Chapter 177

"Su Xuan was promoted by my own hand; if I do not use him, he will very likely be won over by the Yuan clan or He Jin."

"Given his meritorious service, I cannot fail to reward him; I must make proper arrangements for him."

"I intend to send him to a local post to serve as a Commandery Administrator, to hold the region for me and expand my control over the provinces."

"Furthermore, I intend to appoint him as a General, continuing to command 20,000 troops, to serve as a deterrent and check against He Jin from the outside."

"When I have need of them, I can mobilize his forces at any time. What does Father think of this?"

Leaving him in Luoyang was certainly out of the question; he did not trust him.

Moreover, he was already preparing to establish the Eight Colonels of the West Garden.

Although the preliminary preparations and political maneuvering would still take considerable time, the eunuchs were the only ones he could truly trust.

No one else would do.

He had already suffered losses in this regard and did not wish to repeat the same mistakes.

"Your Majesty is wise!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Rang immediately flattered him: "This is a strategy that achieves four things at once; no one is as sagacious as Your Majesty!"

"It is just that I do not know where Your Majesty intends to have Su Xuan serve as Administrator?"

"If it is too far from Luoyang, it will not serve the purpose of deterring and checking the Grand General."

"If it is too far away, it will not be conducive to Your Majesty's control over him."

"But if it is too close to Luoyang, that is also inappropriate; it would easily become a threat that is too large to control."

"It would be perfect if it were neither too far nor too near."

"Hmm!"

Liu Hong nodded repeatedly upon hearing this: "Father's words are reasonable; it is indeed inappropriate to be too far or too close."

"Moreover, if he were kept far away from Su Xuan's hometown, it would make me appear somewhat heartless, as if I were deliberately making things difficult for him."

"By then, he would inevitably harbor resentment, which would not be conducive to my control over him."

"Therefore, it would be best if the location were close to his hometown. Does Father have any suggestions?"

He wanted to suppress Su Xuan, yet he did not want it to be so obvious, nor did he want Su Xuan to harbor resentment and become alienated.

One can only say that Liu Hong's thinking was truly wishful.

When one wants everything, in the end, one actually gets nothing.

Unfortunately, he did not understand this principle!

In his view, as the Son of Heaven, everything should naturally go his way and turn out as he wished.

"This..."

Zhang Rang felt a surge of joy; his guidance had taken effect.

The requirements Su Xuan had entrusted to him could now be fulfilled.

However, he was not stupid; he did not respond with immediate excitement but instead analyzed it for Liu Hong: "Such a place can only be chosen within the borders of Jingzhou."

"And among the various commanderies of Jingzhou, Nanyang is certainly out of the question."

"Its significance and location are too important, and it is too close to Luoyang; it is not suitable."

"It can be directly excluded."

"Changsha, Guiyang, Lingling, and Wuling are too remote and barren."

"If one of these four were chosen, it might be misinterpreted as Your Majesty not favoring Su Xuan, which is also inappropriate."

"Finally, that leaves only Nanjun and Jiang Xiajun!"

"Both of these are quite suitable, and furthermore, the position of Nanjun Administrator is currently vacant; the previous Administrator has retired, so it is quite appropriate."

"Of course, the final decision rests with Your Majesty; this old servant is merely speaking out of turn."

Although he said this, Liu Hong had actually already accepted Zhang Rang's suggestion and analysis.

He nodded with satisfaction and said: "Father's analysis is very reasonable. Then, how about appointing Su Xuan as Nanjun Administrator and concurrently as General of the Zhennan, with the authority to establish his own headquarters, commanding 20,000 troops, and enfeoffing him as Marquis of Duxiang?"

The reason he was only made General of the Zhennan and Marquis of Duxiang was because, just a few months ago, Su Xuan had been rapidly promoted from a commoner.

Many of his previous merits had already been rewarded.

Unlike Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun, whose merits had accumulated and who were already Middle-Rank Generals to begin with.

Even this current reward was only because Su Xuan had beheaded Zhang Jiao and broken through Guang Sect.

