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Chapter 152 The Emperor's Special Favor

"As per regulations, Li Tinggui and Han Jixun, surrendered generals from Shu, were summoned to the palace to pay homage."

After the routine audience concluded, accompanied by a proclamation, the two Shu generals who had been captured during the Qin-Feng War entered.

"Your humble servants Li Tinggui and Han Jixun pay their respects to His Majesty the Emperor of Great Zhou... May Your Majesty live ten thousand years!"

Li and Han paid their respects with great ceremony.

"Rise." A majestic voice came from the throne.

After the two men rose, Chancellor Wang Pu stepped forward and said, "His Majesty, considering that you both did what you did, has pardoned your crimes and will reward you with further honors."

Li Tinggui hurriedly said, "As a defeated general, I am already deeply grateful for His Majesty's mercy in sparing my life... I dare not ask for any further rewards, I only ask to spend my remaining years in peace in Daliang City."

"This humble subject dares not!" Han Jixun also bowed and said.

Regardless of past prestige, seniority, or social status, he was no match for Li Tinggui. Now that the two had been captured and taken to Tokyo, he could only follow Li Tinggui's lead.

Only then did the emperor slowly speak: "The ruler of Shu, Meng Chang, took advantage of the chaos in the Central Plains to seize the four prefectures of Qin and Feng, and he is the culprit. You were rewarded by the ruler of Shu and were doing your duty, so it cannot be considered a great crime."

“When Li Jing returned to Tang, Emperor Taizong entrusted him with important responsibilities. You two have abandoned darkness and embraced light, and you can serve as a model for the world.”

Chai Rong harbored great ambitions and often used the achievements of Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, to spur himself on and prevent himself from becoming complacent.

Therefore, in daily conversations, they would unconsciously use old stories from the time of Emperor Taizong to discuss national politics and military affairs... Even now, when rewarding surrendered generals, they would use this as an example.

Having said this, Chai Rong gestured for a close attendant to step forward and read the imperial edict: Li Tinggui was appointed Left General of the Imperial Guard, concurrently serving as Grand Commandant, and was granted gold, silk, saddle, horse, and clothing. Han Jixun was appointed Right General of the Valiant Guard, with the same rewards. Furthermore, the two were granted residences in Daliang, the capital of Tokyo.

"We swear to serve you to the death!" Li and Han were immediately moved to tears and knelt down to express their deepest gratitude.

Li Yi stood quietly in the ranks of military officers, feeling as if he were watching a performance.

Whether it was Emperor Chai Rong, Prime Minister Wang Pu, or the surrendered Shu generals Li Tinggui and Han Jixun, none of them had rehearsed beforehand, yet they all performed exceptionally well on the spot. From their words and expressions to their body language, they were in no way inferior to the acting masters of later generations.

Especially Li Tinggui and Han Jixun, who were surrendered generals of the enemy state one moment and "swore allegiance to the Great Zhou Emperor" the next. The smoothness of their transformation was astonishing.

Of course, Li Yi didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

After all, even he himself is often putting on an act... People wear many masks in life, and in the end, they can't even tell which one is real and which one is fake.

Li Tinggui and Han Jixun received the imperial edict, bowed respectfully, and were then led away from the main hall.

Just then, Wang Pu spoke again: "Your Majesty, the campaign against Shu resulted in the capture and surrender of tens of thousands, but the most crucial battles were only one or two major battles. The Battle of Huanghua Valley annihilated the Shu army in Tangcang, and Weiwu City was captured without bloodshed. These were the decisive battles in the war."

"Furthermore, the Battle of Qingni Ridge defeated the Shu Kingdom's imperial guards who came to their aid, completely extinguishing the Shu army's ambitions to seize Qin and Feng. Ultimately, the war was quelled in less than two months, laying the foundation for our dynasty's conquest of Jiangnan."

"..."

Listening to Wang Pu's eloquent analysis of the various processes involved in conquering Shu.

Li Yi understood that the other party was trying to promote his achievements... Although the court had sent someone to deliver the reward while he was in Guzhen, it was not a formal appointment after all, and he still had to go through the formalities upon his return.

As expected, after Wang Pu finished speaking, he bowed and said, "In terms of the greatest merit in the conquest of Shu, I believe it should be the vanguard commander Li Yi. He possessed both ingenious strategies and bravery, and he seized the opportunity perfectly from beginning to end. Otherwise, the conquest of Shu would probably have been delayed for several more months before it could achieve any results."

Chai Rong nodded slightly and called out, "Where is Minister Li?"

"Your subject is here!" Li Yi quickly stepped forward and bowed.

The emperor smiled and looked at him with great satisfaction, praising, "Minister Li is truly my favorite general."

This short sentence perfectly expressed Chai Rong's thoughts.

From protecting the emperor and beheading a general at Gaoping, to repelling the Liao army at the Battle of Xinkou, and now to recovering Qin and Feng in one fell swoop.

In less than two years since the emperor ascended the throne, Li Yi has been involved in several important battles, and his contributions have been significant.

If Chai Rong was the first emperor to establish the dynasty, then Li Yi was undoubtedly a founding hero.

The veteran generals in the court, who had served for generations, were highly respected and had made great contributions. They had probably fought more battles than Li Yi had ever seen.

But what does it mean for Chai Rong?

They weren't fighting for the emperor... Many of them had rendered meritorious service for previous dynasties.

As the saying goes, "a new emperor brings a new court," and emperors naturally trust the generals they have personally promoted more. Humans are inherently biased, with likes and dislikes, and even the most brilliant emperor is still human. Chai Rong indeed grew increasingly fond of Li Yi, who had played a crucial role in helping him secure his throne.

