Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 186 News from Chang'an

Huo Xian was in a good mood, mainly because he had won, which made him feel much better.

Although there are still many things to do now, and the war in Mi has not yet ended completely, there is still a chance to further expand the results of the war. We must work hard and not miss the opportunity.

Huo Xian and others were taking the time to rest, as they would need to continue running around. It was obvious that none of them could rest, and the war would obviously never end.

Zhao Anguo has already led his troops to advance. This vanguard force also needs to stabilize the formation and serve as the outpost. None of them can be taken lightly.

Gongsun Ao was very happy and said, "My Lord, in this battle, 4,360 Xiongnu were killed, and dozens of the prime ministers, porters, and captains of the King of Ruju were also killed."

Huo Xian also laughed when he heard about these military achievements. "That's not bad. Even though we didn't kill King Riju, that's acceptable."

The prime minister, the head of the household, etc., are indeed high-ranking officials of the Xiongnu. Having these people as trophies will definitely make the victory report look better, so it must be reported.

Gongsun Ao continued, "We captured 1,725 ​​Xiongnu people, which is not bad. This time, the Xiongnu Riju King's tribe was really strong, and we killed 6,000 people in one go!"

Six thousand people, this is not a particularly fruitful result, but it is definitely not something that can be considered commonplace. Such a result is obviously enough for the Han court to celebrate.

Huo Xian said cheerfully, "It's all good now. This trip was not in vain. We fought in the Western Regions and also fought against the Xiongnu."

Gongsun Ao agreed with Huo Xian's words very much. This time, they really won a great victory. Whether it was against the Xiongnu or the people of the Western Regions, this time it was a great victory, and the results of the battle were there.

Huo Xian took decisive action. He had already written the victory report, so now he naturally had to fill in some specific figures. With these figures, he would be more confident and would have the confidence to ask for rewards.

Gongsun Ao smiled and asked, "This time, there must be at least two or three marquises and more than ten 2,000-stone officials, right?"

Huo Xian thought about it carefully and said, "I'm afraid there won't be many marquises. Tian Ren, Ren An, or Li Ling all have merits, but they are not outstanding. There will be no few Guannei Marquises, and no few 2,000-stone officials."

If you think about it carefully, this makes a lot of sense. Although this time there are some great achievements, the results of the battle seem to be extremely fruitful, and it seems that there can be good rewards and so on.

Li Ling had previously made contributions in guarding the valley entrance of Qie Mi, and Ren An, Tian Ren and others had certain contributions in fighting against the Xiongnu. When Kang Da and others fought against the Xiongnu, they all achieved impressive results.

In addition, there are Zhao Chongguo, Han Zeng and others, each of whom has made military achievements and has tried their best.

There were no truly outstanding people this time, but there were indeed many people who could not be ignored. It was not easy to be a marquis, but becoming a two thousand stone official, a nine minister, or a county governor was not bad.

Gongsun Ao thought about it carefully and said, "The court will definitely confer titles of nobility on two or three people. I think Li Ling and Tian Ren have a better chance, but it's hard to say about the others."

Huo Xian didn't care about that. Even if Li Ling was made a marquis, it wouldn't be a big deal. At most, it would just fulfill the wish of the Li family. Becoming a marquis didn't necessarily mean he would immediately become an "official and noble".

In the Han Dynasty, there were also many marquises who were far away from the center of the court. Even when they went to war with the army, some marquises were only deputy generals, etc. In the final analysis, the value of the marquisate was declining, and the number of people was not small.

Gongsun Ao continued, "My Lord, I have thought about it carefully. This time the court must send someone who knows military skills to the Western Regions, and we must find some benefits for our men."

Huo Xian looked at Gongsun Ao and asked with a smile, "How about letting Tan Jie garrison in the Western Regions? He is the prince's man, and it would be unreasonable if he is not made Guannei Marquis this time."

Gongsun Ao immediately replied, "Tian Ren and his people will definitely return to Chang'an, or be transferred to be county governors. The Western Regions is an important place, and it must be either Tan Jie, Zhao Congxiao, or Feng Dan. We can't let others take advantage of it."

Tan Jie was a man of the Crown Prince Liu Ju, and was familiar with the Western Regions. He also made some contributions this time. Guannei Hou should not be able to escape, and it was reasonable for him to guard the Western Regions.

