The second major event in the capital was the arrival of the Prince of Yun as a peace envoy to the Kingdom of Beiqi. In the end, the conflict with the Kingdom of Beiqi was resolved by offering three cities and 100,000 shi of grain.
Although this peace talk was somewhat unsuccessful, the fact that there was no war and fewer grain and soldiers to be requisitioned is a great thing for the people.
However, when Prince Yun returned to the capital from Beiqi, the people saw that the prison cart following the procession contained the Mu family father and son, along with a group of Mu family generals.
It is said that the Cloud King possesses so-called "ironclad evidence" obtained from the Beiqi people, which can strongly prove that the Mu family army colluded with the Beiqi people.
However, in the hearts of the people of Dongyue, the Mu family army was like a god of war and a savior. How could they believe that such a savior army was colluding with the people of Beiqi?
Therefore, the people of the capital followed closely behind the prison carts, surging towards the palace gates like a tide.
When they could go no further than the palace gates, they spontaneously knelt before them, shouting in unison, pleading with the emperor to investigate thoroughly and hoping for a fair trial for the Mu family army.
As expected, they finally got the result they wanted. The 60,000 jin of grain that was used as evidence of collusion between the Mu family army and Beiqi was actually a shameless frame-up by the Beiqi people!
It turns out that the 60,000 shi of grain was purchased by King Yi from the Southern Shu Kingdom out of his own pocket, fearing that the plague in the country would affect the supply of provisions to the soldiers on the border, and sent to Yanmen Pass for the use of all the soldiers.
For an ordinary person, purchasing grain from the Southern Shu Kingdom would be an impossible task. But King Yi was different; his mother, Consort Yu, was from the Southern Shu Kingdom. Therefore, it would be perfectly reasonable to say that King Yi purchased the grain from the Southern Shu Kingdom.
The Kingdom of Dongyue was short of food and had no surplus to buy. So King Yi purchased food from the Kingdom of Nanshu to support the border. This was a righteous act!
In this light, King Yi was not entirely without merit, but rather a benevolent prince who cared deeply for the soldiers on the frontier! Thus, the capital city began to sing praises of Su Yi's righteousness.
Whether it was the injustice that disheartened General Mu Weihou, or his advanced age and declining strength, that led him to resign from his post and retire to enjoy his remaining years at home.
The emperor, grateful for the years of dedication of the Mu family father and son to the court and the people, agreed to Mu Weihou's resignation, but as the saying goes, like father, like son, and all the rewards were bestowed upon Mu Yan.
Not only were the Marquis of Muwei and his son allowed to continue living in the General's Mansion, but Mu Yan, the General of Xuanwei, was also directly promoted to Military Assistant. While the Emperor's rewards to the Mu family seemed excessively generous, the reality was quite different.
Firstly, the emperor kept Marquis Mu and his son in the capital to be constantly on guard against any movement by the Mu family. If they dared to step out of the capital, they would be killed without mercy, just as Mu Jin had done when he left the capital.
Secondly, Mu Yan became the deputy commander of the entire Imperial Guard. On the surface, it was a promotion, but he was only a deputy military officer. There was a military officer above him, and in reality, the entire Imperial Guard still only obeyed the orders of the military officer.
The position of Military Commissioner is just a sinecure. Although the salary is more generous than that of the General of Xuanwei, and there is no danger of fighting on the battlefield like in the military camp, who actually lives off the salary?
Furthermore, the Mu family army has always been under the command of the Mu family marquis and his son. The Mu family army is their personal guard. If they go to the Imperial Guard, who will listen to Mu Yan's orders?
Therefore, those with a bit of sense could see the trick: the emperor was keeping an eye on Marquis Mu Wei and his son, as well as the entire Mu family army.
Although Marquis Muwei served as the Grand General of Dongyue for so many years, winning countless battles and ensuring the stability of Dongyue for decades, his loyalty is evident to all.
But emperors have always been suspicious. Who told Mu Weihou to be a subject and Su Mu to be the monarch? It was his bad luck that he was the one who was discarded after his usefulness was over.
Those in the court understood the situation clearly, but the common people felt indignant on behalf of the Mu family father and son, privately saying behind closed doors that the royal family was truly too heartless.
It's clear that the Eastern Yue Kingdom is corrupt, its people are suffering, and it can't afford to feed its border soldiers. Yet, it still has the leisure to engage in internal strife and guard against the Mu family army.
If Su Yi hadn't stepped forward to admit the existence of those provisions, the Mu family's father and son, along with the entire Mu family army, would probably have lost their heads.
Thinking of this, the people couldn't help but feel angry for the injustice done to Marquis Mu Wei and his son.
That day, when Marquis Muwei and his son walked out of the palace hall, they saw that the red walls and yellow tiles of the palace were shrouded in dark clouds above, creating an extremely oppressive atmosphere, just like their mood at that time.
Marquis Muwei stood under the eaves in his tattered prison clothes, letting out a long sigh. He suddenly realized that he was probably getting old and useless, otherwise the court wouldn't have been able to just discard him like that.
If Su Yi hadn't asked someone to persuade him to resign and admit that he was responsible for supplying the grain, the emperor probably wouldn't have let him, his son, and the entire Mu family army off the hook this time.
He and his entire Mu family army had no intention of engaging in infighting in the ever-changing imperial court.
They only wanted to fulfill their duties and safeguard the stability of Dongyue. Compared to serving as a courtier, he preferred to see himself as a soldier, bravely fighting the enemy and protecting the country and its people.
Mu Yan helped Mu Weihou down the stairs in front of the palace step by step, while Huang Xin followed Su Yuntian to Mu Weihou and his son.
Marquis Mu and his son bowed to Su Yuntian.
Standing next to Su Yuntian, Huang Xin was quite pleased with himself. He looked at the dark clouds and even the tattered prison uniforms of Mu Weihou and his son, finding them exceptionally pleasing to the eye.
He finally got his revenge for the broken hand he had suffered years ago because of Mu Yan. Now, as long as he follows Su Yuntian, he will think of more ways to bring down the Mu family father and son completely.
Huang Xin said, "What's wrong, General? You look so worried. Could it be that you don't actually want to retire and return to your hometown? You're just putting on an act to get the Emperor to beg you to stay. Didn't you expect the Emperor to be so eager for you to leave? You've miscalculated, haven't you?"
"But you don't need to be sad. This is a promotion for Deputy Commander Mu. It's good that he's going to the Imperial Guard. My cousin is the commander of the Imperial Guard. I will definitely ask my cousin to take good care of Deputy Commander Mu in the future."
After Huang Xin finished speaking, he burst into laughter. Only when Su Yuntian glanced at him did he stop laughing and step back behind Su Yuntian.
Su Yuntian coldly looked at Mu Weihou: "I never expected that the纨绔 (wan ku, a spoiled brat) Su Yi, so far away, could still stir up trouble in the capital's court and save your Mu family's life. I am a little curious, how did his people send you a message?"
Marquis Mu Wei stared into Su Yuntian's eyes and said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "This humble servant does not understand what Prince Yun is saying?"
Su Yuntian scoffed, "Don't you understand? No wonder General Mu wants to retire; you're really getting old."
"However, there is one thing I want to say that General Mu should understand: as long as Ajin does not return to my side, I will not let your Mu family have an easy time."
After Su Yuntian finished speaking, he turned to look at the dark clouds on the horizon, then turned and left with Huang Xin.
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