Jiuxi

Chapter 436 Chapter 434 [Events in Life]

"I'm very pleased that you have this intention."

Li Duan's tone became more friendly, and he said warmly: "How can I break my promise now that I have spoken? Moreover, you have made outstanding contributions to the capital this time, so not to reward me would appear to be mean and unkind. I have decided to expand Feiyu Camp into Feiyu Army. It can command 12,000 cavalry, and you will be the first commander."

For Li Bingxue, this was indeed a great reward.

She stood up excitedly and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness!"

In just over two years, Feiyu Camp has grown from 4,000 people to 8,000 people, and now it has a full staff of 12,000 people. This has given Li Bingxue a broader world where she can fully utilize her abilities. , to realize the wish to wipe out the enemy invaders as soon as possible.

Lu Chen was also happy for her. The emperor did know how to win over his ministers.

Li Duan smiled and said: "But I must tell the truth. The imperial court does not have that many war horses. The war horses that Lu Chen brought from the north have been divided up. I will not deduct the supplies of the Feiyu Army in other aspects. All the weapons, armor, food and wages will be fully satisfied. , It’s just that you are missing a war horse and you have to figure it out yourself.”

Li Bingxue raised her head slightly and said, "Your Majesty, don't worry, I will snatch more and more war horses from the Northerners!"

Li Duan praised: "What a great ambition. Although I can't give you enough war horses, I finally have something decent to reward you with."

Li Duan's expression was still gentle, but his tone was slightly tougher.

"Take it, your father will understand what I mean."

Not to mention Li Bingxue, who has been accustomed to the prosperity of the world since she was a child. Even Lu Chen's home is not lacking in such gorgeous furnishings. However, white jade Ruyi is quite rare, and more importantly, it is a gift from the emperor.

"Sit down and talk."

"It's not what I thought."

It is not difficult to see that the emperor's attitude towards the young men and women was slightly different.

As soon as he finished speaking, the great eunuch Lu Shizhou was holding a brocade box, walked carefully to Li Bingxue, and then opened the brocade box, only to see a white jade Ruyi inside.

Lu Chen said humbly: "Your Majesty, I don't need you, right?"

Li Duandao: "The rebellion was put down this time because of the tacit understanding between you and me. It was also thanks to your brave fighting that night. Mistakes should be punished, and merit should be rewarded. This has been the principle since ancient times. Liu Shouguang, Zhang Xu, Shen Yulai, Han Zhongjie and others have received awards, how could I forget you, the greatest hero?"

Li Bingxue knew the symbolic meaning of this object and couldn't help but hesitated: "Your Majesty, this is too precious..."

Lu Chen was stunned and said, "Your Majesty, what's wrong with me?"

Li Duan raised his hand and pressed it, then looked at Lu Chen aside and asked, "What about you?"

Li Bingxue thought for a while, then saluted and said, "Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty."

Li Duan raised his hand and nodded at him, and said with a half-smile, "Are you being polite to me now?"

He obviously has some affection for Lu Chen, a bit like a gentle elder who views the progressive children in his family, rather than the emperor who does not change his attitude despite the landslide in front of him, calmly executes thousands of lives, and changes the structure of the court in an understatement. .

The emperor's respect and appreciation for Li Bingxue and Li Tianrun standing behind her were true at all, but they were still limited to the scope of the monarch and his ministers.

In Li Bingxue's view, if he used a less respectful description, it would be that the emperor had a bit more of an ordinary person's temperament when facing Lu Chen.

Li Duan said meaningfully: "I didn't expect you to have such a clear understanding."

As long as Li Bingxue is willing, as long as Da Qi still exists in this world, she can use this Ruyi as a family heirloom, and her descendants can benefit from it.

The so-called wishful thinking naturally means that everything goes as expected.

Lu Chen would not be frightened just because of the emperor's words. He smiled honestly and said: "Your Majesty, I really can't reward you anymore. I am already the Minister of Military Affairs and the commander-in-chief of the Beijing camp in my early twenties. I will be afraid of myself if I receive any more rewards." It will float."

Lu Chen recalled for a while and said solemnly: "It is the truth in the world that prosperity must inevitably decline, and greed and insufficiency are the root of disaster. These are the original words of Mr. Li. I feel that they are very reasonable, so I secretly wrote them down. On life. In the way of being an official, I will never be able to catch up with Mr. Li. I can only imitate others, and I will probably not make any mistakes. "

Li Duan said leisurely: "Well, since you are so sober, I will save some money."