Although Zhao Congxiao and Feng Dan had relatively little experience in the army, they had also made great contributions in this battle, so it was highly likely that they would be made Marquis of Guannei. If they really were to guard the Western Regions, they would not have to worry about their status being insufficient.

What's more, both of them were born in the Guanjun Marquis's Mansion. Such a background was enough for them to have enough support in the Western Regions. After all, many people believed that the Western Regions were conquered by Huo Shan.

Huo Xian was not polite and said, "I think so too. Not only will there be many opportunities to make meritorious contributions here in the future, but I will also have the opportunity to stand out."

Although life in the Western Regions is certainly not as comfortable as life in Chang'an, as a soldier, you should not just think about enjoying yourself. Being able to make achievements is the first priority, and you can worry about enjoying yourself later.

As for things like being idle due to being far away from the center, there is no need to worry too much about those things.

Tan Jie has Liu Ju as his backer, and Zhao Congxiao and the others have Huo Xian as their support, so naturally they don't have to worry about not having a chance to stand out. If something really happens, they will definitely think of these family members.

Huo Xian then said, "Actually, if we really had to stay in the Western Regions all at once, I would feel reluctant. We will have to fight against the Xiongnu next year or the year after, and that would be a good opportunity to be granted a title of nobility."

Hearing what Huo Xian said, Gongsun Ao didn't understand, "Yes, it's relatively safe in the Western Regions. But if the imperial court uses troops against the Xiongnu and they miss the opportunity, it will be difficult for them to be granted a title of nobility in the future."

Guannei Hou is also a marquis, that is a kind of self-consolation. What everyone really thinks of as a marquis is definitely a liehou.

Just like appointing generals, no one thinks that deputy generals and the like are generals. Only permanent generals are the real generals. Generals in wartime lack some persuasiveness, not to mention that they are only deputy generals. When they return to Chang'an, they will be colonels.

Huo Xian did not hesitate and said with a smile, "Let's not think too much about it now. These matters need to be arranged by the court. Your Majesty will make the decision."

Giving some advice and so on is fine, and the emperor may also consider some of Huo Xian's recommendations, etc. But Huo Xian knows better that the emperor will never let him do everything, and the emperor also has his own considerations.

Just as Huo Xian was sending a message of victory, Chen Ju rushed into the tent in the snow and wind, "Sir, the messenger is here!"

The messenger holding the imperial seal followed into the tent and said, "Greetings to the Grand Marshal, General of the Cavalry. I have come here on the orders of your majesty to announce your decree!"

Then the messenger carefully took out the secret letter and held it high above his head. As for the imperial edict, it was just a polite way of saying it, not necessarily a real imperial edict, after all, this was not an envoy holding a special seal.

Huo Xian took the letter and asked with a smile, "Your Majesty, have you been doing well these days?"

The messenger quickly replied, "Your Majesty, since returning to Chang'an from your tour, you have been busy with state affairs. Your Majesty is in good health."

The emperor has been busy with state affairs, which is definitely a polite way of saying it. Huo Xian knew that the current emperor's ability was not a problem, but it was also true that he was greedy for pleasure and obsessed with women. In the past two years, he had gotten a little better and had not taken the elixir offered by the alchemist, but the emperor's feudal superstition was still deeply rooted, and he was still busy seeking immortality and asking for the way. He had not completely awakened because of the previous elixir incident.

You'll just have to get used to it and there's no need to feel strange about it, as long as the emperor is in good health and shows no obvious signs of dementia.

The messenger suddenly whispered, "Your Majesty asked me to tell you that Chuntuo died in the autumn."

Huo Xian paused as he was opening the letter, then sighed, "Where is he buried? Is he buried in Maoling?"

The messenger quickly said, "Buried in Yangling."

Huo Xian said nothing more. Chuntuo was an old man who had been ill before, and everyone was mentally prepared. He was also the one who served Emperor Jing of Han, and had been working diligently by Liu Che's side for decades.

Even though Huo Xian always teases Chun Tuo, or tries to sow discord between them, anyone with a discerning eye can see that Huo Xian and Chun Tuo have a very good relationship, and that Huo Xian was also raised by Chun Tuo.

Not to mention Huo Xian, even Huo Qubing was raised by Chuntuo.

Huo Xian then asked, "Has anyone from my family gone to pay their respects?"

