Chapter 360 Political Statement

Chapter 360 Political Statement

Chapter 360 Political Statement

After cleaning up the battlefield, Shao Xun quickly left and headed for Kaocheng.

Unifying thoughts is the most important thing now, no doubt about it.

A few days later, he arrived at the General's Mansion in the western suburbs of Kaocheng.

When Concubine Pei saw the dusty Shao Xun, she was shocked.

"Won?" asked Concubine Pei.

"We won." Shao Xun nodded. "We killed Gou Chun in battle, Gou Xi escaped on his own, and captured more than 5,000 of their defeated soldiers."

Concubine Pei calmed down and said, "I will call the staff together now."

Shao Xun nodded, then sat in the room and waited silently.

It took some time to gather the staff, but by the evening, all the talents arrived one after another.

After hearing Cai Cheng's report, Shao Xun straightened his robe and walked towards the main hall.

All eyes were on him.

Their expressions were extremely complicated.

There is schadenfreude.

Some are extremely worried.

It's none of my business.

There are those who think hard and speculate.

Anyway, no one was angry about this.

It turned out that there were no loyal ministers in Sima Yue's shogunate, and they were all against the emperor.

The staff took their seats according to their status.

The Left Chief Clerk Pan Tao, the Right Chief Clerk Zhao Mu, the Left Sima Pei Shao, and the Right Sima Deng You were all officials of the rank of Qianshi.
The officials attending the Zhonglang include Liu Chou, He Sui, Feng Song, Shen Ling and Sui Mai, whose ranks were comparable to those of Qianshi.

The chief clerks were Pei Xia and Jiang Chun.

Guang Yi and Cheng Shou were the officials of the East and West Caos.

Wang and Cao Yin were the chief priests of the East and West Pavilions.

The soldiers included Zou Jie, Liu Wei, Li Xing and Guan Junyi.

The recorders were Qu Zhuang and Cai Ming.

Military Supervisor Pei Miao.

Supervise and protect Mi Zhi.

In addition to these people, there were also officials from various departments, clerks, and servants.

Except for those who were sent out on business or on official business, almost all the colleagues in Kaocheng came.

As for the military generals, He Lun, the commander of the tent, Man Heng, the commander of the camp, Tang Jian, the commander of the assassination, and Liu Qia, the lieutenant of the Donghai, were not there.

The princes who had originally served as various clerks in the palace had been ordered by the emperor to return to the capital - Sima Yue kept the princes by his side and sometimes gave them something to do.

Shao Xun sat below Concubine Pei in a nonchalant manner, which made everyone look at him sideways, and even the heir to the throne was surprised for a moment.

"I have been in charge of government affairs for several months and know that it is not easy to do things. Military and civilian affairs are complicated and difficult to deal with..." After a moment of silence, Concubine Pei spoke first: "Mr. Chen is wise and loyal. I would like to hire him as a military commander to assist in the affairs of the army. What do you think?"

When everyone heard this, no one said anything.

A moment later, the Left Chief Clerk Pan Tao, the Attendant General Pei Miao, and the Protector Mi Zhi stood up almost at the same time.

"The nine counties of Yanzhou have become ruins and villages are scattered. It takes a man of great wisdom and courage to rectify them. I agree." Pan Tao said.

As one of the aides who once persuaded Sima Yue to kill the emperor's followers, Pan Tao had no reason to defect to the emperor. It was normal for him to stand up and say this.

"Mr. Chen has a high moral character and is talented in both civil and military affairs. He is indeed an excellent choice for the position of military commander," said Pei Miao.

As a member of the Pei family and a relative of Concubine Pei, Pei Miao had been in Yue Mansion for quite some time and was highly valued by Sima Yue. He was given the title of "Temporary General, Supervisor of the Military Affairs of the King of Donghai", and was the chief military supervisor of all military forces of the entire Sima Yue faction.

He had been deeply involved in various plots, many of which were aimed at the emperor. He had no idea whether he would be purged.

"I agree too." Mi Zhi said finally.

Mi Huang's son inherited his father's position in the shogunate, but the situation was completely different - Mi Huang entered the Yue Mansion because Sima Yue had no one to use, so he recruited people from the fiefdom, and Mi Zhi was now benefiting from his father's influence.

After the three of them finished speaking, the others stood up one after another to express their opinions, and most of them agreed.

Shao Xun took a look and saw that most of the people had stood up, except for a dozen or so who seemed to disagree.

But it doesn’t matter, the outcome has been decided.

So he also stood up and said, "I am busy with affairs and have a heavy responsibility on my shoulders. I am just taking over this position temporarily. All matters are still decided by the shogunate officials. I will not interfere."

After saying this, he looked at everyone, took something out of his arms, and unfolded it in public.

Everyone's expressions changed.

Who the hell doesn't recognize this! Imperial edict?

Shao Xun handed the imperial edict to Concubine Pei.

After reading it, Concubine Pei remained calm and handed it to the successor prince Sima Pi.

Sima Pi didn't react at all when he saw it.

There was a paragraph about his father Sima Yue "harboring evil" and "disobeying the king's orders", but he was too "filial" to feel angry. Shao Xun took the edict back and handed it to Pan Tao, the left chief historian.

Pan Tao finished reading it quickly and chuckled.

As one of the people ranked first on the emperor's revenge list, Pan Tao knew that he would not be spared. Reading this now, he felt a strange pleasure - I'm in Kaocheng, I just took a concubine, I eat and drink well every day, I'm in a high position and have power, what can you do to me?
After reading it, Pan Tao stood up and asked Concubine Pei for permission before reading it out in public.

