Fenghou

……

Before dawn, [-] cavalrymen began to gather and marched to the south in a mighty manner. The day before, [-] cavalrymen escorted Zhao Huan and his son to go south first.

This time Chen Qing went to Lin'an to show his strength. In fact, apart from the emperor Zhao Gou and several ministers, the other officials in the government and the public hardly knew his true strength. In their eyes, Chen Qing was just a disobedient warlord. , and even regarded him as a barbarian in the West.

Therefore, there are thousands of officials sitting on the bench waiting to be recruited in Lin'an, but none of them are willing to go to Jingzhao, which is very illustrative.

Militarily powerful, politically small.

But if without Zhao Huan and his son, Chen Qing really couldn't lead troops to Lin'an, that would be a rebellion.

But now it is to protect the late emperor to go to Lin'an, the meaning is completely different, it is more of a political demonstration, Chen Qing not only needs to be strong militarily, but also step by step politically.

This is the political advantage that Zhao Huan and his son brought him.

From a jurisprudential point of view, Zhao Huan is the emperor of the Great Song Dynasty, and he did not announce his abdication, so the emperor Zhao Gou is only considered a temporary emperor, or the emperor of Jianguo. Once the emperor returns, he must abdicate to trace the source. .This is why Zhao Ji was extremely afraid of the return of the second emperor in history.

Chen Qing led an army of [-] to escort the late emperor to Lin'an, which was essentially a way of coercing the emperor to order the princes.

The [-] cavalry were very fast. Four days later, Chen Qing led the army to Chengdu.

Chen Qing pitched a camp outside the city, and then received Zheng Ping.

Seeing Chen Qing, Zheng Ping gave a thumbs up, "It's still you, you dare to bring a hundred thousand troops to Lin'an, I really admire you."

Chen Qing said indifferently: "It depends on the main aspects of the problem. The key point is that the late emperor entered the capital. The one hundred thousand troops are just guards. What does it matter if the late emperor brings more guards?"

Zheng Ping laughed loudly, "Well said, the late emperor's guards, even if they brought 100 million yuan, no one would dare to say anything."

Chen Qing said again: "Are you ready for the food and supplies I asked you to prepare?"

Zheng Ping smiled triumphantly, "The thousand flat-bottomed tugboats prepared by Li Jinxiao are already fully loaded with 20 shi of grain. I have stockpiled hundreds of thousands of shi of grain and black beans at the Three Gorges, and 40 dans of forage. Half a year's consumption of the army and [-] horses."

Chen Qing nodded, "We can move the grain and grass to Jiangling Mansion, and the warehouse over there can be used."

Zheng Ping was overjoyed, and quickly asked, "Does that mean we can win Jing South Road?"

"No hurry, step by step, we have been stationed in Jiangling Mansion for a year, and the court has not said anything, I don't believe they will not know, they naturally acquiesced.

Just move the warships and supplies there first, I don’t care about Jiangling Mansion, I don’t interfere with the appointment and removal of officials on Jingnan South Road, and I don’t care if the tax court wants to take them away, but I want to get the right to garrison. This time I will go to Lin’an and Negotiations with the imperial court will also talk about this point. I want to garrison the army to suppress bandits, and I want the army to support myself. "

"Humble job understands!"

At this time, Chen Qing saw that Chao Qing was hesitating to speak at the gate of the big tent, so he asked, "What's the matter?"

"Reporting to the county king, Zhong Huan, the Commander of the Internal Guard, is here."

Chen Qing smiled and nodded, "Let him in!"

After a while, Zhong Huan walked quickly into the big tent and bowed to salute, "Commander of the [-]th Battalion of Internal Guards makes Zhong Huan see the king of the county!"

Zheng Ping grinned, "Boy, are you a civil servant or a general?"

Chong Huan blushed, and knelt down on one knee to give a military salute, "See the county king, see Zheng Dutong!"

Although Zhong Huan was born as a Jinshi, it has always been Zhong Huan's dream to inherit his grandfather's behest and lead an army on the battlefield. He did not expect his dream to take off from the inner guard. Of course, he cherishes this hard-won opportunity.

