On the occasion of rebirth Zhou Sui

Chapter 168 Who can be handsome?

"Thank you, princess. Your consort has been waiting for a long time."

A long laugh interrupted Cui Che's contemplation, and it was Li Yuan and his wife who went out to greet him.

With Yang Lihua on her side, Cui Che didn't dare to stare at the Dou family daughter. He just took a quick glance and his eyes fell on Li Yuan's face, and he said with a smile:

"I'd like to trouble Mr. Tang to welcome you from afar."

Li Yuan greeted:

"The food and wine have been prepared at home. Princess, please come in quickly."

Yang Lihua turned her head and glanced at Cui Che. Seeing that his expression was as usual and nothing unusual, she turned back and said:

"I haven't been to the house for a long time, so I went to visit my aunt first."

"That's how it should be. Mother is always thinking about the princess. You two will follow me into the mansion soon."

Li Yuan introduced Yang Lihua and Cui Che into the mansion, and the four of them went straight to the backyard to pay homage to their mother, Dugu.

Before entering the door, Cui Che smelled the strong smell of herbs, and a feeble old voice came from the room:

"Is the princess here?"

Yang Lihua quickly entered the room, walked to the bed and held the old woman's hand:

"Aunt, it's Lihua who's here."

The old woman's face was pale and sickly. It was obvious that she had been on the bed for a long time. She braced herself up and asked:

"Where is the prince-in-law? Is the prince-son-in-law here?"

Upon hearing this, Cui Che hurried forward to greet Dugu and saw clearly that she looked very old.

Although Li Yuan is only twenty-four years old, he is not the eldest son in the family.

Before Li Yuan, the Dugu family gave birth to three sons, namely the eldest son Li Cheng, the second son Li Zhan, and the third son Li Hong. However, the three sons died young, so the fourth son Li Yuan was born when he was seven years old.

Inherited his father's title.

Dugu held the hands of Cui Che and Yang Lihua, and told them to maintain harmony as husband and wife, and to raise eyebrows together.

It is not at all like the historical records, which say that she had a harsh temperament and could make her daughters-in-law fearful even though she lingered on her sick bed.

If you think about it carefully, you are right. You should naturally have a kind look on your face in front of outsiders.

If you want to show off your authority, you have to do it behind closed doors.

After patiently waiting for Yang Lihua to talk to her aunt, everyone left and went to the main hall to have a banquet.

Although Li Yuan had no children, he had two nephews who were similar in age to his second brother Li Zhan and were named Li Boyi and Li Fengci. They are still living in the mansion today.

It's just that these two nephews lost their father when they were young and lacked discipline, so they were arrogant and lawless and behaved wildly. They were despised by Li Yuan, so naturally he didn't call them to accompany him.

During the dinner, Cui Che and Li Yuan only talked about their family ties and did not talk about official matters.

Li Yuan led Qianniu to his right and was in charge of the first section of the imperial army. Cui Che was also the general manager of Youzhou and a high official in the border area. If the two families were not related, they should naturally avoid suspicion.

This is also the reason why Cui Che has been married to Yang Lihua for many years, and occasionally lived in Daxing during the process, but has never had any contact with Li Yuan.

After drinking until midnight, Cui Che said goodbye. Li Yuan sent Cui Che and Yang Lihua to the door, but they happened to run into Li Boyi and Li Fengci who were returning home.

The two brothers were out having fun and getting drunk, which made Li Yuan, who already disliked these two nephews, even more unhappy.

Seeing how drunk and dissolute they were, Li Yuan felt he had lost face in front of Cui Che, so Li Yuan scolded them sharply.

Li Boyi and Li Fengci were not a few years younger than Li Yuan, but they were still older. When faced with their uncle's scolding, they dared not speak out in anger, so they had to lower their heads, but there was a hint of resentment in their eyes.

Maybe he was thinking that if his father hadn't died young, who would it be for you, Li Si, to dominate here?

All this was seen by Cui Che, who pretended not to notice.

"Hurry up and salute the princess!"

After scolding his nephew, Li Yuan shouted again.

