King Lu smiled coldly, with dark eyes, and said: "That's a good question. When I said goodbye to my father, my father once told me that Qinzhou is the frontier, and the barbarians on the grassland are awe-inspiring and unethical. , I came to Qinzhou alone, not to play, not to enjoy the blessings, but to use troops, and to be the commander-in-chief of the three armies to drive away the barbarians!"
"Otherwise, why would my father need me to control the three houses? He also transferred 600,000 silver from the Ministry of Household Affairs to Gu as special military expenses. Where was this money spent?"
King Lu's eyes flashed with cold light: "The army has its own share of food and salary. This money is a pension for warriors and a reward for those who have made meritorious deeds!"
"If we can't clear the border, how can I obey my father's instructions?" After saying this, his expression was calm, and there was a sudden silence on and off the high platform, so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
This statement was actually true or false. The emperor gave it casually, but it was not King Lu who said this, but the soldiers present did not know.
Several generals immediately looked at each other, and some even blushed. This was a fair and just seizure of power, but in full view of everyone, no one could refute it - the emperor asked King Lu to control the three palaces and guard the borders.
Seeing that the general was frightened for a moment, King Lu immediately knew that he had succeeded. With this acquiescence, the backbone of the people below regarded him as the commander-in-chief. He immediately smiled and shouted: "Reward!"
Immediately, each one was rewarded with a hundred taels. A hundred taels is not light, weighing seven or eight kilograms. Everyone then blushed and kowtowed: "Thank you, Your Majesty for the reward!"
"The first three take one step forward!" King Lu said again.
"Yes!" The first three stepped forward, the first one wore a red scarf and looked heroic. He was twenty years old. His body was stained with blood. They were all prey. He had forty animal tails on his body.
The second place was a man with thick cheeks and thirty animal tails.
The third one was thin and small, with more than twenty eyebrows and eyes.
King Lu immediately asked the names of the top three.
"The names are Li Hengming, Cheng Zhiyuan, and Chen Wu."
King Lu looked at you a few more times and said with appreciation: "You three are really brave people. You were promoted to one level immediately. If there is no vacancy, you will temporarily take over the original department."
Promotions can only be made by substitutes. Unless the superiors are killed, moved or retired, it is difficult to promote. The three of them were ecstatic and knelt down to King Lu and saluted: "Thank you, Your Majesty for the reward."
"Did you see that? I appreciate capable people and brave people the most, and hate mediocrity and cowardice the most."
"Any meritorious deeds must be rewarded, and any delinquent must be punished!"
"Yes, Your Highness." Everyone present, except the general, blushed and responded loudly. King Lu was very satisfied: "Go back and celebrate the banquet."
Dozens of large pots were placed in the camp, all boiling.
Today's hunting prey is cooked in a pot. Garlic, ginger, chili, star anise, and cinnamon are all thrown into the pot.
The fire was raging, the hot water in the pot was boiling continuously, and a layer of oil floated on the water. A soldier in charge of cooking filled a large bowl with some oil. The oil on top was steaming with the aroma of meat.
After taking a sip, he said, "Okay."
I glanced around and saw that no one was cutting a piece of meat. The meat had some fat and was fragrant, and I ate it up in just a few bites.
Following the grand banquet, the main camp of the team was eating meat and drinking wine at the table outside. Li Hengming, Cheng Zhiyuan, and Chen Wu all had many other people come up, either respectful or jealous, and they were all drinking.
There are also many camp leaders whose eyes are filled with gloom.
military tent
Barbecue, the chef brought by King Lu is grilling it in the tent.
King Lu took the wine and stood up: "Today's hunting, there are many brave men in the army, and it is all the credit of the generals. Come, I will give you a drink."
"King Xie Lu." The generals all stood up and raised their glasses.
After three rounds of drinking, King Lu returned to the big tent. After drinking, there were only three people left inside. There was only one oil lamp burning in the big tent, and the light was very dim.
