Chapter 170: Conferred: Divine General of the Country
The sky is a little overcast, and the light shines into the hall from the wooden window lattice.
Huo Qubing took the file and opened it to check.
"In such a matter, the other party will definitely be careful to avoid leaving any clues. Is Xiu Yi Ling's grasp of evidence or evidence?"
"The method he used may be very secretive, but as long as it is passed back and forth, it will inevitably pass through human hands and will always leave traces. My men under Xiu Yi have been exploring the secrets of all parties for many years. Unless there is no target, how can they not find clues." Ru Bohu put down the tea cup in his hand, with a sinister look on his long and narrow face:
"Princess Longli hates you, maybe the reason is very simple.
But Longlihou... that’s not necessarily the case."
What he showed to Huo Qubing was evidence that Long Luhou and his wife were acting secretly.
"What they did wrong was not that they targeted you, but that they shouldn't have done this when you were leading the troops on an expedition.
If we are defeated, our Han border will be endangered, and Your Majesty will never tolerate this kind of thing."
Ru Bohu glanced at Huo Qubing: "But the two of us set up a trap to expose them. The other party is a clan member after all. Are you sure you want to do this?"
That night before Huo Qubing left for the expedition, he sent word to the military camp, and then three thousand elite soldiers left the camp. The commotion was so great that no one who was even remotely aware of it could not have known about it.
Therefore, the other party became bolder because there were many people who knew about it and the scope was too wide, so they did not worry about subsequent investigations.
Little did they know that Huo Qubing and Ru Bohu had set up their nets early, and all the people embroidering clothes were on the move, waiting to catch the thief.
Sure enough, you can get it right at first glance.
Huo Qubing took some time to rest and said: "If there is no problem with them, we can't catch them even if we want to.
Since there are problems, you can't blame us, just do things that are convenient and sincere. Isn't the King of Huainan also a clan relative?"
"Now that you've thought about it, take a look at this."
The embroidered clothes commander was sure that Huo Qubing wanted to bring down the Longli family, so he took out another dossier.
There are still hidden goods... Huo Qubing reached out and took it.
"Do you still remember that when we first looked for that secret force, we felt that the other party might have penetrated very deeply into Chang'an, and everything was questionable."
Ru Bohu said: "And some people related to the clan are closest to the core of my Han Dynasty and are most likely to be targeted.
During the reign of the late Emperor, Princess Guantao once had great influence among her relatives, and the Longli branch she left behind has attracted my attention since then."
"So you have dug out a lot of things behind Longlihou Chen Xiu's secrets... No wonder he was able to spread the news in time."
Ru Bohu: "Every clan bloodline is more or less protected by the national destiny of my great Han Dynasty. It should be difficult to penetrate and influence and control them. But if the people around them want to take action, there will be too many opportunities and they will be difficult to guard against."
Huo Qubing pondered deeply and suddenly said, "Has the Xiuyi Order secretly paid attention to Princess Pingyang?"
Princess Pingyang... Ru Bohu laughed: "You mean the princess's husband, Ruyinhou Xiahoupo?
No problem has been found with him so far.
The secret forces cannot influence and control everyone."
Huo Qubing hummed.
Ru Bohu stood up and said: "You want to pacify Wuhuan. I have sorted out the relevant information, including the distribution of Wuhuan, Xianbei, Fuyu, Sushen and other eastern grassland tribes, as well as information about the leaders of various tribes and important figures. I will tell you later
Let Song Ran give it to you."
After Ru Bohu left, it was already afternoon.
Huo Qubing was planning to visit the military camp on the outskirts of the city.
At this time, Dong Zhongshu came in from the outside under the leadership of the imperial army: "Your Majesty summoned me to come to see you, and you must have someone come to inform Huo Hou. Shall we go together?"
Dong Zhongshu entered the palace and deliberately went around to invite Huo Qubing to come with him. Apparently he had something to say.
Huo Qubing agreed and walked with him to the emperor's study.
