In the court, Shen Xu asked the emperor to pardon the rebellion of the northern army, and found a pretext for assisting the emperor in punishing the rebels and rebellion, thus exonerating the northern Xue family.
The Left Prime Minister, Duke Xiao, stepped forward and proposed, "Your Majesty, the empire is now at peace, and much remains to be done. During the reign of the previous emperor, he neglected state affairs, condoned the indiscriminate killing of loyal officials by Imperial Master Hua, neglected the government, and, with many officials sitting idle and doing nothing, led to the chaos and disasters that plagued the empire.
Fortunately, thanks to the joint efforts of the female prime minister and several trusted ministers, many positions in the court are now vacant, and we need talented people to take on the heavy responsibilities and work for the well-being of Haoyue Kingdom."
As soon as he finished speaking, a general from the royal army stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I recommend General Song Lin, the commander of Xiangyang Mountain, to serve as the Grand Marshal of the Army."
"General Song is a master of military strategy and possesses great wisdom and strategy. I second your proposal."
"I second the motion."
Several generals of the royal army stood up and proposed to appoint Song Lin as the Grand Marshal of the Royal Army.
Yang Chonghu stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, General Song is still young and lacks battlefield experience. It might be inappropriate to entrust him with this position."
Li Fei was immediately displeased and stood up to refute: "What do you know? Have you ever seen him fight? Your Majesty, I will accept General Song as the marshal."
When Xiao Mingcheng heard that the generals of the royal army wanted to appoint important positions to his brother, he readily agreed, but was opposed by a group of old ministers.
"Your Majesty, the position of commander-in-chief of the royal army is of vital importance. It must be entrusted with caution to a trusted and battle-hardened person. I propose that General Yang Chonghu, commander-in-chief of the Southwestern Army, be appointed to this position."
"Yes, General Yang is stationed in the southwest. He is very brave and capable. He is your majesty's uncle and is qualified for this position."
For a moment, the court was divided into two rows. The military generals of the royal army wanted to appoint Song Lin, while the civil officials of the royal family recommended Yang Chonghu.
Sitting behind the curtains, Shen Xu said, "Your Majesty, you should promote the virtuous and avoid relatives. I would like to use this opportunity to clear someone's name.
There was a family of officials in the north, whose successive generations had produced many capable officials, both civil and military. Their eldest son was a man of great talent, both in commanding troops and in managing the country's affairs.
Suddenly, a disaster struck the north and the people rose up in rebellion. His parents and relatives were killed in the riot. The eldest son was murdered by a villain during the mutiny, and his legs were crippled. He had no choice but to sit in a wheelchair.
It seemed that the North was about to fall into chaos and get out of control.
This young master turned his grief into strength and united the chaotic northern soldiers and civilians in desperate situations. This prevented the people of the three northern prefectures from being drowned and lost in the war.
In order to rally the scattered people's hearts, he asked his sister to pretend to be him and serve as the general, while he himself retreated behind the scenes and became an unknown military advisor.
This person is the commander-in-chief of the three northern prefectures, Xue Yan."
Yang Chonghu suddenly realized what was going on and angrily said, "That General Xue is a fake, so you are also a fake Miss Xue!"
Someone immediately stood up and accused her, "Don't be rude to the female Prime Minister."
Shen Xu slightly lifted the curtain, glanced at Yang Chonghu in the hall, and replied, "Indeed, I was cherishing your majesty's talent. The situation was pressing, and I was afraid of rebellion, so I claimed to be General Xue's legitimate sister and helped General Xue out of the siege. In fact, his legitimate sister is the person you have seen."
Everyone looked at Xue Yu, who was dressed as a man. Several Beilang generals were immediately unable to accept it. "General Xue is so brave and good at fighting, how could he be a woman?"
"Although the military advisor is extremely strategic, I still have to respect our General Xue in terms of fighting."
