Chapter 159

 

Hua Yang applied a thick layer of ointment to Chen Jingzong until the two injuries were completely covered, and the palm-sized porcelain bottle was almost bottomed out.

Chen Jingzong was still lying on his back. After riding a horse for seven days, and just now exerted a lot of strength, if it weren’t for the beautiful princess sitting next to him, Chen Jingzong would have fallen asleep immediately.

After Hua Yang took care of his injury, only then did she realize that he was lying on the bed she had just laid out, covered in dust and still smelling of alcohol.

But looking at the injury on his back, Hua Yang didn’t say anything. She would just change the bedding in the evening.

“To be able to beat you like this, First Master Qin must also be a brave general.”

After washing her hands, Hua Yang sat by the bed and started chatting with him.

Chen Jingzong had already tilted his head and looked at her faintly: “Are you praising him or me?”

Hua Yang: “I praise you for being born into a family of civil servants, and yet you can even compete with the son of General Qin.”

Chen Jingzong: “Why does it sound like you are praising General Qin?”

Hua Yang: “Who in the world doesn’t praise General Qin? He truly deserves my praises.”

Chen Jingzong was silent.

Hua Yang: “Before leaving the capital, you still holding “Military Training Records” to review. How do you feel seeing the real person today?”

After being married for so long, Hua Yang had already discovered that Chen Jingzong had little interest in the Book of Songs, but he often read book of war and strategy.

“Military Training Records” was written by General Qin. It compiled various methods of military training and formation training by General Qin. After it was written, it was submitted to her father emperor for reading. After viewing it, her father emperor praised it and ordered the imperial court to publish it widely. Chen Jingzong also collected a set early, which showed that he admired General Qin very much.

Chen Jingzong first asked her: “What do you think of him?”

Hua Yang smiled and said: “Of course I greatly admire him.”

Chen Jingzong: “Originally I admired him very much, but when I heard him praising me indiscriminately to make the old man happy, my admiration dropped by two points.”

Hua Yang: “He has his difficulties. You’ve had a smooth journey in your career, so it’s understandable that you find it hard to relate.”

Chen Jingzong said in surprise: “Why do you sound so world-weary?”

Hua Yang: “Because I grew up in the palace, I heard and knew much more than you. For example, I know that when General Qin was transferred from the coastal region to Jizhen as the commander-in-chief, it was Father who recommended him. I also know that when General Qin first arrived in Jizhen, several governors did not agree with his method of training troops, but General Qin did not obey their control. There was a lot of unpleasantness between the two sides. But the military attachés were controlled by civilian officials, and General Qin endured a lot of grievances. It was Father who strongly supported him, transferring three governors in a row, allowing General Qin to fully display his military training skills. If it were you, wouldn’t you be grateful to Father’s kindness?”

Chen Jingzong: “I will be grateful, but I won’t show it so obviously.”

Hua Yang: “He doesn’t understand Father’s temper. If Father likes this kind of flattery, but he doesn’t do it properly, wouldn’t he offend Father?”

Chen Jingzong suddenly looked at her meaningfully for a while.

Hua Yang raised her eyebrows.

Chen Jingzong smiled and said: “In your eyes, these old men are all treasures. I have never heard you say anything bad about them.”

Hua Yang glared at him: “Father, Cabinet Elder He, General Qin, all of them have made many contributions to the country. How can I not greatly respect them. But you, don’t always talk about ‘old man’. If you’re also in your fifties, are you willing to hear others call you that?”

Chen Jingzong thought of Qin Yuantang’s tanned face, then touched his own face and asked: “I may go to the battlefield often in the future. If I’m also become tanned, will you dislike it?”

Hua Yang didn’t want to answer this kind of question and was ready to go out.

Chen Jingzong grabbed her wrist and refused to let her go unless she answered.

Hua Yang paused and said: “I respect the old man the most. When you become an old man, maybe I will look at you more favorably than I do now.”

Chen Jingzong:…

.