Eunuch Liao bowed and took a note: "Your Highness, of the seven hundred and nineteen captains in the three prefectures, thirty-nine are close to each other, forty-four are indifferent, and the rest are wavering."
King Lu turned to look at Xie Chengdong: "Sir, what's your plan?"
"It's normal to waver. Those who are indifferent and rejecting must be killed as a warning. Those who surrender must hand in certificates and be rewarded. This is actually the same thing."
"The prince takes turns leading the troops of the three prefectures to patrol the border. He can secretly receive the defectors and give them opportunities to gain military exploits. Those who refuse to accept will find ways to kill them in battle, or to demote them for minor mistakes. However, the defectors have to do it themselves. , we are just confirming it posthumously.”
"Even if something happened, it was because the prince didn't know about it and was deceived by the villain."
"But if a defector framed his boss and accused his colleagues, and then got promoted and made a fortune, he would have to follow the prince into the dark side."
King Lu's eyes moved, and he looked up to the sky and laughed: "Great kindness!"
The lights were dim, and with King Lu's laughter, the lights also fluctuated a little, and the figure was reflected on the tent, which was a bit eerie. After King Lu finished laughing, he asked Eunuch Liao: "What happened in the capital recently?"
Listening to King Lu's words, Eunuch Liao handed the secret folder up: "Your Majesty, with your restoration, the original line has been basically restored, and many people are willing to inform you."
"There is news from the capital that His Majesty has reduced Li Gang's military power again. I heard that the next batch of Wu Shunbo and Jibei Marquis will also completely reduce the town."
With these words, the tent became a little depressing. King Lu took the book and looked at it for a long time before letting out a long sigh.
"Even if I have a solid foundation in Qinzhou, but all the vassal towns in the world have been cut off, why should I talk about fighting for the world." King Lu took the fold and looked at it, some injustice welled up in his heart, he picked up the cup and smashed it on the ground. Debris flew everywhere, and the folds were thrown to the ground.
Xie Chengdong calmly took the folder, looked at it carefully, pondered for a moment, and said: "This is the emperor paving the way for the prince to prevent the prince from hurting his hand."
After saying that, he was silent for a long time, and then said: "Anyone who the emperor wants to reduce military power, the prince can contact in secret. This is risky, but if you want to win the world, you must take risks."
King Lu also sighed: "Hey, sometimes Gu doesn't know whether it is right or wrong to do this. If someone suppresses the rebellion, although he will definitely be suppressed, if Gu secretly colludes and is implicated, he may not be able to escape the national law."
Xie Chengdong smiled hoarsely, looked at King Lu and said: "Your Majesty, your Majesty has spent half his life in the army and conquered the world. There is no general in the army in the hands of your Majesty. It is impossible for them not to know your Majesty's methods. Who dares to rebel? Now it's just a matter of taking over the world." It’s just military power, it’s not life and death yet.”
"In fact, in my opinion, if someone rebels, it is a good thing. If the water is not muddied, how can you rise up at the right time? Maybe it will clear the way for the prince."
"I'm telling you something treasonous - it's an open secret that the Emperor is in poor health."
"Ji An is coming out?" King Lu nodded and leaned back on the chair, feeling a little tired. Eunuch Liao quickly got a wet towel and came forward to serve him.
Xie Chengdong laughed and said nothing. He stepped forward to take a brush and started writing, saying: "The emperor deliberately placed a thorn stick on the ground and asked the prince to pick it up. The prince looked embarrassed."
"The emperor was very disappointed. He looked back and sighed. If the prince dared to take it, I would trust him with the world. But he didn't dare to take it. I had to act like a villain and remove all these thorns before giving it to the prince."
The lights in the big tent were dim, and Xie Chengdong was writing, and the reflection moved with the pen and ink. Eunuch Liao stood up and stood behind him to watch, with some doubts in his eyes, and asked: "Mr. Xie, what is the explanation for this?"
