Chapter 210 The person who makes the final decision
When you feel irritable, taking a walk is a good way to relax and relieve stress. Under the scorching blue sky, Liu Chengyou wandered aimlessly among the orderly palaces of the inner court.
Uncertain in his thoughts, he strolled around. The servants and guards who accompanied him were careful not to disturb the emperor's thoughts. There were many people in the Han Palace, but before he knew it, Liu Chengyou walked to Kunming Hall.
There are not too many beauties in the harem, but over the years, only three or two people have really entered Liu Chengyou's heart. Whenever he feels depressed and exhausted physically and mentally, Empress Fu's side is his favorite. Habitat harbor.
The atmosphere in Kunming Hall was very harmonious, with laughter and laughter ringing from time to time. Empress Fu was holding the Queen of Wei to talk there, talking and laughing at Yan Yan, while King Liu Min of Wei was running around the pillars, playing with the gauze curtain, not knowing what the fun was.
When Liu Chengyou saw Liu Chengyou, Liu Min's eyes lit up and he immediately stepped forward, calling "Daddy". Although according to etiquette, he had to call him king and uncle, there were no affairs within the family that were kept open to the public. People advised against this matter.
"Sister-in-law is here too!" He picked up Liu Min and walked to the inner hall. Looking at the two beautiful women saluting, Liu Chengyou chuckled and said to Princess Wei.
Princess Wei's voice was as smooth and moving as hers, and she replied: "I haven't been to the palace for a long time, so I brought Liu Min to the palace for a visit!"
Nodding, Liu Chengyou said: "Sister-in-law is interested. Now that she has entered the palace, she should go to Ciming Palace to see the Queen Mother!"
"Yes! I have this intention!" Princess Wei said.
Probably seeing that the emperor was specifically looking for the queen, Princess Wei resigned voluntarily, leaving space for the couple, and took Liu Min to Ciming Palace.
Empress Fu's pregnancy was already showing. Yes, after recovering from the illness and through Liu Chengyou's hard work, the empress became pregnant again. At the same time, Concubine Xian Zheshi was also pregnant. In terms of fertility, Liu Chengyou became more and more confident.
"Come here, serve tea to the officials!" Queen Fu ordered.
"No need!" Waving his hand, Liu Chengyou said casually: "Liu Min is four years old too!"
Da Fu nodded and looked at Liu Chengyou with some curiosity. After many years of tacit understanding, as soon as he opened his mouth, he knew that he still had more to say. Liu Chengyou said: "In Prince Wei's Mansion, I have my sister-in-law to take care of me, so I can rest assured, but after all, outside the palace, if He is almost old this year and can start his enlightenment. Do you want to find him a tutor?"
Both the emperor and the empress felt a certain amount of guilt and reluctance towards the sixth son adopted to their eldest brother, so they favored them much more than the other sons. Listening to his words, Da Fu said: "In the official family, Liu Lang is still young. In my opinion, there is no need to rush to find a tutor for him. Mo Ruo also allows him to go to the Cultural Hall and follow Bachelor Zhang, which can not only gain enlightenment through his studies, but also enhance the relationship between brothers!"
"Yeah! Kill two birds with one stone, let's do it like this!" Liu Chengyou nodded.
So far, Liu Chengyou's first five sons have studied literature and martial arts with Zhang Zhao and Yao Yuanfu in the Wenhua Palace. Of course, the four sons who are the most valued by him are the four older sons who have traveled with him on tours.
"Erlang has been busy with state affairs and the military situation is tense recently. Why do you think of coming to the harem?" Dafu asked softly.
"I'm feeling depressed, so I came to your place to take a look!" Liu Chengyou responded, and then lay down on a recliner in the hall.
Noticing the rare look of exhaustion on Liu Chengyou's expression, he ordered someone to get a soft bandage, sit behind him, and gently massage Liu Chengyou's forehead with his hand, as if to help him soothe his sadness. Liu Chengyou didn't react at all, he just quietly enjoyed the queen's care.
"Are you still worried about the Liao Kingdom?" Da Fu asked.
Liu Chengyou said: "You have heard about it too!"
"The dispute between the North and the South has been very raging recently. Although I am in the palace, I have naturally heard about it!" Dafu sighed: "On my side, I haven't seen you so entangled in a long time, and it is difficult to decide the matter!"
"I naturally hope that there will be as few hesitations as possible!" Liu Chengyou said: "After all, it is a matter of national policy, so I have to think carefully! There are two voices in my head, pulling me north together. , they all tempted me to go south together, each has its own reasons, each has its own pros and cons, so it’s not too disturbing!”
Hearing what he said, Da Fu smiled: "This just shows that Erlang is a wise king, cautious and prudent, and does not take military and national affairs as a trivial matter. This is a blessing for the Han subjects!"
Hearing this, Liu Chengyou also laughed: "In this way, I brought this trouble on myself. It is not easy to be a wise king! Sometimes, I wonder, what if I become a faint king? I am not happy and relaxed. What a pity, I am afraid of the country’s subjugation!”
Only in front of Da Fu could Liu Chengyou be so brazen.
Dafu said: "Back then, when you ordered the literary scholars to write "On the Difficulty of Being a King", didn't you already have this realization at that time? After so many years, you have come through step by step, and there is nothing you can do. If you can’t face it, there is no problem that you can’t solve!”
Fu Hou cheered Liu Chengyou, and Liu Chengyou suddenly asked: "What do you think I should do when I go to the north to go south?"
Upon hearing this, Dafu shook his head: "How do I know about military and state affairs? Even if they exist, it is only a woman's opinion, and Erlang is not worth it!"
