Chapter 32
The reward is the title of county marquis?
If the first half of Liu Hong's sentence, which mentioned the debate between Qiao Yan and Zhang Jue, and the Yellow Turbans of Jizhou's breach of trust with the Great Sage Teacher, was already a bombshell, then the second half of his sentence was really going to overturn the court.
Yuan Wei had no time to think about Liu Hong's denial of him, saying "this is really absurd", and he hurriedly said: "I hope Your Majesty will think twice before deciding on the position of marquis."
Not to mention that conferring a title of nobility was already an act of usurpation for him.
Now, His Majesty actually said that he wanted to confer the title of county marquis on Qiao Yan.
This is simply not possible!
Even if this woman really had outstanding contributions, before knowing her gender, Yuan Wei still thought about winning her over from the standpoint of the Runan Yuan family. However, he really shouldn't have skipped several procedures and directly conferred her the title of county marquis!
As the highest position in the current Han Dynasty's marquisate procedure, the county marquis can establish a country based on the county, which is equivalent to having further autonomy in the marquisate's territory, and multiple official positions can be given within the county.
"Your Majesty, please think twice!"
Amid the irrepressible noise from the crowd below, Yuan Wei's voice reached Liu Hong's ears particularly loudly.
Because of this repetition of "think twice", Liu Hong's nerves, which were already extremely sensitive because of three landmines caused by his one suggestion, continued to be irritated.
"Yuan Situ."
As soon as Liu Hong opened his mouth, the crowd suddenly fell silent.
Everyone could tell that although Yuan Situ's words sounded gentle, they gave people a sense that a storm was about to come.
"Your Majesty, please speak." Yuan Wei realized that his behavior was a little too radical and quickly straightened his expression.
"You said I should think twice, but how is it against our ancestors' old rules to let a meritorious official be awarded the title of county marquis?"
Liu Hong had already sat down again when he said this.
Although he did not look as tense as he had been before, Yuan Wei had once witnessed Liu Hong making the decision to build the Hongdu School, and he couldn't help but feel that his current look was even worse than him getting directly angry.
"It is indeed not in the written rules of our ancestors, but it is not appropriate for a woman to hold the title of county marquis."
Yuan Wei bowed and returned, holding the hu tablet. "Qiao Yan is no more than a ten-year-old child. Although he has been fortunate enough to gain meritorious service, his knowledge is still shallow and he is not qualified to govern a county. It would be better to train him a little and follow the example of Empress Dowager Hexi, who enlisted meritorious officials, restored the royal family, and promoted virtue."
As soon as he finished speaking, he heard Liu Hong sneer, "Lu Zigan recorded the debate between Qiao Yan and Zhang Jiao in the letter. When I read it, I saw a talented person jumping out of the paper, but he became a person of shallow knowledge in the mouth of you, Yuan Situ. Well!"
Liu Hong threw the memorial in his hand aside, pressed his hand on the memorial, and said, "Minister Yuan, I might as well imitate Qiao Yan and debate with you three times."
When Yuan Wei heard this, he knelt on the ground.
Among the brothers of Yuan's generation, he was the youngest, but he was the first to sit on the position of one of the Three Dukes. However, even so, he would not dare to debate with the current emperor in a court meeting even if he had a hundred courage.
He quickly replied: "I dare not."
"You don't dare? Then just listen."
Liu Hong seemed a little sleepy before, but now some brave people used the tablet to cover their eyes and secretly looked at him. They saw that his eyes were different and he was clearly more awake than anyone else.
But when they thought of Liu Hong's outrageous actions, they no longer had any expectations of his seemingly wise ruler, and were left with only sympathy for Yuan Wei.
Naturally, there were some among them who were not happy to see Qiao Yan being conferred a title of nobility, but they all knew Liu Hong's style very well, and they also knew that he was a typically stingy person. Even if he really gave away the position of county marquis, it might not necessarily give out much power. But Yuan Wei just wanted to offend him, so now he had to be the first to be beaten by Liu Hong.
However, Yuan Wei has always been eloquent. If he can withstand the pressure from Your Majesty and dissuade the emperor from granting him the title of county marquis, it would be a good thing.
