The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 97 Decision
She closed her eyes in pain, her nails scratching the other's back. But the beast became more and more ferocious, leaving her with nothing to do except clamping her legs together.

Crash.

Luo Fu let go of his hand tremblingly.

It is surprising that Luo's daughter is 27 years old this year but has not yet opened the seal.

After several attempts, the saint sympathized with the other person's feelings and let go of the legs he was holding.

The more suppressed one is outside, the more satisfying it is to release it. Touching Luo Fu's face, he felt dull after entering the state of saint. His mind became very clear, and he couldn't help but think of many questions.

"You have committed many sins." He picked up Luo Fu.

"Be gentle with me."

"Where are you from?"

"Donghai. My father is the defense commissioner of Zibo and Qinghai Prefecture." It turned out to be Lianyungang's sister. Yes, another daughter of a general from Zibo and Qinghai.

"How has the Privy Councilor been doing during my absence?"

"Strong ability, great vision, and dedicated to one's duties."

"The political turmoil you mentioned yesterday—"

"Quanzhong hated the Qin-Jin alliance and spoke rudely, insulting the saint as a king who lost his country and also cut off the grain transport. The court was angry and wanted to issue an imperial decree to punish him. Cui Yin, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and others told the prime minister that the people of Bian were strong and difficult to offend, and they were willing to tolerate it. There were also many foreign officials who submitted memorials to praise Quanzhong's loyalty..."

Physical and mental exhaustion came over him like a torrent, and Luo Fu's murmurs stopped abruptly, and he fell into a deep sleep.

Grasping and pinching the buckle, playing with the body for a while, the saint considerately covered Luo Fu with a clean quilt and got up alone. The autumn wind blew the doors and windows, and the morning light was dim in the house. It was time to go to work in Yanying Hall.

"Get up early and go to bed late, there is no morning..." The sage shook his head, perhaps they should implement a two-day weekend.

After finishing his preparations slowly and calmly, he walked out of the bedroom refreshed. The cook had already prepared breakfast. Tofu, steamed egg custard, boiled cabbage, a bottle of warm honey water, a plate of ringo slices, a glass of wine, and two steamed cakes. The emperor didn't eat meat and fish every day, and Li couldn't stand it. For the sake of health, he usually specifically told him what to eat.

"Where did this ringo come from?" The saint ate two slices. They were sour, sweet and crispy.

"Tuoba Sixiao, the governor of Danyan, Fufang, paid tribute. He sent envoys to present a memorial last time, offering 15000 cattle, sheep, and pigs, 300 carts of apples, purple pears, dried plums and other fruits, and 6000 sheep, raccoon, and wolf skins." The eunuch replied.

The saint nodded.

Oh, the Tuoba clan is quite sensible. In the two towns of Fu and Xia ruled by the Dangxiang people, the most powerful Tuoba Sigong has only more than 40 soldiers under his command. Of course, with various miscellaneous soldiers and minions, and some poor tribesmen and Han people from prefectures and counties to serve as consumables, to people can be mobilized. But that doesn't make much sense. The saint can also pat his chest and guarantee that it is easy to mobilize hundreds of thousands of strong men under the rule of more than counties. Is it useful?

In addition, Tuoba Sigong had been managing Xiasui for less than ten years, and it would take a long time to disintegrate the generals and unruly yamen troops accumulated over more than a hundred years in Xiasui. Externally, the Dangxiang Zhe clan, which occupied Linzhou, joined forces with the Han tyrant Yang clan to fight against it. Among the tribes, the Mo Zang clan, Xifeng clan, Feiting clan, Wangli clan, Yeli clan, Miqin clan, etc., were also jealous of the Tuoba clan.

This is the strength of Tuoba Sigong, the ruler of Xia. Is he strong? It is hard to say without fighting, but he is definitely not as good as Li Maozhen, and most likely not even as good as the neighboring Jingyuan. Jingyuan currently has 30,000 Han and Fan infantry and cavalry. If they are rewarded, they will fight hard. There has been no mutiny in the internal affairs for more than ten years, and it is extremely stable. Does Tuoba Sigong dare to touch it?

His elder brother is still keeping a low profile, only ruling over four states, Fu, Fang, Dan and Yan, with its actual control unknown. His younger brother Tuoba Sixiao, who is separated from the court by the Wei River, doesn't hurry up to pay tribute and create an image of a loyal minister. What else does he want to do? Is he waiting for the saint to bring up the old account of his attack on Fuzhou?

15000 heads of livestock, 300 carts of fruit, and 6000 furs, not bad. This wealth temporarily extinguished the idea of the saint to deal with him.

