Princess Huyang sent out invitations to guests to celebrate her promotion from county princess to princess.
Gu Jiu was determined to attend the event and even prepared a generous gift.
The banquet was held at the former Huyang County Princess's Mansion, now the Princess's Mansion.
Everyone was very curious. His Majesty had bestowed the title of princess on Huyang, but why didn't he give her a princess mansion?
Hu Yang explained in public at the banquet.
It is not that Your Majesty is stingy and did not reward the princess with a mansion.
But she refused the reward.
"I feel very comfortable living here. It is more comfortable and relaxed than the princess's residence I lived in before. I don't want to move out, so I rejected the palace rewarded by my royal brother."
oh!
Does anyone believe this explanation?
Judging from everyone’s expressions, there aren’t many people who believe it.
Princess Huyang chuckled twice and muttered, "What a bunch of shallow people. I won't bother with you."
The housekeeper came to Princess Huyang and quietly reported that a distant relative of the Chen family had come to ask for money.
The Chen family was exterminated, but some of their distant relatives were still alive, and there were quite a few of them. For example, Chen Lu's grandmother's family, his great-aunt's family, his aunt's family, and so on...
These distant relatives all have one thing in common: they are poor!
A few years ago, Chen Lu was still alive. As the head of the Chen family, he provided a lot of help to these distant relatives.
These distant relatives were also accustomed to asking the Chen family for money when they were short of money.
As a result, Chen Lu died.
The Chen family's door was closed, with only two servants left guarding the door.
So, these distant relatives came to the princess's mansion to beg for money, and they even chose the day of Huyang's banquet, betting that Huyang would give them some money to save face.
“Bullshit!”
Bang!
Hu Yang slammed his hand on the table. "You're asking for trouble, are you looking for death? Get out! You're not allowed to block my door. Anyone who dares to block my door will be sent to the Imperial Prison. Humph, I'm not that idiot Chen Lu. I don't even have the money to help these poor relatives."
The housekeeper received the order and took the guards from the princess's mansion out to drive the people away.
Gu Jiu asked, "What happened? Is it serious?"
Hu Yang and Gu Jiu whispered in each other's ears, "A bunch of distant relatives of the Chen family are coming to me to ask for money. Ever since old dog Chen died, I have no relationship with the Chen family. Expecting me to help them? Dream on. I've already ordered the steward to arrest them all and lock them up in the imperial prison."
"Imprison the emperor? Wouldn't that be inappropriate?" Gu Jiu suggested implicitly.
Princess Huyang smiled and said, "There's nothing wrong with that. If I can't discipline a few peasants, how can I survive in the capital in the future?"
"Aunt, you misunderstood. I was worried that the censor would get wind of this and impeach you."
"I'm not afraid!"
With the support of her brother the emperor, Hu Yang is full of confidence.
Seeing this, Gu Jiu stopped persuading him.
A distant relative of the Chen family was thrown into prison for blocking the gate of the princess's mansion, and he didn't even have a chance to regret.
Then, just as Gu Jiu guessed, the censors heard the news and took action one after another to impeach Princess Huyang.
Impeach her for misusing public resources for personal gain, oppressing innocent people, being rich but unkind, and taking human lives lightly...
Who is Huyang?
The emperor's biological sister?
The favorite thing for the censors was to impeach the emperor's relatives. For example, the recently popular Princess Huyang, the emperor's beloved sister.
The imperial censors came with great force and the crowd was very excited.
The emperor would not give up until he dealt with Huyang.
The emperor's attitude was ambiguous.
At the same time, he ordered the Jinwu Guards to investigate the distant relatives of the Chen family. Those who were guilty would be punished, and those who were innocent would be temporarily imprisoned.
On the one hand, he kept delaying and procrastinating with the censors.
The censors were angry.
Some brave people pointed out directly in front of civil and military officials at the grand court meeting that Emperor Wende was wrong and was protecting Huyang.
Emperor Wende secretly rolled his eyes. Even if he was protecting Huyang, so what?
As an emperor, he deeply realized his mistakes, but he refused to repent and would never change in his life.
Emperor Wende single-handedly diverted the flames of war from Huyang to himself.
He is indeed the best brother in the world.
Brother, please give me a dozen.
In the court, no one discussed Huyang, and all the imperial censors directed their fire at Emperor Wende.
Lord Lu secretly reminded Emperor Wende, "Your Majesty, know when to stop. Be careful not to play with fire."
Emperor Wende didn't care. "Don't worry, my dear minister. I know what's going on. Any news from Beirong?"
"Just as Lord Li worried that day, Beirong is suffering greatly from the drought. The pro-war faction seized the opportunity to rise to power, unifying dissenting voices with forceful tactics. The Beirong royal family is actively preparing for war and will march south by next year at the latest."
Emperor Wende frowned, "I guess he'll go south sometime next year."
"When the ice and snow melt, it will be time for the Beirong army to march south."
"Is there any news from Xiliang?"
Lord Lu bowed and said, "Xiliang and Beirong have an ambiguous relationship, hesitant to both accept and reject. I suspect Xiliang will decide whether to join the war based on the battlefield situation. If Beirong is invincible and severely defeats our Great Zhou, Xiliang will certainly not miss the opportunity to reap the benefits."
If we can keep Beirong out of the pass, Xiliang will become hesitant and dare not act rashly. When Beirong retreats, they might take advantage of the situation and kill Beirong by surprise."
Emperor Wende nodded repeatedly, "We must expedite the storage of food and fodder. All passes must be strictly rectified and fully prepared for war. I am well aware of the shortcomings of the border. To rectify the border military preparations, we need a person of high moral character and prestige. I have chosen you, my dear."
