Chapter 198 The emperor is the general trend (seeking monthly ticket for subscription)

Chapter 198 The emperor is the general trend (seeking monthly ticket for subscription)

Zuo Cha Censor Xiao Sheng admitted that he had lost a move. He only thought about a quick battle, but did not carefully understand the changes in the Northern Army these days, and even underestimated the Emperor. It seems that the rumors are true, and the Emperor is gradually showing his edge. .

But Xiao Sheng did not admit that he lost the whole game. After a day of rest and inquiries, he was more confident to turn defeat into victory. He did have some ability to abolish the emperor, and he could almost win half of the Northern Army into his hands. The effect is even better, but after all, the Northern Army is the army of the Great Chu court, not the robber who occupies the mountain as the king. No matter how much they like this young general, they still have to obey the orders of the court.

Xiao Sheng thought that he represented the imperial court. The only problem was the lack of imperial edict, so some people refused to accept it.

After asking a number of military officials - they were more afraid of the Zuo Cha censor than military generals - the military situation of Shenxiongguan and Iron Broken City became more and more clear in Xiao Sheng's eyes, and he felt annoyed , The Emperor's self-assertion in the frontier has long been full of loopholes, and any one of them is enough to convict him. If he had known earlier, he would never have been in a speechless dilemma in the lobby.

On the afternoon of the second day after arriving at Shenxiongguan, Xiao Sheng held a banquet to invite the generals of the Northern Army, as well as some noble children he knew. The emperor was invited, but he didn't come. He didn't attend the banquet last night. Xiao declared white. This is ready to go, so he is not in a hurry to shoot, but to form an army, and after everything is in order, he will deliver a fatal blow.

At the banquet, Xiao Sheng was uncharacteristically, not mentioning the Huns at all, talking about the past and friendship with everyone, mentioning how the capital attaches great importance to the Northern Army, and how each family cares about their own children.

In the end, he brought the topic to the "Chai family" who were still in custody. Everyone was silent and avoided this sensitive topic. Xiao Sheng did not force it, and announced that the banquet was over, leaving only Chai Yue.

In the eyes of everyone, Xiao Sheng wanted to plead with Chai Yue. Chai Yue was not only a family member of Chai, but also a close associate of General Zhenbei. It was only natural for him to absolve his relatives. Liu Kunsheng escaped, and his footsteps became easier when he left.

But this is just a cover, Xiao Sheng doesn't care about the "Chai family", he came from afar, not to save his nephew from prison, in fact, when he left Beijing, he didn't know about it at all, he saw it very much. I understand that as long as the Northern Army is recaptured from the abolition of the emperor, it is nothing more than a word to release people.

The key to the battle for the Northern Army is not Liu Kunsheng, the chief seal officer, but Chai Yue, who does not even have a formal official title.

The cold wind whistled outside, Xiao Sheng looked at the tables with the messy cups and plates, and said, "This winter is colder than previous years."

"The soldiers who have been in the frontier for a long time also said the same." Chai Yue stood with her hands down and answered cautiously. Suddenly, he became an insignificant son of the Marquis of Hengyang, and he was cautious in front of high-ranking people.

Xiao Sheng, however, was not the elder who looked at people coldly, smiled and said, "Perhaps this is a good thing. In the cold winter, the Xiongnu army and the mob from all over the country may freeze to death. The Chu army is well-supplied, so don't be afraid."

This is what a civil servant would say. Even if the other party is not a relative of the Chai family, Chai Yue would not refute it, but he didn't want to chat, so he said, "The Chai family in the Iron Broken City..."

"They deserved what they deserved, and they even tried to murder their own family in the army!" Xiao Sheng looked very indignant, and then said slowly: "This official left General Chai to hear your opinion on the general situation of the world."

Chai Yue glanced at Zuo Cha Censor in surprise, "How can you dare to judge the general trend of the world in a low-key manner?"

"Haha, General Chai Guoqian, do you know what happened in the capital during this time?"

