Establishing a thousand-year family from the nobles of the Western Han Dynasty

Chapter 69: Prime Minister's Dispute
The army marched day and night without making too many stops along the way. After replenishing their supplies, they hurried on their way. As a victorious army, they were very eager to go home because His Majesty would give them generous rewards!
There is no such thing as great ambition these days. Everyone joins the army just to earn a living, buy a few acres of land, and get married.

Of course, the primary ambition of men in the world is to get married and have children. This is the voice of the entire era.

Therefore, the army traveled very quickly and arrived at the outskirts of Chang'an in just half a month.

"Hiss, my uncle is really an idiot. He even issued military orders to let those guys take heavy blows! After all, you and I are great heroes who have killed countless enemies. Now we have completely lost face." Huo Qubing complained, holding his aching butt.

"Who said it wasn't?" Xu Chu was not much better. Wei Qing did not take care of him deliberately because of Xu Gong's relationship. Fighting in the army is a taboo. If the superiors set a bad example, the subordinates will follow suit. If he is not severely punished, how can he lead the troops?

The two of them were surprisingly unanimous in their opinions at this time, as they would almost always quarrel at other times. Although Huo Qubing was more capable and had a higher official position, it did not prevent Xu Chu from arguing with him.

Huo Qubing was actually a very strict person in the army. He was tolerant of superiors and subordinates. The only person who could argue with him was Xu Chu.

After another half day's march, the army returned to the city of Chang'an, only to see that all the officials had been waiting outside for a long time. Leading the way was Liu Che, and Xu Gong was also among them.

When Wei Qing was about to reach Chang'an, he immediately dismounted, and Huo Qubing followed him. He was the deputy commander-in-chief of the army and the general of chariots and cavalry of the dynasty, so of course he was qualified to be on the same level as the general.

"I will see your Majesty at last."

"You two generals have worked hard. I am very pleased. Teacher, there is someone to succeed you. Our Han Dynasty has nothing to worry about."

Liu Che had a big smile on his face. He previously thought that Xu Gong was the only one who could stand on his own in the Han Dynasty, but now it seems that there are more than one.

As a monarch, he certainly would not be dissatisfied with having too many talents. What's more, Xu Gong is old. Even if he has talent, his life span is limited. It is necessary to cultivate new military talents.

It seems that the military academy proposed by Xu Nan needs to be put on the agenda as soon as possible. Wars have to be fought in every era, and it is not a good sign if no one can be used.

Wei Qing: "I dare not compare myself with Prime Minister Xu."

"No, you can. Your ability is no worse than mine, even better." Xu Gong stroked his beard and affirmed Wei Qing's ability.

"Thank you, Xu Xiang, for the compliment."

Wei Qing did not act pretentiously and followed Liu Che into the city. At the same time, the emperor ordered rewards for the three armies and gave them titles and wealth based on their merits.

However, Xu Gong did not rush in, but walked slowly into the army.

"Chu meets father." Xu Chu hurried over, his eyes welling up with tears. As a child, who doesn't want to be the pride of his father?

Although I am not as good as my elder brother.

Xu Gong did not reply, but walked to the child and stroked the cold helmet: "Not bad, I already know your merits on the front line, you have some of the demeanor of a Xu family member."

"I will personally report to His Majesty and ask for a reward for you later, so don't worry."

"Thank you, father." Xu Chu was very excited. This was the first time he received praise from his father.

Although he is the youngest, his elder brother and father are too dazzling.

When his elder brother was eighteen years old, he followed Xu Gong to the battlefield and beheaded hundreds of people with a sword. He showed his outstanding martial arts skills at an early age and was praised by Emperor Xiaojing as having "the style of his father."

Xu Gong himself was even more powerful. When he was in his early twenties, he killed Hu Duo, the Chanyu of the Donghu, in a battle among an army of 100,000, thus reversing the decline of the Han army. He became a god in one battle and indirectly brought about the end of this grassland overlord.

Later, he became even more legendary, with many military exploits. Since the Battle of Jicheng, he has never suffered a single defeat. He is the most dazzling star in the Han military, not much worse than Grand Tutor Xu Zhen. In comparison, although Xu Chu is excellent, he is not worth mentioning. Later, he met Huo Qubing, a child of destiny, and began to sigh that there are always people who are better than you.

.........

In the following days, Wei Qing lived in the general's mansion to review military affairs, and Huo Qubing was also appointed as General of Cavalry by Liu Che, becoming a rising star of the Han Dynasty. The mansion was almost always crowded with people, and countless people rushed to curry favor with him.

In comparison, the General's Mansion was much more deserted, because these people knew that Wei Qing was a long-established commander with a large number of trusted generals, and it would not be their turn to fight in future battles.

Therefore, Huo Qubing, who had just been reused, became a better choice.

At the same time, the Taiwei Mansion became even more lively. Zhou Yafu had just returned to the court, and everyone with a discerning eye knew that His Majesty was planning to use him in an important position!

The military achievements of the Taiwei are enormous. He has been favored by the royal family since the Zhao Rebellion. Now he has been stationed in Shangdang for ten years and has accumulated terrible merits. Currently, the only one in the court who can compare with him is Xu Gong.

Moreover, the tension between him and Xu Zhou began to grow stronger. The position of left prime minister was now vacant, and both of them had a chance.

Zhou Yafu certainly did not intend to give up. He had been the Grand Marshal for ten years. How could he be willing to serve like this for the rest of his life?
But his hope was not great. The Han Dynasty was now dominated by the Confucian and Legalist parties, and almost all important officials came from the Imperial Academy.

Xu Zhou's status in the Confucian and legal circles is unimaginable.

"Everyone, the position of Prime Minister is already vacant. I originally planned not to establish another one, but considering the teacher's health, I decided to choose another one."

"Do you have anyone you would like to recommend?"

In the Ganlu Hall, the ministers sat on both sides. As expected, Liu Che brought up the matter of the prime minister. He needed to check and balance Xu Gong, so a left prime minister was necessary.

"Your Majesty, I recommend Xu Zhou, the Minister of Rites. He is the chief priest of the Imperial Academy and has served in the position for many years. He has a deep understanding of state governance and the ancestral temple. He also has prestige among the people. I believe he will be able to convince the public."

The person who was speaking was a Confucian official. He was a student taught by Xu Zhou himself and held the important position of Shaofu in the court. Although he disagreed with the ideas of the Legalist Party, he respected his teacher who also studied Legalism.

Liu Che nodded but did not express his opinion clearly.

"Master Zhang, this involves a private affair, right? Everyone knows that Master Xu has many students all over the world, and aren't you one of them?"

Sure enough, someone refuted that this person was also one of the Nine Ministers and was the Langzhong Ling of the current dynasty, and had received favors from Zhou Yafu.

"Doctor Chen thinks there is something wrong with promoting the talented regardless of their relationship with him," the man retorted.

"Xu Taichang certainly has enough experience, ability, and prestige, but the situation on the front line is tense now. What we need is a prime minister who is familiar with military affairs, like Prime Minister Xu."

"Xu Taichang doesn't know much about military affairs, so I'm afraid he will have trouble handling it."

Xu Zhou and Zhou Yafu remained silent about this. They could not take action personally, otherwise they would have no chance at all.

"That's wrong. In my opinion, what our dynasty needs is a minister who can assist the country, not a warrior."

Another person spoke up for Xu Zhou.

(End of this chapter)