Slave to Queen: One Night Bride

Chapter 297
In a corner of the teahouse by the willow embankment, Li Yi'an was anxiously sitting alone drinking tea, waiting for the result.

After a long time, when she saw Yue Pengju and his wife striding forward, she immediately stood up and asked, "How is it going?"

Hua Rong nodded with a smile, and explained Yue Pengju's method.Li Yi'an heard this, and then carefully looked at the broad-browed, resolute-tempered man in front of him, only to realize that he was different.From welcoming his late wife on the side of the road to handling this difficult matter with Wang Jixian so tactfully, he is very smart in his chivalry.Among the military generals, there are such characters, especially his majestic calligraphy masterpiece "Return My River and Mountain".

The smile on her face was very kind, but she looked at Hua Rong, this woman is smart and kind, she should be a blessed person.

She bowed deeply: "You two are so kind, there is really nothing to repay."

Hua Rong hurriedly helped her up: "Don't dare. It's just a matter of raising your hands. I have admired you since I was a child..." She said, with the light of a little girl in her eyes, she took Li Yi'an's hand and said affectionately, "I I have an idea, we have a temporary courtyard on the outskirts that was rewarded by the emperor, and now there is another one in the capital. But soon Pengju will go to Ezhou, and I will leave together. If you don’t want to give up, you might as well move to another courtyard. It’s good to have someone to take care of…”

Since Li Yi'an divorced Zhang Ruzhou, he really had nowhere else to go. He was in the end of the world, and coveters like Wang Jixian threatened him from time to time. Seeing Hua Rong's sincere attitude, he hesitated for a moment and agreed.

Seeing that she agreed, Hua Rong was overjoyed, and immediately sent someone to go back with her to pack up her things. Since then, Li Yi'an has ended his detention life and temporarily has a place to settle down.

Hua Rong sent a few female envoys and old servants to take care of her. She was stranded in the capital, and she didn't have many things to do, so she came and went with Li Yi'an every day. Go fast.

On this day, the four generals were summoned to the palace for a banquet.

Among the four generals, Liu Guangai pretended to be elegant and wore Confucian clothing, while Zhang Jun and Han Zhongliang all wore the python robes of generals, while Yue Pengju was always frugal and still wore his own linen robes.

Before giving the banquet, everyone sat talking and laughing.Both Han Zhongliang and Zhang Jun were old subordinates of Wang Yuan in the past. Zhongliang has a daughter.Therefore, the relationship between the two is very close, talking and laughing as soon as they sit down.

In contrast, Yue Pengju and Liu Guang could only sit where they were.Liu Guang had no friendship with Han Zhongliang and others, so he took the initiative to talk to Yue Pengju.The two also chatted a few words.

After a while, report to the emperor.

The four generals knelt on the ground together and said, "I wish you all the best."

Zhao Deji bestowed Ling Ping on his body, and then had a banquet.

This is the first time that Zhao Deji has gathered the four generals.He fled across the sea to Lin'an, the palace. After Miao Liu's mutiny, he really felt that the ruler was walking on thin ice.

First of all, in terms of rewards for meritorious deeds, all four of them were named Jiedu envoys.This is the highest honor for a general in this dynasty.Among them, Han Zhongliang's army stationed in Chuzhou, Liu Guang's army stationed in Taiping Prefecture, and Zhang Jun's army stationed in health escort.And Yue Pengju was the envoy of Jingnan, North, and Xiangyang Fulu Jiedu, and the army of Empress Shenwu was in control. The imperial court sent staff to their respective armies, and the staff under Yue Pengju's tent was Xue Bi, a scholar.

After the four generals finished their salutes, Zhao Deji gave a lecture first, and his voice was full of emotion: "The merits of all of you who are diligent kings belong to the country. In the troubled autumn of the country, the four love ministers and Wu Jie from Sichuan and Shaanxi are the minions of the country. From now on, I can only rely on you to welcome back Second Sage, Zhongxing Great Song Dynasty. Now, there are Liu Yu puppet Qi rebellion army inside, and captives are staring at you outside, what countermeasures do you have?"

Liu Guang has always been lazy, supporting the enemy and playing bandits, especially for this Miao Liu mutiny, because of insufficient preparation, he was occupied by the puppet Qi army in several states and counties. When the army went south, only two states and counties were taken back, and the others were still in the hands of the puppet Qi.Because of this, he couldn't answer Zhao Deji's question at all, and only said that he was still thinking about it.

Then Zhang Jun.Because Zhang Jun participated in the battle of King Qin, he has always been the one who fled at the wind, but at this time he spoke loudly and said loudly: "The way of a general is first and foremost to be loyal to the emperor and love the country. I only know how to obey your majesty's orders. As long as your majesty Ling Zhan, dare you not exhaust your energy and think about it before you die?"

In fact, Zhang Jun's remarks did not express any attitude, but they revealed a crucial message, that is, whether it was war or peace, he would listen to the emperor alone, and he would never make his own decisions.

The other generals didn't understand the deep meaning here, but Zhao Deji felt very satisfied and nodded appreciatively.

It was Han Zhongliang's turn, he was another important general in the Song army.This time King Qin, when Yue Pengju went to the army to kill Wu Zhan, he was not idle and led his men to chase the Miao Liu rebels.

Then, Zhao Deji asked Yue Pengju again.

This was the first meeting of the four of them since the First Battle of King Qin.Yue Pengju was ten years younger than everyone else, but because of his outstanding achievements, he was already ranked among the three generals.He knew that he was promoted too fast, and he was afraid of incurring the jealousy of others, so he was even more cautious, modest and prudent, but neither humble nor overbearing.

Zhao Deji said: "Nowadays, in addition to the puppet Qi and captives, there is also the disaster of Dongting water bandits. From Pengju's opinion, how about it?"

