How could my childhood sweetheart be the current empress?

"Prime Minister, how do you think the crime of deceiving the emperor should be dealt with?"

"Your Majesty, I think we can drag him down and chop him off."

Xu Chengling thought for a while and said, nonsense, the crime of deceiving the emperor depends on His Majesty's mood. His Majesty can deal with it however he wants. The scope of its application is comparable to that of provoking trouble.

"Oh, then has the Prime Minister committed the crime of deceiving the emperor?"

"I don't know, but I am loyal to Your Majesty and have no intention of overstepping my authority."

Xu Chengling said this in a decisive tone, while trying hard to recall in his mind when he had committed the crime of deceiving the emperor, otherwise why would His Majesty suddenly ask this question?

As the saying goes, there is no smoke without fire. Since Your Majesty asked this question, he must be in trouble.

But Xu Chengling racked his brains and could not figure out when he had committed the crime of deceiving the emperor. Could it be that his wife secretly told her sister about it?

Thinking of this, Xu Chengling couldn't help but sweat on his back, thinking that he was doomed.

But after a long time, His Majesty did not seem to convict him, and His Majesty sitting above seemed to be laughing smugly?

"My dear, you have indeed never committed the crime of deceiving the emperor, but it is best not to have such thoughts."

Yan Jixue looked at Xu Chengling below, who was sweating profusely because of her scare, and she almost laughed out loud in her heart. You have come to this day, too.

"Your Majesty, if I have any second thoughts about you, I will be struck by lightning."

"boom!"

Just as Xu Chengling finished speaking, a loud noise suddenly sounded outside the hall. This thunder in broad daylight was simply a bit spooky.

For a moment, Xu Chengling, who had just sworn, looked a little embarrassed, and couldn't help but blurt out:

"coincide."

Xu Chengling was also very depressed. He clearly just wanted to be a loyal minister who had no second thoughts towards the emperor, so why was it so difficult?

But despite what he said, he actually felt very nervous.

"Prime Minister, don't take what happened just now to heart. I know what you mean. Please continue reading the memorial."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Xu Chengling thanked His Majesty, then opened the letter and read its contents.

At this time, most of the problems in the memorial had been solved by His Majesty, and the only one left was the problem of the rebels.

"Your Majesty, in recent years, rebel uprisings have occurred in various parts of Dayan. Especially during this period, the rebels' activities have been very rampant, and the slogans of "anti-Yan and restoration of Qin" have even reached the capital."

Xu Chengling read it out calmly, and when he read the four words "Anti-Yan and Restoration of Qin", the faces of the ministers below changed.

In Dayan, these four words are extremely treasonous and the person who just reads them out will be beheaded.

"I understand."

Yan Jixue nodded gently with a slight smile on her lips. She looked at the civil and military officials in front of her, and then set her gaze on Xu Chengling. She seemed to have been waiting for Xu Chengling to ask this question.

"It just so happens that I have something to discuss with you today."

"I would like to listen to your majesty's words."

Xu Chengling pretended to listen attentively, and the ministers below followed suit.

He did hear that His Majesty was preparing to take advantage of the situation.

"I have something to say, please listen carefully."

Yan Jixue stood up from the dragon throne, looked down at the ministers below, and said:

"Since I ascended the throne, I have vigorously developed reforms, centralized power, and protected the borders, accumulating strong national strength for Dayan."

Yan Jixue said this, her eyes swept over the powerful officials below, and then continued:

"However, there are still many voices in the court that oppose me. The country is still not at peace. There are internal and external troubles. Powerful officials form cliques, rebels are eyeing us covetously, vassal kings are separatist, border wars are constant, and surrounding countries have never stopped eyeing our territory."

"What does your Majesty mean?"

When hearing this, many ministers who had been in the court for many years had already understood the meaning of His Majesty's words. Here it comes, His Majesty has started again.

Especially Prince Jing, who was standing on the right side of the steps, his expression changed slightly. Could it be that His Majesty was going to start the annual ritual again?

Sure enough, the next moment, Yan Jixue slowly opened her mouth and said:

"Next year, I plan to expand Dayan's army by 100,000 to strengthen Dayan's military power."

When Prince Jing heard this, his heart skipped a beat. He was right in his guess. Yan Jixue wanted to expand his army.

