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Chapter 792: Extra: Conferring the title of Marquis (I)

In October, General Zuo led his troops back to the capital.

General Zuo led his troops to quell the rebellion in Yuzhou with swift and resolute force. In the following months, he continuously sent troops to encircle and suppress the roaming bandits and vagrants, making great contributions to the court.

The emperor personally led all the officials to welcome him ten miles outside the city gate.

This is the highest award for a general returning from a great victory!
General Zuo had received the news a few days ago, and had a rest last night. Today, all the soldiers in the Yingwei Camp wore armor, and their swords and spears were polished to a shine, shining brightly in the sun. General Zuo wore silver armor, rode a red BMW, and held a thick-backed long sword in his hand, looking majestic.

The civil officials who came with the emperor to welcome General Zuo all praised General Zuo's great power and majesty.

The military commanders were equally amazed, but it was unknown whether they felt jealous.

In short, General Song felt very upset.

He also wanted to lead troops out of the capital to fight and gain merit. However, he failed to get the title of Left General in suppressing the rebellion in Yuzhou, nor did he get the job of escorting Chen Changshi to provide disaster relief. As a military general, he felt very sad when he watched others fight and gain merit while he himself did nothing.

He couldn't help but regret once again that he had no vision back then. If he had been more enthusiastic when his nephew Song Yuan came to visit him and accepted the olive branch that Song Yuan offered him, wouldn't he be the one who is now so glorious and has made great contributions?

At this moment, everyone's eyes were on General Zuo. No one paid attention to the depressed General Song. General Song's self-pity and self-suffering were only experienced by himself.

Her Majesty, the Empress of Daliang, wearing a dragon robe, smiled and said, "General Zuo led the troops to quickly quell the rebellion in Yuzhou, killed the rebels, and curbed the people's unrest. He has made great contributions to Daliang. Today, I am leading all the officials to welcome General Zuo back to the court!"

Among these three achievements, the last one is the real great one.

Once Yuzhou fell into a stalemate of war, Daliang might see more rebellions. By then, the imperial court would send troops everywhere and fall into civil strife. It would cost the people money and labor, make the country unstable, and be easily invaded by foreign enemies.

Fortunately, this did not happen. General Zuo won a great victory and used thunderous means to intimidate all the garrisons that were ready to move.

General Zuo dismounted his horse and bowed to the Empress to express his gratitude: "I went to the battle on the orders of the Emperor and was fortunate to have won a great victory. I have lived up to the Emperor's grace. The Emperor has personally come out of the city to welcome me today. I am deeply terrified."

Jiang Shaohua smiled and said, "Rewards are due for merit, this is what General Zuo deserves. I will also confer the title of Marquis on General Zuo, and I have even thought of a title. A majestic and famous person, so I will call him Marquis Weiyuan."

All the ministers were shocked. The emperor had not revealed anything before, but now he suddenly said it out of the blue, which was too shocking.

General Song's eyes were red with envy. Civil officials were appointed prime ministers, and military generals were made marquises. This was the highest pursuit. General Zuo was made Marquis of Weiyuan without any effort!

General Zuo was also shocked, and even forgot to thank the emperor for his grace. He looked up and looked at the empress: "Your Majesty really wants to confer a title of nobility on me?"

Jiang Shaohua smiled slightly: "My words are golden, how can they be false?"

but……

But he had always been Prime Minister Wang's man. After the emperor ascended the throne, he still listened to Prime Minister Wang. The emperor sent him to lead troops to Yuzhou, which was actually a risk. To him, who had experienced many battles, suppressing the rebellion in Yuzhou was not a big deal. It just took some effort to eliminate the soldiers and bandits afterwards.

Compared with the more than ten years he spent guarding the border, these achievements are really nothing.

Why did the emperor confer him a title of nobility? Jiang Shaohua's bright eyes fell on General Zuo's astonished face, and he said slowly, "General Zuo has guarded the border army for more than ten years. He has made contributions and suffered a lot. At that time, because Zhao Wu abandoned Pengcheng, the border army was defeated. General Zuo, as the chief general, was implicated and was held accountable by the court and dismissed."

"The late emperor was right to deal with it this way. General Zuo was also wronged. I know it all in my heart."

"The title of Marquis Weiyuan is not only a reward for General Zuo's contribution to the pacification of Yuzhou, but also a reward for his hard work in guarding the border for several years."

"This is what General Zuo deserves. General Zuo does not need to be anxious."

General Zuo, who was only fifty years old and prided himself on having a heart as hard as a rock, never thought that one day he would lose his composure because of the words of the Empress.

However, these words truly hit upon the resentment deep in his heart.

Yes, he worked very hard to guard the border for the Daliang Dynasty for more than ten years. But he was defeated because of his subordinates' defection, and he became a criminal of the court and was cursed by thousands of people.

It was Prime Minister Wang who saved him from being beheaded. He also had a chance to make a comeback. Therefore, he would always be grateful to Prime Minister and would always follow him.

But now, the Prime Minister has officially withdrawn from the court and is busy urging the Ministry of Works to repair the river embankment. Zuo Feng is loyal to the Empress, so it can't be considered a betrayal!
General Zuo blinked hard several times to wipe back the tears in his eyes, took a deep breath, and solemnly thanked the emperor for his grace.

No matter what, when the fat meat comes to your mouth, you have to swallow it first.

Jiang Shaohua said with a smile: "Let's go into the city gate first! There are many people in the city gate who have heard that General Zuo has won a great victory and are waiting to welcome General Zuo."

The last time I went back to the capital, I was sitting in a prison van, and the people threw rotten vegetable leaves and rotten eggs at me, and cursed me endlessly.

This time, General Zuo wore bright armor and rode a majestic BMW, looking as majestic as a god descending from heaven. People along the street threw flowers and sachets to him, cheering for General Zuo's fame.

A little girl who was standing nearby shouted in a particularly tender voice: "Long live the general!" The father holding the little girl also waved his hands and shouted: "Long live the general!"

The hundreds of elite soldiers from the imperial guards and the British Guards who followed General Zuo to the capital subconsciously straightened their chests. What else can they say after serving as a soldier to this extent? In the future, even if Her Majesty the Empress asks them to go through mountains of swords and seas of fire, they will not frown.

In contrast to the two, General Zuo was so excited that he couldn't help but feel the passion of "a gentleman will die for his friend".

All the ministers welcomed General Zuo into the Golden Palace as if they were holding the moon.

All officials are present, and it is the same as a grand court meeting.

Her Majesty the Empress announced in public that the Left General would be conferred the title of Marquis of Weiyuan, and ordered Wang Zhongshu Ling to draft an imperial edict. After Wang Zhongshu Ling accepted the order, he immediately drafted an imperial edict and read it out in court.

General Zuo received the imperial edict and knelt down to thank the emperor for his grace.

From this day on, the Daliang Dynasty had a Marquis Weiyuan who was awarded the title for his military achievements.

A group of military generals, General Fan, General Bao, General Sima, General Liu, and General Song, were originally of the same rank as General Zuo. Now that General Zuo has the title of Marquis, he is truly the best in the army.