Chapter 309

Jinan City.

"The official document only specifies that you and I go to the capital to report on our duties; it seems the previous planning failed."

The Marquis Marquis Wuyang said with an expressionless face.

Pushing for the inheritance of titles by the families of the Duke of Xingguo, the Marquis of Nanyang, and the Marquis of Pingyuan was mainly the planning of the old-school nobles.

As a latecomer among the military-merit nobility, he had no friendship with these three families and naturally had no reason to exert himself.

When reporting military merits, he had tilted them toward the three; that was all for the sake of the Jing and Li families.

"Marquis, this kind of thing is inherently full of uncertainty.

The internal positions of the families of the Duke of Xingguo, the Marquis of Nanyang, and the Marquis of Pingyuan are not unified, and we outsiders have no way to forcibly designate heirs for them.

Being able to take this opportunity to bring the matter to the court for discussion can be considered a great help to them.

At the very least, they have gained a firm foothold in the army; if they can achieve great merits in the future, then no one will be able to suppress them."

Li Mu replied calmly.

In such matters, people helping is a favor, and not helping is their duty.

The Jing and Li families have friendships with these three families, so it is right to reach out and pull them up.

The Marquis Marquis Wuyang has no friendship with them, so naturally, he has no reason to use political resources on this.

In fact, the Jing and Li families only exerted a little effort and did not go all out to push it.

Human connections are not omnipotent.

Helping out when within one's power is fine, but wanting others to pay a high price is impossible.

Every family has descendants to cultivate and cannot distribute limited political resources entirely to outsiders.

Being able to support them to the position of Assistant Regional Commander, and with the prospect of advancing further, is already worthy of past friendships.

If nothing unexpected happens, the three will be transferred away from Li Mu's command after the war.

Subsequent development will depend entirely on themselves.

Whether they can revive their family business depends mainly on their achievements.

If they can achieve great merits, everyone will be happy to help again and create a beautiful story.

If their ability is insufficient and subsequent development is frustrated, they must also face reality.

"Hmm!

You are right to think this way; this matter has reached a consensus in the court, and there is almost no possibility of change.

In private, you find an opportunity to communicate with them, explain the matter clearly, and tell them not to have any burdens.

Man proposes, God disposes.

Their abilities are not bad, and there will be opportunities to achieve merits in the future."

The Marquis Marquis Wuyang said slowly.

After all, they are the backbone of his own faction; even if they didn't reach the sky in one step, they still have value to be courted.

If it weren't for the lack of friendship, he would have personally taken this opportunity to be the good guy.

"Marquis, rest assured, the soldiers I brought out are not that fragile.

Before the planning began, I told them that the probability of success was not high.

I told them to mobilize family connections to first reach unity within the family.

Unfortunately, interests move people's hearts, and other candidates with the opportunity to inherit the title were unwilling to give up their inheritance rights.

This allowed the Ministry of Rites to seize the handle and reject the application for title inheritance."

Li Mu said with a helpless expression.

Internal enemies are more terrifying than external ones.

The various branches within the three families had differences on the issue of heirs, which became the most favorable weapon for political enemies to attack.

As long as internal problems were not solved, the Ministry of Rites could legally suppress them.

Having missed the golden period of operation in recent years, once the tea went cold, it would be useless even if they reached internal unity.

Without the Emperor personally speaking, the Ministry of Rites would not take the initiative to help them handle the inheritance of titles.

Without completing the legal procedures, they would always just be heirs.

Let alone distant branches, even direct descendants of nobles have had their procedures blocked when inheriting titles.

"Let's not talk about this; since the court has ordered me to go to the capital to report on my duties, let's set off quickly!

The capital is not like other places, and we cannot bring all the King-Protecting Armies.

For the convenience of supply, the main army will temporarily remain in Jinan City; we only need to bring two thousand cavalry."

The Marquis Marquis Wuyang said with satisfaction.

