Dream of the Red Chamber: Start by gaining Zhao Yun's martial prowess, and be ennobled in a sin

Upon hearing this, Zhuque understood Jia Jing's ambition, and her expression calmed down somewhat.

He thought for a moment, then said with some hesitation:

"I will remember your words, Your Excellency! I will certainly follow your aspirations and take it upon myself to restore order to the world."

"However... what worries me is that now that the Marquis's power is growing and he has displayed such astonishing martial prowess, how can he not be envied?"

"If slander and defamation arise in the court and among the people, will His Majesty still trust the Marquis as before?"

"Throughout history, there have been countless instances of 'the bow is put away after the birds are all gone,' and 'the hunting dog is cooked after the rabbit is dead.' My only fear is that while the Marquis may not harbor any disloyal thoughts, His Majesty will find it difficult to tolerate him..."

Upon hearing this, Jia Jing's gaze deepened. He raised his eyes and looked towards the capital, saying each word clearly:

"We cannot control what His Majesty thinks or does; we can only do our own job well."

"Since His Majesty selected me, I have been deeply favored by the Emperor, entrusted with important responsibilities, and trusted with great responsibility."

"From a lowly eighth-rank military officer, he rose to the rank of second-rank military marquis in less than three years, and was appointed Vice Minister of War, in charge of the nine border regions and commanding hundreds of thousands of troops."

"At least so far, His Majesty has not wronged me in the slightest, so I cannot be ungrateful, otherwise I will be disgraced by the world!"

Jia Jing's attitude towards Emperor Jingsheng was consistent: if the emperor does not betray his subjects, then the subjects will not betray their emperor.

Emperor Jingsheng tolerated him, and he was willing to be a loyal minister and general.

Even after the Han Dynasty is restored, he could go to sea and become the King of East Asia, the King of Goryeo, or the King of Japan.

However, if Emperor Jingsheng changes his mind, he will not entrust his personal fate to the control of another's will.

Therefore, the Embroidered Uniform Guard should continue to develop, and its military power should continue to be controlled.

He had a public-spirited heart to help all under heaven, but he was not blindly loyal enough to be at the mercy of others.

He could always be respectful to Emperor Jingsheng, consider Emperor Jingsheng's needs, and contribute his efforts and even shed blood for the restoration of the Han Dynasty.

But he could not accept that he had saved the Han Dynasty from the brink of destruction, only to be purged by others.

Of course, these are all just speculations made in anticipation of a rainy day. So far, Emperor Jingsheng has nothing to say about Jia Jing.

"It's too early to talk about these things now! Nobody knows how things will develop in the future! Let's just be prepared for both possibilities!"

"Strategies and schemes are ultimately minor matters. As long as one holds military power, no matter how many schemes or plots they devise, they are nothing more than clowns jumping around!"

"Let's focus on doing our current tasks well, first eliminating the Northern Yuan, pacifying the grasslands, uniting the Northwest army, and truly doing more practical things that benefit the country and the people."

"This way, we'll have a much wider scope for advancement, both in the imperial court and throughout the land!"

"The world is vast, and you, as the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, should broaden your horizons!"

Jia Jing said calmly.

His current plan is still focused on accumulating strength, building high walls, stockpiling grain, and delaying the declaration of kingship.

First, I should seize as much military power as possible, both to revitalize the Han Dynasty and to plan for the future of the world. At the same time, I should also collect all the system's rewards.

As long as his strength continues to improve, there's nothing for him to worry about.

Zhuque stood up, walked to Jia Jing's side, and said with a hint of respect:

"With such martial prowess, Your Excellency remains humble and composed; I truly admire you!"

Jia Jing sat back down at the table, took the rice bowl from Zhu Que, and said in a deep voice:

"You eat quickly, and then go back to work! Write up the memorial for His Majesty and bring it to me for review."

"Remember this for the future: pride leads to ruin and humility to benefit. The higher your position and the greater your achievements, the more you should maintain a sense of awe."

"Especially towards His Majesty, one should always maintain a humble attitude. One can be high-profile in one's actions, but one should remain low-profile in one's personal conduct."

