Red Mansion, Ningfu Scholarly Family

Chapter 329 Emperor Anping's Compromise
……

"Go in and capture them alive, and don't open fire!" Jin Quanbao said as he waved his hand while riding on a tall horse.

All the Jinyiwei cursed inwardly.

Catch it alive? If you have the ability, go catch it yourself!
Why did I become a Jinyiwei?
They were either showing off their power in front of others, or they were carrying out imperial decrees to search and confiscate the homes of the women, children and the residents who lived there did not dare to resist.

But it's not a fight to the death with the White Lotus bandits.

The Jinyiwei were reluctant and naturally slacked off. They bent over and carefully took two steps forward and two steps back. After dawdling for half a day, they still hadn't reached the door.

Suddenly, the door moved.

Everyone was frightened and some turned around and ran away.

Jin Quanbao was so angry that he almost fainted and fell off his horse.

What a bunch of rabble. If they keep procrastinating like this, the White Lotus Sect leader would have already run away!
Helplessly, he used his trump card.

"Capture one of the White Lotus remnants alive and you will be rewarded 100 taels of silver. Capture the White Lotus leader alive and you will be rewarded 10,000 taels of silver, and your rank will be promoted three levels!"

The Jinyi soldiers then became energetic, as if they had been injected with chicken blood, and rushed forward with swords in hand and red eyes!

In fact, what they didn't know was that even if they scraped the Jinyiwei's treasury, they would not have a fortune. Emperor Anping invested all the remaining money in the treasury in the northwest war. If the Jinyiwei had not obtained some ill-gotten gains during the house search a few days ago, they would have been out of money long ago.

"Whoosh whoosh!"

Crossbow arrows were shot out from the courtyard wall, and a large number of Jinyiwei in front were killed or injured.

Jin Quanbao was not surprised but happy. As expected, there were remnants of the White Lotus Sect. Even if they were not remnants of the White Lotus Sect, using military crossbows was treason and a major case.

Promotion and wealth are just around the corner!
"No need to hold back, rush in quickly and capture the thief alive!" Jin Quanbao said hurriedly.

"Yes!"

The Jinyiwei archers immediately stepped forward to fight back, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

The two sides fought a bloody battle.

Soon there were fewer people resisting.

After all, the Jinyiwei won the battle by relying on their large numbers. They rushed into the manor with swords in hand, all with excitement on their faces.

With such a large estate, there must be many benefits!

"Sir, weapons and armor have been found!"

"Sir, we have discovered a secret underground vault with a large amount of gold and silver!"

It has to be said that although the Jinyiwei may not be good at other things, they are absolutely first-rate at confiscating property. It is almost impossible to hide anything under these people's noses, especially gold and silver.

"My Lord, I have discovered..."

A Jinyiwei seemed to want to say something but stopped himself.

Jin Quanbao: “What?”

The Royal Guard whispered, "Two stunning women are inside..."

Jin Quanbao didn't care about this and waved his hand: "Everyone will be taken back to Jinyiwei for trial!"

"Yes!"

"Have you spotted the White Lotus Sect Leader?"

"Return to my lord, not yet."

Jin Quanbao gritted his teeth and said, "I will find him even if I have to dig three feet deep!"

At this moment, a man in brocade clothes came running over and said breathlessly: "Sir, we found a secret passage!"

Jin Quanbao was shocked: "Quick, take me to see it!"

"Yes, sir, come this way."

After twists and turns, they entered an inconspicuous house. The house was in a mess. The lid of one of the beds was removed, revealing a pitch-black hole in front of everyone.

"Go after him! If you catch the White Lotus leader, you will be rewarded handsomely!"

"Yes!"

Several Jinyiwei jumped down with happy expressions on their faces.

Just as Jin Quanbao was about to follow, he suddenly smelled a scent. His face changed and he ran out. The others were confused and were about to ask, but they heard:

"Boom!"

Jin Quanbao had just run out of the house when a huge and violent force pushed him away and smashed him hard on a rockery in the distance.

The whole person was a bloody mess.

"Come, someone come...save..."

"grown ups!"

A large group of Jinyi officers outside rushed forward and shook Jin Quanbao.

"My Lord, wake up!"

"grown ups……"

"My Lord, I'm going... woooo!"

Everyone was crying in sorrow, but they were all very happy in their hearts. This boss who only knew how to flatter others was finally dead. Wouldn't all the credit this time belong to them?

"Quick, go and report to Lord Zhao!"

Zhao Quan, who had just returned from the northwest, breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that Jin Quanbao was dead.

This subordinate has abilities, but is too ambitious.

For example, this time, when there was news about the White Lotus Sect Leader, they acted privately without informing him!
It's better for him to die, so that he won't be unable to control him in the future.

"Tell me about this matter in detail!" Zhao Pian said with a gloomy face.

"Yes." Jinyiwei Captain Zheng Defa said carefully: "The reason is that Zhang Zilu received a secret letter..."

"Oh, secret letter, where did it come from?" Zhao Quan interrupted.

