Empress Mi Benji

Chapter 295 Lantern Festival

After Zheng's humiliating surrender, Zhuang Xun agreed, but he only wanted to retain the internal funds, have a larger settlement, and did not conflict with the new law. It did not touch the core content of the new law, that is, the issue of land. Zhuang Xun was relatively lenient.

There is nothing to force Zheng Guo into a confrontation. It is necessary. It is people-oriented. How many fewer people will die this way? If there are no surrenders, war costs, pensions, retraining of soldiers and other issues, it is better to give in to small profits that do not touch the core at the beginning.

Zhuang Xun is not the conventional kind of monarch who wants to eat everything. He is always willing to share the meat he eats. Zheng Guo is much stronger than Jing Guo, so the conditions proposed are reasonable.

Besides, Zhuang Xun doesn't like Zheng Guo's internal funds. He doesn't care about any rare treasures. Xuan Nu's wealth accumulated over more than 100,000 years still lacks things like yours.

The issue of food and housing is not a matter of land ownership. It is a matter of the government collecting taxes and then providing it. It is not that they exploit the people and act as middlemen as before, but now they are just collecting pensions.

Under this consideration, Zhuang Xun agreed to Zheng Guo's request to surrender, but the local aristocratic families in Zheng Guo were in trouble, and the Jing Guo and Zhao Guo families who had just arrived in Zheng Guo felt deeply affected. betrayal.

They came here to fight against the Xia State, but you, the Zheng State, actually dared to surrender. Instead of rebelling and overthrowing this unscrupulous monarch, could you see him smiling and giving the country to the Xia State who suppressed the family?

Under the rule of Zhuang Xun, there were only three or two kittens in Zhao and Jingdi, and it was difficult to repay the merits. However, Zheng Guo's rebellion became bigger and bigger each time, making Zheng Guo more and more rebellious.

Zhuang Xun originally planned to sit back and watch. After all, Zheng Guo's fighting life and death would make it easier for him to take over. But then he thought that he wanted to serve the world. Now Zheng Guo's fighting life and death would not consume his soldiers.

Although Zheng Guodu had not yet substantively surrendered, Zhuang Xun had already regarded Zheng's army as his own soldiers. Following everyone's advice, he sent his troops westward and took advantage of Zheng's chaos to pacify Zheng.

Trying to pacify the Zheng Kingdom before winter, so as to facilitate the implementation of the new law. Facing the royal family and the Xia Kingdom's armies, the family retreated severely. With the situation of more and less, and Zhuang Xun's side not having any weird behavior to coordinate, Zheng Guo sacrificed his troops. Offer your head.

The speed was faster than Zhuang Xun thought, and the aristocratic family's army was weaker than Zhuang Xun thought. In other words, the generals were more attentive to handing over the certificates, and almost worked hard to earn the credit.

When he learned that King Zheng had surrendered, Zhuang Xun's reaction was, "Why did they hit so fast? Where did they hit?" Looking at the map, he saw that the Xia army led by Wu Chengpei had hit the capital area of ​​Zheng. No wonder King Zheng fell to his knees. So fast.

At this time, King Zheng has no room for bargaining. The Xia army is equipped with siege equipment. It is too late to surrender and will not even give you a chance to surrender.

After taking over the army from Zheng Guo, King Zheng was also moved to Jinyang by Zhuang Xun, which brought together the three royal families of Yuzhou. At that time, the three families who were fighting for power and profit wanted to fight for the master of Yuzhou, but they probably did not expect that there would be any. One day he can become a prisoner again.

However, Zhuang Xun did not violate the agreement with Prince Zheng. After all, this was the purpose of buying horse bones for a thousand gold coins. He could change it at will. He thought Zhuang Xun only had so much credit.

After all, it was because of King Zheng's surrender that he had conflicts with the domestic aristocratic families and started a civil war. In the end, Zhuang Xun refused, so Zhuang Xun became a joke.

