The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 23 Demon Cave Buddhist Hall
The fifth day of the first lunar month in the first year of Jingfu.

The Hanlin Academy was controlled and Han Jian was formally stripped of his official position.

In the afternoon, Wang Congxun, the Tiger Guards General, who was granted the power to act at will by the sage, went out of the palace to recruit his old subordinates.

The Tianwei Army was actually quite powerful, with remarkable achievements over the years. The biggest problem was that they were too arrogant and unruly, just like the people in Wei Bo. A few years ago, when they were escorting the late emperor through Fengxiang, they had a conflict with the local Ya Army, and they just started to kill with swords.

The imperial guards of the late Tang Dynasty fell out with the military leaders in the territories of the vassal states, without caring whether it would bring disaster to the emperor.

Who dares to think?
Yang Fugong also realized this after he came to power, and thought that a tough guy must be sent to govern the situation. So he appointed his adopted son Li Shunjie, who was "the bravest among the six armies and a murderer by nature", as military commander, and only then was he able to calm the situation.

But it didn't last long.

Last year, the imperial court ordered Li Shunjie to take charge of Huazhou because of his cruelty and difficulty in controlling him, and the Tianwei Army was immediately transferred away. However, Han Jian refused to accept the replacement in Huazhou, and threatened that "Li Shunjie is a pig and dog." The Tianwei Army came to Huazhou with the idea of making a fortune. Now that Li Shunjie could not be appointed as the governor, they were furious and threatened to kill him.

On the one hand, Li Shunjie was angry at the soldiers' domineering behavior, and on the other hand, he was indignant that Han Jian did not give him face, so he sent troops to fight Han Jian.

But before the city was conquered, Li Maozhen and others arrived at Chang'an.

Li Shunjie had to give up the siege, and the morale of the Tianwei Army, which failed to enter Huazhou to plunder, was immediately crushed, and then they took the military envoys back to Chang'an to deploy defenses. This is not to say that they are very loyal, but most of the soldiers have wives and children in the capital.

Later, the rebels attacked the city and the Tianwei Army mutinied again.

Some people wanted to kill Li Shunjie and leave the city to join Li Maozhen, while others, under the leadership of military academy students such as Wang Congxun, wanted to snatch the saint and flee eastward. They were repelled by the eunuchs guarding the palace. Then Liu Chongwang arrived and temporarily subdued this group of rebel soldiers.

Afterwards, Wang Congxun and other generals were dispersed and resettled, and Li Shunjie abandoned the army for fear of being killed by his subordinates. The more than 10,000 Tianwei troops were scattered all over the place, with dozens here and hundreds there, entrenched in various camps, in a leaderless state. The officials in the court hated this army so much that they delayed sending anyone to take it over.

And there is a high probability that no one will be willing to come.

Even a murderous man like Li Shunjie couldn't control these evil thieves. Are they just going to die? Who knows, if he behaves inappropriately one day, the whole family will be killed by the soldiers.

South of Xingqing Palace is Xinchangli.

This place has long been desolate, and the alleys and doors are deserted. The collapsed earthen walls are all blackened by the fire, and the cracks in the bluestone bricks on the street are blocked by stubborn blood stains and finger bones. It can't be washed away by rain and snow many times, which shows what tragedy it experienced.

Wang Congxun rode his horse and arrived at a temple.

Qinglong Temple.

Also known as Stone Buddha Temple.

The predecessor of the temple was Linggan Temple, which was built in the second year of Kaihuang in the Sui Dynasty. At the end of Daye, Li Yuan and his sons invaded Chang'an and Linggan Temple was destroyed by war. After the rise of Tang Dynasty, a more magnificent Buddhist residence was rebuilt on the site and named Qinglong Temple. After Kaiyuan, it was mostly used as a temporary residence for envoys and nobles from various countries who came to visit and study in China. After the middle Tang Dynasty until the reign of Emperor Zhaozong, many Japanese monks studied here.

