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

Chapter 152 Princess Ningxi
"Whether it is assassinating the empress or assassinating Helian Bobo, it is a righteous act that can show loyalty. If it succeeds, the people of the Central Plains can be spared from suffering. If it fails, it is better to die for the country, so as to be worthy of His Majesty and the people."

Jiangnan Hou's face turned ashen and he gnashed his teeth in hatred, but he didn't dare to open his mouth. If he agreed, it would be tantamount to seeking his own death, and if he didn't agree, it would mean that he was a coward.

Who would have thought.

One day, a warrior from Xiliang scolded all the civil and military officials in the court in front of the emperor. Even the Prime Minister and the Marquis of Jiangnan were speechless.

Even Xie Xuanli, the Marquis of Zhenbei, had never been so arrogant and domineering.

The emperor sat on the dragon throne, feeling secretly happy. He had been feeling uncomfortable seeing these things for a long time, but he just couldn't find an excuse.

Especially the Marquis of Jiangnan, who relied on his status as the emperor's uncle and talked about benevolence, righteousness, and morality, but never mentioned the people and the country.

But she couldn't do anything about it.

"Your Majesty, I drank a little wine today and my speech was a little incoherent. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

Xiao Han felt really relieved after being scolded, so he turned around, saluted towards the emperor, and apologized sincerely.

“This is true loyalty to the emperor and patriotism.”

The emperor was extremely satisfied with the General Pingxi, whom he had promoted.

"Your Majesty, this boy is arrogant and must be severely punished."

"Yes, we must not let him go."

“There must be severe punishment.”

When the censors who had been suppressed saw this scene, they immediately stood up.

However, Chen Jing, the Prime Minister of the Cabinet, Marquis of Jiangnan, Minister Gu of the Ministry of War, and officials from the other six ministries all wisely chose to keep silent.

They finally figured it out today.

This Pingxi general is not easy to mess with. He has made outstanding military achievements, is arrogant and domineering, and has a sharp tongue and is good at speaking.

The most important thing is that standing behind Xiao Han is the current emperor.

As they thought of the coming storm, their hearts grew heavier.

"Father, Your Majesty, all the ministers."

At this time, a clear voice was heard in the hall, and a girl in a gorgeous palace dress came to the outside of the hall with her servants.

Her eyes swept across the civil and military officials, and finally fell on the calm and composed General Pingxi.

The red lips parted slightly: "I am late, please punish me, father."

"What punishment? Your Highness is here at the perfect time. Come in quickly."

The emperor smiled and waved: "Haven't you been wanting to meet my General Pingxi for a long time?"

"You are all loyal subjects, please stop arguing. Today we are here to welcome the general, and we will discuss political matters another day."

"promise."

Although those officials were not convinced after suffering a loss, they could only bear it.

Suddenly, drums and music started again, and the retired palace maids went up to the hall and continued to dance.

The girl sat down at the low table next to Xiao Han. She had a slender figure, graceful posture, and a fair face. She was truly in her prime and exuded vitality.

"Xiao Han, this is my youngest daughter, Princess Ning Xi."

The emperor smiled and said, "You are born smart. You are proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, and songs. You have a photographic memory and you also like swords."

"I have great respect for you, the Great General of Pingxi."

"Meet Princess Ningxi."

He stood up and bowed slightly.

"You're welcome, General."

The girl also stood up, bowed gracefully, and smiled with her bright eyes: "General, just call me Ning Xi."

After that, she picked up the wine pot with her bare hands, filled a glass with wine, held it up with both hands, and said softly: "This cup is for General Ning Xijing, who has made great contributions in killing the enemy and expanding the territory."

"It's a small contribution, not worth mentioning."

He shook his head, picked up the wine glass and drank it all.

Although the hall seemed to be full of people toasting to each other, there were actually undercurrents. Xiao Han's face was calm, no longer as cold and indifferent as before, and he put away his murderous aura. He really looked like an elegant and easy-going gentleman.

His work was done, and next, it was time for the emperor to appear. The imperial guards were dispatched, using the excuse of searching for Northern Wei spies to rectify the officialdom in the court.

Those who refused to bow their heads and make concessions would most likely become spies of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Those who should be killed would be killed, and those who should have their property confiscated would have their property confiscated.

He glanced at the worried officials from the corner of his eyes and couldn't help but sneered to himself: "Enjoy the last few days."

The second half of the banquet.

Princess Ning Xi's gaze was always on Xiao Han, her beautiful eyes sparkling with ripples.

He even came over to talk to him several times and asked about things on the battlefield, and he patiently answered their questions.

This kind of banquet is really boring. Its essence has long transcended the scope of a banquet and is a game of power.

You guard against me, I guard against you. The emperor schemes against his ministers, and the ministers scheme against the emperor. It's full of intrigue and deception, and it's extremely boring.

"General, I heard that your swordsmanship is very advanced. I wonder if you can give me some pointers when you have time."

The girl spoke softly, her face slightly flushed, perhaps from the alcohol.

"It's impossible."

He nodded.

"Thank you, General."

The girl withdrew her gaze, wiped the wine from the corner of her lips, then stood up and left.

The banquet ended at dusk, when it was getting darker, and the officials left in groups of three or four.

Xiao Han was about to stand up when Gao Qian stopped him.

"Wait a minute, General."

"What's the matter, Eunuch Gao?"

"General, please wait a moment. His Majesty has ordered us to prepare a car to take you to the General's Mansion."

Gao Qian spoke.

"The General's Mansion?"

He uttered a light "eh".

"It is a house that His Majesty specially bought for the general in the capital."

Gao Qian explained: "In the future, the general will have to travel back and forth to the capital, so he can't live in the post station all the time."

"It's more appropriate to live in the General's Mansion."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Xiao Han raised his head and saluted respectfully towards the emperor sitting on the dragon throne.

"go Go."

The emperor smiled and waved his hand.

After leaving the hall, he boarded the palace's sedan chair and was escorted by two eunuchs and a team of imperial guards to the general's mansion.

The originally bustling and noisy hall suddenly became deserted, and a group of palace maids and servants quickly cleaned up the tables, chairs and benches.

At this time, Princess Ningxi, who had left early, walked out from the back hall.

"My dear, what do you think of Xiao Han?"

The emperor lay on the dragon throne, playing with a wine glass in his hand.

"To reply to Father, the general is excellent."

The girl came over and gently squeezed his shoulders.

"I originally thought that he was only good at fighting, but I didn't expect that he was also very thoughtful. Unlike those reckless men, he was able to refute Prime Minister Chen and Marquis Jiangnan speechless."

Thinking of the scene she had secretly seen outside the palace before, the girl smiled and said, "Even those people in the Censorate were scolded for their glare. I can say that I have finally gotten rid of my father's anger."

"It's just that he's a little too arrogant."

Princess Ningxi was worried: "In one day, he will offend everyone in the court, from top to bottom. He will inevitably be impeached in the future. And those aristocratic families will not tolerate him either."

"Even Xie Xuanli, the Marquis of Zhenbei, didn't dare to be so domineering in the court."

(End of this chapter)