The Bad Guys: Playing the Fake Li Xingyun at the Beginning

This time, Li Cunli was stumped. There were only two prime ministers in the court now, one was Prince Qi and the other was Prince Jin. When the Council of State became the Cabinet, they would be the first to be affected.

Li Cunli glanced at the empress, and seeing that she did not express her opinion, he sorted out his thoughts and said, "Your Majesty, the court has added a special examination to show favor to scholars all over the world and to enrich the government personnel. I think this is a good thing that will kill several birds with one stone."

"If there are not enough officials, the imperial court will not be able to control Hedong even after it surrenders."

"As for the cabinet's affairs, this matter is of great importance and I dare not speak rashly."

Since the meeting yesterday, Li Cunli has become more cautious in front of Su Ming, walking on thin ice, for fear of saying the wrong thing.

Su Ming smiled faintly and pointed at him with his hand. "You are quite cunning and know what I am thinking. I plan to let you handle the imperial examination. The Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Works will all send people to cooperate with you."

"It's time to add some fresh blood to the several government offices of the imperial court."

Let me take charge of the imperial examination?

The huge surprise stunned Li Cunli. Could this be the reward given to him by His Majesty?

A lone minister like him is afraid of losing the trust of the emperor. The imperial examination is of vital importance. Last time it was hosted by King Qi, but this time it was handed over to him, which is enough to show the importance and trust of His Majesty.

"I will definitely live up to your Majesty's trust!" His voice was filled with excitement.

Humph, Your Majesty has entrusted such an important matter to me. Li Siyuan, what can you compare with me?

Su Ming didn't know that Li Cunli was competing with Li Siyuan, so he warned, "I've said it beforehand. This is a tough job and we can't afford to be careless. Do you understand?"

Li Cunli responded without saying anything, "I understand."

Su Ming nodded in satisfaction. "Alright, you can leave first. You can keep an eye on Li Siyuan for me."

"Wei Chen retire."

After he left, the empress suddenly said, "Li Cunli has changed a lot."

Isn’t it very big?

At the beginning, Li Cunli followed Li Siyuan. As the leader of the Li Sect, he often did things that were not worthy of being displayed in public, and he exuded a sinister aura.

It’s not like now, with full of official authority and extraordinary aura.

The empress recalled what Su Ming had just said and asked again, "Will there be any problem if you hand over Li Siyuan's matter to him?"

Su Ming sneered, "That guy won't cry until he sees the coffin. Let's wait and see him. Although I won't kill him, I won't let him have an easy time either. How can you withdraw peacefully?"

"Fighting for supremacy is not a game of house. I don't like the idea of ​​Hedong changing its allegiance overnight. Let me use him as a knife to cleanse the evil spirits in Hedong first."

Hedong is a strategically important place with advantageous military advantages, but due to its closed transportation, it is home to many local tyrants, big and small. Although Li Siyuan controls Hedong, he sometimes has to compromise with these local tyrants.

After all, he only had soldiers and horses and no other means of production, so he had to rely on their efforts.

In the past, he had to accept it in order to dominate the world. Now that Su Ming has appeared and no longer has the desire to dominate the world, he will probably be happy to have a good chat with these people.

Whether it was the military leaders or the local forces, they had to be purged before he could take over and show mercy and win the hearts of the people.

This is the mind of an emperor. You have done all the bad things, so he will naturally be the good guy.

But after doing all this, Li Siyuan would have no chance of getting back to Hedong at all. This would cut off his last route. Why not kill two birds with one stone?

The empress naturally understood the truth, looked at him with a smile, and continued to ask, "How do you plan to settle Qiguo?"

"Hasn't Qi already surrendered to me? I will select elite soldiers and assign them to the imperial guards, and then send officials to the court to pay taxes. What do you think?"

Before, Su Ming wanted to build his own army, but then he thought that it would take too much time to build an army from scratch.

The fastest way is to learn from the Northern Han and Northern Zhou dynasties, draw on local elite troops, strengthen the trunk and weaken the branches, and quickly consolidate military power.

In this way, the local areas would no longer have to support so many soldiers and could rest and recuperate, which would also prevent them from developing ambitions and disobeying the court's discipline.

The power of the imperial court can be expanded in a short period of time, which is killing two birds with one stone.

