Super Cultivation System of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 255: Fierce Debate at the Court Meeting

These things were happening simultaneously in many cities in the north and outside Muye.

The entire northern part of Bingzhou, wherever there were still Han people, was plunged into great shock and joy!
After another group of Xianbei soldiers were transferred away, riots among Han slaves soon broke out in many places.

Although most of the riots were quelled by the Xianbei people because they were unarmed and hungry, some slaves still broke free from their control and fled south.

In addition to Ding Yuan, the governor of Bingzhou, many generals in Liangzhou, Jizhou, and Youzhou were inspired by this battle and began to prepare to take the initiative to attack foreign tribes, taking this opportunity to gain some military merit for themselves.

Not only the officers and soldiers, but also some passionate and brave local militiamen who are ready to take action.

The Battle of Yanmen completely aroused the entire northern part of the Han Dynasty's desire to fight foreign wars, which had not been seen in decades!

In Luoyang city, outside the imperial palace, civil and military officials lined up, took off their shoes and went to the hall, ready to start today's court meeting.

Emperor Ling took his seat and all officials paid homage to him.

"Ahem..." Emperor Ling of Han, who had been in power for seventeen years and was addicted to pleasure, looked a little pale at this moment.

"My dear ministers, do you have anything to report? I have been ill since I was frightened by the thief Zhang. If there is nothing else, we will adjourn the court now."

He coughed a few more times and tried to get up and leave.

"Your Majesty, be careful."

A man with a hawk nose, rat eyes and a shrill voice hurried forward to help.

"Your Majesty, please wait. I have something important to report to you!"

A loud voice echoed in this huge palace.

Emperor Lingdi seemed a little unhappy, but after looking at the person who spoke, he finally chose to sit back.

"My dear Lord Huangfu has always been loyal. He has traveled to various places over the past year and wiped out countless remnants of the Yellow Turbans. He has made great contributions. Now he has just returned to Luoyang. I wonder if you have any requests now? I... ahem, I will agree to it."

Huangfu Song stood up and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, I have no request, but I have a great joyous event to tell Your Majesty!"

"How dare you!" the man who had just supported Emperor Ling shouted.

"Your Majesty was frightened by the rebels, and was kidnapped by the two villains Xu Feng and Feng Zhen, which caused his health to be ill and he has not recovered yet. It is all because of your failure to protect the emperor. Now that you see that your Majesty is not feeling well and wants to return to the palace to rest, you still dare to say it is a happy event. Do you still have the dignity of your Majesty in your eyes, General Zuo?"

Before Huangfu Song could refute, another old man stood up.

"Empress Zhang, your words are too serious. General Huangfu has received urgent news from the border, and it is reasonable for him to report it to His Majesty at the court meeting. How dare you, a mere chamberlain in the inner court, obstruct the important military affairs of the court!"

"Lu Zhi, you..."

"The inner court is not allowed to interfere in military affairs. Zhang Rang, please step down!"

The Praetorian Guard shouted sternly.

Zhang Rang glanced around and saw that no one in the court looked at him well. He snorted in his heart and retreated.

Emperor Ling waved his hands and said, "Zhang Rang is just worried about my health. My dear ministers, don't blame him. Ahem... My dear minister Huangfu said there is urgent news from the border. Tell me about it. Ahem..."

Huangfu Song glared at Zhang Rang, but seeing that the emperor was protecting him, he had no choice but to endure it.

"Your Majesty, an urgent report from the border: at the beginning of last month, the Xianbei leader Kuitou personally led an army of 70,000 to attack Yanmen Pass. The remnant of the Yellow Turbans, Chu Yan, also gathered more than 70,000 people and came out of Taihang Mountain to attack Yanmen Pass. This..."

Before Huangfu Song could finish his words, a somewhat old but powerful voice interrupted him.

"What did you get from General Zuo Zhonglang? A full 140,000 troops attacked Yanmen at the same time, and you actually said it was a great joyous event? Are you trying to make fun of Your Majesty and other court officials like me?"

Huangfu Song rolled his eyes at the old man.

"Taifu Yuan, Song Zhi has not yet finished his report. Why are you so anxious?"

Emperor Ling looked a little impatient: "Okay, Yuan Qing, let General Huangfu finish his speech."

Yuan Wei was somewhat unwilling, but he had no choice but to obey and return to his position.

Huangfu Song continued, "Although the enemy army is powerful, the governor of Yanmen, Liu He, is a rare genius that has not been seen in a century! He scared off Chu Yan with his surprise troops, and trained a group of troops specifically to restrain the Xianbei cavalry. Relying on the strategic location of Yanmen Pass, he defeated the Hu soldiers, killed more than 20,000 enemies, and captured countless. Even the Xianbei leader Kui Tou was captured by our army. This can be regarded as the greatest victory of our Han Dynasty in resisting the Xianbei in decades! Isn't it a cause for celebration that we have won such a great victory in the war and that the country has such a genius?" As soon as these words came out, everyone was shocked!

