After writing the memorial and handing it over to Yang Kai, Chang Sheng was finally able to lie down and rest. The previous thousand-mile raid had exhausted both the man and the horse to death, and he also suffered serious internal injuries. He fell asleep quickly after lying down.
This long sleep was a sound sleep. Even if the Japanese pirates wanted to retaliate in the same way and rushed to Chang'an to kill them off guard, they would not be able to come tonight because the Japanese pirates did not have a good horse.
Ordinary people have to sleep for at least four hours a day, and three hours is enough for Qi practitioners, but this time Chang Sheng slept for five hours and didn't get up until noon.
Datou was sitting at the door of the east chamber basking in the sun. When he saw Changsheng going out, he immediately ran into the house and took out a swaddle, "Sir, look at our eagle."
"That's your eagle," Changsheng said casually, "Besides, it's not a child. It's a furry thing, so it doesn't need to be wrapped so tightly."
"Okay, okay, come on, take a look." Datou handed the swaddling clothes to Changsheng.
Chang Sheng stretched out his hand and snatched the young eagle out of its swaddling clothes. Although the young eagle was small, it knew how to peck people after being frightened.
"It's very good. His limbs are sound and his eyes are bright. There's nothing wrong with him." Changsheng looked at him carefully.
Seeing that Changsheng was casual and rude, Datou hurriedly stretched out his hand to pick up the young eagle, "Sir, look at this fur. It's as pure white as snow, how rare it is."
"You are really precious," Changsheng stretched, "its white hair now is just fetal hair. It will definitely fade when it grows up. It's not sure what color it will be when it grows up."
Datou originally wanted to ask for a few words of praise from Chang Sheng, but hearing Chang Sheng's words would keep him from losing his spirits. At this moment, Yang Kai walked out from the west chamber, holding a brush for combing his hair in one hand and a wooden bucket for drinking horses in the other.
"Have you had nothing to do in the morning?" Changsheng asked casually.
"No, they are all daily trivial matters," Yang Kai said, "Qian Zhonglin has many disciples and some officials who are good friends with him. Qian Zhonglin was banned from his home by the emperor. They all interceded for him and hoped that the emperor would Let him resume his official position, the emperor only said that he did not remove Qian Zhonglin from his official position, but he was considerate of his old age, frailty and injury, and let him rest at home for a while."
"The Emperor is indeed considerate of him," Chang Sheng said coldly, "This old immortal thinks he is a loyal minister and talks about benevolence, justice and morality, but he does despicable things. Not only did he attack us, but he also killed many nuns in Shifang Nunnery. , I knocked out a few of his old teeth, which is considered merciful. If the emperor dares to let him out, I will still find trouble and beat him."
"Don't worry, sir. If we don't leave, the emperor will definitely not dare to let him out." After saying this, Datou carried the baby into the east chamber.
Yang Kai put the brush and barrel in the corner, turned around and said to Chang Sheng, "It's the autumn harvest season now. Land taxes from all over the country are being put into the treasury, and the silver gained from the inspection of corrupt ink is also being collected quickly. The three provinces are in order, and the six departments are in order, but you are not here At that time, the two ministers of the household department were suspected of overestimating the guests and taking credit for their work."
"What's expected is that they are not my people in the first place." After Chang Sheng finished speaking, he rushed out of the east chamber and said, "Tell the cook to prepare something to eat."
Da Tou nodded in agreement and turned to leave.
Changsheng stepped into the west chamber, and Yang Kai followed.
At this time, there were four horses in the west wing, including the big one and the little one. The two sweaty horses were accustomed to standing and had already stood up after resting for the night. Only the black master was still lying lazily in the haystack. The pony was still there at this time. Weaning was not complete, but the mare's milk supply was running low. The foal went over to breastfeed, but the mare resisted.
"The foal grows very fast," Chang Sheng turned to look at Yang Kai, "How long do you think it will be before it can carry people?"
