The First Great Ancestor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 388 Mr. Xue is in the right place
Guo Wei glanced at the ministers and his eyes fell on Wang Yin: "What do you think?"

Wang Yin hurriedly cheered up, stood up, walked to the palace, saluted and said: "I also believe that Zhu Xiunai is a minister of our court. If he commits a heinous crime again, he should be tried by our court. The pseudo-Tang Dynasty is a separate country, and he dares to claim the title of emperor." Your Majesty, to be on an equal footing with me in the Central Plains is really arrogant!

How can the vassals of the Celestial Empire be judged on life and death by a small country?Moreover, Li Jing has repeatedly coveted the Central Plains. He had flirtations with Li Shouzhen and Li Yiyin in the past, and now he is associated with Murong Yanchao. It is really hateful!
I would like to ask the officials to take this opportunity to beat Li Jing and make him calm down and stop daydreaming about returning the capital to Chang'an and Luoyang! "

Wei Renpu, Fu Yanqing, Wang Jun and other important ministers nodded unanimously, Wang Yin's words touched their hearts.

Li Jing kept making small moves. Whenever there was some turmoil in the Central Plains, he frequently contacted Meng Chang of the puppet Sichuan, Li Yiyin of the Dingnan Army, and even the Khitan people, and tried every means to cause trouble for the Kaifeng court.

When Li Shouzhen's rebellion was put down, Guo Wei almost suffered. Fortunately, with Zhu Xiu's help, he had the opportunity to make a surprise attack on Puzhou City, which greatly accelerated the progress of putting down the rebellion.

Otherwise, once the war drags on, the Tang army in Huainan will definitely be restless.

The puppet Tang Dynasty occupied the dangerous place of the Yangtze River, and had the land of Huainan as a forward position, and could send troops to harass Yingzhou, Caizhou and other places at any time, threatening the safety of Kaifeng.

In order to consolidate the stability of the Central Plains regime, it is necessary to seize the land of Huainan and advance the defense line to the north bank of the Yangtze River.

"Little Li Jing, when I have my hands free, I must teach him a lesson!" Guo Wei said fiercely.

Wang Yin was very satisfied with his speech, bowed and returned to his seat to sit down.

He was not very familiar with Zhu Xiu. He had met him a few times, and his impression was that he was a humble and respectful young man.

Wang Yin knew that when Wang Jun was the Superintendent of Salt and Iron in Jingzhao during the Liu Han Dynasty, he had conflicts with Zhu Xiu, who was in Jingzhou at that time, and had deep grudges.

Looking at Wang Jun's appearance, he wished Zhu Xiu had been beheaded by Li Jing in Jiangning.

But Wang Yin is not stupid. He knows that Zhu Xiu has a good relationship with Chai Rong and Wei Renpu. Guo Wei doesn't say it, but he also values ​​Zhu Xiu very much in his heart.

In this case, Wang Yin naturally chose to say a few good words to Zhu Xiu.

However, the angle of his speech was very particular. He did not blindly emphasize Zhu Xiu's personal abilities and achievements, but spoke from the perspective of the national status and relationship between the Great Zhou Dynasty and the Southern Tang Dynasty.

As the saying goes, envoys from the upper state do not bow to the monarch of the lower state. As a minister of the Zhou Dynasty, how can Zhu Xiu's life and death be decided by the Jiangnan puppet court?
Otherwise, where would the dignity of the Zhou Dynasty, the officials, and our officials be concerned?
Regardless of the long-term peace in the south of the Yangtze River, which seems to be a thriving scene full of flowers and flowers, in the hearts of the courtiers in Kaifeng, the puppet Tang Dynasty is just a separatist force that rose to take advantage of the chaos, and it will definitely be unified in the end.

Only our Central Plains dynasty is the right one in the world!

By speaking like this, Wang Yin neither offended Wang Jun nor Wei Renpu and others. When Zhu Xiu came back, he would also like to thank him for speaking up.

It can also show that he has a high position, a large structure and a grand vision while talking eloquently.

Wang Yin looked proud, having become the commander-in-chief of the Forbidden Army, his vision was completely different.

Guo Wei remained calm, tapped the imperial case with his knuckles, thought for a moment and said with a smile: "Everyone's words are reasonable. Although Zhu Xiu's actions are absurd, it is not Li Jing's turn to detain my ministers!
I decided to immediately send envoys south to Jiangning to meet with Li Jing, first to ask him to release Zhu Xiu, and secondly to take the opportunity to beat the Jiangning court so that they should not be smart and collude with the traitors and traitors in our country to plot evil!

