At midnight, the sky was already white. Han Ling Emperor Liu Hong came out of the Yingchun Hall in the North Palace and moved his body a little in the morning light. Under the guidance of the small yellow gate, he walked to the Deyang Hall to prepare for the morning.
Last night, it was a topsy-turvy battle, with the six palace maids and concubines, and they were almost in a state of turmoil. Judging from the usual situation, Emperor Ling would definitely not go to court the next day, and would sleep until dusk.
.
However, at the third watch of the night, a palace guard sent a message about the military situation in northern Hebei Province overnight, saying that Zhang Jiao was dead and Jizhou was pacified.
This news made Liu Hong regain his prominence and he was not sleepy at all. After dawn, he ordered his concubines to dress him up early and decided to attend the morning court.
After passing through the compound road, I turned to a long corridor. Suddenly I glanced out of the corner of my eye and saw a little eunuch hiding on the rockery outside the corridor and sneaking around. With a thought, I sneaked around behind him and found that he was holding a book and reading selflessly.
With.
"What book is in your hand?"
The little eunuch heard a sound behind him, and with a serious look on his face, he turned around to see who had disturbed him, but what he saw was a black and red dragon robe.
"Your Majesty...Your Majesty...Hail, what did you not read?" The little eunuch quickly hid the book behind his back and said with some trepidation, but without any fear, because in the past the Ling Emperor was very fond of the eunuchs.
"What's hidden behind you? Why don't you bring it back!" Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty snatched the book behind him, snorted coldly, and started reading for himself.
On the front of the book, there were five big characters written in "The Heroes of the Late Qin Dynasty". Oops, I had never heard of this title, so I turned to read it.
"This paper is very beautiful, so smooth and white." Liu Hong looked at and touched it, holding the book in his hand as if he couldn't put it down.
After a quick glance, the book tells that when Liu Bang, the great ancestor of the Han Dynasty, was born, the son of a god was in his belly. He was different from ordinary people. He often did amazing things when he was a child. What surprised him the most was the description of his appearance, which made Emperor Ling even more unbelievable.
.
"Gaozu had a wonderful appearance and a good expression. When he was young, every time he went out, women would join hands with anyone he met."
"Is this describing Gaozu? I have seen the portrait of Gaozu, but it is slightly better than ordinary people." Emperor Ling whispered in a funny voice, but in his heart he greatly appreciated the author of this book. Who doesn't like others to praise their ancestors?
Smart and handsome.
He put the book into his sleeve and asked, "I have this book with me. Where did this book come from?"
Seeing that Emperor Ling had confiscated his books, the little eunuch cried sadly and said aggrievedly: "To answer your Majesty's question, I bought these from the market for one hundred cents per book. Many literati came there. I heard that it was that
From the minister Zhu Kui."
"Why do you charge only a hundred cents for such gorgeous paper? It's impossible. This paper and pen and Caihou paper are many times better. Why is it so cheap?" After hearing this, Emperor Ling couldn't believe it.
In the eyes of Ling Emperor Liu Hong, ordinary Caihou paper was worth as much as silk cloth, but the paper in front of him could not be compared with silk brocade. A hundred pence was not a loss-making business. He loved making money, so he decided to ask: "You
Go and send word that Zhu Kui has entered the palace, and I will see him when I go to court."
"My slave obeys the order!"
Seeing the eunuch trotting away in a puff of smoke, Liu Hong shook his sleeves and continued towards Deyang Palace.
As soon as we entered Deyang Hall, all the officials in the hall had been waiting for a long time.
When all the ministers saw Emperor Ling coming in, they stood up and stood together. A eunuch shouted in his unique sharp voice: "Your Majesty has arrived. Your Majesty will come to court early."
"Long live Long live Long live!"
"Your Majesty," Ling Emperor Liu Hong waved his hands with a smile. Today's morning meeting was about the issue of the aftermath of Taiping Road and the reward. He asked softly: "My dear sirs, I think I have already received your love from the emperor." Your Majesty, they reported."
On September 29th, Zhang Jiao led his troops out of Guangzong to break out of the encirclement. General You Zhonglang, under the advice of Chen Gong, ambushed Zuo nearby. Under a fire attack, the ant soldiers suffered heavy casualties. Zhang Jiao was hit by an arrow and fled back to the city. , he was killed by an arrow that night, and the next day the army launched a large-scale attack on the city. His commander-in-chief Pei Yuanshao surrendered...
When Guang Zong was determined, Zhu Jun sent General Sun Jian to attack Zhang Bao southward. It took him twelve days to defeat Qu Yang, and Zhang Bao died among the rebels.
The remaining scattered Taiping Dao congregants fled into the mountains and forests one after another. Unfortunately, they were often no more than a hundred or a thousand people, and they could not make a living.
General He Jin went out and reported: "Last night, I read the memorials of Huangfu Zhonglang and Zhu Zhonglang in detail. As mentioned above, a total of 87,423 surrendered prisoners were taken from Taiping Road in northern Hebei Province. How should these surrendered prisoners be dealt with? , please give your majesty a holy judgment." After saying that, he handed over the two memorials in his hand.