The situation was clear and clear. The Xia Kingdom, which occupied Jizhou and Yuzhou, occupied the best and strongest place while other places were still fighting for the master of one state. Sitting on the land of two states, it was already invincible.

The news that the Xia Kingdom was engulfing Yuzhou was spread to the land of Kyushu. Many countries were thinking about whether to surrender directly, but most of them just thought about it.

The greater significance of the Xia Kingdom is that it provides the basis for rebellion. The Xia Kingdom can occupy two states without relying on aristocratic families. What do these aristocratic families have to fear.

There is also the idea that your own monarch is not the son of destiny. After all, the true emperor is in the Kingdom of Xia. The King of Xia can make earthquakes collapse barriers, freeze rivers, and cut tornadoes with swords. What can your monarch do?

He only exploits and enslaves the people, colludes with the aristocratic families, and is afraid that his wealth will be reduced even a little bit. Does this look like an emperor?

The eyes of the common people are bright. With the Xia Kingdom annexing Yuzhou, all the nine states are praising Zhuang Xun's deeds. Starting from his funeral of Si Qinmi, to now taking the Empress Dowager Zhao into his pocket, this is quite a story.

There is a kind of beauty of Return of the Dragon King, Thirty Years in the East of Hedong and Thirty Years in Hexi. The Xia Kingdom does not care about all kinds of interpretations and opera creations. After all, some of them are still true, let alone foreign countries.

To be precise, I can't control it. Many places are at war, many places have lax control over local areas, and many places have changed their names, but everyone knows what it is.

Zhuang Xun doesn't care about these influences and the increasingly chaotic situation. For him, the most important thing is to recuperate, restore and grow his strength as soon as possible.

Taking over Zheng's soil and filling up all the gaps in Yuzhou can rely on the dangers of mountains and rivers to resist foreign enemies. To change the direction, we need to diligently repair internal affairs, digest the existing land, and change the people's concepts. This is a long process.

Replacement of personnel at checkpoints, retraining the armies of the Three Kingdoms, eliminating unnecessary and disloyal generals and soldiers, suppressing families who are unwilling to land reform, all in an orderly and step-by-step manner. Although Zhuang Xun is not arrogant enough to feel invincible, he still feels that time is on his side. He is in no hurry now.

The situation stabilized, and it was almost the New Year. After Zhuang Xun sought Siqin Mi's opinion, he prepared to move the capital to Jinyang to facilitate control of the land of the two states and pave the way for the next step to conquer the world. At the same time, Zhuang Xun also hoped that Si Qinmi brought him from Jizhou.

Fortunately, the city was not damaged much and did not need to be rebuilt. The work of moving the capital was extremely smooth. However, the New Year ceremony was in a hurry. Because of the busy moving of the capital, in a sense, Zhuang Xun did not have a holiday during the New Year.

However, in this case, no officials are willing to rest. This great victory has stabilized the foundation of the Xia Kingdom and the official positions. Why don't these people understand? The reason for coming to Jinyang can also be understood. , in order to further seize the world and at the same time stabilize the resistance activities of aristocratic families in various parts of Yuzhou.

It is also convenient to allocate various resources in Yuzhou to prevent the remaining aristocratic families from causing trouble. It is convenient to implement various government orders. On the contrary, the people of Jizhou have almost won their hearts and minds, and the system is running well.

With the arrival of New Year officials, Jinyang seems to have regained some of its former prosperity. The haze of the war has dissipated, and businesses have resumed business. However, there is no longer a blockade in the city, and at the same time, there are more officials in the city center preaching various new policies. official.

In order not to delay spring plowing, the Xia Kingdom speeded up the division of land, but the festival still had to be celebrated, and the people also celebrated the festival happily after getting the land.

The Lantern Festival was more grand, because the harem officials arrived one after another and held a Lantern Festival banquet for ministers, generals, princes and nobles.

