Chapter 395: Ten Years, Huo Qubing
"General Wei is back."
The maid of the Pepper Room walked into the hall excitedly, and after paying respect to the Queen, she said happily: "My Lady, General Wei has returned to the court. It is said that he won another victory and gained a lot. People in the court and the public say that Your Majesty is going to make General Wei a Grand General this time?"
The queen stood up suddenly, with uncontrollable joy on her face. She was extremely beautiful, especially her black and smooth hair, which was extremely elegant and graceful. She paced in the hall, anxiously waiting for Wei Qing to come.
In Chang'an, Wei Qing went to the palace as soon as he returned. The emperor and his minister smiled at each other. Liu Che was excited and praised him, saying, "Wei Qing, you did a good job. These three attacks have dealt a heavy blow to the arrogance of the Xiongnu and greatly boosted the morale of our Han army. It's a pity that the Han army only has you, Wei Qing, and the others are all good-for-nothings. What's the point of being a general if you can't win?"
Wei Qing was always cautious and said, "I was born in a humble family. I have only achieved what I have today because of your Majesty's trust and protection, plus some luck. I really don't deserve your majesty's praise."
Liu Che waved his hand and said, "You don't have to be so modest. I think you, Wei Qing, are no worse than those famous generals in ancient times. Marquis Zhongyi recommended you, Marquis Huaiyin praised you, and I used you. This proves that you are capable.
In this expedition against the Huns, you were the only one among the five armies to achieve a great victory, while the others all returned empty-handed. I am going to appoint you as the general at the court meeting, and I am sure no one will be able to say anything.
The Marquis of Huaiyin had never been interested in the position of general, and only wanted to be a noble official. And it is your Yue family, so everything is ready. It means that God wants you to be the general of our Han Dynasty.
Don't refuse anymore, go to the Queen's palace to visit her, she must be missing you very much, and then wait to receive the seal of the general."
After hearing this, Wei Qing thanked the Queen and left the palace to go to the Pepper Room. After entering the palace, he bowed and said, "Your Highness Qing pays respect to the Queen. May the Queen be well and safe."
"Why are you being polite to your sister?"
Wei Zifu pulled him up and turned him around to see if he was injured. After a glance, she felt relieved and said with a smile, "It's good that you are okay. You are the only one left in the Wei family. If something happened to you, I really don't know how to explain it to my parents and ancestors.
I heard that His Majesty wants to make you a general?"
Wei Qing replied, "Yes, when I met His Majesty just now, His Majesty said that he would appoint Qing as the general during the court meeting."
Upon hearing this, Wei Zifu smiled softly and said, "Ten years ago, who would have thought that my Wei family would be able to achieve what it is today? You and I are siblings, one is the queen, and the other is a general. We are extremely wealthy and prosperous."
Wei Qing couldn't help but feel emotional when he heard this. The soldier who was exiled to guard the border because of his master's crime, fought his way to the position of general with every sword and knife. He was considered a legend in the entire Han military system.
Ten years ago, the Han Dynasty fought against the Huns for the first time. The then general Jiang Zhongyihou led the army out of the border. Wei Qing killed the deputy king of Zuoxianwang and captured thousands and hundreds of households, making the greatest contribution. He was also recommended by Zhou Yafu, and he stood out and joined the imperial guards.
Then, after experiencing the death of King Zhaosheng and Prime Minister Jia Yi begging for his bones in old age, the Huns gradually increased the frequency of their invasions. Liu Che learned from the previous experience and formulated a more prudent plan.
Wei Qing made great contributions again this time, and he was the only captain who captured more than two thousand soldiers. Therefore, he was granted the title of Guannei Hou according to his merits, and was also granted the title of general, which qualified him to lead a route alone.
He suddenly became prosperous but had no background, and his sponsor Zhou Yafu had already passed away. It was actually a very dangerous time. In real history, Wei Zifu was his backer, but in this world, Wei Qing relied on military merits to rise to power and did not have such a strong umbrella of protection. But at this time, Wei Qing ushered in the two biggest turning points in his life.
The first one was that a Han army captain he rescued during the battle against the Huns was the son-in-law of Huaiyin Han. After Wei Qing rescued him, he quickly returned the favor by helping Wei Qing get married to the daughter of the then general, Huaiyin Hou Han Liang. Huaiyin Hou Han Liang might not be very good at fighting, but as an old noble, he had really strong connections, which reduced a lot of hidden arrows shot at him from behind, making him a person with a background.
The second turning point was that Wei Qing wrote a memorial about his experiences on the grassland and his tactics against the Huns, titled "A Memorial on Experiences on the Grassland", and presented it to Emperor Liu Che. This made Liu Che completely interested in Wei Qing, and he believed that he was a true general, and that such talents were rare in the huge Han court, and that he was worth cultivating.
It was not as difficult for the emperor of the Han Dynasty to leave the palace as it was for the emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Liu Che went straight to Wei Qing's house with the palace maids and guards. Then Wei Qing's sister Wei Zifu was favored by Liu Che because of her beautiful hair and charming figure.
