During the private conversation between the emperor and the empress, another wave of cheers erupted in the venue. The competition has entered the fourth round, and the archers are each showing their talents. The person who caused the cheers at this time was a young officer, fifty paces Outside, a horse was galloping, and two arrows were fired in unison. The one that hit both of them went straight into the bullseye. This kind of ability can be called a miraculous skill.
Even Emperor Liu paid more attention in this warm atmosphere, pointed at the officer, and told Chao Yantuo: "Go and ask, who is this?"
"Yes!" Yantuo was ordered to step down without any delay and went to investigate.
Seeing this, Empress Fu chuckled and said, "Is the official happy to see the hunter again and starting to love talents?"
Emperor Liu replied naturally: "I have always been like this! At any time, the most important thing is talents. I naturally hope that there will be an endless stream of talents in the world to join the prosperous Han Dynasty and share the era of peace!"
"The magnanimity of the official family is as broad and broad as ever!" Empress Fu also said some compliments. Of course, half-truths and half-falsehoods, Emperor Liu's traditional style, may be narrow-minded for selfish reasons, but Yu Gong always takes the overall situation into consideration and is full of consideration.
"You and I, husband and wife, don't need to be so complimentary and courteous!" Emperor Liu said this. Probably because he was used to Fu Hou's dignity and solemnity, but Emperor Liu didn't get used to people saying flattering words.
Soon, Yantuo returned, walked quickly to the front of the imperial court, stood up, leaned forward, and said respectfully: "Guan family, this young general's name is Chen Jia. He is from Jincheng in Yingzhou. He belongs to the first army in the left wing of the Longqi Army. His military rank is Hundreds of generals who participated in the Northern Expedition and fought bravely and with meritorious service were later transferred to Beijing to supplement the Longqi army. They were famous for their riding and shooting. For this hunting trip, they were selected by the Palace Chief to perform in front of the emperor..."
Yan Tuocha asked quite detailed questions. After listening to his report, Emperor Liu raised a slight smile and said, "He is from the Longqi Army!"
After all, the Longqi Army was the army founded by Emperor Liu. With this relationship, it is equivalent to blessing the officers and soldiers of the army with a special glory. After so many years and more than 20 years, it has always been the best among the Sanya Forbidden Army, overwhelming The whole army is not only known as the "pro-army", but also known as the strongest army in the world.
Yantuo naturally understood Emperor Liu's closeness and affection for Longqi Army, noticed the smile on his lips, and immediately praised him: "Thanks to the kindness of the officials, Longqi Army has many talents!"
Hearing what he said, Emperor Liu twitched the corner of his mouth. As the first army of the Sanya Imperial Guards, it enjoyed the most abundant resources. Soldiers both inside and outside were eager to join the army, and elite soldiers and generals were transferred in. Naturally, talents emerged in large numbers.
Seeing that Emperor Liu didn't react much to his compliments, Yan Tuo didn't care. After all, he didn't always please Emperor Liu and get positive feedback.
"Does the official intend to summon him?" Seeing Emperor Liu's interested expression, Yantuo took the initiative to ask for instructions.
But he was met with Emperor Liu's rejection: "No, carry on as usual!"
Today's Emperor Liu is no longer as he was in the past, sparing no effort to exert influence and win over the morale of the army. A small general, no matter how superb his riding and archery skills, cannot easily catch the eye of Emperor Liu. The Han army is now stable. There are a lot of talents, and there is no need to go to great lengths to find and conquer talents like in the past.
Of course, what really touched Emperor Liu was that this was another officer who made his fortune from the bottom, with no background or background. In recent years, there is no doubt that the rising stars in the Han army are mainly the second and third generations of the army. Those who have achieved some fame are either the sons of meritorious officials or the descendants of famous generals.
This is unavoidable. Heroes and nobles have gone through life and death to achieve great achievements. In addition to power and wealth, sheltering their descendants is also an important pursuit. The second and third generations of the military have risen, gradually inheriting the glory of their ancestors, following their footsteps, and developing in the military. Forging ahead is also in line with the laws of nature and human nature.
And these people, who have abundant resources provided by their fathers and grandfathers to utilize, have a good foundation, and have high qualities that are different from ordinary people, will naturally be more likely to be promoted. Over the years, veterans and generals have gradually withered away, or gone behind the scenes. Although there are still a group of veteran generals who are still standing in front of the stage, the noble generals and generals have gradually risen to replace the elderly, occupy important positions, and become the backbone of the army.
This is an unstoppable trend, and it has already been reflected in Kaibao's Northern Expedition. The veterans still showed their remaining talents and even took charge of the overall situation, but the juniors also performed well. After the beginning of spring, during the Privy Council's reorganization of the army, a group of young and middle-aged generals were indeed promoted to assume more important military positions, and most of them were second-generation nobles.