"My dear... ahem... are you serious about what I said?"

Emperor Ling asked Huangfu Song, but then turned his gaze to He Jin who was standing at the head of the line of generals.

"General, do you know about this?"

He Jin also stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I also received the battle report from General Huangfu yesterday. In addition, Ding Yuan, the governor of Bingzhou, also reported that because of the great victory at Yanmen, the Xiongnu gathered troops to compete with the Xianbei for the Hetao area. Therefore, he planned to take advantage of the Xiongnu's empty rear and lead his Bingzhou warriors to the west to recover the homeland of Shangjun."

Lu Zhi also said: "Not only that, after Kui Tou was captured, Qianman and Budugen also began to compete for the position of leader. Now the internal fighting is fierce, which can be regarded as the greatest blessing for our Han Dynasty now!"

Emperor Ling also looked somewhat happy.

"Oh? Does Liu He really have such talent? I never thought... ahem, I never thought that there would be such a capable person among the younger generation of my Liu clan. I would like to meet him. Why not summon him to the court to accept the reward? Secondly, the position of Sili Xiaowei is vacant. If he really... ahem... really has such courage and loyalty, it would be best to let him take this position."

The Sili Xiaowei can be said to be a high-ranking official with great power, in charge of the entire Sili region. In terms of actual power, he is even above the provincial governor and his status is no less than that of the Nine Ministers. If Liu He can really take on such an important task at such a young age, his future achievements will be limitless!

Most importantly, the Sili Xiaowei was not under the jurisdiction of the Three Dukes or the General, but was directly responsible to the emperor himself. Looking at the current physical condition of Emperor Ling, he suddenly cared so much about a clan member, whether there was some other intention behind it, it was also a matter of speculation.

Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi looked happy, but He Jin looked a little unnatural.

"Your Majesty, although Liu He has made outstanding contributions, the danger of the barbarians on the border has not been completely resolved. It is not appropriate to summon him to the capital to meet the emperor at this time. Instead, you should reward him and then order him to lead the Northern Expedition. After he drives out the barbarians and recovers the lost territory, you can summon him to Luoyang at that time."

When Huangfu Song heard this, his face became a little anxious.

"General, what you said is wrong..."

"I think the general's proposal is the best strategy. Now that the northern border is in a great opportunity for war, we should order the governor of Yanmen to march quickly and recapture the entire Yanmen area, as well as Dingxiang, Yunzhong, Wuyuan, Shuofang and other places in one fell swoop. Only in this way can we live up to the emperor's grace!"

"I also agree with this proposal."

Zhang Rang, who was standing beside Emperor Ling, lowered his head, his rat eyes moving around constantly. Listening to the arguments in the court, he also began to smile with a forced smile.

Huangfu Song looked at these leaders of aristocratic families and ministers in the court, all of whom unanimously opposed Liu He's entry into the court to be conferred a title, which immediately made the old general so angry that he almost fumed.

"You...you are simply..."

Lu Zhi beside him pulled him and said, "Brother Yizhen, don't say anything. You and I are weak and even our immediate superiors have sided with those people from the noble families. It's up to Liu He to fend for himself."

Huangfu Song looked at He Jin, seemed to understand something, sighed slightly, and stopped talking.

Emperor Ling glanced at the ministers below.

"In that case, ahem... then what do you think should be the best reward for Liu He?"

Huangfu Song stood up again and said, "Your Majesty, I think that Liu He should be appointed as the Colonel of the Suppressing Enemy Army. In addition to his post as the Governor of Yanmen, he should also be granted temporary authority to demonstrate the emperor's great grace!"

"Not appropriate!" Yuan Wei objected.

Huangfu Song argued: "What's wrong with that? Liu He defeated the Yellow Turbans and killed the three brothers of Zhang Jiao. He made great contributions. Today, he captured the leader of the Xianbei alive and drove back the Hu army twice. Such a reward is too low. Is it because you are jealous, Master?"

Yuan Wei smiled calmly: "Haha, as a royal tutor, how could I be jealous of a governor of Yanmen? Isn't that ridiculous? The reason why I think it is inappropriate is entirely out of public interest."

The more nonchalantly he spoke, the angrier Huangfu Song became.

"Okay, okay! I want to hear how you speak from a public-spirited perspective!"

Yuan Wei's face didn't turn red and his heart didn't beat fast.

"Your Majesty, if it were someone else who had made such a great contribution, this kind of reward would be reasonable and there would be nothing wrong with it. However, Liu He is a relative of the Han Dynasty. He has contributed to the Han Dynasty and has been loyal to his country and filial to his family. This is all what he deserves."

This time Lu Zhi couldn't listen any more.

"What the Grand Master said is really absurd. According to the Grand Master's intention, in the future, any Han royal family member who has made contributions will have their rewards reduced, and the royal bloodline will be treated unfairly. I would like to ask what is the intention of the Grand Master to look down on the royal descendants so much?"

(End of this chapter)