This is what He Jin thought.
He gained the title of Marquis Shen by "discovering" the conspiracy of Zhang Jiao's disciple Ma Yuanyi in the capital, which could be said to have protected the safety of the capital Luoyang.
He was a man of the rank of marquis, and it would make him unhappy if a little girl was placed on the same level with him.
He Jin did not realize that Liu Hong's sudden anger and outburst was partly due to his contribution.
At this moment, he felt the necessity of power even more because he saw that the Ru'nan Yuan family, who had three generations of officials in their family, were in such an embarrassing state in the court.
He thought to himself that he had to put his nephew on the throne.
By then, relying on his status as a relative by marriage, he would have a position second only to the emperor in the capital.
Just as he thought of this, he heard Liu Hong speak and quickly put away his thoughts.
The emperor sitting at the top was no longer the puppet he had been in the past. He said calmly, "I remember that Yuan Situ's wife was from the Fufeng Ma family?"
"......?" Yuan Wei raised his head from his prone position in confusion, totally not understanding why Liu Hong would ask such a question at this time.
Didn’t he say there would be three debates? Why did he suddenly mention his wife?
But since it was a question from the emperor, he could only answer with a "yes".
"I heard that when Situ Yuan married his wife, he asked her three harsh questions." Liu Hong looked at him with a half-smile, completely ignoring the embarrassment on Yuan Wei's face when he realized what he was going to say. "The Ma family of Fufeng has produced many great architects, and Ma Rong is a famous scholar in the world with outstanding talents in astronomy and calendar. His daughter has a lot of her father's style, and she is a good match for the Yuan family of Runan. Situ Yuan is not proud of marrying this girl, but..."
"Gentlemen, why don't you listen to what Yuan Situ has to say?"
"His first question was why the lady brought such a large dowry. However, Ma was known for her filial piety, so she replied that this was the kindness of her parents and she dared not disobey. If the husband wanted to emulate Bao Xuan and Liang Hong, the lady could also emulate the young master Meng Guang and practice frugality."
"The second question is even more interesting. He said that Ma Rong and Ma Jichang accepted the recommendation before their brothers, and everyone laughed at them. Their wives also got married before their sisters. Was it okay for them to go first? Minister Yuan, how could a young man from a family with three dukes for four generations ask this question?"
Yuan Wei's face turned red.
But Liu Hong was determined to teach this important official in the court a lesson as a punishment for his misconduct, so he would never give him this face.
He himself was used to being carefree, and now he had the results of suppressing the Yellow Turban Rebellion on his desk, which was equivalent to having the capital to draw the sword, so he continued:
"Ma has a love for her siblings, and she said that her sister is of high character and has never met a good match. Unlike her, who is of low character, she is willing to yield to you." Liu Hong even laughed at himself, "She is right! You, Yuan Situ, are really short-sighted!"
"The third question is even more bizarre, and it was asked by a new son-in-law. He said that the father-in-law was an unrivaled scholar and writer, but was demoted because of his greed for money when he was an official. What's the reason?" Liu Hong sneered again when he said this.
Yuan Wei had raised his head earlier to try to see the emperor's expression, but now he lowered it completely again.
He never thought that Liu Hong would remember all these things clearly from so many years ago. At this moment, he suddenly attacked. Not to mention that the emperor's evaluation was like a sword to him, the looks from his colleagues around him made him feel like a thorn in his back.
As for why it is on the back...
He is one of the three highest officials and is in the first row.
He now feels that this position is really difficult.
"Ma is really talented. She used her father-in-law's derogatory words to say that Confucius, a great sage, could not escape the slander of Wu Shu; Zilu, a great virtuous man, was still complained by Bo Liao. After getting married, she managed the household affairs for Yuan Situ and raised his son to be a talented person. She is really a great virtuous woman. Since Yuan Situ could not even refute his wife, how could he have the face to say that Qiao Yan was shallow!"
"If the loyalty and filial piety of this girl Qiao Yan is not worthy of a high rank of marquis, to show our great Han's reward for the capable, then you, Yuan Situ, who has asked three questions that show your treachery and your words are not as good as a girl's, you'd better resign your position as soon as possible. What are you doing as Situ?"