At the General Military Mansion, Qin Yuantang led his two sons back home, and the father and sons went directly to the study.

Qin Yuantang first lecture his eldest son: “Why are you so serious when fighting with Prince Consort?”

Qin Ji said: “Father, I think Prince Consort is a man of temperament. If I lose too quickly, he will notice it and he will not like it.”

Qin Yuantang: “It doesn’t matter whether Prince Consort like it or not. The important thing is to make Cabinet Elder Chen look good.”

Fortunately, prince consort has some skills, so it would not be a shame to end the battle in a draw.

Qin Ji was silent for a moment and said, “From Son’s observation, Cabinet Elder Chen doesn’t seem to be a person who likes to listen to flattery.”

Qin Yuantang touched his short beard, frowned and said: “Those civil officials are the best at pretending. Their thoughts are deeper than the sea. You can’t just look at the surface. Anyway, you should be more polite to Cabinet Elder Chen and Prince Consort these days. You must not offend them.”

Qin Ji nodded.

The second son, Qin Lu, was younger and more hot-blooded, he said unconvincingly: “Father relies on your real ability to lead troops to fight, why should you grovel in front of Cabinet Elder Chen?”

He felt sad when he saw it, and felt sorry for his father, a strong-willed man, who had to humble himself in front of those civil officials.

Qin Yuantang looked at his youngest son and said calmly: “You don’t understand. Back then, I had a good friend who was a fellow soldier. During the war, the enemy soldiers escaped because of his superior’s mistake. This matter was found out by the court, but his superior pushed him out to take the blame. Everyone was imprisoned, and I thought he was doomed this time. I didn’t expect him to have a friend in Jinyiwei, who helped him send money to the Chief Minister back then, and he survived.

“And then there’s my superior, who had a mentor-student relationship with the Chief Minister at that time. As long as the Chief Minister was in power, his career flourished. But when the Chief Minister fell, he lost his position too. A once-great general ended up wasting the latter half of his life in vain.

“What does this mean? A military general cannot rely solely on his ability to fight. Without connections in the court, he could be dismissed at any time. Even if he manages to keep his position, he will still be constantly restrained by local governors, unable to exercise his full capabilities.

“It’s not that Father covets the position or salary, but Father just can’t bear to see the soldiers go to waste. Only when I secure the position of Commander-in-chief can I continue to train them, continue to serve the court, and continue to protect the country, do you understand?”

Qin Ji nodded heavily, while Qin Lu’s eyes turned red.

Qin Yuantang smiled and patted his youngest son on the shoulder: “It’s just a momentary bending. It’s no big deal. Father also lucky that Cabinet Elder Chen is not greedy at all, otherwise I would have to work hard to send gold, silver, and jewelry for him.”

Qin Ji was a little worried: “But you also said rely on the mountain and the mountain falls. If the Chief Minister is replaced in the future…”

Qin Yuantang: “Cabinet Elder Chen is only three years older than me. He’s not only His Majesty’s teacher but also the most trusted minister of the late emperor. As long as he is healthy, he can be the chief minister for another ten or twenty years. When he gets old and retire, Father is also getting old, and it doesn’t matter what the court does. As for you, your future will depend on your own destiny. I can only teach you some skills, but I can’t plan your future.”

Qin Ji and Qin Lu both knelt down. Being able to be reincarnated as their father’s sons was the greatest blessing in their lives! When their father gets old, they can walk their own path!

.

After a day’s rest, Emperor Yuanyou, accompanied by his cabinet and generals, formally accepted Duoyan’s surrender.

The leader of Duoyan, named Dong Hu, felt extremely frustrated as he was forced to kneel before the fifteen-year-old Central Plains emperor, who looked delicate with his red lips and white teeth.

If it weren’t for the Great Wall, winding endlessly along the border, and if it weren’t for Qin Yuantang, a general with extraordinary military skills and expertise in formations and firearms, Dong Hu would have led his cavalry straight to the capital!