The messenger quickly replied, "Reporting to the Grand Marshal, three of the Marquis's men have gone, and the mistress has also gone to pay her respects."

"Mistress?" Chen Ju was unhappy. "When did my mansion have a mistress? If the Lord is not at home, who would appoint a mistress?"

Even though Chen Ju's retainers seemed to be quite respectful to Han Yunniang and Lin Mei, in their opinion, these two were just the prince's concubines. They were only concubines, not wives, so naturally they could not be called mistresses.

Moreover, Chen Ju and others also have "family prejudice". Although there are many people of humble status who hold high positions in the Han Dynasty, they all think that the prince should be paired with a lady from a famous family.

The messenger immediately kowtowed and announced the good news loudly, "Congratulations, Grand Marshal. Her Royal Highness the Queen is personally taking care of the prince's concubine. The prince has an heir!"

Chen Ju's expression immediately changed, and he asked first, "Which mistress is it?"

The messenger immediately replied, "It's the Madam."

Chen Ju laughed even more happily. Han Yunniang had been in the mansion for a long time, so she must be pregnant. Chen Ju and others were not familiar with Lin Mei.

Huo Xian felt dizzy and asked quickly, "Is Yunniang pregnant? If you calculate it this way, she must have been pregnant for four or five months!"

Chen Ju and Gongsun Ao both hurried to congratulate. Everyone knew that Huo Xian would not marry, but deep down they didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

Even the emperor and his people tacitly agreed to this matter. Huo Xian insisted on not getting married, and others could do nothing about it. So they lowered their requirements and just took more concubines. As long as there were children, it would be fine. This was the minimum standard.

According to Huo Xian's age, it is not really too late for her to have children, but there has been no movement before, and many people are anxious.

Especially since Huo Xian loved fighting so much, if he really didn't leave any bloodline, many people would naturally feel even more uneasy.

"So, I may not have a son or a daughter!" Huo Xian was still very happy and said, "Okay! That's great! I must win a great victory and make more military achievements!"

He was definitely happy, and this gave Huo Xian more motivation. Leaving a richer family foundation for his unborn son or daughter was also what he should do.

There is no way to think about conquering the country, but making the gate of the Marquis of Guanjun Mansion more glorious is actually possible.

Huo Xian then asked with concern, "Where is the general? He was in poor health when I went to war. How is he now?"

The messenger replied hurriedly, "The general is often in seclusion now. When I came to the Western Regions, I heard that the general was ill again. Your Majesty sent people to visit him. Many people from Chang'an City went to visit him, but they were all stopped."

Worry is a given. It is no secret that Wei Qing is in poor health. Not to mention autumn and winter, even in summer, the general is often bedridden and can hardly walk now.

Not only Huo Xian was worried, Gongsun Ao was also very worried. He and Wei Qing had been close friends for most of their lives. How could he not be worried at this time?

Although many people have said before that the general and the cavalry general had a bad relationship, Chen Ju also knew that at most some of their officers were just trying to show off their abilities and were not convinced of each other.

The general has always been extremely caring towards the generals and the princes. Your Majesty is naturally the greatest benefactor for the generals and the princes to have such great achievements, but Your Majesty cannot ignore the general's careful care and training.

Although it is urgent, Huo Xian and others can now distinguish between priorities. They also know that even if other things happen, the most important thing now is to focus on national affairs.

The war in the Western Region has not yet ended completely, which means that no matter how anxious you are, you need to end the war first.

It's not even just about returning immediately after the war is over, but it has to end beautifully and appear to have no hidden dangers before you can consider returning to the capital.

Huo Xian has such awareness, and Gongsun Ao and others are naturally more aware of these things. Now is not the time to be willful, and they do not have the courage to be willful on these major matters.

It has been nearly half a year since I left Chang'an, and now I know a lot of news about Chang'an. Some of them are regrettable or worrying, but there are also many that make me feel more at ease, that's all.

Then what we should do next is very simple. We should fight the next battle steadily and strive for a perfect ending. This is also extremely important for Huo Xian.

I don't have any thoughts of returning home now. Since I have joined the army, I will focus on the war.

First conquer the Western Regions and destroy the Xiongnu, then consider other things. Wanting a wife and children, a warm bed, this is a bit of a luxury for Huo Xian, at least it is difficult to have such a life in the short term.

But it’s also good, Huo Xian still likes fighting outside.

(End of this chapter)