Picturesque Rivers and Mountains in the Red Chamber

119 Chapter 3.26
Volume Three

3.26 Everyone is happy
The eldest prince's question made everyone startled, but it also explained why today's "high-level meeting" had an extra "present" candidate. Even Zhou Yang himself did not expect that Princess Yongchang would help him for his sake. To this extent, one can imagine how much help he will have in his future career if he can perform well today.

"Back to Your Highness" Zhou Yang quickly stood up and saluted.

"Don't worry yet!" The eldest prince smiled and waved his hand, gesturing for him to sit down and talk, "Just as the wine and meat are ready, I can't let you brothers talk hungry. It's almost noon now, so why not use some first? If any one of them is starved, I'm afraid my uncles will cause trouble for me!"

"Thank you, Your Highness, for the banquet!" Now everyone stood up and bowed.

This time the reception was nominally for Chen Yejun, but in fact the eldest prince arranged for all the people to handle it. Although it was just barbecue and wine, it had to be said that no matter the materials, craftsmanship, or heat, they were all just right, and it obviously looked quite good. Ordinary barbecue tastes very appetizing, but at this time, no one really let go and ate and drank. They all placed their chopsticks casually and put down their chopsticks.

"Okay, if Brother Zhou has something, you can talk about it now!" Seeing that everyone stopped eating and drinking, the eldest prince also brought his attention back to the topic, "Don't have any worries, just say what you need to say, just watch In terms of Aunt Yongchang’s face, I won’t do anything.”

"Thank you for taking care of me, Your Highness!" Zhou Yang stood up quickly, and he also understood that this was his opportunity, but it was only once. If he couldn't seize it this time, it would be difficult to get it again in the future. "Wei Chen also listened to what you have just said. The discussion, but compared to the result, Wei Chen is more worried about one issue. What did Commander Wang say that can make all the commanders of the three major battalions "

"Huh?" Zhou Yang's words made everyone frown. It's not that they didn't want to know, it was just because of the identity issue. Since their father didn't tell them, they couldn't ask directly. The most important thing was that they were only concerned about the follow-up, so they ignored it. .

"Brother Zhou, what do you think?" The eldest prince's tone was obviously more polite.

"I can't even think of it, because I have no clue." Zhou Yang shook his head, but when everyone looked disappointed, he added, "But it's not a big deal to be able to make all three generals reject it. I don't know. Is there any news from the court recently, mainly about the military, especially the general direction?"

"If it's an important matter in the court -" Niu Ben frowned slightly. He was the Minister of the Ministry of War, so he naturally knew more. "There are not many things that can affect the overall situation. The most important thing is probably the group of poor officials in the second half of last year." My father and my uncles have argued many times over the past disarmament and pay withdrawals, but they have never been able to do it - can't they? How could Commander Wang be so unwise?"

"There are not many things that can make all three generals dissatisfied. Even if there are, it stands to reason that we should maintain the superficial friendship." Zhou Yang said lightly, "The only explanation for why he can do this is that his demands are unreasonable. Reconciled conflicts, and excluding the recent irrelevant news, even if it is not the case, it should not be far away!"

This is really not Zhou Yang's talk. Any analysis or suggestions are based on information support. Although he does not have a wide range of information sources like the Wuxun disciples here, some general news can still be passed through. Dongfang Bing and even Princess Yongchang came to get it.

The information he received showed that the imperial court has not had any major military events recently. Although the strength of the Zhou Dynasty's army has been declining, it is still on the offensive and has an advantage over its surrounding areas. The only event that can be called a major event was Xue's victory last year. When he was assassinated on the way, he learned from a conversation with Chen Yejun in Jinling that the civilian government was going to cut military spending.

"Wang Ziteng has lost his mind and gone crazy? Do you dare to say more in such a situation?" Jia Zhen couldn't help but swore. Although the others didn't speak and their faces didn't look good, no one was like this. Jia Zhen didn't care. The Wang family has been affiliated with the Jia family for a long time, so it is normal to curse a few times. "Or does he think that with a name, everything will be safe?"

"Please forgive me for overstepping my bounds. I wonder if Your Highness knows this." Seeing everyone in a daze, Zhou Yang gritted his teeth and said something heart-wrenching, and then knelt down on the ground.

The expressions of the others changed, and they all turned to look at the eldest prince. Although Zhou Yang said something cryptic, everyone understood what he meant. The only person who could make Prince Teng so blind, except for his own brain. In addition, it is also possible that he received the meaning above - or the meaning of Emperor Yonghe.

The eldest prince did not speak, but he still shook his head with a solemn expression, and at the same time waved his hand to signal Zhou Yang to stand up, letting everyone understand what he meant.

"Last year, those poor people did mention this matter, and they did reduce some of it." Liu Dong of the Liguo Palace said calmly. His father Liu Fang is now the left minister of the Ministry of War. "But under the pressure of various families, It has not been pushed forward, but as far as I know, the imperial court did have difficulties with money last year. If so"

"No!" This time, the eldest prince spoke decisively before he could speak. There should be no blind spots in this kind of thing. If the emperor and the military were alienated, the gains would outweigh the losses. "Father, I still trust all my uncles, naturally. I will never forget why the Zhou Dynasty was able to maintain peace for a hundred years.