Gentlemen, who do you think is the most suitable person to send? "

Everyone hurriedly started to think about it. The officials had already said that they wanted to protect Zhu Xiu in the name of the Zhou Dynasty.

This mission to Jiangning is related to the country's prestige and cannot be compromised. The people sent must be able to show the majesty of the state.

Wei Renpu cupped his hands and said: "I think of someone who may take on this important task!"

"Who?" Guo Wei asked.

Wei Renpu said: "Xue Juzheng, who works in Bibu, is full of talents, proficient in laws, extraordinary bearing, and has a dignified and upright spirit. He can be an envoy of the Great Zhou Dynasty!"

Wang Jun chuckled and said, "If you send a small-time envoy to Jiangning, won't the Puppet Tang Dynasty laugh at me because I have no one in the Central Plains?"

Wei Renpu smiled lightly and said: "We have great wealth and great talent in the Great Zhou Dynasty. A small job can still shoulder the heavy responsibility of an envoy to the country!"

Guo Wei waved his hand: "Xuan Xue Ju is here to see you!"

After a while, the eunuch of the inner palace led a middle-aged official wearing a light cyan official uniform and a stiff gauze hat into the palace quickly.

"The humble minister Xue Juzheng is here to meet the officials!"

The middle-aged official looked solemn and saluted meticulously.

Guo Wei and all the ministers looked at him.

I saw that this man was about 40 years old, with a slim appearance, a tall and thin body, and a calm expression.

Although he is a civil servant, he gives people an awe-inspiring and inviolable righteousness.

Guo Wei smiled and said: "Xue Juzheng, how old are you?"

Xue Juzheng cupped his hands and said, "I am returning to the official family. I am forty years old."

Guo Wei said: "You are also from an official family. You have been a Jinshi during the Qingtai period. Why are you still working in a small job?"

The emperor's chuckle had a hint of joking. Xue Juzheng raised his head and looked at it, and said calmly: "In the third year of Emperor Qianyou of the Han Dynasty, I was the judge of Kaifeng Prefecture. I was offended because I arrested a general of the Guards Division who used lynching to persecute the people without permission. Shi Hongzhao, the then commander of the Guards Department, was suppressed and demoted to the Bibu Department of the Ministry of Punishment, where he has been serving ever since."

Guo Wei joked: "Shi Hongzhao had a strong temper, and you arrested the general of the Guards Department without even saying hello. No wonder he was offended."

Xue Juzheng said: "I have an old grudge with Shi Hongzhao, but it's not all because of the arrest of the general of the bodyguard department."

"Oh? Let's hear it." Guo Wei was a little curious. Shi Hongzhao was his old friend. As a senior general of the Forbidden Army, he should have had nothing in common with Xue Juzheng, who was a civil servant.

Xue Juzheng said honestly: "In the first year of Qianyou's reign, Shi Hongzhao moved to the right to be the commander of the Ma Bujun capital of the bodyguards. At that time, I wrote to the censor, saying that Shi Hongzhao's merits were shallow and his temperament was violent, and he was not qualified to serve as the commander of the imperial army.

Shi Hongzhao knew about this and was deeply annoyed with me."

"Haha~ At that time, Shi Hongzhao was entrusted with the important task of controlling the military power of the Forbidden Army. It was a time when he was very satisfied. How dare you write a letter saying that he is not worthy of being the commander of the Forbidden Army?
Speaking of which, before Emperor Gaozu passed away, I recommended Shi Hongzhao to be the commander of the Imperial Guard Division.

You wrote a letter saying that Shi Hongzhao was not worthy of this important task. Did you mention me? "

Xue Juzheng cupped his hands and his expression did not change: "I wrote at that time that the official family and Shi Hongzhao had a long-standing friendship, and the official family was the privy envoy at that time. If Shi Hongzhao was in charge of the imperial army, all military and state affairs would be controlled by the two of them. Once there was a change, the country would be affected. It’s dangerous!
Therefore, in my remonstrance, I asked Emperor Yin of the Han Dynasty to transfer his officials to leave the capital and find a suitable opportunity to deprive him of military power! "

There was a sound of gasping for air in the hall, and all the important ministers looked at each other, sweating for Xue Juzheng.