"In the way of being an official, learn more from Zhang Tingyu and less from Nian Gengyao."

Zhuque was taken aback upon hearing this. He knew that Zhang Tingyu's words and actions were not as effective as Yimo's way of being an official.

It's unclear what happened to Nian Gengyao, that he was specifically criticized by the Marquis and told not to emulate him.

Could it be that Nian Gengyao's unauthorized visit to his residence last time displeased the Marquis?

He thought about it for a moment, but couldn't figure it out. He decided to have the Embroidered Uniform Guard investigate when he had time, and respectfully cupped his hands, saying:

"Your subordinate will remember your teachings, Lord Marquis!"

…………

Shenjing City.

Qianqing Palace.

It was already high in the sky, and the warm spring sunshine shone on the glazed tiles of the West Warm Pavilion in the side hall of the Qianqing Palace, casting a golden glow.

Emperor Jingsheng sat behind his desk, his figure thin. In his hand he held a brush dipped in vermilion ink, sketching and writing as he intently reviewed the memorials.

Xia Shouzhong stood respectfully to the side, carefully observing Emperor Jingsheng's expression.

At this moment, Emperor Jingsheng finished reading a memorial, a hint of anger appearing on his face, and he said coldly:

"These officials who dare to criticize me—I have already spoken with my own words, declaring that the idea of ​​peace talks is unacceptable, yet they continue to submit memorials to advise against it. What are they really up to?"

"And they say we shouldn't engage in endless wars? Am I some kind of tyrannical and incompetent ruler who indulges in endless wars?"

"These are all ignorant and incompetent fools, presumptuously discussing matters of national importance; they are utterly nonsensical!"

Xia Shouzhong stood to the side with his head down, opened his mouth, but swallowed his words of advice.

After thinking for a moment, he said:

"Your Majesty! Before his departure, Marquis Jingwu repeatedly instructed you to take care of your health. You haven't had your meal since you got up this morning. Why don't you serve the meal first..."

Xia Shouzhong was reluctant to speak about court affairs, so he used the excuse of having a meal to divert Emperor Jingsheng's attention.

Of course, he wasn't advising in his own name, but rather in the words of Jia Jing, because he found Jia Jing's words to be more effective than his own.

Emperor Jingsheng's expression softened somewhat, but he still had no appetite and waved his hand, saying:

"There's no rush for a meal. Let me finish dealing with these memorials first."

After Emperor Jingsheng finished speaking, he picked up the memorials again and began to review them. However, the several memorials he flipped through were all written by officials from the Censorate and the Imperial Censorate, advising him to negotiate peace.

There were even those who advised that Jia Jing's power to control the nine border regions was too great and that the imperial sword and the authority to control the nine border regions should be revoked.

Emperor Jingsheng didn't even glance at them before letting out a cold snort and tossing the memorials aside.

His expression, which had softened somewhat, turned as cold and hard as iron again.

"Otomo! From now on, put aside all those memorials that don't discuss practical matters and only know how to make irresponsible remarks about military and national affairs."

"Select out the important and urgent memorials concerning border affairs, disaster relief, and new policies; I want to see them first!"

Emperor Jingsheng gave the order with a gloomy face.

The Office of Transmission receives and dispatches hundreds of memorials daily from the Six Ministries, the Nine Ministers, the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, local officials, and frontier generals.

However, only a small portion of the reports contained good news and substantive, practical advice.

Xia Shouzhong bowed and said:

"This servant obeys the decree!"

Emperor Jingsheng tossed aside some memorials from the censorate and picked up a few more local memorials to read.

It would have been better not to look, because once you did, your mood would have worsened. It was always something like a disaster here or a bandit there, or someone demanding money.

Emperor Jingsheng's expression grew increasingly grim as he read, especially the memorial from Jiangnan.

It was said that the implementation of the new policies was difficult, with local gentry and powerful families secretly obstructing them, and even some local military officers from the garrisons secretly participating in the collusion between civil and military officials. This made Emperor Jingsheng's face turn black!

"Bang!" Emperor Jingsheng slammed the memorial onto his desk.