Yang Kai thought for a while and replied, "It will take three months at the earliest."
"Well," Changsheng nodded, "While we are still in Chang'an, we should feed them more refined food. Once we leave Chang'an, we will not have such convenient conditions."
Yang Kai nodded.
Seeing the wooden bed and bedding placed in the corner, Changsheng said, "As long as I am here, you don't have to stay here day and night. You can go back to the house to sleep at night. You have to go to court every day, and you can't smell like a stable."
"Okay." Yang Kai nodded again.
Just as the two were talking, Da Tou's voice came from outside, "Sir, Eunuch Zhou is here."
Hearing Dutou's shouting, Changsheng and Yang Kai left the west chamber and came to the courtyard. They happened to see Datou leading Eunuch Zhou from outside the courtyard. Eunuch Zhou ordered the two accompanying young eunuchs to wait outside the courtyard. They followed Datou alone. In the courtyard.
Eunuch Zhou held a yellow silk scroll in his left hand. Changsheng recognized this thing as an imperial edict.
Eunuch Zhou and Ni Zhuo had a close personal relationship. After Ni Zhuo left, Eunuch Zhou also maintained a good relationship with Chang Sheng and regarded him as one of his own.
Seeing Changsheng, Eunuch Zhou was all smiles, "Master Li, what a great joy."
"Why did Eunuch Zhou say this?" Changsheng asked with a smile.
"The emperor read the memorial presented by Mr. Yang. Long Yan was overjoyed and applauded repeatedly. Therefore, he made an exception and gave generous rewards." Eunuch Zhou handed the imperial edict to Changsheng with both hands. "Master Li, we are not outsiders. You can see for yourself."
Changsheng received the imperial edict, turned sideways and invited, "Please come in and serve tea, Eunuch Zhou."
"You must drink tea, Mr. Li, you'd better read the imperial edict first." Eunuch Zhou smiled happily.
Seeing Eunuch Zhou's expression, Chang Sheng was doubtful. He was now a first-level hussars general, and the so-called heavy reward was just another half-level upgrade to help him. However, judging from Eunuch Zhou's tone and demeanor, it seemed that It was more than just such a reward, and he couldn't think of anything else the emperor could reward him with.
Full of doubts, Changsheng unfolded the imperial edict and quickly read it. After reading the imperial edict, he was stunned and stood there blankly.
Seeing him like this, Datou curiously took the imperial edict and recited it in a low voice, "Under my disciples, General Li Changsheng of Hussars is loyal to the emperor and the country. His righteousness is as strong as the sky. He eliminates the eunuchs to set the course of the government, suppresses the officials to calm the people, and enriches the treasury to strengthen the country." This is to eliminate enemies in order to enhance the country's prestige. In fact, it is a role model for civil servants and a model for military generals. I specially confer Li Changsheng as a heroic prince. He will be hereditary and exempt from death for nine generations. This is to comfort the loyal ministers and show their great kindness."
"My mother, can you be crowned king?!" Datou's eyes widened in shock.
"Become a king!" Eunuch Zhou was also very excited. "Being a minister is enough to honor the ancestors, but being a king is even better. The most rare thing is to be a prince instead of a county king, and it can be hereditary. "
"Congratulations, Your Majesty. Congratulations, Your Majesty." Eunuch Zhou waved his sleeves and knelt on the ground, "Your Majesty, a thousand years old, a thousand years old, a thousand years old."
Seeing that Da Tou and Yang Kai also wanted to kneel down, Chang Sheng came to his senses and hurriedly helped Eunuch Zhou up, then strictly ordered them not to kneel down, and then invited Eunuch Zhou inside to serve tea.
The incident happened suddenly, and Changsheng was a little confused. He never expected that the emperor would make him king. You must know that making a king is different from making him an official. Officials are positions and can be replaced at any time. The king belongs to the title of nobility, and the title cannot be taken away except for the ten heinous crimes.
