Drive a RV and go farming in ancient times.

Not many people came from Jingwu Academy this time. Only a few of the best ones were selected as representatives, such as Xu Huaiyi, Zhao Sanyou, and Li Yunting. These people have made many contributions on the battlefield, and their achievements are recorded in the book. They are indispensable for the reward in the palace this time, so they can show up.

As for the others, they were not so honorable. It's not that they didn't contribute, but their performance was not outstanding. For example, Meng Ping's martial arts were actually quite good, but he was unlucky. He was seriously injured in the battle and had to recuperate intermittently. He missed several battles, and when he tried to win credit later, he could only pick up the leftovers.

The people who came this time, regardless of their family background, all tacitly agreed to have Xu Huaiyi as their leader.

Xu Huaiyi was not pretentious and polite. When dealing with court officials, he was never stingy in promoting his classmates. Regardless of whether those who came to make friends with him were sincere or not, he made sure they became familiar with him.

After being appointed as an official in this way and entering the court, you will have more connections and your life will be much easier.

The classmates were all grateful from the bottom of their hearts.

Xu Huaiyi is so magnanimous in his actions that it is impossible not to admire him, so they are willing to follow his lead.

Now, seeing that he can even talk to Prime Minister Lu, the head of the civil officials, although I didn't hear what they talked about, but looking at their expressions from afar, I can tell how close they are. The way Prime Minister Lu looks at Xu Huaiyi is no different from the way he looks at his own nephew. Who wouldn't envy such a network of contacts?

What Zhao Sanyou said was what was in their hearts. From now on, they had to get closer to Xu Huaiyi.

Xu Huaiyi didn't laugh it off, and said naturally, "We are all brothers who have fought together and shared life and death. Isn't it natural for us to take care of each other?"

Hearing this, Zhao Sanyou laughed, patted his shoulder, and said sincerely, "Good brother, from now on, whenever you give me orders, I will obey you. We will share the good and the bad together, and I will never betray you!"

Others echoed this, with the same sincerity in their eyes.

No matter whether they will be forced to end up together in the future due to problems with their teams and positions, at this moment, everyone is loyal to each other and there is no empty talk.

It was not until a sharp cry of "The Emperor has arrived!" that the excited emotions of several people were suppressed.

In the luxurious hall, the lively atmosphere suddenly stopped as if a switch had been pressed.

Then, everyone stood up, knelt down and bowed, shouting, "Long live the emperor!"

The cheers were deafening and echoed through the sky.

Xu Huaiyi lowered his head and could not see what the scene was in front of him, but just by looking at the scene, he could imagine the majesty of the royal family. The scenes he had seen in movies and TV dramas in his previous life were far less profound than being there in person at this moment.

He looked at his nose with his eyes and at his heart with his nose, and secretly reminded himself that he must show his awe for the royal family clearly on his face.

"All my dear friends, please live in peace."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Everyone returned to their seats, but because the emperor was there, the atmosphere was inevitably tense and restrained. Those sitting in the front were accustomed to the emperor's majesty and their expressions were still okay, but those sitting in the back, many of whom were entering the palace for the first time, could not remain calm. They were as stiff as stones and dared not move.

Xu Huaiyi did not behave in an unusual manner. He seemed a little embarrassed but not too out of control, which was very consistent with his status.

Since it is a celebration banquet, there will inevitably be some rewards.

First, someone read a long and flowery article of praise, but Xu Huaiyi couldn't understand a few words from beginning to end.

After that, each person was promoted to a higher position and rewarded with luxurious houses, fertile land and beautiful concubines according to his military merits.

Several generals who led troops to fight were at the front of the line. Each of them was promoted two levels, and other rewards were also generous.

It is impossible for officials in the same dynasty not to be envious of all this, but they are not so jealous. After all, fighting in a war means risking your life. These two levels of promotion are hard-earned. If they were in their place, they would rather climb up through other channels than risk their lives on the outcome of the fight.

One general's success is built on the bones of thousands of soldiers. The cruelty of the battlefield is difficult to fully understand for those who have not seen it.

The civil officials were slightly disturbed, but the military generals were extremely excited.

When it was Xu Huaiyi's turn, the atmosphere became strangely heated, and his appearance attracted everyone's attention.

