Chapter 562: Heavy Snow in Winter
The four words "risking everything" have always meant a great risk.
However, when a ruler of a country tries to use these four words in matters concerning the survival of the government and imperial power, he will inevitably be met with more criticism and opposition.
But at this moment in Ganlu Hall, although the atmosphere among the ministers was extremely solemn and dignified, strangely there was no voice of opposition, including that of Ma Xingzhou.
Since they are the emperor's confidants, they know his tactics and temperament, and understand that once the emperor has truly made a decision, it is difficult to overturn or change it.
Secondly, they are in this position, standing above millions of people, and are destined to understand the overall situation better than ordinary people, or even other officials.
In the current situation, even if the court does not take any military action, it can still be regarded as a huge "risk".
Prince Rong Li Yin controls three military forces, and the final ownership of Lingnan Road is still unknown...
Li Fu revealed in his "Confession of Crime" that Duan Shiang's rebellion was directly related to Prince Rong. This incident damaged Prince Rong's reputation, which was a good thing for the court, but not entirely a good thing...
They were worried that Prince Rong, who now held a large army, would simply stop caring about the opinions of the world and choose to seize the throne first.
They all knew very well who was behind the turmoil among the literati caused by the imprisonment of the Cui family members... This matter must come to an end, but once the court made a compromise, the country's politics and law and the emperor's majesty would be destroyed and would never be able to be picked up again.
The government does not want to compromise, but cannot bear the growing criticism from the public. So it can only break the deadlock from another angle: that is, to fundamentally resolve all the arrogant voices.
As long as the power of Prince Rong Li Yin disappears and the court regains its deterrent power, those incited literati will "calm down" and keep silent.
In short, all the current signs indicate that the emperor is now guarding a shell of a country that could collapse at any time and must take a drastic measure to have a chance of reviving.
And mobilizing troops at this time was also the best time these ministers could think of.
Previously, the emperor was determined not to mobilize the troops of the capital because of the danger in Luoyang. At that time, Prince Rong's ambition was clear, and the capital was in a situation where it was attacked from both sides. No matter which side was mobilized, it would give the other side an opportunity to take advantage. After Duan Shiang's identity and intentions were exposed, the court officials were even more shocked to realize that it was a strategy of Prince Rong's Mansion to divert the troops of the capital, which just proved that the emperor's original decision to station troops in the capital and send a secret order to Huainan Road to support Luoyang was correct.
The emperor changed his mind at this time because the timing was different.
Duan Shiang died, King Fanyang was executed, the danger in Luoyang was temporarily resolved, and the Fanyang army was defeated. However, Chang Suining, the governor of Huainan Road who had accomplished all this personally, was very kind at this time and had no intention of threatening the capital. Instead, he continued to lead his troops northward...
Of course, there were also people in the court who secretly viewed Chang Suining's move as a beastly act - this guy went north simply to continue to occupy territory.
As far as the current situation is concerned, it is hard to say whether Chang Suining's personal trip to the north is out of kindness or brutality... But in any case, since she has not openly attacked the capital, the court can concentrate on dealing with the threat from Prince Rong.
The Bian Chunliang Rebellion has almost subsided, so the danger in the southeast has also been resolved, and the other forces have not yet caused major troubles. The capital is relatively safe at this time -
On the other hand, in Prince Rong's Mansion, Duan Shiang's plan failed, Prince Rong's reputation was tarnished, and the hearts of many people who had gathered around him for his reputation for benevolence and righteousness were at a time of wavering. If troops could be dispatched quickly at this time, Prince Rong's Mansion could be caught off guard to the greatest extent possible.
Moreover, the imperial court had a good reason to attack. First, they sent troops to attack the governor of Shannan West Road, claiming that he had refused to enter the capital and harbored evil intentions. After they conquered Shannan West Road, they would then punish Prince Rong for instigating Duan Shiang to rebel...
If Xiao Min makes smooth progress in Lingnan Road, he can lead his troops from the south to intimidate Qianzhong Road. Then, he can form a pincer attack on Jiannan Road together with the imperial troops, which will increase his chances of victory.
The emperor had arranged everything. As early as when she decided to use Xiao Min to deal with the dispute in Lingnan Road, she had already prepared to counterattack Li Yin.
The Emperor of Shengce decided to mobilize 150,000 troops from the capital and send them to Shannan West Road.
Among these 150,000 troops, there are more than 60,000 Xuan Ce troops.
These more than 60,000 Xuan Ce troops gave the emperor more confidence and also added more faith to the court officials.
If they can win this battle, even if it is delayed a little longer, as long as Prince Rong's power is weakened, the court can use the name of the crown prince to quickly gather the situation and calm the people's hearts!
This is the best possible outcome that the court officials can think of based on the current situation, but no one can predict the final outcome...
At this point, the court and the emperor no longer had a more appropriate and dignified choice.
