I studied in modern times

Chapter 1045 Succubus
Upon arriving at Mount Mobang, Lü Huiqing naturally went to pay homage to the Buddha tooth relic enshrined there.

In fact, this Buddhist treasure was also an acquaintance of Lü Huiqing.

Because it was once part of Wang Anshi's collection—initially, this Buddha tooth relic was discovered in a pagoda of a temple in Xianping County, Kaifeng Prefecture.

Because it was a Buddha tooth relic, it was welcomed into the capital.

Then, naturally, it was sent to the prime ministers of the two offices.

Wang Anshi, a devout Buddhist, was delighted upon seeing it and specially commissioned a wooden pagoda box to be made. He even personally inscribed the words "Dongfu" on the box before storing it away.

Subsequently, this Buddhist treasure, handled by the two prime ministers, gradually circulated among the powerful and influential people in the capital.

Then, when the late emperor heard about this, he ordered people to bring it to the Daxiangguo Temple for worship.

However, there is a second version of this story—it is said that after the Buddha's tooth relic entered the Daxiangguo Temple, Prince Jia, Zhao Yan, secretly ordered someone to take it out and put it into his own hands.

Upon his ascension to the throne, an imperial edict was issued to bestow upon Xihe the Buddha's tooth relic of the Zisheng Chan Monastery, and Prince Jia was appointed as the envoy to receive the Buddha's treasure.

This Buddha tooth relic had just arrived in Xihe from the Prince Jia's residence.

Of course, at the beginning, no one expected that this Buddha tooth relic would have such power!
It is no exaggeration to say that since it was brought to Xihe and enshrined here, it has been more powerful than an army of 100,000!
Now, together with the cotton mill, it has become a spiritual totem for the Han and non-Han nobles of Xihe.

Looking at the dozens of towering spirit bone towers before her, Lü Huiqing remarked with emotion, "Our lord truly is... full of ingenious schemes..."

"Unite them by means of profit, and link them by means of righteousness..."

"The Xihe tribesmen immediately vied for the lead, each willing to die for their cause!"

“Even Xibawen, Wenxixin, and Aligu are now eager to be the king’s lackeys!” Lu Huiqing recalled that after he took office, the two Tibetan chieftains who came to Lanzhou from Xige City and Miaochuan City to pay their respects to him, as well as the envoy sent by Aligu, all narrowed their eyes in front of him.

As is well known, the non-Han peoples and barbarians have always been the most troublesome groups for rulers.

Because they were unruly, and their customs, habits, and lifestyles differed from those of the central government.

Therefore, even if they submit today, they might raise the banner of rebellion again someday.

Just like the Qiang tribe...

From the Han Dynasty to the present, whether the Longyou region is in chaos or not has been determined by the Qiang tribes.

However, after taking office, Lü Huiqing discovered that the local tribes were far too submissive!
Whether it was the Tibetans, the Qiang tribes, or the Dangxiang.

The orders of the military governor's office were carried out without any compromise.

Moreover, many people are afraid that the implementation is not thorough enough, so they go back and start to increase the intensity!
There was absolutely no need for him to negotiate, reason, or coerce/entice the tribal leaders!
Qingyi Jieguizhang, the Tibetan chieftain who led his army to invade Tibet in the first year of the Yuanyou era, even said this after drinking: "If we had known earlier that our Han uncle was so wise, how could we have become his enemy?"

Currently, among the tribes in Xihe Road, Qingyi Jieguizhang and his son Jiewachuo have the most hawkish attitude towards Qingtang City.

He repeatedly urged him to use troops in Qinghai, and offered to be the vanguard, providing his own armor, weapons, and provisions!
They also actively colluded with tribal leaders, including Wen Xixin, who had a grudge against Qing Tang Aligu.

They seemed determined to annihilate the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau!

This made Lü Huiqing somewhat uncomfortable for a time—aren't the barbarian tribes supposed to be two-faced and only interested in profit?
Why is the feng shui of Xihe Road so good?

Are they all now loyal to the country?!
Could there be some kind of conspiracy?

So much so that at first, Lü Huiqing was slightly excited, thinking that she could get some credit.

