I know that after today, not to mention the ministers of the imperial court, there are other clans scattered all over the country. Even his own brothers would bring him a lot of trouble. If he could sincerely convince himself that this eldest sister would support him, then he might face much less trouble from his brothers in the future. Even if he could convince her to take a neutral stance, it would be a good thing for him.
Thinking of this, Huang Qiong pondered for a moment and then said: "Sister, civil servants may not necessarily be incompetent in military affairs. Throughout the dynasties, there have been many officials who can lead armies in battle and dismount their horses. We will not talk about the sages of the past dynasties today. , it is Yu Mingyuan who is the commander of the Xiaoqi Battalion led by my younger brother during his expedition to Zhengzhou, and he is a civil servant."
"When it comes to fighting in battle, these civilian officials are naturally not as good as pure military generals. But commanding an army requires centering, coordination, and coordination. At this point, if civilian officials are willing to work hard to learn, they may not be really any worse than military generals. . Moreover, the Northern Liao people have always been of nomadic origin, and they are mainly tribes. Their distinction between civil and military officials is far less clear-cut than that of the Han people in the Central Plains."
"Especially among the Northern Liao, the Khitans, who are the main body and always control the military power, there is not much difference between civil and military officials. Those civil servants in the Northern Liao are not powerless scholars. The nomadic people are born with Tradition is destined to enable them to control horses, draw hard bows and shoot arrows. This is determined by the nature of the grassland people."
"In the grasslands where the strong eat the weak, if you don't know how to ride a horse and shoot arrows, if you can't drive away hungry wolves and robbers who peek at your property, and if you can't protect your own cattle and horses, then you have no choice but to wait for death. The best outcome is just to become a slave of another tribe. .Although the Northern Liao Dynasty has been deeply Hanized at present, everyone from the emperor to the Khitan ministers retains their Khitan traditions."
"Otherwise, the Northern Liao emperor would not have created a Nabo bowl. This kind of maintenance of the Khitan tradition is similar to living by water and grass. It uses a felt cart as a camp, a stronghold as a palace, noble relatives as guards, and hundreds of officials take turns to serve as guards. Suzui’s way of governing the country in the palace is not to forget the roots. Sister, I don’t know something. The so-called Nabo means hunting and fishing. To put it bluntly, it is fishing and hunting. "
"According to the Liao system, except for the prime minister who stayed in the capital, all other Khitan officials, big and small, including palace maids and concubines, had to accompany Nabo. The camp where Nabo was located was where the emperor of the Northern Liao Dynasty actually handled government affairs. When the emperor hunted, Officials also have to accompany him and hunt with him. If you don't know how to ride a horse, shoot arrows, or form an army, how can you keep up with the emperor?"
"Besides, there is one thing. My eldest sister has not seen the secret secrets I made for Chao Xi, so she may not know about it. This Liang King once led three thousand Pishi troops to defeat more than ten thousand Jurchens when he was sixteen years old. . Since he was eighteen years old, he has led an army to suppress the Bohai rebellion and defeated tens of thousands of Goryeo troops. Not only is he not ignorant of military affairs, he can even be said to have an extremely good understanding of military affairs."
"How could a person who, at such a young age, have led the army in many battles and even achieved great victories, do such a ridiculous thing while taking on such an important responsibility? Moreover, this person is the emperor's brother-in-law of the Northern Liao Dynasty. Another dignified prince, how can he be so short of women around him? Sister, you must know that the royal family and nobles of Bei Liao all have their own heads in the military state."
"The so-called Touxiajunzhou means that the princes and nobles of Northern Liao went out with the army, and the captives they plundered belonged to these princes and nobles. Together with their original private slaves, they built a city owned by the princes and nobles on the land. It is a big city. There are even more than 10,000 households in the state, and there are more than 1,000 households in the small ones. All the commercial taxes in the military states under these heads belong to the original owner, and even the governor of the state is nominated by the original owner."
"This person has power, money, and is able to lead an army to fight. Why would he do such a ridiculous thing? Therefore, I conclude that this person's behavior along the way definitely has ulterior motives or is hiding something. Moreover, Although Beiliao took the initiative to send envoys to repair it, they should abide by the etiquette of our court. Instead of arriving in the capital, not even seeing the king, and rushing into the brothels and alleys."
"What's more, the Northern Liao Dynasty is becoming more and more sinicized, and the Northern Liao Emperor is very familiar with poetry and songs. The empress dowager Xiao, who is extremely capable and broad-minded, can teach such a literary and talented emperor, how can she indulge another son in debauchery? So, I thought that if the man who spends all day holding flowers and hanging willows is really the King of Liang, then he must be hiding some secrets."
"It is even very possible that he is meeting some mysterious figures in secret. Because he knows that with his identity and status, he will be closely monitored once he enters our court. No matter who he wants to meet, he will be People discovered it. Even if this Liang Wang is a martial arts master and can avoid those who monitor him, the risk of doing so is extremely high."
"And if you choose to meet in a brothel, I'm afraid it will be much more convenient. The person can be disguised as a turtle slave, or a client, or even a woman. Or maybe the person you want to meet is a woman. .Sister, you must not underestimate women. During the Battle of Hulao Pass, I discovered that the ones who really control the rebels are women who turn into prostitutes."
"Those women actually held tens of thousands of rebels firmly in their hands. Even my younger brother was played by them. If it hadn't been for the chance to catch these women in Zhengzhou and save some face, This little brother is going to be completely embarrassed. Not to mention that throughout the dynasties, the queen mothers who assisted the young emperor and created the sacrament of the dynasty were all women."