Bringing troops into the capital is a taboo.

Ever since Dong Zhuo set a bad precedent, every dynasty has been full of vigilance against military generals bringing troops into the capital.

Two thousand cavalry is actually considered out of line; if it weren't for the chaos outside, he would have brought at most a few hundred troops.

At the feet of the Son of Heaven, the lower the profile of an outside official, the better.

……

Liaodong Garrison.

"The court wants us to go to the capital to report on our duties; what do you think?"

Shi Chen Jingfeng asked with concern.

Having played happily at slacking off earlier, now that the war had come to an end, he suddenly lost his confidence.

Separatism by feudal lords was not formed in a day.

Although the Liaodong Garrison had the power to hold a region, it couldn't withstand having strong enemies nearby and couldn't do without the court's money and grain support.

"Big Brother, this is a Hongmen Banquet set by the court; we must not be fooled!"

Shi Jingming responded first.

The military strength of the Liaodong Garrison was completely disproportionate to their performance on the battlefield.

Subsequent achievements were also purely wanting to rob the robbers, and the achievements were obtained incidentally.

When it came to rewarding merits, there was no way they would have a share.

Not being held accountable by the court was only because they held heavy troops in their hands.

Asking them to go to the capital now to participate in a victory banquet looked like a Hongmen Banquet no matter how one looked at it.

"Second Brother, whether it's a Hongmen Banquet or not, we cannot directly refuse.

Liaodong's land is barren, and a large portion of land has been occupied by the Northern Barbarians; the jurisdiction we control simply cannot support so many troops.

Once we lose the court's support, the army will only be trapped and starved to death.

In any case, we cannot directly fall out with the court.

If possible, it would be best to reach an agreement with the court.

The court allocates money and grain, and we are responsible for guarding Liaodong.

There is no need to send a Liaodong Governor-General; Big Brother can concurrently hold the position.

Someone in the court proposed that a noble should serve as the Governor-General for suppressing the rebellion; the nature of the two positions is about the same.

We are all military generals; since the nobles can break the convention, we naturally can too.

Without civil officials causing trouble, with the ability of us brothers, guarding Liaodong is not a problem at all!"

Shi Shi Jinglin immediately opposed it.

Regardless of what is said, face still needs to be given to the court side.

If they really move toward confrontation, as long as the court doesn't transport grain to Liaodong for half a year, they will be trapped and starved to death.

Logistics being controlled by others directly affected their speaking power.

Even though they could become a feudal lord, they still had to make concessions to the court.

"Third Brother is right; now is not the time to fall out with the court.

Although we brothers have strong troops and sturdy horses, the Northern Barbarians are nearby, which greatly limits our development.

In the coming days, we must accumulate strength on one hand and prepare to face the court's suppression on the other.

Of course, judging from the current situation, the court still needs us.

Without us brothers guarding the front line, the enemy killing into the pass directly from Liaodong is much closer than borrowing a path from Three Xuan-Da.

At that time, you all stay in the army, and I will personally lead people to the capital to see the Emperor and negotiate with the court."

Shi Chen Jingfeng said heroically.

The Great Great Dayu dynasty is already in chaos; if the Liaodong Garrison rebels again, the country will truly change hands.

Even if the Guangdong-Among Guangxi Garrison can fight, it's useless; they have already been hurt in the previous battles and are unable to pose a threat to them in the short term.

For the sake of the country, the court must also make concessions to them.

With confidence in his heart, Shi Chen Jingfeng was naturally fearless.

Once the court makes concessions, and without civil officials dragging their feet, the development of the Liaodong Garrison will go a step further.

"Big Brother, let me go to the capital to see the Emperor!

You are of great significance to the Liaodong Garrison, and absolutely nothing can go wrong..."

Before Shi Jingming could finish, Shi Chen Jingfeng interrupted: "Inappropriate!"

"To negotiate with the court, we must also show sincerity.

