The carriage drove slowly through the streets, occupying almost half of the road. The road conditions in Kaifeng City were very poor, crowded and narrow, and most of them could not accommodate two parallel carriages traveling together.
In the carriage, Liu Chengyou sat cross-legged, eyes slightly closed, thoughts flashing in his mind. Judging from the questioning in the palace today, it was clear that Liu Zhiyuan did not intend to suppress him completely.
With his index finger pointing on his knee, Liu Chengyou couldn't help but think about where to focus his work next. The eldest brother Liu Chengxun has done a good job in appeasing the refugees, but what about him?
In fact, he has a lot of ideas in his mind, and there are too many things that he is dissatisfied with and wants to change, in the military, government, officials, and people, from national strategy to national strategy, to common affairs and farming, there are too many ills that need to be eliminated, and they are urgently needed. correct.
However, it is not his turn to dictate the world now. The incident involving Xue Huairang has already sounded the alarm for him. Things cannot be rushed.
Sometimes, knowing too much is not necessarily a good thing. Liu Chengxun's illness made Liu Chengyou worried about gains and losses. He knew in his heart that even if he didn't do anything, as long as he survived for half a year, everything would be his. He also planned to do this. However, the indescribable restlessness in his heart had been really burdening him recently, and he was far from as calm as he showed on his face.
He opened the curtain and looked out of the car, looking at the streets and alleys of Kaifeng. His eyes gradually brightened, but then darkened. At the moment, the post of Kaifeng Prefect is still vacant, and Kaifeng is still under semi-military control. If he can govern Kaifeng, he can do something, and it may be more meaningful than being a deputy privy envoy.
However, it would probably be difficult for Liu Chengyou to ask for it with the respect of a prince.
"Your Highness, we're here." Li Chongju said respectfully from outside the car.
Lifting the curtain and stepping on the low stool prepared by his own soldiers, Liu Chengyou took long strides and walked towards the door of the mansion. His steps were a little hasty, and when he crossed the threshold, he stumbled, his body swayed, and he almost fell.
Li Chongju quickly stepped forward to support him and asked, "Your Highness, are you okay?"
After getting rid of the support, Liu Chengyou frowned and looked at the threshold under his feet, calling out: "Where is the concierge?"
"The villain is here!" Hearing Liu Chengyou's call, the anxious Menzi immediately came up to him and knelt down nervously, his voice trembling.
"The threshold of my family shouldn't be so high. Find someone to change it!" Liu Chengyou ordered directly.
"Yes!" The person who could guard Liu Chengyou's door was an old man who was familiar with the situation in Jinyang. He knew Liu Chengyou's temper very well. He breathed a sigh of relief and responded decisively. As for whether changing the height of the threshold would destroy the original design of the gate, that was not something for a small person like him to consider.
"Where is Mr. Wei?" After entering the mansion, Liu Chengyou found a steward and asked.
"Go back to Your Highness, in the East Garden."
When he learned that Wei Renpu was living alone in Tokyo with only one servant, Liu Chengyou simply let him live in his mansion. His mansion was very big. Of course, more importantly, it was convenient for Liu Chengyou to discuss matters with him at any time. Not to mention anything else, Liu Chengyou's behavior as a "courteous and virtuous corporal" was very satisfying.
What was prepared for Wei Renpu was an independent house in Dongyuan. The layout was very careful and the environment was quiet and livable. When Liu Chengyou wandered over, Wei Renpu was drinking tea and studying.
"Sir, you are so leisurely." Liu Chengyou said softly.
After standing up and bowing, Wei Renpu said calmly: "It's just a book for entertainment."
"Next, sir, I'm afraid you'll rarely have this leisure time." Liu Chengyou said as they all sat down.
Wei Renpu was a little surprised and asked, "Why do you say this, Your Highness?"
Liu Chengyou directly told Wei Renpu about recommending him to the Privy Council. While Wei Renpu was thinking about it, Liu Chengyou said, "I'm good at making suggestions for Privy Council Guo's kindness. I'll accept it first for you, sir. You won't be offended."
Wei Renpu clasped his fists towards Liu Chengyou and said with some gratitude on his face: "I would also like to thank His Highness for the promotion."
After getting along with him for such a long time, I got to know Wei Renpu to a certain extent. He has a series of shining points in terms of ability and quality, and he is almost a "perfect" person in his behavior. But he never concealed his pursuit of fame and career success.
Liu Chengyou waved his hand, pondered for a while, and said, "Today in Chui Gong Hall, my father asked me to become a member of the Privy Council."
"Is there any result about the army reorganization?" Wei Renpu guessed.
"Yes." Liu Chengyou couldn't help but sigh: "A good Longqi Army was broken into pieces, but I feel bad in my heart."
"According to previous news, not only the Longqi Army, but also the Wujie, Xingjie and other armies have also undergone changes. Your Highness does not need to be too depressed. The number of imperial troops and foreign troops in the capital is extremely heavy, so Disruption and reorganization are beneficial to the imperial court's control." Wei Renpu advised.