This guy is so brave, he dares to tell everything about what happened back then?

Wei Renpu smiled wryly and kept winking, but Xue Juzheng ignored them.

On the imperial throne, Guo Wei was stunned, his smile frozen.

"Hahaha~" Suddenly, Guo Wei raised his head and laughed.

"If Liu Chengyou had listened to your words back then, I'm afraid my head would have moved by now!" Guo Wei pointed at his own head and laughed.

Wang Jun was so angry that he jumped out and shouted: "How brave Xue Juzheng! How dare you plot to frame the official family? His heart is to be punished!"

Xue Juzheng glanced at him indifferently, and said calmly: "Back then, Xue was an official in the same dynasty as the official family, so he should fulfill the responsibility of a minister in his thoughts!

Xue's advice at the time was not intentionally to be an enemy of the officials, but for the sake of Liu Han's country.

Unfortunately, facts have proven that the Liu Han court was unpopular. This was not due to destiny, but to be replaced by officials was an act of fate and people!

Xue is now a minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and the only people he is loyal to are the officials!
When the officials ask questions, the ministers answer them without daring to hide anything. This is the sincerity of my loyalty to the emperor!
I dare to ask Privy Wang, if an official asked you something, would you be able to tell him honestly and without any concealment?If something is concealed, does it constitute the crime of deceiving the emperor? "

"You, you, you~~" Wang Jun's face turned red with anger, "I, Wang Jun, have a loyal heart that can be seen from the sky, and I have never deceived officials in the slightest!" Xue Juzheng smiled, cupped his hands and said, "I am Privy Minister Wang. The ministers of the Great Zhou Dynasty were loyal to the officials, otherwise they would not be able to sit in the high position of Privy Council!

It’s just that Privy Wang is not the only loyal minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty.”

Wang Jun was speechless, snorted angrily, shook his sleeves and ignored it.

Guo Wei touched the prickly black beard under his chin, his slightly narrowed eyes were full of appreciation, and he nodded secretly in his heart.

This Xue Juzheng is indeed a talent!
Straightforward and unyielding, but also witty and intelligent, advances and retreats properly, without losing his strength of character.

Guo Wei said in a deep voice: "Xue Juzheng, I grant you the title of Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Inspection and Punishment, and be an envoy to Jiangning with integrity!

You have two purposes for going here. The first is to warn Li Jing not to have too much contact with the Dingnan Army or Murong Yanchao of Yanzhou. Don't try to destabilize our empire through internal and external collusion!
The second is to bring that bastard Zhu Xiu back to me safely.

Wei Qing will explain the specific matters to you in detail. "

Wei Renpu walked to Xue Juzheng and quickly told him in a low voice what happened in Jiangning.

Xue Juzheng frowned and thought for a while, then said, "I dare to ask the official, which of these two things is more important?"

"Why do you ask that?" Guo Wei said.

Xue Juzheng said: "Marquis Dingyuan kidnapped the prince of Tang Dynasty. This matter can be big or small. If the Lord of Tang used this matter to make a fuss and detained Marquis Dingyuan, our dynasty would not have an advantage in terms of logic.

The Lord of the Tang Dynasty has always had the ambition to return the capital to Chang'an and Luoyang. The turmoil in the Central Plains is a good time for the Tang State to send troops to the north, so the Lord of the Tang Dynasty will spare no effort to stir up civil strife in our court.

The officials ordered the ministers to warn the Tang Lord, which might backfire.

For the Tang State, if these two things were all done in accordance with the wishes of the officials, I am afraid that no one in the Tang State would be willing to do so.

Therefore, I can only do my best to achieve one of them. "

Guo Wei frowned and was silent for a moment, then said: "Then you should do your best to bring Zhu Xiu back!"

"Your Majesty, Xue Juzheng, accepts the order!"

Xue Juzheng bowed solemnly and asked one more question: "Do the officials want to use troops against Huainan?"

Guo Wei stared at him and smiled: "So what?"

Xue Juzheng said: "I suggest that the officials postpone this matter!"

"Why!?" Guo Wei's eyes narrowed slightly.

All the important officials looked at Xue Juzheng.

Wang Jun snorted contemptuously, a small criminal department still dares to speak nonsense and talk about military and national affairs.

Xue Juzheng said: "Xiazhou Li Yiyin has recently increased business ties with the Khitan, nominally not involving the military and government, but just normal private trade, but in fact, Li Yiyin may not have no desire to strengthen ties with Liu Chong and the Khitan people in Hedong!

