The Bad Guys: Everyone, let’s revive the Tang Dynasty together!

Chapter 419: King Jin’s Martial Arts (End)

Although the coldest month of winter has not yet arrived, the weather in November is no longer cool. The cold wind is blowing and people who are afraid of cold need to wear a padded jacket under their coat before they dare to go out.

The warm sun of early winter shone in through the south-facing window. Ji Ruxue turned over and hugged the quilt, but suddenly woke up with a start.

She did not go to bed until midnight the night before, so she slept very deeply and actually overslept.

When she looked back again, there was no one beside the pillow. Even the bedroom was quiet. The sunlight outside seemed very bright. She didn't know what time it was. Ji Ruxue hurriedly put on her clothes and walked out. After running into the maid outside, she realized that it was only one o'clock in the morning. She breathed a sigh of relief.

The courtyard was still decorated with festive decorations, but they were not the decorations used when Xiao Yan married the empress, which was about ten days ago. Yesterday, the canonization of Ji Ruxue as the side princess, Qian Wu as the concubine, and Ba Ge as the concubine had been officially announced. Although it was not as lively as a wedding, the proper ceremony was also indispensable, so last night was truly the wedding night of Ji Ruxue and Xiao Yan.

When I walked into the east wing, the empress was having breakfast, and there were four holy maidens accompanying her: Miaochengtian, Xuanjingtian, Guangmutian and Yangyantian. But I didn't know where Qianwu and Bago had gone.

"Have you eaten yet? If not, go and eat." Ji Ruxue saw the empress looking at her with a smile, and her cheeks subconsciously felt a little hot. She turned around and said something to the two maids behind her, then went in to pay her respects to the empress.

The reason why she suddenly woke up to prevent herself from oversleeping was that she thought of this scene, but it seemed a bit like covering one's ears and stealing the bell.

On the wedding night, everyone can guess what happened.

"It's okay. I overslept the next day." The empress whispered to Ji Ruxue.

The tips of Ji Ruxue's ears seemed to be stained with the morning glow, but fortunately she found that the saints obviously didn't hear it, which eased the embarrassment a little. Then she pretended to be calm and had dinner with the empress.

Since Miao Chengtian and Xuan Jingtian had been helping Xiao Yan with financial matters and had always been unable to get away, it was a rare opportunity for them to get together with Guang Mutian and Yang Yantian, so they naturally had a good chat. The Empress and Ji Ruxue whispered a few words in the main seat, which made the latter blush.

After a while, the sound of armor leaves colliding was heard from outside, and then Xiao Yan, wearing armor and wearing the Taiping sword on his waist, walked in. Qian Wu and Bago followed behind him. Ji Ruxue suddenly realized what was going on. The two girls were obviously helping Xiao Yan put on his armor.

Seeing him come in, the girls naturally stood up to salute him, but Xiao Yan just raised his hand to press him down, then picked up a steamed bun and said, "Eat slowly. I'm going to be late for the military parade today."

Ji Ruxue then glared at him secretly.

The empress covered her mouth and laughed: "Your Majesty, as the commander-in-chief of the three armies, you should indeed set an example and not lose time, but at least drink a sip of hot porridge before leaving, right?"

Xiao Yan, who was laughing at Ji Ruxue's glare, just smiled and said, "It's okay. There is food in the barracks. Just have a bite."

The empress naturally obeyed him and was about to stand up to see him off, but Xiao Yan waved his hand again, turned around and left.

The two princesses looked at each other and laughed at the dining table. After Xiao Yan left the Qin Palace, a group of officials from the Tiance Mansion who had been waiting for a long time followed him on horseback, went out of the Guzi Gate to the west, and arrived at the Jinshui Camp in the northwest of the city.

It is not without reason that Xiao Yan is reviewing the troops and performing martial arts exercises in the military training ground today.

After discussing and perfecting the draft of the imperial guards reform that he had drafted earlier with the empress and her husband, he gave it to his subordinates and ministers for discussion for a few days and finally made a decision.

Under the imperial army system, the Palace Front Division was set up to establish the Palace Front Army to command the most elite Palace Front squads and be responsible for the palace guards and the emperor's safety. Dingbadu and Guide Army were responsible for all Palace Front squads, and one Palace Front Inspector was appointed, who was concurrently held by Xiao Yan.

After that, there were the Imperial Guards Cavalry Division and the Infantry Division, which respectively commanded the cavalry and infantry units of the Imperial Guards, responsible for the defense of the capital and wartime expeditions. The former Imperial Guards Cavalry Division, after the reform, had the Iron Cavalry Army and the Control Crane Army as its main cavalry forces; the Infantry Division had the Dragon Swift Army and the Tiger Swift Army as its main infantry forces, and the commanders of the two divisions were Wang Yanzhang and Yu Zhongren, who were jokingly called the Cavalry Commander and the Infantry Commander by the ministers.