Liu Chengyou immediately said: "Why do you need to belittle yourself? There are many officials in the capital who have different military strategies. They are not talking loudly. If you were a man, I would make you a high official!"
"I came to Kunming Hall because I wanted to hear your opinions on women!"
Liu Chengyou's tone was relaxed, but Da Fu did not take it seriously. Instead, he thought about it seriously and said, "The advice I can give you is to think more about how you made choices and decisions when faced with such major issues in the past. In these years, you have never made any mistakes in your important decisions, so the Han Dynasty is getting stronger and stronger, and all the states and counties are safe!"
Da Fu said this in a very calm tone, but there was no lack of praise for Liu Chengyou. It was very comfortable to hear it in his ears. Sometimes, listening to good words can indeed relieve stress and relieve stress.
However, Da Fu's words did serve as a reminder to Liu Chengyou. Although in the past, the final decision on such major decisions rested with him, he often listened to the opinions of the group.
During the last strategic dispute between the North and the South, before he made up his mind, he personally visited Guo Wei, and then there was the southern expedition. Now, Guo Wei is receiving blessings from Yaoshan, who else in the DPRK can help him make up his mind?
Soon, Liu Chengyou thought of someone.
"I'm going back to the Long Live Hall first!" Liu Chengyou opened his eyes, said something to Da Fu, and left happily without letting her see him off.
In the Long Live Hall, Liu Chengyou met alone with Duke Lu, the Minister of War, and the Prime Minister Wei Renpu. He always maintained a respect for this important minister who had been with him for a long time, so he had always been close to him in private.
The meeting asked him to sit down, and he seemed very relaxed and did not talk nonsense. He said directly: "Wei Qing, now the dispute between the north and the south is before me and the Han Dynasty. There are a lot of discussions in the government and the public, and there are constant disputes in the temple.
In the Chongzheng Hall, you rarely speak, and the previous discussion was ambiguous. It is related to the safety of the Han Dynasty and the national strategy. I still want to hear your opinion!"
Wei Renpu was probably the most frank minister he had faced during this period of time. Facing the emperor's inquiry, Wei Renpu was still not in a hurry to express his position. There was still a hint of deep thinking on his decent face. After a while, he raised his eyes to look at Liu Chengyou and suddenly Said: "Your Majesty is already leaning towards the Northern Expedition!"
Liu Chengyou heard this and asked, "Why do you see this?"
"Based on the decisiveness of His Majesty's decision-making, if he had not intended the Northern Expedition, he would not have asked officials of the fifth rank or above to discuss the matter in a group, and it would just be carried out in accordance with the existing Pingnan strategy!" Wei Renpu said.
Liu Chengyou thought about it, but it made some sense, and asked again: "What do you think?"
"The advantages and disadvantages of the north-south strategy have been fully stated in the past two days. I think your majesty knows it well, so I won't go into details!" Wei Renpu said with his hand: "The Liao Kingdom in the north is no longer hostile and threatening to the Han Dynasty. Doubtless, as Privy Chai said, the Khitan people must not want to see the Han successfully pacify the south of the Yangtze River and dominate the world, and then go north to attack it.
The Battle of Yanmen and the Youzhou plot have proven that the Khitan people will definitely have the use of troops against the Han Dynasty. I can be sure that as long as the Han Dynasty crosses the Yangtze River to level the south, the Liao army in the north will definitely take advantage of the news and attack us if it fails. If we cross the border and disturb our soldiers and civilians, then the Han Dynasty will inevitably fall into a situation of fighting on two fronts!"
"This is exactly what I have been worried about after the border situation changed!" Liu Chengyou sighed.
Looking at Liu Chengyou, Wei Renpu said: "As Prime Minister Fan said, if the north is strong and the south is weak, there is no problem in moving first from south to north, first easy and then difficult. However, if the imperial court makes a big move to pacify the south and the Liao army goes south, then the northern defense will pay the price. It is bound to be very expensive, and may even lead to the collapse of Youji. As for the imperial court's northern expedition, the Han Dynasty's attack on the Liao defenders, can the countries south of the Yangtze River go north to pose a threat to the imperial court?"
As soon as Wei Renpu said this, Liu Chengyou suddenly felt like he was enlightened. His eyes were bright and he stared at Wei Renpu and said: "As you said, we are fighting on two sides, but the burdens and risks on the defensive side are very different. Furthermore, if the Han Dynasty makes an expedition to the north, the only troops in the south who are concerned about Jiangbiao will threaten Huainan. However, based on my understanding of the Li family, they will most likely be happy, singing and dancing, and watch from the sidelines the fierce battle between us and the Khitans!"
"Your Majesty is gifted and extraordinary, I bow to you!" Wei Renpu responded.
Hearing this, Liu Chengyou smiled heartily, and his whole body relaxed, and his eyes burst out with high spirits: "I have long had the idea of fighting the Khitan. To this day, the battle between Han and Liao is inevitable, so then Go north and crack this hard nut!"
After finishing speaking, Liu Chengyou looked at Wei Renpu again, with emotion unavoidable in his tone, and said: "The Duke has followed me for many years, and has repeatedly given advice and suggestions. He has always been diligent, and his meritorious works are rare. With the talents and functions of the Duke, I should be the leader of the dynasty. Kill it!"
Hearing what the emperor said, Wei Renpu immediately expressed his humility and said: "Your Majesty is so complimentary, how dare I accept it! I have been favored by the emperor and have always been treated well. I can only repay it with my whole heart, no matter how high my position is." The Prime Minister has always been honest and upright, and he is the chief minister, and all officials obey him. Please be careful with your Majesty's words like this!"
Hearing this, Liu Chengyou sighed again: "I'm afraid there are no more people in the court who can surpass you in character and talent!"