Chapter 2276: Grudges (April Monthly Ticket Plus 12)
In fact, his father had clearly scolded Guo Xiao, saying that he was too extravagant. He kept most of the spoils for himself and gave some to his subordinates. However, only the generals in charge could get the spoils. The soldiers under him didn't even get any soup or ice chips.
Of course, he would not tell these words to Bai Shan and the others.
But Bai Shan and Man Bao are not stupid, they both understand what is going on.
General Meng sighed and said, "After the incident came to light, Minister Liu was furious. But such private rules are hard to bring to light. You can't say that the soldiers froze to death because the general didn't distribute the spoils of the previous year. So, this mistake was attributed to the Ministry of Revenue. Minister Liu was dismissed and laid off that year. However, within six months, His Majesty reappointed him. At first, he was only given the position of Secretary, but in just two months, he was promoted ten levels and became Minister again."
Speaking of this young General Meng, he became excited, his voice finally no longer lowered as he said excitedly, "He's at level ten. Although he was promoted after being dismissed and re-entered the government, he's still quite impressive. If we had such ability..."
Manbao and Baishan just happened to think so. Baishan had even calculated that if he had this ability, he would have the hope of retiring before the age of 50.
Bai Shan shook his head, discarding these thoughts, and asked, "Did Minister Liu take revenge on him?"
"That's right," he had just asked Guo Zhao two days ago. He also asked the generals of the Anxi Army and learned more about the grievances.
There is no way. There have been too many rumors about Liu Huan recently. People outside don’t know the inside story and really think that a dandy who loves beauties and money has come to Xizhou City. But General Meng and others know the inside story.
So they couldn't help but discuss it privately, and this discussion inevitably led to exchanges. In this exchange, some eyewitnesses of the time quietly revealed the grievances.
He also followed their example and lowered his voice, "It's just a rumor, it's not confirmed yet, don't tell anyone."
Manbao and Baishan didn't care what it was, they just nodded in agreement. Isn't that how secrets are told?
He lowered his voice even more, "They all say that General Guo couldn't be made a marquis because Minister Liu secretly spoke ill of him in front of the emperor."
Manbao: "...can he be made a marquis?"
General Meng choked. He didn't expect that she would question this first. Shouldn't she ask whether it was true or not first?
He said: "Based on his merits, he can still be made a marquis."
He listed them, "For example, Hou Ji, and my father. They were all made marquises. Back then, his contributions were equal to my father's and Hou Ji's. He was a good fighter. When Your Majesty wanted to take Gaochang, he was the first person you considered. But later you didn't use him because Minister Liu said he led the troops without caring about his subordinates. Gaochang is a long way to go, and if he treated the soldiers harshly, it might cause chaos. So, Hou Ji was the last person to be chosen."
But Hou Ji was not a good person either. Although he was more compassionate to his subordinates, he was also very greedy and cruel. After the fall of Gaochang Kingdom, he handed over less than one-tenth of the treasures in the palace, and even asked the Ministry of Revenue for a large amount of military funds. Otherwise, the prince would not have brought him to the court in anger and confronted him head-on.
The last one even thought about rebelling because of this.
General Meng pondered for a moment and felt that the Western Regions were poisonous. He wondered whether Gaochang was unlucky to have encountered such a commander twice, or whether both commanders were unlucky to have ended up in this impoverished Western Regions at the same time.
Well, putting such a greedy and extravagant commander in the Western Regions can be considered a punishment, right?
General Meng came back to his senses and concluded, "Anyway, that's it. General Guo is not young anymore. It will be difficult for him to be granted a title of nobility if he is not granted one now. So you see, he has been thinking about taking over Kucha recently. He also wants to move the Anxi Protectorate to Kucha after conquering Kucha. That way he can better keep an eye on the Western Turks and deter Tubo. If his plan is passed, he will most likely be granted a title of nobility based on his merits next year." Unless Minister Liu speaks ill of him again, and the emperor listens.
However, ruining someone's future is like killing their parents. General Meng felt that if that were really the case, it would be no wonder that General Guo hated Minister Liu so much.
However, deep down, he also felt that General Guo was not worthy of being granted a title of nobility. Moreover, it was a grudge between elders, and it would be inappropriate to involve Liu Huan.
Manbao and the others also figured it out. It seems that the saying "it's better to resolve a feud than to create one" doesn't apply to General Guo and Liu Huan. So they and General Meng said enthusiastically, "When General Guo comes back, if we're still in the city, remember to bring him over to play with us."
Bai Shan said, "Although the elders have some grudges, it has nothing to do with us young people. General Guo and Liu Huan are cousins. There is really no need to create a rift over this."
General Meng couldn't help but give them a thumbs up. "Your idea is really powerful. If Young Master Liu and Guo Zhao have a good relationship, will General Guo still make things difficult for Young Master Liu? Hahahaha..."
Bai Shan and Man Bao looked at General Meng who was laughing heartily. Just as they were considering whether to give him a perfunctory smile, he stopped smiling and asked doubtfully, "Am I wrong?"
Manbao: "That's not right. I think General Guo is a good person. He must have advised his father. But General Guo has been very active recently. It is obvious that he doesn't care much about General Guo..."
Manbao omitted the last two words and openly sowed discord.
But General Meng thought about it carefully and actually had such doubts.
Thinking of this, he disliked General Guo even more, so he also wanted to move out of the Protectorate, but unfortunately he couldn't find a good excuse.
He touched his stomach and asked Zhou Man, "Master Zhou, how long will it take for me to train after recovering from this injury?"
When I can practice with a gun, I should be able to use the excuse of moving to the military camp and leave.
Manbao said, "Take off your clothes and let me see."
General Meng untied his belt and started to take off his clothes, but halfway through he realized something was wrong and held his clothes for a moment, not knowing whether he should continue.
Bai Shan looked at him, "Why are you looking at me?"
He frowned in disbelief, "Do I need to avoid it?"
General Meng was afraid that he would misunderstand, so he quickly said, "No, no, it's me. You don't mind, right?"
"I don't mind. It's not like I haven't seen it before. Did you forget the needle and thread I handed you when you were stitching up your stomach?"
General Meng: "...I mean, you don't mind letting Lord Zhou see my belly, right?"
Bai Shan glanced at his belly with a half-smile and said, "What's there to mind? Can your belly be prettier than mine?"
General Meng was speechless, so he simply sped up, pulled out his belt, and lifted his clothes to show her.
Manbao wanted to say something but stopped herself, but when she saw that he was already stripped down like this, she stopped talking and said, "Wait another seven or eight days."
Good night
(End of this chapter)
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