Chai Yue shook her head, standing more and more cautiously, "I don't know at the end."

"sit."

Chai Yue hesitated for a while before sitting sideways on the stool opposite Xiao Sheng.

"To be honest, no one knows what happened in the capital, the root cause is in the palace: Your Majesty has not been to court for many days, and the Queen Mother only occasionally goes to the Qinzheng Palace to listen to the government, and she refuses to express her opinion or give any reply to all the memorials. , that's why this official did not bring the imperial edict."

Chai Yue hummed vaguely.

"The people of the court and the barbarians are aggressive, guessing that the Majesty and the Empress Dowager are both seriously ill and unable to write. Privately said that there is something abnormal, and the Empress Dowager can still be in charge after all, so that she can't even approve the chapter, there must be a reason for the Empress Dowager's move, I'm afraid... ... The queen mother is going to stir up trouble again."

Talking directly about the emperor and the empress dowager is a taboo for officials. Chai Yue thought to herself that her relationship with Xiao Sheng was not close enough to say anything. .

"Da Chu can't stand the toss." Xiao Sheng sighed, taking Chai Yue as a new year's friend, "Huan Emperor, Si Emperor, Abandoned Emperor, and today's saint, it has only been a few years, the palace is turbulent and changeable, and Emperor Wu will The family that has been built so hard will be lost, this is the general trend, Chai Yue, the emperor is the general trend."

"What can a courtier do? You can only be loyal and wait slowly." Chai Yue had to speak.

"Of course, a subject cannot be arrogant. No matter what happens in the palace, the subject can only accept it. But some people have special status and are not bound by the courtesy of the subject. There are not many such people. There are only three at the moment, Chai Yue, what do you think? ?"

From "General Chai" to "Chai Yue", it is not cold, but kind.

"Champion Hou, East Sea King, and... General Zhenbei." Chai Yue replied.

"Yes, although there are many children in the clan, only these three are different, and each has followers. Chai Yue, who do you support?"

Chai Yue raised her head, "Little generals, it's just ups and downs with the general situation. Lord Xiao has been an important minister in the court since the reign of Emperor Wu. Which one do you support?"

Xiao Sheng laughed twice and said coldly, "I'm a minister, but I think for the sake of Xiao and Chai first. Who do I support? I support the one who is most likely to ascend the throne."

"Champion Hou?"

"This is the general trend I want to tell you, Chai Yue, from the outsider's point of view, the court is precarious, in fact, the general trend has been set, the champion Hou was the first to get the news, and he returned to the capital immediately. A word of disclosure: Champion Hou has already received the support of Prime Minister Yin."

Prime Minister Yin Wuxian was young and virtuous, and had a great influence in the DPRK. With his support, the champion Hou had indeed run far ahead.

Chai Yue was silent for a while, "Where's the King of the East Sea?"

"The King of the East Sea is rushing to the capital, and we met on the road. He still has some hope. It has nothing to do with him, but because he has the support of Mrs. Cui and his mother inside. I got news that a month ago, the King of the East China Sea The mother was brought into the palace, which may mean something. It doesn't matter, no matter who ascends the throne, the champion Hou and the East Sea King, Xiao and Chai can rest easy."

"And what about General Zhenbei?"

Xiao Sheng chuckled, "General Zhenbei, hey, Chai Yue, you have left the capital for too far, too long, and even your eyes have become short-sighted, do you think that the emperor can be emperor again? You are all wrong, the emperor. It is precisely the reason why he cannot be the emperor. When he abdicated, none of the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty stood up to speak for him. Who would support him at this time? Will he take revenge on the ministers when he regains the throne?"

"General Zhenbei will not do this."

"It doesn't matter what General Zhenbei does, the key is what everyone thinks he will do. Chai Yue, if you want to stand on your own, you must first learn the idea of ​​'self-reliance'. Don't be influenced by General Zhenbei or me. Watch calmly and you'll come to the right conclusions."