Holding Si Qin Mi's hand and listening to the flattering words spoken by those under his command, it seemed as if he could hold the three hundred thousand heavy cavalry in his hand right in front of him, and he could grab it easily.

In a sense, it is true that with an army of 300,000, it is not a problem to fight from north to south, but there may be defections, military discipline problems, and local rebellion problems while fighting.

So Zhuang Xun comforted the war machine and stopped, and was not impatient to rule the nine states. Just as he said, govern a place and feed and clothe the people there.

The generals were rushing to conquer various states and countries to help Zhuang Xun unify the world. Zhuang Xun could only say that there would be opportunities in the future, and he would encourage the generals who had made meritorious deeds and at the same time praise the civil servants for their implementation of the new law. good.

These actions have become instinctive, and the monarch's joy and anger are a kind of reward and punishment for his subjects, even if he does not mean it.

This is also the most relaxing Lantern Festival that Zhuang Xun has had in ten years, so there are many smiles and compliments. The entire banquet venue seems to be a happy one. Even King Jing and Zheng An Le Gong, who was forced to come, have a false smile. . This banquet seemed to be a celebration banquet for the victory of the three families. The three families had to talk about it. They bowed their heads for the sake of life, and the three families smiled and put aside their grudges.

After contacting Zhuang Xun and hearing the word "people" from his mouth, I felt a little guilty and had a slight understanding of my failure.

The Xia Kingdom no longer had any huge threats hanging over their heads, and even many envoys from small countries expressed their willingness to surrender, hoping that the king's army would arrive as soon as possible, surrender to the king's army, and demote themselves as ministers.

Because in the face of threats from domestic aristocratic families and other powerful countries, we must clearly see the direction of future development and quickly rely on them. The examples of Jing and Zheng are very vivid here. Return as soon as possible without losing the title of king or lord. This is all It is guaranteed.

Xia Guo achieved what Zhao had not been able to achieve before. If Zhao had broken through the dragon trap and unified Yuzhou, he would have been treated like this, but obviously not. Zhao State had not broken through the dragon trap until his death. Anle The Duke can only envy him, this is the glory that belongs exclusively to the Xia Kingdom.

Zhuang Xun drank two glasses of sake, with Si Qinmi beside him, feeling at ease. Si Qinmi did not stop him from drinking today. This should indeed be a happy day for Zhuang Xun.

Life is relaxed. After so many years of high pressure, she relaxed a little in order to be more enterprising in the future. Instead, she poured wine for Zhuang Xun, watched Zhuang Xun drink, and was happy with Zhuang Xun.

The wine was very sweet, with a very familiar taste, and it was not intoxicating no matter how much he drank it. Zhuang Xun wanted to do something wild, but because the civil and military officials on the stage were watching, he couldn't do it, and his eyes glanced back and forth at Siqin Mi.

He wanted to kiss her face and kiss her lips, but the occasion was wrong. After all, she had not been intimate with him within a few days of coming to Jinyang. He was busy with various matters related to moving the capital, and Zhuang Xun was thinking too hard.

"Your Majesty is drunk, please enjoy yourself. I will take your Majesty down to rest." Si Qinmi helped Zhuang Xun up. Zhuang Xun was not drunk at first, so he closed his eyes, pretending to be drunk, and wanted to hug him. Si Qinmi rolled on the bed.

As soon as he left the palace, Zhuang Xun couldn't help but feel greedy. He hugged Siqin Mi and became intoxicated by the fragrant wind, because drinking had strengthened his courage.

"What are you doing? I have to host a banquet. Don't make a fuss. I have a surprise for you." Si Qinmi didn't move away from being kissed, and pushed Zhuang Xun with an angry sound.

"What are you still presiding over? Let them do what they want. I want to help you." Zhuang Xun stood on tiptoe and leaned toward Si Qinmi's ear.

"You don't want to help me wet my feet. You want to climb into my bed and have a family dinner first, and then I will follow you."