"I am currently in charge of the Imperial College, and I have advised Your Majesty to include military science in the Six Classics of the Imperial College.
If there is someone to recommend to the Marquis of Huo, he can come to our Imperial College to teach, teach military science, and select military strategists and generals for our great Han Dynasty."
This is Master Dong’s further statement on the harmony of civil and military affairs.
Huo Qubing smiled and the two of them came to the emperor's study and saw Gongsun Hong, Li Cai, Taichang Zhouping and others also there.
There is also a slumped-looking censor.
Just now, the emperor issued an edict to remove Fan from his position as censor, and Li Cai took over.
In history, after Li Cai took over as censor, he officially took over the seal from Gongsun Hong only a little over ten months later.
The position of censor vacated by Li Cai after he became prime minister was taken over by Zhang Tang, a Legalist tycoon who was so famous in later generations that he could even judge a mouse.
This ruthless official with a "remarkable reputation" throughout history is really a ruthless person.
The position of censor of the Western Han Dynasty will be in his hands and will be pushed to the extreme. Anyone who violates the law will be beheaded.
The methods he used in prison management were severe and harsh, and he also assisted the emperor in unifying the currency, implementing the salt and iron official system, calculating minions and suing minions, attacking wealthy businessmen, and punishing the powerful and annexing families.
After he comes to power, all the clans in the Western Han Dynasty will suffer a great disaster, and more than half of them will be overthrown to equalize property.
When Zhang Tang was in the position of censor, his authority even surpassed that of Prime Minister Li Cai, which shows his ability.
Legalism will also rise to prominence because of him.
The deposed fan still has some abilities, but he is better at governing the local area.
At that time, he was valued by the emperor because he submitted a letter to divert water from the Yellow River for irrigation and increase production.
Now that he has stepped down from the position of censor, he will still return to his hometown to work in his old profession and become a prefect.
Huo Qubing walked into the study and glanced at Fan Xi and Zhang Tang, who was serving as Tingwei at the moment and sitting at the head of Fan Xi with a face as cold as ice.
There is a saying that under Emperor Liu Che, there were smooth civil servants and iron-clad generals.
During Liu Che's more than fifty years as emperor, there were more than ten changes in the prime minister alone, not to mention other civil servants. It is rare to see someone who can stay in the same position for three or four years.
There are only a few generals who never change. Occasionally, those who fall down can still come back.
"I'm calling you all today to discuss the use of troops on the northeastern border."
Liu Che went straight to the topic and glanced at the ministers with a very oppressive gaze:
"General Wei and Lang Zhongling both proposed to expand the border, include Wuhuan, Fuyu and other places into the borders of our Han Dynasty, and push the national border northward to form a new peripheral depth."
Moving the country's borders northward and expanding the Han territory was what many emperors longed for.
But it is very difficult to implement. The reason is that the current territory of the Han Dynasty continues to the north, and the area is open and flat grassland. If you want to maintain such a terrain, it will be a huge burden on the national strength.
However, now that the military equipment of the Han Dynasty is at its peak, it is imperative to expand the country's borders.
"When will the champion prepare to mobilize his troops?"
"Winter time!" Huo Qubing said calmly.
The ministers looked at each other and could hardly help but voice their objections.
However, after looking at Li Cai, Dong Zhongshu, and the old Prime Minister Gongsun Hong, all three of them were sitting firmly, and the others suppressed their doubts.
"Can the Champion Marquis tell you the reasons for using troops in winter? It should be noted that winter is not conducive to marching. There is no precedent for marching north in winter in ancient times." Zhou Ping said.
The grasslands are cold in winter, and marching is not only expensive, but even soldiers and horses may freeze to death if they are not careful, and they will collapse without fighting.
This is common sense, but not absolute.
Later Tang general Li Jing once led his army to attack the Eastern Turks in the cold winter.
Things like fighting depend on talent.
Not only do some generals use their troops in harsh environments in winter, but also in spring and summer. Once they enter areas such as grasslands and deserts that lack reference points, they do not need to attack the enemy, but they will get lost.
