The five prime ministers glanced at each other in unison.
Then, the eyes of four of them fell on Chen Jing and Chen Xiang.
Chen Jing had no choice but to take a step forward, lowered his head slightly, and said with cupped hands: "Your Majesty, since the officers and soldiers of the Huai'an Army have captured Xuzhou, there is no reason to withdraw so easily..."
No one who can stand here is a fool. The several prime ministers naturally understand what the emperor means. The prime minister Chen Jing who was pushed out gritted his teeth and said: "I thought that as long as the time was right, I could send troops to Northern Qi to echo.
The Huai'an army completely occupied Xuzhou Prefecture, and then based on Xuzhou, slowly plotted its homeland."
The emperor touched his chin, looked at the four prime ministers behind Chen Jing, and suddenly smiled: "You four think so too?"
The four prime ministers all stepped forward silently. After hesitating for a moment, they all raised their hands and said, "What Prime Minister Chen said is what I think."
"Tsk."
The emperor smiled and said: "Everyone agrees."
"It is rare for the council of this dynasty to be so united. During the late emperor's reign, the council was always noisy and without a solution."
At this point, the emperor narrowed his eyes and said: "In this case, then the matter is settled as it is, and you gentlemen will not regret it in the future."
Chen Jing lowered his head and said: "Your Majesty, how should we fight specifically? Should we send the Huaihe Navy to the north? Who will have the command of the front line? Should we also invite officials from the Ministry of War to come over and discuss a charter together?"
The emperor nodded slightly, suddenly smiled, and said: "We need to slowly discuss a charter, and all the gentlemen should stop standing around."
"clever."
The emperor waved his hand and said, "Bring five chairs over here and give them seats to the gentlemen."
Eunuch Gao nodded respectfully and quickly had five chairs brought in and placed behind the prime ministers.
Different from the small piles made when Shen Yi came, these five chairs all have backrests, which are regarded as exclusive benefits for the prime minister.
After several prime ministers sat down, the emperor looked calm and said: "What Mr. Chen just said is right. Things like war cannot be rushed. We need to carefully discuss and come up with a charter before it can be implemented."
"What I mean is that the council, the Ministry of War, and the generals from the five military camps should all sit together to discuss and discuss for a period of time. After discussing a specific charter that everyone thinks is good, we will submit it to you.
Give it to me, so that I can save some worries."
He looked at the old men and said with a smile: "How?"
Prime Minister Chen looked at the emperor in surprise.
For a moment, he felt that His Majesty the Emperor was still acting strangely.
But after listening for a while, he found that the emperor seemed to be serious.
After hesitating for a moment, Chen Jing asked: "Your Majesty, do you want to give us a time limit for issuing the charter? So as not to miss the frontline war."
"The fighting on the front line is fine."
The emperor waved his hand and smiled gently: "The ancients said that the most important thing in the country lies in the sacrifice and military affairs. This war is not a trivial matter. You can discuss it slowly and let me know the result immediately."
Having said this, the emperor touched his beard and said: "In addition to the regulations of the Northern Expedition, there is one more thing I want to mention."
Several prime ministers lowered their heads.
The emperor coughed slightly and said, "This time, the Huai'an army conquered Xuzhou, and they have done a great job."
"Not to mention whether they can completely occupy Xuzhou, or whether they can regain Xuzhou's homeland for me, Da Chen."
"Just breaking into Xuzhou City has relieved the bad breath in my heart and greatly boosted my morale and the people's support."
"I will have this matter published in the Di newspaper in a few days and spread throughout Dachen, so that the people of Dachen can know the good news."
Having said this, the emperor paused and said with a smile: "Since it is such a great contribution, the court cannot fail to express it. Sirs, how do you think merit should be rewarded?"
Chen Jing lowered his head and said nothing.
Cui Yu thought for a while and said: "Your Majesty, since ancient times, generals have always waited until they returned to the army to reward and punish them. It is rare to reward and punish them on the front line. Besides, Minister Shen and the others are still in Beiqi... still in the north.
In Xuzhou City, it is unlikely that they will come back for a while, and even if they are rewarded now, they will not be able to implement it."
The emperor nodded thoughtfully and said, "What does Prime Minister Cui mean, is that after Shen Yi and the others come back, he will award the reward?"