"silver?"

Lu Chen's eyes lit up and he smiled apologetically and said, "If His Majesty's reward refers to silver, that's not impossible."

Li Bingxue couldn't help but want to laugh.

She had never seen this guy look so lazy, and he had no trace of the majesty and domineering power he had when commanding thousands of troops.

Li Duan suppressed his smile and said unhappily, "The Lu family of Guangling is the richest in Huaizhou, why do you look like a poor ghost? Last time you went to Jinwu Camp to distribute silver to win over the soldiers, you didn't go to the Ministry of Revenue to fight for it, but ran to me and entangled for a long time, and you squeezed out 100,000 taels of silver. What do you want silver for this time? Your father worked hard all his life and earned a lot of silver. Isn't it enough for you to spend?"

"Your Majesty, these are two different things."

Lu Chen argued rationally: "It was a business matter to ask for money from Your Majesty that time. After all, Le Qinyi deliberately defaulted on paying the soldiers of the Beijing Army because he was the Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue. I was afraid that I could not help but beat him when he went to the Yamen of the Ministry of Revenue. After a while, I had no choice but to come to His Majesty. As for this time, if Your Majesty is willing to reward me with money, of course I have to accept it. After all, during this period, all the stores of the Lu family in the capital have been closed down, and a lot of capital has been lost. "

Li Duan raised his eyebrows slightly and said with a smile: "It is better to teach people how to fish than to teach them how to fish. How about I say hello to them, stop making trouble for your family, and let the Lu family business spread its business in Jiangnan?"

Lu Chen quickly shook his head and said: "Your Majesty, my father is old and should not work too hard. I don't want him to continue running around. In fact, I have already thought about it and simply shut down the Lu family's business in Jiangnan and guard Huaihe River. The state's foundation is enough." Li Duan was slightly startled and said slowly, "That doesn't have to be the case."

Lu Chen said calmly: "Your Majesty knows that I don't like those intrigues. Thousands of people from the Jiangnan family died at my hands this time. If the Lu family business continues to compete with them for food in Jiangnan, I don't know how much trouble there will be in the future." , it’s better to do it simply, Jiangbei’s business is profitable enough anyway.”

Li Duan looked into his eyes, nodded and said, "You have indeed considered it very comprehensively."

The monarch and his ministers talked happily, but Li Bingxue felt a surge of complicated emotions in her heart.

At this moment, she had realized that the emperor had asked her to choose her own reward, probably to see if she would tell her true relationship with Lu Chen.

The emperor must have known from some channels that she and Lu Chen were more than just companions. Perhaps when Lu Chen was assassinated in Xiliu Lane two years ago and she insisted on taking Lu Chen back home, the emperor noticed a clue.

Although Li Bingxue had a clear conscience, as the emperor, he obviously did not want to see hundreds of thousands of border troops being too closely related to a certain person.

Based on this, in the conversation between Emperor Cai and Lu Chen, the monarch and his ministers quietly completed a test and response.

The emperor intended to let the Lu family business develop and expand in the Jiangnan area, undoubtedly because he wanted to see Lu Chen's true intentions. Lu Chen declined the proposal in the name of filial piety, which was naturally a statement of his intention to the emperor.

After thinking about these issues, Li Bingxue sighed secretly.

The emperor's favor for Lu Chen is obvious to all, but this does not mean that Lu Chen can act arbitrarily. On the contrary, he must be more cautious and cautious in every statement and every decision he makes.

The so-called thunder, rain and dew are all due to your kindness. How can it be a lie to accompany you like a tiger?

Even though Li Duan was not the kind of emperor with a violent temper and moody temper, he was still the emperor who controlled the destiny of the Qi Dynasty.

Being kind and gentle does not mean that he is weak and can be bullied. The thousands of people who are about to be beheaded must have felt this deeply.

Thinking of this, Li Bingxue understood more and more the weight of Lu Chen's reminder when entering the palace, so she warned herself to be calmer and not to implicate Lu Chen.

Over there, Li Duan changed the subject and said: "Li Jingda's secret report arrived in Beijing the day before yesterday. Jingjun has indeed shown signs of adjusting his garrison recently. He promised me that he would not attack without authorization. Xu Zuo is watching over there, so I am not worried about him. However, just in case, I still gave a secret order to the two commanders, Xiao and Li, especially Xiao Wangzhi. They will assist in the defense of Dingzhou's front line. Xiao Wangzhi can unified command of Dingzhou and Dingzhou when necessary. The armies of Huaihe and Huaihe."

