Chapter 405: 405 wake up

Chapter 405: 405 wake up

Chapter 405 Chapter 405 Awakening

Gu Jue, Shen Qianchen and the others drove back to the palace.

All the pilgrims ran to the gate of Baiyun Temple and watched them leave. Now that the exercise is over, these pilgrims have been allowed to leave Baiyun Temple, but they are a little reluctant to leave. They gather together in twos and threes, some talking and chattering with unfinished meaning.

The blood of these pilgrims was all boiling. As soon as they returned from Baiyun Temple, they made a big publicity about what happened today, and even made them jealous.

They said that they saw with their own eyes the new emperor training troops at Baiyun Temple today, with the sky full of glow and birds coming to congratulate him;

The 3,000 battalions of soldiers were really incredible. The 800 soldiers could not defeat the 200 Xuanjia Army, and they were subdued by the Xuanjia Army in just a few strokes;

He talked about how wise and powerful the new emperor was, and angrily criticized the generals of the three thousand battalions for eating empty pay.

The news spread from place to place, and the capital became agitated because of this incident.

Even the cabinet elders had just heard about Baiyun Temple. When they came to the Imperial Study Room, all of them looked at a loss, and they roughly guessed that there would be "liveliness" in the court next.

Gu Jue raised his eyebrows slightly and asked straight to the point: "Three thousand battalions can only mobilize more than one thousand troops. Zhuang Maohua, do you know about this?"

Gu Jue was asking Zhuang Maohua, the Minister of the Ministry of War, but the other cabinet ministers were also shocked when they heard this.

“…”

“…”

“…”

Zhuang Maohua, Minister of the Ministry of War, was sweating profusely and his heart was pounding.

Among the civil servants, the Ministry of War is the yamen that has the greatest relationship with generals and the army. They have heard about the issue of empty pay in the army.

However, in the past, when the late Emperor Gu Lang was in power, he did not care about it, and Kang Hongda, the sea-fixing needle, was holding it down. Even if the Ministry of War wanted to take care of it, it did not dare. Murderous parents.

Zhuang Maohua composed himself and answered honestly: "As far as I know, there are 5,600 military personnel in the Three Thousand Battalion." He did not dare to raise his head and look directly into Gu Jue's eyes.

With such a big gap, the Ministry of War cannot escape the fault of dereliction of duty. It just depends on whether the new emperor intends to punish the Ministry of War.

Gu Jue said calmly: "Three or four out of ten?"

"..." Zhuang Maohua was speechless.

The problem of empty pay in the military has actually existed in all dynasties, but when it reaches the level of three or four out of ten, it is too appalling.

Zhuang Maohua always knew that the army was enjoying its free time, but he didn't know that it had reached this point.

It can be speculated that the three thousand battalions are like this, and the other two battalions of the three battalions of the Forbidden Army are not much better. The state guards are afraid of following suit. How big a "hole" is hidden in the entire Qi Dynasty.

Just thinking about it made Zhuang Maohua feel frightened.

The other pavilion elders were also silent, and they could probably guess that since the new emperor had taken this initiative, he was probably planning to rectify the problem of "empty pay", and he didn't know how many people would lose their official positions, go to jail, or go to jail for this. Exile and confiscate their homes.

After a brief silence, Gu Jue's cold voice sounded in the air again:

"If this is not an exercise, but I am really in danger at Baiyun Temple, then can I still rely on Da Qi's imperial army?!"

"If Nan Hao's army goes north to attack Da Qi now, and I mobilize 100,000 people to go south to support, but the actual number is only 30,000, what do you think the outcome of this battle will be?"

"Can our Daqi army be able to defeat three with one?!"

Gu Jue's tone was neither high nor sharp, but it made everyone in the imperial study feel deafening.

Zhuang Maohua was so talked about that he couldn't hold his head up, and the other pavilion elders were also ashamed. Gu Jue obviously didn't say a harsh word, but it made them feel like they were being publicly executed.

As the old saying goes, under a nest full of people, there will be no eggs left intact.

