This battle was extremely difficult. The Jurchens had been preparing for it for many years, and now that they had this opportunity, how could they not go all out?
Knowing full well that being let in was a trap, the Jin soldiers still rode their warhorses southward at breakneck speed. The area around Liaodong Prefecture was heavily guarded, so they could not set up camp near the city. They were forced to keep going south and eventually got trapped in a mountain range.
In the encirclement and suppression that followed, the Jin soldiers desperately tried to escape, while the Liang soldiers fought fiercely to stop them, resulting in a very intense battle.
Later, General Zhou and Cheng Kai almost couldn't hold out, but fortunately, reinforcements from Yanmen Pass and the capital arrived, which finally wiped out more than 100,000 Jin soldiers within Daliang territory.
This great victory boosted the morale of the Great Liang, and most importantly, it gave the Great Liang more than ten years to recuperate. With this time, the Great Liang was not only able to develop its domestic economy well, but also increase its population. After this great victory, Xu Rao was transferred directly from Liaodong to the Ministry of Revenue and promoted to the position of Vice Minister of Revenue, a third-rank official.
General Zhou and Cheng Kai were also rewarded. In particular, General Zhou, who was the garrison commander of Liaodong Prefecture, was able to achieve such a great victory because of his proper command. However, even if a military officer is promoted, his rank will not rise. General Zhou, on the other hand, received a lot of gold and silver rewards.
Xu Rao's promotion was somewhat controversial. He was now a prefect of the fifth rank, while in principle there were two ranks between him and the fourth rank. The Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue was a third rank. This promotion was a leap of two ranks. When Xu Rao's reward was mentioned, it caused a stir in the court.
Emperor Liang Cheng looked at the noisy officials below the court and didn't say anything at first. Now, many officials in the court had already taken sides. After all, Emperor Liang Cheng was getting on in years and no longer attended court every day. He would only attend the grand court assembly for some major events or important festivals. On ordinary days, he would hold the small court assembly in the Imperial Study.
The great victory in Liaodong was such an important event that it naturally had to be discussed at the grand court assembly. However, when it came to the topic of rewarding Xu Rao, so many people in the court objected, which Emperor Liang Cheng found somewhat unacceptable.
Marquis Yongning needed to attend the grand court assembly. Upon hearing that it was about his third son, he naturally wanted to avoid it. Unfortunately, even though he wanted to avoid it, someone wouldn't let him hide away in peace.
Minister of Personnel Wan Weiyong glanced at Marquis Yongning, stepped forward, bowed to Emperor Liang Cheng sitting in the hall, and said, "Xu Rao is the third son of Marquis Yongning. I wonder if we should hear what Marquis Yongning has to say?"
Marquis Yongning cursed Wan Weiyong in his heart. He knew perfectly well that it was not appropriate for him to speak at this time, but he forced him to express his opinion. What was the purpose of this? Wasn't it just to make things difficult for him?
Marquis Yongning had no choice but to step forward and say, “Your Majesty, it is true that Xu Rao is my third son, but he is also an official appointed by the court. The promotion and reward of officials should be decided by Your Majesty.”
Wan Weiyong couldn't help but curse the old fox in his heart. Since the Marquis of Yongning had said so, it would seem too deliberate to press him to say it.
Seeing the commotion below, Emperor Liang sighed and said, "My dear ministers, the promotion of Xu Rao to the position of Vice Minister of Revenue, a third-rank official, was a decision I made after careful consideration. Not to mention that the victories in Hexi in previous years and in Liaodong this time were achieved under Xu Rao's leadership and in cooperation with the local garrison. Xu Rao himself is truly a talented man. Everyone knows what Hexi was like when he first went there, and you all know what it is like now. But do you know what has happened in Liaodong these past few years since Xu Rao went there?"
Upon hearing Emperor Liang Cheng's words, the room fell silent. Emperor Liang Cheng sneered twice and said, "Anyone who relieves my worries and makes contributions to the country and the people is a good official. Why not promote them beyond the usual ranks? Let alone Xu Rao, even you gentlemen have made outstanding contributions to the Great Liang. Promoting you beyond the usual ranks is naturally not a difficult thing."
Since Emperor Liang Cheng had spoken, the officials standing below, no matter how much they had objections, could not go against him. Especially this time, it was precisely because of Xu Rao's command that the Liang army was able to surround the Jin army for those days.
After the court session ended, Marquis Yongning hurriedly walked out of the palace. Before he even reached the palace gate, he heard someone calling him from behind. When Marquis Yongning turned around, he saw that it was Prime Minister Feng.
Marquis Yongning cupped his hands in greeting to Prime Minister Feng, who returned the greeting and said, "Lord Xu, how about I invite you to have a drink?"
Upon hearing this, Marquis Yongning smiled and said, "It would be an honor indeed. I would like to invite Prime Minister Feng for a drink."
Marquis Yongning took Prime Minister Feng to a small tavern. Looking at the elegant backyard, Prime Minister Feng smiled and said, "I've heard that Marquis Xu is a wealthy man who knows how to enjoy life. It seems that the rumors are not unfounded."
Marquis Yongning poured tea for Prime Minister Feng and said with a smile, "This is a shop that my mother brought with her as part of her dowry many years ago. The original manager was old and had been idle since then. After a simple renovation, business was not very good, but my family liked to come here to sit for a while."
The subtext is that the place is safe, and you can say whatever you want to say.
Prime Minister Feng nodded and said, "Prime Minister, I really didn't expect your son's promotion to be so smooth."
Upon hearing this, Marquis Yongning laughed and said, "Smoothly? Prime Minister, perhaps you have some misunderstanding about the word 'smoothly'?"
Feng Xiang waved his hand and said, "Please let me explain slowly. After His Majesty proposed it, Lord Wan strongly opposed it. We both know why. I admire your son's character and knowledge. The Ministry of Revenue is a very important place. I believe that with your son's addition, the Ministry of Revenue will definitely improve day by day."
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