Thump!
Upon hearing this, Prime Minister Qin Ruhui, who had been relieved, felt a pang of unease.
His nerves, which had just relaxed for a moment, tightened again, and his brows furrowed into three deep lines on his usually calm face.
Clearly, Wu Qingyun, the Northwest General of the Great Xin Dynasty who was also a member of the Crown Prince's faction and had close ties with Qin Ruhui, had already reported to Prime Minister Qin in advance the news that Wu had suffered a crushing defeat in Longcheng, that his 100,000-strong Yunhui army had been wiped out, and that Prince Chen Huai'an, the heir apparent of the Prince of Jin, had rebelled in Longcheng under the banner of "cleansing the court of corrupt officials and eliminating treacherous ministers."
Although Qin Ruhui was furious and shocked upon learning the news, he dared not truthfully report Wu Qingyun's defeat at Longcheng to the ambitious and tyrannical Zhao Gan.
Otherwise, given Zhao Gan's violent nature, General Wu Qingyun of the Northwest would definitely have been in deep trouble.
Then, his shameful deeds of secretly instructing Wu Qingyun to embezzle salaries and exploit soldiers, and even secretly colluding with enemy countries on the border, will inevitably be exposed.
At that point, it wouldn't just be a matter of losing his position as prime minister; he might even face the execution of his entire family.
Fortunately, Wu Qingyun's remedial measures were timely, and he has already begun to mobilize all the elite forces of the Yunhui Army to march on Longcheng.
Furthermore, they could even borrow a cavalry unit from the Turkic Khan Timur, making it easy to quell the rebellion of the remnants of the Prince of Jin.
As long as Wu Qingyun can eventually eliminate Chen Huai'an and purge the remnants of the Prince of Jin, there is still room for maneuver and room for maneuver. It's nothing more than deceiving superiors and subordinates, which is something Qin Ruhui is good at!
The next moment, Qin Ruhui suddenly turned around and looked at the Second Emperor Zhao Gan, who had returned to the Golden Palace. The three lines on his brows had already disappeared.
Instead, he wore a fawning and obsequious smile, switching facial expressions with a speed comparable to the face-changing act in Sichuan opera.
Then, he suddenly raised his hand and slapped himself hard across the face, followed by a belated expression and a evasive answer:
"Oh dear, Your Majesty, what a terrible memory I have! I was just about to report to you!"
However, when discussing the two momentous national undertakings of excavating the Grand Canal and rebuilding the imperial mausoleums—projects that benefit both the present and future generations—they completely forgot about the insignificant matter of Chen Huai'an of the Prince of Jin's residence. I beg Your Majesty's forgiveness!
As he spoke, Qin Ruhui lifted his prime minister's robes and knelt down in the Golden Palace, repeatedly begging the emperor for forgiveness.
Sure enough, after hearing Qin Ruhui mention the two major issues weighing on Zhao Gan's mind: the excavation of the Grand Canal and the reconstruction of imperial mausoleums, Zhao Gan...
Zhao Gan, sitting in the Golden Palace, immediately changed his expression and said with concern to Qin Ruhui, who was kneeling below the hall, "Prime Minister Qin, please rise!"
"I have witnessed Prime Minister Qin's loyalty to the emperor and his patriotism, as well as his diligent and conscientious governance for the people."
"In the past six months since I ascended the throne, I have witnessed your tireless efforts and dedication in the construction of the Grand Canal and the reconstruction of the imperial mausoleum!"
"With so many important things on one's mind, it's inevitable to neglect some trivial matters. This is human nature, and I understand."
After a pause, Zhao Gan continued, "It's just that the turmoil surrounding the sudden death of Prince Jin, Chen Polu, has not yet subsided, and I hastily ordered the renaming of Prince Jin's heir, Chen Huai'an, to Prince of Beihai, which inevitably caused some controversy."
"But I meant well. Prince Chen Polu of Jin made great contributions to the state and the nation of Daxin. After his death, I posthumously conferred upon him the title of Prince of Jin."
He also issued an edict forbidding future rulers from bestowing the title of Prince of Jin upon Chen Polu, which was the highest praise for Chen Polu's life of military service.
"Furthermore, my decision to change Chen Huai'an's title to Prince of Beihai and grant him the beautiful and scenic Beihai as his fiefdom was also out of my care for Chen Huai'an and the Prince of Jin's family!"
