Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 274 Peach King

A large flag with the word "Liu" on it fluttered in the wind.

The knights were arranged in neat formations. They were all light cavalry, totaling more than a hundred people. At this moment, they were escorting the spoils and advancing rapidly towards Yecheng.

Among the knights in front and behind were many carriages and captured generals.

On the carriage were processed heads, various flags, war drums, swords, etc.

The leader was very young, seemingly less than 20 years old, with a half-grown beard. However, the warhorse he rode was extremely tall and strong, making him look even smaller.

This is none other than Qinghe King Gao Jie.

He also has another identity, which is the official in charge of the Five Prefectures under General Wei!
Yecheng was looming in the distance. Before we got close to Yecheng, we could see the ceremonial guards coming to welcome us.

The ministers gathered on both sides of the road, with Huang Gai and drums and music.

Seeing this situation, Gao Jie was slightly stunned, and then ordered the knights to dismount.

The musicians began to play triumphal music, and the knights of Yecheng ran around and lined up to welcome them.

Gao Wei stood in the queue with great interest, gazing into the distance with bright eyes and in a good mood.

And behind him stood many important officials.

Except for King Gao Yu of Pengcheng, almost all other ministers were present, including Gao Rui, Gao Yan, Lou Rui, Hu Changren, Gao Yuanhai, Gao Xiaoyu, Zhao Yanshen and so on.

Their expressions were different.

Anyway, most of the important officials were unhappy. Gao Rui had a stern face and didn't say anything. People like Hu Changren and Gao Yuanhai had their unhappiness written directly on their faces. Only two people were smiling at this moment and looked very expectant.

Gao Yan and Lou Rui.

Especially Lou Rui, his mouth was grinning to his ears.

"Hahaha, when I was in Liyang, I knew that the Duke of Dingxiang was going to accomplish great things!"

"I was the one who taught him how to fight. I knew then that he would be the pillar of the Great Qi in the future!"

"It's just as I expected!"

"Now that the border has received continuous reports of victory, does Yuwen Hu still dare to speak out?"

Lou Rui's voice was very loud. Although the ministers around him were unhappy, they couldn't refute him.

Gao Yan was the only one who agreed with him, "Mr. Liu is truly extraordinary."

Finally, Gao Jie led everyone closer to them, and Lou Rui also stopped talking.

Gao Rui whispered: "Your Majesty can go first"

The smile on Gao Wei's face faded a little. Even though Sister Lu had been persuading him to respect Gao Rui and obey him, Gao Rui was really a disappointment.

You always have a strong attitude and like to give orders to yourself. Can the emperor be controlled by you?

He just stood there deliberately, pretending not to hear anything.

Gao Rui frowned.

Gao Jie stepped forward and greeted the emperor with great respect.

"Your Majesty!! There are many good news from the border!"

"explain!!"

"Gao Changgong, the governor of Youzhou, and Yao Xiong, the military commander of Yan, defeated the Turks at Jundu Mountain, beheaded Shetu, the Khan of the Eastern Region, and captured more than 20,000 people."

"Offer your head!!"

As Gao Jie spoke loudly, a knight came forward with a processed head, and another knight came forward with swords, large flags, drums, gold and other items that indicated his identity.

Gao Wei hurried forward, stretched out his hand and picked up the head, looking it up and down, "The Hu people outside the border don't look any different, right?"

Gao Jie continued: "Anzhou Governor Pi Jinghe and Sima Zhang Heizu went to fight against the Kumo Xi and defeated the Xi and Khitan people in Raole. They killed the Xi leader Chang Shijin and captured more than 10,000 people, as well as a large amount of cattle, sheep and supplies."

"Offer your head!!"

Another knight presented heads and the like, and this time, Gao Rui and others were shocked.

Liu Taozi's men also fought against the Xi people and the Khitan people? ?

How come we don’t know??

Before Gao Wei could speak, Gao Rui couldn't help but ask, "When did this happen?"

Gao Jie answered loudly, "When the Turkic army was camped outside Youzhou, the Xi people had evil intentions and colluded with the Khitans to get close to the Turks, hoping to join forces with them to invade the border. When Lanling Wang defeated the Turkic cavalry, Pi Shi led more than 3,000 cavalrymen from Andi Bian to attack the Xi people in Raole, beheaded their leader, and defeated the Xi and Khitan coalition forces."

