Volume 1 Chapter 26 Two Choices
A week passed in the blink of an eye. One day, Little Melonzi hurried into the imperial study and reported, "Your Majesty, Commander Jiang is outside asking for an audience."
In the imperial study, Xiang Yun put down the memorial in his hand, looked delighted, and said quickly: "Let him in!"
Xiao Guazi called out, and Jiang Yue, wearing the armor of the Imperial Guard, strode in. He bowed as soon as he entered the room and said, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you."
"Well, stand up!" Xiang Yun waved his hand to signal Xiao Guazi to go out, and then asked: "Thank you for your hard work these days. I wonder how the things I asked you to do are going?"
"Your Majesty, I have fulfilled your mission!" Jiang Yue's face looked a little haggard at this time, and his beard was very messy, obviously he hadn't taken care of it for a long time.
In the past, Jiang Yue only knew how to fight and kill, and had no idea how to deal with such secret matters, so he has been racking his brains these days, devoting himself to this matter, and not daring to slack off for even a moment.
Jiang Yue just waved his hand, and two soldiers of the Imperial Guard came in with two files, placed them on the jade table in front of Xiang Yun, and then left.
Jiang Yue then said, "Your Majesty, these are the strange words of strange people from all over the world that I have collected. I have copied them here for your Majesty to read."
Xiang Yun looked at the files and nodded with satisfaction. Jiang Yue continued, "All warriors in the world with clean backgrounds have been summoned by me. There are already 327 people summoned to the capital. They are currently living in my residence. Your Majesty can summon them at any time."
Xiang Yun frowned and asked, "Not all of them are here?"
Jiang Yue hurriedly apologized, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. All martial artists are proud and unwilling to be controlled by others. However, even though I have expressed your majesty's intentions, I have not been able to impress everyone."
Xiang Yun nodded. He knew in his heart that not everyone would be willing to learn martial arts and sell it to the imperial family. With more than 300 people, it was enough for him to do what he wanted to do.
"It's okay, put these files aside for now and take me to see them quickly!" Xiang Yun stood up and made a gesture to leave.
Jiang Yue hurriedly said, "If Your Majesty wants to see them, just wait a moment, I will bring them to the palace immediately!"
Xiang Yun sat down again, secretly thinking that he had lost his composure. This matter was too important to him, so he hurriedly ordered, "Go quickly!"
Thirty minutes later, 344 strong men entered the Golden Throne Hall one after another, looking around and sizing up their surroundings.
This is the imperial palace, a place that ordinary people will never have the chance to see in their lifetime. They have no military merits and no fame. They are just warriors with some fists and feet. It is truly a great honor for them to be able to come here in this lifetime. Their ancestors must have thanked them for this.
Most of these people come from wealthy families, otherwise they would not have been able to practice martial arts since childhood. But there are also many who come from poor families, but they have been strong since childhood and have done a lot of rough and tiring work, so naturally their skills are better than ordinary people.
During the time when Jiang Yue was meeting the emperor, another seventeen people arrived one after another, and Jiang Yue brought them all into the palace.
While everyone was still discussing, Little Melonzi came out from the back and said loudly: "Your Majesty has arrived~"
Xiang Yun strode out wearing a court robe and a dragon robe. He had a gloomy face and sharp eyes, looking extremely majestic. Jiang Yue followed closely behind him like a little follower.
When more than 300 warriors saw His Majesty, they all knelt down and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you."
"Everyone, stand up." Xiang Yun sat on the dragon throne and ignored these people. Instead, he turned around and asked Jiang Yue: "Who do you think is the best among these people?"
Jiang Yue was stunned, thought for a moment and said, "Tang Shui from the Huaixiang Tang family is an extraordinary martial artist. He has studied in a private school since he was young, knows the Four Books, and is loyal and righteous. He is a rare talent who is both civil and military."
Hearing this, Xiang Yun looked at the people in the Golden Palace and asked with a smile, "Since Commander Jiang appreciates you so much, then stand out and let me see."
A young man with a delicate face who looked to be in his early twenties stood up and said, "I am Tang Shui, your humble servant. I am honored to meet your Majesty. Commander Jiang, thank you for your compliments. I am not as good as Commander Jiang in terms of military strategy and tactics. Commander Jiang's talent is something I admire very much."
Jiang Yue quickly replied: "Brother Tang is being modest."
Xiang Yun understood what was meant. It seemed that Jiang Yue had a high prestige among these people, so he didn't say anything. He just smiled at Jiang Yue, then took out an imperial edict from his arms and handed it to Jiang Yue, saying softly, "Go~"
Jiang Yue was stunned, and quickly took the imperial edict. Although he didn't know what it said, he still knelt down and said, "I accept your order."
Jiang Yue stood up and strode out of the Golden Palace without any hesitation. He was His Majesty's subject. Since His Majesty asked him to leave, he would not ask any more questions and just left.
As for your majesty's safety, there are so many royal guards in the palace, I'm sure those guys won't dare to act rashly.
As soon as he walked out of the palace, Jiang Yue hurriedly unfolded the imperial edict. After taking a look at it, he was so excited that he couldn't help shaking all over.
The imperial edict was written by Xiang Yun himself, and it read: "According to the will of Heaven, the Emperor has decreed that the commander of the Imperial Army, Jiang Yue, be promoted to the position of General Suppressing the Barbarians and lead the vanguard. He must report to the Northern Frontier as soon as possible. I decree this!"
"General Pingman? I am a general now!" Jiang Yue spoke with a trembling voice, then turned around, knelt on both knees towards the direction of the imperial palace, and kowtowed again and again.
