Now that Prince Duan had stepped forward and caused Ye Qingyu to suffer a setback, there was no need for Lü Tu to continue. At this moment, a resolute light appeared on his face, but upon closer inspection, a trace of grievance could be seen.
Zhao Qingyao saw everything and her impression of Lü Tu improved even more. She was an ambitious princess who, despite being a woman, was unwilling to be sent to the Wuhuan for a political marriage.
She knew that if she wanted to control her own destiny, she would need a lot of help from others, and Lu Tu was the best candidate.
He has the ability, he has the brains, and most importantly, he has enough courage!
At this moment, Zhao Qingyao slowly spoke up: "General Ye, please rise. I think your idea just now does have some merit, but not much."
Ye Qingyu certainly wouldn't dare to talk back anymore. Having already suffered a setback, the best course of action now was to listen more and speak less, and wait for the right moment to act.
"This humble general would like to hear the details."
"According to what you said, if doing good deeds doesn't earn a reward from the court, who will be willing to do good deeds in the future? Who will be willing to shed blood for the Great Yu Dynasty and His Majesty? Therefore, I think we should not only report to the court to reward Lü Tu, but also reward him handsomely, and it would be best to announce it to the world to reassure the people!"
hiss!
A collective gasp of astonishment rippled through the crowd.
Not to mention Ye Qingyu and Yun Tian, even Lü Tu didn't expect Zhao Qingyao to have such strong courage.
But Lu Tu was not very happy to receive such a reward. He had nothing at the moment, and his army was small and weak. If he became too famous, he might not even live to see the autumn harvest before a large number of people came after him.
He glanced at Zhao Qingyao furtively, wondering why someone as intelligent as her would do something like this. She'd put Lü Tu in the spotlight; how could he possibly help Zhao Qingyao complete the subsequent tasks now?
Zhao Qingyao then changed the subject: "But I know your considerations, so I'll give you face and not report this matter to His Majesty. We'll give the reward to Lü Tu!"
Good heavens, so that's what they were waiting for. Lu Tu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Ye Qingyu and Yun Tian also visibly breathed a sigh of relief, as they were genuinely worried that Lü Tu would rise rapidly in rank and become too powerful.
After all, he is only a captain at the moment, yet he dares to talk back to me, the Right Protector of the Shence Army. If he were given enough strength, wouldn't he make me a thorn in his side?
In particular, Yun Tian breathed a sigh of relief and took the initiative to speak up: "This humble servant suggests that Lü Tu be promoted to Zhenwei Deputy Lieutenant of the sixth rank, leading 800 troops."
Lu Tu took a sip of tea without changing his expression, not even bothering to glance at Yun Tian. This old man's scheme was far too obvious. Did someone like him have the right to make suggestions when the leadership was making decisions? If his suggestion could be adopted, then Zhao Qingyao and Prince Duan would be useless.
As expected, Zhao Qingyao sneered: "Lu Tu is already a seventh-rank captain, having made such a great contribution and saved the lives of 100,000 people, yet he has only been promoted to a lower sixth-rank? Captain Yun, is this how you were promoted back then?"
The meaning was already very clear, yet Yun Tian was still explaining: "Your Highness, this humble servant also went through hundreds of battles, large and small, before becoming a sixth-rank captain. The final battle was after the former captain died..."
"Enough!" Zhao Qingyao interrupted Yun Tian's rambling with a clear snort.
Ye Qingyu glared at Yun Tian with a look of disappointment and frustration. He couldn't believe that Yun Tian, at his age, had such poor judgment. He cursed him under his breath as a good-for-nothing!
Since Zhao Qingyao had already given him face and a way out, Ye Qingyu said, "I think it's reasonable for Captain Lü to have won three consecutive ranks after making such great contributions!"
Prince Duan nodded in agreement: "That's right, it's indeed reasonable according to the military system of our Great Yu Prefecture."
Zhao Qingyao looked at Prince Duan: "Since you came with the imperial decree, you shall bestow the honors."
Prince Duan snapped his fingers, and immediately a member of the Imperial Guards respectfully brought out a brocade box. Prince Duan then pretended to pat and rub his own fine silk robe, which was actually spotless, before taking out a piece of bright yellow cloth from the brocade box.
"By the grace of Heaven... Lu Tu is hereby appointed as a Senior Martial Colonel of the Sixth Rank, commanding 1,500 soldiers, 200 warhorses, 500 mu of fertile land, and 1,000 shi of grain!"
Lu Tu knelt on one knee and clasped his hands in thanks, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty!" To be honest, Lu Tu really didn't want to kneel before this damned emperor's decree, but given the circumstances, he had no choice but to kneel down as a formality.
Fortunately, everyone present was a military officer, so Prince Duan naturally didn't care. He shook out the imperial edict and then put it back into the brocade box. After all, what he had just read was all made up, and the original imperial edict certainly wasn't written like that.
None of that matters. What matters is that the imperial edict is genuine and that Prince Duan has the authority to reward Lü Tu. That is enough.
Yun Tian gritted his teeth upon hearing this. Previously, Lu Tu had only a few hundred soldiers, yet he was able to control the mutiny and even kill Yun Ao.
Fortunately, Wuchuan's military system is like this: the 2,000 troops under his command are theoretically 2,000, rather than directly giving Lü Tu 2,000 elite soldiers. Lü Tu has to find and develop these soldiers himself.
But those 200 warhorses were like a thorn in Yun Tian's heart. Based on his understanding of Lü Tu, he knew that Lü Tu was capable of fighting against hundreds of Wuhuan cavalry with just 50 cavalrymen. Now that Lü Tu had more and more warhorses under his command, if he could build an elite cavalry force, then who in Wuchuan in the northern border region could stand against Lü Tu?
He could only look to Ye Qingyu for help, but Ye Qingyu was already utterly disappointed in Yun Tian and had decided to give up on him.
At this moment, Zhao Qingyao spoke up: "Commander Yun, Lu Tu is your capable subordinate and your savior. Don't you have any gratitude for him?"
Yun Tian's face twitched upon hearing this, and he cursed Zhao Qingyao and Lü Tu in his heart!
But he dared not show it on his face, and cupped his hands and smiled, "Of course there is a reward. As a captain, I am willing to give Lü Tu 3,000 military slaves to cultivate fertile land and graze sheep and horses!"
How could Lu Tu not know what Yun Tian'an was up to? Knowing that there were already a large number of people under his jurisdiction and that the population was starting to swell, Yun Tian'an was sending him military slaves. Was he trying to disrupt Lu Tu's balance of income and expenditure and plant some spies among Lu Tu's subordinates?
But what does that mean to Lü Tu? How many spies had he planted before? In the end, weren't they all recruited by Lü Tu and made into his own people?
Lu Tu cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Lord Yun. However, I have a suggestion, but I don't know if I should say it."
Prince Duan nodded and said, "Speak freely, you are a hero today."
Lu Tu laughed and said, "Your Highness knows that Wuchuan is poor in resources. Recently, I discovered a good place with a lot of iron mines in Huai Shuo Town, which is not far from the border of Wuchuan. I would like to apply to take it back in order to deal with the Wuhuan army!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Qingyao glanced at Lü Tu secretly. The two of them understood each other perfectly. She suggested to Prince Duan, "The plague on Zhao Wuyou's side is getting worse, which means he is incapable of transferring that land to Wuchuan. So what?"
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