"Murong, pay attention to your status!" Li Bing, who is sitting high on the throne, has a calm expression, but his tone is slightly stern: "In the court, discuss matters and do not speak rudely."
Murong Xue reluctantly cupped her hands and said in a deep voice: "I was just agitated for a while, so please forgive me. However, what Tian Mu said were all ambiguous and unfounded questions, and there was no lack of suspicion that the enemy was deliberately manipulating and sowing discord. "
"Oh? Is General Murong so sure?" Tian Mu sneered: "Isn't it true that Tanli fled back to the Turks under the nose of the Zhenjiang Army? Is it not true that the imperial capital was burned into ruins? Li Jiangyao and Ashina Zhi Jin’s meeting was witnessed by hundreds of thousands of people, could it be that I made it up?”
Murong Xue glared at Tian Mu: "What can these things mean? Persuading people to surrender before the formation is a common situation in combat. Ask, which person who leads troops in war has not had the same experience? Li Jiangyao let Tan Li go. They obviously wanted to divide the enemy, shake the morale of the Turkic army, and lay the foundation for the decisive battle that followed. As for the meeting with Ashina Zhijin and the burning of the imperial capital, it just proved that the Turkic Khan was stubborn and crazy, which was different from the Zhenjiang Army. What's the matter?"
Wei Zixuan said from the side: "What the general said makes sense. But the question is, why didn't Li Jiangyao discuss it with the court in advance? Even if it was too late, why didn't he explain to us afterwards? Does he still have His Majesty in his eyes?"
This hat was directly related to the emperor Li Bing. Murong Xue was afraid that she would not handle it well and fall into passivity, so she did not refute easily for a while. Dong Tianxing saw this and said quietly: "Master Wei, I have something to ask you."
Wei Zixuan glanced at Old Dong and hummed: "May I ask what Shilang Dong has to teach you?"
Dong Tianxing smiled: "Your Excellency has always been in charge of the national treasury. May I ask, since you took office, have you allocated one tael of silver or one grain of rice to the Xinjiang Army?"
Wei Zixuan sneered and said, "You are asking this question knowingly. We are blocked by Turks from the Western Army. How can we allocate military supplies and food? According to your opinion, if I don't give him money, he can disown Your Majesty?"
"Master Wei has misunderstood. This is not what I meant by being dismissed." Dong Tianxing said calmly: "What I want to express is that since Mr. Wei, you have sufficient and reliable reasons to explain why you have not given me the honor for so many years. The Xinjiang Army of the Shengtang Army pays for each coin and grain, and everyone can understand and accept this statement. Then why can't the Zhenjiang Army explain its various difficulties such as fighting alone and lack of information, but you say it is Where is Mu Wujunshang?"
Wei Zixuan was stunned for a moment, not expecting that the other party would actually refute him from this angle. Dong Tianxing did not wait for his response, turned to Li Bing and said: "Your Majesty, whether a person has made mistakes or not, whether he is worthy of the country and the court, the most important thing is to see what kind of results he produces. If Li Jiangyao and the Zhenjiang Army do not treat the emperor If you are not loyal to the Holy Tang, will you fight to the death and annihilate the main force of the Turks? At this time of great victory, the whole world is praising His Majesty's wisdom and martial prowess, but if you do not reward those soldiers who have made meritorious deeds as soon as possible, it will Let’s talk about their so-called faults first, then how will the people inside and outside the court and the people of Li view you and the court?”
Lao Dong's words are quite lethal, and the logic behind them is very clear: Heroes with great military exploits did not receive any rewards, but were punished for their crimes. Doesn't it appear that you are a fool?
Li Bing snorted angrily: "I have never said that I will not reward those meritorious soldiers, so don't make unreasonable opinions. The question now is how to reward them in a reasonable way."
Now that the emperor has set the tone, Wei Zixuan quickly adapts to the situation: "What your Majesty said is true. I just mentioned Li Jiangyao's fault, not to immediately hold him accountable, but to target General Murong and his suggestions, which are somewhat different. Thoughts. I think that whether it is a title or a promotion to the Shangzhu Kingdom, it is a bit too much."
"Then what do you mean?" Murong Xue snorted coldly: "How should I reward him so that he is worthy of Li Jiangyao's military exploits?"
Wei Zixuan smiled and looked at Wang Bor, Minister of the Ministry of War: "The Ministry of War has a merit examination department, so everything must be done in accordance with the laws and regulations."
Wang Bor belongs to the neutral faction. He neither wants to offend the court forces of Wei Zixuan's group nor easily anger military bosses like Murong Xue and Li Jiangyao. Hearing this, he quickly responded: "Master Wei doesn't know something. The Ministry of War The Merit Examination Department usually only checks and evaluates the annual performance of ordinary military attachés below the fourth rank, and rarely involves the discussion of rewards for senior generals. This matter has to be decided by the Ministry of Civil Affairs."
Upon hearing this, Luo Fangju, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, also hurriedly extrapolated: "Although our Ministry of Personnel has the power to promote, demote, reward and punish, it is only for ordinary officials. Generals like Li Jiangyao... Well, how can I Are you qualified to speak?"
Although Luo Fangju was obviously trying to push the envelope, he was telling the truth. From the founding of the Holy Tang Dynasty to the present, the personnel power of officials of third rank and above has always been in the hands of the emperor himself, and the staff is just a decoration, just a mouthpiece.
Li Bing sighed depressedly and looked at Shangshu Ling and Zhongshu Ling: "You are both elders of the three dynasties. Tell me your opinions so that I can take the details."