Because it is located in the Leyouyuan of Xinchang Village, with towering terrain, beautiful forests and valleys, and beautiful scenery, and because of its winding paths and the crisp sound of wooden fish, many officials and civilians come here to relax, date, and burn incense. But recently, Qinglong Temple has become a terrifying demon cave.

All the monks in the temple were killed.

The East Courtyard, the West Courtyard, the Treasure Hall, and the Sutra Library were filled with rotting corpses that gave off a strong stench. When the people nearby learned that there were rebel soldiers entrenched inside, they were so scared that they dared not pass by the gate. Jingzhao Yin Sun Kui sent people to recruit them several times, but they were ignored. He also sent Jinwu guards to besiege the temple three times, but they were killed and injured by hundreds of people.

On this day, the rebel soldiers were occupying the temple and having fun as usual.

There were warriors who knew music and played the piano and flute, and a single song would draw endless praise. More people just lay there, eating and drinking with one hand and hugging the beauty they had robbed with the other. When they were in the mood, they would strip off her clothes and play with her, and when they got bored, they would swap clothes with each other, making a mixture of laughter and crying. Bodhisattva Jin was covered in messy clothes, which was really a mess.

Even a god wouldn’t trade for a day like this!

"Wow, what a big scene." Wang Congxun couldn't help but show joy when he heard the noise inside.

He then dismounted, tied up his horse, and rushed to the mountain gate. He kicked away the corpses blocking his way without even looking at them. The soldiers coming and going in the temple saw him and there was a commotion.

"Tsk tsk, isn't that Wang Congxun? Where has he been these days?"

"I heard that he was appointed by the prime minister and became the General of the Central Army of the Saint. Is this true?"

"Wang Congxun, I will also enter the palace as a general and sleep with a few concubines. Can you tell the Saint about this?"

"We agreed to rob the Daming Palace that day, so why did you accept the position of prime minister first?"

Wang Congxun blushed and drew his sword: "Why are you still talking about that? If you provoke me, I will kill you thieves."

This immediately caused a burst of taunting, and the soldiers shook their heads and made way for a passage.

"So majestic."

"It's only been a few days, and he can't recognize people anymore."

"Damn it, kill him!"

Wang Congxun had extremely sharp hearing. He could shoot arrows at the sound of a sound in the dark, and could distinguish the accents of soldiers among hundreds of people. Hearing the discussion in the noisy crowd, he turned around and looked around, then his eyes fell on a bearded face: "You want to kill me?"

He rushed into the crowd and punched the bearded man in the face with his fist as big as a sandbag. The bearded man was knocked down, but before he could get up, Wang Congxun was already on top of him and punched him several more times. While beating him, he cursed, "If it weren't for the fact that we were from the same Tianwei Army, I would kill you, you rascal."

Blood splattered from his nose, and the bearded man begged for mercy. Wang Congxun acted arrogantly, and the soldiers really didn't dare to fight him, but it was like a small thief meeting a big thief, and they all advised: "Stop fighting, you're going to kill him."

"Humph." Wang Congxun shook off the blood on his hands, kicked him away leisurely, and said to the soldiers who were watching the show with a smile: "This guy is weak and listens to you. Spare his life. Brothers, eat and drink first, I'll go in and talk."

After saying that, he carried the knife and walked into the main hall leisurely.

The aroma of food, wine, and the lewd atmosphere of beautiful women immediately hit me in the face.

In the dim hall, a group of soldiers were seen stumbling around, hugging each other, leaning forward and backward, with clothes all over the floor.

The whimpering and begging for mercy were mixed together and continued one after another.

There are also some women whose heads and bodies were separated and they are sleeping forever in this evil cave temple.

Wang Congxun sat down and casually pulled a woman with disheveled hair who was sitting in the corner and crying and put her on his lap. He patted the woman's back and comforted her with a smile, while he poured himself a few drinks and drank a few cups.

