Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 4 Relatives
In April, the emperor held a Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai, so in October the reign was changed to Yuanfeng. Now is the first year of Yuanfeng.

The palace mouthpiece slept until he woke up naturally, and a eunuch said, "My lord, His Majesty has ordered you to get up and go to the front hall to guard."

The main hall of the Weiyang Palace is called the Front Hall, which is divided into three halls: front, middle and back. The middle hall is the Main Hall.

Huo Xian was puzzled and asked, "Should I go on duty?"

The eunuch quickly explained, "Your Majesty has appointed you as a soldier and it's time for you to take up your post."

The official system of the Han Dynasty was composed of three parallel bureaucratic systems, namely the outer court officials led by the prime minister, the inner court officials led by the grand marshal and the general, and the palace officials who handled the private affairs of the emperor and the royal family.

The prime minister, the general and the chief censor are the outer court officials, who also hold the highest administrative power in the central government.

The Grand Commandant was the highest military officer in the central government, the head of all military officers in the country, and the commander of all the troops in the country. Ten years ago, Liu Che replaced the Grand Commandant with the Grand Marshal.

The inner court officials are also called the middle court officials, while the outer court officials include regular officials below the prime minister, which is a legal and formal institution. The middle court officials are composed of the emperor's close ministers such as the minister of state, the constant attendant, the attendant, the minister, etc., and sometimes they are used to check the power of the prime minister.

The palace officials are easy to understand. They are generally royal servants, such as the Chancellor of the Imperial Household, the Grand Chamberlain, etc.

The soldiers and guards that Huo Xian had obtained were part of the force that guarded the imperial palace. The guards of the palace included the guards and soldiers. The guards led by Guanglu Xun were the guards, and the guards led by Weiwei were the guards. The two systems were independent of each other, and this was also an equal relationship.

The troops under the Weiwei were called the Southern Army. There were houses in the palace for the guards to stay. The guards patrolled the palace day and night and checked the gate records. The Weiwei was in charge of the palace gates and the interior of the palace, and was the counterpart of the Zhongwei (Zhi Jinwu) who was in charge of the palace outside.

Huo Xian was even more puzzled. "I thought it was a Langwei, why is it a Bingwei? Forget it, didn't they say I would be given an official position?"

The eunuch flattered him and said, "Your Majesty is above the nine ministers, how can you be granted an official position?"

This is Xiao Huangmen's deliberate flattery. Having a title and an official position are two different things. However, Huo Xian's situation is also difficult to deal with. The Weiwei is in charge of one of the Nine Ministers, with a rank of 2,000 stones.

As for Huo Xian, he held the official titles of Shizhong and Fengche Duwei. Especially Fengche Duwei, his rank was equivalent to that of a two thousand stone official. Even if it was just an honorary title, it was only a step away from the Nine Ministers.

Although Huo Xian was a little confused, he still quickly washed up, had some breakfast, and then went on duty.

The emperor's court meeting was almost over when the guard Huo Xian got up and hurried over.

Someone has sent Huo Xian's armor over. He put on the martial crown and the armor, and this is the "Xuanjia".

In the Han Dynasty, ordinary soldiers wore leather armor made of tanned cowhide to protect their chest and back. More advanced ones wore fish scale armor, which was densely packed with thousands of iron plates.

When Huo Qubing died, Emperor Liu Che specially dispatched the armored troops from the five counties of Hexi, and formed a battle array along Chang'an all the way to Huo Qubing's tomb east of Maoling.

Huo Xian was out of tune with the other guards, who were carefully selected from good families and elite soldiers of the Southern Army. They were tall and strong, full of energy and spirit, and looked very tough. Although Huo Xian was well-nourished, ate well, and drank well, he was only ten years old after all.

However, the armor he wore was something that the elite Southern Army could not even dream of. Even some captains who were considered unattainable by ordinary soldiers did not have such armor.

It seemed out of place, but when these soldiers saw Huo Xian, they all saluted. As for arranging tasks, they certainly didn't dare to arrange them. The soldiers who guarded the palace knew what kind of person this prince was.

Huo Xian looked at the eunuch beside him and asked, "Didn't you assign any specific tasks to me?"

The eunuch replied, "I don't know."

The palace guards were on duty and were accompanied by two young eunuchs. This treatment was very unusual.

Huo Xian also understood it and just stood guard. As a soldier, he had complete freedom.

When the court meeting was over, many ministers walked out of the front hall and saw a child in armor and a ring-handled sword pacing back and forth at the entrance of the hall. The armor and the ring-handled sword were definitely too small for an adult soldier, but they fit Huo Xian perfectly.

"Greetings, my Lord."

"My Lord, I am at peace."