"Why didn't you report the victory to the government?"

Gao Jie said, "Your Majesty, the elite soldiers and generals at the frontiers often go out to fight. There are too many reports of victory. Except for the important ones, they never disturb the court! So as not to cause trouble to the court!"

Gao Rui's face turned even darker, but Lou Rui almost laughed out loud.

Gao Jie was actually complaining about his dissatisfaction with the government.

The frontier had won several battles during these days, and there were countless small-scale battles, but the imperial court had never given any rewards. All the rewards were given by Liu Taozi on his behalf.

Gao Wei couldn't understand all the meaning, so he picked up the Xi man's head again and looked at it carefully.

Gao Jie said loudly again: "Hold the imperial seal, open the government and share the same three officials, the six states of Beishuo, Beiheng, Dongyan, Beiyan, Yan, and An, the governor of Hengshuo, the general of Wei, the Duke of Dingxiang, led the troops to attack the Zhou people, destroyed the Shiyashan stronghold, beheaded the pseudo-Zhou general Liu Yong, and killed more than 10,000 people."

"Offer your head!!"

For a moment, the important officials began to be in an uproar.

That’s right, they didn’t know about this either.

They only knew that Gao Changgong defeated the Turks.

When the other party handed over their heads and other seized items, such as documents related to the city, the ministers were speechless.

Even Lou Rui was extremely surprised at this moment.

The Zhou people gathered their army and prepared to go on an expedition. All parts of Qi were in a state of panic, thinking about how to resist. But how come when it came to him, the situation suddenly changed and it was the Zhou people who were being beaten?

In the past, the Zhou people dug the Yellow River, and from this year it was the turn of the Qi people to dig the Yellow River.

But it seems that in Liu Taozi's case, the Zhou people were still continuing to "dig the Yellow River".

Gao Wei still couldn't understand the key, so he picked up Liu Yong's head and played with it happily.

This family, no matter how big or small, always has trouble with people.

Gao Rui's expression was complicated, a mixture of sadness and joy. He trembled for a long time and didn't know what to say.

In the end, he just sighed.

“It deserves a reward.”

Gao Wei laughed loudly, his eyes full of pride. When his grandfather was still alive, the enemies had reached Jinyang, but as soon as he ascended the throne, he won victory after victory!

Knew it!
Destiny lies in yourself!

Just as he was thinking about how to reward himself, Gao Yan walked up to him and said softly, "Your Majesty, the soldiers have made great contributions."

This is to remind him of the reward.

Gao Wei immediately woke up. He looked at Gao Di in front of him with a smile, "Good! General Wei is really brave! I like him very much!"

"Award General Wei the title of King!"

Gao Jie was stunned.

Even Gao Yan couldn't hold back. He wanted the emperor to praise him, but why did he make him a king right away? ?
How old is Liu Taozi?
He had many military achievements, and there were many generals in the country who had many military achievements. Hulugu, Baoxian and others were not crowned as kings, so why was Liu Taozi crowned as king first? ?
Gao Rui hurriedly said: "Your Majesty! The matter of reward must be discussed first, and it should not be granted lightly."

Gao Wei became even more unhappy.

Even the appointment of a king requires you to discuss it? ?
What’s the big deal about being crowned a king? Everyone can be crowned a king. Everyone will get promoted and everyone can be a king. Isn’t that great?
Gao Wei felt more and more disappointed, so he pouted and stopped talking.

It's up to you to do it.

Gao Wei raised his head and ignored these people.

After Gao Jie and others entered Yecheng, they rushed to the palace, where the ministers had already prepared a banquet to entertain them.

The little emperor just sat for a while, then felt bored and left early.

Everyone had different expressions and no one mentioned the reward.

At the same time, in another hall of the imperial palace, Lu Lingxuan was ordering her son to serve tea to Liu Taozhi.

Liu Taozhi sat aside, wearing a mask, as always.

Lu Lingxuan's attitude was much gentler. She smiled and urged her son to serve tea, and said, "General Wei has defeated several powerful enemies in succession. Congratulations!"

"If you ask me, the only one who can save the country from danger is General Wei."

"Mr. Liu, His Majesty has great admiration for you and General Wei."

