Chapter 327 I can only agree to her
Li Xian touched his forehead to the cold golden bricks in Ganlu Palace, his posture respectful and ashamed.
The Holy Ce Emperor in the dragon throne above lowered his eyes and said, "I know that you have always been hostile to the nobles. The reason you carried out a large-scale massacre in Luoyang this time is not only because you are eager to make meritorious deeds, but also because you want to take the opportunity to take revenge-"
Li Xian's body stiffened slightly, and the words of defense came to his lips, but he swallowed them back and said shamefully: "Yes, Xian knows I was wrong."
Who is his aunt? Trying to play tricks in front of her and hide the truth at this time is just asking for trouble.
"I never said that you shouldn't retaliate against them. Your fault was not in that. Rather, your methods were not thorough enough. You were blinded by the temporary advantage and left others with something to hold against you, thus putting yourself in a passive position."
Li Xian was slightly startled, then he lowered his body even lower: "Yes, thank you for your teachings, Auntie. I'll remember it."
"But you did one thing very well." There was a hint of approval in the emperor's majestic voice: "At least you still know how to adapt. When facing the Zheng family in Xingyang, you did not insist on being cruel and reckless to the end."
She looked at her nephew, who was over thirty years old and resembled her mother, the late Lady of Korea, and said, "You have made some progress in the past few years in the Southern Territory."
Li Xian: "Xian is dull and has a lot to learn."
"You still have a lot to learn." The Holy Ce Emperor looked at him. "Although you are a descendant of the He family, you also have the blood of the Ming family. Most of the young people in the Ming family who are arrogant and extravagant are useless. Therefore, I have high hopes for you... I have kept you in the southern border for the past few years, and I also intend to calm your character."
"Yes, I understand." Li Xian then slowly straightened his lowered upper body and raised his hands to fold them in front of him: "I will definitely not let my aunt down."
"At the morning court tomorrow, there will be many unpleasant voices about your mistakes in Luoyang. You just need to listen and don't have to argue with them." The Holy Ce Emperor said, "As for how to punish, I will know the right measure. But you must remember that at all times, you and I are truly united in facing the outside world."
Li Xian responded respectfully.
"You've had a hard time on this trip, so please go back home for now."
Li Xianxian answered "yes", but after hesitating for a moment, he still said: "Aunt, Xian has something else to say..."
"Do you want to ask about Cui Jing——"
"That's right." Li Xian bowed his head and said, "In the matter of the Zheng family in Xingyang, Cui Jing seemed to be sacrificing his own relatives for the sake of justice, but in fact he was helping the Zheng family members to escape punishment..."
"How could I not know?" The Emperor of the Holy Ce's voice did not reveal any emotion: "But now the Cui family has expelled him from the clan. Now everyone in the world knows that he is Cui Jing, the general of the Xuan Ce Army, and not Cui Jing, the eldest grandson of the Qinghe Cui family—"
"What's more, he has always been thorough in his actions and has almost never made any mistakes. Even if I want to take back the military power of the Xuan Ce Army, I can't find a reason for the time being."
"There has been unrest everywhere recently. This major event of changing military power could affect the entire body. Now in the eyes of the world and the Xuan Ce Army, he betrayed his fellow nobles in order to remain loyal to me... If I take away his military power without reason at this time, I am afraid it will provoke the Xuan Ce Army to rebel."
"So, now we have to wait for another opportunity, and before that, we can only take it step by step." The Emperor of the Holy Ce looked at Li Xian and said, "Therefore, I will let Cui Jing stay in the northern border, and let you lead 70,000 Xuan Ce troops back to the capital-"
Xuan Ce's army has a total of 150,000 troops. Cui Jing took 80,000 with him when he went to the northern border. These 70,000 were previously taken to Luoyang by Li Xian. Now they are returning to continue garrisoning the capital.
"I know what you want, but before that, you must have the ability and prestige to convince them to return to their hearts and minds. Li Xian, do you understand?"
Thinking of the fruitless return from Luoyang, and even the failure to fight Xu Zhengye's army, Li Xian felt an irritation of bad luck. He also thought of Chang Suining, who had taken all the credit, being respected by the people at this moment, and even relying on his credit to openly ask for the position of Jiangdu governor.
But he never showed any emotion on his face, and only replied with shame: "Yes, I understand."
"I will give you enough opportunities to prove yourself and establish your prestige." The Holy Ceremonial Emperor finally said, "But whether you can grasp it depends on whether you have the ability to do so."
After weighing the pros and cons, she would rather hand over power to her relatives whose interests are closely linked to her survival, but this trust will never be blind or unconditional.
After Li Xian left the Ganlu Palace, the Emperor of the Holy Ce said to himself, "Among these young people, no one can compare to Ah Shang."
If among these people, there could be one or two with the qualifications of Ashang, she would not have to settle for second best and take the trouble to train and support Li Xian and others who can only be described as mediocre.
Only Yu Zeng, who was standing beside him, could hear the emperor's words.
