Female General And Eldest Princess

Capital·Imperial Palace

The last court meeting in the 28th year of Yuan Ding was also one of the most lively court meetings of the year.

According to the usual practice, most of the princes and princes who have left the country for today's court meeting will be present to report their duties. In addition, they will pay homage to His Majesty to show their loyalty.

Following the chorus of the eunuch in charge, Li Zhao walked in from the back of the hall wearing a grand court dress and swinging his sleeves.

"See Your Majesty!" The whole hall was full of courtiers, and they all saluted Li Zhao respectfully.

"Hahahaha, the family is free." Li Zhao seemed to be in a good mood. Although the silver frost on his temples became more and more obvious, he was full of energy and flushed.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Li Zhao looked around through the curtain with a smile, and asked, "Have the princes, military lords, and generals from all over the place returned?"

Li Zhu was too young to participate in politics. As the eldest son of the emperor, Li Zhen took a step in the middle and returned with his elephant wat in both hands: "Hui father, the Marquis of Yangquan is old. The Marquis of Yangquan came with a handwritten letter. The Marquis of Rujiang was seriously ill and couldn’t face the saint, so he also sent envoys to deliver the handwritten letter. Marquis Wushuang was left behind by his ministers to guard the border in Qi, lest the Xi Rong take advantage of the emptiness of the border and wait for an opportunity to invade..."

"Hmm..." Hearing what Qi Wang Li Zhen said, Li Zhao stroked his gray beard and nodded in satisfaction.

But he didn't want to, before Qi Wang Li Zhen finished speaking, Yong Wang Li Zhen couldn't wait to come out from the courtiers with an elephant wat in his hand, grabbed the conversation and continued: "Brother Qi Wang seems to have missed an important person. Brother Wang, please add, Royal Father, General Li Mu of the Northern Territory has never entered Beijing."

As soon as Yong Wang Li Teng's words fell, the atmosphere in the court immediately became strange.

In the 24th year of Yuanding, the old general Li, who was the acquaintance of the first emperor, drove to the west, and the queen Li Qingcheng passed away in the 28th year. After the two passed away, the title of Li Mu, a relative of the emperor, became more and more embarrassing. Mu's nephew, the crown prince Li Zhu, is still young and doesn't even have the qualifications to participate in politics. Although his niece, the eldest princess Li Xian, is very much loved by His Majesty, he has already recruited Li Zhong, the prince of Marquis of Pingyang, as his son-in-law. Now, the eldest princess and Pingyang Hou's son are married, although the ceremony has not yet been registered, it also makes the situation in the court more and more unpredictable.

A few days ago, Li Mu was hit with a hundred military sticks. Although Li Zhao didn't publicize it, he didn't order it to be sealed. Who can stand in this hall is not a well-informed person?

These one hundred army sticks are considered to have slapped Li Mu in the face...

At this juncture, Yong Wang and Li Ting openly raised Li Mu. Everyone was careful and prepared to see how Li Zhao would deal with it, so they could adjust their attitude towards Li Mu according to Li Zhao's attitude...

Sitting on the high seat, Li Zhao's expression didn't change at all, he looked down quietly, his inner thoughts were unpredictable.

On the contrary, King Qi Lizhen took the words of King Yong Lizhen and continued: "I have to worry about you, brother Yu, but Brother Yu has not finished. It is true that General Li Mu did not enter Beijing, but one is that the northern border is far away from here, and the other is I heard that the harvest of the Xiongnu army did not succeed this autumn. This winter is hard to endure. Maybe someday the Huns will be so hungry that they will harass the border. Entering Beijing is justifiable."

"Father, my son has something to say."

Li Zhao raised his eyes and saw that it was Li Xuan, the king of Chu, who came out of the team holding the elephant wat. Concubine Liang died for no reason. Li Zhao always felt guilty for this son, so he said kindly: " My son, but it’s okay.”

"Thank you, father, and let's play father. I heard that General Li Mu suddenly withdrew his defense a few days ago and retreated to garrison in Yangguan City. There are hundreds of thousands of troops in the north. Yangguan City is just a small border town. How can it bear the burden? Li Mu unexpectedly ordered half of Yangguan City to be occupied as a camp for the northern army, and the people of Yangguan were forced to leave their homes, and it was extremely miserable."

Li Zhao listened to the words of the three vassals, but did not say a word, still sitting in a high position, overlooking everything in the field, Li Zhao did not speak, the three lords had to bow slightly, and stood awkwardly among the officials holding their elephant wats. among.

After a long time, Li Zhao said slowly, "Yushitai, is what the princes said true?"

Hearing this, one person came out from the last of the hundred officials, and he walked unhurriedly to the middle of the hall, holding a bamboo wat and replied loudly: "Your Majesty, this is true, General Li Mu did withdraw his defense suddenly a few days ago and did not Go back to the original camp and retreat directly to Yangguan City to defend."

When the voice fell, a needle could be heard in the hall.

Most of the people looked at their noses and noses and their minds, as if they were old gods who had nothing to do with them, and there was no emotion on their faces with low eyebrows and pleasing eyes.

Some people frowned, as if they were thinking about something.

The expressions on some people's faces became faster and faster, with joy as if New Year's Eve was approaching.

Only, no one stood up and said a word for Li Mu.