Li Boyi and Li Fengci, who had sobered up after being scolded, also hurriedly saluted Yang Lihua and Cui Che. According to seniority, Brother Che was their cousin.

Cui Che helped the two of them up, comforted them with Yang Lihua for a few words, and then said goodbye to Li Yuan.

Back home, Cui Che asked Yang Lihua about Li Yuan's two nephews in detail. Yang Lihua didn't think much about it and just said whatever she knew.

Cui Che kept the situation of the two of them in mind, maybe it could come in handy in the future.

The next day, Cui Che went to the palace to say goodbye. After all, he was not a court official and could not stay in the capital for long.

In the side hall, Yang Jian asked:

"Cui Qing thinks, who can be the commander in the battle against Chen?"

Cui Che said without thinking:

"The great contribution of destroying a country cannot be attributed to outsiders. Your Majesty used the King of Jin to control Huainan and the King of Qin to control Shannan. I guess it must be the two princes as commanders."

Yang Jian shook his head and said:

"I'm asking you about the person who actually controls the three armies."

Of course Cui Che knew the answer, but he still pretended to think deeply. After pondering for a moment, he replied:

"It is none other than Shangshu Zuopushe (Gao Jiong)."

Yang Jian nodded when he heard this. He asked many close ministers and they all got the same answer.

But he couldn't help but be curious and asked:

"Cui Qing has made great achievements in resisting the Turks. Could it be that he cannot shoulder this important task?"

Cui Che said modestly:

"This attack on Chen will surely lead to an army that will overwhelm the country. The humble ministers are young, and although they are wise and resourceful, they cannot control the masses. They can win by surprise, but not by righteousness."

Yang Jian heard what Cui Che said and praised:

"Those who know others are wise, and those who know themselves are wise. Cui Qing severely inflicted heavy losses on the Turks, and he was praised for his ability in the court, but he was able to recognize his own shortcomings, which is even more rare."

In fact, Yang Jian was hesitant about whether to let Cui Che participate in the attack on Chen.

It's not that I'm really worried that he won't be rewarded for his great achievements, but that Northern Xinjiang cannot be intimidated by anyone.

Cui Che broke through the Turkic royal court, and his prestige among the grassland tribes was so high that no one in the court could compare with him. Logically speaking, he was the best choice to stay in northern Xinjiang.

But as Cui Che said, this time the attack on Chen required all the efforts of the whole country, and it was impossible to afford to lose.

And Cui Che has always been resourceful, so he might be able to play an unexpected role.

Moreover, now that the Western Turks have fled far away, the Eastern Turks are divided, the Kumo Xi people are intimidated, and the border troubles are over, Yang Jian considers that sending Cui Che to the south may be more useful.

After thinking for a long time, Yang Jian finally said:

"If Cui Qing goes with the army to attack Chen, who can guard Youzhou on your behalf?"

Cui Che's heart moved. He had given up hope on defeating Chen before. Now when Yang Jian asked about the replacement, Cui Che considered:

"Not many ministers know about the great generals in the court, but Liu Fang, the commander-in-chief of the general administration, is strong-willed and courageous. This time when he went out to the fortress, Liu Fang led thousands of people on horseback, and he used his fingers like an arm. This man has the talent of a general.

I would like to recommend it to His Majesty."

Of course Yang Jian knew that Liu Fang and senior staff such as Sima of the General Administration basically had a name in his mind, but he was not in a hurry to express his position and asked again:

"I have always heard that there is a great general in your army, who is called the King of Ten Thousands and is as brave as ten thousand men. What about this man?"

Cui Che blurted out:

"This person is newly attached, his thoughts are unpredictable and cannot be trusted!"

Yang Jian laughed when he heard this.

Before that, he had always suspected that Wang Dangwan, Zhao Mu and Cui Che had been in contact for a long time. Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence? As soon as Cui Che took office, the two of them wanted to return south. They really missed their homeland. Why haven't they been there for so many years?

Half a movement.

Now that I heard Cui Che's words, I finally let go of my doubts.

The third update is here, it’s gone today, the fourth update will be tomorrow.

(End of chapter)