"If it's just for me, the Long Qi Army, and I'm going to be punished, I'll have to make a scene!" Liu Chengyou made a joke. With his character, he would never do anything useless.
As he said that, Liu Chengyou couldn't help lowering his voice and said with a stern face: "Brother, I took the opportunity to place some people in the Forbidden Army. I heard that I have some contacts with Shi Hongzhao."
"It's conceivable to do this." Wei Renpu tried to persuade him.
But Liu Chengyou suddenly changed his face and said very relaxedly: "It seems that it is me, the eldest brother, who feels the pressure..."
He and Wei Renpu talked about world affairs again and left happily. Later, Guo Rong came to ask for an audience. He talked to Liu Chengyou about going to Chanzhou and gained his support.
The two of them had a tacit understanding about certain things that were "kept in the dark" and discussed the situation between Du Chongwei and Ye Du together.
The reorganization of the Forbidden Army soon entered the implementation stage. The preliminary preparations were very thorough. Shi Hongzhao and Guo Wei presided over it, and the Privy Council, the Third Department and other government offices cooperated to carry out top-down operations on the hundreds of thousands of troops in Kaifeng. A head-to-toe adjustment.
Of course, this is almost just a systematic mixing of the entire army to achieve the purpose of digesting foreign troops and reducing redundant matters in the army. However, this is also an incomplete training, which does not eliminate the old and the weak, and does not eliminate the bad while retaining the good, resulting in a mixture of good and bad. It is obvious that the combat effectiveness of the reorganized Han Forbidden Army will drop significantly before the running-in is successful. It is also unknown how long the running-in will take and what the effect will be...
Of course, the reorganization of the army is definitely of positive significance. The previous chaos has been swept away, the old military system has been completely disrupted and crushed, and the court's control over the Forbidden Army has also been unprecedentedly enhanced.
However, there are always people who express dissatisfaction and discomfort with this matter, including the original Hedong Army, including the Longqi Army...
There was a blank piece of paper on the table. Liu Chengyou took up his pen and wrote meticulously. After practicing his handwriting for so long, it finally had some effect. Although she is still not beautiful and has no aura at all, Liu Chengyou is already satisfied. He believes that as long as his seal is stamped in the future, "spiritual energy" will surely surge and appear on the paper.
"If you don't lead troops in the army or train soldiers, why do you come to my house?" Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Sun Li, who was sitting next to him, drinking tea with a cup of cow. He put down his pen and walked slowly to Sun Li's side. Filling his tea cup with water, he asked calmly: "Spoil my good tea?"
I don’t know since when, Commander Sun behaved a lot in front of Liu Chengyou, but his temper still didn’t improve much. He said carelessly: “His Highness likes tea, I will go back to collect some for you, I guarantee it will be top quality.”
"Use all your thoughts on leading the troops!" Liu Chengyou sat down and looked at Sun Li: "Tell me, what do you want from me?"
"I don't know what the imperial court means. The good Longqi Army was broken up and we were separated. It's really frustrating..." Sun Li complained.
"Why, there are still people who dare to offend you, Sun Du?" Liu Chengyou asked, sensing something in his tone.
"Brothers have dispersed. It's enough to assign us to the small army. Why should Shi Honglang be the capital of Yuhou and put pressure on us? The general will not accept it!" Sun Li said directly: "I think it is. That Shi Hongzhao abandoned his official position for personal reasons and put his younger brother in a high position!"
Hearing this, Liu Chengyou's expression became a little colder, and he looked at Sun Li. His calm gaze immediately made the excitement on his face disappear.
"Then what do you, Commander Sundu, want to do, so that you and Shi Honglang can switch positions?" Liu Chengyou said lightly.
The Xiaodi Army was formed by selecting 12,000 young soldiers from various armies. Many people from the Longqi Army were selected into it. It was a new army that the imperial court attached great importance to. As for Sun Li, because he was an old man who followed Liu Zhiyuan, he had sufficient qualifications, and he also had a lot of military exploits in Hebei, so he was transferred to the commander of the left wing of the Xiaodi Army, which was considered to be a step up.
Zhou Hui, the former commander of the right wing of the Wujie Army, was appointed commander of the Xiaodi Army Capital. Shi Hongzhao's younger brother Shi Honglang was appointed as Yuhou, the capital of the Xiaodi Army. However, Shi Honglang had no outstanding achievements, and then Sun Li Not convinced anymore.
No matter how nervous he is, he can still notice that Liu Chengyou's tone is not kind. Thinking about the past situation when he was controlled by Liu Chengyou in Longqi Army, Sun Li suddenly lost his momentum and said in a low voice: "That's not necessary, Longqi Army." The general has been there since its establishment. Your Highness, can you speak for the general and be sure to transfer him back to the Longqi Army? Don't stay in the Xiaodi Army and suffer the incompetence of that incompetent person..."
