You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 81 The minister agrees with the words of the Eighth Prince.
As the prime minister, Yuan Bo was in charge of all the civil and military officials in the court. At this time, he had no choice but to stand up and offer his advice.

He knew that it would be quite unreasonable for him, the Prime Minister, to not step forward on such an important matter.

Besides Prime Minister Yuan Bo, the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian also stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, hundreds of thousands of rioters in Yanzhou have gathered to rebel and have occupied the three prefectures. If this is not quelled in time, it may cause a great disaster."

"The fact that the local government sent an urgent letter requesting assistance clearly shows that the local government's military preparedness was insufficient to suppress the rioters; otherwise, they would not have asked the imperial court for help."

"Therefore, the imperial court should immediately mobilize a large army to Yanzhou to quell the rebellion, in order to prevent the rebels from gaining power."

"The Eighth Prince, Zhou Xian, said with a solemn expression."

Although the Grand Tutor had just died in battle in the four northwestern prefectures, and the Divine Martial Guard had also lost 30,000 troops, the Great Zhou still had capable generals and soldiers.

If these hundreds of thousands of rebels in Yanzhou cannot be suppressed immediately, they will grow like a snowball, and it will not be so easy to suppress them then.

Therefore, the Eighth Prince's opinion was to immediately send troops to Yanzhou. Even if they could not immediately wipe out these hundreds of thousands of rebels, they had to control the situation and prevent the rebels from growing too powerful.

"Your Majesty, I agree with the Eighth Prince's words."

"Yanzhou is currently suffering from a severe drought. If we allow the rebels to continue their rampage, the entire Yanzhou may be in grave danger."

"The imperial court must immediately mobilize a large army to suppress the rebellion."

"Furthermore, granaries were opened to provide disaster relief in the four northern states, and high-ranking officials were dispatched to supervise the process."

Fang Xuanling also stepped forward to offer his advice.

In Fang Xuanling's view, the reason why hundreds of thousands of people in Yanzhou gathered to rebel was simply because they could no longer survive.

The four northern prefectures suffered a severe drought. Previously, the Ministry of Revenue was empty, and the imperial court's disaster relief efforts were ineffective. With no other options, the people had no choice but to rise up in rebellion.

If one could survive, who would do such a deadly business of confiscating property and exterminating the entire family?

Therefore, suppressing the rebellion with a large army alone is not enough.

Unless you slaughter all the people in the four northern provinces.

Otherwise, if one group is suppressed, another group will rise up in rebellion.

Like a spark, it cannot be extinguished without addressing the root cause of the problem.

We must also do our utmost to provide disaster relief and assistance to the people; a two-pronged approach is necessary.

The officials' eyes flickered at Fang Xuanling's advice.

If they remember correctly, this is how the Grand Tutor presented his memorial to the court regarding the affairs of the four northwestern prefectures.

As a result, Grand Tutor Wen Zhong led 30,000 Divine Martial Guards to the four northwestern prefectures to provide disaster relief and quell rebellions, and never returned.

As Fang Xuanling spoke, officials who were considered part of the emperor's faction, such as the Marquis of Weiwu and the Minister of War, also spoke up.

Zhou Chen, seated on the dragon throne, listened to the officials' advice, his expression remaining largely unchanged.

After the officials finished speaking, Zhou Chen glanced at them and said, "Regarding the matter of Yanzhou, we should wait until the messenger wakes up, find out the specific situation, and then discuss it further."

"However, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Personnel, all three of you must be prepared to send troops for disaster relief."

"The Ministry of Revenue must produce a detailed plan for disaster relief, specifying how much silver is needed, and how much relief silver is needed for each prefecture due to the different disaster situations. All details must be detailed."

"The Ministry of War is of utmost importance. Since ancient times, war has been a major national affair. I do not want to see the tragedy of the four northwestern prefectures repeat itself. We must make a detailed plan for the expedition."

"As for the Ministry of Personnel, it should select capable and honest officials to discuss disaster relief plans with the Ministry of Revenue."

"The other three departments must fully cooperate and assist, and there must be no mistakes."

Zhou Chen looked at the six ministers sternly and said.