Chen Qing nodded, "Get up and talk!"

Zhong Huan stood up and presented a report, "This is the detailed report of the internal guards' investigation and elimination of Uncle Wei's property in various places on Sichuan Road. Please read it to the king of the county!"

Chen Qing took the report and asked, "Is it over?"

"Reporting to the county king, it's over. A total of more than 340 people have been arrested, of which 370 were found guilty. The rest have been released and continue to do their work, but all properties have been transferred to the military. In addition, we seized 40 million taels of silver, 120 taels of gold, [-] million guan coins, and countless materials such as Camellia oleifera and cloth, and the list is attached to the report.”

"There is so much wealth?" Chen Qing was really surprised.

Zheng Ping said beside him: "Before the king questioned why the Chuanli faction collected so little money, where did the accumulation of decades go? This is the answer, and Uncle Wei Guo has accumulated money in the past few years, and the low-level checkpoints are strict. Wealth they cannot transport out of Sichuan."

Chen Qing frowned, "You mean that all the wealth of the Chuanli faction is in Wei Tong's hands?"

Zhong Huan said: "Reporting to the king of the county, it should be said that it is temporarily stored in Wei Tong's hands. The Empress Dowager Wei is the backstage of the Chuanli faction. Otherwise, with the help of a few local tyrants, how could there be so many officials supporting it? We have confiscated Wei Tong. Tong's letter is enough to prove that Wei Tong is arming the Chuanli faction and arranging for them to rebel."

"Are all these criminals still there?"

"They are all here, waiting for the order of the county king to deal with them."

Chen Qing nodded, "I will take the most important ones to Lin'an to confront Wei Tong. Besides, those who commit homicide or adultery will be beheaded, and the rest will be sent to the mine."

After a pause, Chen Qing said again: "Let Li Xuemin be handed over to the Chengdu government office, and he will be dealt with according to the law after interrogation."

Chapter 844 Departure

Zhong Huan retreated, and Chen Qing asked with a smile, "how is this son?"

Zheng Ping gave a thumbs up and praised: "Both civil and military, the future is boundless, no matter in command, strategy or handling ability, I feel that he is much better than Wang Hao. After a few years of hard work, he can succeed Wang Hao in the future."

Chen Qing pondered for a while and said: "He really needs to temper himself."

"Actually, the king of the county took him to the east. Anyway, he has nothing to do for the time being. This kid is quite strategic, and he can advise the king of the county."

Chen Qing smiled, changed the subject and asked, "What's the status of the hundred ships?"

"They are all moored on the river outside Jiangling City, and Beizhi specially sent [-] soldiers to defend them."

"Is the crew there?"

"They are all here. They are arranged to live in Jiangling City. There are thousands of people. Yang Yuanqing is responsible for taking care of them."

Chen Qing nodded, "My [-] army is not all cavalry, and in the end I only brought [-] cavalry east to Lin'an, and you have to arrange for your men to send the other [-] horses back to Jingzhao. This is very important, and you must not be careless. "

"The humble office will be properly arranged, please rest assured the county king."

"That's good, I'll leave early in the morning the day after tomorrow!"

……

At this time, Zhong Huan did not leave, he was chatting with Chao Qing, and there was Chao Kun sitting beside him.

"I said you brat, how did you pass the exam, you missed a sentence in the scriptures, and the champion passed by, your father is so angry that he can't blame you for slapping you!"

Chao Kun rolled his eyes, ignored Chong Huan, and Chong Huan waved his hand, "Forget it, I'm still a boring gourd, and it's boring to talk to you."

He said to Chao Qing again: "Old Chao, do you think I chose to be a general?"

Chao Qing smiled slightly and said, "Isn't it your dream to be a military general? Since you chose it, why do you regret it? Besides, you abducted all the Xixia princesses back. Can a civil servant do such a thing?"

"How many times have I told you, it's not kidnapping, it's about saving them. They are auctioning young women. Several brothels are vying to bid. I didn't bring any money, so I rushed up with my sword and pulled the princess away. Who would dare to stop her?" I?"