Lord Lu bowed and said, "Your Majesty has entrusted me with this task, and I dare not fail you. However, I'm afraid it's not appropriate for me to leave the capital at this time."
Emperor Wende nodded and said, "I cannot do without you, my dear. I am reluctant to let you leave the capital at this time. But who else can take on this task besides you, my dear."
Lord Lu considered and said, "Perhaps there is someone who can do the job."
"Who?" Emperor Wende was curious. Is there anyone more suitable than Minister Lu?
He couldn't think of it.
Lord Lu hesitated for a moment before saying, "Li Bingming!"
"he?"
Emperor Wende looked hesitant.
Who is Li Bingming?
It is the former Minister of the Central Secretariat, Lord Li, who is currently teaching at Shanhe Academy, waiting for the opportunity.
Emperor Wende frowned, obviously not very satisfied with this candidate.
Of course, in terms of seniority and influence, Li Bingming is not inferior to Lord Lu, and may even be better.
But Emperor Wende did not trust Lord Li.
Even with Lord Li under our noses, he can still do so many tricks. If we put him at the border, the consequences will be disastrous.
Lord Lu said solemnly, "Li Bingming has flaws in his character, but his integrity is unshakable. I know him well. He is indeed selfish, but he will do his utmost to complete the tasks Your Majesty has assigned him. Since this is a matter of national war, I believe he will not neglect it."
Emperor Wende walked back and forth in the hall with his hands behind his back.
"Besides him, my dear, who else can you recommend?"
Lord Lu shook his head, "I can't think of anyone more suitable than him."
After a pause, Lord Lu reminded him, "The Marquis of Lu in the northwest plays a vital role in this war. However, the Marquis of Lu is unruly and refuses to be controlled by the court. I believe that someone should be stationed in the northwest and keep a close eye on him."
Emperor Wende nodded repeatedly.
Duke Lu was his brother-in-law, and he knew him quite well.
If the court could not withstand the turmoil and could not afford the consequences of forcing Marquis Lu to rebel, Emperor Wende would have wanted to replace Marquis Lu long ago, let him go back to the capital, and give him a minor job to send him away.
Emperor Wende always restrained his desires and did not dare to act rashly.
He once secretly issued an order to the Duke of Lu, asking him to return to the capital to report on his work.
The Duke of Lu directly refused on the grounds that he was busy with military affairs and was not in good health to travel.
Emperor Wende had no temper and could only hold his nose and endure it.
Fortunately, none of the ministers in the court knew about this decree.
Otherwise, there would be a wave of impeachment against the Duke of Lu, ridiculing him as an emperor with no dignity.
Emperor Wende congratulated himself on his wise actions countless times.
Now when Lord Lu mentioned Marquis Lu, Emperor Wende's muscles tensed up.
The Marquis of Lu always managed to provoke Emperor Wende's most sensitive and fragile nerves.
He asked, "We do need someone to keep an eye on Marquis Lu, especially during wartime. My dear minister, do you mean to send Li Bingming to the northwest to keep an eye on Marquis Lu?"
"I do have this idea."
Emperor Wende still hesitated.
Lord Lu continued, "Reorganizing military preparations and inspecting the border defenses of various regions is a matter of great importance. I request your approval to establish a Northwest Grand Military Governor's Office, modeled after the Jiangnan Grand Military Governor's Office, to oversee all military and political affairs in the northwest. Li Bingming can be appointed the first Northwest Grand Military Governor. This way, Li Bingming can legitimately intervene in the military affairs of the Northwest Army and keep an eye on the Marquis of Lu on Your Majesty's behalf."
Emperor Wende nodded secretly, "Regarding the selection, I hope you will give it more thought."
"Your humble servant obeys your order."
It is obvious that Emperor Wende was dissatisfied with Li Bingming.
Lord Lu is not in a hurry.
…
In the court, the censors quarreled more and more loudly.
Emperor Wende did not interfere, but did not respond either.
The censors felt like they were punching cotton and became even angrier.
With even greater anger, they wrote impeachment memorials, clearly pointing out Emperor Wende's mistakes.
Even if they were beaten with a stick in the court, they would accept it.
How could the emperor not respond to them? It was too much.
Princess Huyang was a little worried.
This matter was caused by her, so shouldn't she step forward and resolve the matter thoroughly?
She took some time off and went to the palace to ask for an audience with Emperor Wende.
Emperor Wende comforted her, telling her not to worry, everything was under control.
Hu Yang was puzzled, "Isn't my royal brother trying to comfort me?"
"Of course not!"
"The imperial censors in the court?"
"Don't worry, they won't have the energy to make a fuss soon."
Huyang didn't understand and didn't delve into it.
She obeyed the emperor and returned home to wait and see what would happen.
As for the distant relatives of the Chen family, no one cares about them anymore.
Distant relatives of the Chen family came to the princess's mansion to plead for mercy, but were driven away by the gatekeeper. The news never reached Huyang's ears.
Just when the censors were arguing heatedly, Emperor Wende suddenly announced at the morning court that the Northwest Military Governor's Office would be established to take charge of all military and political affairs in the Northwest.
These words were earth-shattering.
The censors were so shocked that their jaws dropped.
Northwest Grand Marshal's Office?
Are you kidding?
At this time, no one cared how serious the emperor's crime was for not responding to the censor's impeachment. Everyone's attention was on the Northwest Grand Marshal's Office that suddenly appeared.
Emperor Wende's next words made everyone's heart beat again.
"The candidate for the Grand Commandant of the Northwest Grand Commandant's Office has not yet been decided. My dear ministers, do you have any recommendations?"
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