As Liu Hong pressed on step by step, Yuan Wei now understood why he did not talk about the topics of the first and second debates. The intelligence he had about his ministers was enough to force him into such a situation when it was "necessary". Why bother with the two later debates?
"…I…I am terrified."
"Fear...ha." Liu Hong's eyes were behind him.
A quick glance across the back.
He knew in his heart that although he had harshly rebuked Yuan Wei, he had no intention of really removing him from the position of Si Tu.
The Yuan family of Runan and the scholars they represented would definitely be promoted and given important positions by him after the Factions and Factions Persecution. It would be better to use people like Yuan Wei who were just occupying the position but doing nothing.
The warnings to him now are enough, and all that is left is to add fuel to the fire of what he wants to achieve.
Liu Hong grabbed the report at hand and threw it towards Yuan Wei. "have a look."
The report was thrown in front of Yuan Wei. He did not dare to look at Liu Hong's expression at this time. He just reached out and picked up the report.
Although Lu Zhi did not write down the conversation between Qiao Yan and Zhang Jiao on the spot, in the Han Dynasty, although this type of paper became popular due to Caihou paper, it still had serious preservation and manufacturing problems. Most scholars still tended to use bamboo slips and silk books, and rely on their own memory. It is precisely because of this that it is not difficult to retell it when writing this memorial.
The theories of astrology and astronomy in the first debate, the medical knowledge in the second debate, and the Buddhist and Taoist teachings in the third debate all made Yuan Wei more and more frightened.
This was indeed not a battle of three debates that could be explained away by luck, and it was in the record of this debate that no matter how much Yuan Wei disagreed with the conferring of a title on a woman, he had to admit that Liu Hong did need to reward Qiao Yan.
Because Qiao Yan used facts to prove that the strange phenomena in the sky did not mean that the emperor was immoral, but that the sun and the moon were clearly following the rules. Although this statement somewhat affected the saying that the imperial career was indeed a gift from heaven, under the current situation, Liu Hong and Yuan Wei knew the principle of choosing the lesser of two evils.
For the Han Dynasty, which is plagued by frequent natural disasters, these are words that can save the country.
Her second argument defined the healing effect of Taiping Dao as leaving residual harm. For the lowest class of people, it was a powerful medicine to undermine the Yellow Turban faith, and had a more far-reaching impact than simply capturing Zhang Jue.
As for the third debate, Zhang Jiao seemed to have accepted his fate and didn't say anything, so it's not worth mentioning.
But concluding the debate with her assertion that astrology, medical principles and Buddhist teachings were all rooted in and developed from the soil of the Han Dynasty was simply the best advocacy and promotion of the Han Dynasty.
What's more, these words came from the mouth of a young child.
Such truth coming from the mouth of a young girl would certainly be much more effective than coming from Zheng Xuan, Lu Zhi and others who were also present.
"…I know I was wrong. Your Majesty should indeed reward me with the title of Marquis."
Of course, although Yuan Wei's thoughts had changed, the words of defection still seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth.
No matter who it is, if he makes an example of him and uses old grudges to attack them, it would probably be difficult for them to recover quickly.
Yuan Wei was already old and could not withstand such torture.
He respectfully presented the memorial to the eunuch who came down to take it, then adjusted the crown on his head and stood back in the original team.
Although he still maintained the demeanor of a noble family and looked like he stood straight, Yang Ci, who was sitting in the same row with him, looked at him and felt that he looked like he was several years older.
Liu Hong did not go on to say anything like "Yuan Wei was not fit to be an official," but Liu Hong's harsh evaluation of him must have left a deep impression on Yuan Wei.
Even if Liu Hong immediately said that what happened today was only known to those present and was strictly prohibited from being spread outside, it probably would not change the impact.
Liu Hong asked again: "Do any of you have any objections to Qiao Yan being made a marquis?"
Apparently no one dared to object to the issue of whether to confer the title of nobility. The example of Yuan Wei raising objections was right in front of them. If they insisted on saying the same thing as him, who knew whether Liu Hong had any other inside information against them.