As it turned out... an investigation revealed that these bastards were only after their eyes on the able-bodied young laborers around Qing Tang City and the Western Regions trade routes controlled by Qing Tang City.

Just like the conquest of the Dangxiang faction led by Bao Shun, who constantly clamored that the "Western bandits were tyrannical" and that they must rise up and conquer them.

To put it bluntly, they're after other people's cheap labor and territory.

This caused Lü Huiqing a long period of melancholy.

He was still thinking that, as a new official, he would make a big splash by beheading a tribal leader to establish his authority!

Helpless, he had no choice but to turn his attention to civil officials, making a fuss about military merit rewards, beheading a bunch of unlucky ones as a sacrifice, and incidentally sending a high-ranking official from the capital to manage military affairs—what kind of person dared to embezzle, withhold, and seize soldiers' pay/military merits under his command.

They're practically asking for trouble!

As for killing so many civil officials and dismissing one official in the capital, further damaging his reputation among scholars?
If Lü Huiqing cares, would it still be him?

"Your Excellency..." Li Kui's voice came from behind.

Lü Huiqing turned around and looked at the other person.

"The person you wish to see has been brought here..." Li Kui reported, leaning close to Lü Huiqing.

"Bring it in!" Lü Huiqing nodded.

"promise!"

A moment later, a burly military officer, around thirty years old, with a full beard, was brought before Lü Huiqing.

"Wang Shunchen, military supervisor of Nanguan Fort, pays his respects to the Grand Marshal!"

Lu Huiqing smiled as he looked at this young envoy, whom he would never have cared about in the past.

But who is this person, who was specifically chosen by the emperor to be trained?

It is said that the emperor was delighted to hunt him because he had heard of his superb archery skills.

So they started thinking about cultivating their own Wei Qing and Huo Qubing—this was a tradition among the Zhao emperors.

When they come across a capable military officer, they think of cultivating him into their own Wei Qing or Huo Qubing.

Unfortunately, many times, even if they discover that a military officer has the potential to play Wei Qing and Huo Qubing, he will eventually be ruined by them!

For example, Di Qing, or Zhong E.

However, the Emperor's decree was like a godsend for Lü Huiqing – he was just worried about not being able to raise his own loyal military leaders in Xihe Road!
This was also a habit of Lü Huiqing when he was stationed on the border.

Wherever he went, he would try to cultivate a new group of military elites and then send them to compete with the original local tyrants.

Then, he would act as the mediator to control the situation and establish his authority.

Just like when he was on Fuyan Road and Hedong Road.

Lu Huiqing's approach to personnel management, like his approach to business, was unconventional and unorthodox.

In his eyes, there was no distinction between Chinese and barbarians, nor between the noble and the lowly.

Whether Han Chinese or non-Han people, they were all the same to him.

Those who can fight will be promoted, and those who are obedient will be given important responsibilities.

Everything else is unimportant!

Because, in every other aspect, no one is more awesome than Lü Jifu!
Therefore, in the months since taking office, Lü Huiqing has been making inspections whenever he has free time, and has indeed discovered a number of capable military officials.

So they were promoted one by one, given power, and then their observation began.

Let's see who among us is truly capable and who's just a charlatan.

This can be considered a skill that Lü Huiqing honed on Fuyan Road and Hedong Road.

And this esteemed envoy before him, whose real name was Wang Shunchen, was originally named Wang Dafu. According to his investigation, he was quite fortunate.

In just four years, he rose from a lowly soldier to the commander of a fortress, and even elevated the rank of military officer to the pinnacle of minor envoy.

This is a promotion speed that many sons of military and noble families may not be able to achieve!

It is said that it is because he has connections with the Xiang family?
Thinking of the Xiang family, Lü Huiqing couldn't help but hum twice in her heart.

Because he remembered Zeng Bu and Zeng Zixuan, who were relatives of the Xiang family.

But then, he sneered inwardly.

Because both the Xiang and Gao families have been quite high-profile in the past two years.

However, if relatives of the emperor are too high-profile, they will be punished severely.

Once the iron fist descends, it will naturally affect those caught in the crossfire.

So don't be fooled by Zeng Bu's current success.

But who knows what will happen in two years?
So he helped the soldier in front of him up and said with a sigh, "Wang, the supervisor, there's no need for such formalities!"