Sometimes, I have to admire the wisdom of the ancients.

Of course, Su Ming would not learn from Zhao Kuangyi's method of using culture to control military power, which would only weaken the morale of the army. A warrior without the courage and bravery would be nothing.

Chapter 255 The Bad Guys Tianlao Star meets the Marshal!

Whether it was separatist regimes or refugees everywhere, internal strife was internal strife, but in the end the meat would be rotten in the pot. It is always better for the Han people to rule the country than for foreigners to rule.

The Five Barbarians invaded China once, and that was enough.

……

The Jieliang salt marsh in Hedong is where the Longquan treasure is buried.

White salt mixed with soil, you can still vaguely see the appearance after the war. The bronze coffin has been opened and transported to Luoyang. It is said that on the day when the bad guys opened the Longquan treasure, the golden light was so bright and the whole Jieliang City saw the golden light shooting from the direction of the salt lake.

This scene added some mystery to the Longquan treasure and confirmed the rumor that the destiny belonged to the Tang Dynasty.

Some daring ones even tried to fish in troubled waters and pick up some leftovers, but the Bad Guys had already sealed off the Salt Lake Area. Today, the Bad Guys no longer have to hide like they did before.

Boxes of gold and bronze were picked up and loaded onto trucks. All the bad guys were dazzled by the golden light. With so much gold, even if they could get one ten-thousandth of it, they would never have to worry for the rest of their lives.

No matter how strong the organization or how strict the discipline, how could they not be shaken in the face of such a huge treasure?

However, with Yuan Tiangang's support, no one dared to have any bad intentions.

In the cave, Yuan Tiangang stood with his hands behind his back, and the lights illuminated the surroundings.

"Mirror Heart Demon, how much treasure is in it?"

At this moment, the Mirror Heart Demon was no longer as humble and submissive as before. He simply bowed his head and said, "General, all the bad guys that can be mobilized in the surrounding area have come. We have only taken out half of them. The rest is buried very deep."

"First load it onto a truck and transport it to Luoyang. You and Meng Po will lead the team. Don't make any mistakes. I will transfer 5,000 elite soldiers from Hedong to you. In troubled times, treasures are very tempting. You must be on guard!"

Mirror Heart Demon did not say any compliments, but simply replied, "I obey your command!"

Ever since the fight for the Longquan treasure that day, there has been some disunity between the bad guys at the scene and Yuan Tiangang. Yuan Tiangang knows this very well, but he did not cleanse them. It was all because of Su Ming's existence.

Three days later, the carriages had already been loaded with boxes, and the long convoy stretched for miles.

In the distance, the sound of horse hooves was like thunder. Two thousand elite cavalry came from afar, the sound of horse hooves was like thunder, and finally stopped at the outskirts of the salt marsh.

The leader of the cavalry dismounted and came over. Meng Po leaned on a cane and waited quietly, "Master Shi, the commander has been waiting for a long time."

"Lady Mengpo, it's been a long time since we last met. Please come in!" Under the sophisticated armor was a cold and hard face, which looked very ordinary and inconspicuous.

"please!"

"The Bad Guys' Heavenly Prison Star pays respect to the Marshal!"

In the cave, Yuan Tiangang was still dressed the same way, with his hands behind his back, but he lacked the domineering attitude of the past that carried him as if those who obey me will prosper, while those who disobey me will perish.

"Shi Jingtang, you have done a good job these years. I have sent you to escort the Longquan treasure to Luoyang. You should understand what I mean." Yuan Tiangang said lightly, staring at the dragon head statue in the distance.

Who would have thought that Shi Jingtang, the right-hand man of Jin Wang Li Siyuan and his most valued son-in-law, was actually one of the thirty-six captains of the Bad People.

"Thank you, Marshal, for your support!" Shi Jingtang's honest face was full of excitement. He immediately knelt on the ground and kept thanking him.

Everyone among the bad guys knew that after obtaining the Longquan treasure, the Tang Dynasty's strength had reached a higher level, and even Li Siyuan had surrendered. At this moment, it was time for them to change their allegiance and find another way out.

Yuan Tiangang's hoarse voice sounded again, "Go to Luoyang and do your job well for His Majesty. From now on, you will be His Majesty's subject and have nothing to do with the Bad People."