Then he excitedly shouted in front of the imperial guards guarding the palace gate: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your cultivation. Long live the emperor!"
Jiang Yue considered himself to be just an ordinary commoner, but later he was appreciated by His Majesty. Jiang Yue thought that being the commander of the imperial guards was already a great blessing from heaven, and he did not dare to make excessive demands.
She didn't dare to think too much about the feelings of the person she loved and just kept it deep in her heart, especially after Zhen Rou became the queen, she dared even less.
But His Majesty appointed him as a general. Although he was only a general who pacified the barbarians and was far away from the emperor, and his status was much lower than that of the commander of the imperial guards, the two had very different meanings to Jiang Yue.
The army of the Great Sun Dynasty is recruited based on merit. Now that the war has just broken out in the northern border, Your Majesty has entrusted him with the responsibility of being the vanguard. Isn't it just to let him make achievements?
If Jiang Yue wins this time, he will surely be awarded a title based on his military achievements. He certainly can't even think about becoming an earl or a marquis, but he can definitely try for the title of viscount or baron!
Once he is granted the title, he will be a noble. At that time, we will be well matched, and perhaps I can ask His Majesty to grant him a marriage and betroth Zhen Yueling, the eldest daughter of the Zhen family, to him!
Thinking of this, Jiang Yue's eyes became hot and he wished he could rush to the battlefield in the northern border immediately. At the same time, he also hid Xiang Yun's kindness to him deep in his heart.
In the Golden Palace, Xiang Yun waved and said, "Since Commander Jiang said that you are a man of both civil and military talents, I believe you. Come here, come to my side!"
Tang Shui was stunned for a moment, then agreed. Under the envious gazes of the crowd, he slowly walked to Xiang Yun's side and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, what do you want me to do?"
"It's okay. Just stay behind me and protect my safety." Xiang Yun said casually.
Tang Shui's mouth twitched. Who in this palace would dare to attack the emperor? Why would he need to protect him?
Anyone who dares to take action must be saying that he has lived enough in this life.
Xiang Yun then looked at all the warriors below and asked, "I need you to serve me alone instead of the country. Are you willing?"
There was no benefit in everyone remaining silent. No one dared to be the first to step forward and make a choice. What if they were to die for no apparent reason? Where would they go to seek justice?
Xiang Yun continued, "I will give all of you one hour to consider. Those who are willing to follow me can stay; those who are not willing can leave at any time. I will also give you ten taels of gold as compensation for your long journey.
But remember, anyone who stays will get much more than ten ounces of gold, but if you stay and want to leave later, you will have to leave your head behind."
Xiang Yun showed his mean and ungrateful side, then stood up and left with the confused Tang Shui.
In the imperial study, Xiang Yun was sitting on the dragon chair and reading memorials, leaving Tang Shui standing stupidly not far away, not daring to speak or sit down.
He had seen Xiang Yun's mean and ungrateful side just now. If he was too talkative, he might not be able to leave the palace alive.
But now I can't understand why Xiang Yun ignored him. The emperor needs talents, shouldn't he make great efforts to recruit them? Why is he ignoring me like this?
Tang Shui thought again that perhaps less than half of the people could stay in the Golden Palace. After all, the emperor had promised that even if they gave nothing, they could still get ten taels of gold, which was free money.
Even though his Tang family was wealthy, that was the family's money. His own pocket money on weekdays was less than one or two taels of gold a month at most.
Just as Tang Shui was daydreaming, Xiang Yun put down the memorial in his hand and asked, "I have two positions here for you to choose from. One is to be my personal guard with a golden sword, who can also serve as the commander of the imperial guards and be in charge of the imperial guards; the other is to have no official position, just follow me and be a person with no sense of existence. Which one do you want?"
Tang Shui's body was shocked. What does His Majesty mean? Isn't the position of the commander of the imperial guards supposed to belong to Commander Jiang Yue? Why would he give it to himself?
Tang Shui thought again about how Jiang Yue disappeared after receiving an imperial edict, and he couldn't help but think about it carefully.
A drop of cold sweat slid down Tang Shui's forehead, and Tang Shui hurriedly bowed and said, "Your Majesty, can you..."
Xiang Yun did not even give him a chance to speak, and directly retorted: "No, you are a man of both civil and military talents, and there is no third choice other than this. And I will not give you an hour, you must choose now!"
Tang Shui knelt down in fear and said in a panic, "Your Majesty, I am willing to swear my allegiance to you until death. I will choose whatever you ask me to choose, without further ado!"
After saying that, Tang Shui knocked his head to the ground, making a loud thumping sound. Xiang Yun's mouth twitched when he saw this, and he thought to himself, "Silly boy, don't let your head get damaged. If you become a fool, how can I use you?"
Xiang Yun nodded expressionlessly and said, "Okay, then you can follow me. As long as you are loyal to me, I will ensure that your Huaixiang Tang family will be safe and sound for a hundred years."
Tang Shui was startled, and quickly thanked him: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
This promise is too important for a local tyrant. Being protected by an emperor, no one in the Great Sun Dynasty would dare to challenge their Tang family again. From now on, Huaixiang will be dominated by their Tang family and no one will dare to touch it!
Now Tang Shui finally understood why the sages wrote such harsh words as "serving the emperor is like serving a tiger". Those in high positions have unpredictable minds and unpredictable moods.
"An hour has passed, let's go to the Golden Palace!" Xiang Yun ignored Tang Shui and walked away with his head held high. Tang Shui quickly got up and followed him, but he was still a little excited and couldn't calm down.
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