Yue Pengju said: "The situation of the country is difficult. How dare I say goodbye? I have personally gone to Huxiang to check the terrain. According to my officials, the Dongting water thieves all relied on the deep river and deep lake. When sending out troops, they often take advantage of the autumn and winter when the water falls. At this time, the water thieves are collecting food, and the land attack sneaks into the lake; Therefore, it is always difficult for officers and soldiers to win. If we use troops in hot summer, teach water bandits to stop land farming, and cut off food roads, we may win."

Zhao Deji listened to his detailed analysis, and secretly praised Yue Pengju's right and wrong.

Zhang Jun and the others looked disapproving, and Han Zhongliang asked, "What year and month will Yue Wu break the water thief?"

Yue Pengju said: "The lower officials are not talented. Although they are not confident, they dare not delay the military situation. I am willing to use this autumn and winter."

After hearing this, Han Zhongliang poured himself a glass of wine and said, "I'll drink a glass for you today. If you can't break the water thief in Qiudong, I will punish you with a glass."

Zhang Jun had long been jealous of this young general, and couldn't help but said in a sour tone, "Han Wu, if Qiudong fails to wipe out the water thieves, I will also punish you with a cup."

Yue Pengju bowed his head and remained silent.As for the Dongting water pirates, Zhang Jun who was here once led the army to destroy them, but returned without success.The reason why he proposed a one-year deadline was that he did not want to spend too much energy on internal affairs, and hoped that he would have the opportunity to make the Northern Expedition, fight the captives, and recover Lianghe. This was his ideal.

Zhao Deji was naturally very satisfied with Yue Pengju's answer, so he said, "If that's the case, I'll give you a deadline for autumn and winter. I'm waiting for the good news."

After the banquet was withdrawn, Zhao Deji began to confer rewards.

"All the ministers are the backbone of the country, and I rely heavily on them. I have given Han, Liu, and Zhang Sanqing the title of "Ruren" three people, each with five crowns. Mrs. Yueqing is a special favor to Mrs. Huguo."

Originally, titles such as "Ruren" and "Mrs. Guo" bestowed by the emperor were all aimed at the regular wives of civil servants and military generals.But Han, Liu, and Zhang are all wives and concubines.When the three of them arrived in Lin'an, they went around looking for beautiful prostitutes in Lin'an to be their wives. It is said that Han Zhongliang found a singing girl surnamed Mao here. She was very beautiful and spent 5000 yuan. Therefore, besides his wife, he was loved The beautiful concubines often pester their husbands to reward them with famous artifacts.

All three of them submitted memorials to ask for titles for their concubines. As soon as the memorials came up, they were unanimously opposed by the ministers of the Ministry of Rites, saying that the country's famous artifacts should not be rewarded indiscriminately.But now that Zhao Deji relies heavily on generals, he naturally doesn't pay attention to these trivial matters, so he goes along with the flow and agrees to their request.

For a while, the four generals bowed down to thank each other, and the other three were all beaming. Only Yue Pengju said: "I was born in a lonely family, and when I met your majesty, I was honored by the emperor. How dare I overdo it? My wife, the Hua family, has long been married to the queen mother." The reward, if His Majesty wants to add another title, the minister will be uneasy. I hope that His Majesty will give it back quickly to respect the court's reputation."

Yue Pengju's resignation increased Zhao Deji's goodwill, and he thought that Yue Pengju was not greedy, and he was not comparable to the other three generals.

But to the other three people, what they said caused public anger, thinking that Yue Pengju was trying to be good-looking and make them look bad.But in front of the emperor, they dared not say anything.

Zhang Jun, in particular, was even more jealous, thinking to himself, it was rumored in the world that Yue Peng raised a tree, but now it seems that he is best at acting, trying to curry favor with others.

Zhao Deji said: "This time Miao Liu mutiny, although Hua Rong is a woman, she has made great achievements. How can I take back my award? Pengju doesn't have to refuse."

After retreating, the four of them walked out of the palace together.Since the house where Yue Pengju lived was far away from the three of them, he bid farewell to the three of them and said, "Your Majesty and the three ministers are announcing their retirement. I wish the three ministers a smooth journey."

Zhang Jun and Liu Guang bowed their hands and returned the gift politely, but Han Zhongliang, who is upright and not good at hypocrisy, couldn't help but said angrily: "Yue Wu, you just resigned the title of Mrs. Guo in the palace, aren't you mocking your own family for being concubines?" Please seal it?"

Yue Pengju saw that the expressions of the three people were not right, but he had discussed his resignation with his wife.Because the more rewards there are, the more entangled with the imperial court.After Hua Rong experienced a life-and-death battle with Jin Wushu, he already understood Zhao Deji's mentality. He didn't dare to have too optimistic views on the future of the two. He only wanted to fight for a few more years and the Northern Expedition was successful, so he retired.Especially after meeting Lu Tisha, this desire is even stronger.The two of them didn't want to receive more gifts from Zhao Deji, and they didn't want to easily enter the palace because of the rewards.Unexpectedly, this refusal was met with suspicion by the three of them.But, of course, he couldn't tell the reason.

Yue Pengju listened to his questioning, and only said lightly: "The wife of the lower official is weak and weak-tempered. She doesn't want to be bound by fame and utensils, and she will not ask for any rewards in the future. If you think that the lower official is putting on a pose, you can supervise."

Liu Guang met Hua Rong once, because he took "Wei Qing and Huo Qubing" as a person named "Wei Qinghuo", which made Hua Rong laugh secretly. He was deeply impressed by Hua Rong, but when Yue Pengju said so, he nodded , Shi Ran said: "Mrs. Yue is certainly an extraordinary woman."

(End of this chapter)