Between losing face and seeing Qiao Yan become a marquis, they chose the latter.
But someone still spoke at this time.
Yang Ci stepped out and said, "The daughter of the Qiao family is gifted and talented, and she is also loyal to her country. Your Majesty is right. She should be made a marquis, but is it too much to make her a county marquis directly?"
Seeing that Liu Hong did not interrupt him, Yang Ci continued: "This time
Zhu Gongwei, the Right General of the Central Army who suppressed the Yellow Turban Rebellion, was earlier granted a title of marquis for suppressing the Liang Long Rebellion in Jiaozhou, but he was only granted the title of Marquis of Duting. If Your Majesty wants to refer to the female marquises in the early Han Dynasty, Xu Fu could only get the title of Marquis of Ting, which is called Ci Ting. Although Qiao Yan is talented, it is enough to give him the title of Marquis of a Township or Marquis of Duting. Why should he be rewarded with the title of Marquis of a County? ”
Liu Hong remained calm and asked, "Does the Grand Commandant have any grandchildren?"
Yang Ci thought about it and realized that he didn't have any anecdotes about his grandson that Liu Hong could bring up here, so he replied: "I do have a grandson, he is only nine years old, and his name is Xiu."
Liu Hong asked again: "Then, after a hundred years, would you like to see the emperor of the Han Dynasty treat you well because of you?"
Yang Ci felt that he probably had not heard wrongly. Liu Hong's tone in this sentence was much kinder than his previous scolding of Yuan Wei.
He figured that what His Majesty meant was that since he had lifted the ban on party imprisonment, he would naturally give some face to the scholars. He had already dealt a heavy blow to Yuan Wei before, so he would naturally give him a sweet reward now.
It seems...it seems there is no problem.
What's more, his son Yang Biao married the great-great-granddaughter of Yuan An, and was of the same generation as Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu. The two families were considered relatives, and Yang Zheng was the descendant of the Yang-Yuan marriage.
In this case, Your Majesty not only gave him face, but also hinted at honoring Yang Xiu, which was equivalent to returning the face to the Yuan family.
He also heard Liu Hong say, "Your grandfather was a Grand Commandant, and your father was also a Grand Commandant. You are now the third Grand Commandant, and you have the title of Marquis of Linjin. When your children and grandchildren grow up, they will surely be talented people. There is hope that you will become the fourth Grand Commandant. However, all of Grandpa Qiao's children have died, and only Qiao Yan is left. What's wrong with giving her a county marquisate?"
Yang Ci's heart moved.
Liu Hong's words were clearly meant to reassure these old ministers.
Then he thought about what Liu Hong had mentioned before, that when he was judging the merits and distributing rewards, he placed Qiao Yan behind Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi. Under this evaluation standard, since Qiao Yan was to be awarded the title of a county marquis as an exception, then Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi must also be county marquises.
Leaving aside Huangfu Song, Lu Zhi was the backbone among the scholars.
This is not too bad for them.
He immediately replied: "Your Majesty is wise and benevolent. This minister is far from being as good as you."
So the reward is decided.
Yuan Wei was speechless after hearing what Liu Hong said, and Yang Ci also acknowledged in court that there was no problem with Liu Hong's enthronement. Under such circumstances, how could a third person express any objection?
General He Miao looked around and felt that something was not right.
The eldest brother He Jin was asked by His Majesty who he would promote to quell the rebellion in Jingzhou as a sign of favor, but His Majesty did not really give him the opportunity to speak out.
The Grand Commandant Yang Ci was hinted by His Majesty to show favor to his descendants, but it seems that he did not really get any substantial benefits.
But he has always been called stupid by his eldest brother, and he was confused when he heard the officials in the general's mansion talk about things. Maybe he was just overthinking.
He suppressed his thoughts based on the essence of things, and walked out of the hall in small steps along with the other two thousand officials.
But before the fastest of them could walk out of the hall, Liu Hong, who had already stood up and left, suddenly turned back and said, "I forgot one thing while talking, Yuan Situ!"
