There is something hanging on the wall behind Zhao Huan's dragon throne in Wende Hall. This thing has an extraordinary origin. It is the imperial sword of Emperor Taizu Zhao Kuangyin.
Even Zhao Huan was a little afraid of this thing, so let's just call it the Imperial Sword.
Taizu's sword was used to behead tyrants and slanderous ministers. Zhao Huan took the sword from the wall.
With a clang, Zhao Huan drew out his sword, and a gust of cold air blew towards him.
The sword blade is like autumn water, and the cold light sways unsteadily. What a peerless sword.
"In the past, Taizu used this precious sword to conquer the country and slay countless enemies. It was later enshrined in the ancestral temple, and I brought it to this Wende Hall. Linghu Yunlong, I now name this sword the 'Imperial Sword.' It can behead corrupt officials, royal relatives, and slanderous ministers."
He blurted out the words that he had beheaded the tyrant emperor.
It was impossible to execute a tyrant. No matter how powerful someone was, they wouldn't dare to execute a tyrant; that would be treason. Besides, Zhao Huan himself was a tyrant, so he didn't want to be called that. So he changed it to "execute the imperial family above and the slanderous ministers below," which was the only way to make it look correct.
Zhao Huan sheathed the sharp sword and handed it to Linghu Yunlong. "Remember, this sword must not be unsheathed lightly. If that son of a bitch Li Qingyuan really does something evil, you will use this sword to kill him."
Linghu Yunlong took the sword respectfully and said, "Your Majesty, I obey your command!"
"Go, the sooner the better. I'm afraid that if you go too late, more than a thousand people will become innocent souls." Zhao Huan waved his hand, and Linghu Yunlong retreated with his sword.
Cao Dongsheng, who was standing by, was stunned. Zhao Huan glared at him and said, "What are you looking at? Follow me to the Renming Hall to see my son."
Zhao Huan went to the queen's bedroom, and before he entered the hall, he heard a noise coming from Renming Hall.
"Sister, please beg His Majesty to send me to the border. I want to fight!" That was Zhu Xiaoqing's voice.
"Qing'er! Why are you still acting like this? You are the only boy in my Zhu family. When you went to the border to fight, have you ever thought about your parents? If anything happens to you, how can I explain to my parents!" That was Queen Zhu Lian.
Cao Dongsheng wanted to go in, but Zhao Huan waved his hand. He wanted to hear what the brother and sister were arguing about.
Zhu Xiaoqing's voice was heard saying, "Oh, sister, I'm already this old. Besides, I've been practicing martial arts since I was a child, so there's nothing wrong with me. I'm not bragging, but few of the imperial guards in the palace are my match."
Zhu Lian's tone softened again: "Qing'er, listen to me. War isn't about your martial arts prowess. No matter how powerful you are, can you defeat an army of thousands on your own? The border is dangerous, so stay in the capital. If you want to be an official, I'll make an exception and ask His Majesty for a position for you."
"I don't want to be an official, and I don't want to rely on my sister to get close to the rich and powerful. I just want to fight in the war, I want to go to the frontier. A real man draws his sword and mounts his horse, and the best fate is to die in battle."
"Nonsense!" Zhu Lian was furious again: "What do you mean by 'die on the horse's hide'? What do you mean by 'die on the horse's hide'? Do you want to make my parents die of grief?"
Zhu Xiaoqing knew she had said the wrong thing, and hurriedly started to act coquettishly: "Oh, sister, that's not what I meant. I really pissed off His Majesty last time. He definitely won't give me soldiers to go to the border. I heard that the Mongolian cavalry in Qinghe Prefecture are causing a lot of trouble. They even cut off the head of the Kui County Magistrate and hung it at the gate of the government office. This is simply a great humiliation for our Song Dynasty. If you only give me 2,000 elite soldiers, I can beat the Mongolians in Qinghe to a pulp."
"You, you, you are going to piss me off to death!" Zhu Lian pointed at him angrily, covering his chest.
"The emperor has arrived!" As soon as Cao Dongsheng finished shouting, Zhao Huan rushed into the Renming Hall.
"Greetings, Your Majesty!" Zhu Lian and his sister saluted hurriedly.
Zhao Huan nodded and sat down. "Qing'er, do you really want to lead the troops into battle?"
Zhu Xiaoqing's eyes lit up immediately. "Of course. I've been reading military books at home these past few days. I've read the Biography of Wei Qing and the Biography of Huo Qubing in the Book of Han. I found these two to be quite impressive."
Zhao Huan smiled slightly: "Wei Qing? Oh, I remember he is also the Queen's brother. Why, you want to learn from Wei Qing?"
Unexpectedly, Zhu Xiaoqing patted his chest and said: "I won't learn it. I want to be better than Wei Qing."
This boy's arrogance was rising again, and Zhao Huan was unhappy: "Then tell me, how do you want to be more powerful than Wei Qing?"
Zhu Xiaoqing came up to Zhao Huan and patted him on the shoulder: "Your Majesty, let me tell you something."
"How dare you!" Zhu Lian scolded, "How dare you be so disrespectful to His Majesty!"
Zhu Xiaoqing then realized that he had patted Zhao Huan on the shoulder. He was the emperor, a crime of disrespect.
Throughout history, how many people dared to chat with the emperor, pat him on the shoulder and say: Hi, buddy?
Zhu Xiaonian was young and fearless. He was never afraid of the emperor, which made Zhao Huan like him even more.
"It's okay, just continue." Zhao Huan smiled.
No matter how brave Zhu Xiaoqing was, he didn't dare to go over and pat Zhao Huan on the shoulder. So he could only lower his head and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, Wei Qing is indeed powerful. He has won every battle and has never been defeated in his life, but he still has his limitations."
This Zhu Xiaoqing is really a man who either keeps quiet or makes a splash. To Zhao Huan, his words sound like empty talk, just empty boasting.
"Go on, what are the limitations?" Zhao Huan stretched out his hand.
"Wei Qing once told Emperor Wu of Han that quality is more important than quantity. Having too many soldiers does indeed cause problems with coordination, and too many mouths can easily leak military secrets, hindering military deployment. However, it depends on the situation. If it's a large-scale operation, strength lies in numbers."
Of course, the premise behind my saying "strength in numbers" is that all the generals under my command must obey orders. As long as they can enforce orders, the more people, the better."
Zhao Huan was surprised by these words. It seemed that what he said was right. Following orders and disciplining people was the rule of the army.
"Go on, as long as you can convince me, I can consider you leading the army."
"Your Majesty." Zhu Lian was a little anxious. He didn't want his own brother to take risks on the battlefield.
"Really?!" Zhu Xiaoqing was overjoyed and wanted to rush over to hug Zhao Huan. But he glanced at the queen and shrank back.
Zhu Xiaoqing continued, "Your Majesty, I've looked at the latest border defense map. I've discovered a lot of problems, like the Qinghe Prefecture in the northwest. Why were the Mongol cavalry able to move freely in Kui County? It's because Han Shizhong placed his forces on both wings in Hengshuigou and Taoxian Town. If this were a siege, this deployment would be correct. But the Mongols came to rob and leave. You left Kui County right in front of them, so how could they not take a bite?"
The more Zhao Huan listened, the more shocked he became. He didn't expect that Zhu Xiaoqing knew nothing and could guess the crux of Kui County just by looking at a map. However, all the civil and military officials in the court, including himself, still believed that there was a spy in Qinghe.
Zhu Xiaoqing, a talent!
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