Sun Tu's reaction was beyond the expectations of everyone in the palace. Gao Qiu was stunned by his rhetorical question, and then his face became filled with shock and anger!
This guy is too courageous! Almost all the important ministers had such an idea in their hearts. Because according to common sense, as a newcomer to the palace, in the important place of Wende Hall, and facing the emperor and a group of important ministers, it is not easy to speak. Now I am still being questioned by a prince like Gao Qiu. Now, someone else would have been so frightened that they would have just refused to beg for mercy. How could such a situation happen
In fact, several people had the same idea as Gao Qiu, and were prepared to use his crime of killing Zhu Meng as a breakthrough once Sun Tuzhen got into trouble, and directly convicted him to death in front of the officials, even if they couldn't really do it. Even if he takes his life, it will be difficult for him to have any foothold in the court. And as long as he has no chance to turn around, they will have all kinds of means to deal with such a little military attache who has few available people around him.
However, Sun Tu's rebuttal shattered their wishful thinking, and they actually turned from defense to offense and defeated Gao Qiu's army!
Originally, as early as last year, Jiangnan had jointly put all kinds of charges of collaborating with the enemy, Ku Lie, on the dead man Zhu Meng. At that time, Gao Qiu and the others did not dare to excuse him in order to avoid suspicion. Now it is old things Mentioning it again is just an excuse. How could it be possible to crack Sun Tu's counter-examination in a short time
Zhao Ji also glanced at Gao Qiu thoughtfully, vaguely remembering something from before, which made Gao Qiu even more sweaty and panicked. Sun Tu was determined and raised his head again: "Your Majesty, although what I did was inappropriate, the situation was urgent and there was really no better way to come up with. And since Zhu Meng was killed, Jiangnan The morale of all the armies was so high that they were able to recapture various cities within one year and capture Fang La and other bandit leaders alive. I hope Your Majesty will learn from this!"
Not only did he want to completely clear his name, he also wanted to turn the killing of Zhu Meng into a credit! But thinking about it carefully, there is nothing wrong with Sun Tu's statement. After all, the facts are right in front of us. When Zhu Meng was appointed as the coach, Jiangnan was in chaos, losing ground frequently, and all the local people surrendered to those rebels. . But looking back at his death, in just one year, Sun Tuping had succeeded in the rebellion, so it would not be an injustice to say that he had colluded with the rebels.
At this point, no matter from any aspect, it has been completely established that there is something wrong with Zhu Meng. Sun Tu's killing of him was not only innocent, but also meritorious. However, Gao Qiu took this matter to make trouble, which seemed a bit suspicious.
"Your Majesty, I believe that what the Marquis of Yue said is indeed reasonable, and that Zhu Meng is indeed guilty and cannot be punished. However, since he has already brought justice, and even his relatives have been implicated, there is no need to pursue further investigations. And today I am only here to discuss it. Gong, why bother mentioning such things again?" Finally, Cai Jing spoke slowly to cover for Gao Qiu.
Grand Master Cai still has considerable influence in front of Zhao Ji. Hearing these words, he also looked back and nodded with a smile: "What Grand Master said is true. There is no need to worry about the past. Sun Qing also invites you." Get up and talk." Gao Qiu gently took the messenger away without any intention of holding him accountable.
Sun Tu also knew that it would be impossible to deal with a favored minister like Gao Qiu with just these few words.
He was realistic, so he agreed to stand up and didn't pursue him any further. The emperor was even more satisfied with his performance and said: "Speaking of Sun Qing, you have made great contributions to the country, I am still very pleased, because just two days ago, after I learned that it was you who achieved the great victory in Jiangnan, I I just saw your name on the screen of Chongzheng Hall. If you think about it carefully, I must have met you once before, that was in the Third Class Courtyard, right?"
"Your Majesty is wise, I remember the events of that day very clearly. It is precisely because of the conversation I had with Your Majesty at that time that I have devoted myself to serving the country since then, even if it makes me sad!" Sun Tushima responded loudly, showing his excitement after receiving the kindness of Zhiyu.
"Haha, you really didn't disappoint me. In just a few years, you have been promoted from a low-level official to, well, by the way, besides marquis, what other rewards does Sun Tu have?" As the emperor spoke, he looked at Gao Qiu, who was temporarily in charge of the affairs of the Privy Council.
Gao Qiu felt miserable. He had just wanted to attack Sun Tu, and now he was about to be promoted. But when the emperor asked, he could only answer: "Your Majesty, the Privy Council intends to promote him to the post of Jieduliu, and to have the position of Yue Marquis decided by the imperial court early in the morning."
This is indeed an extremely high-status official position among military officers, at least in terms of reputation. Because after Jiedu Liu, the next level up is Jiedu Envoy, and in the Song Dynasty, there was almost no such actual position. Unless you are in the center, otherwise, when you reach the level after Jiedu Liu, you will be the end of the military general. As for Sun Tu, he also had the status of a marquis, so his status was particularly valuable.