"Your Majesty is sagacious!"

Zhang Rang did not say anything more, merely offering a compliment.

He also felt that this was sufficient.

Five days later,

the rewards were finally issued.

Su Xuan, Huangfu Song, Zhu Jun, and others were granted the right to enter the court and receive their rewards in person.

On this day, Su Xuan also saw the Son of Heaven, Liu Hong, for the first time.

Judging by his medical skills, he could be certain that Liu Hong would not live for another ten years.

And that was on the premise that Liu Hong did not continue to abuse his own body in the coming years.

If he did not cherish himself and continued to abuse his body, he would not live for another six years.

Having confirmed this, Su Xuan finally felt at ease.

Thus, Liu Hong's early death in a few years was inevitable, unless he were willing to treat Liu Hong.

But that was clearly impossible.

Not to mention that he was unwilling, even if he were, Liu Hong would not trust him anyway.

"Middle-Rank General Su Xuan, during the Yellow Turban Rebellion, beheaded Zhang Mancheng, broke through Wancheng, beheaded Bo Cai, lifted the siege of Changshe, beheaded Zhang Jiao, and broke through the city of Guang Sect, repeatedly establishing military merit. He is now appointed as Nanjun Administrator, promoted to General of the Zhennan, granted the authority to establish his own headquarters, commanding 20,000 troops, and enfeoffed as Marquis of Duxiang."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"Middle-Rank General Huangfu Song... promoted to General of Chariots and Cavalry, concurrently serving as Governor of Jizhou, and enfeoffed as Marquis of Huaili."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"Middle-Rank General Zhu Jun... enfeoffed as Marquis of Xixiang, transferred to Middle-Rank General for Suppressing Bandits."

"Cavalry Commandant Cao Cao... appointed as Chancellor of Jinan."

"..."

One by one, the rewards and appointments were announced; by the time they were all finished, half an hour had passed.

This was because the vast majority of minor rewards were not qualified to be announced in court; there would be specialized personnel to handle those later.

For instance, Liu Bei's reward was handled in this manner.

That evening, Liu Hong was in high spirits and hosted a banquet for the hundred officials and many meritorious ministers to win them over and celebrate.

After coming out of the palace,

Cao Cao quickly caught up with Su Xuan, smiling and cupping his hands in congratulations: "Congratulations to Brother Boyuan for being appointed a General and enfeoffed as a Marquis, and for becoming a Commandery Administrator! This is truly a joyous occasion! Truly joyous!"

"I am not so fortunate; I only received the position of Chancellor of Jinan. From now on, the gap between me and Brother Boyuan will widen. Sigh! I am envious!"

"You fellow!"

Su Xuan, upon hearing this, was speechless, pointing at Cao Cao and shaking his head: "Are you mocking me here?"

"Before, it was always 'Brother Boyuan's younger brother,' why is it 'Brother Boyuan' now?"

"You've made me sound old!"

"Could it be that you think I, Su Xuan, am the type of person who forgets righteousness for profit, and now that I have been promoted, I will no longer recognize you as a friend?"

Just for the sake of Cao Cao sending him women, Su Xuan had to acknowledge Cao Cao as a friend, right?

Moreover, over these past few days in Luoyang, Cao Cao had treated him very well; the relationship between the two of them was no longer what it used to be, and Su Xuan had long since come to regard him as a close friend.

"Hehe!"

Seeing that Su Xuan was still willing to joke with him and hadn't changed at all, Cao Cao was delighted: "I was just worried that Brother Boyuan, having attained success overnight, would turn your back on me!"

"It is my fault! I used the heart of a petty person to measure the belly of a gentleman!"

"Brother Boyuan is truly a gentleman."

As he spoke, Cao Cao gave Su Xuan a thumbs up.

"What true gentleman?"

At this moment, Yuan Shao caught up from behind and asked.

"Haha! Nothing!"

Cao Cao laughed: "We were just saying that you, Benchu, are a true gentleman!"

"Huh?" ===== CHAPTER 179 =====