"I summoned the guard today because I've heard he's skilled in archery, compassionate, and capable of leading troops. I wish to witness his archery skills and, incidentally, test his understanding of military administration..."

……

This was the first time in Wang Dafu's life that he had ever met a high-ranking official like Lü Huiqing.

In addition, Lü Huiqing had an even greater effect on intimidating all the people of Bianjing—during the Xining Reforms, the attacks and smears against Lü Huiqing were second only to those against Wang Anshi.

It is easy to imagine how much slander Lü Huiqing was fabricated by the old party's literati!
Naturally, one can't help but feel apprehensive and sweat profusely.

Especially after being helped up by Lü Huiqing, he became even more shaky and began to stutter when he spoke.

"The...strategist...sir, you flatter me..."

"I'm just a roughneck, all I know is fighting... and... I don't know anything about training or leading troops..."

"Hmm?" Lü Huiqing subconsciously glanced at him again, and seeing the awkward, simple smile on the other person's face and the beads of sweat on his forehead, she immediately laughed: "Are you afraid of me, prison guard?"

"I wouldn't dare!" Wang Dafu's legs were trembling slightly. "My lord, you are so powerful, I...I...I..."

"Alright!" Lü Huiqing remembered this person's background—he came from the Bianjing Imperial Guard. The Bianjing Imperial Guard had been severely punished by Prime Minister Jie Fu during the Xining Reforms—the Xining Great Reduction of the Army laid off more than a dozen Imperial Guard commanders in the capital and dismissed a large number of Imperial Guard officers.

Naturally, among the Imperial Guards, the reputation of the New Party ministers was, if not infamous, at least universally reviled.

"I have always admired heroes and warriors!" Lü Huiqing looked at the burly man in front of him and said, "Warrior, please demonstrate your archery skills for me first!"

"Yes, sir!" Although Wang Dafu was afraid, he dared not disobey.

A quarter of an hour later, Lü Huiqing looked at the arrows on the target in disbelief.

From fifty paces away, they fired a barrage of arrows from horseback, six out of ten hitting the bullseye, while the other four arrows landed around it.

The key is that its rate of fire is extremely fast!

In less than a quarter of an hour, ten arrows were shot!

This……

Since Lü Huiqing took command of the army, he had never seen such a skilled archer.

"No wonder the Emperor took notice! He even issued a special edict ordering me to cultivate and promote him..."

As is well known, the Zhao emperors of all dynasties were powerless against sharpshooters.

To this day, archery is a mandatory subject for those recommended by the imperial court.

"What a hero!" Lü Huiqing turned around and looked at the honest-looking Wang Dafu, his tone becoming warm: "Shunchen, would you like to join my ranks?"

There's no need for any investigation at all!

He immediately included him in his list of direct protégés to be cultivated!

Because even this young envoy only knows how to shoot arrows.

But that was enough to make Lü Huiqing place his bet on him—there was no other way, a military official skilled in archery was just like a literary official skilled in poetry.

They are born with the ability to command respect.

Moreover, this person also has military merits!
They've already proven themselves on the battlefield!

Wang Dafu was terrified when he heard this.

The Dharma protectors, the preaching monkey, the Fujianese, the local general... all want to take me as their disciple?

He swallowed hard, wanting to open his mouth, but didn't know what to say. His mind went blank for a moment, and he could only repeat, "I...I..."

Lü Huiqing smiled and said, "There's no need for an immediate reply from the prison guards!"

"Go back and think it over carefully, and give me an answer before I leave Mount Mobang!"

He knew that this young envoy named Wang Shunchen was backed by the Xiang family.

Although, he was just a member of a collateral branch of the Xiang family.

But we should definitely discuss it with the Xiang family, or at least inform them.

otherwise……

It's betrayal!

Of course, Lü Huiqing also knew that she was too happy to tell her family about this!
Upon hearing this, Wang Dafu subconsciously bowed and said, "Yes!"

……

Watching the departing figure of the young envoy named Wang Shunchen.

Lü Huiqing smacked her lips.

"This child, could he not only have some luck... but also some good fortune?"