"Even the eldest sister, isn't she also a woman? I have heard some of the eldest brother's deeds in the past. In such a difficult situation, the eldest sister was not afraid of threats and saved a few young people at the time. Brother, how many men can really do this? If my eldest sister were a man, she would definitely be the best in the country just by virtue of her heroic spirit."
After Huang Qiong said these compliments, Princess Jincheng didn't say anything more, but her expression softened slightly. Some. Princess Jincheng is not the kind of weak woman who was raised in a deep palace and knows nothing about the world. The reason why I had been confronting Huang Qiong before was because I couldn't figure out why the emperor chose Huang Qiong despite having so many sons.
Although she had no interest in political affairs, she did not want to interfere with who the emperor would appoint as the new prince. But every time I drive to Huang Qiong, even if this face is similar to his father. But when I think that the person in front of me is the descendant who almost killed their whole family and took away the world from their family, I feel a wave of discomfort in my heart.
The prince is useless. Except for the now dead King Jing and King Shu, the other princes are either cowardly or greedy by nature. Even if he is better, he is still domineering and extremely arrogant, and she is not unaware of it. But to her, it had nothing to do with the emperor appointing that younger brother as the new crown prince. But this one in front of her was really hard for her to accept.
Every time she saw Huang Qiong, those difficult days would appear in her mind involuntarily. In addition, some people were whispering in her ears all day long that the reason why Huang Qiong was appreciated by the emperor was just by talking and flattering. He has a low moral character, and his methods are insidious and vicious, and he uses all possible means to do anything.
The prince and the three kings of Jing, Duan and Shu all fell into his hands again. In order to gain some fame and win the so-called popular support, he killed more than a hundred officials and scholars in Zhengzhou. Even Aunt Xincai's son was killed with one blow. I don’t know what kind of enchanting soup he poured into the old man, and he did such an outrageous thing, but he was not punished at all.
Although she knew her father well, she didn't quite believe this. But she already had a certain preconceived impression before, and these words made her fall into doubt. Before, outside the Wende Palace, she saw the emperor and Huang Qiong, father and son, walking and talking like father and son in ordinary people's homes. They seemed unusually affectionate, which made her feel very uncomfortable.
It was even a little chilling, because the emperor had never done anything similar to any other prince. This is what he has done again and again, confronting Huang Qiong in front of the emperor. However, after hearing Huang Qiong's reasonable analysis, Princess Jincheng finally understood why this ninth brother had gained her father's trust so quickly after leaving the palace for only a year.
Not to mention anything else, this understanding of Beiliao alone is not comparable to that of other princes. When analyzing problems, he displayed the kind of confidence that other kings had never experienced. Princess Jincheng, who had just figured it out a little bit, looked slightly better. But it doesn't mean that she can truly accept Huang Qiong and become the new crown prince.
After Huang Qiong's analysis, Princess Jincheng's expression softened slightly. The emperor, who was sitting behind the imperial case, also nodded with satisfaction. However, the emperor still had a headache about how to deal with this Liang Wang. Could it be that they really sent people to listen to the walls of brothels and tile alleys?
If it weren't for the extremely special status of Prince Liang, based on Huang Qiong's analysis just now, the emperor would have sent people from Beizhen Fusi to arrest the Prince of Liang and torture him. But if it really comes to that point, I am afraid that a sword-to-arms confrontation between the two countries may not be far away. Although the emperor is not afraid if the war between the two countries resumes, the time is not right now.
It was indeed wrong for Princess Jincheng to speak rashly just now, but there was one thing she said rightly, that is, the currently stretched imperial court really could not afford to fight a war. This year's severe drought in the northwest has fared better in Shaanxi, although the Guanzhong Plain, which has always been the granary of the northwest, has also suffered. But there are still some harvests in the Guanzhong Plain where eight rivers surround Guanzhong.
In addition to the Hanzhong area, the disaster was not that serious. Although there was a bad harvest, it was far from a complete harvest. The disaster is mainly concentrated in Yan'an Prefecture, Suide Prefecture, Qingyang Prefecture, and several Zhili Prefectures north of Shaanxi Road. But Longyou has almost no harvest this year, and it’s unclear whether the drought will be alleviated next year. Longyou is a place where Han and Han people live together and the folk customs are fierce.
If you are not careful, chaos will ensue. This year's autumn tax, the imperial court will keep at least a considerable part for disaster relief in Longyou and Shaanxi, or for use in the northwest. Next year we will have another game with the Guilin County Prince's Palace. We don't know how much money and food will be spent and how much will be lost. Once the two countries really meet with each other, the food and salary of the imperial court may be unsustainable.
Seeing the hesitation on the emperor's face, Huang Qiong smiled slightly and said confidently: "Father, I have a plan that can effectively monitor the Prince of Liang without causing too many disputes. The seventh brother is in the capital. Among them, they are known for their bohemian behavior. There is no sensual place in the capital that Seventh Brother does not know about."
"And the seventh brother is rough on the outside and subtle on the inside. He looks vulgar on the outside, but in fact he is very shrewd. Why didn't my father send the seventh brother to be responsible for receiving the King of Liang? What's more, there are some places and things that the official It’s hard for people in the family to come forward, but they are the strengths of Seventh Brother’s gangsters and thieves. Since the King of Liang is showing off his sensuality, we will do what he likes.”
