Chapter 231: Lord Zhao doesn’t remember who gave gifts, but he remembers clearly who didn’t.
"Your Excellency, the Privy Councilor!"
As the boots stopped, a deep, dull voice sounded:
"I am here, General Shi Meng, the commander of the Shenji Camp."
Xue Shence then raised his head, closed the document in his hand, and looked at the man calmly and indifferently.
As his name suggests, Shi Meng is quite burly, wearing soft armor, with bulging muscles, protruding veins on his arms, and a dark complexion.
He looked to be about forty years old, with a beard as thin as steel needles and eyes like a tiger.
At this moment, he clasped his hands together, looking puzzled:
"I wonder why you urgently summoned me?"
The Beijing camp has three major camps: Five Armies, Three Thousand, and Shenji... Each camp has a commander.
Shi Meng commands the Shenji Camp and is also a practicing martial artist.
He seemed like a reckless and brave general in the army, and had little connection with the "Shenjiying". However, Xue Shence, who had a close relationship with them, knew very well:
The person in front of me looks rough but it's just a disguise. In fact, he is a delicate person.
How can one be a true reckless man who can climb to this position among military officers?
"Take a look at this." Xue Shence said calmly as he threw a document to him.
The commander of the Shenjiying, who looked like a brave general, opened the book and frowned.
"Your Majesty appointed Zhao Duan to the Shenjiying Camp as a deputy officer? This..."
Xue Shence folded his hands in front of him and said calmly:
"The official appointment hasn't been issued yet. I want you to be informed in advance so you can prepare for it."
Shi Meng, with his rugged appearance and deceptive appearance, was in doubt:
"Although Zhao Duan is a military officer, he's from the Imperial Court. Why did he suddenly come to the Beijing Camp? Could it be... for Prince Jing's Mansion..."
Xue Shence sighed and said:
"The firearms case is extremely urgent. His Majesty ordered me to conduct an investigation, but it failed to satisfy His Majesty. Now this person has been sent to take up the post, obviously to take over this matter. Just do your best to cooperate. He can do whatever he wants, as long as it's not out of line. And..."
After a brief pause, the Dayu military officer, a first-rank "God of War," said solemnly:
"Instruct your subordinates not to give him any leverage at this critical moment when he's on leave."
Shi Meng was stunned for a moment, his eyes turned slightly:
"Your Excellency is worried about His Majesty..."
Xue Shence waved his hand, but did not say anything more. He just told him to leave and experience it himself.
Shi Meng clasped his fists and said goodbye.
Walk out of the Privy Council.
His burly body, as big as a mountain, rode on the military horse and kept thinking on the way back to the military camp.
In my mind, I recalled the rumors that had been circulating in the military in recent days.
Right now:
The struggles among the civil officials in the court have come to an end, and the sage is likely to have time to reorganize the military generals.
So... what the Privy Councilor meant was... he was afraid that a bunch of arrogant and powerful generals would cause trouble for him, giving Your Majesty an excuse to take action...
Well, that should be it.
only……
"What a trouble." The commander held the reins and suddenly felt a headache.
The generals in the army were brave and fierce, and they valued the friendship of their comrades very much. Not to mention Zhang Changji, the former captain of the Shenjiying Camp, who was killed by Zhao Duan. After all, it involved Prince Jing's Mansion, so it was a small matter.
The key point is that not long ago, masters of the Kuangfu Society assassinated officials continuously, whether intentionally or unintentionally, and quite a few of them were military officers.
Especially the first small flag officer to die. It is said that his brother was thrown into prison by Zhao Duan's men and tortured severely because he cursed a few words in excitement.
In addition, some people with ulterior motives spread rumors, causing some military officers in the camp to feel resentful. Now that the Shenji Battalion has been airborne, how can they appease the people under them...
Especially, the sons of military merit, headed by the "young master" of the Duke of Zhenguo... are indeed a difficult problem.
I just hope that my words as the "commander" can be of some use.
as well as……
The traitor who defected to Prince Jing's Mansion...
Shi Meng looked worried.
Before we knew it, the Beijing camp was in sight.
…
…
"Bang!"
Deep inside the imperial court, in a single female prison cell.
With the sound of a door opening in the corridor, Yunxi, who had been curled up on the straw bed, drowsy and unaware of the passage of time, suddenly woke up.
In the darkness, a thin, well-proportioned girl was wearing prison uniform.
His hair was disheveled and his skin looked sickly pale from not seeing much sunlight for months.
She blinked and looked at the tall "品"-shaped air vent in the cell. She saw a beam of light shooting out from it, and dust floating inside.
"daytime……"
Yunxi murmured, climbed up, greedily walked towards the beam of light, and walked to the wall.
Use a small stone to draw a line on the wall.
The gray and black walls of the cell were covered with marks to measure the time spent in prison.
As an "abandoned child" abandoned by Zhuang Xiaocheng, Yunxi suspected that she had been completely forgotten.
The last time he was "arraigned" was a few months ago.
Censor Lu Liang put her in a prison van and tried to take her to the Ministry of Justice.
But he was stopped by Yuan Li in the middle.
Then, Yun Xi became more and more angry as she thought about it, and the jailer passed the information she had about Lu Liang to the annoying Zhao Duan.
After that, there was no news of him.
After many days, Yunxi was suddenly escorted from the government jail to the famous imperial prison, also known as purgatory.
Yunxi was extremely excited, thinking that she, a traitor, was finally going to face cruel torture.
bring it on!
Eighteen kinds of torture!
I'm ready.
She would rather sacrifice herself and be brutally killed by the false emperor's lackeys. She was tired of the pain of being forgotten after dying for the ideal of supporting the country.
Then……
She was disappointed again!
