On the 10th of May 1894 in the Holy Lun calendar, Her Royal Highness Princess Emily, the Regent, convened an emergency court council and announced to the ministers that I and Lebinglan would lead the whole army of the Empire to war, and that I had proposed the most demanding conditions for the Imperial Monarchs. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

The Imperial Ministers were shocked by my demands, but they had to compromise in the face of the real crisis, and the occasional dissenting voice became a faint groan that could be ignored under the pressure of the war clouds. After all, between long-term worries and near-term worries, people will first choose to avoid the latter.

I stared coldly at the courtiers with earthy faces, and did not show the slightest hint of joy after my power had been consolidated and strengthened to the maximum.

When I got the results I wanted, I also settled my reputation as the greatest careerist in the history of the empire.

Sima Zhao's heart, some old ministers and nobles of the empire made such comments after the meeting. Henceforth, the glory of heroes and the infamy of transgressors

Like light and darkness, it will be with me in the future.

But as a person concerned, I did not have any sense of guilt, because all this was something that I was going to risk my life to gain - the materialization of my position must be strengthened by the cost of blood and fire on the battlefield in the future. In other words, I must survive and win on the treacherous battlefield to have true success. Otherwise, any power and status will be nothing but a beautiful bubble blown out of lies, which will burst at the first poke!

After I silently accepted Princess Emily's appointment, Princess Emily asked, "Alex, can you tell me what you are going to do now?"

I smiled slightly and said, "Back to Your Majesty and Her Royal Highness the Princess!" At present, the situation in our country is quite critical due to the fact that three parties are being attacked by rebels at the same time. However, the eastern front was not to be worried, the rebel James's troops were less than 50,000 people, and in addition to playing the role of nuisance and containment, they were not able to advance westward, and there were no capable generals under James, and only 50,000 people could not play the role of surprise soldiers at all.

The main crisis of the empire came from the northern and southern fronts.

Aruton entangled the troops of the northern barbarians, with a military strength of more than 200,000, the most powerful, and there was also a barbarian demonic beast force of less than 5,000 people, but the attack power was extremely powerful. But Aruton is not the biggest threat at the moment - with Marshal Tsykov's ability and the 250,000 Imperial troops under his command, it is impossible to expel Aruton, but he can hold the northern line of defense steadily, and he can be relieved for the time being. Although the combined army of Ettiria and Archduke Shaduff was only 150,000 men, it was unstoppable under the leadership of the military genius Carlos, and repeatedly broke through our army's defense line, directly endangering the safety of the imperial pivot.

Speaking of which, I fixed my eyes on the face of the Imperial Prime Minister, who was worried about the safety of his son, before I said: Due to the incompetence of the military department, our army suffered the worst defeat since the beginning of the war, and General Carlos advanced the battle line to the north for five hundred miles! It can be seen that the Ettiri runner-up is the biggest threat to the center of the empire! Therefore, whether or not you can hold the southern front and repel Carlos will be the key to the success or failure of this war, and even the survival of the empire! As long as the crisis in the south is solved, Aruton and James will do nothing! If it weren't for Karanji's recklessness and rejoicing, how could the empire be like this?! The danger of the empire lies in the improper use of people!

Hear me out here, Marcelo. Morales had already pouted, knelt on the ground, and wept bitterly: The criminal minister is incompetent, the godson has no way, the bias of listening and belief, and the mistaken belief of inhuman people are in danger of today's empire! The guilty, even if he dies, he will not be able to escape the blame! Please Your Majesty, Her Royal Highness the Princess, and His Royal Highness the Prince are in the last years of the sinful minister, a son has sacrificed his life for the country, and there is only this unworthy son left under his knees, give Carl a way to live!

Princess Emily sighed and said, "Prime Minister, please get up, I don't blame you...... If it is judged as a crime, it was the main palace that decided to appoint Karl to go to the expedition in the first place, and the main responsibility of the main palace must be ......

But I snorted coldly and said: Karanji's guilt should be dealt with by a military court, and the Prime Minister's begging for guilt or favor from His Majesty is also a matter after the war, and it is useless to discuss it at this time! What Calangie has to do now is to lead the remaining Imperial generals to defend the southern defense line, take advantage of the Dwilig Mountains and the surrounding hilly terrain, and choke the entrance to the Sonks Plains, and never let Carlos's troops advance a single point! After Binglan and I arrive, Fang will repel the enemy in one fell swoop!

Marcelo shuddered and said: The Imperial army is newly defeated, morale is low, I'm afraid ...... I'm afraid I can't hold it! If the Imperial army is not allowed to withdraw, it is feared that the entire army will be destroyed, and Karl will ...... His Royal Highness the Prince is requested to retract his order......

I replied coldly: I just want him to dig deep trenches, build high walls, ignore any provocations from Carlos, and not come out of the garrison, and defend to the death! If he can't even do this, then let him fulfill the duties of an imperial courtier, abide by the obligations of an imperial soldier, and die a glorious death! Instead of living in humiliation, it is better to die in the glory of the Empire to comfort the heroic souls of the countless Imperial soldiers who have lost their lives to his incompetence!