Xie Chengdong put away his pen and said: "The emperor will cut down the vassal towns step by step. I will break this pattern. This theory of thorns is a sharp weapon."
Eunuch Liao knew it as soon as he heard it. He glanced at Xie Chengdong and suddenly felt a chill in his heart, but he praised: "Wonderful, isn't the prince benevolent and generous? Although this theory of thorns is a fabrication, it is in line with the general trend, the prince's character, and the emperor's choice. , who dares not to believe it?”
King Lu drank some wine and felt a little upset. He took a wet towel to wipe it with. After hearing this, he quickly took off the wet towel and stood up: "Sir, did you come up with another plan for me?"
Eunuch Liao happily took the fold and came forward. King Lu took it and took a look. After thinking about it for a moment, he realized clearly in his heart: "This plan is really vicious."
"The more important thing is that there is no defence."
"Come here, spread the news and start rumors according to this plan." King Lu said.
Qixuan Mountain·Remote Taoist Temple
There was a dark atmosphere in the Taoist temple. In a small hall, the blind Taoist was sitting in front of the shrine. The lights were still dim. But at this time, a layer of red light lit up on the anchor in the darkness, and you could faintly see the dense spider webs inside. The cracks slowly healed in the red light.
Two sticks of incense were lit under the anchor, and Wan stared straight into the darkness with his eyes.
The blind Taoist sat cross-legged, and the gray-black air surrounding him was reduced a lot. There was some black clear light all over his body. The spiritual energy continued to fall down and was constantly transformed by the black clear light.
The blind Taoist suddenly opened his eyes. In the blood hole in his eyes, some blood threads were moving, like parasites crawling on his eyes. It took a long time to calm down.
After closing his eyes and opening them again, a pair of eyes appeared. Although he seemed unable to see, eyeballs had grown. The blind Taoist felt a little uncomfortable and touched it: "Is this true? Can even eyeballs really grow?"
"Even if you become an Earth Immortal, it will be difficult for your physical body to reach this stage, right?"
"Perhaps this can only happen if the gods and forms in the legend have proven themselves to be true kings. It seems that I made the right bet by worshiping this anchor - I am the one who was born according to destiny!"
Thinking of this, the blind Taoist laughed and stopped after a long time: "It's just that the longevity has not been restored, and the sins have been suppressed. It is really difficult. Now let me see how much the power of spying on the secrets of heaven has been restored?"
The blind Taoist stretched out his hand and pressed it on the anchor. The spiritual light lit up on the anchor. It stopped after a long time, and some information was transmitted into the blind Taoist's mind.
The blind Taoist closed his eyes and meditated, and suddenly laughed: "If God wants it to perish, it must first make it crazy. Xie Chengdong, only if you continue to grow rapidly, the fruits of the harvest will be more abundant. I will help you again."
As he spoke, he pressed his hand on the anchor and chanted a spell. Just as soon as he grabbed it, several red snake shadows appeared, and he held a handful of them in his hand.
The dragon energy was crushed into a ball, and a weak little dragon appeared. As soon as it appeared, it squirmed desperately, almost wanting to escape.
The blind Taoist sneered and said: "Hmph, many years ago, if I hadn't secretly helped, how could you, a master and a Taoist, kill Qianlong?"
"After killing Qianlong, I took the opportunity to seize the dragon energy, which will eventually be put to use - Xie Chengdong, I will clear the way for you and let the person you want to stir up trouble appear!"
As soon as he said that, the light yellow dragon shadow flew out and quickly disappeared into the sky.
The dragon shadow just appeared and flew out. The originally clear night changed rapidly, and the sky suddenly became thick with thick clouds, quickly filling half of the sky.
"Boom!" The sky seemed to be angry, and a lightning flashed through the thick black clouds, illuminating the small hall. A deafening thunder fell, and the red-light anchor cracked again, and the blind Taoist's whole body Shocked, he covered his face, and tears of blood flowed from the gaps.
(End of chapter)