Having many children brings many blessings; the struggle for power begins with marriage.

Chapter 122 Did Emperor Taizu of Xia crawl out of his imperial tomb?

To the ministers in the court, how fake was the battle report from the Red Silk Messenger?

It's so fake that they don't even dare to question it!

This is the first time in the history of the Great Xia that anyone has dared to submit such a false battle report.

If the battle report brought by the Red Silk messenger claimed that tens of thousands of enemies had been killed and the barbarians had been defeated, the ministers of the Right Chancellor Zhao Wenhan's faction in the court would probably have already begun to impeach Lin Xiuming, accusing him of falsely reporting military achievements.

But to say that the Northern King slaughtered 200,000 barbarians...

Do they really need to impeach someone for a fake battle report?

They didn't even dare to speak.

This isn't 20,000, it's 200,000!

Moreover, the Red Silk messenger just said that the Northern Commandery had captured 100,000 barbarian soldiers.

What does this mean? It means to a certain extent that the Northern Commandery has completely annihilated the 300,000-strong barbarian army that marched south!

If the Northern King truly achieves this, then his merits will be comparable to those of the Xia Emperor, and it could even be said that his achievements have surpassed those of the emperor.

But is it possible?

Who in the capital doesn't know what kind of person the Northern King is?

Could that weak, incompetent, greedy, and lustful King of the North lead the army of the Northern Commandery to annihilate the barbarian army of 300,000?

That's hilarious!

Why doesn't this battle report say that Emperor Taizu of Xia climbed out of the imperial tomb and killed 200,000 barbarian soldiers?

If you were to say that Emperor Taizu of Xia crawled out of the imperial tomb, some people might actually believe the battle report was true.

At this moment, the entire court was completely silent; even the sound of people breathing could be heard. After an unknown amount of time, the eunuch in the court finally came to his senses. He stumbled to the messenger in red silk, took the battle report from the messenger, and then went to Emperor Xia and handed the report to him.

At this moment, Emperor Xia's face was dark and his expression was extremely unpleasant.

This was the most spurious battle report he had ever heard.

He simply couldn't believe that Lin Xiuming would dare to send such a false battle report back to the capital.

Although Lin Xiuming's father was the prime minister of the imperial court, no one could protect him from fabricating such a false battle report, not even Lin Gaoyuan, who was the prime minister.

Not only can Lin Gaoyuan not protect Lin Xiuming, but Lin Gaoyuan's entire family will also be implicated by Lin Xiuming.

Upon seeing the battle report handed to him by the eunuch, Emperor Xia finally came to his senses. He immediately picked up the report and began to read it.

Even if the battle report was fake, he still wanted to take a serious look at it; he wanted to see what Lin Xiuming was up to.

When Emperor Xia opened the battle report and read it carefully, all the ministers' eyes were focused on his face, eager to see his reaction.

At this moment, some people in the court began to gloat. They were originally trying to find a way to bring down Lin Gaoyuan, but they did not expect that Lin Gaoyuan's son would make a mistake so quickly.

Moreover, he made the mistake of falsely reporting military information!

Most importantly, this is a completely fake military intelligence report!

Even if the Lin family isn't wiped out this time, they'll probably be exiled, right?

With such a terrible false military intelligence being reported by a messenger with a red silk ribbon, Emperor Xia would never let Lin Xiuming off the hook.

at the same time.

Lin Gaoyuan, inside the main hall, was sweating profusely. He never dreamed that his son would make such a big mistake.

It's one thing to lie about military intelligence, but to fabricate such an exaggerated battle report—how could anyone possibly believe that? They're treating everyone like fools!

Lin Gaoyuan couldn't help but think that his son shouldn't be that kind of person. So what was going on with this battle report? Could it have been tampered with? Was someone trying to harm the Lin family?

That doesn't seem impossible.

Upon realizing this, Lin Gaoyuan immediately knelt down. "Your Majesty, I have failed in my duty to raise my son and am willing to accept punishment!"

Before the emperor, regardless of whether you are right or wrong, kneel down and admit your mistake first. Admitting your mistake still offers a glimmer of hope. If you stubbornly refuse to accept the Lin family's offer, you will only suffer the same fate as the Duke of Mu's mansion.

At this moment, Emperor Xia ignored Lin Gaoyuan. His gaze remained fixed on the battle report in his hand. Emperor Xia examined it repeatedly for a long time before finally handing it to the eunuch and saying, "Read it!"

The eunuch standing nearby tremblingly took the battle report and began to read it aloud.

"When I arrived at Yancheng with an army of 70,000 on December 7th, the war had already ended. The Northern King fought bravely, leading tens of thousands of soldiers from the Northern Commandery to kill 200,000 barbarians and capture more than 100,000 in one night. Barbarian corpses littered the Wanning River Valley, and the blood of the barbarians stained the entire Wanning River red. As far as I know, the barbarian King of the Wolf was shot to death by the Northern King with an arrow when he attacked Yancheng. Three days later, the Northern King will send someone to deliver the head of the King of the Wolf to the capital."