"With Old Han's martial arts skills, how could he be killed by a woman in just three moves?"
Several generals of the royal army looked at each other in bewilderment. This fake Xue Yan had killed four powerful generals under Su Yi in the early stage of the battle on the northern defense line, which frightened Su Yi so much that he resigned from the battle and retreated to his residence, ignoring military and political affairs.
It was a great shame and humiliation for a group of extremely brave men to lose to a woman in martial arts.
Xue Yu strode to the front of the hall and said with a bow, "Your Majesty, as a woman, you are still able to contribute to the court and the people. I, a humble servant, may only have martial arts skills, but I am also willing to serve you to stabilize the country.
I, General Xue Yu, would like to thank the Prime Minister for clearing his name on behalf of my brother Xue Yan!"
Yang Chonghu naturally wouldn't miss any opportunity to bring them down. He quickly stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the female Prime Minister colluded with the Xue brothers and sisters to deceive their superiors and subordinates. This is truly a heinous crime. Your Majesty must severely punish these three people and uphold the law!"
Shen Xu stood up from behind the curtain. She walked out slowly and stood beside the dragon throne. "General Yang, I am speaking of this matter in the court at this time because I want to tell you all. The court should not only appoint virtuous people but also appoint capable people.
The Xue brothers and sisters surrendered to the imperial court tonight. With their talents, if they are put to good use, they will surely contribute to the success of our Haoyue Kingdom.
Your Majesty, I request that Xue Yan be promoted to Right Prime Minister, to jointly manage the cabinet with Left Prime Minister Xiao Guogong."
Duke Xiao pondered for a moment and said pertinently, "The Xue family has sent envoys throughout the ages. I remember the time when the eldest son of the Xue family was sent as an envoy to the Kingdom of Yanyang. His diplomatic and negotiation skills were truly outstanding. His manners were elegant and proper, and he was able to answer questions and challenges from neighboring countries fluently.
The female prime minister has a keen eye for talent; the position of Right Assistant is indeed very suitable for him."
Xiao Mingcheng said without hesitation: "Approved."
"Old Duke, please don't be confused. Xue Yan is a traitor. How can he hold such an important position?"
This move immediately aroused the dissatisfaction of Yang Chonghu and some county officials. They tried to incite the royal army and Beijing officials to protest, but most people were convinced by Shen Xu's reputation and did not dare to take sides.
"Since His Majesty has approved it, then let's just leave it as it is." Shen Xu glanced at the ministers below and slowly walked behind the gauze curtain behind the dragon throne.
"Lady Prime Minister, the position of Grand Marshal of the Army of the World..." Several county officials who came to Beijing to discuss matters immediately understood what was going on. The woman behind the gauze curtain was the one who held the power of decision.
"What do you think, Commander-in-Chief?" Shen Xu simply passed the buck to Pei Zhiyuan.
Pei Zhiyuan didn't want to stand in the way at all, so he replied, "I think the female prime minister has already made up her mind about a candidate. Why not listen to Brother Song's opinion?"
Song Lin replied, "I propose that the Grand Marshal Pei, the Chief of Staff, take on this position concurrently."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was shocked.
Li Fei slapped his thigh, angrily saying, "Why, Brother Song? It's such a shame that you don't take the position of Grand Marshal!"
Several generals of the royal army could not help but start discussing.
Yang Chonghu was enjoying the fun, "It seems his generals don't really respect Lord Pei."
Several ministers also objected: "No, it won't work. If Lord Pei approves the military rations and then uses them, then no one will be able to calculate the accounts."
Shen Xu said: "Since there is no suitable one, then this position will be abolished. Our Haoyue Kingdom also needs to reform its military and political affairs and dismantle its armaments in various places.
Aside from the border garrisons, all other armies will be reorganized and disbanded, with each prefecture only staffed with patrol officers and standing troops. No prefecture or county may privately stockpile military supplies or raise military equipment, or else it will be considered treason.
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