Han Shizhong sent an urgent letter to Bian Jing, explaining the events of Qinghe Prefecture in detail. The Song Dynasty had not yet found the person who leaked the military secrets.
As for the more than 1,000 smugglers, Han Shizhong, a military officer, was not allowed to participate in politics. He could only personally report to Zhao Huan in a copy of the memorial that Qinghe Prefecture had wrongly arrested the smugglers.
Zhao Huan finally married Princess Yanran, and he promised to send troops to Goryeo to rescue Princess Yanran's father.
At this moment, Zhao Huan in the Wende Hall was reading Han Shizhong's memorial. After reading the memorial, he realized that the so-called military leak of Qinghe Prefecture was actually false.
"Li Qingyuan, what does he want to do!" Zhao Huan was furious. He had guessed it. Li Qingyuan wanted to seek credit and reward, and get a higher position.
"I am so blind, so blind!" He slammed the table heavily.
Cao Dongsheng was startled: "Your Majesty, why are you so angry?"
"Han Shizhong's memorial states that Li Qingyuan acted stubbornly and refused to listen to advice after arriving in Qinghe, leading to the unjust imprisonment of thousands of people. This is my fault. I was only thinking about how to fight the Mongols, but I didn't expect to use another villain!"
"Your Majesty, I have something to say but I don't know whether I should say it or not." Cao Dongsheng bowed and lowered his hands.
Zhao Huan understood what he meant: "Are you saying that Han Shizhong is in charge of Yuezheng?"
Cao Dongsheng didn't dare to look up, so he nodded gently: "Military officers are not allowed to participate in politics, and the military and politics are separated. How could Marshal Han submit a memorial without permission?"
"Pedantic!" Zhao Huan kicked him. "This is a false accusation, a false accusation against over a thousand people. Han Shizhong was right to do this, and besides, this wasn't his idea. It was Kui County Magistrate Zhou Guitong who asked him to do it. I forgot to tell you that it was Zhou Guitong who informed Han Shizhong of the false accusation of leaking military secrets."
"Your Majesty, that's not what I meant. I shouldn't be so nosy, but Your Majesty, aren't you too lenient with these pillars of the court? One is Marshal Yue, who is feared in the northeast, and the other is Marshal Han, who is well-versed in the northwest. Your Majesty, they have their own troops and are very powerful." Cao Dongsheng advised carefully.
"Cao Dongsheng!" Zhao Huan was surprised. "Cao Dongsheng, why are you suddenly interested in government affairs? Tell me, did someone say something to you, or did someone hinder you?"
Zhao Huan looked at him coldly with a stern tone.
Cao Dongsheng was trembling with fear. He was terrified. The dog emperor had never reprimanded him so harshly before. Could it be that the emperor was suspicious of him?
Since ancient times, kings have always been suspicious. Thinking of this, Cao Dongsheng was frightened and knelt down hurriedly: "Your Majesty, I dare not. I deserve to die! I also know that eunuchs are not allowed to interfere in politics, but I have followed Your Majesty for so many years and know that Your Majesty is a good king. But, Your Majesty must think about the country of Song. I dare not doubt Marshal Han's loyalty, but people sometimes change."
As Cao Dongsheng spoke, he shed tears. Zhao Huan's heart skipped a beat: He might be right, people will change.
If Sima Yi had died before Cao Cao, who would have known that the Sima family would betray their master. If Qin Hui had died earlier, who would have known that he was a traitor.
Han Shizhong and Yue Fei were indeed both loyal and capable generals in history books. However, the combined military strength of these two men was equivalent to half of the imperial court. How could Zhao Huan not be alarmed?
"Dongsheng, I'm not worried about anything else. I'm worried that one day you will betray me." Zhao Huan suddenly felt an inexplicable fear.
"I dare not. I will be loyal to Your Majesty all my life." Cao Dongsheng kowtowed desperately.
Zhao Huan gently helped him up and said, "I will consider what you said. Go and call Linghu Yunlong."
Cao Dongsheng wiped his tears, bowed and left.
The palace maids in the Wende Hall were trembling with fear. The emperor rarely got so angry, and no one wanted to be affected by the incident.
Zhao Huan was terrified. He believed in history books too much. He believed in the character of Yue Fei and Han Shizhong, but after all, the country and the people occupied his heart. Zhao Huan finally became suspicious of Yue Fei and Han Shizhong.
Fortunately, this suspicion only made Zhao Huan wary; he knew these two were reliable. The best approach now was to promote young generals and send them to the border to disperse the power held by these marshals.
This would indeed consolidate imperial power. Young people tend to be less concerned. Most of them are filled with the passion of killing the enemy and serving their country, and most young generals are loyal. If they were stationed in the northwest and northeast, the power held by Yue Fei and Han Shizhong would be dispersed, and even if they had dissenting ideas, they would be powerless to challenge the court.
The lessons of history told Zhao Huan that the power of the vassal states was stronger than that of the imperial court, and the country was in danger.
However, these benefits also come with risks. The power of these commanders is dispersed, and their ability to fight against the Mongols is bound to be weakened unless these young generals are equally capable.
There is only one solution: promote truly talented young generals. Appoint them based on their merits, so that they can stand on their own feet and become true military geniuses.
However, it is not easy to promote truly talented generals, and talented generals are not so easy to find.
Just as he was daydreaming, Cao Dongsheng and Linghu Yunlong walked in.
"Your Majesty, what instructions do you have for me?" Linghu Yunlong asked with a bow.
With his arrival, Zhao Huan felt much more at ease. Linghu Yunlong, the world's number one swordsman who was defeated only by Yue Fei, was blindly following him.
"Yunlong, I have an important task for you!" Zhao Huan patted his shoulder.
The emperor's mission was assigned to whoever he respected. Only the most trusted people could receive this honor. Linghu Yunlong showed no excitement: "Your Majesty, please give your orders."
"Take my imperial edict to Qinghe Prefecture and bring Li Qingyuan back to me." Zhao Huan picked up an imperial edict from the table.
Linghu Yunlong was startled. "Your Majesty, Lord Li is the imperial envoy. Your Majesty personally appointed him. Why did Your Majesty bring him back to the palace?"
Zhao Huan then explained the situation in Qinghe Prefecture to Linghu Yunlong: "Li Qingyuan is desperate for meritorious service, and I fear he may indiscriminately kill innocent people and frame someone. You are a skilled warrior; ride a swift horse and rush to Qinghe via the post road. If Li Qingyuan behaves well in Qinghe, fine. But if he cannot distinguish right from wrong, dismiss him immediately and escort him back to the capital, where I can deal with him as I please!"
Linghu Yunlong was even more shocked: "Your Majesty, the Imperial Envoy is a second-rank official. I am just a mere imperial guard. Even if I had the imperial edict, I wouldn't dare do anything to him without solid evidence."
"You are not anymore. From today on, you are the commander of the imperial guards, a fourth-rank official." Zhao Huan put a piece of
Throw the badge to him.
The waist badge was black lacquer with gold characters, with the six big characters "Commander of the Imperial Guards" inscribed on it, and a line of small characters below it reading "Fourth Rank".
Linghu Yunlong didn't care about his official position; he hadn't come here to be an official. However, after being immersed in officialdom for so long, he had inevitably picked up some of its habits. So he knelt down to express his gratitude: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace."
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