Chao Kun opened his eyes wide, "Brother Zhong is so powerful?"

"That is, I have practiced martial arts for ten years, and I can be a commander without a second?"

Seeing that his brother was shocked, Chao Qing smiled and said, "Don't listen to him bragging, he has three hundred men with him! Otherwise those traffickers won't beat him to death."

Chong Huan immediately lost his temper, "It's rare for Xiao Chao to worship me so much, can you save me some face?"

Chao Kun gave a thumbs up and praised: "Because you dare to marry Princess Xixia as my wife, I will worship you once."

Chao Qing sneered and said, "What is there to admire, his father can't pass that test."

Zhong Huan suddenly said triumphantly: "Why can't I make it through? My parents have already moved to Jingzhao and officially recognized Ah Jing as a daughter-in-law. I knew that as long as Ah Jing has a child in her stomach, all difficulties will be easily solved."

"Has Chong's family moved to Jingzhao?"

Zhong Huan nodded, "The Department of Officials has appointed my father as the judge of Jingzhao Mansion, in charge of prisons. My official court may take it back, and then our family will be given a five-acre official house. My father wrote yesterday to let I'll go back early."

Chao Qing whispered: "Why are you rushing back, now there is an opportunity, you don't want to seize it?"

Zhong Huan was startled, "What chance?"

"Follow the county king to the east. If you want, I will mention it for you."

"What reason?"

"What an idiot, shouldn't the county king have internal guards to protect him?"

Chong Huan scratched his head, and said happily, "Then I will ask my brother."

……

The next morning, Chen Qing interviewed Zhong Huan in the big tent of the military camp, "Chao Qing said that you also want to follow me eastward?"

"The matter of the humble position in Chengdu is over, and the remaining matters have been handed over to Zheng Dutong and Zheng Zhifu. It stands to reason that I should first ask the king for instructions, but according to the internal guard regulations, the county king can directly command the inner guard battalion, which is not considered a leapfrogging .”

"You are very thoughtful, but I heard that your wife is pregnant. Is it convenient for you? This trip will take at least half a year."

"My wife is taken care of by my parents. I can go eastward with peace of mind. Later, I will write a letter from my family and ask my subordinates to take it back. Some of my subordinates really have family problems and cannot go eastward with me."

"How many men do you have now?"

"Reporting to the county king, there are 120 five subordinates who can follow me to the east, and all of them are elite internal guards with high martial arts skills."

Chen Qing nodded, "I have soldiers and guards by my side, but there is indeed a lack of external monitoring. Your internal guards are at the right time, so clean up and take your men on board tomorrow. You go to report to Counselor Zhou. He is here. He will be the general manager of the next eastbound trip, and he will arrange all the ships."

"Humble post obeys orders!"

Just as Chong Huan was about to leave, Chen Qing suddenly remembered something and asked with a smile, "What was your original name?"

Zhong Huan understood the meaning of the king of the county, and quickly explained: "When I was born in a humble position, the first emperor was still called Zhao Xuan, and later the first emperor changed his name to Zhao Huan. After he ascended the throne, my grandfather changed my name to Zhong Heng. After Jingkang, I returned to my original name. Huan."

"I see, Chao Qing, you take him to find Zhou Shenshi."

Chao Qing saluted and left with Zhong Huan.

Chen Qing watched them walk away and couldn't help sighing.

At this time, Zhao Yingluo came out from the back tent, and said with a smile, "Why are you sighing?"

Chen Qing's women all have a characteristic, they like to call Chen Qing their husbands when they come out, no matter the Yu sisters or Zhao Qiaoyun are the same, but at home they have to obediently call them officials.

Chen Qing said with a smile: "I'm just lamenting that the children of aristocratic families are so powerful. Regardless of vision or ability, children from poor families really can't catch up with them."

Zhao Yingluo pursed her lips and smiled, "Does your husband know where the problem is?"

"Tell me about it."

"Actually, it has something to do with your husband's method of selecting talent through the imperial examination!"

"Continue talking!" Chen Qing became a little interested.