Lin Xiuming's battle report was very simple, just describing the results achieved in Beijun.

When the eunuch finished reading the battle report, the ministers in the court were instantly dumbfounded.

They had previously heard from the Red Silk messenger that the Northern King had led the Northern County soldiers to kill 200,000 barbarians, and they thought that the "Northern County soldiers" referred to the Northern King leading the imperial army plus the soldiers of the Northern County, which would add up to more than 100,000 people.

According to Lin Xiuming's battle report, the imperial army hadn't even reached Yancheng yet, and the Northern King had already led his small force of Northern County soldiers to defeat a barbarian army of 300,000?

In other words, the imperial army of 70,000 didn't even play a role?

They didn't even serve as a support role?

Are you kidding me!

How could the small number of soldiers in the North Commandery defeat a barbarian army of 300,000?

Did Emperor Taizu of Xia really crawl out of the imperial tomb?

For a moment, the ministers in the court were all dumbfounded.

If that good-for-nothing Northern King had that ability, he would probably be the Crown Prince by now. He wouldn't be in the Northern Prefecture at all, but in the imperial court, standing at the very front of all the officials.

A useless prince who could only hold the Northern Commandery was already doing quite well, and now they're saying he led the soldiers of the Northern Commandery to defeat a barbarian army of 300,000.

Moreover, the battle report stated that 200,000 barbarians were killed in one night, which was clearly an overwhelming victory!

The most ridiculous thing is that the battle report says the Northern King killed the Barbarian Wolf King with a single arrow!

Although people don't know much about the current Sirius King, the officials know that he is at least a Grandmaster.

How could the Northern King, a useless piece of trash who is weak and corrupted by wine and women, kill a grandmaster with a single arrow?

That's not how you brag!

Although the officials were stunned by the battle report, one person breathed a sigh of relief. Lin Gaoyuan thought to himself, "Fortunately, Lin Xiuming didn't take credit for himself, but instead pushed it all to the Northern King."

Even if Lin Xiuming lies about military intelligence, he won't be punished too severely, and they can blame it all on the Northern King.

After all, Lin Xiuming was to be under the command of the Northern King when he arrived in Beijun. When Lin Xiuming returned, he could easily say that the Northern King had forced him to send out his battle reports.

Although the royal family might make Lin Xiuming take the blame to save face, Lin Xiuming is, after all, a general and the son of the prime minister. For the sake of stability in the court, the Xia Emperor would likely give him a lighter punishment.

After the eunuch finished reading the battle report, the entire court remained silent. The officials looked at each other, none daring to stand up and speak.

They didn't know what to say at that moment.

No one believed such a false battle report, not even the Xia Emperor.

The Xia Emperor was probably furious at this moment. If they said anything now, they might offend him. They didn't want to be the first to do so.

At this moment, Emperor Xia stood on the dragon platform, coldly looking at the ministers below.

Seeing the ministers frozen in fear, Emperor Xia said coldly, "You're all usually arguing so fiercely in court, why are you all so mute today?"

After Emperor Xia finished speaking, no ministers stood up to speak, and the princes remained silent. Even the eighth prince, Lu Shuyun, who was at odds with Lu Chen, kept quiet and didn't say a word.

They all just kept their heads down and waited quietly.

They were waiting, and the Xia Emperor was also waiting.

They were waiting for the Xia Emperor to tell them how to handle the matter.

And what is the Xia Emperor waiting for?

He was waiting for another battle report.

The imperial army had military supervisors, who were usually trusted eunuchs of the Xia emperor.

In addition to the eunuchs, Emperor Xia also had shadow guards, and he was waiting for news from them.

Lin Xiuming's battle report was so alarming that even the Xia Emperor doubted its authenticity.

If Lin Xiuming had said that he had killed tens of thousands of barbarian soldiers and that the other barbarian soldiers had fled in disarray, he might have thought that Lin Xiuming was exaggerating his military achievements.

But if you say that 200,000 barbarians were killed, that's going to the other extreme, it's so fake that it can't possibly be fake.

Lin Xiuming wasn't writing a battle report; he was writing about the ten clans!

The atmosphere in the main hall was unusually somber; people could even hear their own heartbeats.

After an unknown amount of time, a sound finally broke the silence outside the main hall.

"Great Victory in North County!!!"

Upon hearing this voice, the ministers' hearts skipped a beat.

Generally speaking, the first battle report is sent by the general at the front, and the second is sent by the supervising officer. Although both the supervising officer and the general are at the front, they do not meet face to face.

The military supervisors represent the emperor's eyes. Although there are occasional instances of military supervisors colluding with generals, such situations are rare in the Great Xia Dynasty. This is because the eunuchs who serve as military supervisors are well aware of how powerful the shadow guards around the Xia emperor are, and most military supervisors do not dare to collude with the generals at the front lines.

