Chapter 150 Unveiling

Outside the Imperial Study, footsteps echoed.

Zheng Boye took the initiative to walk out, and at the door, he saw the Yan Emperor walking in front of everyone.

The Yan Emperor's complexion was much better than the day before.

"Your subject greets Your Majesty, long live the Emperor."

"Rise."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Behind the Yan Emperor was Zhao Jiulang, and behind Zhao Jiulang were eight ministers. Zheng Boye didn't recognize any of them, but he assumed they were ministers of various departments or important officials of the court.

To be precise, they should be the true mainstays of this court.

And behind the ministers were the Crown Prince, and behind the Crown Prince was Ji Chengjue.

It wasn't the first time for everyone to discuss matters in the Imperial Study, so without His Majesty's instructions, Wei Zhonghe led a group of young eunuchs to bring in chairs and desks.

The desks were very narrow and needed to be higher to match the height of the chairs, so from Zheng Boye's perspective, it looked like these ministers were sitting in baby high chairs.

Soon,

bowls of plain noodles were served, and there was also a bowl in front of the Yan Emperor.

The young eunuch with freckles on his face walked up to Zheng Boye again and asked, "Lord, would you like another bowl?"

"Yes."

"Very well, Lord."

Then,

Zheng Boye also took a seat on the "baby chair."

The plain noodles were really just plain noodles, sprinkled with a few scallions on top. The noodles weren't made with any special method either; they were just ordinary homemade noodles.

The only extravagant thing was probably that the noodle soup was chicken broth.

Perhaps afraid of too strong a flavor, no toppings were added.

In Zheng Fan's memory, only the Marquis of Zhenbei back then dared to roast lamb legs unrestrainedly in the Imperial Garden.

The Yan Emperor took the first bite, and the other ministers also picked up their chopsticks together. For a time, the Imperial Study was filled with the sound of eating noodles.

Everyone ate quickly, partly because they all knew there were still things to discuss later, and partly because it was impossible to chat casually during a meal in front of the Emperor.

Everyone only ate one bowl.

The eunuchs serving beside them immediately brought a cup of tea and a copper basin to anyone who finished eating.

The tea was for rinsing the mouth and was spat directly into the basin.

The copper basin was for washing the face and hands.

This wasn't for luxury or show, because it was very likely that pen and ink would be used during the discussions, and some might even be ordered to draft imperial edicts, so hands had to be clean. Also, washing one's face could make one more alert.

Finally, the small desks were removed, and a fresh cup of tea was served to each person.

With everything ready,

the Yan Emperor took out a memorial,

and said:

"Wu Jiang wrote this memorial himself, telling Us that the pressure on the Nanwang City line is increasing day by day."

The words weren't finished, but everyone understood.

A memorial that raises a problem will inevitably be accompanied by a request for help to solve it.

How to solve it?

Simple,

reinforcements.

Reinforcements here could be understood as the Great Yan transferring troops from other places to Nanwang City, or increasing the military supplies, expenses, and establishment of the Nanwang City line.

The former was difficult to implement because after annexing the Three Jins, the Great Yan's territory was really spread too thin, and many places were actually stretched thin.

That only left the latter method.

But that also meant an increase in expenditure on money and food.

For an individual, money and food can't solve all problems, but if you have sufficient money and food, more than 99% of the problems will no longer be problems.

The same is true for a country.

Zheng Boye had to rely on Little Liu of the Ministry of Revenue to get full money and food, while the other regions only got 50%.

The Great Yan has always had the concept of raising elite soldiers, the Zhenbei Army and the Jingnan Army being the best examples, but there was really no way, the gap was too big, and the finances were leaking everywhere. They could only use paper to paste it over for the sake of appearance.

At this time, Wang Lian, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, stood up and said:

"Your Majesty, I believe that a garrison of troops from the outer Beijing camp can be sent south to Kaicheng in Yinlang County to deter the Qian."

The location of Kaicheng was roughly between Yanjing and Nanwang City. A garrison stationed there could continue to protect the capital, and at the same time, if something happened in Yinlang County, they could move south more quickly.