Huo Xian was young, but he had a title. Even ministers in their 50s and 60s who did not have titles should salute him and show respect to the "lord". Huo Xian usually returned the salute by holding his right hand with his left hand, standing up straight, which was called "Wu Yi". This was originally a military salute in the Zhou Dynasty, and later it was used exclusively by warriors.

When other people bow, they also do so according to their status, including "time bow", "downward bow" and so on.

Suddenly, a middle-aged man appeared. He had a thin face, but it was obvious that he must have been a handsome man when he was young. This was Wei Qing, the Grand Marshal and General of the Han Dynasty, Marquis of Changping, and also Huo Shan's great-uncle.

Although Wei Qing had outstanding military achievements and a high status, he did not use his power to build a party or interfere in state affairs.

Staring at Huo Xian, a smile appeared on Wei Qing's serious face, "Marquis Guanjun, you must not walk around casually while on duty."

Huo Xian replied politely, "General, His Majesty has ordered an inspection of the palace."

Huo Qubing was the nephew brought up by Wei Qing. Some people say that the emperor supported Huo Qubing in order to weaken Wei Qing's influence. Some people also say that when Huo Qubing was at his peak, most of Wei Qing's old friends and followers left him and served Huo Qubing, so that some people think that Wei Qing and Huo Qubing had conflicts.

That's all false. Wei Qing and Huo Qubing got along well with each other as uncle and nephew, and there was no grudge between them.

As they were talking, another burly man came forward. This was Gongsun He, Huo Xian's great-uncle and Wei Qing's brother-in-law. Previously, he was Marquis of Nanhuan and Grand Coachman.

Gongsun He said with some complaint, "Marquis Guanjun, you didn't come to the mansion after returning to Chang'an? Your aunt will scold you."

Wei Shaoer's son is Huo Qubing, and his eldest sister is Wei Junru, now the wife of Gongsun He. Wei Shaoer's younger sister is Wei Zifu, and they also have an older brother Wei Changjun who died young. And they have three half-brothers, namely Wei Qing, Wei Bu, and Wei Guang.

Wei Qing was an illegitimate child, Huo Qubing was an illegitimate child, and Huo Shan was actually also an illegitimate child.

This is an 'ancestral tradition' and it really has been passed down from generation to generation.

Huo Qubing's grandmother had three daughters and one son with an unknown man named Wei, and had Wei Qing, Wei Bu, and Wei Guang with Zheng Ji, a minor official in Pingyang.

Huo Qubing's mother Wei Shao'er first had an affair with Huo Zhongru, a county official in Pingyang, and gave birth to Huo Qubing. Later, she had an affair with Chen Zhang, the grandson of Prime Minister Chen Ping and the crown prince's secretary.

However, Huo Xian's mother never had a legitimate status.

Huo Xian looked at Gongsun He and complained, "Uncle, I wanted to leave the palace, but someone wouldn't let me. After returning to Chang'an, I kept begging before they allowed me to go out to pay homage to my grandfather. Uncle, how about you help me to intercede? Then I will not only come to your house, but also bring valuable gifts."

Gongsun He immediately laughed awkwardly. He didn't dare to do anything wrong in front of Liu Che.

Wei Qing coughed and reminded, "Be careful with your words."

Seeing these relatives gathered together, some people wanted to step forward and show their goodwill, while others expressed dissatisfaction, thinking that they were a group of lucky ministers who relied on nepotism to get to their positions and were a hidden danger that would disrupt the country's politics.

Wei Qing and others naturally understood this. Even though Wei Qing was a great general with great military achievements, there were still some so-called celebrities who were too lazy to give him superficial respect. Some noble families even thought that Wei Huo and his ilk were just so-so and could not be considered famous generals at all.

These people also stared at Wei Qing and Huo Qubing as if they were wearing a microscope. In their eyes, they only saw Wei Qing as a cavalry slave and a cautious person. They thought Huo Qubing was a noble man and that his achievements were all due to the best resources given to him by the emperor.

A eunuch stepped forward and said, "Sir, His Majesty has ordered that you should practice riding today. Our predecessor was the best at riding and shooting, so you should do the same."

Wei Qing and Gongsun He could not help but look at Huo Shan with concern, because they knew that the emperor was training Huo Shan to be like Huo Qubing. But how could a genius like Huo Qubing be trained?

If you don’t have enough talent, no matter how hard you try to cultivate it, it will be useless!
If Huo Shan's performance was not as good as Huo Qubing's, the favor he now had might have turned into disgust towards him, or even a reason for his death.

Huo Xian bowed and said, "Uncle, I will go to practice now. I will come to visit you again when I can leave the palace in a few days."

Leaving the palace?

Wei Qing and Gongsun He thought it would be difficult for Huo Xian to leave the palace, unless the emperor went on another tour. Otherwise, Huo Xian would have to continue studying and wandering around in the palace.

(End of this chapter)