Sun Tu naturally knew that the reward this time was indeed not small, so he immediately thanked him again. After that, Zhao Ji praised him generously. Not only did he give him a lot of gold, silver, and silk, but he also granted Ya'er a fifth-grade imperial edict. Although this was intended, it was also quite significant. It's so gracious.
After Sun Tu thanked him again, Zhao Ji smiled and said: "Sun Qing, I am very pleased that you have made great contributions to the court this time. I wonder if you have other rewards besides these." Do you want it?"
In fact, this question was just a polite question from the emperor. Under normal circumstances, at this time, the ministers would just express their thanks again with gratitude, and then say something like they had nothing else to ask for. In the end, both the emperor and the ministers were satisfied, and then But he left the palace.
But today, Sun Tu did not follow the usual rules. Faced with this polite question, he actually made his request: "Your Majesty, I do have a request. I wonder if your Majesty can grant it."
"Then..." Zhao Ji originally wanted to ask him to back down. After he finished speaking, he realized that things had changed and could only quickly change his words: "Let's talk about it." There was a trace of confusion and embarrassment in his expression. The ministers had a strange look on their faces. They didn't know where this guy got the shame and courage to speak like this.
Sun Tu didn't care about what these people thought at all, and just said: "Because the imperial court summoned me urgently, I rushed back to Bianjing before I had arranged many things in Jiangnan. I wonder if your majesty will allow me to come back again." Jiangnan…”
"No." As soon as he heard this, Gao Qiu immediately became anxious and subconsciously interrupted, causing the emperor to look sideways again.
He turned pale, knowing that he had lost his composure. But now, he could only bite the bullet and said: "Your Majesty, the Privy Council recalled Sun Tu to Bianjing this time to show sympathy for him. After all, he has been fighting in Shandong and Jiangnan for many years. He has suffered physically and mentally. We are all exhausted, but we can't work him any longer. Secondly, it is also based on the court rules. We have a rotation garrison method since the Song Dynasty. A general who has led his troops for more than three years should be transferred to another place. This Sun Tu is in Shandong and Jiangnan I have led an army for more than three years, and it would not be appropriate to leave him there any longer. I made this arrangement out of consideration for him, so as not to arouse people's discussion."
These words were reasonable and reasonable. Not only did Zhao Ji and all the officials nodded, but even Sun Tu could not come up with any reason to refute it, because this was the way the Song Dynasty always used troops - in order to suppress the possible dangers of generals. To counter the imperial court, it is better to weaken the local military strength, but also to keep the generals from knowing each other.
What Gao Qiu said was a complete conspiracy. Naturally, it was difficult for Sun Tu to deal with it, so he could only accept this arrangement. In fact, since he came to Bianjing, he never thought that he could easily go back, so he was not too disappointed, but he looked a little lonely. Seeing this, Zhao Ji felt a little embarrassed, and smiled and said: "Sun Qing, don't be too disappointed, the rules are like this, but it does not mean that you will not have the opportunity to serve the imperial court in the future. Since you have such ability , If you take Yanyun from the north in the future, there will naturally be plenty of time for you to kill enemies and make meritorious deeds."
"I would like to thank your Majesty for your trust. However, I still have a request." Sun Tu was moved in his heart and tried to say: "I would also like to ask your Majesty to give me the opportunity to continue to serve the court and serve your Majesty, and to be able to take on any actual duties in the capital.
As soon as he finished speaking, Cai Jing's expression changed slightly. He had quickly figured out that Sun Tu's previous statement that he wanted to return to Jiangnan was just a pretext, and this was his true purpose!
Whether an official has power in the capital, or whether he has the ability to protect himself, the most important thing is not the level of his official position, but the actual power of dispatch. If Sun Tu had not taken the initiative to ask this question, Zhao Ji would not have interfered with such a trivial matter. Of course, Cai Jing, Gao Qiu and others would not have given him this opportunity, so it is very likely that he would be in name only and eventually be completely forgotten. . And by that time, Sun Tu's death would also come. Not to mention Gao Qiu, even an official in Kaifeng Mansion would have all the means to kill him.
But now, the situation is completely different. Sun Tu actually asked. When ninety-nine of the one hundred officials came were too embarrassed to directly ask about his dispatch authority, he was the one hundredth person to ask shamelessly. But this time, even Cai Jing was unable to intervene, and the emperor could no longer ignore it.
"Sun Qing is really loyal to state affairs. Tell me, what do you think?" Zhao Ji asked casually.
"I'm just a warrior, so I really can't do normal things. I only have a loyal heart, so the Imperial Army or the Imperial City Minister think I'm still qualified. I wonder if Your Majesty can approve it and let me serve in these two yamen. What about an official position?" Sun Tu honestly and politely gave him the position he wanted.
How could this guy be so bold and thick-skinned... This was the first thought that flashed through the minds of the ministers.