"Bang", Liu Chengyou suddenly took a picture of the small case, stared at Sun Li coldly, and his momentum suddenly burst out: "Is the army a place to negotiate terms for you Sun Li? The imperial court has to go through you to organize the army. Do you agree with Sun Li? You are also a veteran who follows the official family. You don't know that military orders are like mountains and they are forbidden? How can you have the courage to say such things without shame when you go to Gu Mansion? "
"I..." Sun Li was suddenly shocked by Liu Chengyou, and his butt felt like it was burned. He jumped to his feet. Nuonuo stood there speechless.
Staring at him, Liu Chengyou took a deep breath. Sun Li's perception of him had changed somewhat since the Battle of Luancheng. But some arrogant warrior temperaments may never be changed in their lifetime.
After getting up, Liu Chengyou raised his finger on his chest and said seriously: "I'm telling you, no matter if it's Shi Honglang or Zhou Hui above you, even if it's Shi Hongzhao, I'll be honest in front of you." Commander. Stop talking and lead the troops well!"
"Yes, yes..." Sun Li didn't dare to be presumptuous.
With his hands behind his back, he wandered around in front of Sun Li for a few times. Seeing his appearance, Liu Chengyou breathed a sigh of relief, pulled himself closer, lowered his voice, and warned: "Ignore other things, the five or six thousand troops in the left wing of the small bottom, Take good care of me! Do you understand?"
Hearing this, Sun Li was a little stunned. He looked at Liu Chengyou in confusion, and then said after realizing, "I understand."
I don’t know if he really understood, so he waved his hand towards him, and Liu Chengyou added: “Also, don’t show off to Gu Mansion like this in the future.”
Regardless of whether your mind is confused or not, just agree and be done: "Yes."
"I heard that there are signs of recurrence of your injury?" Liu Chengyou asked, his expression slowly softening, and seeing Sun Li's aggrieved expression.
Sensing the change in tone, Sun Li smiled: "The root cause of the disease has been found, it's nothing serious. The weather is getting colder and it's just a slight pain. It's nothing. I will eventually be able to bear it..."
...
Early in the morning, it was still very early before dawn, and the surroundings were still shrouded in darkness. Liu Chengyou got up from the bed and got dressed under the attendance of Mr. Geng and his maid. Wearing green crown and purple clothes, he finished packing and simply ate some dry cakes. Under the hazy eyes, Liu Chengyou went to the imperial city.
Today, Liu Zhiyuan came to the Chongyuan Hall.
Officials in Beijing who are qualified are basically in place. There are a large number of ministers from the later Jin Dynasty, and the hall is very full. Since entering Tokyo, Liu Zhiyuan rarely paid attention to the imperial court. He basically stayed in the Chui Gong Hall to discuss matters with the military and political ministers.
Liu Chengyou was very adaptable to such a serious occasion. With the dignity of a prince, he stood at the front and listened to the emperor and ministers' discussions. He was not impatient at all, but instead observed and listened with interest.
"Your Majesty, Suzhou reported that more than 500 people died of starvation in the territory."
"Stop Suzhou's governor and defense envoys, order officials to take care of civil affairs, and order Suzhou to reduce its autumn taxes by 30% this year!"
...
"Your Majesty, the Khitan has gone, but the remaining poison has not been cleared away. There are still people making Khitan-style saddles, bridles, instruments, and clothing in the official and civilian weapon workshops of the various prefectures in Gyeonggi."
"The imperial edict prohibits creation!"
...
Listening to the officials talking about solving the problem one by one, Liu Chengyou talked about his experience. Although it was boring, he felt very comfortable in the orderly and solemn scene.
Liu Chengyou and Liu Chengxun stood together. After a while, he found that Liu Chengxun's face was a little red, a little strange, and he felt uncomfortable. After quietly observing for a while, Liu Chengyou guessed, did he want to sneeze?
As his thoughts were spinning, Liu Zhiyuan's majestic voice rang in his ears again: "...Take Emperor Taizu Gao and Emperor Guangwu as unforgettable temples."
But it was Quan Taichangqing Zhang Zhao who came forward and asked him to honor the six temples. In addition to the first four generations of ancestors, they also follow the Han Taizu Liu Bang and the Han Shizu Liu Xiu. This is probably the basic operation of all "Liu Han" dynasties after the Han Dynasty.
When he came back to his senses, he saw that the palace had become quiet. He probably noticed that Liu Chengxun was not in good condition, and his eyes stopped on him for a moment. Liu Zhiyuan ordered someone to bring a chair to Liu Chengxun so that he could sit and discuss politics.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" By thanking him, Liu Chengxun slightly released his "grievance" feeling. At the same time, he was a little touched by Liu's father's love.
The morning session lasted for more than an hour, and it was already bright. He was probably thirsty. Liu Zhiyuan took a sip of water and asked, "What else can I do?"
After a moment of silence, an official moved and said loudly: "Your Majesty, the country has been established for the first time, but the East Palace is empty. In order to consolidate the foundation of the country, please establish a prince as soon as possible!"
As soon as he said this, the atmosphere in the palace suddenly went off the rails.
PS: Let’s talk about the title of the book. Why is it called Han Shizu? Because the author likes it. As for what to do about Liu Xiu, if you have to give a reasonable explanation, just change it.
