first minister

"The envoy from Xuanbei Liang is here to see you!"

Jin Zhong's shrill voice sounded in the court hall, and not long after, Beiliang envoy Xue Wenlu, deputy envoys Yelu Wende and Yuan Wenjing stepped into the hall.

They came out of the biting cold wind outside the palace, as if carrying the wind and snow from Beiliang, which made the ministers in the court feel trembling.

On the other side, the warmth in the palace was like the intoxicating prosperity of the Southern Dynasties, making the three of them feel drunk.

Xue Wenlu knew without scanning that there were many people sitting in the court today whose names he had seen countless times in the intelligence.

Su Zongzhe, the wise prime minister of the generation, Zhao Qingsheng, the imperial master in white, Wan Wenbi, the official tumbler, and Xia Jingyun, the most popular upstart in the Southern Dynasties.

"Foreign Minister Xue Wenlu pays homage to the Queen Mother and pays homage to Your Majesty!"

Xue Wenlu took a deep breath and spoke loudly.

Although he had a hidden intention to sow discord between mother and son, he was still in the court after all. He did not dare to openly ignore Dongfang Bai and be caught by the court officials, so he bowed honestly first.

"Be flat."

Concubine De, who was sitting behind the bead curtain, was still very elegant and spoke slowly, "Your envoy came all the way, why?"

Xue Wenlu took out his certificate of credence with a look of sadness on his face, "Your Majesty is deeply saddened to hear that the late emperor of your country has passed away, and has specially ordered foreign ministers to come to express condolences on his behalf, so as to consolidate the friendship between the two countries."

Concubine De looked at the certificate of credence handed over by Jin Zhong, without even looking at it, and said directly: "All ministers know about important military and state affairs, so just read it directly."

Xue Wenlu frowned quietly, it seemed that the rumored Queen Dowager who was quite capable indeed had some skills.

Xia Jingyun stood in the team, thinking silently, Emperor Liang would not have the same words as Maodun Shanyu in his letter, would he?

That is unbearable.

Fortunately, the monarchs and ministers of Beiliang were not arrogant or foolish, and there were only some common words on the credential.

After Jin Zhong finished reciting, Concubine De said slowly: "Your Majesty is very thoughtful. Ai Jia and Your Majesty would like to thank you here."

Seeing the Queen Mother of the Southern Dynasty pretending to be stupid and not speaking, Xue Wenlu sneered in his heart. The situation is like this, and you can't avoid it just by pretending.

He stroked his chest and bowed, "In addition, I heard that Dongfang Ping, the late emperor of your country and Prince Yong, rebelled and raised troops to harm the people. Our Majesty could not bear the loss of the people and even invaded the border areas because of the incident, so I am willing to help your country. "

As soon as these words came out, all the monarchs and ministers in the palace were shocked, knowing that the main show was about to begin.

Concubine De said meaningfully: "Why do we need your country's help in our affairs? Is it possible that your country is also involved in this?"

Xue Wenlu actually did not deny it, and even said with a look of empathic anger, "The Queen Mother is aware of this! I was so angry with Murong Hu, the general of the Falcon Cavalry, that he actually joined forces with Dongfang Ping and flowed into the bandits, ruining the diplomatic relations between the two countries. I was furious with your majesty, so I sent him Foreign ministers came to speak to the Queen Mother and put forward a solution."

Hearing that Xue Wenlu actually admitted that Beiliang's army had colluded with Dongfang Ping, many fourth- and fifth-rank officials in the court started talking.

But that night, the senior officials of the third rank and above who had listened to Xia Jingyun's analysis were all as stable as a rock, waiting to hear Xue Wenlu's final plan.

Concubine De was naturally equally calm, "Let's talk and listen."

Xue Wenlu said: "It is your Majesty's wish that we are also responsible for what is happening now. Your Majesty, I am willing to mediate and mediate. Your country and Dongfang will temporarily stop fighting in today's situation. After the fighting has stopped, I will pay your respects to Your Majesty." Send an envoy to warn Murong Hu and order him to lead his troops back to the country."

He leaned over and said, "To show my sincerity, Your Majesty, I would like to swear by Guo Zuo and my ancestors that as long as the Queen Mother agrees, my Dynasty will not have any war with your country within one year."

"absurd!"

Before Concubine De opened her mouth, a low-ranking official who wanted to stand up stood up and said loudly: "Queen Mother, Your Majesty! This statement is extremely ridiculous. We rebelled against the North Liang Dynasty and led troops into the invaders. This is an undeclared war and a blatant invasion of the invaders. His wolfish ambitions have been exposed! How can we allow him to be disguised as a rebel like this?"

"shut up!"

Just as the junior official was speaking excitedly, a cold shout suddenly sounded in his ears. Yan Songwen, the imperial censor, said solemnly: "The Queen Mother and Your Majesty will decide this matter. How can you openly roar in front of the palace?"

The junior official was dumbfounded. Looking at the equally silent central ministers at the front of the team, he suddenly understood a possibility: Are they going to agree?

Seeing the young official who returned to the team as dejected as a concubine, many people in the court reacted.

Then the shock slowly turned into understanding.

The current situation in the DPRK is already full of external and internal troubles. If Beiliang invades again, how should this situation be dealt with?

According to Xue Wenlu, if Beiliang can really mediate and abide by its promise of a one-year truce, it will be a great thing for the court!The imperial court can have a year of breathing space to slowly calm down the civil strife, stabilize the court, purge the officialdom, reorganize the army, and then make plans.

As for Beiliang's plan, everyone is of course very clear. They are indeed trying to occupy Yuyan State as expected by Marquis Jianning, so that through the puppet of Yuyan State, they can plunder the people's wealth and anointing for their enjoyment without bothering to plunder.