Yu Zeng vaguely felt that His Majesty seemed to have mentioned His Highness quite frequently recently... Was it because the current situation was unstable that he always remembered how precious His Highness was?
Inexplicably, Yu Zeng thought of the girl who stood out in this chaos.
When he was distracted for a moment, he heard the emperor suddenly ask, "How is the wine I asked you to brew?"
Yu Zeng regained his composure and said, "Your Majesty, it will be ready for extraction in another three or two days."
The Emperor of the Holy Book nodded.
As it darkened outside the palace, lights were lit one after another in various places in the palace.
A palace servant brought the elixir and helped the emperor take it.
When the night engulfed the entire palace city, Master Tianjing, who was summoned by the emperor, came with a whisk in his arm.
The Emperor of the Holy Ce had a rare moment of leisure, and he talked about Taoism with Master Tianjing alone, hoping to find the answer from Taoism.
Imperial Master Tianjing heard the emperor's hidden meaning beyond the law, so he asked, "Your Majesty, are you hesitating whether to agree to General Ningyuan's appointment as the governor of Jiangdu?"
The Holy Ce Emperor did not deny it, and said, "Some of them said that if this precedent is set, everyone will follow suit, take credit for themselves, and demand important positions... If this continues, where will the dignity of the court be?"
State Master Tianjing smiled and said, "You are worrying too much. General Ning Yuan's achievements are not something that everyone can emulate."
This world is so big, but there is only one General Ningyuan.
The Emperor of the Holy Ce also smiled slightly: "Yes, that's what Master Chu said. Master Chu said that if everyone can achieve such a great feat, let alone the position of governor of a state, even if he gives up the position of Minister of Rites, it is not impossible-"
The Grand Tutor's words were very righteous, but many court officials at the time felt that there was something ulterior in his words... After all, everyone could see that the Grand Tutor wanted to resign.
Tianjing stroked his silver beard, his eyes were very clear: "If General Ningyuan was not His Highness, but an ordinary general, would the Saint still be so hesitant in the face of such a request?"
"No matter who it is, as long as this person has a hope of defending Yangzhou, I can only agree to it under such circumstances." The Emperor of the Holy Ce said: "I cannot indulge the Japanese army's rampage... Otherwise, I will become an eternal sinner in the history books."
And she knew that the one who had the best chance of repelling the Japanese army was A Shang.
Tianjing asked, "If that is the case, then why are you hesitating, Your Majesty? Are you afraid that General Ningyuan might harbor ulterior motives and seize Jiangdu to establish his own regime?"
The Emperor of the Holy Ceremonies remained silent for a moment, only looking at the urgent reports that were almost piled up like a mountain at hand. Nowadays, it is normal to have people with ulterior motives.
Tianjing sighed and said, "Your Majesty, you might as well change your thinking sometimes. Put down the rebellion of the Xu bandits and defend Jiangdu against the Japanese army... At least in the overall situation at this time, General Ningyuan is helping Your Majesty and is in agreement with Your Majesty in dealing with foreign enemies."
"Yes, she is only helping me and exchanging what she wants with me." The Holy Ceremonial Emperor's eyes are still on the urgent reports: "She uses military merit to exchange for everything she can use to strengthen herself... She is making a deal with me openly, just like when she faced her father."
After a pause, the Holy Cemeter Emperor's voice became even slower: "So, she treats me as an emperor, not a mother."
After hearing this, Tianjing suddenly understood.
It turns out that what really made the emperor uneasy and concerned was the difference between being an emperor and being a mother.
He was certainly not so naive as to think that this king was really only obsessed with regaining the lost mother-daughter affection. What she really valued was perhaps the natural interest binding that the mother-daughter relationship could bring.
The emperor was good at political tactics and was also good at using the identity of "mother".
Without the guarantee of this solid family relationship, everything brought by General Ning Yuan would be uncontrollable for the emperor.
He should have advised His Majesty to be more open-minded and not be so obsessed with holding everything in his hands and ignoring the true way of reconciliation, but...
Tianjing shook his head in his heart.
However, it is this extraordinary desire for control that drives this Majesty to this position step by step.
She exists to control.
He had tried to persuade her, but to no avail, and nothing and no one could shake her.
Tianjing could only say: "Your Majesty should focus on the present..."
"At this moment..." The Holy Ceremonial Emperor said slowly, "I can only agree to her request."
However, she must find her Ah Shang back. Whether it is out of the emperor's skill or out of a mother's heart to make amends, she must find Ah Shang back.
…
The next day, at the morning court, Emperor Shengce finally agreed to General Ningyuan's proposal to be appointed as the governor of Jiangdu.
Some officials still tried to object, but it was doomed to fail.
Hearing that the emperor had issued an order to draft an imperial decree, Wei Shuyi breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. Recently, this matter has been pending. He dreams of Chang Suining almost every night, and his dreams are very scary. Her head is not on her neck, but always held in her hands...
To others, her words "bring your head with you", her act of putting her head on the gambling table, might have been just a statement of determination...but because he knew too much, these words involuntarily became a clear picture in his mind.
