Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 42 Have all the sons of the nobles passed the exam?

Today's court assembly was convened on a sudden request.

The night before last, many rumors circulated in the city about an "urgent message arriving at the palace at night," and these rumors were confirmed to be true.

Then it's clear that there's an urgent matter in the north.

Therefore, everyone in the court knew the topic of today's meeting.

To the surprise of many ministers, the sixth prince, who was practically invisible, also appeared in the palace today.

"I heard that His Majesty yesterday appointed the Sixth Prince as the General of the Five Offices," someone whispered to Minister Sun.

"I see." Sun Situ nodded, his expression calm.

However, the other princes who participated in the court assembly all felt somewhat uneasy about his arrival.

Prince Zhongping, in particular, stared intently at Wei Wusheng with a serious expression.

Everyone in the world knows that His Majesty considers Wei Wusheng to be evil. Apart from the two deceased princes, of the remaining seven, six were granted the title of king, but he alone has not received any title to this day.

Could it be that today's court assembly is related to him?
Seeing that the Prince of Zhongping was staring at him, Wei Wusheng smiled and bowed.

King Zhongping nodded slightly, then turned forward and stopped looking.

Only officials of the fourth rank or above (including those of the fourth rank) could participate in such court assemblies.

Civil and military officials were separated, one on the left and one on the right.

The Great Yu Dynasty revered the left.

Therefore, the left side was led by Duke Wu Qing, and the right side was led by Minister Sun.

The four princes went a step further, standing before the emperor.

The second prince, Prince Jin, Wei Yixuan, courtesy name Ziyu.

The fourth prince, Prince Wu, Wei Yiyun, courtesy name Zisheng.

The seventh prince, Prince Zhongping, Wei Yiyuan, courtesy name Zishang.

The sixth prince, Wei Wusheng.

The eldest prince, who was also the deceased crown prince, and the fifth prince, Prince Ning, both died in the previous "crown prince rebellion" case.

The third prince, Prince Su, was ill and rarely came to court.

The eighth prince, Wei Yixing, the Prince of Jiangling, loved military campaigns. Although he was only sixteen years old, he was very brave. He served as a garrison commander under the Duke of Zhangping on the border of Yangzhou, intimidating Sun Tuo, the false emperor of Nanyue.

As for the Ninth Prince Wei Yixun, he was only nine years old and generally did not participate in court assemblies.

Therefore, in the current political landscape, the power struggle for the crown prince, which is rife with undercurrents, actually involves only the factions of the Prince of Jin and the Prince of Wu.

As for Wei Wusheng, even if he were promoted to General of the Five Offices, he would still only have a deer penis.

Nobody takes him seriously.

Apart from Sima Yu, everyone froze the moment they saw Wei Wusheng.

After all the officials had gathered and lined up in order, the emperor entered the hall shortly afterward.

"Your Majesty has arrived——"

As the Grand Eunuch announced loudly, all the officials knelt down in obeisance.

Slowly, he sat down on the dragon throne and said calmly, "Rise."

Then, all the officials stood up.

Looking at the crowd, the emperor lowered his head slightly, his face amiable, and asked with a smile, "In the imperial examinations a few days ago, did all the sons of you pass?"

As soon as he finished speaking, those who had passed the exam all smiled.

Those who failed the exam lowered their heads in shame, feeling extremely distressed.

"Among the children taking the imperial examinations, whose family is the tallest?" the emperor asked jokingly.

Then, everyone turned to face Song Jing.

The two colleagues next to Song Jing quickly stepped aside, highlighting his presence.

"Oh, is this the child of Minister Song?" the emperor asked.

Sun Situ's face darkened, and he did not turn around to look at Song Jing with the others.

Song Jing replied somewhat embarrassedly, "Your Majesty, my son, Song Shi'an, has indeed passed the provincial examination with top honors."

"She's first in both subjects," someone added.

"First place in two subjects?" The emperor feigned surprise, then nodded in approval, and asked, "Then the other one is... Song Ce? Did he pass the exam?"

"Your Majesty, I can say that I have passed the exam." Song Jing nodded embarrassedly.

"He's only a teenager, yet he passed the exam?" The emperor exclaimed in surprise, raising a finger to address the crowd. "Minister Song is a good student; you've truly raised your son well."

"Yeah, yeah—"

The others echoed this sentiment and expressed their envy.

If he could raise two sons who would become Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), that would be even more remarkable.

"Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty. Your humble servant will certainly discipline him strictly and will not allow him to become lazy and negligent. He will do his best to serve the country."

"Very well." After nodding, the emperor asked Sun Situ, "Zhongzhi, where is your young master?"

"Your Majesty, I have won the first prize in the imperial examination," replied Sun Situ.

"That's good too."

After a polite heart-to-heart talk with him, the emperor ended the pleasantries and said, "Then, let's begin the discussion."

The eunuch in charge of ceremonies, Eunuch Xi, then read aloud the military report from Liangzhou.

As they listened, the smiles on everyone's faces all faded.

This made the earlier warm-up seem especially awkward.

"General Zhao Xiang led his remaining 8,000 troops back to Shuofeng and gathered his remaining forces to await orders from the imperial court."

After reading the last sentence, everyone felt incredibly heavy-hearted.

More than just shock.

The foundation of the nation is being shaken. Maintaining his composure, the emperor said, "My beloved ministers, let us discuss this."

After the emperor took the lead, the elderly Sun Yan angrily exclaimed, "That Zhao Xiang! In less than a month, tens of thousands of troops have been lost. Is this the work of a general who knows warfare?"

"..."