Although my father did not directly object to this matter. After all, the treasury matter was not a secret, he did not support it. As far as I know, there was no bad news from the Dragon Head Palace. The imperial grandfather originally Brothers are no strangers to this matter. "If this is the case, there are only two possibilities." "After Zhou Yang confirmed that the problem did not lie at the highest level, he started to analyze, "Either Commander Wang misunderstood His Majesty's meaning, or"

He didn't just say it, but his meaning was not complicated. Another situation is that Wang Ziteng chose to move closer to the civil servants, or even took refuge, and used this as an "entry ticket" or "voucher of name", but this is completely unreasonable, because At present, in the court of the Great Zhou Dynasty, although the civil servants are generally on the rise, the martial arts still dominate.

"It can't be the former." Hou Yuan of Duke Xiu shook his head, "As I said just now, Xie Jing clearly told me that Wang Ziteng personally approached General Jiang of the Three Thousand Battalion."

Jiang Zining, the inheritor of the Pingyuan Marquis Mansion, second-class male, and the commander-in-chief of the Three Thousand Battalion, Qi Jianhui, the inheritor of the Xiangyang Marquis Mansion, second-class male, and commander of the Imperial Guard, plus the just-mentioned inheritor of the Dingcheng Marquis Mansion , second-class male, and Xie Jing, a member of Qianhu, the fifth military camp (with the rank of guerrilla general), are currently the only three remaining families of the twelve founding princes who still hold substantial military power.

The reason why they are all second-class men is because when Emperor Yonghe first came to the throne, he specially supported him and promoted him to a noble title. He was originally supported to fight against Hachigong, so as soon as each family heard that the prince had passed over, they directly chose Instead of giving up on him - many times, "taking sides" is more important than "right or wrong".

Although this "confrontation" matter was shelved because of the Supreme Emperor's awakening, these three families were all close associates of Emperor Yonghe. Since Wang Ziteng had approached Jiang Zining, it was impossible for him to understand the mistake again.

"What does Wang Ziteng want to do?" It was Niu Ben who spoke this time, and he lost his politeness in his words. Since he is not one of his own, he is his enemy, so there is no need to be polite to his enemies.

"Is there a possibility?" After Zhou Yang thought about it repeatedly, he could only think of money. The Wang family had been in decline for several generations, and it is estimated that they did not have much wealth. There were almost speculations in various analysis of the Red Mansion that Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Wang might have obtained it from the Jia family. Yinzi supports the Wang family, and now that Wang Ziteng has offended all the martial arts at the beginning, the only person who can do this is power, which means that only the money is left. "The reason why Wang Ziteng proposed to reduce military pay does not refer to the reduction of the imperial court. The amount of military pay allocated, but he wants to reduce the amount for the three battalions. Well, that’s it”

This time, everyone understood what he meant.

To put it simply, when Prince Teng became the governor of the Beijing Camp, he asked the generals of the three battalions to "adjust" the distribution of benefits, and wanted to get more money. Because his position increased, his expenses naturally increased. However, the Wang family didn't have much wealth, and it was difficult to support it without enough money, so he thought of getting money from the army, which of course would offend others.

In the past, Jia Jing or Ning Rong had a profound background and did not care about the increase in expenses. It didn't matter whether it was more or less. There was no need to separate the upper and lower parties for this. But Wang Ziteng couldn't do it, and the Wang family couldn't do it, so just after one Being promoted is like making more money, so the commander-in-chief of the three battalions naturally disagrees.

This also explains why neither Chen Ruiwen nor Hou Xiaokang explained the specific content of the negotiation to their son, because this kind of thing cannot be said by competent people, let alone spread everywhere; but Zhou Yang is different, he is an "outsider", at this time "Speaking from the bottom of my heart" is not too much, but it offends Wang Ziteng too much - but it doesn't matter to him.

"Ahem, since we are all brothers in the military, we should unite sincerely and overcome the difficulties together." Having said this, everyone at the scene naturally figured out the reason. Seeing that it was an internal conflict of interest within the military, The eldest prince chose to suppress the dispute without hesitation, because for the royal family, these were indispensable "expenses", and it didn't matter who they gave them to, they only wanted military power.

"Now that Junior Brother Zhou has figured out the reason, have you ever thought about solving it?" Chen Yejun said angrily. This kind of thing is not actually a problem, but it is not suitable to talk about in front of the eldest prince. Just now, Zhou Yangguang was busy showing his ability, but Forgot to speak carefully, if he can't think of a suitable way, he will indeed leave an impact on the eldest prince this time, but the Wuxun family may
"Simple, just strengthen the training of the soldiers. If it is convenient, you can do a few exercises." Zhou Yang was naturally not stupid enough to dig a hole without burying it. That would be equivalent to digging a grave for himself, which also made a group of martial arts disciples look at each other. Bright.

Strengthening training will naturally increase consumption. Increased expenses will mean adjustments to the accounts. With a little manipulation, such as consuming six taels and repaying [-] taels, it is easy to smooth out the shortfall and shut up Wang Ziteng. Of course, It also shut up the so-called "reduction of military pay" on the part of the civil service.

"Brother Zhou is determined!" Even the eldest prince showed an approving look, because as long as training is strengthened, as long as it is not purely "account-making" type of "training", it can improve the combat effectiveness of the army, which is also beneficial to the royal family. , because the royal family only needs military power and the combat effectiveness of the army, which has been improved without increasing military pay, which naturally saves money in disguise.

The only problem is that each Wu Xun family will definitely face a decrease in income in a short period of time. However, this is temporary and a last resort measure in the face of external pressure. Once the limelight is over, they can naturally find an excuse to return to normal. , some losses are completely acceptable.

Happy to everyone!

(End of this chapter)