Not only is the Ministry of War shouldering the responsibility for the issue of empty pay, but other cabinet ministers are also not immune to it alone.

The atmosphere became more and more solemn and depressing, and the surrounding air seemed to solidify.

Gu Jue didn't need them to make any shameful or guilty lies, and directly ordered: "Zhuang Maohua, please cooperate with the Ministry of War and Su Mubai to count the soldiers in the state guards from bottom to top. I will see the results within half a month." He It's an order, leaving no room for negotiation.

At this moment, Zhuang Maohua could not say anything else except "I obey my order."

Immediately afterwards, Gu Jue said: "Also, the Ministry of War will immediately draft a recruitment document for me to review."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Zhuang Maohua bowed again and accepted the order, his heart heavy.

Since ancient times, there has been no common people who are not afraid of war. Joining the army means a life of death. Which family is willing to send good men to join the army!

To put it bluntly, people like Xue Fengyan and Tang Yuchu who have been promoted from civilians to soldiers have gone through countless wars and have a probability of 1 in 10,000, no, even 1 in 100,000.

If this conscription order is promulgated, it will definitely cause a storm in Daqi.

The elders of the cabinet exchanged glances with each other. The Minister of Revenue frowned and said solemnly: "Your Majesty, you have just ascended the throne. If you recruit troops now, I am afraid that you will attract some criticism and accuse you of being militaristic. Please, Your Majesty. careful."

This is one of them. He is also worried that once he recruits troops, the new emperor will ask their household department for money.

Yang Xuanshan, the Minister of Rites, gave the Minister of Hubu a look that was almost pitiful. Is the new emperor so easily persuaded? ! The answer is obvious.

Gu Jue leaned back on the chair with a leisurely expression, and gently rubbed the armrest with his right thumb twice. Without being angry or smiling, he asked the Minister of the Ministry of Finance two questions: "You are the one who will provide the missing soldiers." repair?"

"If Nanhao's army attacks, how will you deploy your troops to deal with it?"

Shangshu of the Ministry of Finance: "..."

The Minister of Hubu was a civil servant, so he didn't know how to dispatch troops and generals, so he immediately shut up and stopped talking.

The new emperor did not ask the Ministry of Finance for money for the time being. We will talk about the future later.

The Minister of Hubu suffered a setback from the new emperor, and Zhang Shoufu, Yang Xuanshan and the Minister of Industry no longer expressed any objections.

The new emperor's character is far stronger and more tenacious than that of his father, Emperor Renzong, to be sure.

After a cup of tea, the elders of the cabinet walked out of the imperial study, surrounded by Zhang Shoufu.

The sky outside is still gloomy, and until now, it has not started to rain.

The weather was obviously still cool, but everyone was sweating. Especially Zhuang Maohua couldn't help but wiped the sweat with his sleeves, feeling that he had almost lost half his life.

In the past, the late Emperor Gu Lang's style of dealing with things was relatively gentle. That is to say, half a year before his death, he took elixirs and the erysipelas poisoned his heart, which made his temper increasingly violent.

He was irritable and irritable. In terms of political affairs, Gu Lang was not a particularly strong monarch.

After so many years, they have become accustomed to the late emperor's style, and it has been too long since they have experienced this kind of thunderous deterrence.

The Minister of the Ministry of Industry, who was walking at the end, couldn't help but shook his head and whispered as he walked down the white marble steps: "The food of the Three Thousand Battalion is too ugly."

Zhang Shoufu and Zhuang Maohua looked at the Minister of Industry with strange eyes, and then they looked at each other in tacit understanding. Both of them realized that this exercise was a trap set by the new emperor.

The new emperor should have discovered the problem of empty pay in the army before he came to the throne. In all likelihood, he also asked the old subordinates in Qiandi to carefully check the three camps of the Forbidden Army and find out the actual number of people in each camp. .

Knowing that there is corruption in the army, it is certainly impossible for the new emperor to ignore it and allow these worms to breed in the army.

So, the new emperor took action.

If you don't take action, it's fine. Once you take action, it's amazing.

