Tiger Guards

Chapter 107: Tiger Guards in Position
"Team Tang Xian, deploy the halberds at the front gate!"

Jia Tong led the Huben through the long street to the county magistrate's mansion. He jumped off his horse and pointed at the door and shouted.

"Here!"

Tang Xian responded from behind and watched Jia Tong lead the two teams of Tiger Guards he led to dismount and enter through the gate.

There were only a few Tiger Guards at the gate, and the good family girls from Anyi who came to protect the emperor could only stand guard along the walls on both sides of the gate. They were not even qualified to step into the gate.

More than eighty Tiger Guards holding spears followed Jia Tong into the front gate of the county government office. Following Jia Tong's shouts and instructions, the Tiger Guards' squads and teams went to take over the sentries in various courtyards and corridors.

Finally, Jia Tong led a group of twelve Tiger Guards, all wearing iron armor and holding large halberds with the blades wrapped in white cloth, and went straight into the hall where the emperor was.

The twelve halberd-wielding warriors were divided into two rows and stood on the steps in front of the hall, with their hands on their hips.

At the threshold of the hall were the Tiger Guards and the Old Feathered Guards, and the imperial officials were standing in the shadows of the corridors on both sides of the doorway.

Soon, Zhao Ji's carriage arrived in front of the county magistrate's mansion. He jumped out of the car and stood by the roadside waiting for Shizhong Tai Chong and Shangshu Pei Mao.

The two men were holding the emperor's banner and the imperial sword respectively. When the flag carriage arrived, Zhao Ji signaled the flag officer Gao Yanglong to take down the flag and carry it in front of the door.

Before he could chat with Tai Chong and Pei Mao, Qu Bei arrived with several horsemen. He dismounted and bowed to Zhao Ji, Tai Chong and the others, saying, "My young prince is late."

"The wise king has arrived at the perfect time."

Tai Chong responded and looked at Zhao Ji: "Minister Zhao, please."

This was not the time to refuse, Zhao Ji nodded and walked towards the steps in front of the government office.

Tang Xian, who was guarding the door, stepped aside and shouted, "Cross the halberds!"

Twenty-four warriors holding halberds stood sideways, raised their halberds at an angle, and crossed their halberds in pairs to form a halberd gate.

Zhao Ji did not stop, but strode forward with his head held high, followed by Tai Chong, Pei Mao, and Qu Bei, and behind him was Gao Yanglong, who carried the banner of "Reform and Fight Against Bandits", and Han Shu, who had a bow on his back, two pots of arrows hanging on his left and right, a shield in his left hand, and a halberd in his right hand.

A bundle of short spears was fixed behind Han Shu's waist, and a copper hammer was hung on his left waist in addition to a sword.

Along the way, there were Tiger Guard sentries standing in pairs, their long spears wrapped in white cloth.

When Zhao Ji arrived in front of the Emperor's Hall and was about to step onto the steps, an official jumped out, pointed at him and cursed: "You bastard, how dare you do this!"

The eunuchs around him quickly stepped back to distance themselves from him. The man was filled with righteous indignation: "You have insulted the nobles and taken advantage of the young emperor. One day, the righteous men of the world will wipe out your entire family, both men and women, leaving no one alive!"

Zhao Ji stopped, but did not get angry. He turned around and asked Tai Chong, "Minister Tai, who is this?"

Tai Chong glanced at the righteous Zhang Hong. "This Huangmen official, Zhang Hong of Henei, courtesy name Wenwei, is a descendant of the Marquis of Liu. His cousins, Zhang Cheng and Zhang Zhao, were both counselors. Zhang Zhao died in the chaos of war, and Zhang Cheng, who plotted to assassinate Dong Zhuo, fled to another province and has disappeared."

Following Tai Chong's introduction, Zhang Hong straightened his chest and his cheeks became much redder, but the happy life of the past two days had left him with obvious dark circles under his eyes.

