faint [rebirth]

Chapter 80 Curse

Xiao Wuchen's distress obviously had a good reason.

Originally, he just thought that the emperor's uncle "bullied" him before, so when he came back from "bullying", the two of them would have a chance to reconcile.

But now, Daxing is not only facing internal troubles, but also facing external troubles.And whether it is the northern and southern Xiongnu on the border, or the three vassal kings with foreign surnames in the land of Yunnan and Guizhou, it is obviously not easy to deal with.

According to Xiao Wuchen's previous thinking, as the emperor of Daxing, since he wanted the people to live and work in peace and contentment, so that the Daxing Dynasty could last for several hundred years, then he had to expel the Huns and barbarians and clean up all the vassal kings of the Daxing Dynasty. do things now.

It's just that Xiao Wuchen planned to spend at least 20 years on this matter - five years of recuperation, and then he will fight against the northern and southern Xiongnu, driving them back a thousand miles north.This process takes about one to two years.The next step is to continue to recuperate for three years.Three years later, a battle between three vassals with different surnames was provoked.If the strategy is successful, then Xiao Wuchen will naturally be able to take advantage of the fisherman's fortune. If not... At most, it will take another three years to clean up the three vassal kings with different surnames - and at that time, the late emperor was still alive. The strategy at that time was supposed to have been successful. Although the three vassal kings with different surnames seemed powerful, they had many heirs, and the late emperor's decree to cut down the vassal kings required the heirs of the vassal kings to inherit a part of the vassal king's territory, regardless of their descendants. .In this way, from the beginning of the decree to reduce the vassals to the ten years when Xiao Wuchen started the war, the heirs of the vassal kings may have started civil strife.Therefore, if Xiao Wuchen wanted to cut down the feudal clan, it would not be too troublesome to deal with the feudal land that seemed united at that time but was actually like a bubble.

And after Xiao Wuchen dealt with these three vassal kings with foreign surnames, there would be only three or a few extremely small vassal kings surnamed Xiao left in the Daxing Dynasty.It would be much easier for Xiao Wuchen to deal with them at that time, even he didn't need to rest and recuperate at that time, and he could deal with them immediately after teaching the foreign vassal king a lesson.

And after that, Xiao Wuchen can continue to recuperate for five to ten years. At that time, he has been on the throne for about 15 years or even longer, and 15 years is enough for Xiao Wuchen who was just born when he took the throne. The child grows up and can work for him on the battlefield.Send troops to expedition against the Xiongnu and other countries or nations that dare to covet the territory of the Daxing Dynasty.

However, although Xiao Wuchen's plan was long enough, it was also detailed enough.But there are no absolutes. Although he thinks well, other people are not completely brainless.Everyone knows that in the later years of the late emperor, the absurd alchemy and the promotion of Taoism consumed a lot of money in the treasury, and also made many people simply wear Taoist robes in order to avoid court taxes. You don't even need to worry about taxes and corvee, and you can live at ease by yourself.Of course, the price of this is the reduction of taxes in the DPRK and China, and fewer people who can join the army and participate in corvee service.

It is precisely because of this that at the beginning of his succession, Xiao Wuchen stopped the war after clearing up a few vassals who were clearly opposed to him. Not only did he show his favor to the few remaining vassals in Daxing, he also reduced the previous During the war with the Xiongnu, the two countries signed an agreement on the amount of horses and money for the annual tribute, so as to ease the relationship between the vassal princes and foreign clans, and also to give Daxing time to recuperate.

It's a pity that if the relationship between Xiao Wuchen and Xiao Junye has always been very good-not to mention how lingering internally, as long as the monarchs and ministers want to make peace externally, then, whether it is Xiongnu Xianbei or those foreign vassal kings, they will all be happy. Will not make a move at this time.

However, Xiao Junye and Xiao Wuchen had a falling out before and imprisoned Xiao Wuchen for three months, even if there were few rumors about it, those who had been keeping an eye on the Daxing royal family for a long time would not know about it?They had been waiting for the opportunity early on, planning to prepare food and horses, so they found the right time and joined forces to deal with Daxing!