Yuan Wei had not yet recovered from the trauma of being questioned by Liu Hong. He wished that Liu Hong could not see him. He never expected that he would be called out by Liu Hong again.
His legs subconsciously went limp, but fortunately someone helped him up and he finally stood up straight.
"I am here."
"I remember that although your wife is old, she is in good health and is highly regarded for her intelligence. Tomorrow, she will take over the position of Grand Historian."
Liu Hong calmly dropped another piece of important news, but did not give Yuan Wei any chance to refuse. He left after saying this.
Grand Historian?
Yuan Wei's eyes went dark for a moment.
What is the position of Grand Historian? That was the position in the court that was in charge of astronomy and calendar. Although the salary was only 600 dan, it was not a position that anyone could hold.
But Yuan Wei could not refuse Liu Hong's order!
Because if
He said that he didn't want his wife to take up a government job. If he couldn't even win the debate against his wife, then he wouldn't have any chance of becoming an official at all.
But why did His Majesty suddenly have such an idea? He had already conferred the title of Marquis of a county on Qiao Yan, and...he also wanted his wife to be the Grand Historian!
"Your Majesty, do you intend to protect Ma?" Zhao Zhong asked as Liu Hong was on his way to the Yutang Palace.
Liu Hong glanced at him and said, "Why think so much? I just saw that Ma Rong's two disciples are both accomplished in astronomy. If his daughter can mediate, maybe I can make Zheng Xuan work for me."
Zhao Zhong wanted to ask more, but he saw that the emperor, who had seemed quite wise just now, had become lazy and dissolute. The eunuch, who had already seen through the instructions, brought Liu Hong's carriage over.
There shouldn't be any carriages or horses in the inner courtyard of the palace, but Liu Hong didn't care about that. However, the carriage in front of him, which was covered with exquisite pearls and jade, was not driven by horses, but by four white donkeys.
Liu Hong got on the cart and whipped the horse unscrupulously. The white donkey cart started running in the garden and directly ran over a patch of green plants in the garden.
Zhao Zhong hurriedly followed.
As for these scattered flowers and plants, when Liu Hong passes by this place again tomorrow, someone will definitely come to repair them properly.
Looking at the scene in the palace, how can we tell that outside the eight passes of the capital, the impact of famine and the Yellow Turban Rebellion is still continuing, and the tragic situation of refugees eating their own children will probably not be alleviated even if the rebellion is suppressed.
For example, Jizhou.
Compared with generals like Bu Ji and Bo Cai, Zhang Jue was much better at commanding his subordinates. After all, the status of the Great Sage Master among the Yellow Turbans was no different from that of a god. In addition, Julu was the hometown of the three Zhang brothers, so they would naturally not gather power by destroying the people's livelihood here.
But even so, while waiting for the court's reply, the progress of the campaign to eliminate the Yellow Turban forces also exposed the difficult living conditions of the people in Jizhou to everyone.
Qiao Yan and Cheng Li rode their horses outside the suburbs, and when they looked around they saw almost no human habitation.
This is actually not too strange. Qiao Yan studied history and has some knowledge of population history. The population density in ancient times was not that high.
According to demographic records in 140 AD, 40 years before the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the population density in Julu County was only 72 people per square kilometer.
A very low value.
Of course, if we include the population hiding in the strongholds of the powerful, the number will be much higher than this, but it is still limited.
If not for this, Qiao Yan would not have thought that the 100,000 Yellow Turbans who would have died in Julu were an astonishing population resource.
Even if some of these people were convicted of burning, killing and looting, some would still starve to death due to lack of food, and some would once again seek shelter from new powerful forces, it would still be much better than simply dying for following the Yellow Turbans.
"In your opinion, what kind of measures will the court take against Jizhou?" Cheng Li followed Qiao Yan and talked with Zhang Jiao again yesterday.
It was during this conversation that Cheng Lifang learned that Qiao Yan had not mentioned this when he sought out Zhang Jue for a debate that day, that a considerable portion of the content in the Taiping Jing was actually intended to safeguard the emperor's rule.