Yang Xuanshan patted Zhuang Maohua on the shoulder sympathetically and sighed: "Brother Zhuang, you will be very busy next."

Zhuang Maohua: "..."

Zhuang Maohua was not comforted at all by the other party, and he could only calmly think in the best direction.

The new emperor's methods this time have been considered gentle.

After he ascends the throne, he can directly order the Ministry of War to investigate the status of soldiers in the Forbidden Army and even national guards. However, if this is the case, it is likely to cause a certain backlash in the military, and it will also make the officers and soldiers in the army suspicious. Does the new emperor want to settle accounts with the queen and use this as an excuse to purge all the old generals left by the previous emperor?

As the saying goes, the lips are dead and the teeth are cold. Changes in the military will also cause panic among civil servants, which will be detrimental to the stability of the court.

With the new emperor's strong style, he should not be afraid of opposition in the court, but many things will happen for nothing. In this way, not only will the new emperor waste time arguing with the courtiers, but even he, the Minister of War, will have to do this errand. It will be a lot harder.

Like now, the new emperor used the exercise as a tactic and selected 3,000 battalions to operate, directly tearing open this "bloody hole", and nakedly presented the problem of Da Qi's army's empty pay in front of the court and the people.

Now everyone in the world knows that the new emperor wanted to mobilize troops but was unable to do so because of the problem of "empty pay".

This is official corruption, and it is meant to drain the treasury and leave Da Qi with no soldiers to use.

This problem is serious.

Now the officials are staring, the scholars are staring, and the people are also staring.

Want to check?

Of course you have to check.

Not only did they need to conduct a thorough investigation, but they also needed to recruit troops. In this way, the new emperor would gain great righteousness, and their military department would have less trouble in handling affairs.

Yang Xuanshan sighed again: "Our emperor's methods are really extraordinary."

It was unusual, but Zhuang Maohua was still heartbroken. He felt that Yang Xuanshan could hardly stand and talk without pain in his back. He sighed tiredly: "I will definitely have to sleep in the Yamen in the next month." The more Zhuang Maohua thought about it, the more he felt that there were too many things, so he hurriedly talked with her. Several other pavilion elders said goodbye and left in a hurry.

All the pavilion elders left Qianqing Palace, but the atmosphere in the imperial study room was still very solemn.

Two soldiers in black armor stood stiffly on the other side of the imperial case, lowering their heads obediently, and could feel Gu Jue's eyes scanning back and forth on their bodies.

The two soldiers were as uncomfortable as the elders just now.

Then, one of the soldiers, a square-faced soldier in his thirties, took the lead in breaking the silence. He cupped his fists and admitted his mistake, saying, "The last general will have his fault."

Jingfeng personally came in with a cup of freshly brewed tea and glanced sideways at the two soldiers.

Jingfeng took it for granted. As a soldier of the Xuanjia Army, all of them were elites, but he made a fuss over such a small movement and ignored his errands. Of course it was his fault.

Gu Jue picked up the pastel enamel tea cup and slowly brushed away the tea leaves floating on the tea soup with the tea lid, his movements were graceful and soothing, and he did not speak.

The young general next to the square-faced soldier knelt down on the ground and said, "It's the villain's fault. The villain thought that there were really bandits surrounding the temple, so he stopped the pilgrims from leaving the temple..." and then he accidentally let go. Chu Qianhuang escaped from the side room.

No matter what the reason was, it was their duty to guard Chu Qianhuang. They should have stayed at all times, but they had to leave one person to guard the wing. Otherwise, Chu Qianhuang would not have escaped from the wing, let alone been stabbed.

This is a major dereliction of duty and there is no excuse for it.

Gu Jue took an elegant sip of hot tea and said calmly: "Go down and receive the punishment yourself."

The Xuanjia Army has its own military rules. In the final analysis, they were derelict in their duty today because they were in the capital and felt that Chu Qianhuang was unable to fly. There are rewards for merit and punishment for demerits. This is the way of running the army of Xuanjia Army.