Marcelo fell to the ground trembling, but did not dare to refute. Emily tried to say comforting words, but she stopped talking, and finally only let out a long sigh.

In the afternoon, with my direct intervention, several edicts were issued by the imperial court and quickly spread throughout the empire, the main contents of these edicts included: 1. Conscription edicts. Male citizens of the empire who have reached the age of 18 and are mobilized to join the imperial army to defend the country, where one male member of each household joins the army, the whole family is exempt from taxes for three years, where two people from each household join the army, the whole family is exempt from tax for ten years, and if more than three people from each household join the army, the whole family is exempt from tax for thirty years and is exempted from forced labor for life.

2. Edict of Exemption. All those implicated in the coup d'état of Aruton, Ettiria, and James were exempted, except for the direct participants and main culprits, and the junior officers and soldiers who had been deceived and rebelled against and had been captured were acquitted and reintegrated into the Imperial Army.

3. Edicts of the princes. The princes of the western countries were summoned to send troops, and the northwestern princes were controlled by Marshal Tsykov, and the southwestern provinces were controlled by Prince Alexander.

Fourth, reduce the edict. The national tax system was changed from 15 to 20 taxes, and all residents of the rebel-occupied areas who rebelled against the rebels and successfully broke away from the rule of the rebels and declared their return to the imperial court were exempted from tax for three years.

These edicts were like boulders thrown into the waves, stirring up ripples one after another, winning the hearts and minds of the imperial center and producing important political and military practical results.

The next afternoon, I welcomed a special guest at the Prince's Palace.

When Li Binglan and I approached the prince's mansion in a carriage after the court meeting, we heard the sound of guards arguing with others at the door.

Who are you? What are your intentions to see His Royal Highness? Do you have any reservations or name posts?

Are you a military man? Which unit does it belong to? Please tell us where you came from!

If you don't say anything, just blindly ask to see Your Highness, we won't be able to pass it on to you! Please come back!

Li Binglan and I looked at each other, then lifted the curtain and looked forward. I saw several royal guards confronting a thin figure.

The man was long, but slightly thin, wearing a dark blue Imperial Sergeant uniform, but the uniform had been torn many times, a blue-gray hair was unkempt, a rather handsome face was slightly pointed and thin, the bridge of the nose was straight and slightly upturned, and the silver-blue eyes were slightly sunken, but from the chips of the magic glasses from time to time revealed a cold essence, and his face was an unhealthy white. The whole image is quite sloppy, but there is a kind of literary temperament that is very different from the rough image of a soldier.

Judging from the golden star embroidered on his collar and chest, this person should have the rank of black-eyed banner Yin, which is already equivalent to the status of a barracks commander, belonging to a middle-to-upper officer. But this person's face is quite unfamiliar, I have never seen this person in the Imperial Army, and it stands to reason that although I have only been in the Imperial Army, I cannot be completely unfamiliar with an officer with the status of a black-eyed banner Yin.

If it weren't for the fact that he had been idle or put into the reserve during my time in office, there would have been only one reason for that.

In the imperial military system, fifteen people are one team, three teams are one squadron, three squadrons are one squadron, three squadrons are one brigade, five brigades are one battalion, five battalions are one brigade, and ten to fifteen brigades form a regiment, and the corresponding commanders are the captain, squad leader, squadron leader, brigade commander, and regiment commander. The imperial military ranks are set in order from low to high: sergeant, captain, flag yin, general, general, marshal, generalissimo, and generalissimo, of which the flag yin is divided into three ranks: black, blue, and red, a total of thirteen military ranks.

There are strict regulations on the military positions corresponding to each military rank, the commander must have the rank of sergeant of the black eye and above, the squad leader must have the rank of sergeant of the blue eye and above, the squadron leader must have the rank of sergeant of the red eye and above, the captain of the brigade must have the rank of the black eye flag and above, the commander of the army must have the rank of the general or above, and so on.

Of course, military rank only indicates a certain rank, and does not necessarily have the corresponding substantive position, and there are many senior officers who have not been granted the corresponding military authority, partly because the actual positions in the army are still limited after all, and the other reason is that there are a considerable number of senior officers, mainly in civilian positions or in the role of staff in the army.

At the same time, since only the lower limit of the military rank for the actual post is stipulated, and the upper limit is not stipulated, there are also cases of high rank and low rank in the Imperial Army, for example, it is not uncommon for generals to serve only as brigade commanders for a long time, and red-eyed lieutenants only to receive the military rank of brigade commander. One of the most typical examples is the Fred incident ten years ago. Nat who was a general of the empire at the time. Although Fred was brilliant in war and was known as one of the most fierce generals in the empire, he stayed in the position of commander of the military camp for thirty years because he offended the military department, and it was not until he died for the country that the military department found out and posthumously named him the commander of the army. Of course, this is not a universal phenomenon.

However, in the imperial military system, the rank of cavalry officers was half a rank higher than that of equivalent officers in other arms. For example, Libinglan was already a general when she led the Silver Tassel Cavalry Regiment, her subordinates Joseph and Zolachi were also generals, and Tsykov, who was the commander of the border guards at the military headquarters at that time, was just a general.