The armies directly under the Three Departments were divided into the left and right wings. In other words, the Three Departments of the Imperial Guards totaled twelve armies, with a total of twelve wing commanders.

Today, in addition to the original troops of the Imperial Guard, there are also surrendered soldiers from Shu who have been incorporated into the Imperial Guard. As of today, except for Shi Hongzhao's troops stationed in Hanzhong, the three divisions and twelve armies that have been dismissed for more than ten military titles have nearly 400 commanders and more than 150,000 soldiers, approaching 200,000.

Reviewing the troops is the first step, the purpose of which is to remove the old and weak.

It has been more than 30 years since Zhu Wen started his rebellion. Among them, there are a certain number of old soldiers still fighting on the battlefield. Although these old soldiers are experienced in war and have strong fighting skills, they are over a certain age and can no longer compare with the young and strong people in their prime. Moreover, those who have been able to fight in the army to this age and have not died in battle or retired have more or less built up a family business, and have become cautious and afraid of death. They need to be sent home with a batch of resettlement allowances.

Some are young men who were brought into the army by their friends in the army. They lack combat experience and their fighting skills are barely adequate, so they will be eliminated directly and only the elite ones will be selected to stay.

It would take several days to review the armies. A group of troops would be eliminated and dismissed first, and then Xiao Yan would arrange a large military exercise to assess the performance of each army in long-distance marches, battle formation evolutions, mutual attacks and defenses, surprise attacks and flag captures, strategic achievements, etc., and then the imperial guards would be streamlined based on the assessment results.

As the saying goes, the strong stay and the weak go. After streamlining the Imperial Guards, their size will be controlled at around 100,000 to 150,000, which means that 100 to 200 commanders will need to be removed.

Of course, the soldiers who are still able to participate in the grand military exercises after the military parade cannot be treated as old and weak. The court will provide the laid-off soldiers with land, farm tools or small loans, guide them to become farmers or handicraftsmen, or transfer them to local areas for resettlement according to the circumstances, etc.

In short, such a withdrawal wave, which would inevitably take half a month or even a month, would also cost a lot of money and food, but it was much more cost-effective than fighting a war, and it could significantly improve the combat effectiveness of the imperial army, thereby increasing civilian production. You know, the productivity brought by the retirement of 50,000 or even 100,000 soldiers and their resettlement in their hometowns is by no means comparable to that of ordinary refugees and farmers.

So, Xiao Yan took a bowl of soup and ate it in three or two mouthfuls. Then he faced the north wind and inspected the military appearances of various units with the civil and military officials. He was sweating all over and was busy until the evening. He did not talk about going into the city or returning home, but continued to eat in the camp. After the meal, he visited each camp in person, as if he was planning to stay in the camp.

At the hour of You, the resounding sound of bells and drums from the tower can be heard throughout the city. In the quiet Qin Palace, the curved wooden bridge over the stream in the back garden looks like an artificial rainbow in the afterglow of the setting sun. The lake in the center is sparkling with an orange-yellow luster.

Although this is not a royal palace, it is a real five-courtyard compound separated by several walls. The atmosphere here is completely different from that outside. There is not even a hint of the hustle and bustle of the city, as if it is isolated from the world.

The Princess seemed to be very busy all day, and often stayed in Xiao Yan's study to deal with memorials. Although Xiao Yan did not seem to have said in public that he wanted the empress to review the memorials on his behalf, no one had ever questioned her.

It is said that the empress has been married here for more than ten days, and it seems that she has never lost her temper with anyone, and she has not even shown a serious face. However, everyone in the entire Qin Palace is in awe of her. Even though the empress seems to be unhurried in doing everything, everything inside and outside the Qin Palace has become well organized and running properly. The number of people is obviously several times more than before, but there is no feeling of chaos at all.

The concubine was brought to the side of the principal concubine every day, and the King of Qin was often not seen all day except for the two days of the wedding, so naturally Qianwu and Baguo were in charge of the palace. Of course, it is more accurate to say that the former is in charge, but the latter now has a status, and after forcing himself to get in, it seems that he doesn't feel abrupt, so from the outside, Qianwu and Baguo have the illusion that they are inseparable and like real sisters.

"Do you think Alang will come back tonight?" Baguo asked Qianwu, who was reading a Taoist book beside him, while playing with the blood-red snake coiled around his wrist.

Qian Wu glanced at her and continued to turn the pages without saying anything. Ba Ge seemed to have gotten used to it. After all, in the past, she would have hated Qian Wu with her cold eyes even if she didn't say anything. But now, she just leaned back on the chair without any manners, and said inwardly: "Others have their wedding night, so we should have one too... Concubines are really different."

