Tiger Guards

Chapter 685 Huge Rewards
Chang'an City, the office of the Prefect of the Capital.

As dusk approached, a group of guards arrived carrying halberds and torches, taking over the defense of the main gate of the government office.

In fact, the main gate of the government office had already been closed. Five days ago, after the Empress Dowager of Jinyang issued an edict, the government offices of the counties and prefectures in the Three Auxiliary Regions were closed, and the officials and soldiers took leave to return home to prepare for the New Year.

Therefore, there were not many county officials or subordinate officials moving around in the government office at night, and almost no footsteps or discussions could be heard.

As a result, the occasional barking of dogs was particularly jarring.

Inside the mansion, Pei Mao sat cross-legged with his back against the fire wall, a small table in front of him.

On one side of the table was a small incense burner, from which wisps of smoke rose, filling the air with a faint scent of cypress, dispelling the smell of smoke from the burning stove.

Perhaps it was because he was getting old, Pei Mao disliked tall chairs and large tables, as well as bronze and iron stoves, and even the unprecedented victory that Zhao Ji had achieved in his campaign against the Hu.

The more brilliant Zhao Ji's achievements were, the more unhappy Pei Mao became.

Pei Mao's ever-growing military prestige made him feel increasingly insignificant, and he increasingly felt like a useless person.

He didn't really know how he got to this point, but whenever night fell or he was alone, he would feel remorse and regret, and he would also become more determined.

This is no longer a personal grudge, but a national and ethnic feud.

Even now, Pei Mao is not afraid of Zhao Ji, and many others are not afraid of Zhao Ji either.

For these people who were loyal to the Han dynasty and yearned for tradition, Zhao Ji's ability to win every battle was not necessarily due to his personal skill in warfare, but rather because the fate of the Han dynasty had not yet run out, which enabled the elite warriors to turn the tide.

Zhao Ji was merely one of the best among them, using the wisdom and strength of the masses to defeat the enemy and plotting to usurp leadership and the fruits of victory.

After all, Zhao Ji's results were understandable.

Following Zhao Ji's strategy, they were confident of another victory.

Unlike other rare and renowned generals, he sometimes couldn't figure out where the opportunity for victory lay.

It was precisely because Zhao Ji's battles were so overwhelmingly successful that many people, both inside and outside the country, could understand the course of the war... This naturally gave rise to a sense of confidence that "I can do it too."

There were also some battles where the odds of victory were slim before the war, yet Zhao Ji was able to win... This was most likely due to the blessing of the Han dynasty.

Take archery as an example. A lucky person can hit the target every time; an unlucky person, no matter how skilled, will always miss the target due to various unexpected factors.

Therefore, this can also explain Zhao Ji's archery skills. It's not just that Zhao Ji was good at archery, but also that he was lucky. Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain all kinds of bizarre archery skills.

In short, those who understand and can analyze Zhao Ji, if frustrated and displeased with him, will naturally develop the ambition to replace him.

Pei Mao also aspired to be a renowned minister who helped the Han Dynasty recover three times, which was his lifelong pursuit.

As for following Zhao Ji to establish a new dynasty, he couldn't bear to see the Pei family's traditions so easily succumb to authority, as this would severely damage the family's integrity and moral character.

It's not that the Pei family has to be buried with the Han dynasty, but rather that the Pei family should make some kind of contribution.

Having enjoyed the Han dynasty's stipends for generations, when the lineage changed, the Pei family truly could not completely surrender to the new dynasty.

Having consumed so much of the old dynasty's resources, the Pei family must at least cut off an arm and a leg to be buried with them, in order to give an account to the world and future generations.

Pei Mao had too many reasons to take action, but no reason to back down or submit.

After all, before and after Zhao Ji rose to power, he lacked sufficient and due respect for his fellow village leader.

Zhao Ji not only sought to usurp power in the imperial court, but had also previously relied on violence to seize the position of village leader from Pei Mao.

Originally, after the Wei and Fan clans fell, the Pei clan should have taken over Hedong and become the leading clan in Hedong.

However, the appearance of the Zhao family interrupted the development of the Pei family and even showed a tendency to force the Pei family to become vassals.

Having reached this point, Pei Mao had no way out, considering the future of the Han dynasty, the long-term interests of the Pei family, and his personal ideals. Even if he lost, there was still Pei Xiu's branch of the family.

Given Bae Soo's relationship with Jo Ki, how could Bae Soo possibly be implicated?