At the beginning, when Yan Jixue inherited the throne from the previous emperor, she only inherited 50,000 Dayan troops. Obviously, this amount of troops was not enough to maintain her rule.

If the Eighth Wise King had not commanded 200,000 brave and battle-hardened border troops and had not expressed his willingness to do his utmost to support the late emperor's will, it would be unknown who would be sitting on the dragon throne now.

In order to show his loyalty to the new emperor and demonstrate that he would not rebel, the Eighth Wise King simply left the 200,000-strong army at the border and lived in the capital himself.

The attitude of the Eighth Wise King was very clear. He did not want to rebel, but if anyone wanted to start a rebellion in the capital, he should first ask whether his 200,000 border troops agreed.

Yan Jixue also knew that if she did not have military power in her hands, she would never be able to sit firmly on the throne.

Therefore, every year at the grand court meeting, Yan Jixue would announce the expansion of the army to the officials present, and the army would be expanded by 100,000 at a time.

Up to now, Yan Jixue has control over 250,000 troops. If the army is expanded again this year, the number will reach 350,000.

At this time, Prince Jing could no longer sit still. If His Majesty continued to expand the army, the 400,000 troops he was so proud of would become a joke.

"Your Majesty, I feel that..."

Before Prince Jing could get impatient, Xu Chengling beside him could no longer sit still.

He had only thought that the empress was a bit weak, but he didn't expect her to be so weak!

"Your Majesty, I think this military expansion is inappropriate!"

Chapter 106: Against Heaven and Earth, Against the Empress

"I don't think it's appropriate to expand the army!"

Xu Chengling took a step forward, bowed, and spoke in a deep voice to the empress sitting above.

Prince Jing, who was standing aside, looked at Xu Chengling opposite him and felt a little confused. What was going on? Shouldn't he be the one to be anxious now? Why was someone more anxious than him?

Moreover, he had already said what he wanted to say, which was that he disagreed with His Majesty's expansion of the army.

But isn’t Xu Chengling a civil servant? His Majesty’s military expansion has nothing to do with him. Why is he more anxious than me?

Although he didn't know what the situation was, it was a good thing for Prince Jing that someone stepped forward to stop His Majesty.

For the first time, Prince Jing felt the presence of his teammates and was deeply moved. He wanted to walk over immediately and grab the Prime Minister's arm and shout, "We are all good brothers, go and confront her!"

At this time, Yan Ji Xuexian, who was sitting behind the curtain, could not help but lightly grasp the dragon throne. Her expression changed slightly, and she asked in a cold voice:

"Prime Minister, what does this mean?"

But in Yan Jixue's heart, she was thinking, "You, Xu Chengling, not only do you confront me at home, but you also confront me in the court. Don't I have any face?"

Sooner or later she would drag this traitor away and behead him.

"Your Majesty, why is your majesty expanding the army? Can't your majesty see the current situation in Dayan?"

Xu Chengling bowed and replied slowly.

He always thought that the empress did a good job in all aspects, but sometimes she would become inexplicably incompetent, such as this time's military expansion, which was simply outrageous.

When asked what he meant, His Majesty asked, "Doesn't He know the current situation in Dayan? The national treasury is already in short supply, and the army needs to be expanded. Where would the money come from for her to spend like this?"

Expanding the army by 100,000 at one time is not a small number. Adding the 200,000 troops expanded before, my dear Guigui, we have to support 300,000 soldiers. Do you think you can afford it?

Xu Chengling actually understood the empress's eagerness to expand the army. After all, she had Prince Jing, who had 400,000 soldiers, by her side, and there were a bunch of vassal kings outside who were eyeing her throne. If she did not have enough military power, she was afraid that she would not be able to sit firmly on the throne.

Indeed, as an empress, it was no problem for her to worry about this. After all, Dayan was facing internal and external troubles, and she might face the threat to her throne at any time.

But have you ever thought about where the money will come from if the empress expands the army by 100,000 next year? Should Dayan's other national policies be implemented next year? Should people's livelihood issues be resolved? All these cost money.

If you want to expand the army to consolidate the imperial power, that's fine, but that also requires waiting for the domestic situation to stabilize and the treasury to be full so that it can afford so many soldiers. Then it will be up to the empress to decide how much she wants to expand.

Thinking of this, Xu Chengling just wanted to rush up the stairs and spank the empress hard to wake her up.