Seeing Wang Congxun, he turned around and said with a smile: "Hey, the General of the Central Army is back. What's the matter? Did the Saint look down on you and send you back?"

"I'm fine."

After leaving the solemn and oppressive palace, Wang Congxun returned to his original nature, looking disdainful and contented, chatting with the soldiers. The soldiers also asked him about the secrets of the palace, using rude words.

Wang Congxun was so angry that he was fuming: "Don't ask me about my concubines!"

"Okay." A military student shook his head in frustration, stretched out his foot and kicked Wang Congxun's butt, and said with a lewd smile: "Go, go, pick whatever you want, they are all beautiful. As for those troublesome things, we can talk about them when we are happy."

After that, he picked up the scabbard and hit a woman on the head, shouting violently: "Come here quickly, I will kill you!"

The little girl quickly wiped her tears and ran to sit next to Wang Congxun. The fragrance of powder immediately lingered in his nose. Wang Congxun felt like a fire was burning and pushed the little girl away: "Get lost!"

One soldier was puzzled: "You don't like it? There are many, just pick one."

"I--"

Wang Congxun paused and said proudly, "I am getting married. The emperor has given me a girl from the palace. She is the personal maid of Concubine Shu, from Yangzhou, a very honest and shy girl. We hit it off right away. From now on, I will not play with the brothers anymore."

After the words were spoken, there was silence in the Buddhist hall.

Some people cast jealous eyes, some bowed and congratulated him, and some called him a bastard. But Wang Congxun was not angry, but became more proud.

"cut!"

A drunk soldier shouted, "I'm afraid the saint has already played with you! Is this why you came? Can a woman buy you off?"

"You want a beating!" Wang Congxun was furious and was about to whip and chop the man. The soldiers had to try to persuade them to stop fighting for a while before they pulled the two men apart.

Wang Congxun sat down with a gloomy face. He didn't have the patience to deal with these people anymore. He got straight to the point and said, "I came here today to tell you something. The saint wants to attack the state defense army. Han Jian and I have fought each other before. That's it. I have decided to go with him to fight. Who of you is willing to gather your troops and follow me? Meet at Chongxuan Gate before noon tomorrow."

"What's the benefit?"

Wang Congxun snorted, "Then the Saint will give out a huge reward. If you can kill Han Jian, not only will you get a reward, but the camp of the Shen Ce Army in the West City will also be ours. For those who don't have a place to live in the capital, the Saint will give each of them a house."

"No, no." A military student said impatiently.

"You can go or not, I'm going anyway." Wang Congxun smiled sarcastically, "Don't let me be the governor in the future, and you still spend your days in this broken temple. And this is not a long-term solution. I heard that the Jingzhao Yin has reported your evil deeds to the emperor. The emperor is deeply worried and is preparing to summon Li Sizhou to the capital to destroy the rebels entrenched in various places in the city."

"If you don't want to discuss Huazhou with me, then quickly disguise yourself and run for your lives."

"Is this true?" Some soldiers scoffed and said, "If the saint really wanted to destroy us, he would have come long ago. Why wait until now?"

Wang Congxun laughed loudly and said, "That's because the saint wanted to give you room to turn back because of the kindness of the imperial guards."

After saying that, he stood up, patted his butt, and walked away whistling.

……

Daming Palace, Penglai Hall.

Li Ye went to take a nap when Wang Congxun was late. He was woken up by Zhao Shi after just a short nap. Zhao Shi said that Jinwu Guard had presented an important memorial. This made him energetic. Du Rangneng and Liu Chongwang were surrounded on their way home from work. The hooligans hugged the shoulders of the two prime ministers and shouted with bared teeth: "Hua Shuai is innocent and should not be punished!" They picked up stones and hit the old man in the face.

Du and Liu's hats were blown off, and they were only able to escape death thanks to the protection of several subordinates who hid in a wealthy family's house at the corner of the street.

(End of this chapter)