"This, I don't know..."

"Hurry up and ask Zhang Zilu to come and report to me!"

"Yes……"

A moment later, Zhang Zilu, a captain of the Imperial Guard, came running over and bowed, saying, "Your Excellency!"

Zhao Quan took a sip of tea, put on a smiling face and said, "Xiao Zhang, tell me in detail how you discovered the secret letter."

Zhang Zilu said awkwardly, "It wasn't a big deal. I was walking on the road when someone pushed me. I was about to look for someone when I found a letter in my arms... Then I took two people to investigate secretly, and it turned out to be just as the secret letter said..."

Zhao Quan nodded as he listened, then took the secret letter and looked at it carefully for a while, then smiled and said, "What do you think is going on?"

Zhang Zilu thought for a moment and said, "I think there may be something fishy going on in the White Lotus Sect, and someone wants to sell out the leader to take over."

"Not bad!"

Zhao Quan nodded: "I thought so too. Bring back everything you found in the manor. I want to check them one by one!"

"Yes!"

Zhang Zilu agreed and was about to leave.

"Wait!" Zhao Quan suddenly shouted.

Zhang Zilu turned around and smiled, "My Lord, is there anything else you want to ask me?"

Zhao Quan tapped the table lightly with his index finger and smiled, "Commander Jin unfortunately passed away, but the commander of the thousand households of my Jinyiwei Yamen cannot be missing."

Zhang Zilu was overjoyed.

"I am willing to serve you at your service and go through fire and water..."

"Haha."

Zhao Quan patted Zhang Zilu on the shoulder and said, "Go ahead. Do your job well and you will get the benefits!"

……

Daming Palace, Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Zhao Quanmin came running over anxiously.

"Hey, isn't this Lord Zhao? What's the urgent matter?" a eunuch in red asked with a smile.

This person was none other than Li Xian, the eunuch Zhang Yin of the Daming Palace. Nominally, his position was higher than Xia Shouzhong's, but he was not very liked by Emperor Anping.

Zhao Quan and Xia Shouzhong didn't get along well, so he wanted to get along well with Li Xian. He said with a smile, "I have something important to see the emperor about. Please inform him."

"What are you talking about, Lord Zhao? We are friends. There's no need to bother. I'll go in and see if the emperor is free." Li Xian also had a smile on his face. He wanted to have a good relationship with the emperor's little favorite and maintain his status.

Not long after, Li Xian came out with his head lowered and whispered, "The emperor happens to be free, but he seems to be in a bad mood. Lord Zhao, please be careful when you go in." "Thank you, Eunuch Li." Zhao Quan bowed.

Of course he knew that Emperor Anping was in a bad mood.

Because the situation in the Northwest is very bad.

No, it's really bad.

Originally, Emperor Anping ordered Su Youwu to recapture Yanqing Prefecture, but Su Youwu was useless. Not only did he fail to recapture it, but he fell into the Tartars' strategy of surrounding and attacking the reinforcements, and his entire army was almost wiped out. Only Wang Ziteng escaped with 5,000 defeated soldiers. He did not dare to return to Yan'an Prefecture to defend the city, but fled directly to Pingyang Prefecture.

The Tartars captured Yan'an Prefecture almost without bloodshed.

It had only been a few months since the war with the Tartars began, and three prefectures had been lost in the northwest. The ambitious Emperor Anping's self-confidence had suffered a severe blow, and he almost became autistic.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you." Zhao Quan bowed politely.

"Ahem, my dear Lord Zhao, you're here." Emperor Anping coughed several times in a row, his face showing fatigue and weakness, as if he had aged several years.

"Your Majesty, please take care of your health." Zhao Quan advised worriedly.

"It's okay. I know what's going on." Emperor Anping waved his hand. "What are you doing here today?"

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

Zhao Quan hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, I accidentally discovered that the leader of the White Lotus Sect had been hiding in a manor outside Kyoto. It's a pity that he was so cunning that he actually dug a tunnel in advance to escape..."

"what!"

Emperor Anping was shocked.

The leader of the traitorous White Lotus Sect was actually in Kyoto! Under his feet!
How audacious! How outrageous!

"Your Majesty, I searched the manor and found this!" Zhao Quan respectfully handed over a emerald green ring.

"Oh!"

Emperor Anping took the ring, looked at it carefully for a while, and suddenly his expression changed drastically!
It's him!

Could it be him who is the leader of the White Lotus Sect?!
"Zhao Quan, listen to my orders!"

"Chen is here!"

"I order you to kill the White Lotus leader and the White Lotus rebels with all your strength, especially those hiding in Kyoto. You must hunt them all down, dead or alive, without any mistakes!"

"The minister obeys the order!"

Zhao Quan had just received the imperial eunuch's order when a young eunuch suddenly came in hurriedly. He stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the cabinet has sent us an urgent report from the northwest!"

Emperor Anping's heart skipped a beat.

He started to have a headache whenever he got the recent war reports from the northwest...

"Bring it!"