After everything was agreed upon, the Holy Emperor personally planned to order the troops to be mobilized, walked down the stairs, and Ma Xingzhou and other ministers took the panicked crown prince to kneel down and kowtow deeply.
This bow was not only a bow to the emperor, but also a bow to the fate of the country which hung in the balance.
All the ministers left one after another until only one person was left, dismounting and sailing.
Finally, the emperor at the top said to him alone: "Don't worry, Prime Minister Ma. If we can win this battle, I will do my best to have Ma Wan's life saved and bring her back to the capital safely."
Ma Xingzhou bowed again to express his gratitude.
It was not until he took his leave and left the Ganlu Palace that a barely perceptible sigh escaped from his lips.
He knew that the sage's words were meant to comfort him and show his favor, and as a subject he should be grateful...
But at this critical moment, the Saint's words of comfort, which could be considered solemn, were intended to reassure him. Therefore, the Saint probably did not trust him completely... He still suspected that he might defect to the Rong Palace at a critical moment because of Wan'er's involvement.
Even though he had taken the risk of marrying his granddaughter to Yizhou in obedience to the sage's wishes, now that the situation has changed, his loyal act at that time has become a barrier in the sage's heart.
This conjecture is disrespectful, but it is precisely because of the minister's understanding of the monarch that he has such disrespectful speculation.
He couldn't say that the sage was wrong. What was wrong with the emperor being sharp and alert?
As a subject, your only duty is to be loyal.
Ma Xingzhou stood still for a moment with mixed emotions before he walked down the white marble steps.
The wind brought a chill, blowing up the corners of his official robe.
After returning home, Ma Xingzhou sat alone in the study for a long time before he picked up his pen to write the letter.
This was the first time he wrote to his granddaughter since the previous incident with Yu Zeng.
That time, he followed the emperor's order to let his granddaughter spy on the relationship between Yu Zeng and Prince Rong's Mansion, and he was almost certain that his granddaughter would have no chance of survival.
His granddaughter "luckily" survived, but this time... as a grandfather, he wanted to send his granddaughter to her death in a more straightforward way.
Just as the two countries were about to make peace with each other, war was imminent, and the princess who was to be married off was destined to become an obstacle and a tragedy.
To die for their motherland is their destiny and glory.
Ma Xingzhou was absent-minded and thought of Princess Chongyue who married the Northern Di. Although it was sad and lamentable, she was also extremely respectable, wasn't she?
Even though Wan'er does not have the ability of Princess Chongyue, from the moment she made the choice herself, dying for the country and not causing "embarrassment" to the emperor became her unavoidable duty.
Over the past few months, Ma Xingzhou, who had aged a lot, watched quietly as the words on the letter in front of him gradually became dry. He finally threw the reluctance and guilt in his heart into the winter evening breeze.
The sky was gloomy at dusk, and the cold wind blew across his face, causing Crown Prince Li Zhi to shiver.
But no one knew that when he left Ganlu Temple, his inner clothes were almost soaked with cold sweat.
He returned to the East Palace in the cold wind, and the cold sweat had not yet subsided.
This time there was no sound of reading a storybook in the inner hall, but a eunuch came in holding a copper pot with some fresh marinated mutton.
When Li Zhi walked in, he saw Wei Miaoqing directing the palace maids to use tongs to put the lit smokeless charcoal into a small stove.
Seeing him come in, the palace maid holding the charcoal fire had no hands free to salute. Although she said "Greetings, Your Highness" hastily, she did not seem to be panicked.
This small detail, which would normally have resulted in severe punishment from the ladies in the Eastern Palace, now made Li Zhi feel inexplicably relaxed.
"Your Highness, you are back so early today." Wei Miaoqing did not expect Li Zhi to come back, and did not try to hide the fact that she had not asked anyone to prepare bowls and chopsticks for Li Zhi. She just naturally told the palace servants, "Bring an extra set of bowls and chopsticks!"
Li Zhi had become quite familiar with Wei Miaoqing these days. At this moment, Li Zhi was full of thoughts. He barely pulled the corner of his mouth and subconsciously said, "The imperial court is preparing to send troops..."
Wei Miaoqing was stunned for a moment, but did not ask where to send troops. Instead, he said, "Now that things have come to this, let's eat the pot first!"
Li Zhi was speechless. She pointed to the copper pot that had been placed on the stove by the palace maids and said, "But where is the mutton pot?"
"Hurry up and sit down." Wei Miaoqing took the lead and sat down cross-legged, pointing to the seat opposite and urging Li Zhi.
Li Zhi took off his cloak and sat down silently, but he had no appetite at all. At such a critical moment, how could he have the heart to eat the hotpot?
"...Why is this mutton so tender?" A quarter of an hour later, Li Zhi couldn't help but say, "It's fresh and not smelly, and really delicious."