Upon hearing this, Xun Hou Zhao Lun trembled as he walked to the center. Before he knew it, tears were streaming down his face. He kowtowed and said, "Zhao Xiang has suffered heavy losses, plunging Bei Liang into a perilous situation. This old minister is willing to atone with his death."

"Don't be so quick to contemplate suicide."

The emperor sighed helplessly, then ordered the eunuchs to help Xun Hou Zhao Lun up and back to his seat.

"His Majesty."

At this moment, General Chen Kefu also stepped forward and rebuked, saying, "Wuwei still has several months' worth of provisions. Even if Ji Yuan besieges the city without attacking, the losses will be enormous. Zhao Xiang's reckless advance is truly driven by greed for merit. Now the entire Liangzhou is in a passive position. If he is not severely punished, it may damage the morale of the soldiers."

Although civil and military officials were in opposing positions, it did not mean that the two sides were actually opposed.

Essentially, it was still a confrontation between the noble families and the aristocratic groups.

The nobility also had civil officials, and the gentry also had military generals.

However, absolute military and political power was still in the hands of the nobles of Qinzhou.

"Then what should be done?" the emperor asked.

Some people said, "Zhao Xiang should be demoted to a centurion, so that he can charge into battle and serve at the front."

Then, Xia Chun stepped forward, clenched his fists, knelt on one knee and said, "This humble general is willing to replace Zhao Xiang."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Chen Ling, the Minister of Justice, sneered, "General Xia, do you think the previous defeat was too small, and this time you want to fight a bigger one?"

"..."

Xia Chun's face flushed instantly, she clenched her fists and roared, "If I fail, I am willing to die to atone for my sins!"

"General Xia's death is a small matter, but the loss of Liangzhou to Ji Yuan is a big deal," Sun Kang, a Grand Secretary of the Imperial Academy, mocked.

"Then what do you say? Go and fight!"

Xia Chun, who originally wanted to save face as a "defeated general", was so humiliated that he became extremely anxious.

"Civil officials assist the country, and military generals defend the borders."

Looking coldly at Xia Chun, Sun Situ cursed, "What are you saying? You want this old man to take up arms and fight those Qi traitors? Is that right?"

Sun Yan's words left Xia Chun speechless.

He lowered his head, no longer daring to be presumptuous.

The powerful and influential group could only feel angry but dared not speak out.

We can't win team fights when we're behind.

"Your Majesty, this humble general is willing to sign a military pledge."

But Xia Chun had a bad reputation that he couldn't erase, so he knelt down and kowtowed, his voice trembling.

"Let's discuss it again."

The emperor did not respond, but allowed him to rise and return to his seat before resuming the court session.

Is this the atmosphere of a court assembly...?

Wei Wusheng, experiencing this for the first time, found it incredibly exciting.

At this moment, Liang Zhonghou, General Xiao Qun, spoke up: "Wuwei will surely fall, and Shuofeng cannot be defended either. I suggest that we withdraw the army, burn the city, fortify our defenses and clear the fields, and evacuate all the people of Beiliang Valley to the south to defend the remaining Liangzhou. Otherwise, we will only lose our elite troops in vain."

It's clear to anyone with eyes to see that Beiliang has no chance of holding out.

Unlike Xia Chun, the "defeatist general," and Zhao Lun, the Marquis of Liangzhong, who lost a battle with his son, Liangzhonghou was a nobleman and a famous general and minister, so generally no one would criticize him.

In reality, no one directly criticized Zhao Lun, but the phrase "Zhao Xiang is a brat" was used, which was no different from insulting him.

"Duke Li, what do you think?" the emperor asked.

Everyone looked at Duke Li, the leader of the nobles. Slowly, he spoke: "General Xiao can go to Liangzhou to confront Ji Yuan after the possible fall of Beiliang. But we cannot let our guard down. On the contrary, the court should do everything it can to help... otherwise, if the army loses morale, the people will also lose their support."

When he said this, the nobles knew that he wanted Zhao Xiang dead.

This contradicts the opinion of the nobility group that they want to protect Zhao Xiang.

Indeed, the noble families were at odds with the aristocratic families; they were irreconcilable enemies.

However, the leaders of the nobility are not necessarily completely biased towards their own people.

What the Duke of Li needs to consider is the fate of the Great Yu Kingdom.

For the sake of the nation, he was willing to make concessions to the powerful families of Jiangnan.

Knowing that his son was unlikely to survive, Zhao Lun couldn't help but burst into tears and choked out sobs.

"Then let General Xiao be appointed as the Commander-in-Chief, and Chen Tingwei as the Governor, to protect Liangzhou," the Emperor decided.

“Your subject obeys.”

The two men accepted the imperial decree in unison.

Upon hearing this, the expressions of Sun Situ and the others did not change visibly, but they did relax somewhat.

Local military and political power was split equally between the nobles and the gentry.

Before that, it was unlikely.

The original governor was demoted, and the Minister of Justice took his place. Sun Heng, who was serving as the Right Supervisor in the Minister of Justice's office, was also able to move up a step.

This is what it means to compromise on interests.

"Of course, Shuofeng will not give in."

After the general strategy was set, the emperor gave instructions for the smaller battles: "Even if it is difficult to defend, it cannot be defended. My Great Yu will not yield an inch of land. I also want the world to see our determination to resist Qi."

After the emperor finished speaking, Wei Wusheng walked to the center.

Sima Yu, the Grand Diviner who witnessed this scene, glanced at Wei Wusheng, then looked up in astonishment at the Emperor, feeling a chill run down his spine.

Your Majesty has never forgotten to eliminate the rebellious son in your dreams!

(End of this chapter)