At the beginning, I gave up my military power with a cup of wine, and I ascended the throne

Chapter 151: Debate in the Court
"Third, why did you expand the army without reporting to the court? As far as I know, when you arrived in Xiliang, the Xiliang army had only 8,000 soldiers. Now there are the Black Armor Army, Huben Army, Xianzhen Camp, Shen Ce Army, plus the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, which is 100,000 iron cavalry."

"Add to that the elite cavalry of the three Xueyan guards and the three Shatuo guards. The general now has 200,000 cavalrymen under his command. I wonder what he wants to do?"

Facing this heart-piercing question, Xiao Han chuckled: "Of course it is to resist the Northern Wei and drive out the miscellaneous Hu tribes."

"The three guards of Xueyan and Shatuo are not part of the Xiliang Army. They are all young and strong laborers responsible for land reclamation and grazing. I don't know where Prime Minister Chen heard the rumor that I have 200,000 cavalrymen under my command."

Chen Jing's face darkened slightly. He didn't expect Xiao Han's words to be so sharp. He continued, "According to what the general said, have the 100,000 troops been submitted to the court and approved?"

"I am a general of the second rank, and with the grace of Your Majesty, I have the power to establish a government office."

Xiao Han: "If Prime Minister Chen has any doubts about this matter, you can ask His Majesty."

"I approve."

"On the dragon throne, the account book nodded slightly: "There are many wars in Xiliang, and the three counties are facing the Northern Wei and many miscellaneous Hu tribes. One hundred thousand soldiers and horses are not too many."

Chen Jing's expression remained unchanged.

Xiao Han took over the conversation and asked, "Let's not talk about whether your majesty approves it or not. I want to ask Prime Minister Chen, how many troops do you think Xiliang Prefecture should have?"

"Last time the Northern Wei gathered an army of 200,000 to attack Xiliang, our Xiliang soldiers fought hard for several months and suffered many casualties. Does Prime Minister Chen know how many people were killed or injured?"

"Fifty-three thousand."

Chen Jing replied.

"More than 50,000 soldiers died in one battle."

Xiao Han narrowed his eyes, "After repelling the Northern Wei army, there are no more than 10,000 people left in Xiliang."

"This was a lucky victory after the 80,000 cavalrymen of the Three Shatuo Guards launched a surprise attack on the Northern Wei army."

"Of course it's a pity."

Xiao Han curled his lips and said, "We should have asked Prime Minister Chen to go to Xiliang earlier. All we need is for Prime Minister Chen to stand on the top of Qimen Pass and shout loudly. If you don't withdraw your troops, I will definitely report you. I'm sure that the Northern Wei military god Helian Bobo will be scared by Prime Minister Chen and flee, and the more than 100,000 Northern Wei troops will also be defeated."

"Pfft."

As soon as these words came out.

All the civil and military officials in the court could no longer hold back and burst into laughter. Even the censors who had criticized Xiao Han joined in the laughter.

After all these years, Xiao Han was the first person in the court who dared to embarrass Prime Minister Chen like this.

Sitting on the dragon throne, the emperor tried hard not to laugh out loud. After a moment, his expression returned to normal and he pretended to reprimand: General, don't talk nonsense.

Chen Jing thought he was in a clear state of mind, but at this moment his face couldn't help but tremble with anger.

"Your Majesty, please forgive me."

Xiao Han didn't dare to let Chen Jing go: "It's just that I have something to say."

The emperor nodded slightly.

He looked at the cabinet chief and said in a deep voice: "They say that you, Chief Minister Chen, are dedicated to the public and have the world in your heart. In the past, I believed you a little bit."

"But after meeting him today, I realized that most of the rumors in the world are false. You, Prime Minister Chen, are just a person who seeks fame and reputation, and you have your own plans in mind."

Xiao Han's sharp eyes swept across the civil and military officials in the hall, and a cold murderous aura filled the air.

"Prime Minister Chen, how many troops do you think this general should have under his command?"

"Tell me a number." "Twenty-thirty-five thousand, or forty-five thousand? After I return, I will dismiss the extra soldiers."

"Outside the Qimen Pass, the Northern Wei is watching covetously, and inside Shangdang, the grassland tribes come to harass the people of Xiliang every now and then."

"The three guards of Xueyan, the three guards of Shatuo, and the strong men of the miscellaneous Hu tribes add up to more than 100,000. These people are elite cavalrymen when they mount their horses. They can bend the bow and string, and look down on everyone."

"The Hu people are fierce. If we don't have a large army in Xiliang, how can we suppress these surrendered tribes?"

Xiao Han's questioning echoed in the hall. The officials who had been vying to make reports just now now looked sullen.

"Prime Minister Chen, are you mute? Say something."

He looked at Chen Jing coldly: "Tell me, how many troops should I command?"

"And you."

Xiao Han pointed at a counselor at the Imperial Censorate and scolded, "Just now you accused me of having so many soldiers that I could do something wrong. Just tell me a number, and I will dismiss the extra soldiers when I return."

"But there is one thing. You gentlemen and Prime Minister Chen must bring your entire families with you to follow me to Xiliang. No matter if they are from the Northern Wei or the mixed Hu people, if anyone sets foot in Xiliang, I will personally chop off the heads of you treacherous villains."

"presumptuous."

The Minister of Industry's face turned pale and he was filled with righteous indignation. He accused: "You are just a mere warrior, and you dare to threaten the entire court in front of His Majesty."

"What's your intention?"

"I think you are the one who is being presumptuous."

Xiao Han was furious, and murderous intent emerged in an instant. All the officials were terrified and looked terrified.

"This general has fought in many battles for more than ten years, from Jianghu to Jizhou, and from Jizhou to Xiliang. You are a useless person, without any merit, and you have no sense of shame. How dare you act so presumptuous in front of this general?"

Xiao Han slammed the wine glass in his hand heavily on the table, his face gloomy and murderous. He turned his head to look at the emperor on the dragon throne, stood up and clasped his fists and said: "Your Majesty, I think many of the civil and military officials in this court are spies of the Northern Wei Dynasty, who specialize in making unwarranted remarks to disrupt government and persecute loyal officials. They should be executed."

"Stop talking nonsense."

All the officials were anxious. Who could take this humiliation?

They all fell to their knees, cursing Xiao Han and shouting that they were innocent.

"My dear Mr. Xiao."

The emperor was delighted. He did not expect Xiao Han to be so tactful and take the initiative to make a knife.

But he still kept a straight face and said, "I understand your grievances, but you can't frame others."

Then he looked at the censors and officials from aristocratic families who were kneeling on the ground in fear, and said majestically: "You can report others if you want, but you cannot fabricate facts, and you must not find fault with them. As for General Xiao's claim that you are collaborating with the enemy and selling out the country, I believe that is definitely not the case."

The officials breathed a sigh of relief.

But at this moment, Gao Qian suddenly came out from the side and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, you must be on guard. I have heard that the Northern Wei's spies are omnipresent."

The emperor pretended to be silent, then nodded and said, "Well, I'll leave this task to you. Take the factory guards and investigate the Northern Wei spies in the capital."

"Remember, you cannot wrongly accuse a good person, nor can you let a Northern Wei spy go."

The emperor's voice was not loud, but it made many of the civil and military officials in the court turn pale and sweat broke out on their foreheads.

A bad thought suddenly came to their minds. Their Majesty was going to take this opportunity to attack them and others.

(End of this chapter)