First, the Taiping Qingling Book was identified as an anti-book by the imperial court, and then the Taiping Dao rose up. If no one had a deep understanding of the key points of the Taiping Jing, I am afraid no one would have paid attention to this.
This fact made it difficult for Cheng Li not to judge that Zhang Jue's decision to lead the rebellion was a helpless move.
However, the disastrous consequences caused by the haste and disorder of the uprising had already been done, and the outcome of being suppressed by the Han army was also inevitable. The only thing Zhang Jue could do was to give up his obsession with the Taiping Sutra after realizing that his victory or defeat determined the life and death of his followers. When Qiao Yan came to him again, he gave her the written letter of apology and asked her to pass it on to Huangfu Song and post it in various places in the prefectures and counties.
Seeing this scene, Cheng Li couldn't help but think of what Qiao Yan had said when he invited him to go to Jizhou to listen to the words of the Yellow Turbans.
Compared with the previous conversation with Zhang Liang, this is the real "listening".
Now the two of them were traveling in Julu County with a few followers behind them, which was also another kind of "
listen".
Qiao Yan continued to recite a paragraph before replying, "After the rebellions in various places, some powerful forces were able to survive. They may not realize the consequences of their past actions, but are likely to expand their power. For example, the Tian and Xue families have made contributions in suppressing the rebellion, and there are only a few who are willing to change the direction of their family development."
The eldest son of the Tian family had previously risked his life to deliver a letter to Changsha. With the delayed arrival of the military report in the capital, this military achievement must have been concluded by now.
After the rewards for the greatest contributions are given, it will be their turn. They do not need to be treated the same as the ordinary powerful forces.
However, the vast majority of powerful clans, without such opportunities for advancement, would simply choose to further develop their local power.
This created a lot of potential crises after the Yellow Turban Rebellion.
"What does the lady mean?"
"These clan forces cannot be wiped out like the Yellow Turbans, nor can they be left alone. I guess the court will strengthen local control and come up with corresponding solutions." Qiao Yan replied, "But it probably won't go back to the old way of enfeoffment. Maybe the authority of the supervisory position of the governor will be increased a little bit."
In fact, this was also the final decision made by Liu Hong——
To the original supervisory authority of the Inspector, he added the power to control local finances and command and recruit soldiers, and appointed members of the royal family or important officials he trusted as governors of each state.
However, it now seems that this system of provincial governors was indeed born out of necessity, but it provided conditions for the subsequent separatist rule of various warlords. I think this was not what Liu Yan, who proposed the system, and Liu Hong, who approved it, would have thought of.
But when the provincial governor system was first implemented, it was indeed inevitable.
For example, after the rebellion in Jizhou was quelled...
"If it is true as the young lady said, the leaders of these places must be completely loyal to the Han Dynasty." Cheng Li's vision is very experienced. Although what Qiao Yan said was just his own guess, it did not prevent him from making some judgments based on Qiao Yan's thoughts.
"Yes, for example, General Huangfu is very suitable to supervise a state." Qiao Yan replied.
Although he no longer had the brutal record of creating Jingguan, it did not prevent his troops from gradually moving into Jizhou and launching subsequent cleanup campaigns, and gradually building up a great reputation in Jizhou.
He has ruthless methods and a kind heart, and after becoming the governor of Jizhou, he petitioned to reduce Jizhou's taxes. He is indeed a very suitable candidate for the governor.
However, compared with several provincial governors who were able to establish their own regimes later, Huangfu Song seemed much more rigid.
But rigidity has its advantages.
Three days ago, a famous scholar from Liangzhou named Yan Zhong under Huangfu Song's command actually advised him to use his military achievements in defeating the Yellow Turbans as an opportunity to launch a coup. After being rejected by Huangfu Song, Yan Zhong openly made his actions public and even issued an order to hunt down Yan Zhong.
At this time, Huangfu Song did have the capital to command his own troops, but he chose not to move, and even set his goal to become a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty, which was undoubtedly a good thing for Qiao Yan.
You know, in this increasingly peaceful environment, the court's rewards will probably arrive soon.