Dong Hu, not adept at hiding his emotions, had a long, grim face full of scowls.

Emperor Yuanyou always kept smiling, and he was indeed in a good mood.

All the leaders on the grassland were good at conquering and fighting. If they didn’t have good skills, they couldn’t convince the warriors in the tribe. In contrast, the emperors of the Central Plains paid more attention to knowing people and being good at appointing them. Of course, it’s good to have literary and military prowess, but even if they were frail and sickly, as long as the civil servants and generals around them were reliable, the emperors of the Central Plains could still sit back and relax and enjoy the worship of their subjects.

Dong Hu despised him, and Emperor Yuanyou also looked down on Dong Hu’s barbarism.

The cabinet headed by Chen Tingjian has already drafted the terms of the peace talks. Starting from this year, Duoyan would continue to bow to the court and pay tribute every year.

Dong Hu reluctantly agreed. After signing the peace agreement, he glanced at Qin Yuantang fiercely. Just wait, when Qin Yuantang dies or leaves Jizhou, that’s when their Duoyan troops will make a comeback!

Hua Yang did not participate in Duoyan’s surrender today. The men on the grassland all looked similar. She had already met the Tatar envoys who presented horses, and was not interested in Duoyan and their party.

After the peace talks, Emperor Yuanyou rested in Jizhou City for two days and then he would climb the Great Wall. This was not only to inspect the reinforcement of the Great Wall in this area, but also to watch the 100,000-strong border army exercise prepared by Qin Yuantang.

Compared with the mere surrender of Duoyan, climbing the Great Wall was more interesting.

The section of the Great Wall closest to Jizhou City was Xifengkou, which was sixty miles away.

More than 50,000 capital troops guarded Emperor Yuanyou’s imperial procession. They set out in the morning and arrived at the frontier army camp stationed at Xifengkou in the evening.

The sky was already dark, and a towering and thick wall could be vaguely seen on the high mountains, like a long dragon lying down, while the north wind was whistling like dragon roars.

Hua Yang stared blankly at the long dragon.

In her previous life, she had not come to Jizhou with her brother, and naturally had not experienced the majesty of the Great Wall with her own eyes.

Emperor Yuanyou looked away and saw his sister beside him still admiring the power of the Great Wall.

As if felt something, Hua Yang tilted her head, and the sister and brother looked at each other and smiled.

This was their northern gate.

During dinner, Emperor Yuanyou called his sister, brother-in-law, and Qi Jin to accompany him.

“The mountains are steep. Shall Zhen prepare a sedan chair for Sister?” Emperor Yuanyou was worried that his sister would not be able to climb the Great Wall tomorrow.

If Hua Yang came to play on her own, it would be fine to prepare a sedan chair. However, since she was here with her brother to observe the border troops’ exercises, having her be the only grand princess in a sedan chair would make her seem overly delicate in front of so many soldiers. If she were truly pampered, she should have stayed in the capital to admire flowers and plants. Since she had taken the trouble to come to this important place, she should follow the locals and really climb the Great Wall.

“No need, I can walk up there myself.” Hua Yang said ambitiously.

Emperor Yuanyou looked at Chen Jingzong.

Chen Jingzong suggested: “If Grand Princess is interested, how about this minister accompany you to the top of the wall tomorrow morning to enjoy the sunrise at the border pass?”

Hua Yang asked her brother’s opinion: “Is Your Majesty going too?”

Emperor Yuanyou smiled and said: “If Zhen is going, the cabinet ministers will definitely have to get up early too, causing a commotion. It’s better for Sister and Prince Consort to go first.”

If the couple set off alone, when his sister couldn’t walk, prince consort could carry her up without anyone seeing, and his sister didn’t have to worry about being laughed at.

Emperor Yuanyou was very satisfied that prince consort was so considerate to his sister.

The author has something to say:

Old Four: It’s better to be single, you don’t have to wait on your wife.

Cousin: …..

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