Longcheng is located near the border, frequently plagued by barbarian cavalry and sandstorms; it is simply unsuitable for habitation!
"I only found a place for his descendants to live out their days in peace and comfort, out of consideration for the great contributions Prince Chen Polu has made to the country. Wouldn't it be better for them to live a life of leisure and enjoy endless wealth and honor as princes?"
"But some corrupt officials from the previous dynasty have jumped out to accuse me of purging the families of founding heroes. Isn't this a misunderstanding of my good intentions?"
"Qin Ruhui, don't you agree?"
Your Highness, Qin Ruhui, who had stood up, clasped his hands together and exclaimed:
"Your Majesty's intentions are good, but these corrupt officials are stubborn and have misunderstood Your Majesty's great love."
Hearing the satisfactory reply, Zhao Gan finally smiled with satisfaction and said:
"So, how has the matter of my changing Chen Huai'an's title to Prince of Beihai and ordering the Prince of Jin's family to move north been implemented?"
Cough cough!
Qin Ruhui coughed twice, looked at Zhao Gan somewhat embarrassedly, and hesitated before saying:
"Your Majesty, well, this matter... this humble subject... this humble subject doesn't know where to begin!"
Zhao Gan's face darkened, and he said in an icy tone, "Get to the point!"
Qin Ruhui said, "Your Majesty, this Prince Jin's heir, Chen Huai'an, is just like those corrupt and incompetent former officials. After receiving the imperial edict, he not only did not accept the decree and express his gratitude, but also resisted the court under the instigation of a group of scheming Po Lu Army generals in Longcheng."
"Not only did they kill Wu Qingyun's son, the Northwest General who accompanied Sun Heling, the Vice Minister of Rites, to Longcheng to deliver the imperial edict, but they also detained Wu Fengxian, the young general in the Yunhui Army, who was carrying out the imperial edict and had started a rebellion against the court in Longcheng."
"What?"
Zhao Gan, enraged, slammed his hand heavily on the dragon throne in the Golden Palace, startling the maids and eunuchs around him who all knelt down, fearing they might lose their heads at any moment.
Qin Ruhui, who was below the main hall, also hurriedly knelt down and pleaded with His Majesty to calm down.
Zhao Gan glared angrily, his face contorted with rage, and said:
"Qin Ruhui, are you saying that this good-for-nothing Chen Huai'an raised an army in Longcheng to rebel, openly defying the imperial court and even me?"
"What is Wu Qingyun, the Northwest General, good for? Didn't I issue an edict to the Ministry of War ordering Wu Qingyun to lead 100,000 Yunhui troops to Longcheng?"
Wu Qingyun was just going to stand by and watch the notoriously incompetent Chen Huai'an rebel right under his nose and even kill his son. Were his 100,000 Yunhui troops just made of paper?
Zhao Gan roared angrily, "If I remember correctly, only the eight thousand Po Lu soldiers guarding Longcheng have not yet had their military power confiscated!"
Even if Chen Huai'an were to rebel, he would only have a mere eight thousand men, while Wu Qingyun would command an army of one hundred thousand. Why then would he not lead his troops to conquer Longcheng and quell the rebellion?
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"
Qin Ruhui remained kneeling, pleading for calm, and then, following a prepared script, casually replied:
"Your Majesty, Chen Huai'an did not directly raise an army to rebel and declare himself emperor. He simply closed the city gates and refused to leave Longcheng for Beihai."
"Wu Qingyun, the Northwest General, did not stand idly by while Chen Huai'an raised troops to rebel. Despite the pain of losing his son in middle age, he immediately ordered his army to besiege the city."
"The reason why General Wu did not lead his troops to conquer Longcheng was because he always kept in mind the Emperor's teachings of caring for the people and loving them like his own children, and could not bear to see the more than 300,000 people of Longcheng suffer a brutal massacre."
He hoped to reason with the defending soldiers of the Polu Army, appealing to their emotions and reasoning with them, in order to resolve the matter without bloodshed!
"After all, in the end, it is our Great Xin Dynasty's soldiers who die in these battles, and it is our Great Xin Dynasty's border troops who suffer losses!"