Sun Yu was secretly worried, fearing that he could not handle such pressure. If he lost his composure again, it would be a huge embarrassment.

Fortunately, what he worried about did not happen.

Xu Huaiyi was calm and composed, yet a little bit fearful. His posture while kneeling in the hall was very humble, showing his respect for the royal family incisively and vividly, without losing the demeanor of a military general.

Emperor Jianxing looked down at him with a probing look in his eyes, but he did not test him in any unnecessary ways. After the eunuch read out the reward for Xu Huaiyi, he praised him gently with a few words and let him leave.

From the beginning to the end, he was not shown any special treatment towards him, but he was not unfair in terms of rewards either.

As he had expected, he obtained the rank of General Wuyi, a fourth-rank military rank, and was given the most prestigious position in the Yulin Guard. Once he started working, he was in charge of hundreds of people. He had both status and real power, and gained both fame and fortune.

In addition, other houses, fertile fields, gold, silver, jewelry, etc. are even more abundant, fully worthy of his contributions in the war.

It can be said that the imperial court did not disappoint the meritorious officials.

Later, he was rewarded with six beautiful maids. Despite everyone's meaningful gazes, he thanked the emperor without changing his expression.

It’s a pity that no one mentioned the assassinations he encountered on the road, and the others seemed to avoid them intentionally and turned a deaf ear to them.

Xu Huaiyi would not be so tactless as to spoil the fun at this critical moment. He showed an expression of gratitude and returned to his seat cooperatively.

Afterwards, others accepted their rewards in turn.

Li Yunting was two levels lower than him, but he was also a fifth-rank captain. After going out and working hard for more than half a year, it was definitely a great honor for him to have such an official position.

However, he did not join the Yulin Guard, but unexpectedly went to the Jinyi Guard.

Zhao Sanyou was also a fifth-rank captain. He entered the Xishan camp, which was dozens of miles away from the outskirts of Beijing, and was in charge of military affairs.

Judging from the expressions of the two men, they were obviously very satisfied with their positions. Zhao Sanyou did not know how to restrain himself and had a bright smile on his face.

As for Li Yunting, he showed no emotion on his face, but his whole body exuded the relief and satisfaction of having gotten what he wanted.

After he sat down, Xu Huaiyi asked in a low voice, "I didn't hear that you were going to Jinyiwei before, what's the matter?"

Li Yunting said, "It's a temporary change of plan."

His previous plan was the same as Zhao Sanyou's, he was eager to join the military camp and lead troops. Only in this way would he have more opportunities to fight and be promoted faster. He positioned his future as becoming a general who could dominate the battlefield.

But plans don’t change as quickly as they do.

Xu Huaiyi frowned slightly and asked with concern, "Did something happen when you returned to the Marquis' Mansion? Do you need my help?"

Li Yunting felt warm in his heart, and his eyebrows and eyes softened a little. "It's no big deal. I can handle it myself. When I need you, I will definitely not be polite."

Xu Huaiyi glanced at him doubtfully, "Really?"

Li Yunting raised his lips, "Can I still pretend to be strong? Don't worry, I can handle those trivial matters. Joining Jinyiwei was my own choice. No one forced me."

Xu Huaiyi heard this and saw that there was indeed no reluctance on his face, so he felt relieved, "Then why did you choose Jinyiwei?"

Li Yunting said frankly, "The power in your hands is great."

Xu Huaiyi choked and looked at him with difficulty in explaining, "Just for this?"

Li Yunting nodded. "I finally got all the credit, so I have to maximize the benefits. Otherwise, wouldn't it be unfair to me for the blood I shed? You told me that..."

Xu Huaiyi looked at him speechlessly for a while, and reminded him in a low voice, "But the Jinyiwei has a bad reputation!"

Li Yunting said calmly, "I don't care. Anyway, my reputation isn't that good now."

Even if he returned to the Marquis's Mansion and had an official position now, the title of a concubine's son would accompany him for the rest of his life and could be used to attack him at any time.

Xu Huaiyi couldn't help but remind him, "It's easy to get into the Jinyiwei, but hard to get out. How are you going to get out in the future?"

Li Yunting said casually, "We'll talk about the future later."

Xu Huaiyi, "..."

"Won't you still be there to protect me in the future?" Li Yunting made a rare joke. "With you as my backer, what else do I have to worry about?"