Zhongshu ordered Liu Shiming to ponder for a moment and said tremblingly: "In my opinion, how about being granted the title of General Yunhui, a reward of a hundred golds, and 800 hectares of fertile land?"
His "how" was asking Zhang Jian, the minister.
Zhang Jian frowned and thought for a while, and said with some hesitation: "General Yunhui has a false title from the third rank. If he is sealed, it means he has not been sealed. As for the one hundred taels of gold and eight hundred hectares of fertile land you just mentioned... Tsk, then Can he like General Li?"
Do you even need to ask? Of course I don't like it!
The civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty were thinking at the same time: Li Jiangyao held hundreds of thousands of troops, and the entire Ghost Desert of Western Xinjiang respected him as a holy king. Now he has conquered Guanzhong and the northwest with his own hands. Eight hundred hectares? He doesn’t care about eight thousand hectares!
Are you sending people begging for food?
Liu Shiming squinted his eyes and nodded slightly: "Well, what you said makes sense. It is indeed difficult to handle. It is difficult to handle."
Li Bing felt helpless when he saw the two old foxes deliberately pretending to be confused and doing Tai Chi with him. He couldn't help but said in a deep voice: "The reward is not that big, and there is nothing to look down on. Even if I reward him with just a few words, it will be a blessing." Great favor!”
Liu Shiming and Zhang Jian raised their hands and said at the same time, "What your Majesty said is true," and then stopped talking, which meant: You can figure it out yourself.
Seeing the emperor's unkind expression, Wei Zixuan smiled faintly and said loudly: "Your Majesty, since all of you feel that it is difficult to handle, I have an idea."
"Oh? Tell me."
"I believe that rewards for official positions are not as good as rewards for status, and titles are not as good as titles for the emperor." Wei Zixuan said calmly: "Since General Murong and Dong Shilang both feel that Li Jiangyao has made great contributions and is quite popular among the people, then why not Lift him higher and kill two birds with one stone."
Li Bing was a little curious: "Reward status? Become a royal relative? What do you mean?"
Wei Zixuan said: "There are eleven princes and seven princesses under the late emperor's knees. Among them, the seventh princess is the youngest and the most beloved by the late emperor. She has not been married yet. We might as well give Li Jiangyao as the consort and welcome the seventh princess. In this way, this If a great hero can join the royal family, won't he have status and face?"
Hearing this, Murong Xue and Dong Tianxing couldn't help but feel moved in their hearts, and secretly cursed Wei Zixuan for being sinister and cruel.
The Seventh Princess Li Xi, also known as the Fenyang Princess of the Holy Tang Dynasty, was indeed the favorite daughter of the late Emperor Li Chengwu as Wei Zixuan said. However, there is another big problem: Li Xi and Huaiyang King Li Kuang are brothers and sisters of the same mother. They were both born to the late Queen Hengzhi. The relationship between the two is much closer than other descendants of the late emperor. many.
Right now, Princess Fenyang's eldest brother is rebelling and fighting the emperor to death. Her situation is already very bad, and now she has to marry Li Jiangyao, which is simply adding chaos to chaos!
Regarding this, Li Bing also hesitated: "Is this...appropriate?"
Wei Zixuan said loudly: "Your Majesty, there is no one more suitable than this. Li Jiangyao is young and his position is already extremely high. If he wants to be promoted to a higher position and become a highly respected minister, once he makes new achievements in the future, the court will have no choice. There is no room for rewards. Looking back at the discussion between the emperor and his relatives, if he is qualified to welcome Her Royal Highness the Princess due to his outstanding military exploits and become the consort of the dynasty and a relative of the emperor, whether it is for him, for himself, for the people inside and outside the court, for the people, or for the people. This is the best result for the Xinjiang Army."
"What you said does make sense, but..." Li Bing hesitated and said, "Ximei and the anti-king Li Kuang..."
"That's more okay." Wei Zixuan smiled and said: "Your Majesty has said before that the King of Huaiyang is the King of Huaiyang, and Princess Fenyang is the Princess of Fenyang. If the elder brother makes a mistake, his innocent sister should not be hurt. And the seventh princess also I have made it clear that I am willing to abide by the late emperor's edict, regard you as emperor, and sever ties with the rebel king Li Kuang. By granting her a marriage, isn't it a fair demonstration of your trust and love for her?"
Murong Xue knew that Wei Zixuan was deliberately causing trouble, and quickly objected: "Your Majesty, this idea is inappropriate. Li Jiangyao already has a wife, how can he still have another princess?"
Unexpectedly, it was a good thing that he didn't mention this matter. When he mentioned that Li Jiangyao had a wife, Li Bing immediately thought of Xiahou Ninghan and couldn't help but feel jealous.
Li Bing secretly calculated in his heart: Although Wei Zixuan was clearly provoking trouble, this plan did have its own merits. Betrothal Fenyang to Li Jiangyao not only solves the problem of no reward now, but also adds a lot of trouble to Li Jiangyao. Anyway, this guy will never surrender to me, and I don’t have to care about living peacefully with him in the future!
Thinking of this, Li Bing raised his hand to stop Murong Xue and said with a smile: "It doesn't matter whether Li Jiangyao has a wife or not. What's important is that I have an attitude of rewarding him. There are similar precedents in the previous dynasties. When a minister is honored by a princess or princess, there is nothing wrong with converting the principal wife into a common wife. The son of the common wife will still be the legitimate son, and the family will still be happy."
