Chapter 316: Reward

Returning to the mansion, he first saw the Fifth Princess and Wei Jieyu waiting to greet him at South Hua Gate. As soon as the King dismounted, the two women stepped forward and grabbed him to examine him closely. Seeing her brother, the Fifth Princess almost blurted out, "You've gotten thin!"

The food the King ate while on campaign wasn't right for growing properly; he would definitely have gotten fat.

Although he now wore a full suit of armor, the inner robe peeking out at the collar was spotless white, the white jade crown on his head was neatly fastened over his little bun, his baby fat remained firm, and he was stubbornly standing guard.

The Fifth Princess's heart was set at ease.

She took her brother's hand and found it also white and tender; the words "You've gotten thin" that were on the tip of her tongue she couldn't say, and instead she blurted, "Brother, you've suffered!"

The mountains are high and the roads long; a journey like this must have been grueling!

Wei Jieyu, on the other side, brushed dust off the King's armor with a handkerchief. This frail woman spoke softly, "Your Highness, how old are you? Now you have to worry about all this—what child your age goes out to fight? ~"

Upon hearing this, the Fifth Princess said, "Yes, my brother is truly pitiful; it's all because Bai Li Jin is so incompetent!"

The two women held him, eyes brimming with tears as they looked at him. Although the King hadn't felt pitiful himself, now he sighed, "Yes, I am truly pitiful! Tomorrow I'll go to court to settle the western expedition accounts, then I'll rest a few days." Those last two sentences were directed at the Chancellor and the Grand Tutor.

The two old men endured it; that was fine.

We'll still be able to see him tomorrow, won't we!

The King actually had little experience dealing with female elders; he quickly found himself unable to fend off Wei Jieyu, who was about to give his face a thorough dry cleaning outside! It's just a bit of dirt, after all!

The King turned his pleading gaze toward Wei Shen, who was watching the opera.

Fortunately, this fellow still had a conscience; he pulled Wei Ke forward and said, "Sixth Aunt, do you still remember my older brother?"

Wei Jieyu sized up Wei Ke and said, "But Ke'er, you've grown so big!"

She then went to take her nephew's hand, eyes brimming with tears, temporarily sparing the King's nephew.

As soon as she let go, the King slipped away.

After she and Wei Ke finished catching up, they discovered the King had vanished without a trace, and Wei Shen had run off too. "When did those two kids leave? I haven't even examined them closely; I don't know if the clothes I made for them half a year ago still fit..."

And the King?

He ran back to Suiyu Hall, and the first thing he did was pull out the snacks Bai Ge had prepared in advance—a packet of fried chicken.

When the King saw the bear, he didn't wait for it to react; he struck first.

"Wei Ni! I'm back! The King really is foolish—I went out to buy you something tasty and got lost, and only now have I found my way home!"

Bai Ze behind him was also stunned, muttering, "... What a lame excuse? Even a bear wouldn't be that stupid..."

Don't say it.

The King threw down the packet of fried chicken, hugged his silly bear, and feigned tears, "I'm so heartbroken~ Even if I hadn't gotten lost, I couldn't bear to be separated from Wei Ni for this long!"

Upon seeing him, the bear was first delighted; hearing the King's lame excuse, it felt nothing was wrong. As Bai Ze would say, the Initial Beast-taming Pill has a bit of intelligence-boosting function, but not much.

It believed it.

The bear sat down on its haunches and really began to sob, hiccuping with tears; the King's feigned crying instantly made him feel guilty.

The King gave a tactical cough, "How can you still be crying? I'm back—what's there to cry about?"

Bai Ze drawled mockingly, "You still don't get it? You're crying over your miserable fate. Following a dimwitted master, you can't even find your way home after going out—doesn't that deserve tears?"

The King: ……

He untied the string on the fried chicken and pushed it toward the bear; the bear ate while tears streamed down, looking ever more pitiful. The King also felt sorry for him, so he allowed the bear to follow him wherever he went, sitting or walking.

Wei Ni again dragged its nest to the foot of the King's bed after a long absence; all night the King slept, and it kept climbing up several times to check whether the King had been lost. When it grew cold and the King dozed off, his head would burrow under the blankets, and the bear would anxiously dig him out…

The next morning at court, the bear again sat beside the King's throne.

The officials in the hall had grown accustomed to it; although the bear hadn't followed the King as closely when he left, after all there had been a precedent, and now they had regained their composure.

Rules? Here the King himself is the rule.

Court assemblies are still the same old routine.

First, the Chancellor led the officials in performing the great kowtow before the King, congratulating him on his great victory in the western expedition and the unification of the northern territories.

The King saw that all officers of colonel rank and above from the camp had come to attend court, and he immediately began settling the rewards for victory.

He rewarded the cavalry of the western expedition.

First was Zhang Tu, who had accompanied the expedition; previously he was the commander of the You King's Palace Guard Regiment, but now the King no longer bothered to pretend. He promoted him two ranks, appointing him General Who Pacifies the North.

This was a position that feudal lords were not qualified to hold.

The commander of the Owl Cavalry, Ling Yin, was appointed General Who Pacifies the East; the deputy commander, Zhou Ke, was made a Colonel; and even the young Wei Shen, who had distinguished himself in killing enemies, was also granted the rank of Colonel.

All of this was foreseeable, but the King didn't know where he had picked up this youngster, also appointing him a Colonel, which caused murmurs throughout the hall.

No one knew Changli.

When the Chancellor asked about it, the King only gave a vague explanation, saying his identity was special.

That is… it sounds like he has quite a background.

All the civil and military officials turned their gaze to Wei Shen—could there be a connection with an even greater background than his?

Even the strongest connections only earned rewards after fighting several battles together—so what kind of person must this be?

Changli had never seen such storms; he and Ling Yin stood together like immovable mountains, erecting statues.

By now he had learned what he needed to know; this person was truly his colleague, following in the footsteps of the Great Hero Ling.

The Great Hero Ling was his colleague; the King was his lord; others had nothing to do with him, so no need to cultivate relations.

Wei Shen was also at a loss; his brother hadn't come, and he couldn't find anyone to gossip with.

Zhao Chuan, who had been defending Shanggu Pass at home, also received a promotion; the remaining officers of colonel rank and lower-level commanders all got a share, some receiving titles, others receiving substantial rewards.

The King's ingots were gone, but he had amassed plenty of spoils from this campaign.

Whatever the Xianbei had taken ended up in his hands, and the good things the Xiongnu had looted were also picked up by him.

The King felt no guilt, anyway those things wouldn't belong to ordinary commoners; fine goods always belong to the great clans, and if no one claims them they become his—who let them run away?

The king still had some new houses from the city's renovation; he generously bestowed many of them as rewards, and he was ruthless in doing so.

With what the king says, you could spend thirty thousand to buy a plaque—what's there to begrudge for those who followed him into battle?!

Anything smaller than that is just an internal military matter; no need to discuss it here—we can talk about it tomorrow at the celebration rewarding the whole army.

The officials gasped, but nobody had any objections; consequently, Changli stared at this group several times.

This is quite different from his court back then!

He had no idea—don't be fooled by the king's youth; he's already turned the military into a one-man show. In court, the prime minister can still manage affairs, but in the military the king's word is final.

After the military rewards were handed out, the king wanted to clock off, and he also demanded three days off! The prime minister, calm and composed, stepped forward to stand in the middle of the hall, and with a single sentence pressed the king down onto the stool.

"Your Highness! There are many matters in court that require your decision; I've organized them, and over eighty urgent memorials are right here!"

King: ……