The Yan army was mainly composed of cavalry, so in terms of mobility, it was indeed much stronger than the Qian.

But this method, how to say it, was very much like being short of money and having to make every penny count.

The others had nothing more to say, because everyone knew how difficult the court's finances were now. Wang Lian's suggestion was already very much in line with the current situation.

The Yan Emperor looked at the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince stood up,

and said:

"Your son agrees with the Left Vice Minister's proposal."

The Yan Emperor looked at Ji Chengjue.

In the room,

only Ji Laoliu was from the Ministry of Revenue.

Since Ji Laoliu had taken down two Ministers of Revenue in a row, the position of Minister of Revenue had been vacant.

Therefore,

every time there was a verbal battle with the various departments over shares, Ji Laoliu personally took the field, arguing with those adults until his face was red, despite his status as a prince.

There was no way, there were more monks than gruel, and those who weren't full were dissatisfied, and those who were distributing the gruel were also annoyed.

But after all, this was the Imperial Study, not a grand court meeting, so there was no need to roll up sleeves and start a fight.

Ji Chengjue didn't complain about poverty either,

but stood up and said:

"Father, some additional staff can be added this year at your discretion, and more can be added next year."

Last year, things were patched up, this year, things were barely getting by, and next year was the three-year agreement between Ji Chengjue and the Yan Emperor. The Great Yan's finances would see a significant improvement, but they would still have to pay off the accumulated debts of the previous two years, but at least, the finances of this great empire had been guided in a positive direction.

The Yan Emperor heard this,

smiled,

and said:

"If there's a change in the south, can you make the Qian delay their attack by a year or two so we can replenish our troops?"

Ji Chengjue said;

"Father, the budget for the first half of this year has already been issued, and the budget for the second half of the year was decided at the beginning of the year. The national treasury did keep a reserve for emergencies, but doesn't that still have to be used to repair the Wangjiang River project? River projects have always been money-guzzling beasts, consuming countless money and food. Your son has been racking his brains over this matter, trying to raise funds everywhere."

The Yan Emperor waved his hand. As the Emperor, how could he not know what the situation of the national treasury was?

However,

the Yan Emperor finally looked at Zheng Fan, who was sitting at the back,

and said:

"Pingye Lord, what do you say?"

The Great Yan had a very strange tradition. For example, discussions in the Imperial Study, even if they were about military matters, in the past, there was actually only one minister from the Ministry of War and no other military大佬 present.

Because the Great Yan's military power was delegated too much. The Marquis of Zhenbei's side, the affairs of Beifeng County and most of the matters related to the barbarians were decided by the Marquis of Zhenbei's府 itself.

The same was true for the Marquis of Jingnan in the east.

According to the tradition of the Qian, military大佬 like the Marquis of Zhenbei and the Marquis of Jingnan should have had their military power removed long ago and retired to the capital, given various honorary titles of Grand Tutor and Grand Preceptor to completely hollow them out. When military matters needed to be dealt with, they would be called in to be consultants and listen to their opinions.

So, this time, it was really rare for a genuine "soldier" to appear in the Imperial Study.

And everyone, for a time, focused their attention on the Pingye Lord, whose momentum had been unparalleled in recent years.

And when they saw the Pingye Lord entering the Imperial Study, everyone knew that today, the Pingye Lord's suggestion would be very important, otherwise, they wouldn't have brought the Pingye Lord here specifically to listen, right?

Zheng Boye stood up, saluted, and said:

"Your Majesty, I believe that the Imperial Guards don't need to be mobilized, and the Nanwang City line doesn't need additional money and food. You can order the First Prince and Xu Wenzu to shrink the defense line of the Nanwang City line and not compete with the Qian for temporary gains."

Hearing this,

Cao Que, the Right Vice Minister, immediately said: "Our Great Yan has faced the barbarians for hundreds of years without ever taking a step back. Now, we have to retreat in the face of the Qian?"

Xu Qiutai, the Minister of State Affairs, also asked in confusion: "Pingye Lord, what does this mean?"