"I heard him say earlier that he intends to make you and your son kings." "However, the ministers may not agree to this."

Lu Lingxuan spoke softly, but Liu Taozhi said nothing, still looking cold.

"Mr. Liu, I am just a woman, and all I want is to protect Your Majesty."

"I don't ask you to help me, but I can't protect your majesty by myself. I hope that if someone wants to murder your majesty one day, you can stand up for him."

Liu Taozhi said coldly: "You don't need to tell me these things. Where is His Majesty?"

Lu Lingxuan summoned the other party here in the name of His Majesty's order.

Liu Taozhi is getting ready to leave.

Lu Lingxuan stood up, saluted him again, and then asked her son to see him off.

Luo Depo sent Liu Taozhi to the gate and waited for her to leave before returning to his mother.

Luo Deva was also very young, not much older than Gao Jie.

He looked worried. "Mother, Liu Taozhi is really hard to convince. We have tried to please him many times, but he remains indifferent. What should we do?"

Lu Lingxuan laughed, "He didn't stand up and refute the reprimand immediately, which means it's done."

Luo Depo asked in confusion, "Should we really make Liu Taozi a king?"

"If you want to accomplish great things, you need an outside general as a strong supporter. Is there a more suitable ally than Liu Taozi?"

"But Liu Taozi is close to Gao Yu and Gao Rui. I'm afraid he may not be on the same side with us."

"Whether he is of the same mind as us is not important. What is important is whether others think he is or not."

Lu Lingxuan spoke softly with a smile in the corner of her eyes.

Luo Depo seemed to understand something, "We are going to pretend that Liu Taozi is our ally?"

"Why pretend? We can just treat him as our ally and try to get him some rewards. Who can tell who is on whose side?"

Luo Deva stopped talking.

He is still not very suitable for thinking, so he should just listen to his mother.

"Go to the banquet and secretly tell Hu Changren to come here after the banquet and tell him that His Majesty has something important to discuss with him, and it's about the Queen Mother."

"only!!"

Luo Deva left quickly.

Lu Lingxuan sat down and began to think about the current situation.

Although Lu Lingxuan also came from a prominent family, it was unlikely that her own family would be able to give her any help. She had originally tried to contact Lu Yao. She and Lu Yao were from the same clan and were actually very close relatives. In terms of seniority, Lu Yao had to call her aunt.

But Lu Yao is not the kind of person who is willing to manage the harem, seek power for himself, and develop together with everyone.

He has now been transferred to Qinzhou. Da Qi's Qinzhou is still in the south, but the relationship between the upper and lower levels of Qinzhou is even more complicated, which completely entangles Lu Yao and makes it impossible for him to extricate himself from trivial matters.

Among the many forces in Yecheng, hers is the weakest. The only card in her hand is an underage emperor, who is almost a figurehead. The emperor's edicts can only be used in the palace and may not be fully executed.

Fortunately, through her son and the emperor, she has won over many of the guards in the palace, so at least she is no longer alone.

Next, as long as we can successfully win over Hu Changren, we will be 70% successful.

As for Liu Taozi, he is just a foreign general. He has no conflict of interest with me and we have nothing to do with each other for the time being.

As long as he can be fed.

Lu Lingxuan closed her eyes and began to prepare for today.

Hu Changren followed Luo Depo with a gloomy face.

The banquet was over and many ministers were drunk and had to be helped away.

Hu Changren glanced at Luo Depo and a hint of disgust flashed in his eyes.

He really disliked Lu Lingxuan and her son.

His good sister was no match for Lu Lingxuan in the harem. She was the emperor's biological mother and the real empress dowager, but at this beginning, she was still no match for Lu Lingxuan, who was caught red-handed. Hu Changren couldn't imagine how dangerous his situation would be if the empress dowager fell.

He was led by Lok Deva to another hall, and as soon as he entered, Lok Deva closed the door.

Hu Changren was startled and subconsciously reached for his waist, but he didn't feel any sword!
At this moment, Hu Changren's mind flashed with the fate of countless foreign relatives and generals, and he was sweating profusely.

Lu Lingxuan walked out of the hall and bowed to him with a smile.

Hu Changren nervously checked the surroundings and made sure there were no ambushing soldiers before he breathed a sigh of relief, "Where is His Majesty?"

"Your Majesty has rested."

"Are you looking for me?"