There was no need to rush. Tuoba Sigong was seriously ill, and Tuoba Sixiao was also suffering from various injuries. The two brothers had less than two years to live. Hezhong Wang Chongying also had a relapse of his old injuries and was bedridden for a long time. The older warlords were either killed by their subordinates who rebelled, or died of illness; few of them died a good death.

The saint has plenty of patience to wait, and he is confident that he can outlast all the old warriors.

"Pah." The sage put his chopsticks on the table and wiped his mouth: "Although the food is simple, I wonder how many families in Sanfu can eat it."

"Everyone!" The Privy Councilor came in with high spirits. The saint had won another victory and his prestige had soared. The two brothers also made contributions. She was in a very good mood and asked, "The three provinces and one Taiwan have already been promoted. The chief adjutant has taken his seat in Yanying."

Seeing the unusual joy in the saint's expression, the experienced woman immediately looked at the desk where she usually worked - it had been moved! There was a book open on it.

"Where is Luo Fu?" Zhao asked sharply.

"Don't blame her." The saint didn't say it directly. But he was already asleep.

Hearing this, Zhao's face darkened.

Yesterday she sent this sacrificial official to report to the Saint on the recent affairs of the Privy Council, but he never came back. It turned out that he had reported to the dragon bed! Luo's daughter, she is really good.

She had originally brought Luo Fu to the Privy Council because of her cold personality and her habit of not wearing makeup. She wanted to avoid being noticed by the Saint and get pregnant - she and Yang Kezheng had already been conceived, and she couldn't let all the backbones of the Privy Council get pregnant.

So this is what happened to the Luo family girl?
It seems that in the future, we must select some trustworthy scholars, eunuchs, or old female officials who have lost their charm to take turns in the Privy Council. But Zhao thought again that the saint might not dislike a young man with a graceful demeanor and good looks, or an old woman in her thirties or forties who still has a pretty figure. The emperor's mind is unpredictable. What if they are attracted to each other?
She had heard that when the sage was away on a campaign, he slept with the fat Turkic man named Zhazhu. She didn't know what he was after, and it wouldn't be...

At this moment, Zhao's mind was racing like lightning, and many ugly images flashed through his head.

"Let's go." The saint took a step and went to Yanying Hall to listen to government affairs. Although Zhao's jealousy was invisible, he was familiar with every inch of Zhao's skin and could clearly sense it. He needed to communicate more deeply. Since he enjoyed the happiness of having many wives and concubines, he had to bear such troubles.

During his absence, Yanying Hall was extensively renovated and now looks quite impressive. The ground was paved with new bluestone bricks, and the walls were demolished and rebuilt. Three cherry trees were transplanted to the east of the hall, and a pine tree with twisted and crouching dragons was transplanted to the west. The overall tone is serious and the atmosphere is relaxed, which is in line with the nature of Yanying Hall - there are no guards around, the etiquette system is simple, and there are no restrictions on people.

"This is the list of candidates. The imperial edict was issued on the first day of July, and the first examination was held on the seventh day of September. A total of 47 people were admitted in five categories: erudition and eloquence, loyalty and filial piety, martial arts, actuarial agriculture and sericulture, and firmness and courage to remonstrate." Zhao handed over an official document. She quickly suppressed her emotions as she entered the working state. After spending time with him day and night, she understood the saint very well. For this emperor, women who have no political role have no physical value; he would not sleep with anyone casually.

In terms of beauty, the concubines and female maids are all good.

In her opinion, the reason why Lady Chen was favored was because she had a military commander who commanded thousands of elite soldiers in Hezhong, and three brothers who were generals in the yamen. The same was true for Yang Kezheng. The Linzhou Yang family had married into the Dangxiang Zhe family, and even Tuoba Sigong could not do anything about it. What a powerful force! Zhu Xie was held in his palm and treated as his sweetheart, but it was because he had a powerful father behind him.

Yuwen Rou was ruthless and could control and kill dissidents for him. At the same time, she was good at financial management and could manage Xuanhuiyuan for him. Even herself, because she could replace the eunuchs to check and balance the outer court for him and monitor the eunuchs, she was broken by him.

Haven't you seen the daughters of Li Zhaoyi, Madam Pei, Concubine Wei, Concubine Liu, and Chen Zhaoyi? They are all less beautiful than anyone else, but why did he almost ignore them? He was weak, and his mother's family was in decline.

The favor that should be won must be won. The things that should be done must be done well; this will also tie the heart of the saint. Therefore, during working hours, she would force herself not to think about random things and focus on politics. "Look at it and reject it." While Zhao was observing the saint's thoughtful expression, the saint quickly read the list of candidates and said.

