"Two hundred households."
Li Jing responded, looking a little embarrassed.
"What? Medicine Master, your settlement is only 200 households. This is too little!"
Yuchigong shouted strangely,
"I have over a thousand households with food! It's five or six times as much as you!"
Li Jing: "..."
"Okay Jingde, stop yelling."
Xu Fenglei glared at Yuchi Gong, and then said,
"The difference between being ennobled or not is not that big. In my opinion, all princes and princes are the same. This food is the real reward."
"During the Northern Expedition, Medicine Master, you have made great contributions. I will definitely report to Your Majesty and grant you a land grant."
Li Jing looked solemn.
"Thank you, Chief Manager, for your support!"
He thanked him with his hands.
When Yuchi Gong heard this, he couldn't help laughing.
"For meritorious deeds, we have annihilated the Turks and captured Jieli Khan alive, all merits!"
He said quite proudly,
"I wonder how your majesty will reward us? Especially the chief manager, you have made an extraordinary contribution this time! When we return to Chang'an, your majesty will definitely reward you heavily!"
"Tsk tsk... I don't know how your majesty will reward me. I'm drooling just thinking about it..."
Xu Fenglei waved his hand.
"This is not a promotion, you deserve it."
He ignored Yu Chigong's words, just drove his horse forward slowly, and said calmly,
“In the end, a low starting point is not necessarily a bad thing.”
"Pharmacist, you are still a county prince now, which means you still have a lot of battles to fight in the future, and an old helper like Yu Chigong has become a prince long ago."
"If I hadn't brought him here forcibly, he would still be working as an apartment in Chang'an right now! Believe it or not, he won't have a fight to fight in the next ten years or even in his lifetime."
Li Jing looked stern, as if he had some realization.
Yuchi Gong suddenly became anxious.
"No! Chief...what do you mean by this?"
He continued,
"What do you mean I have no war to fight in this life? You have to make it clear, this bitch is very important to me!"
As a professional soldier, if there is no war, then he will be retired and no one will want him.
This is definitely a heavy blow to Yu Chigong!
"Can't you understand this?"
Xu Fenglei hummed softly,
"You are now the Duke of the country, and you have thousands of households in the settlement. Tell me, if the emperor wants to use you to fight again, and you come back victorious, why should he ask him to grant you a title?"
"Should I make you a king? Or should I give you more towns? You have to know that the entire Tang Dynasty only had more than two million households!"
"One less household means less tax revenue. This is not only taking meat from the emperor, but also taking meat from the imperial government's finances to feed you! Do you think His Majesty will be happy with it?"
Yuchi Gong: "..."
"Since it can't be sealed, let's just don't use it."
Xu Fenglei smiled and said,
"After all, our Tang Dynasty is full of talents, and there are a lot of young generals waiting for His Majesty to use them."
"They are young and energetic, and the most important thing is that they are still young and white. If you throw away three melons and two dates, you can make them grateful."
"It's not like us old-timers. It's too expensive!"
Yuchi Gong rubbed his face in annoyance.
"Here, what should I do..."
He was in a bad mood after Xu Fenglei's words.
Could this battle... be the end of his military career?
"What should I do? I can only go home and hold the baby!"
Xu Fenglei waved his riding crop and joked,
"Your journey has come to an end. If you want to preserve the glory and wealth of your Yuchi family, the only way to go is to raise children!"
"Only if your family, Yuchi Baolin, can live up to your expectations and be able to take over your duties and establish a foothold in the military camp, your family will always be rich and prosperous! Otherwise, when you are gone, within three generations, your Yuchi family will fall behind."
Yuchi Gong's eyes widened and he clenched his hands.
"Can not be done……"
He gritted his teeth and said in distress,
"My Pauline...he is not a piece of rough jade, he cannot become a talent!"
Yu Chigong still has a relatively clear understanding of his son.
If it weren't for Fang Yiai's presence, his Pauline would be the last among the noble children!
Do you expect him to succeed and stand out?
think too much!
"Now that you know it, why not hurry up and give birth to a few more!"
Xu Fenglei laughed and said,
"Remember to ask me to read your horoscope first when you are born. I will know at a glance whether you will be a military general or a civil servant."
"Go back and think about it carefully!"
"Hahaha... drive!"
After saying that, he raised his whip and galloped towards Chang'an City.
Only Yuchi Gong stayed where he was, still thinking hard.