Regardless of what changes occurred in the four northwestern prefectures.
Now that a peasant rebellion has broken out in Yanzhou, Zhou Chen cannot remain indifferent and wait for the outcome in the four northwestern prefectures while putting aside the matter of Yanzhou.

This would only make Yanzhou the next of the four northwestern prefectures.

As the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian said, if these riots are not quelled in time, the entire Yanzhou will be in danger.

This is not what Zhou Chen wanted to see.

Therefore, Zhou Chen instructed the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Personnel to prepare in advance and to decide on the next steps after understanding the specific situation from the messenger. Upon hearing Zhou Chen's words, Fang Xuanling, the Minister of War, and the other four ministers bowed in unison and said, "Your Majesty, we obey your decree."

Clearly, they understood what Zhou Chen meant.

Although Zhou Chen said he would wait for the messenger to wake up and find out the specific situation before discussing it further.

But these current arrangements have already revealed Zhou Chen's decision.

After speaking to the six ministers, Zhou Chen looked at Prime Minister Yuan Bo and said, "Prime Minister, you and Cao Zhengchun will go to the Grand Tutor's residence on my behalf and on behalf of the court later."

"It is said that the Grand Tutor died in battle for the country in Xi'an Prefecture, and the entire army of 30,000 Shenwu Guards was wiped out."

"I will send people to bring back the Grand Tutor's remains."

Zhou Chen said in a low voice.

The death of Grand Tutor Wen Zhong and the annihilation of the entire 30,000-strong Divine Martial Guard were far more than just the loss of a high-ranking official and 30,000 soldiers for the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Its significance and political impact are immeasurable.

If Zhou Chen hadn't possessed a cheat-like ability that allowed him to sign up famous ministers and generals, then the death of Grand Tutor Wen Zhong would have truly caused half of the Great Zhou's sky to collapse.

"Your old minister obeys the decree," Prime Minister Yuan Bo said, bowing expressionlessly.

"That's all for now, let's adjourn the court!"

With the urgent message from Yanzhou arriving, Zhou Chen lost all interest in questioning the officials about the news from the four northwestern prefectures in the imperial court.

Once the news from the imperial guards arrives, everything will become clear.

……

With the end of the morning court session, the death of Grand Tutor Wen Zhong caused a huge uproar among the civil and military officials.

Previously, because they were in the imperial court, even if the officials were shocked, they dared not show it too much.

But now, after the court session ended and they left the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the officials gathered in small groups to discuss this matter.

The news that Grand Tutor Wen Zhong had died in battle in the four northwestern prefectures was so shocking that even now, the officials still find it hard to believe.

Grand Tutor Wen Zhong, a veteran of three dynasties, was a pillar supporting half of the Zhou Dynasty.

Such a meritorious veteran actually died in battle.

Isn't this news shocking?

After leaving the palace, all the officials hurriedly departed with solemn expressions.

Because they all knew the significance of Grand Tutor Wen Zhong to the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Now that Grand Tutor Wen Zhong has died in battle, once the news spreads, there will definitely be a lot of turmoil.

They all wanted to rush back immediately to calm down and think about what kind of political situation they would face next.

Some officials did not go home, but instead headed towards the Grand Tutor's Mansion.

Grand Tutor Wen Zhong, a veteran of three reigns and a long-time official, has now died in battle. At this time, many officials who usually associate with him must go to the Grand Tutor's mansion to offer their condolences.

This included people such as Marquis Weiwu and Minister of War.

Outside the palace gates, Prime Minister Yuan Bo and Cao Zhengchun were also heading towards the Grand Tutor's residence.

As the head of the Eastern Depot and Zhou Chen's most trusted eunuch, Cao Zhengchun had no problem representing the emperor at the Grand Tutor's residence.

Prime Minister Yuan Bo is a veteran of two dynasties and the only remaining minister in the court who assists the state. As the prime minister, who is the head of all officials, it would not be a problem for him to go to the Grand Tutor's mansion on behalf of the court.

This is what Zhou Chen was considering.

Having these two people go to the Grand Tutor's mansion to deliver a message on his behalf is a sign of the importance the Grand Tutor's mansion places on him.

The simultaneous visit of the head of the Eastern Depot, a trusted confidant of the emperor, and the prime minister, the head of all officials, was an honor few could receive.

(End of this chapter)