The maid beside her smiled and said, "Go back to your highness, and marinate the egg whites and ginger slices for half an hour in advance."
"Your Highness, have you never had hot pot with meat before?" Wei Miaoqing asked curiously, holding half a bowl of mutton soup and looking at Li Zhi who seemed to have never eaten good food.
Li Zhi smiled shyly: "It's rare for a person to sit quietly and eat pot in this East Palace."
For many years, he ate whatever was sent to him by the kitchen. Even when he had free time, he never dared to take the initiative to express any requests for his preferences, for fear of being branded as lazy and greedy for pleasure.
Thinking of this, Li Zhi picked up another piece of meat with a perfect balance of fat and lean meat and put it into his mouth. Suddenly, he remembered Wei Miaoqing's words praising him for being good at staying alive.
Now that I think about it, he is indeed a person who can do nothing but is born with a good ability to survive.
The pot was bubbling with steam, and the palace maid opened the window slightly.
Wei Miaoqing held the bowl in one hand and the chopsticks in the other, looking out the window at the darkening sky, muttering, "Since it's a cold winter this year, the snow should be coming soon."
In mid-November, a heavy snow fell in the capital.
As the heavy snow covered the entire capital, there was also a turbulent and tense atmosphere.
The court mobilized 150,000 troops to attack the governor of Shannan West Road.
This battle was led by an old general in Xuan Ce's mansion who had not been to the front line for many years and was already in a semi-retired state. He had a eunuch supervising the army and a civil official who was trusted by the emperor. They had already set out before the heavy snow.
On the day when the army set out, the empress, who had been ill for many days, wore a heavy outer coat and was accompanied by only an elderly maid as she returned to her old residence next to the elephant garden.
The snow is like cotton wool, falling down in flakes.
In the Dali Temple, above a small, dim cell, there was a palm-sized hole that was so small that it could not be called a window.
The cold air pressed down from there, and the snowflakes fell equally.
Wearing only a thin prisoner uniform, Cui Wei sat cross-legged and looked up at the falling snow.
He had thought about committing suicide countless times, but in the end, he became a greedy person who prevented his tribesmen from committing suicide.
Even so, there are still some weak members of the tribe who cannot survive this harsh winter.
Cui Wei looked up at the gray sky, the scene before his father's death flashed before his eyes, and he thought of the past.
Choosing Prince Rong does not mean that they can get through the crisis smoothly. There is no path that is guaranteed to win. It is a gamble from the very beginning.
Now, their clansmen scattered around Jiannan Road are all working for King Rong, and they who are in prison are also playing the role of manipulating public opinion for King Rong.
On the day when the imperial court sent out the troops, Cui Wei heard the commotion outside. An elderly jailer spat at him through the cold prison bars and said, "The troops sent out this time are the Xuan Ce Army. When they report victory, the imperial court will execute you. Who dares to stop us?"
At that time, Cui Wei did not refute, but just sat there numbly.
Duan Shiang's defeat in Luoyang gave the court the confidence to send troops, and his father's decision made him feel strangely fortunate: at least, the person who caused Duan Shiang's defeat was Chang Suining.
At this moment, as the snow fell, Cui Wei closed his eyes and smiled silently and sadly.
When the capital was covered in the first snow, the Lingnan area was still relatively warm.
Seven days ago, an imperial envoy arrived in Daozhou with a secret decree, ordering Xiao Min to mobilize troops as soon as possible and head to Lingnan Road.
Xiao Min suggested that he be given half a month to wipe out the remnants of Bian Chunliang before heading to Lingnan, but the imperial envoy flatly refused.
After Li Xian's death, Xiao Min pursued Bian Chunliang all the way to Daozhou and recaptured several cities. Now all the remaining troops of Bian Chunliang are less than 5,000 people.
Along the way, Xiao Min knew that his actions were not quick enough. He should have eliminated Bian Chunliang earlier, but Bian Chunliang was in desperate situations several times, but he always managed to find a glimmer of hope...
Xiao Min knew very well that what caused all this was not the difference in status between him and Bian Chunliang, but the influence of public opinion.
Especially near Daozhou, this is the place where Bian Chunliang started the rebellion. In the eyes of many people, it was because they had suffered unfair treatment from the court that Bian Chunliang wanted to seek justice for them.
Most of them did not say it explicitly, but in their hearts they all regarded Bian Chunliang as a hero who savior the world.
Xiao Min has been dealing with the local people for a long time, preventing them from rioting, but he has yet to confirm Bian Chunliang's hiding place.
Xiao Min was still somewhat uneasy as Bian Chunliang was still alive, but the imperial envoy had already taken back his military token and then handed him the golden bronze red flag scepter representing his status as a military governor.
(Today is an update after having two wisdom teeth extracted in one go and receiving an IV drip for pain relief)
Good night!
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