"The words of the Chief Manager are really good words of wisdom."
Li Ji patted Yuchi Gong's shoulder and pretended to be serious,
"General Yuchi, give birth to a few more. It's like cutting jade. Maybe you can cut out a piece of jade."
"come on."
When Yuchi Gong was spoken to by the two of them, thoughts began to arise in his heart.
"Have a few more babies..."
He clapped his hands suddenly and said with determination,
"Go back and ask Divine Doctor Sun to prescribe some aphrodisiac medicine. From now on, if you have nothing to do, you will just have a baby..."
"Yes, give birth to him! I don't believe there is no smart one!"
puff.
Li Ji was a little nervous at the side and almost laughed out loud.
Give birth to him in a camp?
Now Yuchi is really giving birth to a baby, the more the merrier!
…
It was noon that day.
The triumphant army headed south, and finally arrived at the Weishui River under the worship of the people along the way.
Opposite is the magnificent and prosperous Chang'an City!
Gudong, Gudong.
The war horse put its head into the Weishui River, took a sip of the sweet hometown water, chewed two mouthfuls of unknown water plants, and snorted happily.
Xu Fenglei pulled the reins and looked at the other side with a shocked expression.
I saw countless people crowded under the city gate! There are craftsmen, farmers, merchants and dancers, all kinds of people gather here, forming a perimeter!
In the row ahead, there are officials wearing various official uniforms. They all look respectful and stand with their hands down.
Further forward, there are the carriages of the royal family and nobles. The carriage is parked on the road, and the princes and princesses in the carriage all get out of the car to greet them.
And at the very front—is the emperor’s canopy-covered dragon chariot!
Xu Fenglei raised his eyes and clearly saw Li Shimin wearing a dragon robe, standing straight opposite him!
Beside him, Prince Li Chengqian stood beside him.
When the two of them saw Xu Fenglei looking over, they both smiled in return, especially Li Chengqian, who smiled brightly and even waved towards him.
Xu Fenglei: "!!!"
"Good boy! Is this... really fake?"
Yuchi Gong's neck shrank back and he couldn't help but said,
"Your Majesty, he...he came to greet us in person?"
"This... is too exaggerated! There haven't been many such battles in thousands of years, right?!"
To be honest, he was a little timid and didn't dare to show his swagger anymore.
Before returning to Chang'an, he thought that the welcoming ceremony would be grand, but he never expected that the emperor would lead the prince, civil and military officials, and the people of Chang'an, just waiting!
Wait until they come back!
At this moment, Yuchi Gong really realized what it means to be "flattered"!
Not only him, but all the generals behind him held their breath.
They also truly experienced it...
Now, everyone turned their attention to Xu Fenglei, waiting for his instructions.
At this moment, Xu Fenglei also scratched his head.
This battle...
Maybe it's a bit too much...
"Father, master is here, he is back!"
Li Chengqian tugged on Li Shimin's sleeves and said excitedly.
Li Shimin nodded slightly, smiled and clapped his hands:
"Let's play music!"
With jingling sounds, the palace musicians beside them started playing their instruments and played the "Grand Formation Music" in celebration.
In an instant, the warm atmosphere rose.
"Father, can my child go and greet the master?"
Li Chengqian looked up at his father, looking eager to try.
"Go!"
Li Shimin waved his hand without hesitation.
Li Chengqian swish, trotted all the way to the Weishui Bridge, waved to Xu Fenglei on the other side and shouted:
"Master, Master!"
"The child is here to pick you up!"
The minds of all the generals were severely shaken——
The prince personally welcomed him, and the already extremely grand courtesy was taken to the next level!
"Such an honor has never been seen before..."
Li Ji murmured,
"Today's scene is destined to be recorded by historians and go down in history."
"Xu Fenglei's name will be remembered forever!"
There was a bit of envy in his eyes.
Any military commander would dream of such a day, right?
Just when the generals were shocked, there was a "bang" in front of them, and the general manager Xu Fenglei had already dismounted and walked quickly towards the Weishui Bridge.
"Get off your horse!"
Li Jing gave an order.
All the victorious soldiers dismounted and stood in front of their horses, watching all this.
On the Weishui Bridge, the master and the apprentice met.
"Master!"
Li Chengqian threw himself into Xu Fenglei's arms and said excitedly,
"Turkish is not fun!"
