just sat still. What happened to that girl? Was she usually so talkative? Why did she say a few words at that time?
Duke Ping was slightly stunned, but thinking that Xie Xun was still in the Huaizhou camp, he finally said truthfully, "I think Shi Yuan is indeed suitable to lead the troops."
Liu Miaoqing and Liu Xuan were both worried for Su Juan.
Sun Yifeng's heart was boiling with anger after hearing what he said. He even wanted to jump up and applaud his nephew Sun Nan. What he said was so mean!
"At the beginning of the year, a spy planted by the Southern Kingdom in Beijing tried to sneak out of the city, but was captured by my grandson's men. He was carrying many secrets that were not related to your dynasty. Now he is imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice."
"Today's Chu State, how can you know that it will be tomorrow's Xiao Jin? In the future, when your Xiao Jin is surrounded by enemies, where will you turn for help?"