The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 21: Husband Does Not Fight
On December 25th of the second year of Dashun, lanterns were hung throughout the palace.

The servants were coming in and out, cleaning and dusting, and the place was already filled with a New Year atmosphere.

Located in the Imperial Household's Left Storehouse in the northeast of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the lighting in the room was not very good. Although there was a flickering candlelight, the view was still dim. An old man and a young man were sitting on a futon, facing each other, casting two shadows on the screen.

That’s right, after considering for a long time, for the sake of his descendants and family, Ximen Chongsui finally decided to have a “heart-to-heart talk” with the saint.

"How does this old slave treat you all?"

"It's okay if you don't curse."

"This old slave can fulfill one of your wishes."

"According to the procedure, shouldn't there be three? Hahaha."

"…I agree with everyone's wish that you should be in charge of the army and exercise power, and decide on rewards and punishments."

The emperor became even more excited: "The Privy Councilor knows me, but the military and political power is in the hands of the Privy Councilor and the Prime Minister. Isn't this equivalent to me controlling it?"

Ximen Zhongsui turned over, facing the emperor with his buttocks, and said quietly: "I have been doing this for a long time, and I know very well what the emperor wants. It is nothing more than power, beauty, and achievements, which are very normal wishes. I have seen all the tricks you have played recently. I think that if this continues, we may even go to war with each other. This is not a good sign, and I am deeply anxious."

"But... we have to be realistic." Ximen Chongsui changed his tone and said with a sad face: "There are still many descendants of the Li family, and their qualifications are very average. If you want to grasp the power of the emperor, you must have the talent of the emperor. We will not hand over power to a mediocre ruler. Once the revolution comes, the emperor will still have the ancient ritual of two kings and three officials, and the court officials can also find other ways out. What should I, a rootless slave, do?"

The emperor was not convinced: "Why am I just average?"

"You were the one who insisted on Wei Zhaodu's attack on Shu, right? You agreed to the attack on Li Keyong, right? I won't talk about the other things. Look at the troubles you have caused... If you continue like this, the Tang Dynasty will soon be destroyed. Let the past be the past. Since everyone wants to be in power, then let me ask you, if you are in charge of the Duzhi, Transportation, Ministry of Revenue, Salt and Iron and other general affairs, and earn tens of millions of coins for the court every year, do you have the ability to do it?"

The emperor was silent for a long time, then he lay on his back and said, "One year? Ten million coins? In this situation, even if Song Jing, Liu Yan, Yang Yan, and Diwu Qi were reborn, it would be difficult."

Ximen Zhongsui laughed loudly, "Can't your good general Du Rang do it? He is like a shameless old beggar, begging everywhere with a broken pot. Send an envoy to Hedong today and write a letter to Hebei tomorrow. Who wouldn't give him some face?"

"The Grand Marshal has been Prime Minister for nearly ten years, of course."

"Then you should train warriors and select talented generals. If there are vassal states that are not obedient, you should lead an army to suppress them. Can you do it as the governor of Jingzhao..."

"Ah, me?" The emperor raised his right palm: "It's almost like Taizong has been resurrected."

"Your Majesty, this makes it very difficult for me to deal with this. This is not allowed and that is not allowed. I am at a loss as to what to do." Ximen Zhongsui picked his nose and wiped it on the mat: "Forget it, let's not fight each other. I will not be that Qiu Shiliang, and you will not be that ruthless Li Ang. How do you think?"

The emperor cried out in injustice: "I didn't take the Privy Councilor as my enemy, did I?"

"Who are you hiding this from?" Ximen Zhongsui groaned twice, "I heard from people that you still have a wound on your palm. You must have killed yourself when you were angry."

"You monitor me even when I sleep and take a bath?" The emperor shuddered and uttered, "Tsk."

"But we are master and servant, it is also fate." Ximen Zhongsui turned over and looked at the emperor. "You are allowed to train your own troops. If there is a military riot, it has nothing to do with me. In addition, after the four towns of Qi, Bin, Tong and Hua invaded the palace, Han Jian stayed in Zheng County and did not go out. His army is the weakest in Guanzhong. You can find a way to kill him. I will not interfere in this matter. If you can do it, I can rest assured to find a big town to supervise the army. If you stay in Xuanwo, sooner or later you will follow in the footsteps of Tian Lingzi and be killed by you, the king and your ministers."

The emperor's face darkened, and he pulled Ximen Zhongsui's sleeve and shook him left and right. While pulling, he said with a sad face: "How can I live without you!"

Ximen Zhong then raised his foot to kick him, and scolded: "Emperor, please respect yourself and don't go crazy!"

"Haha." The emperor smiled and said, "I finally have a chance to realize my dream of a vast country. But I'm not playing any tricks against you. I can't bear to expel that old dog Yang Fugong, even the prime minister wants to expel him, let alone the privy envoy."