Seeing Chang Sheng's shock, Zhou Gonggong wisely stood up and said goodbye, "Your Majesty, please come to your senses first, and I will return to the palace to return the order. I'll come back to bother you another day."
Hearing Eunuch Zhou's words, Chang Sheng hurriedly calmed his mind. After pondering, he took out a stack of documents from the north cabinet. After looking through it, he picked out a house deed from among them, folded it and stuffed it into Eunuch Zhou's hand, "Thank you, Eunuch Zhou."
When Changsheng folded the house deed, Eunuch Zhou had already seen that it was a house deed. He knew that Changsheng was generous, but he didn't expect that Changsheng would be so generous as to give him a house directly. He was shocked and frightened, and refused repeatedly.
Chang Sheng was resolute and insisted on giving the gift, but Eunuch Zhou could not refuse, so he could only accept it fearfully, and then looked at Da Tou and Yang Kai who were standing at the door.
Upon seeing this, Chang Sheng knew that Eunuch Zhou wanted to have some private words with him, and before he could react, Da Tou pulled Yang Kai back to the door and closed the door behind his back.
After the two of them left, Eunuch Zhou cautiously whispered, "Your Majesty, this servant was standing by while the Emperor was reading your memorial. After the Emperor read your memorial, he first applauded, then looked solemn and remained silent for a long time, and then He handed the memorial to General Liu, the commander of the imperial guards, and asked coldly, 'Don't brag anymore. If he intends to rebel, can you stop him?'"
Without waiting for Chang Sheng to answer, Eunuch Zhou whispered again, "Your Majesty, I have been serving the Emperor these years and know the Emperor's temperament well. Although the Emperor gives generous rewards, he is very wary of you and your four subordinates. "
"Thank you, Eunuch Zhou, for reminding me." Changsheng nodded slowly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward. I will leave first. If there is any news, I will notify you immediately." Eunuch Zhou bowed and left.
After Changsheng thanked him, he ordered Datou to send him off on his behalf.
Yu Yi and Shi Xuanming also came after hearing the news and were overjoyed to learn that Changsheng was named king.
At this time, the cook brought the food over. Chang Sheng said nothing if there were outsiders present. When the cook left, Da Tou returned, and the five of them sat down around the table.
Seeing Changsheng's serious expression, the four of them didn't know what he was thinking, so they didn't rush to speak.
After a long silence, Changsheng said, "What do you think?"
"I think it's a good thing that the king is affectionate and the minister is righteous," Yu Yi said first after reading the imperial edict, "The Tang Dynasty was already in turmoil. It was you who turned the tide when it was falling, and helped the building when it was about to collapse. Now that the eunuchs have been eliminated, the officials are in charge. On the Qingming Festival, the national treasury is full, and the Tang Dynasty has shown signs of rejuvenation. Your merits will last forever, and this prince can afford it."
Chang Sheng did not answer, but looked up at Da Tou.
Seeing Changsheng looking at him, Datou said, "I agree with Yu Yi. It is reasonable and reasonable to make you a prince."
Hearing Da Tou's words, Chang Sheng frowned slightly and turned to look at Yang Kai aside.
Yang Kai said in a deep voice, "The reward has two uses. One is to praise the previous achievements, and the other is for the sake of the future. Although you have been given a national surname, you are not a relative of the emperor after all. There are only a few Wang Duo with different surnames in the Tang Dynasty." As the founding father of the country, my lord, although you have made great contributions to the Tang Dynasty, you have no outstanding achievements at the moment. It seems a bit excessive to make you a prince, but making you a county prince is reasonable."
Changsheng nodded and then looked at Shi Xuanming.
Shi Xuanming was eating and didn't realize that Changsheng was looking at him. He didn't come back to his senses until Datou pushed him, "We may have scared the emperor. We killed more than 600 people this time with three people. If we If we go all five, we will definitely kill more. If we go not to Qilin Town but to the palace, and if we kill not Japanese pirates but imperial guards, it will be a different story..."
