Qing Yao

Chapter 330 Heshen, you have rendered meritorious service

"Eight hundred to one hundred thousand?!"

Heshen's brow twitched slightly, but he had already stood up, his teacup hovering steadily in mid-air, his face full of impatience. "Bring it here!"

"Whoo!"

The door was immediately pushed open, and a sweating guard respectfully presented a document sealed with wax.

Before Ming'an could retrieve it, Heshen put down his teacup, stepped forward, and personally took the document and opened it. As his gaze moved across the paper, his already well-maintained and incredibly fair face gradually flushed red, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up. In the end, he even laughed out loud.

"Excellent! What a great victory! What a brilliant Zhao Youlu!"

After saying "Good!" three times, Heshen's face was filled with undisguised elation. He instructed the clerk standing outside the door, "Quickly go and invite Minister Wang and Minister Song. Tell them there is great news and ask them to come immediately!"

"Whoo!"

Never having seen the Grand Secretary so distraught, the scribe dared not delay and quickly ran to fetch someone.

Heshen paced back and forth in the room, clutching the report of victory tightly in his hand and muttering to himself.

Ming'an, who was standing nearby, heard it clearly. The whisper between him and Zhongtang seemed to be saying, "Zhao Youlu, Zhao Youlu, you are truly my lucky star!"

It also seems to say: "Zhao Youlu, Zhao Youlu, I've really found a treasure in you."

Wang Jie was the first to arrive. When he came, the old man had a furrowed brow, clearly having some doubts about Heshen having sent someone to summon him.

Before Wang Jie could even understand the situation, Heshen, disregarding past grievances, shoved the victory report into his hands: "Your Excellency, great news! Acting Governor of Anhui, Zhao Youlu, has achieved a remarkable feat, defeating 100,000 White Lotus rebels with only 800 men!"

"this?"

Wang Jie was stunned for a moment, then took the good news. His eyes scanned the paper, but his brows furrowed more and more, a stark contrast to Heshen's joyful expression.

Song Jun also arrived. This Grand Councilor, who came from the Mongol Eight Banners, saw Heshen looking delighted, while Wang Jie was frowning. He wondered what was wrong and asked curiously, "Lord He, what great news is there?"

Heshen turned to Songyun and smiled, "Zhao Youlu has decisively defeated the White Lotus Rebellion in Anhui, making an unparalleled contribution to our Great Qing. Isn't this a cause for great celebration!"

"Is there still this?"

Just as Song Jun was about to ask for clarification, Wang Jie handed him the report of victory. He quickly examined it closely, and after reading it, a smile appeared on his face, regardless of whether he believed it or not: "It is truly a blessing for the court and the people that Anhui was able to quell the White Lotus Rebellion so quickly. No wonder Lord He is laughing so heartily."

Heshen nodded and said directly, "I invited you two here so that you can join me in reporting good news to the Emperor!"

"As it should be!"

How could Songjun refuse?

Wang Jie hesitated for a moment but still went along. No matter how exaggerated the victory report was, the victory should be real. However, this made Wang Jie feel even more uncomfortable, because not long ago he had argued with Heshen to oppose Zhao Youlu's appointment as acting governor and to protect Zhu Gui.

As a result, Zhao Youlu quelled the White Lotus Rebellion as soon as he took office as acting governor. Doesn't this prove that Heshen had a keen eye for talent, while Wang Jie was blind and didn't know how to use people?

The old man was hunting with his two grandsons at a forest farm a dozen miles away from the manor. The grandson Mian'en was over thirty years old, agile and skilled in archery and horsemanship, so the old man didn't need to worry about him at all. He focused his energy on the other grandson Mian'ning, who was only ten years old.

Prince Cheng, Yongxing, and Prince Yi, Yongxuan, were both hunting with bows and guards. Yongxuan had difficulty walking, so he was just pretending.

Yongxing was quite proficient in Han culture, and was skilled in music, chess, calligraphy and painting. However, he was far inferior to his nephew Mian'en in Manchu horsemanship and archery. Fortunately, the old man's attention was on his grandson at the moment, and he didn't pay much attention to his two poorly performing sons. Otherwise, he would probably have given them a scolding.

After all, since his ascension to the throne, the old master had repeatedly emphasized that horsemanship and archery were the foundation of Manchu culture, and that both the Eight Banners and the imperial family should take horsemanship and archery as their foundation. The young grandson Mianning's father, Yongyan, did not accompany him on his journey, and his food, clothing, and lodging were all taken care of by the old master's people. Although the old master wanted to personally teach Mianning, his age was a factor, so it was mostly Mian'en who taught his ten-year-old cousin.

The old man was even more pleased to see the brotherly affection and respect between them.

Prince Yongxing, however, felt a vague, indescribable feeling when he saw how much his father, the emperor, valued Mianning, the child of his younger brother, Yongyan.

Under the instruction of his elder brother Mian'en, little Mianning shot an arrow that hit a rabbit that was being chased by the guards. The old master was naturally pleased to see this and was about to get up from the imperial chair, which required eight people to lift, to praise Mianning when the head eunuch Li Yu came over and whispered, "Your Majesty, Grand Secretary He, Grand Secretary Wang, and Grand Secretary Song have arrived."

As the old man watched Xiao Mianning retrieve the rabbit he had shot, he casually asked Li Yu, "What are they doing here?"

Li Yu hurriedly said, "It is said that good news has come from Anhui. Acting Governor Zhao Youlu has defeated the White Lotus Rebellion bandits, capturing and killing tens of thousands of them! The three ministers have come to congratulate the emperor."

"Oh?"

The old man's eyes lit up, and he raised his right hand, which had been trembling uncontrollably lately. "Quickly, bring them over here."

"Yes, master."

Li Yu waved to the eunuch beside him, and the eunuch quickly went over to lead the people away.

Before long, Heshen and his entourage, who had come from the mountain villa, were brought before the old master. After performing the grand ceremony, Heshen stepped forward and said with undisguised excitement, "Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations, Your Majesty! Acting Governor of Anhui, Zhao Youlu, has decisively defeated 100,000 bandits, and the White Lotus Rebellion in Anhui has been quelled!"

"Heshen, tell me how this cult bandit was quelled."

The old man leaned forward slightly, as always, he couldn't help but be happy when he heard the good news, and he wanted to know as soon as possible how the battle was won.

Having prepared in advance, Heshen immediately recounted the victory report in vivid detail, his voice brimming with emotion: "Although the White Lotus Rebellion bandits were numerous, they were like clay chickens and earthen dogs, utterly vulnerable! Zhao Youlu charged into the enemy ranks single-handedly, slaying dozens of bandits. The remaining bandits, terrified, knelt down and begged for mercy."

The old man listened intently, nodding from time to time.

Songjun remained silent, listening without any expression.

Wang Jie looked on with disbelief. This was hardly good news; it was clearly just a storyteller from the overpass.

After Heshen finished recounting the details of the victory, he discovered that the old master had fallen asleep sometime earlier.

"."

Not to mention Heshen, everyone present was stunned, yet no one dared to utter a sound.

It's not surprising that the old man fell asleep; it's a normal reaction for older people. The sun was nice today, and a little sunshine made him sleepy.

"master,"

Left with no other choice, Heshen had to step forward and gently wake the old man.

"Huh? I...I fell asleep?"

The old man was initially a little confused when he woke up.

"You were just talking about Anhui, right? What happened in Anhui? Let me think... Oh, right, the White Lotus Rebellion has been quelled."

A rosy glow appeared on the old man's face as he looked at Heshen with satisfaction. "You commanded this battle well and fought it well. What do you think I should reward you with?"

(End of this chapter)