Even after being imprisoned, she still couldn't escape the fate of being forgotten, and even... I don't know why...
The accommodation and food are better than when I was in the government office...
Yunxi returned from the wall and sat down on her little bed like a zombie.
He held up the chest of the prison uniform with the huge word "Prisoner" written on it with both hands, feeling the heavy flesh.
I want to cry but I have no tears.
It’s even bigger…
"When will days like this end?" Yun Xi sighed to the sky.
Suddenly, she was surprised to find that the footsteps in the corridor were getting closer.
But it’s clearly not the time to deliver food.
Until the jailer brought in a female prisoner who was a few years older than her and slightly less beautiful than himself, threw her into his cell, and turned away.
Yunxi's slow brain finally realized that she seemed...
I have a "roommate".
She couldn't hide her excitement, but still approached cautiously, kicked with her toes, and lay on the ground, looking like a woman who had suffered a lot of punishment.
He spoke awkwardly:
"Are you... okay?"
The maidservant, who went by the pseudonym Bluebird, slowly got up and looked at her in despair.
When their eyes met, both women were stunned, their eyes widened.
Then, they all spoke in unison:
"Yun Xi?!"
"Bluebird?!"
…
After a while.
The two women who met again in the imperial prison staged a scene of recognition.
They are old acquaintances.
They had studied together for a while at the Kuangfu Society headquarters, and later separated. Yunxi followed Zhuang Xiaocheng, and Qingniao followed the Thousand-Faced God.
It has been several years since we last met.
"How did you get arrested too? Did Qianmian go to Beijing?"
Yunxi helped the weak Bluebird to her own bed and asked impatiently.
She was too eager for information from the outside world.
No longer a maid, the "Blue Bird," whose real name was unknown, looked dejected and said:
"Qianmian has been captured, yes, but I didn't see it with my own eyes. I heard it from the jailer. Before that, he abandoned me and treated me like a discarded pawn."
Yunxi was stunned for a moment, feeling inexplicably the same way.
But Master Zhuang definitely didn't abandon her, he just didn't have the ability to take her away.
As Qingniao continued to speak, Yunxi was completely stunned.
The new helmsman was ambushed and killed... The court's new policies... Zhao Duan and the imperial guards colluded to plot...
"etc!"
Yun Xi grabbed her, her lips trembling, her eyes moved:
"You said it was Zhao Duan who captured Qianmian? He also killed Han Shuangjian? He's just a pretty boy in the White Horse Prison, how could he have such power? What does he have to do with the Imperial Court?"
The bluebird looked at her strangely, then suddenly realized:
"You've been locked up here for too long, and you're unaware of the changes in the outside world. Zhao Duan is no longer the same person he once was. Even Master Zhuang considers him a formidable enemy. Listen to me..."
A moment later.
After hearing from Qingniao about the many changes in the outside world in the past few months and the various methods used by Zhao Duan.
Yunxi sat on the cold, broken bed like a broken doll, unable to come back to her senses for a long time.
"Him? How could it be possible..."
…
…
In the next few days, the capital city entered a rare period of stability.
In the court, the struggles among the major parties have subsided, and the implementation of the new policies is proceeding in an orderly manner, but this is bound to be a long-term project.
It cannot be achieved overnight.
Zhao Duan did not forget that he was still tasked with arresting Zhuang Xiaocheng.
I tried to get information from the Thousand-Faced God, but the information I got was not of much value.
I don’t know whether he is just being stubborn or he really doesn’t know.
After being ambushed in South City, You Zhande's family was rescued and did not die.
However, because he was severely injured by the Thousand-Faced God, You Zhande had to rest for half a year.
Zhao Duan was rarely merciful and did not pursue the matter any further.
Instead, You Zhande sent a letter to Lihuatang, expressing his gratitude profusely.
He said that if Zhao Du'an went to Xiping Road in the future and gave him any instructions, the You family would be happy to help him even if it meant death.
The main point is a good attitude of admitting mistakes.
Then, he left the capital with his wife and children and returned to his hometown.
at the same time.
The imperial decree promoting Zhao Duan to the fourth rank finally arrived, along with the imperial order appointing him as a deputy commander.
For a time, there was a small stir in the officialdom.
It is rare to jump from the sixth rank to the fourth rank, but considering his achievements, it is also rare and not many people say anything strange about it.
In the next few days, Zhao Duan held banquets at his home continuously. Officials, both known and unknown, came one after another, and he received many gifts.
Especially Yuan Li, Dong Xuan and other court giants, who sent gifts, gave him enough face.
Even though many officials secretly feared and hated "Zhao Yanwang", it did not stop them from giving him gifts.
"King Zhao may not remember who gave gifts, but he clearly remembers who didn't in his little notebook."
Such a sentence came out of nowhere and spread like wildfire.
The number of gifts suddenly increased again.
And one night, the three members of the Zhao family closed the door, lit the lights and opened their gifts.
Zhao Pan curiously asked his elder brother who was slandering him.
Zhao Duan was slightly embarrassed. He used a box of century-old ginseng to gently scrape his stepsister's scalp and scolded her with a smile:
"Little girl, don't ask about adults' affairs."
Zhao Pan was very indignant, she was not a little girl.
…
Autumn has arrived in the capital.
This was confirmed by Zhao Duan when he got up this morning and saw the slightly cold dew on the window.
And when he yawned, got out of bed, put on a brand new indigo official robe of a fourth-rank military officer, and pushed open the door.
Squinting at the gorgeous chrysanthemums in the yard, my gaze inevitably passed through the courtyard wall and looked towards the south of the city.
He didn't forget.
Today is the day when the new official takes office.
Thanks to 2024...0917 for the 500-point reward~
(End of this chapter)
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