"Ouch... you're getting heavier again, did you eat something secretly?" Xu Fenglei picked him up with difficulty, and said with a helpless smile, "What's fun or not? I'm going to fight as a teacher, not for fun! "
"but--"
He paused for a moment and smiled:
"Now the Turkic grassland has become the back garden of our Tang Dynasty. If there is a chance in the future, I will take you to play!"
“It is indeed vast and can satisfy all your imagination of the prairie!”
Li Chengqian: "!!!"
"Okay!" he responded loudly.
Going to the grassland has been his lifelong dream.
"Let's go see your father."
Xu Fenglei touched his head, walked slowly down the Weishui Bridge, and walked directly towards Li Shimin.
Li Shimin just stood there, surrounded by "Grand Formation Music", seeing Xu Fenglei leading Li Chengqian closer step by step, the smile on his face became brighter.
"See Your Majesty!"
Xu Fenglei bent down, raised his hands in an extremely standard salute, and said seriously.
The more courteous the emperor is, the less he can be arrogant. He must not be flawed in the slightest, let alone arrogant.
Otherwise, it may become a thorn in the side between the monarch and his ministers in the future.
Therefore, on weekdays, he pretends to be alright when he salutes casually, but today he must act honestly and standardly.
"My dear, please get up!"
Li Shimin stepped forward and helped him up. After looking at him carefully for a few times, he clicked his tongue and said,
"In less than half a year, please listen, the conditions in the Turks are difficult, and you have been exposed to wind, rain, and dew, and you have lost a lot of weight!"
Xu Fenglei smiled.
"Your Majesty is joking. I'm a well-to-do in Turks. I eat roasted whole lamb and roasted whole beef every day. I'm thankful that I'm not fat. How can I still lose weight?"
He smiled and responded,
"His Majesty has lost a lot of weight... Your Majesty must have been worrying about government affairs and stayed up late while I was away, right?"
"You have to be careful..."
When the two met, they first exchanged greetings.
But Li Shimin found this kind of greeting quite useful.
"Okay, okay, I have indeed indulged a little while you were away. I can't do it without your supervision."
He took Xu Fenglei's hand and said,
"Now that you are back, continue to supervise me..."
"Come, let me take a good look at you and my great hero!"
Li Shimin's eyes fell on Xu Fenglei's face, and he couldn't hide the joy and admiration he felt.
Xu Fenglei held Li Shimin's hand, felt his gaze, took a deep breath, and said in a deep voice,
"Your Majesty... I am fortunate to have lived up to my command! I destroyed the Turks and captured Jieli Khan alive!"
"Do you want to take a look at Jieli Khan? I will take him right now..."
He was about to say something, but Li Shimin waved his hand.
"It's not urgent, that's not urgent."
Li Er pointed forward and said with a smile,
"Now, I want to give you a surprise first!"
"Look!"
Xu Fenglei raised his eyes slightly. Not far from him, there stood a huge monument wrapped in red cloth.
Just when Li Shimin pointed his finger, the red cloth was lifted up.
Wow!
I saw that the towering giant monument was wide and thick, and its sharp points seemed to be soaring into the sky!
And on the huge monument, eight characters were engraved with flying dragons and phoenixes——
A hero of the country and a pillar of the country!
"The pillar of the country! This is my evaluation of you! This is also my expectation for you!"
Li Shimin patted Xu Fenglei's shoulder and praised,
"Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, there has never been a person who can be called the pillar of the country and the minister of the country. You, Xu Fenglei, are the first!"
"And, it's the most important one!"
"What is a country? What is a pillar? As long as you are here, the seas and rivers will be clear, and the world will be at peace! The Tang Dynasty has such a prosperous age, and you have a share of contribution, which is lingering and indelible!"
Xu Fenglei was shocked.
"Your Majesty said something stern, indeed..."
He hurriedly declined and said,
"I just did what I should do and did some small things... I really can't live up to these four big words."
"These four words are as heavy as a thousand stones!"
Although Xu Fenglei was mentally prepared, when he saw the towering monument and the eight characters "Meritor of the State and Pillar of the Country", he was already shocked.
With such an honor, how could he be so virtuous and capable?
"No, you deserve it!"
Li Shimin looked serious, clapped his hands and said,
"I have seen your contribution over the years and will keep it in my heart."
"It doesn't matter if you forget. I have arranged for brothers Yan Lide and Yan Liben to paint all your achievements -"
"Come on! Present the painting for Xu Aiqing to appreciate!"
(End of chapter)