"How should we respond?" Zhao asked, then frowned and said, "Since the officials have already decided on the list, rejecting it would be unfair to the successful candidates and would not help gaining people's trust. Rumors would spread that we are changing our mind every day. We must be cautious."

"Are there only descendants of Pei and Xie under my rule?" The sage called himself differently and scolded, "Most of the people on this list have the surnames of Pei, Lu, Wang, Wei, Du, Liu, and Li. Let's assume that these scholars are indeed talented and knowledgeable, but the country has fallen to such a state. Is there no wise man left out in the wilderness? Could the chief examiner be Li Linfu? Do you want me to have a talk with him?"

Thunder was furious.

This was the second time that Zhao saw the sage showing dissatisfaction. She immediately lowered her head, but still asked for a solution: "Then should we order the officials to dismiss these successful candidates?"

"Since you said that you would be accused of changing your mind every day, which would be detrimental to your prestige, there is no need to do so." The sage counted the list silently to confirm, and ordered: "35 people with noble surnames and 12 people with humble origins. Pass it down and take another test, and increase the number of the latter to 31. In the future, for all the examinations and all the subjects, we must admit the same number of common people and talents as the number of people with noble surnames admitted. Otherwise, are we going to wait for them to serve the vassal states and become our enemies?"

"Yes." As they were still outside the palace, Zhao had no way of taking notes and could only recite it silently in her mind to avoid forgetting.

"Walk."

Inside the Yanying Hall, a black tortoise slowly blew out smoke, and several musicians struck the deep chimes. More than 30 ministers who had taken off their shoes sat in the second row, with a small desk in front of them, complete with writing brushes, inkstones, paper and inkstones. The four prime ministers Du, Liu, Li, and Zheng sat on one side with officials from the three provinces, and the Imperial Censor Xu Yanruo and the Imperial Censor Wu Gongdu sat on the other side with important officials from the Taiyuan, Chayuan, and Dianyuan.

"Your Majesty, we are here to pay our respects." As soon as the sage walked in, the ministers stood up and saluted.

There was no trace of the anger on the sage's face that he had shown outside just now. Instead, he put on a kind and gentle smile, asked this person, exchanged a few words with that person, and then walked to the throne and knelt down.

After the emperor arrived, the palace servants came out and placed freshly boiled tea, freshly cut fruit plates, and fresh snacks on the desks of each minister. If the meeting was too late, the Xuanhui Envoy would also prepare lunch in case the emperor wanted to keep the ministers for dinner.

The ministers first talked about the battle in Fengzhou.

Very good, another town has been recovered. The court has recovered so much without us noticing. It is exciting. After the New Year, we will work hard to create more glories. Of course, we did not forget to flatter the emperor. Whether he likes to hear it or not, we have to say a few words.

Wu Gongdu, the Chief Censor, talked about his work, saying that half of the dozen censors sent to the southeastern towns had returned. He then recounted what they had seen and heard. Among them, he emphasized that Dong Chang of Wuyue was ambitious and, according to reports, might become emperor.

The ministers did not believe it.

How could Dong Chang rebel when he was constantly paying tribute? Even if he did rebel, for the sake of money and goods, he should be treated with leniency and tolerance, and not be deposed from office or punished, but his title of emperor should be removed, leaving him a way out.

Wu Gongdu did not insist, as he had heard the news from his subordinates. And judging from Dong Chang's behavior, he did not seem like a rebel. Perhaps he did not get any benefits from the interview with the censor, so he slandered Dong Chang when he returned to the court.

"The five governors of Lingnan, Guang, Gui, Rong, Yong, and Jiao, also need to be adjusted." He added. The court now has fewer and fewer places where personnel can be appointed. The five provinces are the few places that are still under replacement. The governors, governors, provincial governors, and county magistrates need to be moved. Some people have been in office for too long, and it is easy to get out of control if they continue. Especially in Guangzhou, where trade is prosperous and wealth is abundant, an important official must be sent out to govern.

But after he finished speaking, no one expressed their opinion.

Who would be willing to go to the barren and desolate place of Lingnan Wuguan? The leaders of various departments had to think of a solution.

The saint listened for a while, felt that it was enough, and raised his hand.

Everyone fell silent again.

"Quanzhong resents the injustice done to us, and is angry that I intermarried with the people of Jin and allied with Li Keyong to support him. That's why he closed the canal transportation to prevent the wealth from the southeast from entering Chang'an. His move is strangling our lifeline, what can we do?" The sage mentioned the most important event at the moment.