The young eunuch presented the battle report, and Emperor Anping read it quickly. When he read the last line, his mind suddenly felt heavy, and he fell directly on the imperial desk!

Everyone was shocked.

"emperor!"

"emperor……"

……

northwest.

Yelu Cai led his army to capture Yulin and then unexpectedly turned to capture Yanqing Prefecture. He also used the strategy of besieging a point and attacking its reinforcements to destroy the main force in Yan'an Prefecture, and then took over Yan'an Prefecture.

After a series of great victories, the army's morale was high.

"Everyone, now the three prefectures of Yulin, Yan'an and Yanqing are in my hands. We have firmly controlled the throat of Daxia. The entire northwest area can be attacked or defended." Yelu Cai looked at the sand table in front of him with high spirits, as if the vast territory of Daxia was at his feet.

The generals and soldiers below congratulated him one after another.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, for a great victory."

"Your Majesty is invincible and unstoppable!"

"Your Majesty has unified Daxia..."

Yelucai finally enjoyed everyone's compliments and said with a smile: "Everyone, what do you think we should do next? Should we march east to Liaoyang in one go, or should we temporarily stop fighting and consolidate the three prefectures and then take our time?"

"Your Majesty!"

One of the older men stepped forward and said, "My army's morale is high right now, so a break is not an option. As for the Great Xia army in Liaoyang, they are defending very tightly, so that is not an option for the time being."

"Oh? Mr. Hu means..."

"Go south to Qingyang Prefecture!" Hu Silu said in a light voice while twirling his beard.

"wonderful!"

Yelu Cai looked at the sand table and clapped his hands: "With such an unexpected attack, there is a great chance that Qingyang Prefecture will be captured, and... is your real target Xi'an?"

Hu Silu smiled and said, "Your Highness has a brilliant plan. After taking Fengqingyang, you will continue to move south to Pingliang and Fengyang at lightning speed. By then, Xi'an will be within your grasp, and half of the entire northwest will belong to Your Highness."

"Okay, let's do it!"

……

Prime Minister Ye’s residence, study.

Prime Minister Ye, who was at home on sick leave, sipped his tea leisurely and listened to the reports from his trusted subordinates.

"War reports came from the northwest. Qingyang Prefecture was besieged by the Tartars for two days. The prefect Liu Xiu opened the city and surrendered..."

"The Emperor fainted again after reading the battle report. The imperial physician said this time it was more serious..."

"Lord Wen Ting wants to mobilize 100,000 Hunan troops to go to Xi'an for support, but the Ministry of Revenue does not have the money..."

"Lord Jia's commercial tax reform went very smoothly. No one in Jiangnan dared to disobey Lord Jia's authority."

Ye Xiang narrowed his eyes and listened for a while, then took a sip of tea and asked, "Any news about the Jinyiwei?"

"Have!"

"Not long ago, the Royal Guards received a secret letter that the White Lotus leader was hiding in a manor outside of Kyoto. However, the White Lotus leader was very cunning, and the Royal Guards had already received the news in advance when they went to arrest him. However..."

"What? Just say it."

"The Royal Guards found a ring when they searched the manor. It's suspected to be something from the palace..."

"Oh?"

Ye Xiang frowned slightly, as if he had thought of something.

"The Royal Guards will continue to keep a close eye on them!"

"Yes!"

After his trusted men left, Ye Xiang thought carefully for a while and felt that the time was about right.

Emperor Anping should send someone to invite him.

The current situation in the court is not acceptable to Wen Ting or Emperor Anping.

Only he can control it.

Of course, Jia Jing can do it too.

However, Ye Xiang knew better that Emperor Anping was more wary of Jia Jing than he was of him, and would never let Jia Jing get involved in the military power of the border troops and the Beijing camp again unless it was absolutely necessary.

Sure enough, just after lunch, a young eunuch from the palace came running over and said with a smile: "Is Prime Minister Ye's condition getting better? The emperor sent this servant to ask."

"Ahem, I feel better now." Ye Xiang coughed and said, "I heard that the emperor was also in poor health, and I was very worried. I wanted to go and see him no matter what, but I was afraid that my illness would be passed on to the emperor, which would be a death sentence, so I didn't dare to go."

"Thanks to His Majesty, I am finally feeling better today. I will follow the eunuch to see the Emperor..."

……

Daming Palace, Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Emperor Anping's gloomy old face could not conceal his pale sickly look.

He finally compromised with Ye Xiang.

Wei Shengfu, the Right Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, and others who were investigated by the Embroidered Uniform Guard were also reinstated, but He Qiuyuan, against whom there was irrefutable evidence, was not released.

That was his last fig leaf as emperor.

Prime Minister Ye also knew when to stop and returned to the cabinet to regain power. He directly mobilized 100,000 Hunan troops to enter Xi'an to confront the Tartars.

As for the lack of silver salary?

How is that possible? If you don’t have it, it just means you’re not capable enough.

Although Wen Ting was so angry that he almost vomited blood, he had no choice.

……

(End of this chapter)