Zhao Ji was not angry, and said to Zhang Hong: "Since you think I am a traitor to the country, then draw your sword."

"Today I shall die for justice, and my name shall live on record."

Zhang Hong drew his sword and walked quickly towards Zhao Ji, but he never expected that the guards along the way only held their halberds sideways, crossed their halberd gates, and at most just looked at him.

Even Zhao Ji did not draw his sword.

Seeing him so arrogant, Zhang Hong rushed down the stairs even faster. When there were only three steps left, he stepped forward, raised his sword and jumped up to stab him.

When he jumped up and drew his sword, Zhao Ji dodged sideways and reached out to grab Zhang Hong's left leg, causing Zhang Hong to lose balance in mid-air and fall straight to the ground. His chin hit the ground and his mouth was full of blood, and his sword also fell.

Zhao Ji turned to look at Pei Mao and said, "Minister Pei, what crime did you commit by assassinating the Minister?"

Pei Mao drew his imperial sword and said, "Issue the decree: Anyone who prevents Minister Zhao from seeing the emperor will be treated as a traitor and executed immediately!"

Without waiting for Zhang Hong to stand up, Pei Mao stabbed him in the left chest with a sword, and then stepped forward and kicked Zhang Hong.

After drawing the sword, Pei Mao took out a handkerchief and wiped it carefully. After confirming that there was no blood, he sheathed the Shangfang sword and held it in his arms again.

Two Tiger Guards who were on guard outside came forward to drag Zhang Hong away, but seeing that he was not dead yet, they did not kill him.

Tai Chong looked around at the officials in the corridor and saw that they all stood with their heads bowed. Then he stretched out his arms to Zhao Ji and said, "I am sorry to have frightened Minister Zhao."

"No problem, I didn't expect there was only one person like this."

Zhao Ji sighed and followed Tai Chong up the stairs.

In front of the hall, the Minister Ding Chong sang loudly: "Minister Tai Chong, Zhao Ji, and Right Xian Wang Liu Qubei enter the palace to see the emperor!"

Zhao Ji saw through the hall at a glance and saw that only Zhao Rui, Fu Wan and Liu Ai were on duty in the hall, and there was no fifth person.

When he glanced at Liu Ai, Zhao Ji remembered that this person was also a minister, and it seemed that he had been tricked by Pei Mao.

It doesn't matter, it just means the number of attendants has increased from six to seven. "Your Majesty, your Majesty."

"Give me a seat."

Liu Xie sat still and just raised his hand to signal. Zhao Rui, who had the lowest status, stood up to move the low couch. After Pei Mao handed over the Shangfang Sword to Liu Ai, he also went to help move the low couch.

After a while, everyone sat down.

Liu Xie asked, "When will Lord Zhao be able to enter the court?"

Ding Chong, who was on duty outside the gate, came in and bowed, "The north gate is open. I believe that after Lord Zhao has arranged his troops, he can enter the court to see the emperor."

Liu Xie nodded and looked at Zhao Ji. "What Mr. Zhao said about the three provinces and six ministries is feasible. The number of Shizhong will be increased to seven. As for the candidates for Zhongshu Ling and Zhongshu Jian, does Mr. Zhao have any good recommendations?"

Several people looked at him from the side. Zhao Ji knelt upright, his posture straight, and stared straight at the table in front of Liu Xie. "Your Majesty, I have lived in the mountains for a long time and don't know any heroes in Hedong. The only ones I have known in the army are the state's minions. Therefore, I don't know who to recommend."

Fu Wan had been observing Zhao Ji and said with a smile, "Your Majesty, this matter is not urgent. We will wait until Zhao Yuanming comes to court before deciding on the appointments to the Secretariat. The important matters now are to determine the rewards for the Tiger Guards and the various armies, and to question Yang Ziqi on his misconduct in assisting the government."

He was very satisfied with Zhao Ji. Such a person would not let his daughter suffer, and he could also explain it to his wife.