"Father, my son is thinking that General Li Mu withdrew his camp to Yangguan City. , Since the death of General Li, the General’s Mansion in the capital has been empty. It’s better to let General Li Mu move in. The sons and ministers are young and have no ambitions. peace in the north of the country."

"His Royal Highness Kong Wu is good at fighting, and besides General Li Mu, he is also the best candidate to lead the military affairs of the northern border. Veteran reconsider!"

Everyone followed the reputation, and it was the gray-haired Hengjiang King who spoke. After so many generations of entrustment, Hengjiang King was already in decline after so many generations. I don’t think that Hengjiang King was struggling when he was young, and he was just fighting against pirates. He made outstanding achievements in the war against the enemy, was rewarded by the late emperor, and bestowed the title of the ancestral family, and has been in the shadow for three generations.

In terms of seniority, Li Zhao still calls King Hengjiang Uncle Wang...

For a while, people with a discerning eye could see clearly that King Yong wanted military power because he was "unwilling to be lonely"!

It's no wonder that Li Zhao currently has only three adult princes. As the eldest son of the prince, Li Zhen, the king of Qi, deliberately chose the cold Qi land when he received the fief, and said something: "Fief the land yourself, and serve as the country's barrier" Come, let Li Zhao Sacred Heart Joy bestow the military power, and King Qi also strives to fight against foreign enemies for so many years without any defeat.

Li Xuan, King of Chu, had been favored by Li Zhao since he was a child. He lived in tens of thousands of households. A few days ago, Li Zhao intended to canonize his mother as his successor. Unfortunately, this good concubine died on the eve of the canonization ceremony. Only one was sealed behind her death and became Concubine Wen Gui...

If the canonization ceremony goes smoothly, King Chu's status at this time will be very different, and he might be able to compete with the East Palace. The strength of King Chu still cannot be underestimated.

However, looking back at this side, both the adult princes, the situation of King Yong Li Ting suddenly became embarrassing...

Shiyi is not only the least among the vassal kings, it even has a thousand households less than the eldest princess Li Xian. The city is not rising, and the military power is not falling, so why is he not in a hurry?

Nowadays, most of the military generals in various places are in their prime, and his fief is also a fertile land. There are no foreign enemies around, and he has no reputation to ask for military power!However, although King Yong himself was not good at strategy, he raised a group of capable advisers. They offered advice to King Yong: Although the eldest princess Li Xian is favored, she is just a girl, and she can't escape marrying and obeying her husband. There is no real threat. Donggong was young and easy to bully. If the other two vassals wanted to really pull out Donggong, they would have to move Li Mu in the north first. Besides, after the death of Empress Li Qingcheng, no one in the court could speak for Li Mu. Let Li Mu fall, and Li Ting can take advantage of the situation to seek military power in the northern border...

After listening to the counselor's advice, Li Ting deliberated and decided to attack Li Mu. Although the northern border is bitter, cold and barren, there are hundreds of thousands of troops stationed in the northern border. Those who have soldiers have power, and they have accumulated military achievements and reputation. You can also accumulate capital for your own future savings.

This time, Li Ting took advantage of the court meeting to secretly recruit Li Zhao into the army. With so many eyes watching him, he did not believe that his father could make a major incident into a small one. Moreover, Li Ting specially invited King Hengjiang, even though he was a distant relative, But after all, he is the elder of the father, and with his help, he is sure to win.

At this time, Yong Wang Li Ting held the elephant wat, and stood in the middle of the two rows of officials with a humble attitude, waiting for Li Zhao's "judgment", but he never expected that an abrupt voice sounded: "Father, My son has something to say."

When Li Zhao saw the speaker, fluctuations appeared on his calm face for the first time. Li Zhao looked at Li Huan with eyes full of surprise and said, "What did Huan'er say?"

At the moment, not only Li Zhao, but also several vassal princes and all the Beijing officials showed surprise expressions: The concubine De has two sons, one ring and one Pei, Huan is lonely, Pei is still young, this prince Huan is withdrawn Not only did he almost never show up at large-scale palace banquets, even if His Majesty forced him to come, he would leave after drinking for three rounds, and he never attended royal private banquets. Early in the morning, he reached the age to participate in politics, but nine times out of ten times he would not be able to attend the court. Only once did he come, and he was silent from beginning to end. He never made any achievements. Except for his brother, Prince Pei, everyone The princes, the children of the aristocratic family, all refuse to associate with each other. It can be said that they have the lowest sense of existence among the many princes, and they are also the most unique existence. It was even rumored that this ring prince was born dumb. From this, the degree of his loneliness can be seen!

How can it not be surprising that today the prince suddenly "blossoms the iron tree" or speaks out at the great court meeting where the vassal princes and princes from all over the world gather?

Li Huan turned a blind eye to the gazes of the crowd, and saw him walking out with his elephant wat in his hands. He first bowed to Li Zhao, and then said slowly: "Father, I heard that Uncle Li Muguo has been guarding the northern border for many years. I have read in the book that the northern border is barren and the Xiongnu are cruel. Uncle Guo has worked hard, and I also heard that Uncle Guo's only beloved daughter gave birth to a son-in-law a few days ago. Why not just look at it for the sake of the baby , please forgive me outside the law."

After Li Huan finished speaking, he saluted Li Zhao again and returned to the team, as if nothing had happened...