"I'm not the only one who supports General Zhenbei."

"Even if the entire Northern Army supports it? It is 600 miles away from the capital, and there are many barriers in the middle, and you are already too late."

"It's too late?" Chai Yue didn't quite understand.

"When I set off from the capital, the Southern Army was on its way back to Beijing, and it should have arrived by now. Of course, without the imperial edict, the Southern Army could not return to Beijing. Mrs. Cui is a smart man, and it is very likely that the army will be stationed at Huailing in the north of Beijing, which is very close to the capital. , it doesn't count as returning to Beijing, and there is another advantage."

"Cut off the way for the Northern Army to return to Beijing." Chai Yue's expression changed.

"That's right, as long as the Southern Army is in Huailing, the capital has nothing to do with the Northern Army." Xiao Sheng paused, "It also has nothing to do with General Zhenbei."

Chai Yue was slightly at a loss, "If that's the case, why did Master Xiao come to Shenxiongguan?"

"Nowadays, most of the ministers in the DPRK support the champion, and a small number favors the king of the East Sea. If you want to stand out, you must do something practical. First, the champion hopes that the northern army can defeat the Huns and increase his prestige. Second, he does not want to have I don't want to worry about it at all. General Zhenbei is one worry, and King Donghai is another, but until the southern army of Taifu Cui is dealt with, the King of Donghai can't move, so we can only start from General Zhenbei."

Chai Yue was silent.

Xiao Sheng stood up, walked around the table, and stood beside Chai Yue, "Not everyone has such a good opportunity as you. After you set up your own business, you can be on an equal footing with the Chai Mansion, so the so-called background doesn't matter anymore, up and down the Chai Mansion. Who doesn't please you?"

"Champion Hou... do you know me?"

"I don't know yet. When you do something big and become famous all over the world, plus my recommendation, the champion will definitely reward you."

Chai Yue got up slowly, "Is the general trend really confirmed?"

"Everyone in the capital knows it."

Chai Yue is young after all, and she blushes when she changes her mind, "I got the news that in three days, several Hun envoys will come to Shenxiongguan to continue peace talks with General Zhenbei. This is..."

Xiao Sheng was overjoyed, "The big event has been accomplished, the champion Hou Wuyou, nephew Chai Yue, you don't have to do anything these days, three days later, when the Hun envoys arrive, bring them to see me first, which is a great achievement. ."

Chai Yue nodded, her brows furrowed, and she seemed to be hesitating. Xiao Sheng patted him on the shoulder, "You are the general of Da Chu, the descendant of the Chai family, and you are loyal to the country and filial piety to the family, other than that, Nothing is worth taking seriously."

Early the next morning, Xiao Sheng began to win over the generals in Shenxiongguan as Zuocha censor. He did not ask everyone to turn to him. The soldiers were always short-sighted, thinking that whoever could lead them to victory should support whoever. Sheng only wanted the forces around him to compete with the Abandoned Emperor when he launched a fatal blow.

Collusion with foreign enemies is enough to defeat the Emperor. If there is any reason for the previous peace talks, continuing the peace talks is a blatant betrayal.

At noon three days later, Chai Yue kept his promise and brought the few Hun envoys who had just arrived directly to Xiao Sheng's residence.

Xiao Sheng was already prepared, and without interrogation, he directly led a large number of soldiers to the yamen, and asked General Zhenbei to speak to the yamen in the name of the generals.

Chao Hua, the head of the Buqu Battalion, stood at the door, bowed his hands to everyone, and finally said to Xiao Sheng, "General Zhenbei is not here."

"Not here? Where did he go?"

Chao Hua glanced at Chai Yue, smiled at Xiao Sheng and said, "General Zhenbei left for the capital a few days ago, and now—it should be coming soon."

After seeing Xiao Sheng, Han Ruzi immediately understood: it was a waste of time to fight with Censor Zuo Cha at Shenxiongguan.