Yongjia East City, in an exquisite, elegant and quiet manor.
The light fragrance lingers in the flower hall, and the sound of tea flowing is extremely pleasant.
Ding Hui, the Secretary of the Ministry of War, dressed in regular clothes, took the cup from the old man's hand respectfully and said humbly: "Thank you, Prime Minister, for the tea."
The old man said calmly: "Master Shangshu, there is no need to be polite."
His tone was very polite, but Ding Hui did not dare to be rude.
Although he is already the second-rank Minister of the Ministry of War, a high-ranking official in the Ministry of War who is rarely seen by most people in this world, they do not dare to be careless in front of this old man, because the other party is the left prime minister in charge of the court, and even more Jin The head of the family of the Lin Li family.
There is a joke among the people that without the leftist prime minister’s unwavering support, today’s emperor may not be able to ascend the throne.
Twelve years have passed by in a flash, and the emperor has firmly sat on the throne and developed considerable power in both the government and the public, but the name Li Daoyan is still one of the symbols of the Southern Qi court.
Ding Hui knew the reason why he was summoned here today, so he took the initiative to clarify the topic and said: "Master Prime Minister, I have sorted out the information about the border army generals who were summoned to the capital this time."
"Not urgent."
Li Daoyan looked calm, took a sip of tea, and said slowly: "In Ding Shangshu's opinion, what are your Majesty's plans this time?"
If it were any other place, Ding Hui would definitely keep this kind of topic secret, so as not to accidentally leak the news and be exploited by the loyal eagle dogs of the Sutra Weaving Department.
However, in this manor, the warp weaver's eyes would be completely isolated. He did not need to worry about this, so he considered it and said: "Returning to the prime minister, I think your majesty wants to take advantage of the great victory in Jiangbei to let the border. The young military generals in the army have ascended to high positions. Over the years, although the Huaizhou and Jingzhou governor's offices have been important, the rewards given by the imperial court have been limited to gold and silver, leaving no room for Xiao Wangzhi and Li Tianrun to continue to expand their power."
Li Daoyan nodded slightly and motioned for him to continue.
Ding Hui then said: "Your Majesty probably still has the obsession with the Northern Expedition in his heart, but the Beijing Army's Beiya and Nanya are both internally stable, so he does not have the right time to take action. This time, Xu Wen, the commander of the Dingwei Army, was captured and imprisoned. The home was confiscated and the Sutra Weaving Department searched for nearly two months but could not dig out any more useful information. I heard that Qin Zheng and Qin Tiju got angry several times."
When he said this, a teasing smile appeared on his face, and he showed his ability to Li Daoyan invisibly.
After all, if you want to know the warp weaver's angry and angry behavior, you need some hidden connections.
Li Daoyan said leisurely: "Qin's promotion of public loyalty and loyalty to the country can be regarded as an example for the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty."
Ding Hui quickly put away his smile and said seriously: "The Prime Minister is a model minister, and everyone in the government and the public admires him."
Li Daoyan smiled faintly and said nothing about his straightforward flattery. He then asked, "How many people did your Majesty summon in total this time?"
Ding Hui had been prepared for this and said without thinking: "There are twelve people in total. Except for Chen Lanyu, the commander of Huaizhou Zhenbei Army, He Gui, the commander of Lai'an Army, and Huo Zhen, the commander of Jingzhou Guangji Army, the other nine people They are all young, basically at the two levels of captain and captain. The youngest among them is Li Bingxue, the captain of Feiyu Camp of Jingzhou Dudu Mansion. She only turned nineteen a few months ago and will not be until the end of next spring. Twenty years old.”
Li Daoyan asked: "Is that Li Tianrun's eldest daughter?"
Ding Hui nodded and said, "Yes. Although Lieutenant Li is a girl, he is extremely talented in martial arts. He also has the words and deeds of Captain Li to teach him, and he also has keen insight on the battlefield. Previously, Yan Jing's army crossed the Shuangfeng Mountains In the surprise attack on Guangling, she led the Feiyu Battalion's four thousand cavalry to break through the enemy's formation and gain a rare victory at a very small cost."
Although the authority of the Ministry of War is not as good as that of the Ministry of Personnel, because of the existence of the Military Selection Department, Ding Hui naturally cherishes the military exploits of these generals.
Li Daoyan fell into deep thought, his eyes as deep as a lake.
Ding Hui continued: "The second youngest is Lu Chen, the inspector of the Huaizhou Governor's Office. He will be twenty years old at the end of this year. This person is even more remarkable. If Xiao and Li, the two governors, do not exaggerate, then from Huaizhou From the time when the army marched north to Qingtian City, until the two governor's offices cooperated to capture the seven cities in Jiangbei, this series of strategies all came from the hands of Lu Chen."
Li Daoyan said slowly: "What is the origin of this person?"
Ding Hui replied: "Lu Chen's father, Lu Tong, is a well-known wealthy businessman in Guangling City. He is quite popular in Huaizhou and has some official connections."
He only knew this much and didn't add any more details.
Li Daoyan nodded slightly and said thoughtfully: "It seems that His Majesty hopes to use these young people to stir up the situation in the court."
Ding Hui looked slightly puzzled.
Although a great deal of credit was given to this Jiangbei victory, the lion's share of it would definitely fall on Xiao Wangzhi and Li Tianrun. It was just a mention of title and a reward of gold and silver fields, and it was impossible to allow them to build a mansion.
As for young people with outstanding performance, such as Lu Chen and Li Bingxue, their qualifications were too low, so they were given a casual job of fourth rank, and then they were promoted to higher ranks in the military, that's all.