Zheng Fan faced the two adults, cupped his hands in salute, and replied:

"Because the court isn't well-off, so……"

At this time, Wang Lian, the Left Vice Minister, interrupted Zheng Fan's words and said, "I heard that the Pingye Lord's Xuehai Pass has a budget that's two or three times higher than other departments."

While saying this, Wang Lian's gaze swept over Ji Chengjue.

Zheng Fan didn't know why Wang Lian was hostile to him, and he didn't have time to analyze the other party's political stance. What he had to do now was to quickly help the Yan Emperor go through this "drawing out opinions" process and enter the next important topic.

Therefore, Zheng Boye directly said:

"Has the Lord ever been to Xuehai Pass?"

"I have not."

"Xuehai Pass defends against the snowfield savages to the north and prevents the Chu from going north to the south. But the area within a hundred miles of my Xuehai Pass can be described as nearly empty, almost uninhabited.

Even if I wanted to squeeze the local area to supplement the needs of the troops, there's nowhere to go.

If I don't ask the court, am I not supposed to fight? Am I supposed to take the soldiers to the snowfield to graze or to the south to reclaim wasteland for a living?"

The troops in other places, where they were stationed, could squeeze some more oil and water out of them. The living won't be suffocated to death by urine, but Zheng Boye didn't have that condition.

At least,

from the written information about Xuehai Pass that the court大佬 saw, they couldn't see Zheng Boye's ability to "self-sufficiency."

Wang Lian shook his head and smiled, but he didn't look too angry.

Zheng Boye then continued:

"Your Majesty, since the court has no extra money and food to allocate, it's better to simply retreat to advance, put on a posture of inviting the enemy in, and see if the Qian dare to launch another northern expedition."

Cao Que then said, "Pingye Lord, shrinking the defenses, doesn't that mean that the territory on the border of our Great Yan will be handed over to the Qian?"

"Has the Lord ever been to Yinlang County?"

Cao Que swallowed. Here it comes again?

"This official has been there, and I've also been to Nanwang City."

Nanwang City was once called the Little Jiangnan of the Great Yan and was once a place where the Great Yan's culture and civilization gathered.

"Then has the Lord ever been to the border? Have you ever been to the Three Borders of the Qian, and have you ever crossed the Three Borders to go to Chuzhou County?"

"This official… has not."

"Then I can tell the Lord that the Qian have built countless fortresses on their border. The Nanwang City border that's currently being talked about is a very wide interconnected area between the two sides in the border area.

In other words, it's originally a jagged area that neither side can control, a place where anyone can ride a horse.

One is because my Great Yan soldiers aren't good at attacking cities, so they inevitably don't know where to start when facing the Qian's fortresses;

The second is because the Qian aren't good at field battles. Even Zhong Tianlang in the past two years was just leading small groups of cavalry to show off for a while. The Qian don't dare to leave the fortresses too far and advance forward.

Therefore, shrinking the defenses of Nanwang City is just to prevent the Qian from having any targets to take advantage of when they want to send small groups of troops north next time."

"What if the Qian army launches a northern expedition?" Wang Lian suddenly asked, "Border defenses, first, are for the responsibility of defending the territory, and second, are for early warning.

Once my Nanwang City line shrinks, if the Qian army suddenly goes north, wouldn't my Great Yan have no opportunity to prepare?"

Hearing this,

Zheng Boye immediately faced the Yan Emperor,

bowed deeply,

and said:

"Your Majesty, if the Qian dare to gather a large army for a northern expedition, then please grant me 30,000 iron cavalry."

Grant me 30,000 iron cavalry.

A hundred years ago, the Qian's 500,000-strong northern expeditionary army was defeated by the first Marquis of Zhenbei with 30,000 troops.

And this was also the common aspiration of the military in Great Yan.

Wang Lian heard this and said, "Arrogant."

Zheng Boye retorted sharply: "I haven't lost a battle yet."

"……" Wang Lian.

At this time, the Crown Prince stood up and said, "The First Imperial Brother's memorial says that he's under great pressure."

Zheng Boye immediately said, "So, if you move back a little, the pressure won't be so great."