But what he thought in his heart did not mean that he dared to do it. Xu Chengling took a step forward and said to His Majesty under the gaze of all the civil and military officials:

"As the Prime Minister of a country, I should lead Dayan forward, share your worries and solve your problems, and think about the future of Dayan. If your Majesty wants to expand the army, where will the money come from? Not to mention that Dayan has been plagued by famines and rebellions in recent years, all walks of life are in need of reconstruction, and these are all areas that need to use the national treasury."

Xu Chengling couldn't help but pause, and then continued:

"In recent years, under your majesty's vigorous reforms, Dayan's treasury has gradually become sufficient, but there are many places where money will be needed next year. If your majesty expands the army by 100,000, Dayan will lose 100,000 young laborers, and at the same time have to provide food for 100,000 people. Can the treasury support it? Can major domestic projects continue to move forward next year? And this expenditure will eventually be evenly distributed to every citizen of Dayan."

Having said this, Xu Chengling could not help but look up at His Majesty and said in a resounding voice:

"Your Majesty, have you ever thought about where these rebels came from? They were forced out by you, Your Majesty."

"Wow!"

As soon as Xu Chengling finished speaking, there was an uproar in the court. They did not expect that the Prime Minister would dare to say such a thing and directly confront the empress.

Even Prince Jing standing by almost said "Wow!" Is this the head of the civil servants? He is indeed different from a reckless man like him. He has thought of so many things and even linked the military expansion with the rebels.

If it were him, he would definitely just want to stop His Majesty from expanding the army and would not think about this level at all.

I’m afraid that His Majesty’s expression is not very good now, and he may even want to drag the Prime Minister away and chop him off.

Rather than expanding the size of the army and strengthening military strength, Xu Chengling is more concerned about the overall future of Dayan. If he does what the empress does, there will probably be more and more rebels.

Otherwise, where do you think so many rebels came from? It’s not unfair to say that the empress is a loser.

"Haha, I think what the Prime Minister said is absolutely right. Your Majesty, please think twice about expanding the army."

At this time, Prince Jing also stood up, saluted to His Majesty and said.

A group of young officials below were watching this scene and were dumbfounded. Is this the first rank? He even dared to confront His Majesty directly. This was too cruel.

As for those old ministers, they didn't dare to speak. The prime minister was behaving normally this time. Whenever His Majesty made any suggestions, the prime minister would retort. The relationship between the monarch and his ministers was as tense as fire and water.

The previous two times, Your Majesty implemented the military expansion policy with tough means, which naturally caused dissatisfaction among many ministers in the court, but they did not dare to say anything.

After all, not everyone is like the Prime Minister, who dares to confront His Majesty directly.

At this moment, Ji Xue, who was sitting above, couldn't help but hold the armrests of the dragon throne tightly and bit her lower lip lightly. She looked like she wished she could swallow Xu Chengling directly.

From the other person's perspective, there seems to be nothing wrong with thinking this way.

But from her point of view, if she didn't expand her army, her imperial power would be threatened at all times.

Even though she knew that military expansion would bring a series of problems, Yan Jixue had no choice but to expand it. As long as she kept the throne, she could implement other policies.

At this time, Xu Chengling looked up at His Majesty, bowed and said:

"Your Majesty, what do you think?"

"Ah, it is my will..."

Yan Jixue was a little at a loss for a moment when he asked her this suddenly. This reminded her of the time when she was in the Prime Minister's Mansion, when she was also speechless because of him.

This scene seemed so similar, except that it was changed from the Prime Minister's Mansion to the imperial court.

For some reason, the somewhat bewildered look of His Majesty sitting above made Xu Chengling think of his wife, who was exactly the same.

Are they real sisters? Even their reactions are exactly the same.

"Indeed, my dear minister, what you said is absolutely right. How about I not increase the army by 100,000 this year but change it to 50,000?"

Yan Jixue's tone seemed more compromising than before, but she almost spoke with gritted teeth when she said this.

The old ministers below were stunned. It was the first time they saw His Majesty, who had a tough attitude, compromise and make concessions. This was simply the sun rising in the west.

They thought that since His Majesty had made concessions, the matter should be finalized.

But Xu Chengling still shook his head and said with a very firm attitude:

"No, Your Majesty."

"Thirty thousand then?"

Yan Jixue's voice was even softer than before as she asked tentatively.

"Neither."

"Twenty...twenty thousand?"

"No."