"yes."
Cui Xiang lowered his head and said: "At least, the reward will not be meaningful until they are all safe."
The emperor touched his beard, which was not very long, and nodded: "That makes sense."
"Well, let me put it another way."
The emperor whispered: "If Shen Yi returns to Beijing safely, how should he be rewarded?"
Among the prime ministers, Xie Min, the oldest, stood up at the right time, lowered his head and said: "Your Majesty, you have made great contributions to Xuzhou. I think that Shi Lang Shen can be the uncle."
The old prime minister cupped his hands, raised his head to look at the emperor, then lowered his head and said in a deep voice: "I am Mr. Jiang Du."
The emperor nodded and said with a smile: "This title must be given, but Shen Yi's contribution is more than that. Should he be given some of the military power of the Northern Expedition?"
Chen Jing lowered his head and said: "Your Majesty, who will command the Northern Expeditionary Army? Rong Chen and others will discuss it. As for the title mentioned by Prime Minister Xie, I also think..."
"Shilang Shen can be called Uncle Jiang Du."
The two prime ministers both spoke, and the other three prime ministers held their hands and said, "Shilang Shen, I am Jiang Dubo."
The emperor narrowed his eyes and nodded with a smile: "Okay, then we will tentatively decide on the title of Uncle Jiangdu, and the rest will be considered by you gentlemen."
Cui Xiang took a deep breath, cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, I believe that the Huaihe Navy needs to be ready to respond to the Huai'an army at any time. After all, the north bank is full of Qi people. If the Qi people attack Xuzhou City, then our Huai'an army will be defeated."
, he was immediately in danger."
"Huaihe Navy..."
The emperor glanced at Cui Yu with some displeasure, then waved his hand impatiently and said, "Let the meeting hall write the text for the Huaihe Navy. You don't need to ask me."
Having said this, the emperor waved his hand and said, "Okay, I'm tired, that's all for today."
As he spoke, he looked at the five old men and said lazily: "Everyone, please go back to the meeting hall first. And if anything happens again, just send someone to see me."
The emperor yawned and said, "Otherwise there are too many of you, and I won't be able to defeat you."
Several prime ministers stood up one after another, lowering their heads and not daring to say anything.
"clever."
The emperor said lazily: "Send off to your gentlemen for me."
Eunuch Gao ran out quickly and sent a few old men off. After sending these old men off, he returned to the emperor, carefully filled the emperor with tea, and said: "Your Majesty, you have to deal with the prime ministers.
It’s getting easier and easier.”
The emperor sat up, glanced at Gao Ming, and said angrily: "You are getting better and better at flattering me."
Gao Ming smiled and said nothing.
The emperor took a sip of tea and said calmly: "Are you curious? Those old men have clearly relented just now. I just need to work harder to push back the Northern Expedition."
"Why did I return the decision-making power to them at the critical moment?"
Gao Ming lowered his head and said, "I am a little curious, but I feel that Your Majesty is a wise Lord, and everything you do is reasonable."
"The beard flatters the horse."
The emperor laughed and cursed, then changed his subject and said quietly: "This is the idea Shen Yi gave me in the secret letter sent to the palace."
There were two reports sent by Shen Yi to Jiankang today. One was sent directly to the palace and handed over to the emperor to open in person. When it arrived in the hands of Emperor Hongde, the lacquer seal had not even been opened.
In other words, only the emperor saw it.
Eunuch Gao was now a little curious and asked: "Your Majesty, what does Minister Shen mean?"
"Shen Qi said that if he stays in Xuzhou, he can last for at least half a year, and there is no need for the court to send reinforcements northward."
"And if he stayed in Xuzhou, for Northern Qi, Xuzhou was lost."
The emperor said softly: "This is a big slap in the mouth of Beiqi, which made their faces swollen."
"In the next period of time, they will take back Xuzhou at all costs."
The emperor took a sip of tea, squinted his eyes and said, "According to Shen Yixinli, a lonely Xuzhou City can exhaust at least 50,000 Qi troops to death."
"So, he asked me to wait."
At this point, the emperor smiled.
"I accept his suggestion."
"Just let those old men tinker with it slowly, I..."