"Why retreat?" the Crown Prince asked, "I know that the court's finances are scarce, but it's clear that we can not retreat, or rather, it's not time to retreat yet. According to what Minister Wang said, sending a garrison of Imperial Guards south to Kaicheng can warn the Qian. Clearly, it's not time to retreat yet.

How can the ancestral lands and country that our ancestors worked so hard to manage for 800 years be retreated from so easily?"

"May I ask Your Highness the Crown Prince, does the Jin territory count as a place managed by our ancestors? Right now, does it count as the territory of my Great Yan?"

"Of course it does."

"That's the point. There are gains and losses. It's precisely because of the annexation of the Jin territory that my Great Yan's Jingnan Army and the two Zhenbei Armies have to be stationed in the Jin territory. If the Jingnan Army was still stationed in Yinlang County as it was back then, would the Qian dare to stir up trouble?

Now, it's just a small step back in Yinlang County to protect the Jin territory."

"How can it be calculated like that?"

"Why can't it be calculated like that?"

"How will future generations view it?"

"Future generations will only look at whether the territory left to them by their predecessors is larger or smaller. Which is more important, retreating a line in Yinlang County or the entire Three Jin territories? Which is bigger and which is smaller?"

The Crown Prince looked at Zheng Fan and said, "Pingye Lord, I'm not a pedantic person. I just think that every inch of land in my Great Yan was soaked in the blood and sweat of my Great Yan soldiers. Unless it's absolutely necessary, I'm unwilling to give up any inch of land. Otherwise, how can I face those soldiers who shed their blood and sacrificed their lives for the sake of expanding our territory?

I can agree, but can they?"

"Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Zheng Boye bowed to the Crown Prince.

"Pingye Lord, what is this?"

"Your subject agrees."

"……" The Crown Prince.

Wang Lian and Cao Que looked at each other, and there was a hint of helplessness in both their eyes.

This answer,

was really shameless,

but on the other hand,

the young Lord in front of him, who was not yet thirty, had the qualification to be shameless.

Because he had made outstanding contributions, he had expanded the territory for the Great Yan, shed blood and sweat.

Therefore,

he could answer like this.

The Crown Prince was at a loss for a moment, he had been familiar with court affairs for a long time, and he had seen ministers arguing with red faces and even about to start a fistfight, but he had never dealt with the likes of the Pingye Lord.

At this time, Ji Chengjue said, "Pingye Lord, what the Crown Prince said is right. Those fallen heroic spirits, can they agree?"

Zheng Boye immediately said:

"They agree as well."

"What makes you say that?" Ji Chengjue asked.

"If you don't believe me, Your Highness can send someone down to ask."

Ji Chengjue angrily slammed the armrest of the chair and said:

"Presumptuous! This is before the Emperor, how dare you!"

The Crown Prince glanced coldly at Ji Chengjue and Zheng Fan and silently sat back down.

The Yan Emperor didn't speak.

Wang Lian then said:

"Pingye Lord, I would like to hear your opinion. Why is the Jin territory lost?"

Alas,

Zheng Fan was a little tired,

he finally shifted the topic.

Immediately,

Zheng Boye knelt down,

and said:

"I learned in the Chu territory that the Great Chu has ambitions for a northern expedition!"

For a time,

in the Imperial Study,

everyone was a little懵 by these words.

It wasn't because the impact of these words was too strong,

but because these words were simply nonsense!

Which country doesn't want to expand outwards and unify the world?

Moreover, for the Chu, wouldn't they start a war with the Qian now if they didn't launch a northern expedition?

Chu has ambitions for a northern expedition.

These words were actually the same as saying that the Chu people would eat when they were hungry and drink when they were thirsty. What was so strange about it that it was worth saying in the Imperial Study?

Zheng Boye deliberately waited for a while,

waiting for the adults present to regard him as a fool,

before continuing:

"I learned that the Chu and the Qian have formed an alliance, agreeing to send troops north to attack in three years, intending to invade my Great Yan!"

The alliance between the Chu and the Qian was not a secret.

But three years later,

this extremely critical time point was revealed, which was a little unusual.

Xu Qiutai, the Minister of State Affairs, immediately asked:

"Pingye Lord, this matter is no small matter, can you be sure?"

"I am sure!"