And the timing they found was because the regent and the little emperor suddenly changed their relationship. The little emperor changed from being under confinement to the little emperor coming out, and the regent was under confinement?

If the regent was in power before, with an iron fist and previous military exploits, then the foreigners on the border and the vassal kings with different surnames might have to wait a little longer and find a better time to send troops.

However, Xiao Wuchen, a sickly little emperor, turned around and imprisoned the iron-fisted regent who knew how to fight... What else do those people have to wait for?Didn't he immediately seize the opportunity, prepare food, grass and soldiers, and immediately start working on the border of Daxing?

Although Xiao Wuchen guessed something before, he obviously didn't expect that the three vassal kings with different surnames would really join forces with foreigners to betray Daxing.

How can such a heart be able to take care of the safety of the people of a country in the Daxing Dynasty?

When Xiao Wuchen saw it, he felt annoyed.

Zuo Cheng and other prime ministers dared not mention the matter of dealing with the regent who had been teased before, and they all opened their mouths to make suggestions.

Prime Minister Zuo said self-consciously: "Nowadays, Daxing has internal and external troubles. Fortunately, Daxing still has soldiers and horses. If we really want to fight... it is not impossible to fight. It's just that after this battle, I'm afraid His Majesty's previous plan to recuperate will be destroyed. It fell through."

You know, after Xiao Wuchen ascended the throne and cleaned up a few vassals in his early years, he changed the rules in the army. Every two months, a certain number of soldiers were allowed to go home to visit their relatives—and promised that as long as there was no war, every A soldier, starting from his third year in the army, can have one to two months of family leave every two years according to his rank.The first two months of family leave were just rewards promised to the officers and soldiers by Emperor Cheng Ning when he ascended the throne for the first time.There will be no such long vacations in the future.

But even so, the people of Daxing continued to call on the Holy Spirit to be wise.After all, the former soldiers had never been treated like this.

And Xiao Wuchen will do this, on the one hand, as an emperor, he cherishes the soldiers, and he needs people to work hard, so he naturally treats them better; There were too many boys and girls, and the common people could not take concubines. In this way, many girls were left behind, and they were bullied by brothers, sisters-in-law and sisters-in-law in the homes of their parents and brothers.

Xiao Wuchen naturally wanted to send some soldiers back to the village to have their own children.

Fortunately, he made a rule to allow those soldiers to return to their hometowns every two years. At the same time, he also improved the treatment of Daxing soldiers, and sent half of the salaries of Daxing soldiers directly to their hometowns. There are also more women who are willing to marry soldiers—after all, at this time, women are so miserable, unless they are particularly tough women, who can support themselves, set up female households, and live with themselves. Can marry and have children.

It's just that Xiao Wuchen's plan was good, but because of his previous quarrel with the emperor's uncle, these methods of recuperation are obviously no longer available.

Soldiers who returned home to marry wives and have children had no choice but to rush back and continue fighting.

In this way, not only Xiao Wuchen sighed, Prime Minister Zuo sighed, but the other prime ministers also began to sigh.

Among them, Prime Minister Wang has the softest temper, he suddenly hesitated when he saw this, and said: "When your Majesty first ascended the throne, he discussed with the ministers how to recuperate. I personally think that this method is very good. As long as Daxing waits for this In five years, the people of Daxing will surely be able to save more food, the horses will gradually grow up, the soldiers who return home to visit their relatives will also leave behind many heirs, and the children who did not grow up before will gradually grow up and can serve as soldiers fight."

Xiao Wuchen narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at Prime Minister Wang without speaking.

Prime Minister Zuo felt a sudden in his heart, and wanted to stop Prime Minister Wang, but he coughed, and before he could speak, Prime Minister Wang continued to talk.

And what he was talking about was nothing else but the marriage.