"This is a warning to you. If you cause trouble again, I'll take care of your skin." Ximen Zhongsui felt relieved after his heart knot was untied. He was not afraid of the emperor's attack, but his old body was no longer strong enough. If he died one day, his descendants would be in danger.

"It's difficult."

"Since the Han Dynasty, it has been difficult for eunuchs like me to have a good end." Ximen Chongsui sighed.

The emperor avoided answering and changed the subject for some unknown reason: "Hey, Privy Councilor, Yang Fugong has lost his power. If he stays in Chang'an, you will be an eyesore. I will be embarrassed and he will be afraid. Isn't he on good terms with Li Keyong? I want him to go to Hedong to supervise the army. That way he should be able to leave with peace of mind, right?"

Ximen Zhongsui waved his hand, angrily: "Don't mention the old dog! You can do it yourself."

"Hahaha."

"Refuse to be mentally exhausted and go crazy if something happens."

Fortunately, the Zuo Cangku has always been private and not many people go in and out, otherwise when people saw the emperor in this state, they would think something was wrong.

Ximen Chongsui was also used to it, and just said leisurely: "It is because I do not fight that no one can fight with me..."

……

In the afternoon, an imperial edict was issued from the Hanlin Academy.

Ximen Chongsui was promoted to the rank of Purple Gold Guanglu Doctor and was granted the title of Duke of Xingping Kaiguo County.

Yang Fugong, the military inspector of the six armies and twelve guards, was appointed as the Grand Master of the Three Departments, and was also the governor of Taiyuan and the deputy envoy of the Northern Camp.

These two edicts were drafted directly by the scholars on duty in the Hanlin Academy in the inner court based on the emperor's oral instructions, without going through the Secretariat. It was obvious that the emperor did not want to discuss this matter with the prime ministers.

Yang Fugong was a smart man. When he saw the messenger, he immediately understood the implication of the imperial edict.

Previously, his conflict with the sage was made public, but the coup failed and he was overthrown by the eunuchs. Then the four towns of Qi, Bin, Tong and Hua besieged Chang'an in the name of clearing the court of evil officials, and came to kill him and divide up his territory.

At this point, it can be said that he is alone, with enemies all around him.

Caught between a dilemma, the saint now helped him out, allowing him to leave the stage with dignity.

The imperial edict asked him to remotely lead the Taiyuan Retainer, to put it bluntly, it was asking him to submit a letter of resignation, and the emperor would allow him to supervise the army in Hedong.

Knowing that you are kind to Li Keyong, you can feel at ease going to Li Keyong's territory.

Moreover, Hedong is one of the three most famous towns in the world, so it is not a shame to go there to retire.

Yang Fugong understood this.

On December 26, the military envoy submitted a petition to retire, but the emperor did not agree.

After giving him enough face by going through the routine of three refusal and three retentions, the sage finally ordered him to go to Taiyuan the following year to replace Zhang Chengye and serve as the new military supervisor of Hedong.

……

Li Maozhen rubbed his head in a daze and opened his eyes.

He touched the quilt and then stood up from the couch with a somersault, his tone still full of fear.

"Where is this place?"

An old woman who was weaving not far from the couch answered in a hoarse voice, "Are you awake? My husband Wulang went up the mountain to cut wood and saw you sleeping in the woods. He thought you were dead and wanted to bury you, but when he checked, he found that you were still breathing, so he carried you back home, thinking of saving a life."

Hearing this, Li Maozhen sat down. The old woman's hoarse voice sounded like nature to him.

"How far is Jumacheng? Is it under the jurisdiction of the Bining Army?"

"I don't know, we are in Linyou County, which seems to be under the jurisdiction of Qizhou."

"Thank you for saving my life, old man." Li Maozhen breathed a sigh of relief and began to think in his mind.

I definitely can't go back now, otherwise I don't know what kind of beastly things that rebellious son Ji Kan will do that disregards human ethics.

Linyou County is located on the border of Qi and Bin towns. The nearest city is Taihe Pass, and it takes less than a day to contact the town commander. I just don't know whether the local confidant is still alive, killed by Ji Kan's rebellious son, or killed by Wang Xingyu and Yang Shouliang.

Li Maozhen originally wanted to ask an old woman to deliver the letter, but he thought that the old woman didn't even know which state her hometown was in, so how could he entrust her with the task?

Ugh.

Being able to escape from that devil's cave is already a great blessing from heaven. If you have more extravagant wishes, even the gods will rebuke you for being greedy.

I simply calmed down and healed my injuries, deciding to set off on my own when I felt better.

But who would have thought that in the middle of the night I would faintly hear the sound of horse hooves.

Li Maozhen woke up subconsciously and turned over and got up. Now he was scared when he heard this sound.

"Mother, the evil officials from the county have come to arrest people again." The man called Wulang by the old woman rushed into the yard.

