In another carriage, General Pang Xianchu and his deputy Zuo Liangcai, who was acting as the Northwest Commander-in-Chief, were also discussing what had just happened.
Zuo Liangcai sighed, "General Pang, what happened today has truly opened my eyes. A mere military commander of a thousand men has no regard for the lives of ordinary people. That's five hundred taels of silver! He just refuses to pay it. He's worse than a bandit!"
hehe!
Pang Xianchu sneered, "General Zuo, this Jinling City is not like our old home, Longcheng. The surrendered generals and former officials of Daxin are not like us, the generals of the Polu Army who followed the late emperor in conquering the world."
"The waters of Jinling City are murky—"
After a pause, Pang Xianchu said sincerely, "General Zuo, you are new to Jinling City and don't understand many things yet, but there is one thing you must do no matter what: remember to keep a low profile and never be ostentatious!"
Um!
Zuo Liangcai nodded and said, "General Pang, don't you know what kind of person I am?"
"I'm simply marveling that while His Majesty has conquered the land and established a new dynasty, I feel that the real challenges His Majesty will face are yet to come. Governing a country is far more difficult than fighting on horseback."
"If these arrogant and domineering soldiers are so rampant in Nanjing, the capital city, right under the emperor's nose, one can only imagine how chaotic it must be in places far from the emperor's reach!"
Eh—
After saying this, Zuo Liangcai couldn't help but sigh, unsure whether he was worried about the emperor's future governance of the country or about the people of the Tang Dynasty.
Pang Xianchu said, "General Zuo, this is a newly established dynasty. We can't control others, but we can control ourselves, especially before the investiture ceremony."
"Think back to the thirty-six generals of the Dragon City Vanquishing Army who followed the Emperor in raising his army. Today, some are dead, some are wounded, and the only ones left alive to attend the investiture ceremony are the two of us brothers."
"Now, we brothers are not only living for ourselves, but also for the families of the soldiers of the Broken Army who died on the battlefield;"
"so--"
Pang Xianchu hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
Zuo Liangcai, however, understood the implication in his words and immediately patted his chest, saying, "General Pang, don't worry, I know what I'm doing!"
Then he said, "General Pang, should we report to the Emperor about tonight's events?"
"The military generals of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun have colluded with the civil officials of the Liangjiang and Lianghu regions and committed such heinous acts. This is not a good sign."
Um!
Pang Xianchu nodded and said, "How about this, after we get back, we'll each draft a memorial and submit it to the Emperor privately after tomorrow's court assembly."
"Now that the new dynasty has been established and the overall situation of the world is settled, we roughnecks who followed the emperor in raising an army have no further use for our talents."
"But since we've been caught up in this situation, we absolutely cannot turn a blind eye."
"good!"
Zuo Liangcai immediately echoed, "We'll agree with General Pang's opinion!"
......
The next day.
Emperor Zhaowu, Chen Huai'an, went directly from Empress Liu Shujun's palace to the Golden Palace to attend court after bathing and changing clothes.
It is said that the wedding night is one of the three great joys in a man's life, and even Chen Huai'an, who was the emperor, was no exception.
After a night of passionate lovemaking, he not only did not feel physically or mentally exhausted or powerless, but was instead refreshed and full of energy.
When the morning court session arrived, it was the civil and military officials who had attended the enthronement ceremony and the empress's investiture banquet the day before who were all sleepy-eyed and listless.
In particular, Liu Ziyu, the top military general of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, had sunken eyes and yawned constantly, clearly showing signs of excessive indulgence in wine and women.
Fortunately, Chen Huai'an was in a good mood today, and considering that the civil and military officials must have drunk too much at the founding banquet yesterday, he did not pursue the matter.
Today's court assembly, as usual, is to see if any civil or military officials have anything to report.
The six ministries, however, seemed to have agreed beforehand, and none of them took the initiative to propose a meeting with the emperor.
Left with no other option, Chen Huai'an had to appoint his officials on the spot: "Minister of War Li and Minister of Rites Zhang, please proceed to the Imperial Study for a meeting after court."
"My other ministers, if you have anything to say, speak now; otherwise, the court is adjourned!"
With nothing else to report, the court adjourned.
After the court session ended, Li Jingyu, Minister of War, and Zhang Fu, Minister of Rites, hurriedly went to the Imperial Study to await the Emperor's arrival and discuss matters.
The two men knew that the Emperor was about to finalize the list of founding generals with them, so that the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Rites could complete all the details of the investiture ceremony before the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.
On the other side, after the court session, Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an was supposed to go to the Imperial Study to discuss matters, but he was stopped by his two deputy marshals, as well as Generals Pang Xianchu and Zuo Liangcai.
Seeing the group of people who seemed about to speak but hesitated, Chen Huai'an couldn't help but laugh and say, "Vice Commander Chang, Vice Commander Chen, and you two generals, you're quite an interesting bunch."
"I just asked you all during the court session if you had anything to report, but none of you said a word. Now that the court session is over, you've come here to block my way. This is quite interesting!"
As he spoke, Chen Huai'an looked at the group and asked, "Speak, is there anything that cannot be reported to me in person, but must be reported privately?"
Upon hearing this, after exchanging glances, Chen Qingzhi, the deputy marshal of the left wing army, stepped forward, took out the joint memorial signed by the group, and respectfully handed it to Emperor Zhaowu, Chen Huai'an.
Chen Qingzhi said, "Your Majesty, this is what I, Vice Commander Chang, and two other generals saw and heard in Jinling City last night. We feel it is necessary to report this matter to Your Majesty."
"This is a memorial; please take a look, Your Majesty!"
Chen Huai'an calmly took the joint memorial from Chen Qingzhi and began to quickly read through its contents.
A moment later, Chen Huai'an casually closed the memorial in his hand, his expression still calm and composed, and said calmly, "Hmm, I understand!"
"Second Vice Commanders, is there anything else?"
Um?
When Chen Qingzhi, Chang Yuchun, and the others saw that Emperor Zhaowu, Chen Huai'an, was so calm about what had happened the night before, they began to feel uneasy.
The new dynasty had just been established, and the military group in the north had already colluded with the civil officials in the south. Shouldn't the emperor be furious when he learned of this?
Why is it that when it comes to Emperor Zhaowu, it's like nothing happened?
For a moment, these people were also undecided.
After regaining his senses, Chen Qingzhi hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, we are all alright!"
Chen Huai'an nodded and said, "Then the two deputy commanders and two generals may take their leave. I still need to go to the Imperial Study to handle state affairs, so I won't keep you for a meal in the palace!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
The group nodded hastily, then watched as Emperor Zhaowu boarded his sedan chair carried by thirty-two men and departed.
Watching the Emperor's departing figure, Chen Qingzhi, Chang Yuchun, and the others, still standing there in a daze, exchanged glances again. Although no one spoke, they all understood what was going on.
Your Majesty is no longer the Prince of Jin who once "fought on the battlefield and drank wine with his generals"!
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