My name is Wei Qing, and I want to fight the Xiongnu.

So Zifu was right. Staying with me, it's easy to guard against hidden arrows, but hard to dodge open attacks.

.........

The dream that Wei Qing and Wei Zifu had was both a foreshadowing and a plot device.

I can tell you that there are no time travelers in this book, nor will there be any deus ex machina.

Don't overthink this. In other books, this ability might be incredibly powerful, but in this book's setting, it can be summed up in two words: That's it?

The reason Wei Qing and Wei Zifu were so remarkable was not because of this ability, but because they were inherently talented, insightful, and persevering. It would be unreasonable for them not to be remarkable.

Chapter Nine: The Command Department in a Frenzy

In recent days, the management of the command department has encountered considerable trouble, which was initially initiated by Cao Ying.

It's unclear who started spreading rumors after Wei Qing entered the Imperial Academy, claiming that Wei Qing was able to enter the academy entirely because the departments in charge of the academy had let him off the hook.

Otherwise, how could Wei Qing, a mere slave, possibly defeat a lecturer and two supervisors who could awaken the spirit of the army?

Yes, that's right, the two supervisors, Ying and Ji, have been exposed.

As Wei Qing said, there are not many in the entire command department who can evoke the military spirit and have served in the army from the frontier.

Even by using the process of elimination alone, one can get a general idea.

Rumors circulated that Wei Qing's victory in the martial arts competition was due to the fact that the Imperial Academy had previously offended the Marquis of Pingyang and, fearing retaliation from Prime Minister Cao, deliberately held back in the competition, allowing Wei Qing to stage a stunning comeback.

Otherwise, how could Wei Qing, in a desperate situation, have lasted so long?

Why doesn't the Imperial Academy publish the exam papers on military strategy and tactics from before?

It was definitely to cover for Wei Qing!

Inside the door to see the door, the layman to watch the fun.

Those who truly understand the terrifying nature of the "back-to-the-river" tactic are few and far between, so this claim immediately garnered a considerable response after it was circulated.

Cao Ying felt he had been wronged, and he decided that whether for the sake of the Marquis of Pingyang's reputation or to seek justice for Wei Qing, he had to find out the truth from the command department.

So Cao Ying, this husky, went straight to the Command Department and demanded that those old fogies in the Command Department give her a satisfactory explanation!

Otherwise, this matter is not over!

Explain? How should I explain?

Even if Lü Kuang and the others were stupid, they would know at this point that Cao Ying was clearly trying to extort them, and that he was trying to seek justice after being falsely accused.

Despite the extortion, Lü Kuang and his men didn't really have a good way to deal with it.

Previously, they didn't release the exam papers, but now some people are using this as an excuse to make trouble.

That's like mud falling into your crotch; even if it wasn't poop, it turned into poop—it's completely inexplicable.

If it were anyone else, even someone from the Liu family, they would be people who care about their reputation and would have just made excuses and let it go.

But then he ran into Cao Ying, who doesn't play by the rules at all and isn't worried about the other party tearing their relationship apart.

They even dared to publicly state that they were there to make amends!

He wasn't afraid of being accused of taking advantage of someone's misfortune, because Cao Ying was there to rob, and he was doing so under the guise of his great-grandfather's name!

Without morals, anything is possible!

Cao Ying wanted to tell the other nobles that you can't afford to mess with powerful thugs, and you can't afford to mess with thugs who have powerful backers either!

The command department had no choice but to reluctantly pay out points to Cao Ying.

Points can also be understood as a special currency circulating within the Imperial Academy.

This currency can also be exchanged for real money, but the amount that can be exchanged is limited.

To obtain a large number of points, one can only do so through the various methods issued by the Imperial Academy.

If the task is completed, the ability will be improved, and the assessment results will be improved.

And each month, points will be awarded based on the rankings of each list.

In addition, there is a rather special method: donating local specialties, secret treasures, battle tactics, unique skills, and rare and exotic animals.

This was primarily aimed at foreign tribes and the Xiongnu barbarians; initially, the purpose was to conduct research.

For example, the snow eagle "Wanli Xuehua Bai," which is domesticated within the human territory to scout enemy positions, is a new breed developed and bred based on the white stone carvings sent by the Xiongnu barbarians.

Aside from basic necessities like food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, everything else within the Imperial Academy—whether exchanging rare and precious materials, borrowing cultivation techniques, or using special venues—requires points.

When the Imperial Academy was first established, it strongly encouraged internal competition among students.

Back then, our thinking was simple: if we couldn't even break out of the small Imperial Academy, why should we go and kill the Xiongnu barbarians?

Nowadays, there are many nobles, and the way they compete has gradually changed.

It's not as bloody anymore. It has changed from the initial practice of raising Gu poison to the current competitive environment, but the cruel parts are still quite brutal.

Wei Qing accepted all challenges from legions because high-ranking legions would be penalized with a large number of points if they lost when they challenged legions ranked lower than themselves. The Imperial Academy would then take half of the penalized points to compensate the lower-ranking legions.

In other words, even before Wei Qing entered the Imperial Academy, more than 1,200 legions were vying to contribute points to him.

Although Wei Qing didn't know how useful these points were, why not take them if someone was giving them away for free?

Cao Ying extorted a sum of points from him, and he thought the matter was finally over.

Who knew that instead of ending, it would escalate even further.

The voices were loudest, especially within the Imperial Academy, which pressured the departments to release Wei Qing's exam papers.

Just as Lü Kuang and others were struggling to cope with the situation and racking their brains to find a solution, the lecturer who had delivered the exam papers to Wei Qing suddenly betrayed them.

Without obtaining the consent of Lü Kuang and others, they directly chose to make the exam papers public.