Lu Chen's heart moved, and he said seriously: "Your Majesty's arrangement is foolproof. With the current combat strength of the border army, as long as they guard the pass and be careful, it will be difficult for Jing's army to gain an advantage. Your Majesty gave Commander Xiao the right to unified command, even if Qing Yugong is here, and he will not rush to attack. As long as Emperor Jingguo's temperament does not change drastically, the border will probably become a stalemate in the past two years. "

He knew that the emperor must have a deeper meaning in this arrangement.

Li Duan immediately said: "When the frontier is stabilized, the rear can regain its strength. On the other hand, I hope you can complete the unfinished business before."

Lu Chen said: "Your Majesty, you mean Shazhou?"

Li Duan nodded and said: "For Da Qi, there are many internal and external troubles. The enemies in the north are naturally the most powerful, but I believe that the border troops can stop them for the time being. Now that the imperial court and the Beijing army are gradually cleared, the Southern Zhao Kingdom is not enough. Because of fear, the worry in my heart is still the Seven Divisions of Shazhou. Before the second Northern Expedition, I hope that Daqi will have no other hidden worries except the powerful enemies in the north, so that the imperial court can wholeheartedly support the border troops. "

Lu thought for a moment, recognized the emperor's judgment, and said calmly: "Your Majesty, please rest assured, I will do my best."

"I know that you have been working extremely hard during this period, and I cannot allow you to go back to work."

Li Duan sighed softly and said slowly: "It's just that time waits for no one. I hope you can be considerate."

Lu Chen responded quickly: "Your Majesty's words are serious, I dare not slack off."

Li Duan muttered: "Let's see, the rebellion case is still a little loose, and the rectification of Jinwu Camp also requires you to draw up regulations. I will give you a ten-day holiday, so you can rest for a while before going to Shazhou."

Lu Chen lowered his head and said, "I obey your order."

Li Duan glanced at Lu Shizhou, who was standing next to him, and said calmly: "Lu Chen, I have promised you something for a long time, so I can't keep putting it off. As the saying goes, when you have a family and a career, you are now the Minister of Military Affairs of the Marquis of Da Qi. It's not good to be alone anymore. Man, I can’t bear to look at it.”

For some reason, Li Bingxue's heart suddenly tightened and she clenched her hands subconsciously. However, thinking of what she had just warned herself, her fists slowly unclenched.

Lu Shizhou carefully took out a bright yellow imperial edict and said loudly: "Shanyang Marquis Lu Chen received the edict."

Lu Chen stood up and stood with his hands folded, and Li Bingxue also stood up and stood beside him.

Lu Shizhou continued to read: "The emperor is destined to be carried by heaven, and the edict says that the three colors are the 箷, and the great and the great times are gathered. Lu Chen, the Marquis of Shanyang, the Minister of Military Affairs, and the marching commander of the Jinwu Camp, has served as an official for three years, with good integrity and meritorious deeds starting from the army. His integrity is known to both the government and the public, he is both capable and loyal, and he is loyal and upright. Today there is the Lin family, the daughter of the leader of the rebel army in the north. She is noble but not trustworthy, modest and honorable. Gentle and gentle, long-term and wise, the rules of etiquette are consistent with the words of the history. Tanzhi welcomes auspiciousness, and a good match is made in heaven. I will give you three marriages. Both the Lin family and the Wang family will be given the title of first-class wife. When it comes to choosing a wedding date, I hope you will be of the same mind, respect the country, and don’t let me down.”

Li Duan looked at Lu Chen with a smile, and then glanced at Li Bingxue seemingly unintentionally.

Lu Chen was silent for a moment, and then he received the order to thank him.

Li Bingxue seemed not to notice the emperor's gaze. After Lu Chen received the imperial edict, he raised his hand in accordance with military etiquette and said with a smile: "Marquis Lu, great joy! Congratulations!"

There was nothing wrong with the smile on her face, as if she was really just Lu Chen's colleague, and all her expressions were so normal.

Lu Chen turned to look into her eyes. Those clear eyes seemed to be no different from before, but became a little brighter. So he lowered his head slightly and said, "Thank you."

Li Bingxue smiled and said, "Just saying thank you is not enough. Remember to treat me to a wedding banquet when the time comes."

Lu Chen said seriously: "Definitely."

(End of this chapter)