"Oh? What does my Grand General have to report?"
Liu Hong sat languidly on the dragon throne, behaving like a tyrant, but no one could tell from his appearance alone.
He only has one year left to live!
"Your Majesty, I have received an urgent report from Bingzhou regarding the military situation of the barbarians invading the border!"
Upon hearing this, the officials at the end of the hall showed expressions of shock.
Only those in the know, or high-ranking officials and nobles with extensive connections, remained unmoved upon hearing this.
Seeing the reactions of the ministers below, Liu Hong was already deeply disappointed in them.
Fortunately, the predicament we faced in the past finally has an opportunity to change...
"Hmm? General, I remember entrusting the military affairs of Bingzhou to Zhang Yi, the governor of Bingzhou. Why didn't he inform me of this, but instead had you raise it at the court meeting?"
Failure to report such information is a capital offense. Where is Zhang Yi now? I want to ask him, is this how he repays my expectations?
He Jin first glanced at the group of old men behind him, but unfortunately, they remained unmoved. To put it nicely, they were as calm as Mount Tai about to collapse. To put it bluntly, they completely disregarded the lives of the people on the border.
"Your Majesty, please do not be offended. There is another reason for this matter! Governor Zhang is currently waiting outside the palace. Why don't you summon him into the palace and question him properly?"
"Hmph! So you know to come back and apologize? Summon Zhang Yi, the governor of Bingzhou, to the palace!"
"Summon Zhang Yi, the Governor of Bingzhou, to the palace!"
Accompanied by Zhang Rang's hoarse voice relaying the message, an elderly figure, with faltering steps, stepped into the central hall of power of the Han Dynasty.
"Your subject, Zhang Yi, Governor of Bingzhou, pays his respects to Your Majesty!"
Although Liu Hong verbally reprimanded Zhang Yi, he showed no sign of reproach when Zhang Yi stood in the center of the hall.
"Zhang Yi, I ask you. You are in charge of Bingzhou, why have you not reported it for months when Bingzhou has been invaded by the barbarians? Do you think that my sword cannot wipe out those barbarian traitors?"
Zhang Yi immediately knelt down and bowed, responding calmly and unhurriedly.
"Your Majesty, it is not that I failed to inform the court. Rather..."
Zhang Yi gritted his teeth and glanced at another eunuch beside Liu Hong.
However, now is not the time to break ties with this guy. Even if I told him that my plea for help was intercepted, how many people would believe me?
Even if some people believe it, others will know the truth.
Will they speak up for them?
"call..."
Zhang Yi let out a long sigh and continued.
"It's because those barbarian barbarians surrounded Yanmen Pass, making it difficult for us to break through. Moreover, the messengers were killed one by one, so urgent reports from the border could not be delivered to Luodu at all!"
These words shocked everyone present.
"Just how many troops did those barbarians send to be able to completely besiege the formidable Yanmen Pass?"
"Such a serious matter... why are you only bringing it up now? Wait a minute, how did Zhang Yi get back to court..."
The officials were abuzz with discussion. Some were shocked, but most were more concerned about how Zhang Yi had gotten there.
"Hmph!"
Liu Hong coughed twice, and the officials immediately understood and fell silent.
"Minister Zhang, if that's the case, then which barbarian tribes are they, and how many troops have they sent? Why are you able to remain safely in the court, instead of being caught in the very traps you speak of?"
After Liu Hong finished speaking, he gave Zhang Rang a look, and Zhang Rang immediately understood. He then arranged for two eunuchs to step forward and help Zhang Yi, who had been kneeling on the ground for a long time, to get up.
Kneeling is the proper etiquette for a criminal official. Judging from the previous situation, it is not unreasonable to keep Zhang Yi kneeling.
However, Liu Hong's attitude left the uninformed officials puzzled.
Could there be a hidden story here?
"Because the Xiongnu refused the imperial court's order to conscript troops, they mobilized tens of thousands of soldiers, attempting to break through Yanmen Pass and directly enter Jinyang, Shangdang, and other wealthy areas of Bingzhou, where they looted extensively!"
I led the local militia and garrison soldiers of Yanmen to gather the refugees and hold Yanmen Pass firmly. The city gate was about to be breached and was in imminent danger.
At this time, Zhao Hao, the Commandant of Yanmen, led the Yanmen Volunteers in a surprise attack on the Xiongnu army, killing a general in the process; later, he launched a night raid on the Xiongnu army's supplies, burning them for miles, which greatly boosted the morale of our troops.
With the help of Zhao Hao, the less than 200,000 people of Yanmen were mobilized to work together to build defensive weapons and repel the repeated attacks of the Xiongnu!
Only through such efforts were we, the soldiers and civilians of Bingzhou, able to painstakingly drive the rebellious Xiongnu out of Yanmen Pass!
Upon hearing this, the officials and Liu Hong all showed a hint of joy on their faces.
For many years, the Han court has had few major victories against foreign powers.
Today, thanks to the military, civilians, and local militia, they have withstood hundreds of thousands of ferocious Xiongnu people, a feat that the Han people can be proud of.
However, what Zhang Yi said next made them even more incredulous!
"Not only that, in order to wipe out these disloyal traitors in one fell swoop, Commandant Zhao Hao mobilized the people of Yanmen to form a volunteer army to attack the Xiongnu who had rebelled and surrendered again!"
A few days ago, a battle report came from Yanmen.
Commandant Zhao Hao led the Yanmen Volunteers in a great victory against a 100,000-strong Xiongnu cavalry force with infantry, slaughtering them all! Even the Chanyu Xubugudu was killed in the chaos of battle.
"Your Majesty, the head of the deceased Xiongnu Chanyu, Xubuguduhou Chanyu, is awaiting Your Majesty's verification of his identity!"
"What!?"
"Our great Han Dynasty has produced such a fierce general, capable of taking the head of a bandit chieftain from among an army of 100,000 cavalry! How magnificent, how magnificent!"
"Your Majesty, your subject Wang Yun requests that Your Majesty bestow honors upon Zhao Hao, the Commandant of Yanmen Commandery!"
"Your Majesty, I, General He Jin, also request that Your Majesty bestow honors upon this pillar of the nation who guards the border, so that the whole world may know of Your Majesty's wisdom in recognizing and employing talent!"
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