"There's no rush."
………………
The meeting hall.
There were suddenly several knocks on the door of Prime Minister Xie Min's study.
Old man Xie looked up and saw Prime Minister Yue Qian standing at the door with a smile.
Xie Xiang held the table with both hands, stood up, and said, "Why is Prime Minister Yue here? Come on, come on."
Yue Qian walked in, turned around, closed the door, and said with a smile: "I want to ask the Prime Minister for advice on something."
Prime Minister Xie was very enthusiastic and personally pulled out a chair for him and said: "Prime Minister Yue, you are very polite. Sit down and talk. Sit down and talk."
After Yue Qian sat down, Xie Min poured him another cup of tea, and the two prime ministers drank across the table.
After taking a sip of tea, Xie Min said with a smile: "If you have anything to do with Prime Minister Yue, just tell me."
"Yue is stupid and really can't understand some things."
Xie Min said with a smile: "I can't figure out why Cui Yu has this attitude?"
"yes."
Yue Xiang took a sip of tea and said softly: "Your Majesty's thoughts are already clear. Judging from the current situation, Shen Yi will be more and more important. Even at this time, he is already at the peak of his power."
"It stands to reason that Cui Xiang should ease the relationship with Shen Yi at this time. However, at this time, Cui Xiang's hostility towards Shen Yi seems to be even more intense."
"We don't even cover up anymore."
Yue Xiang shook his head slightly and said: "Cui Xiang has been a child prodigy since he was a child. He is known for his intelligence, but now he is making fools of himself, making it hard for people to distinguish."
Xie Min looked at Yue Qian with a smile and said, "Prime Minister Yue is not so much here to ask Cui Yu as he is here to ask himself."
Yue Qian remained silent.
Indeed, he naturally did not come to ask Cui Yu, but wanted to ask Xie Min, an old man, what his attitude as the prime minister should be now.
Shouldn't he be completely like Shen Yi?
Or should we continue to be a prime minister who sits on the fence?
Now, the factions in the council hall have become very obvious. Cui Yu is anti-Shen, while Xie Min supports Shen Yi.
Old man Xie also took a sip of tea and said quietly: "There is a saying that Prime Minister Yue said is right. Cui Yu is a very smart person."
"He may be a little bad, but he's definitely not stupid."
"And the reason why he has this attitude now..."
Xie Min said calmly: "It's because he has seen that Shen Yi's rise is unstoppable."
"Moreover, the discord between him and Shen Yi is difficult to reconcile."
"If we were in the late emperor's dynasty, it would be natural to get closer to Shen Yi at this time, the better. After all, that General Yuan twenty years ago could challenge the council alone."
"But this dynasty is different."
Xie Xiang said with a smile: "The emperor of this dynasty is a wise king and holy master who appears only once in a century."
"Since it is the Holy Lord Mingjun..."
Xie Min looked calm and said: "As Shen Yi is getting better and better day by day, then there should be Cui Yu in the meeting hall."
Hearing these words, Yue Qian almost froze on the spot.
After a while, he finally came to his senses, lowered his head and took a sip of tea.
"balance…"
"good."
Xie Xiang said with a smile: "My old man, I don't have many years to stay in this council hall. Now, among the prime ministers except me, Cui Yu's position may be
The most stable one."
"If Shen Qi doesn't fall, it will be difficult for him to fall."
"But his stability is not without price."
Old man Xie said quietly: "The price is that he will never be the leader of the council."
Yue Xiang was silent for a while and asked: "Xie Xiang, is there a need for a second Cui Yu in the assembly hall?"
Xie Min smiled.
"What do you think, Prime Minister Yue?"
Yue Qian shook his head, stood up, and saluted Xie Min.
"Thank you very much for your advice. Yue is willing to be the second one to thank you."
"Prime Minister Yue is really smart, he knows everything right."
Xie Min stood up with a smile, returned the gift, and then said: "However, if you become the second Xie Min, it will be difficult for you to sit as the leader in the future."
It is best for the leader of the council to be impartial.
At the very least, don't be too biased.
Upon hearing this, Prime Minister Yue said with emotion.
"I just saw the wisdom of the old prime minister today, and Yue has really benefited a lot..."