"I have something important to discuss with the king."

"What can I talk to you about?"

"Of course, we are here to discuss world affairs."

Hu Changren laughed and looked at Lu Lingxuan with contempt, as if asking, you?
Lu Lingxuan suddenly said, "Your Majesty intends to make General Wei a king, but most of the ministers do not agree. What do you think?"

Hu Changren, who originally had a look of disdain on his face, immediately became nervous after hearing the name of General Wei, and his expression was no longer so relaxed.

Liu Taozi's battle record is becoming more and more exaggerated, and his strength is becoming stronger and stronger.

No matter who it is, no one would dare to underestimate it when hearing this name.

Hu Changren suddenly asked, "Did General Wei ask you to come and question me?"

Lu Lingxuan shook her head and said with a smile: "I have never met General Wei, let alone contacted him. It's just that your majesty thinks highly of General Wei, and I respect him even more. General Wei captured Yongfeng, occupied Shiya, killed Liu Yong, and defeated the Turks. This is already a merit worthy of being crowned a king. Why are the ministers unwilling to reward him?"

After hearing Lu Lingxuan's words, Hu Changren was almost certain that the other party had formed an alliance with Liu Taozi. No wonder Liu Taozhi always ran to the emperor!
Hu Changren fell silent.

He dared to challenge the two kings openly, but he didn't dare to challenge Liu Taozi.

The main reason is that the second king is easy to talk to, while Liu Taozi is a frontier warrior who is unreasonable. If you anger him, he might come to Yecheng to behead you.

Only then did Lu Lingxuan invite the other party to sit down and asked her son to serve tea.

"Your Majesty, you are very talented and can appease the ministers, but I still feel it's not worth it for you."

"The Queen Mother is so rude that even Your Majesty doesn't want to see her anymore, and she still doesn't know how to restrain herself. I don't know how much trouble she will cause you in the future."

Hu Changren was a little surprised. He looked at the other party and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Why doesn't the king join forces with me?"

"Join hands with you?? I am the Queen Mother's brother, you want to join hands with me??"

"What does it matter? Even if I am close to Your Majesty, can I still become the Queen Mother and take away your family's position as a relative? The Queen Mother doesn't understand government affairs and just wants to have fun, so let her have fun. Isn't it great if the two of us can handle the world's affairs together?"

Hu Changren asked again: "What qualifications do you have to manage world affairs?"

"I am a woman, what qualifications do I have? But Your Majesty is qualified. Although Your Majesty has ascended to the throne, he still lacks a queen. I heard that you have a daughter in your family who is a perfect match for Your Majesty."

Hu Changren's eyes lit up, "You mean?"

"If your daughter can be made queen, you and His Majesty will be even closer. At that time, I will take care of the affairs within the palace, and you will take care of the affairs outside the palace. The military outside will be handled by the general. Isn't this great?"

Hu Changren suddenly felt interested.

Compared to the Queen Mother, this woman is really dozens of times stronger!
If she was the one in charge of the palace, then it would seem that he wouldn't always be passive because of the affairs in the harem?
And Liu Taozi, if he could get him in his car, why would he be afraid of Gao Yu and Gao Rui? ?

Seeing Hu Changren, who was obviously moved, Lu Lingxuan frowned again, "Of course, if you want to accomplish such a big thing, you still need to solve the issue of the kingship first."

"What do you think?"

Hu Changren raised his head slowly, "I think that General Wei is so brave and invincible, and has made great achievements in battle. It would be unfair if he could not be crowned a king for such great contributions."

"Hahaha, your Majesty is right, but what should we do if the ministers in the court are unwilling to agree?"

"Your Majesty and the Queen Mother have jointly issued an edict. I will summon all the ministers to issue it. They have no choice but to agree!"

"Do they have the final say in this Great Qi Dynasty?"

Lu Lingxuan stood up hurriedly and said, "If we can accomplish great things, it's all because of your contribution."

She looked at Luo Depo beside her, and Luo Depo hurriedly handed her an imperial edict.

Hu Changren took the imperial edict.

The edict only said one thing.

Liu Taozi, Duke of Dingxiang, was promoted to General Wei and King of Pingcheng.

ps: The sound is still there, it doesn't seem to be electric current! But I have made up for this chapter!!

(End of this chapter)