Shi Jingtang was silent for a moment, took out his badge from his body, raised his hands above his head, and said, "Thank you very much for your cultivation over the years, Marshal. I will definitely live up to your hard work!"

"Go!"

Outside the Yanze area, the convoy slowly moved forward. Shi Jingtang rode on his warhorse, his lingering gaze gradually dissipated, and finally turned into a determined look, "Let's go!"

Two thousand elite cavalry and three thousand infantry are all the troops guarding the Longquan treasure this time. They are all the elite troops from Hedong. These people have gone to Luoyang and will never return to Hedong.

Yuan Tiangang had already seen what Su Ming had not done yet, and had already arranged it for him. In the name of protection, no one could find fault with it.

This is the heritage that the Bad People have passed down for three hundred years, and it is also the layout of Yuan Tiangang over the years. With one order, it is enough to change the ownership of mountains and rivers and cause blood to flow for thousands of miles.

……

In the imperial city.

Su Ming was communicating with the military governors of various places, preparing to send officials to Bianzhou to take control of it. He had been holding back for so long, and finally he could hold this fertile land in his hands.

Bianliang is the hub of the canal. It was because of this place that Zhu Wen was able to slowly become rich. At that time, Bianliang was the second largest city in the world, handling huge amounts of cargo every day.

After the destruction of Liang State, there were no more military governors here, including the three towns of Heshuo, which had been the site of rebellion throughout the history. The border of Youzhou was divided up by military governors of all sizes, and there were no more separatist forces like the three towns of Heshuo.

We have to thank Li Cunxu for this. If he hadn't plowed the area first, it would have been difficult for the court to bring it under its rule.

However, there is no one in the court now, there are not enough officials, and there is not enough money, food and troops. These places are basically autonomous, but there is no risk of secession.

Especially around Heluo, there were no Jiedushi, only Inspectors, and this was all thanks to Li Cunxu.

Now that Su Ming has soldiers and money, it is time to expand his power and bring the Central Plains under his rule. As for those complicated military governors in the north, he should wait and see.

"Your Majesty, there is a letter from a bad person."

Inside the hall, a voice suddenly emerged.

Su Ming put down the red brush and stretched out his hand. A secret letter fell into his palm from the corner. When he opened it, he was stunned. The letter talked about Shi Jingtang leading troops to escort the Longquan treasure.

Good guy!

After all this time, it turns out that Shi Jingtang is also a bad guy.

Just like the Xuanming Sect in the past, the internal situation of Jin State was probably in a state of chaos. With one order from Yuan Tiangang, Li Siyuan would immediately become a lonely man.

This is also the reason why Su Ming wanted to spare Yuan Tiangang's life. A living Bad Leader is more useful than a dead Yuan Tiangang.

He always kept in mind the words of Taizu, and made his enemies as few as possible and his friends as many as possible.

The life-and-death crisis has passed, and Yuan Tiangang no longer has any conflicts with him. Instead, he becomes a powerful arm of support. Just like now, if he dies, it is still unclear whether Shi Jingtang will show up.

If he died, most of the secrets of the Bad People would be buried, including the Thirty-Six Captains of the Tiangang. No one would know their identities except Yuan Tiangang.

No one would know how many arrangements Yuan Tiangang has made over the years.

Su Ming believed that Yuan Tiangang must have more than just these chess pieces in his hands, and when he returns, he will bring all of them under his command.

Being a mere outlaw is a waste of their talent. They should play a bigger role in the court.

Chapter 256 Shi Jingtang Enters Beijing

However, Yuan Tiangang had a very sharp eye and actually saw through his next move. He was indeed an old monster who had lived for three hundred years.

Su Ming was anxious to convene the imperial examination. One of the biggest reasons was that the imperial court was very short of manpower. Except for the Luoyang government office, other government offices were facing the dilemma of shortage of staff.

To this end, he has issued a call to recruit talented people. Many people have come, but few of them have real talents and skills.

The Central Plains has been at war for many years, and the aristocratic families have suffered heavy casualties, leaving a lack of successors. Those who have connections are working in the residences of military governors in various places, and they cannot leave whenever they want.

To solve this dilemma, apart from the imperial examination, the rest depends on the Bad People. So far, except Yuan Tiangang, no one knows how many people there are in the Bad People and what talents are among them.