"How can you be sure?" Xu Qiutai asked.

"Lord, have you been to Chu?"

Here it comes,

here it comes,

here it comes again.

Wang Lian and Cao Que immediately looked at each other again.

But Xu Qiutai smiled,

stroking his beard while saying:

"I have indeed been to Chu. When I was young, I traveled around the world and went to Yingdu."

The other adults present all showed smiles of watching a play. Look, there's really someone who's been there. How can you respond now?

Zheng Boye immediately asked:

"May I ask, Lord, have you ever seen the Chu Emperor?"

"……" Xu Qiutai.

What would I do seeing the Chu Emperor!

Moreover, I said that it was when I was young. When I was young, I hadn't entered the court as an official yet, so how could I have seen the Chu Emperor? After I became an official, how could I see the Chu Emperor?

Ji Chengjue immediately said:

"Pingye Lord, don't beat around the bush. First tell me, where did you get the news that the Qian-Chu alliance will send troops to attack my Great Yan in three years? From whose mouth did you hear it?"

Zheng Boye immediately replied loudly:

"It was the Regent of Chu who told me personally. At that time, I and the Regent of Chu were sitting in the same carriage."

"……" Xu Qiutai.

"……" All the adults present.

Those who have reached this position are all shrewd people. Everyone has noticed the difference today, and everyone feels that the Pingye Lord seems to be talking nonsense;

But,

no one dared to say that Zheng Boye was lying, no one dared to say that he was talking nonsense;

Because he brought back the Chu princess.

Moreover,

there was also a song "Anger Causing My Hair to Rise" that was spread out.

Ji Laoliu broke the silence again,

pointing at Zheng Fan and asking:

"I don't believe it, is there a witness?"

Everyone looked at Ji Chengjue together, giving him numb glances.

You,

you're being too obvious as a straight man in a comedy duo.

You're singing and harmonizing better than a storyteller and his apprentice in a teahouse.

Zheng Boye immediately replied:

"The princess can be a witness!"

The adults all sighed.

But Ji Chengjue continued to ask;

"Then tell me, how can the alliance between the Qian and Chu be confirmed? Could it be that the Qian Emperor also told you personally?"

Zheng Boye immediately replied:

"I once entered the Upper Capital of the Qian and spoke face-to-face with the Qian Emperor. At that time, the Qian Emperor said to me in person that the losses and humiliations that his Great Qian suffered this time, in three years, he would definitely unite with Chu to demand them back from my Great Yan!"

All the ministers present: "…………"

Ji Chengjue suddenly trembled,

pointing at Zheng Fan,

and said:

"You, you, you've seen them all?"

"Yes, I've seen them all."

Zheng Boye revealed a confident look of having achieved the grand slam of seeing all the emperors of the four major Eastern countries!

He had also seen the Jin Emperor, but this time, the Master Jiao that he had prepared to give to the Empress Dowager of Jin had a problem and couldn't be found.

Ji Chengjue trembled and turned around,

facing the Yan Emperor,

collapsed,

to the ground,

kneeling,

desolate,

crying:

"Father, your son is in charge of the affairs of the Ministry of Revenue. It can be said that no one knows the difficulty of the current financial situation of my Great Yan better than your son;

But according to what the Pingye Lord said,

in three years,

the Qian and Chu will send a million troops to attack my Great Yan. This is truly the autumn of my Great Yan's survival.

Your son is bold,

I beg you, Father, for the sake of my Great Yan's 800-year-old country,

to send troops early to conquer the Qian and Chu!"

After speaking,

"Thud!"

Ji Chengjue's forehead heavily hit the bluestone bricks of the Imperial Study.

Ji Laoliu gave up the atmosphere of the streets on the way to court and accepted Zheng Fan's persuasion.

Zheng Fan then punched his left chest hard,

and shouted:

"Your subject is willing to be the vanguard for Your Majesty, break through Zhennan Pass, and water my horse in Yingdu!"

————

Thanks to ws蓝狐 for becoming the 132nd leader of The Descent of Magic.

I had something to do during the day and only came back at night. There will be only one update today. I will resume two updates from tomorrow.