Party members have long wanted to be self-reliant, but they just haven't waited for the right opportunity.

Now Liu Chong is causing rebellion in the east of Hedong, and the Khitans are frequently sending more troops to Hutuo and Hebei. Murong Yanchao of Yanzhou has blocked the passes, forcibly recruited young men and women in the territory under his jurisdiction, and vigorously plundered grain. Five years after the tax money was collected, his rebellious intentions were clearly revealed. !

Nowadays, I, the Great Zhou Dynasty, should mainly focus on quelling the civil strife, and secondly, appease the party members and guard against the Khitans. It is not appropriate to take the initiative to provoke a war in Huainan! "

Guo Wei pretended to be casual and asked: "Then what do you think is the best time to send troops to regain the lost territory in Jianghuai?"

Xue Juzheng lowered his head to estimate silently for a moment, then raised his head with blazing eyes and eloquent words: "Three years! I need three more years in the Zhou Dynasty to rest the army and support the people! First conquer Huainan to control the natural dangers of the Yangtze River, and coerce the Tang State to shrink the defense line in the north of the Yangtze River, making it Trapped firmly in Jiangnan and unable to move!
Afterwards, depending on the changes in the situation, decide the order of north and south, and attack all sides! "

Guo Wei's eyes swelled sharply, and he clenched his fists fiercely.

There was silence in the hall, and several pairs of eyes fell on Xue Juzheng with wonder.

Wei Renpu and Fu Yanqing both admired it.

There is such a far-sighted person, but he is only engaged in a small criminal department. It is really a pearl covered with dust and a waste of natural resources!
Wang Yin was dozing off, and suddenly noticed something was wrong in the atmosphere in the hall, and quickly covered his mouth.

What did this little businessman just say?
Looking at the official's appearance, he seems to admire this person very much?

Wang Yin put away his contempt, looked at Xue Juzheng again, and secretly made up his mind to send someone to this person's home to deliver a gift immediately after leaving the palace and returning home, and to establish a good relationship first.

Wang Jun also remained silent, his eyes changing unpredictably.

This Xue Juzheng is indeed extraordinary. After today, if he can come back from Jiangning safely, he will definitely have a place at the top of the Zhou Dynasty in the future!
There are too many capable people, and the competition in the court has become increasingly fierce!

Hateful!
Wang Jun felt a sense of crisis and urgency!

Guo Wei remembered Xue Juzheng's name and appearance deeply in his heart, but did not comment on what he just said. He said calmly: "After Xue Qing goes down, he will discuss with Wei Chengzhi about sending an envoy to Jiangning. We will set off in three days. We must do it as soon as possible." Rush to Jiangning!

I also have a handwritten message, please take it to Zhu Xiu.

Also, when you see that bastard, give him a good scolding for me. "

Xue Juzheng saluted and said: "I obey your order!"

"Wang ordered Wen to stay, and the other ministers should retreat!"

After all the ministers paid their respects, they resigned and left the hall one after another.

In the huge palace, only Guo Wei and Wang Lingwen were left.

Guo Wei waved, and Wang Lingwen walked up the steps and bowed to listen.

"Go to Jiangning in person, get in touch with Zhu Xiu, and secretly cooperate with Xue Juzheng to rescue him.

Zhu Xiu has a lot of ideas, please listen to his opinions.

When you go to Jiangning, you must pay attention to safety and do not expose your whereabouts. Also, do not let Xue Juzheng know. "

Wang Lingwen, whose beard and hair were all white, said respectfully: "Old minister, I accept the order!"

Wang Lingwen said softly: "In the official family, Wang Yin secretly hid the maid from Yeting."

Guo Wei's eyes were cold, and a stern look flashed across his powerful face: "Let's not pursue this matter for the time being. Let your people keep a close eye on him and see what other moves he makes."

"Old minister, I understand!" Wang Ling bowed warmly, "The official has no other orders, so I will retire."

Wang Lingwen had just walked down the steps and was about to turn around and exit the hall when he heard Guo Wei's voice coming from the throne:

"By the way, when you see Zhu Xiu, you give him a good kick in the ass for me. This bastard will bring me trouble." Guo Wei cursed.

Wang Lingwen was stunned, his old and sickly face looked like he couldn't laugh or cry.

".Old minister takes orders"

(End of this chapter)