Si Qinmi smiled slightly and said, what is Zhuang Xun thinking that she still doesn't understand? So she made a promise to Zhuang Xun, winked, and Lan Qiu, who was serving at the side, took Zhuang Xun's hand.

"Family banquet, yes, there is also a family banquet." Zhuang Xun clapped his hands and suddenly thought that on such a festive day, the harem should be gathered for a meal.

"Don't keep me sisters waiting too long. After an hour or so, the princes and officials will be cleared away, and the concubines will arrive. You can have fun first."

With a gentle smile and a bit of mystery, Zhuang Xun felt that this family banquet was not simple, so he asked when Lan Qiu led the way.

"Is there anything special about this family dinner?" Zhuang Xun slightly asked in confusion. Si Qinmi's smile was mysterious and charming, but it also seemed to have bad intentions.

"It's nothing special. Your Majesty, you will know after you go there." Lan Qiu shook his head, obviously having something on his mind that he couldn't hide, which made Zhuang Xun even more confused.

However, if it was planned by Si Qinmi, it would be harmless anyway, so Zhuang Xun didn't think about it anymore and went with peace of mind.

"Don't worry, it's a surprise. The Queen has prepared it." Lan Qiu led the way, holding a lantern. Zhuang Xun couldn't see her slightly glowing face.

"What a mysterious surprise." Zhuang Xun strode forward, the cold wind blew away the traces of alcohol, and his body seemed hot and dry.

"Here we are, Your Majesty, please." Arriving at a palace where light was shining and steam was slowly flowing out, Lan Qiu half-opened the door and made a gesture of invitation.

"Are you here? I want to take a look..." Zhuang Xun walked into the room and was speechless.

It is a bathing pool, and the steam is water vapor. The concubines of the harem are gathered in twos and threes. Those outside the pool are uniformly wearing various styles of cheongsam and various styles of high heels. Those inside the pool should be wearing nothing, or Whether it is a bun or a bun.

Xuannv, Empress Dowager Jiang, Li Rusi, Li Shaoyun, He Tan... all Zhuang Xun's concubines gathered in such a room.

Either stretching, chatting and whispering, or swimming in the water, Zhuang Xun's pupils dilated, and he faintly felt an impulse in his nasal cavity.

"Your Majesty, are you coming? Is it so early?" Zhuang Xun's voice as he entered the door startled everyone in the group. Empress Dowager Jiang and Xuan Nu didn't even bother to put on their clothes and crawled out of the bath with kind and gentle movements.

"Concubine, please give your regards to Your Majesty." The fat and thin beauties all saluted Zhuang Xun. Zhuang Xun didn't know where to look for a while.

"Get up, isn't it a family dinner? Why did you choose such a place?" He glanced elsewhere, not looking at these various beauties.

"Don't be angry, there is no waste of people's energy. The water in such a big pool is heated by the treasures of Empress Dowager De, and the water is also brought by Concubine De. These clothes and shoes are made by the Queen. I told you that you like it, Your Majesty. Do you not like it?"

Thinking that Zhuang Xun was accusing him of waste, Li Shaoyun stepped forward and explained that Zhuang Xun turned his head and she understood something wrong.

"Husband, Si'er wants..." Li Rusi in the bright red cheongsam understood Zhuang Xun better. She sat directly on the leather cushion. The slim cheongsam bent into a curve. Yun Yinzhi painted two maids on the left and right to serve Zhuang Xun. He could no longer take his eyes away, fixed on Li Rusi's slender figure.

"How about today's gift?" Si Qinmi came back and had her feet washed by Zhuang Xun as she wished. She touched Zhuang Xun's head and said in a doting tone. Her golden phoenix cheongsam was noble and extraordinary, and her narrow skirt When you reach your jade knees, your lotus feet are filled with water.

"There's still something missing." Zhuang Xun held up the jade feet in the water.

(End of this chapter)