Xu Huaiyi rolled his eyes at him in anger and snorted in self-mockery, "Go ahead and slander me. I've been poisoned and assassinated every other day. Who knows if I can live to see you escape."

At this moment, the rewarding of the meritorious officials had ended, and a singing and dancing performance was being performed in the middle of the hall. A group of beautiful palace maids, with their long sleeves dancing, swayed softly and gracefully to the music, attracting everyone's attention.

Li Yunting had no interest at all. He glanced calmly at the residence of Marquis Pingyuan opposite. Marquis Pingyuan did not come. The people who came were Prince Meng and his wife, and Princess Anping. The expressions of the three did not look normal, especially Prince Meng, who was fidgeting and wiping his forehead from time to time.

On the other hand, Meng Yao, a child of only six years old, had a stern face and sat upright, like a mistress of a rear house who had seen the world.

This family seems inharmonious no matter how you look at it.

He moved closer and asked vaguely, "Are you sure? If it's that person, this revenge must be avenged."

They cannot escape the blame for the stroke. If the court does not give an explanation, then they will seek justice themselves.

Xu Huaiyi said, "Hmm," "Don't worry about it. I have a plan in mind."

Li Yunting immediately said in a dissatisfied tone, "Don't you trust me?"

Xu Huaiyi smiled bitterly, "Why would I tell you this if I don't trust you? This matter involves a lot of things, and it's no good dragging you down with it. I can handle it myself, and when it really doesn't work, I'll ask you for help."

After hearing this, Li Yunting nodded.

On the opposite side, the people from the Pingyuan Marquis' Mansion couldn't help but look at Xu Huaiyi. Even though they had sent people to assassinate him countless times, neither Prince Meng nor Meng Yao had ever actually seen him. It was really a joke.

They obviously had nothing in common, and didn't have any deep hatred for each other, but it just got to the point of a fight to the death.

Prince Meng felt very guilty. He originally thought that Xu Huaiyi was just a lucky farm boy who had gained some skills and won the favor of Sun Yu through some kung fu. Therefore, he had some abilities, but they were not presentable. Therefore, he never took him seriously.

Even though Xu Huaiyi had made many achievements on the battlefield, he still doubted whether Sun Yu was paving the way for his disciple.

On the way back to Beijing, when his father sent people to assassinate Xu Huaiyi, he thought it was too ostentatious. Was it worth hiring the most expensive killer for a farmer's son?

But reality is often disappointing and cruel.

Not only did the killers fail one after another, even the carefully trained death warriors in their mansion never returned.

Only then did he begin to re-acquaint himself with Xu Huaiyi and re-evaluate his abilities.

But it was too late.

At this moment, in the hall, seeing with his own eyes the man who had made his niece hysterical and wanted to kill him, he suddenly regretted it.

He regretted not stopping his second brother from plotting against Xu Huaiyi, and regretted even more not stopping his father from assassinating him. Now that the Meng family has provoked such a difficult enemy, it is a daunting headache for the Bo family.

He even lost confidence in his niece.

Meng Yao was full of confidence at the moment. She didn't want to come tonight, but she felt it would be easy to take action at the palace banquet. After thinking it over, she couldn't resist the restlessness in her heart and secretly made some arrangements.

As for whether or not this would displease Emperor Jianxing, that was not within her consideration. With the secret recipe of the elixir, Emperor Jianxing would tolerate and indulge her even if she did something outrageous.

Who says emperors are afraid of death?

She held his lifeline, which meant she had power. With such a support, why wouldn't she take advantage of it?

Xu Huaiyi must die!

While the singing and dancing performances were going on, the palace maids brought in fine wine and delicious food one after another. Each dish was very exquisitely prepared, worthy of the work of an imperial chef. However, most of them were cold and the taste was greatly reduced.

Therefore, the court officials actually enjoyed very little of the food, and most of them just pretended to enjoy it, and few of them actually ate it with their heart's content.

On the other hand, alcohol is a rare delicacy, and all men, there is no one who doesn't like it, so they can't help but have a few drinks.

Moreover, at such palace banquets, people entertained each other and needed to toast each other, so drinking became an indispensable activity.

Xu Huaiyi was no exception.

But no one could have imagined that he picked up the cup, and before he could even take a sip, he was so frightened that he almost dropped the cup.