Liu Che had been emperor for quite a while, but he had no son. This was a worry in his heart. The key was not that he was incapable of having children, as he had princesses one after another, but he just had no son. Although no one in the court or the public said anything about it, the most suspicious thing was that no one had ever mentioned it. When Liu Che was the Prince of Liang, he only had the Princess of Liang, but no Queen. After he became emperor, he never had a Queen. Anyone with a discerning eye knew that Liu Che was just waiting for his son to be born, so that the mother would be honored by the son and the son would be honored by the mother, and he would make the prince the eldest son and increase the legitimacy of his succession.
Wei Zifu was very much favored by Emperor Liu Che. How much of this was because of his love for Wei Qing is unknown. Wei Zifu was very lucky and gave birth to Liu Che's eldest son, so she became the queen. Wei Qing's status instantly rose to prominence. He was not only the son-in-law of the Marquis of Huaiyin, but also the emperor's brother-in-law. In addition, he had military achievements to support him, so he was very confident. Everyone knew that Wei Qing's rise was unstoppable.
Sure enough, in the three campaigns against the Huns organized by the imperial court, Wei Qing achieved great success each time. Not only was he granted a title and founded a country, he also continued to be promoted. Until this time, he was about to stand at the pinnacle of the Han military.
Great General!
Apart from the fact that Huaiyin Wumu Hou held both the seals of the prime minister and the general, there is no higher position than this.
"Aunt, uncle!"
Wei Zifu and Wei Qing were chatting and sighing when suddenly a clear voice came from outside. Hearing this voice, Wei Zifu smiled and said to Wei Qing: "This kid is reckless all day long. He wants to follow you to fight the Huns. He said he wants to let the Huns see his bravery."
Wei Qing shook his head helplessly. Fighting a war is not that simple. One has to grow step by step. Even the Marquis Wu Mu of Huaiyin had seen a lot before he could win every battle.
As they were talking, a rather heroic young man walked in, he looked no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, and was dressed in a silk suit embroidered with gorgeous patterns. He looked very energetic, and exuded a natural nobility. He had an uplifting spirit, like a sharp sword, which made people feel a chill.
This person is Wei Qing’s nephew, Huo Qubing!
Compared to Wei Zifu and Wei Qing who suffered a lot, Huo Qubing's life was much happier. When he was still young and did not understand much, Wei Qing had already made his mark. Although the Wei family was not yet prominent, it was not a bad family no matter how well they were treated. Soon after that, Wei Zifu entered the palace and gave birth to the prince. Huo Qubing often entered the palace, and Liu Che liked his personality and doted on him.
If we use a person as an analogy, he is somewhat similar to Luo Jing during the reign of Liu Heng. Huo Qubing grew up in such an environment. He was a true royal minister, so close that he could not be any closer.
Huo Qubing walked into the hall with the gait of a dragon and a tiger. After entering the hall, he went straight to where Wei Zifu was. With obvious joy on his face, he bowed and said, "Aunt, I wish you all the best. I am sorry to bother you again."
Wei Zifu looked at Huo Qubing's happy face and asked, "You look so happy, what's the good news?"
Huo Qubing saluted Wei Qing again, and then said in a loud voice: "My uncle has won a great victory, and as a nephew, I am naturally happy. Moreover, my uncle just promised me that the next time my uncle goes to fight the Xiongnu, he will allow me to lead the troops to participate in the war against the Xiongnu."
When these words came out, Wei Zifu was immediately shocked and said: "Qubing, you are only fifteen or sixteen years old, why are you in such a hurry? With your aunt and uncle here, are you afraid that you won't have a chance?
It won’t be too late to go to war in a few years.”
Fifteen or sixteen is indeed too young. The Han army is now taking the route of elite troops, and there is no such young among the regular soldiers. However, Huo Qubing smiled and said, "Uncle is returning to the army for rest this time. The next time he wants to attack, it will probably be a year or two later. By then, my nephew will be sixteen or seventeen years old. Moreover, my nephew is in good health. The princes of Luo State in those days were able to travel across the countries at a young age. They are all examples for my nephew."
Looking at Huo Qubing who was eager to try, Wei Qing did not react too much. He was going to become a general soon, and would be the chief commander of all the troops when he went to war. As long as he brought Huo Qubing with him and did not run too far, there would be no danger at all.
Wei Zifu thought about it for a moment and realized the same thing. She was relieved and said, "Listen to your uncle after you go to the battle and don't act on your own."
Huo Qubing naturally agreed verbally, but in his heart he was thinking that he must give everyone a surprise.
Wei Qing and Wei Zifu naturally had no idea what Huo Qubing was thinking, so Huo Qubing began to ask Wei Qing enthusiastically about what he had seen on the grassland and the various intelligence about the Huns to verify his own ideas.
The more they talked, the more they got along. Wei Qing discovered that Huo Qubing really had his own way. "Where did you learn these things? My uncle also learned a part of the Huaiyin Military Strategy before he knew many of them."
Huo Qubing smiled and said, "My uncle gave the Art of War to my nephew, but the Art of War is not something that can be read rigidly. There is no fixed pattern in fighting a war. We should take advantage of the situation. Since my uncle and nephew have the same ideas, they will naturally get the same result."
Hearing this, Wei Qing looked at Huo Qubing solemnly. This truth is not something that everyone can understand. His nephew is really not a simple person.
Thanks to Qianqiu Diyi for the reward, more chapters are on the way
(End of this chapter)
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