Once this matter was exposed, it caused a huge uproar within the command department.

Now, with exams just around the corner, countless students are facing a crossroads: whether to graduate or stay in college for another three years.

The military strategies and tactics taught in command departments have become increasingly esoteric, offering little benefit to training corps commanders and serving purely as a means to create difficulty.

Many students had complaints, but their voices carried little weight, and it was meaningless for them to speak out.

Now that the command department has been thrust into the spotlight, with countless nobles keeping a close eye on the Imperial Academy, the leak of Wei Qing's exam paper naturally caused a huge backlash from the nobles and students.

Countless nobles only realized at this moment that the military discussions and strategies of the command departments had now lost their original meaning.

The most interesting thing is that if a student excels in discussing military strategy, they naturally won't tell their parents how terrible the exam is.

As for those students who perform poorly in military strategy discussions, even if they tell their families, their families mostly think that it's just an excuse for their children's lack of ability.

There have been protests in the past, but the nobles who protested were usually not of high status.

Otherwise, no matter how stupid or incompetent their own children were, they would definitely be able to stay in the Imperial Academy for twelve years.

Secondly, the quantity is not the key factor; the key factor is that it is not concentrated enough, so naturally it cannot cause any significant disturbance.

This time, the situation is clearly different. Thousands of nobles have signed a joint protest and even traveled around, hoping to ask those high-ranking nobles to step forward and uphold justice, and to protest against the department's actions that went against its original intentions.

As the turmoil subsided, the matter finally reached the ears of the Empress Dowager.

By this point, not only the command department but also other departments realized that things were far more complicated than they seemed, and that someone was probably pulling the strings behind the scenes!

Chapter Ten: Empress Lü of the Han Dynasty

Deep within the palace, a woman dressed in brocade, leather shoes, and a red belt, wearing a crown reaching to the heavens, was kneeling before a desk, dealing with the sea of ​​memorials before her.

The eunuchs and palace maids standing on both sides didn't dare to breathe loudly.

The woman was not exceptionally beautiful, but rather had a delicate, refined appearance. However, her expression and demeanor exuded an air of boundless authority, making one hesitant to look her in the eye.

This woman was none other than Empress Lü Zhi, the most powerful person in the Han Dynasty at the time, and revered by all the people as the Holy Empress.

After Liu Bang disappeared, the Han Dynasty was controlled by Empress Lü Zhi, and this has continued for four hundred years.

For four hundred years, the Han Dynasty recuperated and thrived, its national strength grew stronger, and its people were able to live and work in peace and contentment.

Even among the Liu clan, the accusations and slanders against Empress Lü Zhi were mostly about violating the White Horse Alliance made when His Majesty left, unjustly killing His Majesty's children, marrying the eldest princess's daughter to her own uncle which was against human ethics, abusing Consort Qi to the point that Crown Prince Liu Ying suffered from depression and died young, and promoting her male favorite Shen Shiqi to the position of prime minister, etc.

However, there is still much agreement on the principle of governing the world.

At least in the eyes of the common people, Empress Lü was a decent ruler, which is one of the main reasons why she was able to maintain her rule until now.

After finishing dealing with the memorials in her hand, Empress Lü looked up at Zhang Piqiang, who was kneeling respectfully in the corner.

When the crown prince Liu Ying died of depression, Empress Lü Zhi wept without shedding a tear during his funeral.

Zhang Liang's son, Zhang Piqiang, served as a court attendant. At the young age of fifteen, he said to Chancellor Chen Ping, "The Empress Dowager only had one son, Emperor Hui, who is now dead. Yet, she only cries without showing any grief. Do you know why?"

When Chen Ping asked for the reason, Zhang Piqiang said, "The emperor has no older sons, and the empress dowager is afraid of you old ministers. You should now request that Lü Tai, Lü Chan, and Lü Lu be appointed as generals to command the northern and southern armies, and that all members of the Lü family be brought into the palace to hold power in the court. Only then will the empress dowager feel at ease, and only then will you be able to escape disaster."

Chen Ping followed Zhang Piqiang's plan, and Lü Zhi was indeed pleased, her tears appearing sorrowful.

The power of the Lü family began from this point.

In other words, Zhang Piqiang was one of the main instigators who led Empress Lü to take that step and break the White Horse Alliance.

Zhang Piqiang knew very well that if Empress Lü died and the Liu family regained power, then even if his father Zhang Liang were still alive, he would surely die!

Therefore, from the age of fifteen when he made his choice, Zhang Piqiang firmly stood on the side of the Lü family and became one of Lü Zhi's confidants.

Empress Lü waved her hand, and the palace maid beside her very sensibly carried away the prepared memorial, while the eunuchs and palace maids on both sides also quietly withdrew.

Zhang Piqiang then said, "Your Majesty, it has been found that behind the turmoil at the Imperial Academy is Prime Minister Xiao and Prime Minister Xu's personal connection with Consort Han."

Upon hearing this news, Lü Zhi seemed unsurprised. She said calmly, "Xiao He had long intended to reform the Imperial Academy, but too many interests were involved. Therefore, he chose to withdraw from the Imperial Academy and let the deans of various departments fight for power."

Now that they have the assistance of Han Fei, a divine physiognomist no less capable than Xu Fu, it's normal for them to be restless.

In my opinion, it's time to rectify the atmosphere at the Imperial Academy. Those who don't know it might mistake it for a hunting ground for the barbarian Huns, knowing it's a human academy.

Zhang Piqiang was not surprised by Lü Zhi's answer. The reason why the Imperial Academy had become what it was today was that it had deviated from the expectations of Prime Minister Xiao and Empress Lü.

If a tree branch grows crooked, it must be cut off.

Weeds need to be cut when they grow too tall; it's a perfectly normal thing.