Li Yi hurriedly replied, "Without Your Majesty's promotion and trust, I would not have the wealth and honor I enjoy today. I can only repay Your Majesty with a loyal heart and am willing to be Your Majesty's vanguard in expanding the territory and unifying the world!"

Chai Rong looked at Li Yi, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes. He slowly said, "Minister Li, you have made great contributions in this campaign against Shu. I will certainly not break my promise to reward you generously before the expedition."

The emperor had already discussed the specific rewards for Li Yi with his close advisors and ministers; the announcement at the court meeting was merely a formality.

Immediately, a close attendant picked up the imperial edict and began to read it aloud. After a string of ornate praises, the actual rewards and honors were revealed:
"Li Yi, the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guards and Defense Commissioner of Beizhou, is promoted to Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guards, concurrently serving as Military Governor of Zhaowu Army and Prefect of Beizhou. He is also transferred to the rank of Grand Master of the Silver Seal and Purple Ribbon, and granted the title of Senior Protector of the Army, with the additional title of Acting Minister of War. He is awarded a ceremonial robe, gold belt, silverware, silk, saddle and bridle, and horse..."

Li Yi didn't expect the emperor to be so generous, directly bestowing upon him all his titles... his primary post, his secondary post, his concurrent post, his honorary rank, his meritorious service, and his inspectorate—the entire family of honors for a military general was included.

He couldn't help but ponder: his military power was merely a matter of assignment, without any specific rank. As for the remotely appointed military governor, it was an honorary title, but it didn't actually have a fixed official rank.

The concurrent position of governor of this prefecture was a real official rank... However, Zhaowu Army was located within the territory of Shu, with its capital in Lizhou, and was also known as the Jiedushi of Lizhou.

There were too many military officers these days, and there weren't enough positions for all the regional military governors. Many of the additional titles of military governor, defense commissioner, and militia commissioner were assigned to posts outside the country's borders.

Therefore, the order of promotion and transfer became from overseas to domestic, then from small fiefdoms to large fiefdoms, and finally perhaps from a nominal position to a real one—that's the whole process.

But this is not important to Li Yi for the time being. If judged solely by official rank, even the governor of a superior prefecture would only be a third-rank official.

Of course, the ranks can also be determined by the titles of honorary officials and inspectors.

The Grand Master of the Silver Seal is a civil official of the third rank, while the Inspector of the Ministry of War is of the third rank... so I should be entitled to the treatment of a third-rank official.

Thinking about this, Li Yi also felt a headache. Since the mid-Tang Dynasty, the official system has become increasingly chaotic. This can be seen from the fact that most military generals concurrently held civil honorary titles, while the system of military honorary titles was abandoned.

The situation became even more chaotic during the Five Dynasties period, eventually leading to the Song Dynasty's most absurd official system in history.

Seeing that Li Yi was somewhat lost in thought, Chancellor Wang Pu reminded him, "Commander Li, why don't you kowtow and thank His Majesty for his great favor?"

Li Yi then realized that the imperial edict had already been read aloud, and he quickly knelt down respectfully, saying, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your great favor!"

"Rise." Chai Rong nodded slightly and said, "I have already issued an edict to confer the title of Lady of Changshan County upon Li Qing's wife. The edict and all the rewards will be sent to Li Qing's residence later."

Upon hearing this, Li Yi immediately knelt down to express his gratitude.

He was familiar with the matter of bestowing titles and fiefs; according to custom, the mothers and wives of officials of the fifth rank or above could be granted titles and fiefs.

According to the Tang Dynasty system, the mother and wife of officials of the fifth rank were county ladies; those of the fourth rank were prefecture ladies; those of the third rank and above were prefecture ladies; and those of the first rank in both civil and military affairs were state ladies.

Chai Rong encouraged him, saying, "Although Li Qing is young, he is exceptionally talented, and what is even more commendable is his loyalty to the country. I hope that you will continue to share my burdens and serve the Great Zhou wholeheartedly in the future."

Li Yi bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I will repay your kindness with my life!"

At this moment, he did feel genuine gratitude towards Chai Rong. The emperor had treated him well, and although it was a favor with a purpose, the benefits he received were undeniable.

Chai Rong nodded in satisfaction, gave instructions on holding a banquet in the Jinxiang Hall, and then said to the officials, "This concludes today's discussion. Let's adjourn the court."

The ministers responded in unison, "Respectfully seeing off Your Majesty!"

After the emperor left, Li Yi walked out of the main hall and looked up at the sky. Sunlight shone on his face, revealing a resolute expression.

He knew that his journey was long and the challenges ahead would only increase. But he was not afraid, because he believed that as long as he stayed true to himself, he could forge his own path in this chaotic world.

Just then, a familiar voice came from behind: "Commander Li, congratulations."

Li Yi turned around and saw that it was Prime Minister Wang Pu. He quickly cupped his hands and said, "Lord Wang."

Wang Pu smiled slightly and said, "Commander Li is young and promising, and he will surely become a pillar of the country in the future. However, his temperament still needs to be tempered. Making two pledges during the conquest of Shu was really a bit reckless."

Li Yi solemnly replied, "Thank you for your guidance, Your Highness. I will keep it in mind."

Wang Pu patted him on the shoulder, said nothing more, and walked straight away.

Watching the other person's retreating figure, Li Yi pondered to himself. To be honest, he and Wang Pu didn't actually have much of a relationship. It was only during the reorganization of the Imperial Guards that he, with Xiang Xun acting as a go-between, asked Wang Pu to send people to help with the roster count.

But this was far from enough to get the other party to speak well of him in front of the emperor... Of course, one could also say that Wang Pu was simply selfless and would speak up for anyone who had contributed to the country.

However, Li Yi guessed that the real reason might also be related to Xiang Xun, since Wang Pu and Xiang Xun had a good personal relationship, and Xiang Xun was also close to him.

(End of this chapter)