The first battle report was a great victory, and the second battle report from the supervising officer was also a great victory???

Doesn't that mean that North County has truly achieved remarkable results?

How is that possible?

Could it be that Lin Xiuming's battle report is true?

No! Impossible! Absolutely impossible!!!

They'd rather believe that Emperor Taizu of Xia crawled out of the imperial tomb than believe that the Northern King had that ability!

Soon, the messenger in red silk, sent by the military supervisor, arrived in the main hall. He knelt on the ground and loudly proclaimed, "A great victory in the Northern Commandery! The Northern King led the Northern Commandery soldiers in a valiant battle, slaying countless enemies and upholding the might of our Great Xia Dynasty!!!"

The Red Silk messenger didn't directly state how many barbarian soldiers were killed, but based on the second Red Silk messenger's words, it's safe to assume that North County really did achieve a great victory!

The ministers were nearly speechless with astonishment. Had there really been a great victory in Beijun?

Have the barbarians really fallen this low?

However, the ministers quickly realized that killing a thousand barbarian soldiers could be considered a great victory, and killing ten thousand barbarian soldiers could also be considered a great victory!

The second messenger from the Red Silk didn't mention how many barbarian soldiers the Northern Commandery had killed, which doesn't prove that Lin Xiuming's battle report was true.

Perhaps Lin Xiuming really did lie about the number of barbarian soldiers who died!

Moreover, Lin Xiuming said that the war ended before they even reached Yancheng. With the Northern King's small number of soldiers, what kind of great victory could they possibly achieve? At most, they could kill a few thousand barbarian soldiers.

At this moment, the eunuch below the Dragon Platform quickly took the battle report from the second messenger in red silk, then walked to Emperor Xia's side and handed it to him.

Without hesitation, Emperor Xia picked up the battle report and began to read it carefully.

At this moment, the ministers all looked up at Emperor Xia's face, wanting to see just how angry he would be.

However, what the ministers had expected did not happen. As the Xia Emperor's eyes swept across the battle report, his brows furrowed more and more, and soon they were so furrowed that they formed the character "川" (river).

At this moment, the ministers did not see anger on the Xia Emperor's face; his expression was more one of surprise, confusion, and bewilderment.

This time, Emperor Xia did not have the eunuch read the battle report.

Unlike Lin Xiuming's concise battle report, the military supervisor accompanying the army described in detail what they had seen in his report.

The military supervisor said he saw barbarian corpses everywhere, which matched Lin Xiuming's account. The military supervisor also said in the battle report that he saw at least 50,000 heavy cavalry in the Northern Commandery.

Upon seeing this, Emperor Xia immediately sensed something was wrong.

Where did these 50,000 heavy cavalrymen come from?

Just then, a shadow guard dressed in black armor suddenly appeared below the Dragon Platform, and the ministers had no idea how he appeared.

Normally, the Shadow Guards would not appear in the court; they would only report intelligence to the Xia Emperor privately after the court session.

Unless this matter is extremely important!

At this moment, the shadow guard said, "Your Majesty, an urgent report from the Northern Commandery!"

The eunuch immediately took the intelligence from the shadow guard and handed it to Emperor Xia.

After reading the intelligence report from the Shadow Guards, Emperor Xia felt extremely uncomfortable.

From Lin Xiuming's battle report to the supervising officer's battle report, and finally to the Shadow Guard's intelligence, it has been shown that the Northern King does indeed possess a heavy cavalry force of nearly 50,000 men, and that the Northern King is no ordinary person.

As for the story of killing 200,000 barbarians and capturing 100,000 barbarian soldiers, that is certainly true.

Emperor Xia suddenly felt that his worldview had been severely impacted.

His least favored son has now become his biggest threat?

Seeing the Emperor's grim expression, Right Chancellor Zhao Wenhan finally couldn't stand it any longer. He tentatively asked, "Your Majesty, what did the second battle report say?"

Upon hearing Zhao Wenhan's voice, Emperor Xia finally snapped out of his daze. He composed himself, and his expression turned icy cold once more.

"After confirmation from multiple sources, it was found that the Northern King did indeed lead the Northern Army to kill 200,000 barbarians and capture more than 100,000 barbarian prisoners."

These words caused an uproar throughout the imperial court.

Good heavens!!! It's actually true!!!

How is this possible?!

That useless prince, the Northern King, actually managed to achieve the greatest military feat in the history of the Great Xia Dynasty!!!

Even the Xia emperor didn't achieve such a victory when he fought against the Chen state!

Moreover, the Northern King was facing an army of 300,000 barbarians, whose fighting strength was generally stronger than that of the Great Xia army!

With so few soldiers in the Northern Commandery, how did the Northern King manage to defeat the barbarians?!

Could it be that Emperor Taizu of Xia really crawled out of his imperial tomb and went to Beijun to help the Northern King defend Yancheng?

……

(End of this chapter)