Otherwise, the final result will be the same as before, ending in nothing.

Ever since the conflict with the court, we haven't received any military pay or grain.

Relying solely on the spoils of war captured on the battlefield won't last long.

The Marquis Marquis Wuyang is still a step higher, directly seizing the opportunity to take action against the Shandong gentry.

The Guangdong-Among Guangxi King-Protecting Army was able to defeat the enemy twice, and the most critical factor was sufficient money and grain.

Even if other King-Protecting Armies had problems eating, they could still issue military pay on time; this is something we cannot envy!"

While speaking, Shi Chen Jingfeng revealed a trace of jealousy.

Daring to take a knife to the gentry in the Great Great Dayu dynasty truly requires courage.

That the Marquis Marquis Wuyang could succeed was also full of luck.

If it were at a different time, or if the evidence in hand were not sufficient, he would have faced a counterattack from the entire civil official group.

If he were asked to do it, Shi Chen Jingfeng wouldn't have the guts.

The timing is too hard to grasp; a slight carelessness would lead to becoming the target of public criticism.

The most critical thing is the smuggling trade, which they, as military generals, also have a share in.

Asking the Liaodong Garrison to investigate collusion with the Northern Barbarians is a joke.

If a strict investigation were really conducted, they themselves wouldn't be able to escape.

The risk of provoking the gentry is too great, so they pick those without risk.

Centered on the Liaodong Garrison's station, there are few people within a hundred miles who are not affected.

Even with extortion and heavy taxation, their harvest is still much less than that of the Guangdong-Among Guangxi King-Protecting Army.

……

Time flies, and in a blink, they have returned to the capital.

Looking at the familiar city gate, Li Mu's heart couldn't help but stir with a ripple.

Compared to the previous two times entering the capital, this time it is truly returning home in glory.

Looking at the high-ranking civil and military officials lined up on both sides of the city gate to welcome them, it explains many things.

Such a high-standard welcome has not happened many times in the entire history of the Great Great Dayu.

As for the higher standard of the Emperor personally leaving the city to welcome them, it is better not to enjoy it.

Referring to historical experience, military generals who enjoy the highest standard of imperial welcome basically do not have a good ending.

Simply put, the Emperor can put on a show, but the subject cannot enjoy it with peace of mind.

The scene of the hundred officials welcoming them before their eyes is almost the highest treatment a subject can enjoy within the safety line.

From the hidden jealous expressions of the crowd, Li Mu could be certain that today's event made many officials dissatisfied.

The situation on the military side was better; even if there was jealousy, there would be no extreme reaction.

The civil official group was different.

The long-term national policy of using civil officials to control the military made them naturally feel superior when facing military generals.

At this moment, letting them leave the city to welcome military generals into the city was, for many corrupt scholars, more uncomfortable than their parents dying.

Compelled by the Emperor's imperial edict, for the sake of their own official hats, they could only temporarily suppress their anger.

"Marquis, we should have hidden our itinerary."

Li Mu whispered in the Marquis Marquis Wuyang's ear.

Enjoying a high-standard welcoming ceremony once, just by drawing a lot of hatred for no reason, is truly too much of a loss.

If he had known it would be like this, it would have been better to enter the capital secretly and save these unnecessary troubles.

"It's too late to say this now.

Besides, with the Embroidered Uniform Guard around, even if we hid our itinerary, we wouldn't be able to avoid it."

The Marquis Marquis Wuyang said with annoyance.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard's combat effectiveness has weakened in recent years because the people below are afraid of causing trouble for themselves, but their ability to make a living hasn't been lost.

This kind of simple, ordinary intelligence gathering, a task that doesn't require offending people, they can still do well.

Li Mu doesn't like offending a large group of people just to show off, and he doesn't like it either.

Glory for a moment, but the trouble is continuous.

The cost-effectiveness is truly too low.

……

(End of Chapter)