As they read on, the expressions on everyone's faces became more interesting.

When the emperor said that someone had "framed loyal and good people" and "hindered the country's plans", many people immediately identified themselves with the people involved.

This probably means killing He Sui and his gang. To be honest, there are many people involved in the shogunate. Some have left, and some are still here, so they are getting restless.

The emperor then said that some people "abandoned my kindness" and "aided his evil plot", and continued to ask people to identify themselves, especially those who once held court positions and later defected to Sima Yue.

The emperor finally said that he would "examine their ugly deeds" and "strictly enforce the state's punishment" - a fatal move, which made the officials in the Yue government feel very uneasy.

However, everyone still focused their attention on Shao Xun, because more than half of the edict was talking about him, which was incomparable to anyone else.

"The emperor wants to kill us all. What good plans do you have?" Shao Xun looked around and asked.

"The emperor must have been deceived by the evil people." Although on the emperor's kill list, Pan Tao still carefully guided the pace to prevent people from pointing the spearhead directly at the emperor.

"What Pan Changshi said is absolutely right." Shao Xun sighed, "When I was in Luoyang, I saw that the emperor was a simple and honest person. There must be a traitor behind this."

Everyone listened and thought secretly.

"However, it is not appropriate for us to interfere in this matter. The ministers in the court must step forward." Pan Tao said again.

"What the Chief Secretary said makes sense." Shao Xun said with a smile.

"If the military commander allows, I can go to Luoyang."

"Thank you for your hard work, Yang Zhong."

The two of them agreed and quickly confirmed the matter.

Sima Pi looked a little confused and hesitated to speak.

How did Shao Xun become the military commander of the shogunate? And he exercised his power in public without any hesitation?
Many people may have forgotten that Shao Xun was a general of the imperial guards, but Zhao and Deng once told him that Shao Xun's original position was the Supervisor of the Yamen Army - it was because of his low birth. If he was a child of an aristocratic family, the "Supervisor of the Yamen Army" would instantly become the "Central Guard Army", which was the general who commanded all the imperial guards stationed in the suburbs of the capital except the seven guards (stationed in the city).

He was in charge of Liang County with the titles of Supervisor of the Yamen Army (original official) and General of the Southern Army (a good official). He followed the old practice since the Three Kingdoms period, that is, sending generals to garrison important counties, such as Lü Meng (who was in charge of Guangde) and Zhu Ran (who was in charge of five counties including Shanyin). In the Qing Dynasty, there was also General Qiao Zhiming under the command of King Chengdu, who was in charge of Linlu and Gong counties.

Liang County is an important town in Luonan, with Guangcheng Pass nearby. Shao Xun is stationed in Liang County, which logically has nothing to do with Yanzhou. How did he become a military commander (military advisor)?
The position of military commander is responsible for the overall military situation, including recruiting soldiers, training soldiers, making plans, and commanding soldiers. He is assisted by several military advisers.

As soon as he arrived, the entire military affairs of the shogunate were under his control.

Why did A Niang do this? Sima Pi looked at his mother again.

Concubine Pei had no expression.

Sima Pi felt uncomfortable. Thinking of the recent teachings of Zhao and Deng, he felt a little disappointed.

Is A Niang determined to be tied to Mr. Chen? She has hired him as a military commander in public, leaving her no way out.

"I have one more thing to say." Shao Xun bowed to Concubine Pei and Sima Pi again and said.

"Please speak, Military Commander." Concubine Pei said.

Shao Xun clapped his hands, and soon a clerk from the shogunate came in carrying a wooden box.

Shao Xun took the wooden box, opened it, and then took out a shriveled head that emitted a foul smell.

Sima Pi vomited all of a sudden.

Concubine Pei's face didn't look very good, but she was still calm.

The staff had different expressions, but they still maintained their composure and did not make a fuss.

"This is Gou Chun's head." Shao Xun said, "When the Gou brothers entered Fan County, they disturbed the former prime minister's tomb, smashed the tombstone, and damaged the inscription. Their crimes were heinous."

There was no strange expression on Shao Xun's face when he said this.

It is hard to say whether smashing a tombstone is worse or sleeping with the sister-in-law is worse.

Everyone looked at him quietly, waiting for what would happen next.

"I think we should use this head as a sacrifice to comfort Situ in the netherworld," Shao Xun said.

Concubine Pei's eyes were a little red.

Humans are creatures with complex emotions. She and Sima Yue did not have much affection for each other, but they were husband and wife after all, and it was definitely sad to see her late husband's tombstone destroyed.

Even when she was emotionally agitated, she still found the key point. She said, "The military commander is right. All the officials of the shogunate, except those who are necessary to stay behind, should go to Fan County, repair the tomb garden, and offer sacrifices to my late husband. This matter cannot be delayed, so set off as soon as possible."

"Yes." The staff responded one after another.

Smart people know that this is not a simple act of sacrifice, but a collective political statement.

Whoever doesn't go will be cut off from this collective.

Once they go there, the label on them will be strengthened, and the emperor will look at them strangely.

The Concubine Dowager was determined to support Mr. Chen. Well, in everyone's opinion, it was not a bad choice.

Especially those who had offended the emperor, they strongly supported it. If they did not want to cross the river to Jianye, they really had no other way to go.

Sima Pi subconsciously looked at Zhao Mu and Deng You.

The two of them bowed their heads at this time and did not respond.

(End of this chapter)