Zhao Yingluo continued: "My husband's imperial examinations emphasize policies and despise theory, and the points for posting scriptures are even lower. If during Renzong's reign, a few words were missed in posting scriptures, then the name must be lost to Sun Shan. But when it comes to my husband, I missed twelve words. They can still take the No. 7 exam, and whether posting scriptures or writing essays, they are all good at poor scholars. They study hard day and night, stay at home for ten years, and they are full of economics. It is necessary to travel around, get in touch with the officialdom, and learn more about the hardships of the people in order to write good countermeasures. Generally, only the children of aristocratic families have this kind of education and money for their children to travel. A poor scholar who has never left home for ten years, you Isn't it funny to ask him to write about world events?"

Chen Qing was a little touched. He hadn't thought about this issue before, but after the list of imperial examinations came out this year, more than [-]% of those who passed the exam were the children of aristocratic families or eunuchs, and there were very few children from poor families. He couldn't figure out what the problem was. ?But he absolutely does not want this to happen. It will solidify social classes, and the consequences will be serious.

What Zhao Yingluo said today made Chen Qing feel a little like waking up from a dream.

"Is this what you thought of?"

"Qiaoyun and I were doing imperial examination questions together. When we talked about this issue, we both felt that my husband paid too much attention to countermeasures and was very unfair to poor children."

"Then how to solve this problem? Do you want to increase the proportion of posting scriptures and papers?"

"In fact, there is nothing wrong with my husband's emphasis on countermeasures. A large number of practical and knowledgeable talents can be selected. As for the poor children, in fact, my husband can open another Mingjing subject in the imperial examination, and the poor children will have hope."

Chen Qing was overjoyed, it was really a good way to solve the problem, he hugged Zhao Yingluo and kissed her deeply, his hands began to be dishonest, Zhao Yingluo shyly pushed him away, pointing outside, there are soldiers standing guard outside the tent!

The barracks was indeed inconvenient, Chen Qing laughed, and could only look forward to boarding the ship tomorrow!

……

Before dawn the next day, the army and accompanying officials began to board the boats one after another. Four hundred large ships of three thousand shi and one thousand flat-bottomed tugboats were moored on the Minjiang River. , [-] troops boarded the ship.

When we arrive at Jiangling, we will send out a hundred more large ships, and continue to reduce the number to [-] cavalry to travel by land, and [-] troops to board the large ships to form an extremely large naval force. Carry a lot of supplies.

"Woo—" The low-pitched horns blew together.

The fleet began to rise slowly, lined up for dozens of miles, and headed for the Yangtze River in the south...

Chapter 845 Wei Tong

Wei Tong's mansion is located in the east of Yujie Street. It is a mansion with an area of ​​about [-] acres. This is already a rare mansion in Lin'an where land resources are scarce.

In addition, Wei Tong also has a landscape garden house covering an area of ​​ten acres by the West Lake.

These two beautiful houses were of course given by the emperor Zhao Gou. Zhao Gou was very generous to this only uncle. He not only gave him a beautiful house, but also made him the king of Yonghe County. As a precedent, the two brothers of the Empress Dowager Xiang were both named county kings during their lifetimes.

Zhao Gou also gave Wei Tong a gold medal, allowing him to enter the palace at any time to solve the Empress Dowager Wei's worries and problems. With this gold medal, Wei Tong is not only free to enter and exit the palace gate, but also the city gate. Even in the middle of the night, the city gate must be opened , let him into the city.

Wei Tong himself is not idle, he is extremely greedy for money, Lin'an city has been occupied by him how many restaurants and teahouses, he also used the power of Queen Mother Wei to intervene in mining and casting money, and in the smelting of gold and silver mines. With the support of the emperor Zhao Gou, when the Wei Party gradually formed, Wei Tong became the contact person of the Empress Dowager Wei.

He has a large number of stewards under him, and every time a Wei party official is appointed as an official in a local area, he will send a senior steward to follow him, like a vampire, desperately sucking the fat and ointment of the local people.

Basically everyone in Lin'an knows that Wei Tong has eight famous chief stewards, known as the Eight Great King Kongs, and Wang Lin is one of the Eight Great King Kongs, ranking second.