The old woman waved her hand and said, "Wulang, carry that poor man first. I can walk."

Just as the mother and daughter were hurriedly packing up, there was a violent banging on the door outside: "Open the door, open the door, open the door!"

"How come you're here so quickly!" Wu Lang's face changed drastically, his eyes suddenly turned red, but he didn't have time to say more. He carried the old woman on his back and ran towards the back door of the woodshed.

Li Maozhen also hurriedly put on his clothes and followed.

But after taking only two steps, I saw several torches outside the wall at the back door.

“Kill you!!”

Wu Lang immediately cursed in a low voice, as if he had encountered a horrible disaster that made him extremely desperate and angry.

Li Maozhen was confused and asked, "Which evil official went to the countryside to arrest people?"

Wu Lang spit out his saliva and said, "Who else could it be? Sent by that evil Jiedushi! In the past ten years or so, there have been five Jiedushi, all with the surname Li, but none of them is a good guy. If they hadn't been rebelling all day long, how could my four brothers have died! Kill you, kill your mother!"

It turned out that the old woman's four sons were captured one after another to fight for "Marshal Li" and there had been no news of them for years. According to Li Maozhen's inference, most of them were dead. But seeing that the old woman was crying so hard, he couldn't tell her clearly, so he could only comfort her helplessly: "Maybe they will come back this year..."

Li Maozhen wanted to say something to comfort the old woman, but he opened his mouth but couldn't utter a single suitable word.

“Bang, bang, bang!” The wooden door was hammered loudly, and a fierce shout interrupted the three people: “If you don’t open the door, I will burn your house down!”

Wu Lang got angry, picked up the knife, gritted his teeth and said, "I'll go kill them."

The old woman choked up and said, "Then you can kill me too, and we can be reunited as a family in the underworld."

Then the old woman pleaded again, "Wulang, take that poor man to hide under the stove. As for me, who is half buried in the ground, what can I do if I am caught?"

As he said this, he walked towards the wooden door with his stick and replied, "Coming, coming."

Wu Lang's face was filled with tears, the corners of his mouth twitched violently. He silently went back to the kitchen, lifted the pot, and stuffed Li Maozhen in little by little.

The space under the stove hole was so cramped that Li Maozhen almost curled up into a ball like a little hedgehog.

Only in this way can we avoid those Qi soldiers.

Thinking of this, Li Maozhen couldn't help but smile bitterly. He didn't expect that he was a damn monster in the eyes of the common people.

He never had any moral principles in his mind and didn't care what anyone thought.

The invisible common people were equivalent to non-existence. He only cared about whether he could strengthen his army and horses, do whatever he wanted, and eliminate all forces that dared to oppose him. But when he heard his benefactor scolding him, Li Maozhen felt an indescribable complex feeling in his heart, which made him feel very uncomfortable. His heart was as hard as stone, but now he felt sad again.

Perhaps after this great change and escaping death, even a heartless and ungrateful person like Li Maozhen would have some enlightenment.

Li Maozhen vaguely heard the wooden door being kicked open, and the evil officials and soldiers rushed in, shouting that the higher-ups wanted to recruit 20,000 warriors to fight against Shannan and Bining. As long as one man was sent, he would be given 200 kilograms of wheat.

If you provide three laborers, you won’t have to pay any taxes for the next year.

The old woman cried again and again, saying that she was the only one in the house, but the soldiers did not believe her and ran into the house to rummage through all the drawers and cabinets.

When an official hit the pot with a stick, Li Maozhen, who was hiding under the stove, felt his heart beating faster and was scared to death.

They are indeed the rebellious son’s people!
He keenly captured the news that he was going to fight with the Shannan Army and the Bining Army.

Fortunately, they did not open the pot. There was a clanging noise in the house, and he guessed that something must have been taken away.

Amid the noise, one could hear the old woman's desperate pleas.

Li Maozhen didn't know where Wulang was hiding, but he was really worried that Wulang would suddenly jump out with red eyes and fight with the soldiers.

Fortunately, Wu Lang held back, but the old woman ended up in a very bad way.

Li Maozhen heard the military officers discussing taking the old woman back to the front line to fill trenches, cook and do odd jobs.

After an unknown amount of time, there was no sound in the yard, and the eternal darkness returned. In the dead silence, Wu Lang's crying was heard.

Li Maozhen walked out of the door cautiously, as if hoping that the old woman had not been captured.

"Let's go, it's not safe here. I guess they will come back..." Li Maozhen patted Wulang's shoulder and whispered.

Suddenly, two dark figures came crouching outside the courtyard wall, listening intently with their ears pressed against the door.

“There’s crying in there!”

"I was wondering how an old woman like this could possibly live halfway up this mountain?"

"Call someone back to catch him!"