"...It is now the end of autumn, and the food has just been harvested from all over the country, and it is being transported to Luoyang City. The reason why the Huns from the north and the south attacked Daxing again was because of the food and the annual tribute that Daxing promised to me. Horses, etc. As long as Daxing promises to reduce the number of those horses, and reward them with a certain amount of food, and then send a princess to marry, whether it is the Southern Huns or the Northern Huns, they will definitely be grateful for the emperor's grace, at least within three or four years, Dare not move. As for the three kings with different surnames, I have heard that they also have the idea of ​​getting married... But what they want is the young eighth princess, and they say that as long as the eighth princess, whom His Majesty loves the most, is willing to go and get married , and promised that after the death of their vassal king, they will inherit the vassal land, so they are also willing to retreat. Both parties are like this, obviously they are willing to make peace with Daxing. After the peace talks, it can reduce the loss of soldiers and horses, and can Let the people avoid the chaos of war, and the loss of Daxing is very small. If this is the case, why not do it? After all, it is what I should do to alleviate the internal and external troubles with the least loss."

After Prime Minister Wang finished speaking, he thought he was extremely smart, and he was complacently waiting for the little emperor's compliment.

However, Xiao Wuchen looked at him more and more unkindly.

Prime Minister Zuo sighed in his heart, he couldn't persuade him any more—are you kidding me?If Daxing really can't afford to fight now, then the peace talks, or even the sending of the married princess, is something that has to be done.But Daxing can afford to fight now, and the princess who is going to be sent away is not only young, but also His Majesty's most beloved sister. It is a wonder that His Majesty is not annoyed.

Sure enough, after hearing this, Xiao Wuchen said: "So, Prime Minister Wang has no confidence in Daxing, and thinks that Daxing has no one to use, doesn't he have generals who can defeat those villains?"

Prime Minister Wang said to himself that the Daxing Dynasty naturally had generals.It's just that today's generals are either too young or too old. Naturally, there is no problem as a conservative general, but when it comes to conquests... there are also two or three people in Daxing. It is a pity that Daxing is now Internal and external troubles, only those six or seven people, and two or three of them are cronies of the imprisoned regent, how can it be enough?

Prime Minister Wang thought this in his heart, and couldn't help saying it in his mouth.He is not unfaithful, but his temperament is too conservative and he doesn't like wars. Naturally, if he can avoid wars, he won't fight.

After hearing this, Xiao Wuchen smiled slightly and said, "Oh? But I thought that this battle had to be fought."

Prime Minister Wang hurriedly said: "Think twice, Your Majesty, how many generals are available in the court now? If you can beat the Huns, you will not be able to deal with kings with different surnames. If you can deal with kings with different surnames, you will not be able to beat the Huns. And among them, there are two The three are under the regent's command, whether those two or three people are loyal to His Majesty is still unknown, Your Majesty should think twice!"

Although Prime Minister Wang said that he was cowardly, what he said was indeed quite reasonable, so after hearing what he said, there were indeed a few courtiers who knelt down and begged Xiao Wuchen to think twice.

However, Xiao Wuchen smiled slightly, put the folding fan in his hand on the table, got up and said: "Who said that there is no one in Daxing? The regent has just recovered from his illness, and it happens to be able to go out for me. Alright, everyone, go back, And wait for me to pick up the regent and come out."

Everyone: "..." Your Majesty, Your Majesty, are you kidding me?Can the Prince Regent picked up in this way still be loyal to you?You have imprisoned the regent for more than half a year?Shouldn't it be a fool long ago?How can I sacrifice my life for you?

Xiao Wuchen got up with a smile, and walked outside.

However, with a smile on his face, he was quite bitter in his heart.

Of course he knew that his uncle would be willing to "sell his life" for him.It's just that his uncle probably misunderstood him and asked him to come out, just to work for him.

Xiao Wuchen sighed in his heart, and walked outside.

As he walked, he unconsciously walked outside the prison.

Then he heard a shrill female voice provoking him and the emperor's uncle.