She worked so hard to change her original idea of inviting Zheng Xuan, Hua Tuo and others to come, and personally took part in the three debates with Zhang Jue for the title that must be won. Since then, she became famous in one battle and also intentionally misled Chunyu Qiong's judgment of her. Every move she made was to achieve the result of being conferred the title of marquis.
Even though she had always been quite calculating about her actions, she couldn't help feeling a little uneasy at this moment.
If the emperor in Luoyang City cannot do what she wants, it would be difficult to get another opportunity with such a favorable time and location.
But she never showed her nervousness on her face, nor did she tell anyone about it, including Cheng Li.
She just smiled at Chunyu Qiong, whom she met by chance on the way back to the military camp with Cheng Lizhe. Looking at the other person's extremely subtle and embarrassed expression, she suddenly felt much more relaxed.
Chunyu Qiong was not surprised to see Qiao Yan's expression.
Because of the illusion created by Qiao Yan, he sent information to Luoyang City that she was conspiring with Zhang Rang.
But a few days later, he learned that Qiao Yan made such a move just because Zhang Rang had
I have visited Grandpa Qiao with Liu Hong.
Upon hearing that her grandfather would not live long, she felt so sad that she burst into tears. Now she just had to wait for the verdict on the Yellow Turban ringleader, and then she would rush to Luoyang to show her filial piety to her grandfather at his bedside.
Chunyu Qiong was stunned when he heard this reason.
He had sent the message several days ago only to find out that he had made a mistake. How could he not feel embarrassed?
If he didn't know that Yuan Wei had set a wrong example in making suggestions because of his false information, Chunyu Qiong would have simply avoided Qiao Yan.
The reason for the current awkwardness was that he still remembered Situ's advice to build a good relationship with Qiao Yan, but after listening to her debate with Zhang Jue, he inexplicably developed a mentality of keeping his distance from her.
Fortunately, Chunyu Qiong soon did not have to be embarrassed, because at noon two days later, a special team arrived at the Han army camp.
Chunyu Qiong immediately saw a familiar face in the team.
Yuan Shao, Yuan Benchu!
But the team was not led by him, but by the eunuch Bi Lan.
This is not surprising, because at that time Yuan Shao was far from having the power to dominate the four northern states as he later did, and was just a subordinate in General He Jin's mansion.
If Dong Zhuo's chaotic rule had not led to his suppression by various local princes, and if Dong Zhuo had not killed Yuan Wei, Yuan Ji and others to prevent the Yuan family from colluding with him from within, the political assets of the Yuan family that he obtained as Yuan Shao would never have reached the level he did later.
Of course, Yuan Shao is now able to make a living in Luoyang City by relying on his status as a descendant of the Yuan family, which has been three generations of officials for four generations.
General He Jin obviously thought highly of him, which was why he gave him the task of assisting Bi Lan in reading the imperial edict.
It's just that he seems to have some incompatibility with this place.
Not long after he arrived at the camp, Chunyu Qiong found a moment when no one was paying attention and approached him, telling him about his previous misunderstanding of Qiao Yan.
"I don't know whether I should send a letter of explanation. I also think that Qiao Yan is a commoner after all, and he won't cause any trouble... But since Benchu is here, I have to come and apologize." Chunyu Qiong carefully watched Yuan Shao's expression, but found that he seemed to be a little unhappy.
"..." Even though Yuan Shao felt that he had a reputation for being righteous, and had developed a good character from the years of living in seclusion at home but actually interacting with people, it was hard for him not to feel speechless because of Chunyu Qiong's words.
God knows what he was thinking when he heard that his uncle was scolded by Liu Hong during the court meeting, while his aunt was promoted to be the Grand Historian.
However, after listening to his uncle's retelling of his suggestions in the court, Yuan Shao had a conversation with Xu You, with whom he had always been on good terms, and roughly guessed some of Liu Hong's thoughts.
But this idea is obviously not good news for He Jin, who they are now clinging to as a mouthpiece.
Otherwise, Yuan Shao would not have deliberately sought this opportunity to come here to make an assessment of Qiao Yan, the future Marquis of Leping, in advance.
In particular, he had to confirm what kind of agreement Qiao Yan and Zhang Rang had reached.