"If you feel aggrieved, go and talk to Alang." Qian Wu said calmly without even raising his head.

"Don't say you're not disappointed." Bago glanced around, then side-glanced at Qian Wu, and lowered his voice a little, saying: "This wedding night has a very different meaning!"

"What if I'm disappointed? What if I'm not disappointed?" Qian Wu said calmly, "Ah Lang has his own plans. The Imperial Army's affairs are more important than the wedding night."

Bago was a little angry and couldn't help flicking the bloody little snake's head with his finger: "To put it bluntly, we are not important!"

Qianwu sneered and didn't respond.

Seeing her like this, Ba Ge became even angrier. He walked over and spat, "Can't you have some ambition?"

"What does it mean to be ambitious?" Qian Wu turned the page without even raising his eyes: "Fighting for the position of princess means being ambitious?"

"Well... that's not it." Bago felt a little cold in his heart when he thought of the beautiful face of the empress. He waved his hands and said, "I mean, even if we don't fight for the position, at least we have to let Alang pay more attention to us, for example..."

Her eyes rolled slightly, her face turned red, and she asked in a low voice: "Do you know what Alang's most desired wish is?"

"What?" Upon hearing this, Qian Wu actually closed the book, looked up and asked seriously.

Bago then leaned over and whispered something to her.

Unexpectedly, Qian Wu did not feel embarrassed at all. Instead, he held the scroll in his hands and placed it on his knees to think carefully, then asked, "Will this really make Alang happier?"

Bago seemed to have thought of something, and said with a blushing face: "You will know when you see it."

However, as she spoke, she was surprised at Qian Wu's calmness, and couldn't help thinking that Qian Wu usually looked calm and indifferent, but when it came to this kind of time when he could compete for favor, he was very concerned.

Qian Wu thought for a moment without saying a word, then suddenly reached out and lifted up Bago's skirt, looked at her legs carefully, and even wanted to touch them.

"What are you doing!?" Bago was startled and quickly dodged, then he was shocked and angry, thinking that Qianwu did not respect him.

"You are going to hide now, not to mention what you said?" Qian Wu was speechless and frowned.

Bago felt his face getting redder, and he quickly argued, “Who knew you would lift your skirt suddenly?”

Qian Wu ignored her and continued reading.

Ba Ge was embarrassed for a while, then leaned over again, put his hand over his mouth, and whispered: "If Alang doesn't come back, I'll go to your room at night... Don't worry, just do as I say, and we will definitely make Alang crazy."

Qian Wu glanced at her and continued reading the book, but did not comment.

Bago was helpless. She had said so much, and seeing Qianwu's aloof look, she was too lazy to serve him and just left with a cold face.

However, when she waited until night and saw that Xiao Yanzhen had not returned, she thought about it seriously again. She sent the maid away first, and waited until late at night, then quietly walked to Qian Wu's yard. After seeing that the latter's maid was not there and the door was not locked, she sneered and sneaked in.

Early the next morning, Qianwu and Bago went to the east wing to have lunch.

"Hmm? Qian Wu didn't get a good rest at night?" The empress first glanced at Qian Wu's face and laughed.

Qian Wu was unusually depressed. He just touched his face strangely and said calmly, "Why do you say that, Princess?"

"It's really rare to see you have dark circles under your eyes." Ji Ruxue was also a little curious.

The empress thought of something, and then smiled and said kindly: "Don't think too much. The king sent a message last night that after finishing the work in the camp, he will return to the palace to rest for a few days. Then he will make it up to you."

Ji Ruxue actually thought of this, and naturally felt a little embarrassed, but she would not show it. There was no other way, there was only one Xiao Yan, and he could not take care of everyone at once.

Qian Wu started coughing as if he was choked, then waved his hands without saying anything, his face flushed from choking on the food.

As for Bago who was sitting opposite her, although he also had two faint dark circles under his eyes, he looked at Qian Wu with his chin slightly raised, with a hint of pride.

Unexpectedly, at this moment, there were footsteps outside again, but they were not coming this way. The empress wanted to chat with Qian Wu and the others, but seeing this, she frowned and asked Yang Yantian to go out and ask what happened.

After a while, Yang Yantian walked in with a serious expression and said, "The king has returned."

"Hmm? Didn't the king say that he would stay in the camp for the next few days?" The empress was somewhat surprised. She even packed Xiao Yan's clothes and sent them to the camp herself. Ji Ruxue and the other girls had different expressions, but Bago was a little bit expectant.

"Prince Jin Li Keyong is dead." Yang Yantian said, "After the news came back, the king immediately returned to the palace and summoned all the ministers to discuss the matter."

In just a moment, Bago's face suddenly turned pale.

(End of this chapter)