For someone who is afraid of ghosts, this scene is almost vicious.
Now she got what she wanted, and the head in her hand could finally be put back to rest temporarily.
Maybe he should write her a congratulatory letter...if he could muster up the courage.
At the morning court session, in addition to finalizing the appointment of Chang Suining as the governor of Jiangdu, Chang Kuo's reward was also decided.
After the morning court session, the imperial decree of reward first arrived at the Mansion of the General of Cavalry in Xingningfang - however, the plaque would soon be changed to the Mansion of the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery.
Chang Kuo was granted the title of Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery for his merits and was granted a fief of 1,000 households.
His daughter, Chang Suining, was appointed as the third-rank governor of Jiangdu and served as the chief commander in the anti-Japanese campaign, resisting the Japanese army and guarding Jiangdu.
Doctor Sun, who was called to the front hall to listen to the imperial decree, was dumbfounded.
The girl who asked him to see a doctor became the first female governor of Dasheng in the blink of an eye, and the general's mansion that he had occupied became a marquis's mansion... Is he, a dove, so lucky?
Doctor Sun quickly got this arrogant idea out of his mind. Everyone could see who the Wang family belonged to.
This girl from the Chang family is more than just a prosperous family.
…
After Li Xian left the palace, on his way back to the Duke of Korea's mansion, he passed by Xingningfang and met the eunuch who was delivering the imperial edict coming out of Xingningfang.
A sneer flashed in Li Xian's eyes and he lowered the carriage curtain.
At the morning court today, those officials impeached him for the massacre of the gentry in Luoyang. My aunt followed those voices, reprimanded him, and fined him three years of food salary from the Duke of Han's mansion, which barely settled the matter.
Even though he had said yesterday, he knew that today's punishment was only for "outsiders" to see, but seeing the Chang father and daughter being treated so gloriously, he felt uncomfortable.
Li Xian returned to the mansion of Duke Hanguo, and his wife, Lady Hanguo, helped him change out of his court clothes.
Long before he inherited the title of Duke of Han, Li Xian had already married and had children. However, he had been far away in the southern border for the past few years, so his wives and concubines, along with the couples of the second and third wives, stayed in the Duke of Han's Mansion in the capital.
Finally, Li Xian returned to the capital, and his wives and concubines were all very happy and attentive.
But there is one thing that makes them unhappy...
While helping Li Xian change his clothes, Lady Korea hesitated for a long time, but finally talked about the foreign woman named Allan.
Arlan was a foreign woman brought back by her husband. Although she was jealous, it was understandable. A man had been away for many years, so it was nothing to have more women around him...
Women of other races were not uncommon. In the West Market, such women were very common and were often bought and sold as slaves. There were so-called Hu Ji and Kunlun Slave, but they were just like cats and dogs, kept as toys.
But my husband is very fond of this thing. The last time he went to Luoyang, he even carried it with him all the time... When he returned home yesterday, he even let this thing pick any courtyard it liked to live in!
Naturally, the women in the mansion were unhappy about this, so two concubines went to Allan's residence last night and said some harsh words, but who knew...
"...After Aunt Qing left Allan's place yesterday, she suddenly developed rashes all over her body. It would have been fine if it was just her, but Aunt Cheng who went with her also developed a high fever for no apparent reason, which has not subsided yet. We asked a doctor to see her, but he couldn't figure out the cause... The maids around the two aunts all said that this might be some kind of witchcraft! Duke, what do you think..."
Lady Han Guogong wanted to continue speaking, but was met with a cold gaze from Li Xian.
"Didn't I tell you not to bother her?"
The wife of the Duke of Han said in a panic: "Duke, I have never..."
The next moment, Li Xian suddenly pinched her chin and said, "I value Allan because she has something worth my attention... Madam, you should also do your part, take care of the harem, and be a useful person, understand?"
"Yes..." Lady Han Guogong nodded in panic: "I'll make a note of it."
After not seeing him for several years, the Duke had changed a lot and she almost couldn't recognize him.
And that Allan... Was it really just a coincidence that the two aunts suddenly fell ill?
…
When the imperial envoy who delivered the imperial decree rushed to Yangzhou, letters of congratulation also flew to Yangzhou from various places.
On this day, the imperial envoy finally arrived in Yangzhou. Chang Suining and Chang Kuo received the imperial edict together. Behind them, a group of people knelt down.
After the imperial edict was read out, Chang Suining took the imperial edict, gold and silk, and the governor's jade seal, held them in his hands, with a calm expression and a clear voice: "Your Highness, I, Chang Suining, thank you for your grace."
"Governor Chang, please stand up quickly!" The imperial eunuchs supported him on both sides, smiling warmly and flatteringly: "Your Majesty, please stand up as well!"
When Chang Suining stood up, the imperial envoy smiled and said, "...The saint has another thing, and he has repeatedly told us to hand it over to Governor Chang in person without any mistakes."
Having said this, he had it carried up.
Chang Suining looked and saw two large boxes.
Chang Kuo asked: "Excuse me, sir, what is this?"
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