The young general quickly clasped his fists and said, "Young man is willing to accept the punishment."

The square-faced soldier felt extremely regretful. He also knew that this subordinate was young and energetic, and he should have found someone with a calm personality to take charge of this job. This kid still needs to temper his temperament.

The two soldiers retreated quickly. As soon as they stepped forward, they heard a "meow" sound from the back. A black cat with four white paws, tail raised, walked in gracefully, with its head held high and full of dignity.

After entering, it turned its head to the back and barked again, as if urging something.

Gu Jue's eyebrows moved, and his cold face suddenly melted like the first snow. The next moment, the little girl he had been thinking about came in with a sweet smile.

Shen Qianchen went to sit opposite Gu Jue, facing him across the table. She was not polite and took a few sips of his tea, then heard the cat meow twice more.

Shen Qianchen glanced at the cat and said to Gu Jue with a smile: "We Yueying are getting better and better. We just stole a live fish from the imperial kitchen to honor me."

Thinking of the fish out of water being thrown to the ground by a cat, with its tail swaying and flapping, Shen Qianchen felt funny, smiling lightly and looking forward to his beautiful eyes.

To be honest, Lieutenant General Li You looked just like that fish when he saw Gu Jue at Baiyun Temple. Since he had been fished out of the water, no matter how much he jumped around, it was all in vain.

When Gu Jue saw her smiling, he smiled too, his lustful eyes lingering on her face, and said, "So, you deserve a reward!"

Yue Ying, who was squatting aside, seemed to understand and called out "meow".

"It's a reward." Shen Qianchen tilted his little face and smiled brightly, his eyebrows and eyes curved into a soft and sweet arc.

There was a hidden meaning in her words that only she knew.

Yueying should reward the dried fish, and so should Gu Jue.

Shen Qianchen waved to Gu Jue, smiling broadly.

Gu Jue thought she was going to whisper something, so he moved his face to her gently. At the same time, Shen Qianchen stood up slightly from the chair, raised his chin slightly, and moved his face towards him, wanting to kiss the corner of his lips.

Who would have thought that when the green lotus-colored silk ribbon at her temples crossed Gu Jue's neck, he felt a little itchy. He picked up the silk ribbon with his hand and turned his handsome face away.

So, her plump cherry lips pressed firmly against his thin lips, and their lips touched each other.

There was a "boom" in Shen Qianchen's mind, and the blood all over his body rushed up to his cheeks, and a bright red blush appeared on both cheeks.

This kiss is actually as light as a feather, as soft as a cloud, and fleeting.

Shen Qianchen quickly retreated.

Gu Jue on the other side had froze, motionless, and even forgot to breathe.

When she stepped back, his eyes were still chasing her, resting scorchingly on her red lips. Her lips were as red as her cheeks, her eyes were flowing, and her expression revealed a rare shyness and coquettishness.

Shen Qianchen's heartbeat was beating fast and wildly, and his breathing became a little short.

When she noticed Gu Jue's rare daze, her mood suddenly became very happy. She felt a little embarrassed and wanted to rub herself against him.

She had a dry mouth and wanted to drink water, but Gu Jue curled his fingers towards her and said in a soft and seductive voice: "Come here."

His narrow eyes were half-closed, and there was an undercurrent surging in them, which was both bright and hot.

Shen Qianchen's cheeks began to feel hot again, and his heartbeat, which had finally stabilized, began to beat uncontrollably. He felt that the Gu Jue in front of him was really different from usual.

How to say, it's like a peacock in full bloom and peonies in full bloom.

At this moment, someone opened the curtain behind the door, and the gust of wind came in again, breaking the charming atmosphere in the room.

At first Jingfeng thought he was disturbing something, but when he saw the two of them sitting across the desk, he felt that he was overthinking it, and said seriously: "Empress, Miss Chu is awake."

After Gu Jue and Shen Qianchen left Baiyun Temple in the afternoon, someone caught up with them from behind and reported that Chu Qianhuang was stabbed in the abdomen with a dagger by Aunt Jiang. Not only Chu Qianhuang, Mrs. Chu was also stabbed by Jiang. Aunt Jiang was pushed to the ground and almost injured, but Aunt Jiang had already been captured.

