C2014 A Discussion Between the Emperor and His Subjects
C2014 A Discussion Between the Emperor and His Subjects
"You mean that our people from the Great Lu Dynasty will definitely not be able to beat their people from the Fengjue Country?" The Emperor of the Great Lu Dynasty said, "But, a few decades ago, at that time, our Great Lu Dynasty soldiers pointed out... No one was a match for them. Didn't the Fengjue Country also shake its tail and beg for mercy? Kneel and beg for mercy? What? It's only been a few decades, and we can't beat them? They actually want to marry our princess, they really dare to mention it!"
One had to know that the current Emperor of the Great Lu Dynasty was not very old. Therefore, although he had children, they were all young. They were not even at the age of marriage, and among the children left behind by the late Emperor... Although there were women, they were generally older... They were already married, so it wasn't appropriate either. In the entire royal family, if one were to say age was appropriate and had yet to get married... That was the youngest daughter of the Deceased Emperor. She was also the youngest sister of the current Emperor, and her name was Lu Yunqi. She was 18 years old this year.
In this era, she was 18 years old and had yet to get married. Especially women, they were definitely old. Generally speaking, women from other families... Those who got married at around the age of fourteen would get married at the age of twelve. Those who got married earlier would get married at the age of twelve. They had not gotten married when they were 18 years old. If it were an ordinary family... There would definitely be rumors spreading, even if he was the princess of the royal family. No one dared to say anything in front of their faces, but there would probably be discussions behind it.
However, the current Emperor of the Great Lu Dynasty was talking about his youngest sister. The degree of his love... It was no less than his own children, so in terms of marriage... Thus, she never forced her, and allowed herself to make the decision.
As a result, Lu Yunqi was already eighteen years old, and had yet to get married.
And now, the people of the Fengjue Country had actually come to propose marriage to the princess of the Great Lu Dynasty. Didn't this mean that they wanted to marry their most beloved younger sister? Because she was the only one in the entire royal family who fulfilled the conditions. This was also the reason why the Emperor of the Great Lu Dynasty was so angry. His younger sister was his heart's flesh. How could he be willing to let her marry into that barbarian land? Furthermore, he had previously promised his younger sister. Her marriage would be decided by herself. Such a decision... In the eyes of outsiders, it was truly too ridiculous. After all, in this era, it was very rare for a woman to decide her own marriage. Even the women of the royal family were no exception.
Therefore, the Emperor of the Great Lu Dynasty only rejected the request without thinking after hearing the request of the Fengjue Country's special envoy. That was something that he couldn't accept.
What made the Emperor who was not too old even angrier was that decades ago, the Great Lu Dynasty... The surrounding small countries had to rely on their nose to survive. And now, each and every one of them had the intention to rebel. Especially this Fengjue Country, it had even fought a war with the Great Lu Dynasty for ten years. This was simply too hard to accept.
"Your Majesty, all those years ago, in the surrounding countries... We respect our Great Lu Dynasty very much, and we offer a lot of tributes every year. Therefore, our Great Lu Dynasty helped them develop in other areas. Therefore, the surrounding countries have been developing very quickly in the recent decades. Especially with the Fengjue Country at the top, and our Great Lu Dynasty in the army... There are some problems with it. Some generals don't think about training because of their lack of salary. This leads to a decline in the combat strength of the army, which leads to the current situation. " Li Yuangu said.
Li Yuangu's meaning was very obvious. Other countries were developing and training their soldiers, but our Great Lu Dynasty had stopped and even showed signs of regression. If this was the case, it was very normal that we could not beat others.
Li Yuangu did not mind pointing out the problems in the army directly, because he, Minister of War, had only been in office for a few years. If there were problems in the army, it would be the fault of his predecessor. It did not have much to do with him.
Li Yuangu even wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to obtain real power. Although he had been in Minister of War's position for a few years, however... He realized that it was not easy to completely control the army. Many of the generals had been at odds with him for the first few years. He did not have much strength and could only lie low. At the same time, he had investigated the details.
Li Yuangu saw the shadow of Minister and Wu Yan from the Ministry of Personnel behind those people. Wu Yan was much older than Li Yuangu. He had been in the Ministry of Personnel for many years. Whether it was in terms of connections or strength, he was much more powerful than Li Yuangu. However, Li Yuangu did not expect the other party to extend his hand so far. He actually extended his hand into the army. What made him helpless was... He realized that he actually did not have many ways to deal with it.
As Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Wu Yan naturally had a lot of connections. Over the years, through various connections, he had been in the military. He had planted quite a number of people, although Li Yuangu knew the situation inside. However, without any evidence, it was not appropriate to report it to the Emperor. Furthermore, if he were to report it to the Emperor, he might end up being the unlucky one. It was still him.
However, without the support of the Emperor, it would be very difficult for him to completely wipe out Wu Yan's men in the army by himself. He had been working hard for the past few years, but the effect was not obvious.
Now, he found an opportunity to make use of the Emperor's dissatisfaction towards the army. Let him, Minister, reorganize the Ministry of Personnel. If that was the case... He could take some of Wu Yan's men, as well as some disobedient people. He would be able to get rid of them and nurture his own men. If that was the case... In the future, he would be able to control the army and command the battle. He would also be able to do it with greater ease.
"Bastard! These damn fellows actually dared to do such a thing while eating the food and wages of the imperial court." Sure enough, after hearing Li Yuangu's words, the emperor became even angrier. "How did you become Minister of War? "
"Your majesty, I have wanted to reorganize myself a long time ago, but many generals have been working in the army for a long time. Sometimes, I also want to be powerless." Li Yuangu cried.
"Who dares to disobey orders? Do you want to rebel?! Go and reorganize for Zhen. If anyone disobeys orders, then directly wipe out their entire family! " The emperor was furious.
"This official accepts the decree!" Li Yuangu knelt on the ground and kowtowed. However, when he lowered his head, he looked at Wu Yan, who was not far away from him. However, Wu Yan's expression was calm, as if this matter had nothing to do with him.
However, Wu Yan was absolutely smart. He knew... At this moment, the Emperor was furious. If he were to speak up for those people... He would definitely vent his anger on the Emperor. And... All the emperors of the Great Lu Dynasty hated the civil servants meddling in the affairs of the army. If the emperor knew that he meddled in the military affairs, it would not be as simple as a few words of scolding.
Therefore, Wu Yan didn't stand out to speak. However, he was sneering at Li Yuangu's ignorance in his heart. Li Yuangu thought that he would be able to control the army completely with the Emperor's order? Obviously, he had thought too simply about the matter.
At this time, Wu Yan still stood out. Li Yuangu thought that the other party would speak up for those people in the army. Li Yuangu was even thinking about how to connect Wu Yan to those people. Wu Yan, however, bowed unhurriedly and cupped his hands. "Your majesty, the army needs to be purged. But... The strength of the army cannot be improved in a day or two. Our top priority now is to resolve the matter of the Fengjue Country and the current situation. This official believes that the best way to resolve this matter is to negotiate. "
"Zhen also knows that peace talks are the best policy. However, the conditions they just put forward... My dear minister, you heard it too. Can those conditions be accepted? If I accept them, how can I still be the Emperor? Wouldn't I become a muddle-headed ruler?" The Emperor said.
"Of course I can't accept those conditions." Wu Yan said, "It's just that this official thought that since they took the initiative to send an envoy, furthermore, First Prince is the one leading the group. This shows that they are truly sincere. That is also their intention. Therefore, those conditions... We can still talk to them."
"It's just as Zhen had thought." The emperor said, "How about this, dear minister Wu, regarding the matter of negotiating with the Fengjue Country... You will be in charge of it. Before this, you were the one who first came into contact with them. They also expressed their intention to negotiate through you. If you go and negotiate, it might be better. "
"This official has received the decree!" Wu Yan bowed and said.
"Alright, all of you can leave now." The king stood up and said. After that, he left the main hall amidst the shouts of the ministers.
"Li Minister, it seems like you will have a lot of work to do next." After the king left, Wu Yan said to Li Yuangu who was standing beside him.
"I am willing to share the burden of His Majesty no matter how tired I am." Li Yuangu said.
"Of course. This is our duty as subjects." Wu Yan said, "But I kindly reminded Minister. Don't make rash decisions just because you are in a hurry to do things. It is best to think about it and think about it more. "
"Is Minister Wu going to teach me how to be Minister of War? How about I ask His Majesty to resign and let Minister Wu take over the position of Minister of War? " Li Yuangu said sarcastically. He did not have a good impression of Wu Yan. Especially when he knew that ___ had extended his hand into his army, he did not have a good impression of him. If it wasn't for ___... He wouldn't have been here until now. He had yet to fully control the army.
"Minister, you are being too serious. I am just reminding you out of kindness. Whether you listen to me or not is none of my business. I don't have any other intentions." Wu Yan said.
"I hope so!" Li Yuangu said. After that, he patted the dust off his body and walked out of the hall.
Wu Yan stood where he was and stared at Li Yuangu's back. His eyes sparkled, and no one knew what he was thinking.