Liu Hong took the memorial from the eunuch, looked at it briefly, put it aside, and asked, "What do you think, General?"
He Jin also knew that Liu Hong had never had any opinions, so he expressed his suggestion: "I think that although there are many soldiers surrendered in northern Hebei, it can be roughly the same as in Nanyang County. The old and weak will be sent away, and the remaining young and strong will be sent to various counties to reclaim land. In order to stabilize one side, if there are any leftovers, they will be incorporated into the regular soldiers and serve the country."
Liu Hong obeyed and gently nodded: "What do you think?"
"The general's intention is very good, and I have no objections to it."
Emperor Ling had already made a decree on the issue of surrendering soldiers and exempting them from crime. There was no debate and it was quickly passed. Taiwei Yang Ci came forward and said: "Your Majesty, I have my own intention to report. The people of Jizhou, Nanyang, Yingchuan, Yanzhou and other places are deeply affected by it." The damage caused by the Yellow Turbans has led to the desolation of farming and the loss of the people's homes. Now the rebellion has begun. I sincerely request your Majesty to issue an order to exempt several places from taxation so that the people can live well."
Then he presented the strategies he had prepared over the past few days to improve people's livelihood.
Liu Hong took the upper and lower lines and read them one by one. When he saw that taxes and taxes were to be exempted, and then the court was required to spend money to help restore people's livelihood, he couldn't help but frown, disapproving in his heart, and habitually handed the paper aside. Zhang Rang, he understood that to refute the petition of the party members, eunuchs were needed, and to refute the requests of the eunuchs, the party members were needed.
"Father, what do you think of the Taiwei's request?"
After Zhang Rang read it, he threw the memorial to the ground and shouted: "Fang Miao, your majesty, what Yang Taiwei said is very inappropriate. The Yellow Turbans caused chaos. The people in several places did not want to resist the enemy, and some even rebelled against their superiors. Now that Zhang Jiao's army has been defeated, His Majesty has mercifully pardoned their sins. This is already a gift from heaven, so why should we go further and ask for benefits from the imperial court?"
Zhang Rang turned around and lowered his waist and said: "Your Majesty, please reject it!"
When Yang Ci saw Zhang Rang saying that he was Fang Miao, he couldn't help but became furious. He wanted to refute, but Emperor Ling waved his hand and settled the matter: "Let my father's words be justified. Since I have forgiven their sins, this is already a gift from heaven, Taiwei." Your Majesty, you no longer need to show mercy to those unruly people, stand down!"
"Your Majesty!" Yang Ci lowered his head and sighed, "The foundation of the country has been lost! It has been lost!"
"These Confucian ministers like to pretend to be worried about the country and the people in order to confuse the king." Emperor Ling thought in his heart, turned away and ignored it, and said: "My dear friends, there is a final conclusion on the issue of rewards for meritorious soldiers. ?”
General He Jin, Situ Yuan Wei, Si Nong Zhang Wen and others looked around, and finally He Jin said: "Time is too urgent, I and others have not yet reached a conclusion. Please allow your Majesty one day, and we will report it tomorrow."
Offer it up!"
"Okay!" Liu Hong knew that the reward matter affected the interests of many people and could not be decided overnight. He also gradually realized that the party members had been too close to He Jin recently, and he was unhappy and said: "
Zhang Rang!"
"My slave is here."
"After the court meeting is over, you will discuss the reward with the general and other beloved ministers."
"My slave, you obey!" Zhang Rang bowed deeply, stood up and looked at Yuan Wei and the others, his eyes full of provocation.
When Liu Hong saw that the meeting was almost finished, he touched the books on his waist, his thoughts had already left, and he signaled to the etiquette eunuch.
"Retreat!"
"Congratulations to Your Majesty!"
Early in the morning, Zhu Kuifang had just gotten up, and Xi Zhicai hurriedly sent the news of Guangzong's victory. Like Zhu Kui, Xi Zhicai was only a Langguan and had no position in the court meeting, but he was appointed as the minister, but last night it was
Xi Zhicai was on duty in the palace because he saw the good news.
The two of them were discussing some current affairs after the war, but they were informed by people in the palace that someone from the palace came through the small yellow gate and announced that Zhu Kui had entered the palace to be honored as a saint.
"I obey the decree!"
Speaking of which, Zhu Kui had not seen Emperor Ling for some time after he was appointed as the minister. He was enjoying his leisure time and receiving his white-collar salary.
"Eunuch, do you know why your Majesty has summoned me?"
While asking questions, Zhu Kui conveniently handed over money. To please the Ling Emperor, one must have ears and eyes, and these small yellow gates are the best eyes and ears, and bribery is the best shortcut to get through to the eunuchs.
The little Huangmen eunuch weighed the things in his hands, and said with a smile on his face: "Tell you, Mr. Zhu, your Majesty saw the books you are selling these days. The paper is very gorgeous. Your Majesty has taken it to heart, maybe to ask for it."