Bang!
There was a violent kick on the door. Li Maozhen was so scared that he grabbed Wu Lang's sleeve and shouted, "They are coming back. Hurry up and climb over the wall!"

As he was speaking, Li Maozhen had already taken the lead and stepped on the earthen wall, intending to climb out into the darkness to make some plans later.

But just as he climbed up, a knife flew straight at him and stabbed into the earthen wall about a foot high above his head.

As expected, the officers who had arrested people just now were called back. One of the soldiers who looked like a team leader pointed at Li Maozhen and the other man and said without further ado: "Follow me."

Wu Lang's mother was captured, and he couldn't run away. He was so angry that he cursed: "Go to your grave? Ten years ago, you captured my eldest and second brothers to fight against thieves, seven years ago you took my third brother, and three years ago you kidnapped my fourth brother. Today you took my mother away. Now you want to take me away again. Aren't you afraid that I will kill you in the middle of the night when I get to the camp to avenge you?"

"Hahaha." The team leader laughed.

"You're a good candidate. I like your rebelliousness. One day in the future, when we get the chance to kill the governor, we can enjoy delicious food and be surrounded by beautiful women. Isn't that better than staying in this mountain? If it weren't for the fight against the Hanzhong guys, you wouldn't have a chance to join the army."

"Fuck you! You killed my brother."

The leader groaned, dismounted, and shouted, "I didn't capture your brother, so why are you blaming me for it?"

"You are all a bunch of idiots, isn't it the same thing to find you?"

The chieftain cursed, "From what you said, the Jiedushi who captured your brother have all been killed. Li Maozhen, who kidnapped your fourth brother three years ago, was also beheaded half a month ago. And now Qi Shuai is just his adopted son. You are such an ignorant bastard!"

"Good death!" Wu Lang spat.

Li Maozhen, who was standing by, was afraid that this group of Latins were Jikan's rebellious son's men, so he could only lower his head and pretend not to hear.

Unexpectedly, the captain actually agreed with Wu Lang's scolding, laughed and nodded, saying: "We have wanted to kill Li Maozhen for a long time. He forced us to attack the city in the snow before. How hateful! Now Fengxiang has been taken away by his son. You two should follow me!"

Hearing this, even though Li Maozhen was a cruel devil, he felt sad and angry for a moment when he recalled the embarrassment of having his position as commander seized by his rebellious son Ji Kan while he was retreating.

Finally, the team leader ran out of patience and waved his hand, saying, "Brand these two men's faces, tie them up with leashes, and take them back."

Then several soldiers came up with tools in their hands and shouted, "Kneel down and raise your face!"

Li Maozhen didn't even kneel when he saw the emperor, so how could he kneel before his followers at this time?

His silent resistance immediately resulted in a severe beating.

A punch hit Li Maozhen's face, and his nose immediately bleeds. He falls to the ground like noodles in a pot.

If it were in the past, he could easily beat these soldiers half to death by himself, but now he is too weak.

"This body is quite straight."

The soldiers tied his feet with ropes.

Being criticized and tied up like a slave, Li Maozhen was furious, but his misfortune did not end there.
After being tied up, two soldiers pressed their knees against his back and slapped him while pressing him down under their bodies.

Then, an official came out of the house, holding a red-hot iron from the woodshed, and pressed it hard on Li Maozhen's forehead without saying anything, making a sizzling sound like roasting meat. Li Maozhen was so ashamed and angry, but he couldn't break free.

"Hey, let's see how you escape from the army!"

The clerk proudly put away the branding iron and went to burn Wu Lang again.

As the roar was heard over there, Li Maozhen lay flat on her back like a weak woman who had been raped, staring into the darkness with empty eyes, two lines of tears rolling down her face silently.

He was angry.

He is sad.

He regrets it.

He can't do anything!!!

This great humiliation, like being sold as a slave, caused him far more mental damage than physical damage.

He even began to regret going to attack Chang'an.

He even began to regret escaping from the Tucheng Demon Cave.

Even if he was killed by his subordinates in the chaos of war, even if he was starved to death by Wang Xingyu, it would still be a thousand times more dignified than it is now.

"Why are you crying?" A soldier came up and kicked him.

Seeing that he didn't say anything, he slapped him on the head again.

The fists of these soldiers were like iron bowls. In order to save his life and make a comeback, Li Maozhen finally gave up all his emotions and said in a low voice: "Don't... don't hit me, I'm going to be killed."

"That's right." The soldiers laughed.

"Louder, you haven't eaten yet."

Li Maozhen closed his eyes and shouted with all his strength: "Stop hitting me!"

The leader of the team on horseback threw down a bag of dry food.

"If you are determined to follow us and fight, we will give you the kingdom once we chop it down with our swords. If you still want to escape, hmph..."

Without any warning, the leader of the team raised the back of the knife and hit Li Maozhen hard in the face.

(End of this chapter)