Shen Qianchen asked people to bring the injured Chu Qianhuang into the palace and placed him in Jingren Palace.

Chu Qianhuang was stabbed by Aunt Jiang. She lost too much blood and was seriously injured. It was Shen Qianchen who rescued Chu Qianhuang. With her previous experience in treating Gu Jue and Gu Nanjin, the process of her treatment of Chu Qianhuang this time Very smooth.

Before leaving Jingren Palace, she told people to report to her when Chu Qianhuang woke up.

"..." Jingfeng always felt that Gu Jue was glaring at him, and he couldn't help but wonder if he was being disliked.

In just two breaths, Shen Qianchen's cheeks cooled down and returned to calm.

She silently counted the time, and the effects of Ma Fei San were almost over.

She stood up and said softly: "Jiuxia, I'll go see her."

Without waiting for Gu Jue to answer, she ran away like a gust of wind, leaving only the Xiang Fei curtain swaying in the air.

Gu Jue looked at the Xiang Fei curtain with a painting of butterflies playing with peonies, a lingering smile on his face. He raised his hand and touched his thin lips, his eyes flickering, as if he was thinking about something.

The **** of his right hand trembled slightly...

After Shen Qianchen left the Imperial Study Room, he went directly to Jingren Palace.

The imperial doctor who was staying at Jingren Palace saw Shen Qianchen coming, and hurriedly stepped forward to greet her and reported Chu Qianhuang's situation: "Empress, Miss Chu just woke up. She is still very weak due to excessive blood loss. Please tell me." She has already taken a dose of the prescription. I also checked her pulse and found that her pulse was stagnant and her blood was stagnant, and she felt uneasy."

Facing a Xinglin sage like Shen Qianchen, the imperial physician put it very succinctly. The so-called "bloody veins" are usually caused by heavy bleeding that causes the yin blood to be unable to maintain yang energy.

Shen Qianchen nodded slightly and walked towards the inner room. Chu Qianhuang is now her patient, so she has to check Chu Qianhuang's pulse personally.

There was a faint medicinal smell permeating the inner room. As soon as you entered the room, you could see an empty bowl on the coffee table.

A palace maid with an oval face was carefully lifting Chu Qianhuang up from the couch and letting her sit with her back against a big pillow.

The action of standing up probably affected the wound on his abdomen. Chu Qianhuang frowned slightly and his eyelashes trembled slightly.

Her hair was covered with black hair, flowing down like a waterfall. She was wearing a white middle coat with a small vertical collar. Her cheeks were so pale that they were as pale as snow, without a trace of blood.

The light beside the bed gave her skin a soft glow, making her temperament gentle, peaceful, and delicate.

Shen Qianchen stopped and looked at Chu Qianhuang two feet away. For some reason, she always felt that something was different about Chu Qianhuang, but she couldn't tell what was different about him.

Shen Qianchen was stunned and looked at Chu Qianhuang quietly.

The palace maid was the first to feel something. She turned around and saw Shen Qianchen. She knelt down and saluted with fear: "See the Queen."

Almost at the same time, Chu Qianhuang also turned his head and followed the palace maid's gaze towards Shen Qianchen.

On her pale oval face, her willow-leaf eyes were as dark as ink, and her pupils were as clear and calm as the windless lake surface.

She seemed a little surprised, blinked slowly, and then smiled softly:

"Second sister."

The smile spread from the corners of her pale lips, to the corners of her eyes and eyebrows, and rippled to the bottom of her eyes. It was like a spring breeze gently blowing through the willow branches on the shore, and the willow branches swayed on the lake for a while. Array of ripples.

Last Friday, the fever started to reach 39.7, and then it continued every day. It was above 38 degrees every day. My brain felt like it was in a fog. I had to write 1,000 words for 3 or 4 hours. I finally came back to life today!

The cold has been so severe recently, so please pay more attention to your health.

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(End of chapter)