It was Li Jing who, under the harsh conditions of the cold winter, was able to send thousands of soldiers deep into the grasslands and defeat the East Turks, which were once extremely powerful at the time.
Huo Qubing didn’t explain much.
He has already discussed the strategy of sending troops with the emperor and his uncle. The results will be more convincing than any argument.
"The news from Xiguan said that the Qiang people are gathering a large number of tribes and gathering heavy troops to defeat our Han army.
Moreover, the Huns also intend to help the Qiang, Di and other tribes to disrupt the Western Front of our Han Dynasty. Does Huo Hou have any plans for Xiguan?" Zhou Ping looked at Huo Qubing eagerly.
After a series of battles were fought, most of the courtiers in the court increasingly recognized Huo Qubing's ability to command troops.
However, the western front was closer to Chang'an. Yao Zhao led his troops to fight for many days, but only achieved two victories and failed to completely defeat the gathered tribesmen of the Western Qiang.
"I have read the battle report sent back from Xiguan, and there is nothing wrong with Yao Zhao's strategy.
Judging from the battle losses between the enemy and ourselves, there will be no problem for the Han army on the western front to suppress the Xiqiang." Huo Qubing briefly expressed his opinion.
After the discussion in the study room, he left the palace and went to the school grounds on the outskirts of the city.
………
Wei Shao'er was in a good mood during this period. His son returned safely from the war. After his bride Liu Qing came over, she walked around more with her and often had things sent to her.
Wei Shaoer has found some pride in being a mother-in-law, and has been feeling happy for days.
In the afternoon of that day, she took a carriage into Weiyang Palace to visit her sister Wei Zifu.
When she came out of the palace, she heard a voice from outside the carriage: "It's Mr. Wei inside the carriage."
Young Master Wei opened the curtain and saw another chariot passing by on the palace road.
Just as she opened the car curtain, a graceful and bright face, nearly forty years old, appeared from the car, looking at Wei Shao'er with a sarcastic look.
"Your Highness the Princess."
Wei Shaoer was surprised.
The one whose face is revealed in the carriage opposite is Princess Longli.
She went to Changle Palace, and Wei Shaoer came out of Wuyang Palace. The two cars happened to meet on the royal road between the two palaces.
Young Master Wei has a fear of his previous master, Princess Pingyang, and even Princess Longlu, who has accumulated power over the years.
She hurriedly got out of the car and saluted Princess Longli: "I have met Her Royal Highness."
Princess Longlu looked at Young Master Wei and thought it was a coincidence that we happened to meet him. She sneered: "When you met me in the past, you had to kneel down to speak. But in the past few years, your status has changed, and you actually met me on an equal footing." But have you forgotten your origin?"
My sister is a queen, my brother is a general, my son is a lieutenant, and my son’s wife is also a princess. I will not kneel to you... Wei Shaoer secretly muttered in his heart.
She is soft-tempered and has no independent opinions. She doesn't dare to confront Princess Longli, but with so many people behind her to support her, she is not that timid if you ask her to surrender and kneel down.
Thinking of his son, younger brothers and sisters, Wei Shaoer emboldened himself and straightened his back:
"Princess, if nothing happens, I'll go." Turn around and prepare to leave.
Princess Longlu scolded: "If you dare to leave, I will have someone slap your mouth in pieces..."
At this moment, Princess Longlu felt something and heard the emperor's deep voice from across the air: "Longlu, come to me!"
A quarter of an hour later, when Princess Longli walked into the emperor's study, her expression remained as usual.
But when she entered the study and saw the emperor sweeping over him with an unprecedented cold gaze, she felt something was wrong and her heart sank slightly.
"I have given an order to cut down the Marquis of Longlu and enfeoff the country, and punish Chen Xi for leaking information about the march and collaborating with the enemy. According to the law, he will be beheaded!"
The color on Princess Longlu's face instantly faded: "Are you going to kill me for an outsider?"