There was also Zhao Ji's brother-in-law, Pei Hu, and Pei Bao, who was promoted to battalion commander through meritorious service.

Even the designation of the newly established elite cavalry unit, the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, can be attributed to Pei Hu and Pei Bao.

Even though Zhao Ji was ruthless and merciless, dealing with Pei Xiu, Pei Hu, and Pei Bao all at once, Pei Mao's eldest son, Pei Qian, had already taken up a post in the Xu Du court.

The more tragic the death of the Pei family of Hedong, the greater the indirect assistance Pei Qian received.

Pei Qian's younger brother, Pei Jun, is currently in Shu seeking refuge from the chaos. By the time Zhao Ji conquers Yizhou, there will be no need to continue persecuting the Pei family.

In addition, there are other branches scattered in various places; for example, one branch went to Liaodong to avoid the chaos.

In short, the Pei clan could not be wiped out after the failure!
On the contrary, they would win the praise of their entire family for their loyalty and bravery, enough for their descendants to eat their fill.

If we win... the entire Dong clan of Meiwu serves as a cautionary tale against usurpers like the Zhao family!

Pei Mao suppressed the excitement in his heart, and occasionally, when he thought of the huge and fruitful results of the victory, he would instinctively indulge in all sorts of wonderful fantasies.

For example, Wang Yun was too arrogant and failed to do a good job of pacifying the Xiliang army. Although he recruited Hu Zhen, Xu Rong and others, he failed to appease the Niu Fu and Dong Yue army.

Therefore, being distracted at this moment is not a waste of time. He must prepare countermeasures for various changes, which officers must die, and which officers can be recruited and absorbed. These must be categorized in advance.

We must prevent a recurrence of events like those involving Li Jue and Guo Si, and Jia Xu is currently the most troublesome opponent.

Since Jia Xu returned from Shuofang and entered the Pingyang camp to assist in supervising the various armies, he has been making personnel adjustments based on his almost instinctive keen sense.

Key positions were filled by military officers from Langya or Zhao Jiyi's hometown, and even the people from Hedong were no longer trusted.

At this moment, Pei Mao is writing a letter to Zhang Heng, a fellow townsman of Jia Xu.

Jia Xu, Duan Wei, Liang Xing, and Zhang Heng were all from Wuwei, specifically from Guzang in Wuwei; Zhang Xiu was also from Wuwei, specifically from Zuli in the westernmost part of Wuwei. In terms of cultural exchange, they were closer to Longyou than to the four prefectures of Hexi.

Thanks to Jia Xu's initial guarantee, Liang Xing was able to participate in many battles and has now accumulated merits to become a General of the Central Army, assigned to Xu Huang's command. He is currently one of the key pillars of the border defense line.

Zhang Heng, on the other hand, was not so lucky. He had only been promoted twice in the past few years and was currently a rear army captain in the Fifth Battalion.

Although Zhang Heng was promoted two ranks in four years, how could he be calm and composed compared to those who came from the Tiger Guard or surrendered generals like Gan Ning and Zhang Xiu?

In the ongoing Liangzhou campaign, both Jia Xu and Duan Wei are avoiding suspicion and refusing to provide assistance to their hometown.

This further fueled Zhang Heng's discontent. In many cases, it was enough to win over one Zhang Heng in the Five Battalions.

Trying to recruit even one more person would have a low success rate and also carries the risk of exposure.

After Pei Mao finished writing the letter, he sealed it and put it in a wooden box. He got up, rubbing his back, and walked out of the study. There he saw the large, slightly fat, dark figure of his chief clerk, Du Ji.

Du Ji was a man of strong character, but at this moment he looked dejected and simply cupped his hands: “My lord, the imperial envoy has arrived and reported the great victory in Liangzhou. We have captured and killed 130,000 Han and Qiang youths who had rebelled. If we include the rebel army left behind in Jincheng and the rebel king Song Jian’s troops, the final number of kills will be around 170,000.”

"It seems Zhao Yuanming has been negligent and careless."

Pei Mao smiled smugly, quite pleased with himself: "Judging from this, Zhao Yuansi is still in Liangzhou."

"My lord, you should proceed with caution. The Grand Tutor may have already led his troops into Guanzhong."

Du Ji wanted to describe the situation as even more dire, but Pei Maozhen couldn't bear to hear such words.

If they mistakenly believe you are speaking in favor of the Zhao family and deliberately undermining their own morale, they might actually kill you.

(End of this chapter)