A lowly soldier in the Imperial Guard four years ago has broken through the ceiling of every soldier in the past four years.

He rose through the ranks from a personal guard to a lowly military officer, and then rose again in the war, relying on his military achievements to jump all the way to the top of the minor envoy position.

This could perhaps be explained by luck.

However, his archery skills were heard by the emperor, who even wrote them down on the screen in front of him.

The emperor even issued a special order, requiring him to train and promote the troops after taking office.

This can no longer be explained by mere luck.

Just now, this man did not lose his mind and immediately agree when personally recruited by his own strategist.

Instead, he started to stutter.

Whether he was genuinely bewildered or simply too afraid to speak up.

This all shows that he is indeed blessed with good fortune—if an ordinary person were to be recruited by a general, would they hesitate?

However, in this way, even if we don't offend the Xiang family, we will at least lose their support.

But this stutter actually earned him a lot of points with the Xiang family!
If your family isn't stupid, they'll increase their bets!

As a relative of the emperor, one naturally needs to have connections in the military.

But they can't be too close—if they are too close, people in the palace will start to gossip.

Therefore, some incense offerings and some gratitude are enough.

Thinking of this, Lü Huiqing waved to Li Kui, who was not far away: "Sihe... go and ask how Master Puji Huaien is doing?"

"Yes, sir..." Li Kui accepted the order and left.

Not long after, he returned and reported: "Your Excellency, Master Puji Huai'en is currently preaching to the Guiyi Army..."

"How are the Guiyi Army members?"

"They all wept bitterly, prostrated themselves in worship, and called him Living Buddha, Bodhisattva, Holy Monk..."

“Yes!” Lü Huiqing nodded.

Lü Huiqing was confident in Zhiyuan's Buddhist cultivation (and his deceptive skills).

After all, in the early years of the Xining era, this monk had been treated as an honored guest by Prime Minister Jie Fu and his son simply because of his eloquence.

He then volunteered to follow Wang Shao to Xihe to open up the border.

Legend has it that this monk was instrumental in the surrender of the Bao brothers to the Song Dynasty!

She truly has a silver tongue; her words are always eloquent and captivating.

Anyone who believes in Buddhism cannot resist him!
He then instructed Li Kui, "Sihe, prepare writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone for me..."

"I must submit a memorial to the Emperor, informing him of the situation in Xihe and the affairs of the Guiyi Army..."

Since taking office, Lü Huiqing has consistently submitted an average of one memorial or letter per month to the officials in Bianjing to report on his work.

He had considered this measure.

Too frequent, and it appears overly flattering and nauseating.

If the frequency is too low, it is easy for the officials to have a vague impression of you.

One letter a month is just right.

Just ...

Lü Huiqing recalled the words on the official documents and memorials.

He couldn't help but swallow hard, even though he was as hard-hearted and cold as an iron man.

They were also often moved by the imperial edicts and replies.

"My lord is a pillar of the nation whom I rely on; you should take good care of yourself!"

"I have read your letter. Your loyalty and dedication have truly pleased me! I am at a loss as to how to repay your kindness and care! I have already ordered the relevant officials to posthumously honor your father and grandfather..."

Such words of care and concern almost always appeared in the replies sent back from Bianjing.

Sometimes, the emperor would even send someone to Xihe to ask him, "Does the gentleman need anything?"
How is your health, my lord? How is your diet and daily routine?
The officials' concern was not merely lip service.

In practice, nothing was neglected.

In just a few months, Lü Huiqing had a royal medical team of more than 20 people, led by five imperial physicians.

He was responsible not only for taking his pulse, but also for taking the pulses and treating his family members, relatives, and even his staff.

All medicines were imperial remedies bestowed by the emperor!
When he first took office, he had only one imperial physician and three intern imperial physicians by his side.

The current large team of imperial physicians is the result of the Emperor's continuous bestowal of favors over the past few months.

Under such a tender offensive, not to mention Lü Huiqing, even a stone would have been warmed and softened long ago!
But little did Lü Huiqing know that Zhao Xu had actually modified the fish-raising techniques and methods used by modern "tea girls" to win over the ministers.

It proved to be incredibly effective!

The little succubus is growing up strong and healthy!
(End of this chapter)