"My lord doesn't know yet, right? There are wars at the border and Yunnan and Guizhou at the same time. I'm afraid it won't be long before that little emperor who imprisoned you for so long will come to coax you? I just don't know, this time the little emperor will How can I deceive you into working for him? Fortunately, our empress dowager is kind-hearted, and Tete came here to remind you that you must do your own thing, and don’t be deceived again! After all, since ancient times, there have been many disasters for beauties. It's beautiful, but..."

Before the man finished speaking, he suddenly screamed, and then she couldn't say a word.

Xiao Wuchen was coming out from outside the prison.

It turned out that Xiao Wuchen valued the sky prison—especially someone in the sky prison, so he guarded the sky prison very tightly, not even a fly could fly in.However, flies can't fly in, but they can appear outside the wall and make a lot of noise with their loud voices.

Especially when this fly still bears the title of Queen Mother.

Xiao Wuchen squinted his eyes, looked at the gray-haired, only 50-year-old woman who looked like a [-]-year-old woman, who was sitting on her shoulders, and looked at her empress dowager Shen fiercely, and suddenly said: "You are very good at life!" Don't worry. If you miss my business like this, aren't you afraid that I will castrate your son?"

Shen's eyes lit up suddenly, and she stared at Xiao Wuchen: "The son of the Ai family, is he still alive?" After asking, he said to himself, "The Ai family knows, the Ai family knows that the altar of the Ai family is blessed Fate is big, and there is his fairy brother in the sky to bless him, how could he die? How could he die? The altar of the Ai family must be somewhere, and he has grown up well, just waiting for the Ai family to pick him up to the palace. good……"

Xiao Wuchen looked at Shen Shi who had already broken a leg and was a little crazy due to the sudden loss of King An, and sneered, "Want to take an actor back to the palace?"

Shen was taken aback.

Xiao Wuchen said expressionlessly: "You mean why haven't I imprisoned you now? I just want you to find out by yourself outside. Your son, my eighth brother, has been sent out by me. It's just an actor. It's a pity that you are obviously insane, and you can't find this at all, and I need to tell you."

Shen immediately went crazy, broke a leg, and wanted to throw herself on Xiao Wuchen: "You bastard! I knew, I knew that you had been against the Ai family since childhood! Obviously when the Ai family did not enter the palace, as long as you At that time, Ai's family didn't have to enter the palace as a concubine after entering the eldest sister's belly. After entering the palace, Ai's family had a chance to be favored, but at that time, you insisted on entering the eldest sister's stomach, which made Ai's family miserable. It was as if the family had been in the cold palace for ten years, and it was not until ten years of taking care of you, a sick child, as a slave and handmaiden, that I received a little favor from the late emperor and was able to have an altar!"

Xiao Wuchen stared at Mrs. Shen without saying a word, and suddenly took a few steps back, only to see Mrs. Shen fell to the ground in a state of embarrassment.

Surrounded by Xiao Wuchen's cronies, the only ones who were not, Xiao Wuchen had already planned their way out, so he just listened to Shen's crazy shouts with no expression on his face.

"You bastard who doesn't come early or late, you want to block the future of Aijia and Tan'er! If it weren't for you, how could Aijia have ended up like this? If it wasn't for you, Aijia's Tan'er, how could it be?" Will it end up where it is now? An actor? Heh, even if my son really became an actor, it would be much better than you, who is an Israelite, who is under others just because of your beauty, and got this Daxing Dynasty. !"

Xiao Wuchen's face turned cold.

Chen thought she had finally caught Xiao Wuchen's weakness, so she began to attack Xiao Wuchen continuously, and said indiscriminately: "A person like you should be subdued by others for the rest of his life, and he should have no children and grandchildren for the rest of his life!"

These two sentences are all vicious.

As soon as Shen's words came out, the cronies around Xiao Wuchen all began to frown and draw their swords.

Xiao Wuchen heard the words, but smiled slightly, looked at the prison across the wall, and said softly: "Do you want to cut off your sons and grandchildren? It's not too bad."