How to deal with the conflict with the people of Bian. Or how to get along with Quanzhong in the future.

"Zhu Wen is a bastard! In the past, he was forced into a desperate situation by Meng Kai and knelt down to Wang Chongrong and begged for surrender. The late emperor praised him for his rebellion and rewarded him with the position of General Xuanwu. But now, after a disagreement, he has done such a vicious thing." The Imperial Censor Niu Hui slammed the table and said angrily.

He had known long ago that he shouldn't have too much hope for the remnants of these thieves, but he didn't expect them to turn against him so suddenly.

Not counting the Xuanwu area, there are six vassal towns under Zhu Quanzhong's control, including Yicheng Army, Heyang, Zhongwu Army, Dongdu Jiru, Wei Bo, and Eyue. Chengde was threatened by Li Keyong and also tried to surrender to Zhu Quanzhong. In other words, the east of Shanzhou, the west of Qingzhou, the south of the Yellow River, and the north of the Yangtze River were almost all in his hands.

These vassal states were originally paying tribute to some extent, but now that Zhu Quanzhong gave the order, who would dare to do so?
In addition, now that Quanzhong has closed the grain transport, Henghai, Yiding, Zibo and Qing in Hebei, which are still paying tribute, and Guang, Rong and Min in the south, which are still paying tribute, can only change their routes. In the north, they can go through Li Keyong's jurisdiction and enter the pass through Pubanjin. In the south, they can go through Xiangyang and Jinshang. With their enthusiasm dampened, these vassal towns can find an excuse to stop paying tribute at any time.

After Niu Hui finished speaking, the other ministers also looked heavy-hearted. Everyone present understood the pros and cons of this matter. Zhu Quanzhong didn't even have to do anything horrible, this one move alone would make you explode.

The saint is really out of his mind! Why marry a Shatuo woman? What's the point of forming an alliance with Li Keyong? Now that he has angered Zhu Quanzhong, what's next?

"Your Majesty, since we are in Yanying Palace, you can speak without restraint. I am risking my life to make suggestions." Shangshu Zuocheng Zhao Chong stood up and bowed to the sage, clasping his hands and saying, "The enemy is far superior to us. Even if the court leads the three towns of Hedong, Hezhong, and Shan Guo, it will be difficult to defeat the people of Bian. I believe that economic affairs are the key to the country. Birds will die without food. People will leave without money. The country will perish without money! Rather than looking at the Jin army from afar, it is better to show gratitude and loyalty and endure the humiliation for a while."

Hearing this, Zhao, who was sitting next to him, changed his expression.

As expected, the sage said, "Since Quanzhong has done such a thing, he must ask the court for a substantive explanation before he will be obedient again. It's okay for me to endure the humiliation temporarily. I don't mind this time, but I'm afraid I can't satisfy Quanzhong's appetite."

"How can the emperor be humiliated?" Li Xi asked back.

"Don't worry about me. The future of the country is what I worry about the most. If I can continue my ancestral legacy, I am willing to sacrifice my life, regardless of personal honor or disgrace." The saint sighed, looked at Zhao Chong, and said, "Tell me your plan to temporarily endure humiliation."

"Bian and Jin are different in strength, and the importance of the matter is different." Zhao Chong gritted his teeth and said, "When faced with two evils, choose the lesser one. Your Majesty, please bear with the pain and send Concubine Guixian to Taiyuan! If you can raise an army to punish the crime, I will go to Bianzhou as an envoy to ask for troops to help Your Majesty. After you have made peace with Quanzhong, you can marry a Bian girl. When the court has conquered the interior of the country and pacified Bashu, we will break with the Bian bandits to wipe out today's shame."

"Stupid!" Before the sage could speak, Du Rangneng scolded him, "How do you know it's not Quanzhong's plan to sow discord? If we send the virtuous concubine away, Quanzhong will still be as violent and threatening as before, and will still strangle the financial line. Then we won't be able to make peace with Zhu Ze, and we will offend Li Keyong. What will happen?"

Being weak is the original sin, and one can only swing between the two major camps, but politics often does not allow for the opportunity to jump back and forth.

As soon as the words were spoken, silence fell.

"Xianfei, she is pregnant." The sage concluded his speech, saying, "I will not send her home. On the contrary, I will promote Li Keyong to the rank of General of the Cavalry, below the princes. As for Zhu Wen, since he is not a minister, I will not be his father. I cannot agree to his request, and there is absolutely no room for maneuver for both sides. I want to go with the flow and deprive him of his official position. If he attacks, I will station my troops to defend Tongguan. You can talk about this later."

"Think twice, Your Majesty!"

(End of this chapter)