But now that the one-year period has passed, we will take back Swift State, so what should we fear? Is it possible that a large army is pressing down on the border, and a mere Swift State can withstand it?
Thinking about these thoughts, everyone also understood the thinking behind the silence of the important ministers and senior officials at the front.

Now that we have this consideration, how can we characterize Beiliang's ambitions?

Dongfang Bai, who was sitting high on the throne, still couldn't understand such a profound thing. He quietly turned his head and looked aside.

Concubine De also frowned slightly, obviously weighing it in her mind.

Mr. Su, who had been given a seat, raised his eyelids slightly and looked at Xue Wenlu, "Your envoy is coming from afar, so let's express our condolences to the late emperor first. I, the Great Xia, take loyalty and filial piety as our foundation, etiquette and justice as our priority. It is better to tolerate things such as this for the benefit of others." Let’s discuss it later.”

Many people who had originally planned to go out and suggested asking the envoys of Beiliang to go back to the post house to rest for a while while waiting for a decision suddenly felt the gulf-like gap between themselves and Mr. Su, and felt awe in their hearts.

And these words left Xue Wenlu powerless to refute. The other party was using righteousness and etiquette to suppress others, so he couldn't really pat his chest and say, "I am a barbarian", right?

"This is very reasonable. Foreign ministers will go to express their condolences to the late emperor of your country."

He bowed slightly and said, "But I would like to ask the Queen Mother to reply to the foreign minister today."

"Bold!"

Li Tianfeng shouted coldly, "I have my own rules and regulations when it comes to doing things, and you have no right to dictate what I do!"

Unexpectedly, Xue Wenlu was not afraid at all, and just said calmly: "Of course the foreign minister can't control how your country does it, but the foreign minister just wants to kindly remind you that after today, it won't be this price."

After saying that, he bowed again, turned around and strode out.

This young man who had always been so gentle and elegant as a barbarian from the Northern Liang Dynasty, at this moment, finally revealed the ferocious face and sharp fangs of a prairie wolf.

Behind them, Yelu Wende and Yuan Wenjing looked at the suddenly quiet hall. They were so excited that they also performed a chest caressing ceremony and turned around to follow them out.

After the outsiders left, there was sound again in the hall.

A court official came out and said, "Your Majesty, Queen Mother, I think that the people in Beiliang are really hiding evil intentions. However, the lesser of two evils is the right choice. Now that the internal troubles in our court have not been resolved, they have arisen and new chaos has arisen. Beiliang is in the north, and there are powerful troops sitting there, watching eagerly. If they send their troops south, the country may be in danger of overthrowing. I hope the Queen Mother will think twice."

"Absurd!" Another courtier came out and shouted loudly: "Your Majesty, Queen Mother, Beiliang wolf is ambitious and plotting to conquer our Yuyan Prefecture! With the present as the boundary, if there is no use of weapons for one year, the entire Yuyan Prefecture will be lost. Yuyan Prefecture will be lost. If the state is lost, it will lose the natural danger to the east, and the people of Beiliang will be able to march in, causing disaster for future generations! This proposal is absolutely impossible!"

"Who doesn't know what you're talking about? But I said, choose the lesser of two evils! Compared with the invasion of the Beiliang army, adding another fire to the already precarious situation will cause the country to overturn and lose a swift What’s a state? What’s more, if you throw it away, you can’t take it back. After a year, the army will be able to take it back easily!”

"You just accept it when you say it? That's a whole big state! That's the Swift State with its vast territory and natural dangers. Do you know how big it is? How many soldiers and how many lives do you need to get it back? You Do you think you can take it back just by talking nonsense here?"

"Then won't people die now? If Beiliang comes to attack, won't we die? Then more people will die! And we are not prepared yet!"

"Yes, I also agree with this conclusion. All things must be viewed in light of reality. Nowadays, we have internal and external troubles, and we can't even gather the troops. If we really go to war with Beiliang, the consequences will be disastrous. But also, now, Her Majesty the Queen Mother is benevolent and wise. , everyone is in full swing, and after a year, the civil strife will subside, the world will be settled, and the troops will be well-prepared, so we can easily conquer Yuyan Province. Isn’t it just right? Your Majesty, the Queen Mother, I think that I should agree to Beiliang's proposal."

Xia Jingyun listened silently, and almost laughed out loud when he heard the words "Everyone is upright and prosperous."

Immediately, hearing the compromise voice that gradually gained the upper hand, I felt a sense of sadness again.

This is human nature!

Previously, when it was inevitable, everyone could still unite as one, and it only took one day from the decision to send troops to the actual expedition. But now, as long as there is a possibility of compromise, so many people are willing to back down and seek compromise. .

Who wouldn't like such an opponent!
Because of the cowardice in the bones and the short-term peace of mind, I retreated, burying my head in the sand like an ostrich to numb myself, and did not rise up to resist when I had the strength to resist, but just retreated step by step. When there was no way to retreat, I had already stood. On the edge of a cliff.

But when the two countries confront each other, will their opponents show mercy and stop?
Obviously not, they will only press forward step by step, and when you are unable to retreat, they will kick you mercilessly and push you into the abyss.

But, then again, it is not that Xia Jingyun cannot understand the thoughts of these people. The people on the dragon throne have changed, the ministers are still these ministers, and the gentry are still these gentry. If you want to maintain the system and rule, they are still indispensable.

"Queen Mother, Your Majesty, I have something to say!"

Xia Jingyun finally stepped out of the queue and spoke loudly.

The originally noisy court fell silent after these words. (End of chapter)