As for the long-term future, after experiencing the Luoyang coup and the Sanfu rebellion, Fu Wan did not have any long-term plans for the future.

The reason is simple: I know I am not capable enough.

Being chosen as a son-in-law by Emperor Huan was due to his family background, his handsome appearance, and his age and lack of worries.

If one of the three Yang brothers is defeated, this is Fu Wan’s bottom line, and it seems to be the emperor’s bottom line as well.

Zhao Ji didn't care about this. Let alone these three sheep, even if there were thirty more sheep, without military power, they would be a larger flock and it would be difficult to change qualitatively.

At this time, Zhao Ji bowed and said, "Your Majesty, yesterday I made an agreement with General Huan to use my merits in exchange for his legs being severed. I, the palace servant, was a witness to this matter, and General Huan did not refuse at the time, so I do not need any reward."

"Well, regarding Zhao Qing's reward, I and the other ministers have already discussed it. We will give credit to Zhao Qing's biological mother and confer the title of Lord Tongxiang, with a fief of 500 households. The remaining merit will be offset by Huan Qing's injury."

"Yes, thank you for your forgiveness, Your Majesty."

Zhao Ji bowed and expressed his gratitude. Seeing that he was a little flustered in etiquette, everyone including Liu Xie had gotten used to it. After experiencing special training from Dong Zhuo, Li Jue, Guo Si, and the Baibo Army, Zhao Ji was able to express his gratitude and forgiveness, which was a groundbreaking progress for the court.

At this time, Ding Chong appeared in front of the door again. Liu Yue looked closely and saw Ding Chong bowing: "Your Majesty, Lord Zhao Yuanming has entered the north gate."

Liu Xie went to see Fu Wan and said, "Go and fetch Lord Zhao on my behalf."

"only."

Fu Wan stood up, bowed, took a few steps back and walked out.

Liu Xie looked at Zhao Rui again and said, "Go and supervise them. Serve the food later. Lord Zhao must be hungry."

"only."

Zhao Rui stood up and bowed deeply, then backed out through the side door and went to the kitchen in the backyard.

Liu Xie looked at Zhao Ji and said, "My dear minister, if you want to reform the government and preserve the Han Dynasty, will you dismiss the ministers and put them in jail?"

"Your Majesty, the decrees come from the Three Ministries. Whether the former ministers are dead or alive is unimportant. In my heart, I would rather they were alive. Witnessing the reforms and the changing landscape of government would inspire them to repent."

Zhao Ji said this, but based on his understanding of human nature, he believed that when the situation improved and stabilized, the ministers would seize power.

Just like when you lay a solid foundation in playing the game, there will always be a newbie pulling you away, yelling that it's his turn to play.

When playing games, you can be magnanimous and step aside, and then take over when the rookie messes up; but when it comes to governing, even if it is just a county, you cannot give up an inch.

Every step given up costs lives; if you want to take it back, even more lives will be lost.

Hearing him say this, Qu Bei glanced at Zhao Ji's profile. He didn't believe what he really meant or what he really thought.

Can the words spoken from the heart really be the words from the heart?
Liu Xie felt relieved after hearing this. As an emperor, although he was only fifteen years old, he instinctively saw the convenience of the three-province system.

There are seven ministers in the Ministry of Personnel, and it doesn't matter if there are more of them under the Zhao family. As long as the Secretariat holds the key, the situation will not be so bad that it is difficult to handle.

Besides, the imperial court has fallen to this point, how much worse can it get?

If the Zhao family is allowed to govern, they can remain strong even if it is like the State of Jin.

He was really fed up with the hard times he had been having recently, and it would be great to get away and take a breath.

No matter how bad the situation is, the only possibility is that the Kanto side will re-establish the emperor, and our army will be defeated and destroyed.

The reason for saving the lives of most of the former ministers was not because he hoped for what these people would do in the future, but purely because they had been through hardships together, and Liu Xie felt at ease by keeping them as human shields.

(End of this chapter)