As he spoke, Qin Ruhui lifted his robe to wipe away the hot tears that had rolled down his cheeks, and continued:
"If Your Majesty insists on punishing General Wu, I humbly request that Your Majesty also punish me."
"Because, because it was your humble servant who kept advising General Wu, who was grieving the loss of his son, to always remember His Majesty's teachings."
We must not commit atrocities and incite war as the Jian'an era is about to begin. We must not allow personal grudges to ruin His Majesty's great cause of becoming a great emperor who will be remembered throughout history.
"Your Majesty, I deserve to die!"
Seeing Qin Ruhui kneeling in the main hall, weeping uncontrollably, Zhao Gan's anger subsided somewhat.
After hearing Qin Ruhui explain the ins and outs of the matter, repeatedly emphasizing that he was following the Emperor's teachings and was wholeheartedly concerned for Zhao Gan to become a great emperor and be remembered in history, his anger subsided by three points.
Moreover, Chen Huai'an, who only had a mere eight thousand troops and was holed up in a corner of Longcheng, did not pose any threat to his imperial throne.
Moreover, Wu Qingyun's 100,000-strong army was besieging the city. Within three months, Longcheng would surely run out of food and fall without a fight, which further reduced Zhao Gan's anger.
Furthermore, everyone in the Great Xin court knows that the two sons of Chen Polu, the Prince of Jin, who was invincible in his military career, are both useless and incompetent.
One is the weak and feeble-willed Crown Prince Chen Huai'an, delicate and frail, who has yet to achieve any merit in the powerful Xin Dynasty.
The second son, Chen Longxiang, was born with superhuman strength and perfectly inherited Chen Polu's brave genes. Unfortunately, he was not very bright and was born an idiot. He was sent to Longhu Mountain to become a Taoist priest from a young age.
Such a bizarre and useless duo causing trouble is indeed nothing to worry about.
Upon thinking of this, Zhao Gan immediately waved his hand and said to Qin Ruhui, who was kneeling below the main hall, "Qin Ruhui, get up!"
Qin Ruhui remained kneeling with his head down, repeatedly saying, "Your Majesty, I dare not! I deserve to die! Please punish me!"
Zhao Gan suddenly laughed and said, "Qin Ruhui, you are indeed guilty. Your crime is that you are too lenient, which allows traitors like Chen Huai'an to act with impunity!"
"Immediately draft an imperial edict for me, telling Wu Qingyun, the General Commander of the Northwest, that he need not worry and can go all out to quell the rebellion. Chen Huai'an is not a stumbling block on my path to becoming a great emperor and leaving a lasting mark on history!"
"Furthermore, draft another imperial edict to posthumously confer the title of General of the Cavalry and Marquis of Wu'an upon Wu Fengxian, the young general of the Yunhui Army who died tragically at the hands of Chen Huai'an. We must not let the soldiers' hearts be chilled!"
"Alright, stop kneeling in the main hall and get on with it!"
"Your humble servant obeys!"
......
Yunzhou City, a major town in the Northwest.
Inside the central tent of the Yunhui Army's headquarters, Wu Qingyun, the Northwest General who was clad in armor and carrying a sword, sat on a tiger-skin chair, with a group of Yunhui Army generals stationed in Yunzhou standing in front of him.
"Report—"
"Reporting to the General, an urgent message from the capital, traveling 800 li!"
As they were talking, a messenger from the Yunhui Army rushed in to report, carrying a secret letter written by the current prime minister, Qin Ruhui, to Wu Qingyun.
Wu Qingyun took the letter from the messenger and quickly scanned it.
Soon, a look of joy appeared on that ugly face that had been gloomy because of the defeat at Longcheng.
"Report—"
"Reporting to the General, an urgent dispatch from 800 li north of the Great Wall!"
Another urgent letter was delivered to Wu Qingyun by a messenger. It was the latest news from Liang Erhu, the former commander-in-chief whom he had previously sent to the northern desert to negotiate with the Turkic Khan Temur about borrowing troops.
The letter contained only eight characters: "Agreed to borrow troops, to march south soon."
At this moment, Wu Qingyun's smile widened even further on his ugly face.
He immediately waved his hand and issued the order: "All generals, listen to my command! Prepare for the departure. The entire army will set off for Longcheng on a chosen date!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com