Li Daoyan's eyes flashed, and he said slowly: "Your Majesty knows your thoughts very well. There will not be much resistance to the promotion of these young people. After all, they are indeed meritorious people, and clear rewards and punishments are the basis for the court to maintain normal operations. . In this matter, there should be no objections from anyone in the DPRK, and then His Majesty’s purpose can be achieved.”
Ding Hui's heart trembled, some vague thoughts emerged, and he still said respectfully: "Please give me some advice, Prime Minister."
Li Daoyan played with the expensive tea utensils and said with a smile: "The rise of these young people is unstoppable. They may be promoted to captains and may even become commander-level generals. The same is true for captains. However, the framework of the border army is very stable, and high-level military positions There are only so many. After they ascend, how will the original generals be placed?"
Ding Hui immediately woke up and murmured: "That's why Your Majesty also summoned several commanders to come to the capital."
Li Daoyan said calmly: "At that time, Your Majesty can hand over the choice to the ministers. First, set up a new army in the Jingzhou Governor's Mansion to accommodate the rising newcomers. Anyway, the seven cities in Jiangbei also need Secondly, to maintain the size of the border army unchanged, generals such as Chen Lanyu must be transferred to the Beijing army."
Ding Hui couldn't help but feel a slight toothache.
Of course, his ability to secure the position of Minister of the Ministry of War was not just based on flattery. He soon realized that this was a dilemma.
If the size of the frontier army is not expanded, it will be inevitable for those generals to enter the capital. Because Chen Lanyu and others are all meritorious officials, they cannot be sent to the remote governor's mansion. How will the people of the world view the imperial court?
People like Li Tianrun and Xiao Wangzhi can be rewarded in vain, because they themselves are first-level governors and have enough power in their hands. If they go up, it is easy to create a situation where the outside is strong and the middle is weak, and both the government and the opposition can understand it.
But it is unjustifiable for middle- and lower-level generals like Chen Lanyu and Lu Chen to treat them harshly.
After pondering for a moment, Ding Hui said slowly: "Prime Minister, I can do some manipulation in the military merit assessment and try to focus the credit on Xiao and Li, the two great governors. This may solve this problem."
"It's not that simple."
Li Daoyan remained calm and composed, and analyzed in a leisurely manner: "Twelve border troops entered the capital. This has never happened in the past twelve years. How could His Majesty allow you to wantonly confuse right and wrong? Another point, His Majesty tolerated such Over the years, he has not been isolated and helpless in the DPRK, but he has always been calm enough and will not show off his tactics easily until the critical moment."
Ding Hui frowned. He understood the true meaning of these words. Although all the forces in the DPRK and China had the same attitude on the Northern Expedition, they still often opposed and fought in peacetime. This gave the emperor space to calmly display his actions.
In short, among the important ministers in the court, there must be loyal ministers of the emperor, and they will naturally step forward when needed.
Li Daoyan saw the venom in his eyebrows and said gently: "You have to understand the truth. Although we do not support the Northern Expedition, apart from this matter, we and your Majesty share the same honor and disgrace. No. If the emperor presides over the overall situation, all areas south of the Yangtze River will fall apart in an instant. Likewise, without our full support, His Majesty will not be able to balance the situation in the court."
"Essentially speaking, we can only seek common ground with His Majesty while reserving differences. We can be willing to fight, but we cannot directly overturn the table."
He said this with a slight emphasis.
Ding Hui felt awe-struck and quickly lowered his head and said, "I have learned a lesson from you."
"As for the current matter..."
Li Daoyan raised his hand and tapped the table gently, and said slowly: "It is not an inextricable knot. Those who have meritorious service will be rewarded, not to mention gold and silver fields, military promotion is also the proper meaning of the title. In this matter We cannot go against His Majesty, it would be unwise."
Ding Hui felt blessed at this moment and said cautiously: "The prime minister's intention is that we can keep these people in the capital?"
Li Daoyan smiled slightly and remained silent.
Ding Hui suddenly became enlightened, his thoughts suddenly opened up, and he said with excitement: "After all, officials in the capital are more noble than those in the border army, and it is easy to squeeze nine people into so many yamen. We can also combine the nine people The official position is set at a higher level, no one can find fault with it, and His Majesty can also explain it to him."
Li Daoyan reminded calmly: "It is impossible for Li Tianrun's daughter to stay in the capital. No matter what, we must give dignity to the governor."
"I understand."
Ding Hui quickly nodded in agreement and said with a smile: "If it's just Li Bingxue, it doesn't matter to the overall situation. The remaining eight people stay in the capital and are promised high-ranking officials and generous salaries. As time goes by, they will naturally get used to and like this bustling place. In the capital, the poor life on the border will definitely be left behind. By that time, even if His Majesty wants them to go back to the border to charge into battle, these people may not be willing."
There are still some words he did not clarify. If necessary, the wealthy families in the capital can easily win over those border military generals who have never seen the world.
Li Daoyan added: "As for the frontier generals such as Chen Lanyu, the rewards of titles can also be appropriately relaxed. It is not easy for the soldiers to fight on the frontier, so the rewards that should be given should not be too stingy."
Ding said understandingly: "Yes, I will consider it carefully with Ning Shangshu and others."
When Li Daoyan heard this, he picked up the tea cup and said with a hint of approval: "I'd like to trouble your Lordship to worry about this matter."
"As a low-ranking official, I have no shirking responsibilities. Please rest assured, Prime Minister!"
Ding Hui stood up and said goodbye with a wink.
The hall finally became quiet, but when he heard the faint autumn breeze outside the window, Li Daoyan looked at the autumn courtyard scenery with an extremely calm expression.
(End of chapter)