Regarding such a situation, Emperor Liu was naturally well aware of the situation, and for a long time he had been willing to see the outcome. The military aristocracy was a product of Emperor Liu's support and compromise to defend the imperial power and consolidate the ruling class. On the premise of ensuring that it would not backfire, it would not be deliberately suppressed.
At this point, Emperor Liu was confident and at ease. Over the past two decades, many policies have been implemented and systems established based on balancing considerations and centered around this core idea.
However, Emperor Liu allowed the existence and growth of a class, but did not allow its expansion. Therefore, he began to balance the military aristocracy. This was not difficult to achieve. After all, there were many factions within the aristocracy. In the army, They were also based on the hills, and the power to mobilize troops was always in the hands of the imperial court. The power to manage the troops was also controlled and influenced by the imperial court.
At the same time, it is to support common people bureaucrats. In recent years, this has been especially obvious. Zhao Pu's appointment as prime minister is the most representative measure.
On this basis, Gujiao is also in the process of promoting soldiers from the common people of the Han clan. For example, last year Emperor Liu personally met with several officers and soldiers who returned to the Han Dynasty from Mobei, and personally rewarded and promoted them. He also promoted a low-level soldier Aries who was originally penniless to a Suwei officer. He also supported these military aristocratic groups. The meaning of the foreign soldiers is inside, and at the same time it also encourages all the poor soldiers in the world to spread their ambition.
As an emperor, every move, word and deed of Emperor Liu was inevitably subject to political considerations, and these had almost become his instinct.
In the riding and shooting competition, there were no surprises in the final winner. The winner was the young general named Chen Jia. Not only was he an eye-catching and stunning move, but he also won the top spot because he had the highest total points after several rounds. , won the first prize in one fell swoop.
After the results of the riding and shooting skills were achieved, each was given a reward. Chen Jia received a complete set of BMWs, fine armor and weapons. The rest of the personnel, even if they were slightly inferior, were considered rich. In addition to material rewards, there were also internal merit records in each army. Getting promoted is a matter of course. After all, for the officers selected for the Imperial Competition, it is a gilded experience in itself.
About an hour later, Zhang Yong came to report that the hunting expedition had ended, and the prince and the participating aristocratic children had returned one after another from hunting.
"Who hunted the most?" Emperor Liu asked Zhang Yong with a little curiosity.
Zhang Yong replied eloquently: "Your Majesty, according to statistics, Suwei camp general Guo Shilong hunted the most, 5 pheasants, 2 rabbits, 3 deer, 4 raccoons, and a leopard, a total of 15 different sizes. prey!"
"You son of a general, son of the Guo family, you live up to the style of your ancestors!" Emperor Liu smiled and said immediately: "Reward!"
Guo Shilong is the grandson of Shangdang Gong Guo Congyi.
The princes also participated in the hunt. Of course, the brothers Liu Fang and Liu Min, who were the most skilled in martial arts, were not there, so naturally none of them were outstanding. If anyone really performed unexpectedly well, Emperor Liu would be suspicious.
However, at this time, Emperor Liu was more concerned about the performance of the Thirteenth Prince Liu Ye. The performance of the boy just now in front of him was still effective, at least it aroused his interest.
"Where's Liu Ye?"
"The Thirteenth Prince has also returned to camp!"
"Xuan!"
Soon, Liu Ye was summoned to come for an audience, which attracted almost everyone's attention. The emperor gave special treatment, and the ministers and guests were naturally very interested.
Liu Ye was still dressed as before, but he looked tired and had some dirt on his body, making him look a little embarrassed. However, his expression looked a little serious.
However, he was holding a gray rabbit in his hand, its fur stained with blood, and said with a hint of regret: "I am incompetent, I only hunted one rabbit!"
Emperor Liu was really surprised this time. He looked at the dead rabbit and then noticed Liu Ye's calm face. There was no tension or discomfort about killing at all, and he sighed inwardly.
"Hunting rabbits may not be easier than shooting tigers. It also tests your shooting skills!" Emperor Liu chuckled and sighed: "Little Thirteen, it seems I have underestimated you! Tell me, what reward do you want?"
Hearing this, Liu Ye finally showed a smile on his face, and there was obvious excitement in his eyes. It was an emotion recognized by Emperor Liu. He shook his head slightly and said excitedly: "I don't want rewards, I just ask dad to accept this rabbit." !”
"Okay!" Emperor Liu responded without any hesitation: "I accept your proposal!"
He waved to Liu Ye, asked him to come forward, and caressed the back of his head. It was probably the first time that Emperor Liu treated him so gently and kindly: "Today, you will only hunt a rabbit to offer to dad. Dad will wait for you to grow up. Now I’m hunting enemies for my father!”
"Yes!" Liu Ye nodded seriously, his face full of solemnity.