As a result, Chunyu Qiong came up and said that it was just a misunderstanding.
Yuan Shao almost grabbed the other person's collar and questioned him, asking why he was so careless when he knew what responsibility he was taking on.
But his upbringing as a member of an aristocratic family meant that he would only let his lips relax for a moment and replied, "It doesn't matter. She won't be in Luoyang anymore and won't affect the overall situation."
When Yuan Shao said this, Chunyu Qiong immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
He didn't know if it was his illusion, but he felt that Yuan Shao's attitude towards him was a little cold.
But when I think about the people who were rumored to have had contacts with Yuan Shao, such as Zhang Miao, He Yong, and Xu You, I feel that this attitude is not surprising.
When Yuan Shao went to meet Bi Lan, he suddenly realized that he had forgotten to ask Qiao Yan whether his title of marquis was finally revoked under the influence of Yuan Situ.
But he thought that with the influence of the Yuan family of Runan, it shouldn't be a problem.
As for the fact that this misunderstanding might cause the other party to lose a huge opportunity for advancement...
Anyway, he has no guilt!
Chunyu Qiong walked to the main tent while thinking in his mind, but was surprised to find that Bi Lan had already changed his clothes and was standing at the first seat with the imperial edict in his hand. Huangfu Song, Lu Zhi and Qiao Yan had also arrived and quickly found a place to stand at the last seat.
Then, he looked at the eunuch Bi Lan across the crowd, curled the corners of his mouth, and showed a bit of disdain.
You should know that Bi Lan was valued by Liu Hong because of his skill in making ingenious things. There were the bronze men in front of Canglong and Xuanwu Que, the four big bells in front of Yutang and Yuntai Hall, and the Tianlu Toad outside Pingmen. In short, in Chunyu Qiong's opinion, none of them were serious stuff.
However, the imperial edict in his hand represented the mighty imperial power. The moment Bi Lan unfolded it, everyone present knelt down.
"According to the will of Heaven and the time, I accept this mandate"
"May 16, 1147..."
"I issued an edict to Huangfu Song, the Left General of the Imperial Guard: ... you were the chief commander in suppressing the rebellion, and you helped me to kill the generals and defeat the army, and pacified the two states of Yu and Ji, with particularly great achievements... I now send you the seal and ribbon, and confer the title of Marquis of Huaili, with a fief of 10,000 households."
"Issued an edict to General Lu Zhi of the Northern Central Army: ... since you arrived in Jizhou, you have disciplined yourself, maintained integrity, and have not been reckless or greedy for credit. You have overcome difficulties and dangers and finally achieved success... I now send you a seal and ribbon, and confer the title of Marquis of Qiantang, with a fief of 10,000 households."
Marquis of Huaili and Marquis of Qiantang, two county marquises!
The two highest military commanders here, Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi, were both awarded the title of county marquis. While the people below were happy for them, they also couldn't help but look forward to their own rewards.
With such a good head coach, the people under him probably won't be too bad either.
What they never expected was that the next one to follow was...
"Issue an edict to Qiao's daughter Yan..."
As soon as these six words came out, even someone as calm as Qiao Yan couldn't help but reveal a hint of joy in his eyes.
However, because she lowered her head in obedience to the imperial decree, no one else noticed.
Her edict was second only to that of Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi. Even if it was not as good as these two, it was good enough. At least her debate was not in vain!
She then heard Bi Lan read:
"Thinking of your deep loyalty and filial piety, you have made plans with me and won battles thousands of miles away. You have the courage of a lone warrior and the ability to lead a general... A man who is famous throughout the world should be rewarded greatly by the world. I now send you a seal and a ribbon, and confer you the title of Marquis of Leping, with a fief of 10,000 households. I respect you!"
The Marquis of Leping, with a fief of ten thousand households, is actually also a county marquis!
Chunyu Qiong almost screamed out loud in the back row.
He originally thought that Lord Yuan should have revoked the decree to confer the title of nobility upon Qiao Yan, but why did he confer the title of nobility upon Qiao Yan instead?
this--
For a person who had no official position or title before, it would not be an exaggeration to say that this was a step to heaven!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
