Chapter 49: A prodigy in the imperial court, a northern expedition?

The morning court was the same as usual, bustling with noise before Li Chen arrived.

The court officials were all greeting one another, chatting in twos and threes about trivial matters.

Many officials were even heaping praise upon Li Chen's move yesterday to force Master Yu to kneel and submit, a feat that brought glory to them as his subjects as well.

Those officials who had followed along yesterday began to boast, describing just how formidable His Majesty had been, leaving those who hadn't gone filled with envy.

However, there were a few among the officials who were disciples of Master Yu; their expressions were sour, though they dared not speak a word.

To put it bluntly, these officials were well-informed, discussing the current hot topics every day before and after the morning court.

Some were discussing the banquet held at the Ministry of Justice mansion last night, and as they spoke, their gazes drifted toward Feng Huai.

Those who dared to discuss Feng Huai were basically high-ranking officials at the Minister level.

It seemed they had heard some rumors, but as for what exactly happened at the Ministry of Justice mansion last night, they had no idea; Feng Huai's confidentiality work was excellent.

The Chancellor, Zhao Wenyuan, stood there as impassive as ever; no one knew what he was thinking, and no one dared to strike up a conversation with him.

Guo Poyun, the leader of the military officials, was still under house arrest and did not appear.

"His Majesty arrives!"

Following the eunuch's voice, the officials returned to their positions, kneeling and shouting slogans to welcome Li Chen's appearance.

Li Chen's demeanor during court was becoming increasingly languid, yet his majesty was growing ever more imposing.

The first to report today was the Minister of Revenue, Liu Minghan.

The position of Minister of Revenue was not only a weighty court official but also the core of the nation's finances and household registration management.

He needed to manage the national treasury, ensuring it remained full and that revenue and expenditure were balanced.

This required not only a mastery of arithmetic but also a far-sighted strategic vision to cope with various emergencies and the needs of national construction.

At the same time, he was responsible for household registration, ensuring the accuracy and completeness of population data, providing a reliable basis for the nation's human resource allocation and tax collection.

Liu Minghan was no simple character; when the late Emperor was alive, he had always spoken highly of him.

In his childhood, he had earned the title of a prodigy, and without a doubt, he entered the court as a Top Graduate.

It was said that the candidates of that year were all aiming for the second place, as no one dared to compete with him for the top spot.

The speed of Liu Minghan's promotion after becoming an official was staggering.

But the point was, his pure professional ability was strong.

If one were to talk about other officials, they all had some connections, but this man relied on hard strength; there was no room for criticism.

With such a god-like figure sitting in the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry had never experienced any chaos.

It could be said that he had contributed his share to the stability of the Tian Ce Dynasty.

To be honest, when he reported, Li Chen listened earnestly.

Liu Minghan brought up the issue of military expenditure right away; currently, to stabilize the situation in various regions and suppress those warlords relying on their military power, every group army of the Tian Ce Dynasty was increasing its military budget.

Coupled with the tense situation at the borders, military spending was rising further.

If it continued to increase like this, the national treasury would certainly be unable to make ends meet, so Liu Minghan suggested that Li Chen disband some idle troops to reduce military expenses.

As soon as these words were spoken, the court exploded.

The military officials began accusing Liu Minghan of having ulterior motives; without an army, how could the regions be stabilized?

Especially those military officials who had ties to the units to be disbanded, they spoke bluntly: if the Northern Barbarian Tribes attacked, would you, Liu Minghan, go up and hold the line?

Don't look at some armies as idle; if a real fight broke out, they would be the key force. Some military officials even stated bluntly that His Majesty intended to fight the Northern Barbarian Tribes, and by doing this, Liu Minghan was trying to make His Majesty look bad.

Hearing this, even Li Chen couldn't help but twitch; you lot are truly good at spinning tales, dragging even me into it.

It was clear that the military officials wanted to use Li Chen to pressure Liu Minghan; Li Chen had repeatedly stated he would deal with the Northern Barbarian Tribes, so wouldn't disbanding the army now weaken his own prestige?

Liu Minghan was not to be outdone, arguing that if military spending kept increasing, there would be no need for the Northern Barbarian Tribes to attack; once the treasury was empty and the army couldn't be paid, they would find their own ways to get money, and then the world would fall into chaos.

In any case, both sides had their reasons, and neither would yield.

Li Chen said nothing; this was the "custom" of the morning court. Once they had argued enough, Li Chen looked at Zhao Wenyuan and said, "What does the Chancellor think?"

Zhao Wenyuan was speechless; Your Majesty, you are formidable, kicking the ball to me at a time like this; do you really want me to offend so many people?

But he was the Chancellor, and he could not avoid stating his opinion.

If he didn't speak, wouldn't he appear to be a useless person?

Before he could even open his mouth, Zhao Wenyuan felt a group of people staring at him intently; if he said something unsatisfactory, he would certainly be berated.

Li Chen was, of course, passing the buck; your duty is to be my scapegoat, you have no choice.

!

After pondering for a while, Zhao Wenyuan stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, in my opinion, we can launch a northern expedition!"

When in doubt, just launch a northern expedition!

In any case, most of those to be disbanded were troops stationed in the north; in recent years, to deter the Wang Zu, military spending there had been increasing, so it would be better to let them fight directly.

Moreover, His Majesty had already made such demands last time, and there was basically no room for easing tensions.

As long as they won, everything could be solved, and they could even plunder a bit while they were at it.

Li Chen nodded, feeling this idea was indeed quite good, so he said, "Agreed, choose a day for the northern expedition."

With this, Liu Minghan and the military officials stopped arguing, and the problem was perfectly solved.

The military officials even volunteered, determined to capture the Khan of the Northern Wang Zu and present him to His Majesty.

This statement left Li Chen looking disgusted.

I don't have a taste for men; why would you capture the Khan for me?

This group of military officials doesn't even know how to flatter properly.

If you had said you'd capture a few beauties for me, I would have let you go.

Actually, the most bewildered person was the Khan of the Northern Wang Zu.

A few days ago, he had just received the humiliation of the new Emperor of the Tian Ce Dynasty wanting to "marry for peace," and before he could even get angry or condemn it, he received a declaration of war from the Emperor of the Tian Ce Dynasty.

Because when great powers go to war, especially one like the Tian Ce Dynasty, they must first tell the other side, "I am going to hit you," and then kill them.

It left the Khan of the Northern Wang Zu completely confused; didn't you promise me half a year to prepare? Why are you declaring war after just two days?

Are you really in such a rush?

Did I do something? You're attacking me right off the bat?

Normally, facing such provocation and declaration of war, the Khan would certainly be angry enough to send out his troops.

But the Emperor of the Tian Ce Dynasty was too abnormal, making him start to suspect that if the other side was in such a rush to start a war, could it be that they were already prepared?

Was there a mole on his side? Had the leaders of those tribes truly submitted to him?

If the other side didn't have these preparations, wouldn't starting a war for no reason be a sign of being full and having nothing to do?

The people of the Tian Ce Dynasty were always shrewd; he didn't believe Li Chen would fight an unprepared battle.

When this intelligence reached the ears of the Third Imperial Prince at the border, it caused a thousand waves in his heart.

"Could it be that the Sixth Brother is doing this because he has already discovered my intentions?"

Inside the court, the military expenditure incident had just subsided when the Censor-in-Chief, Zhang Ancang, directly impeached the Minister of Justice, Feng Huai!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 50 =====