I frowned, not quite liking this unexpected situation, and casually asked the guard, Dogos, what's going on?

When the guards heard my voice, they hurriedly ran to the car and replied: "The two highnesses are back!" Back to His Royal Highness, a madman who ran out of nowhere was wild in front of the Prince's Mansion, only saying that he asked to see His Highness in person, and refused to explain anything else, and he had neither a name nor an appointment, and he couldn't drive away!

After saying that, the guard said to the black-eyed banner Yin: Don't leave quickly! Otherwise, Hugh blames the guards for arresting you, and the Ministry of Military Affairs will punish you for the crime of disturbing the palace and alarming His Royal Highness's car driving!

Black-eyed Qiyin ignored the guards, turned his face to me, and said coldly: His Royal Highness Prince Alexander, Your Majesty Simon. Stage has something to do!

I raised my eyebrows, glared at the impudent officer, and said, "Do you want this king to exonerate you?" The sin of rebellion is not idle, please forgive this king for his inability to protect him, you still plead with the military department! And your direct entry into the king's abode is not in itself! If you want to see me, you should go to the Marshal's Mansion to post instead of breaking into a private house.

In the imperial military system, since generals at the level of marshal could open offices and set up accounts, they had the right to appoint and dismiss personnel, and they could freely elect their own staff and teams. Since Li Binglan and I were both awarded the titles of Marshal and Generalissimo, the Military Department has set up the Marshal's Mansion and the Generalissimo's Mansion for us in the Imperial Palace, so that we can handle daily military affairs in the palace.

The two marshal's palaces are close to each other, and in addition to the special relationship between me and Li Binglan, our personnel, allocation, and subordinates are all mixed, and the military department is happy to do so, because although the personnel distribution has not been reduced, daily supplies can be saved by one-third -- and this part of the saved materials will eventually be converted into yellow and clear gold and fall into the pockets of the military officials. Moreover, it also improves the work efficiency of the two governments and reduces the intermediate links between the communication and document transmission between the two governments.

As for whether the final decision-making power of military affairs is Li Binglan or me, the military department didn't bother to pay attention to it, and didn't dare to delve into it. In me and Li Binglan, this is a bit of a public and private separation. In fact, this is extremely inconsistent with the military system, but who dares to really ask about this couple in military power? Originally, both husband and wife served as marshals, which was also unprecedented in the history of Ferratis, and there was no precedent for how such a husband and wife would work, so everyone had to acquiesce to this strange form, and it was reasonable to exist anyway.

The nerves in the face twitched slightly, but he still said calmly: His Royal Highness the Prince is really very human, and he has easily guessed my intention! Yes, Xia Guan was once a staff member under the command of the sixth prince of James, but he has always been excluded in the James family, and he is not liked by the princes......

Because of my guilt, I have been hiding outside, and since the emperor's exoneration edict is limited to lower-ranking officers and soldiers, I have come to ask Your Majesty to be considerate.

Like Simon. A person like Stage, who speaks coldly and strangely, has an expressionless face, and does not know how to flatter, will naturally become an eyesore and peculiar existence in James's camp, and it is difficult not to attract James's hatred.

Simon. Stag, the name I've heard, is recorded in the personnel file of the War Department: Simon. Starg, a commoner, twenty-five years old, has a certain ability and a high level of strategy, but he is a strange person, extremely unsociable, perverse in words and deeds, lacks thoughtful means and the ability to work with his superiors, lacks loyalty and the quality of a soldier who obeys orders, and is known as an evil spirit in the army.

Thinking of this, I smiled coldly and said: Simon Heimu Qiyin, if you have any grievances and grievances, you should appeal to the military court, it is useless to find this king, this is not the scope of this king's duties. Moreover, you have identified yourself in front of this king, and as a courtier of the empire, this king has to arrest you and hand you over to the military department for punishment!

As soon as the words fell, the guards of the palace had already taken Simon. Stage surrounded.

Is that so? His Royal Highness the Prince is really disappointed! I can't imagine that King Alexander was just a man of this level! People like you can't get the hearts of excellent people! Don't expect to compete in Shenglun and win the world! You will continue to cling to the imperial authority that has rotted maggots, and be your king of Meinster, and your so-called important minister of the Pharadis Empire!

Simon. Starg was caught by the guards, but there was no trace of panic on his face, and he had a strange indifference to the life crisis he was about to face, as if he didn't care about his life and death, and his low and cold voice revealed a kind of sadness that he had not met the master and was unable to express his will.

Wait!

My heart moved, motioned for the guards to disperse, looked down at the dangerous man and said: Simon Black-eyed Qiyin, you seem to be unwilling? You are in collusion with James, and you are the first to rebel, which is disloyalty; It is unrighteous to do justice for James and to turn his back on the Lord. Now it is even more slanderous to the empire and slander the king, and the crime is even more serious! What right do unfaithful and unrighteous people like you have to defend themselves if they deserve to be punished?

I'm not trying to defend myself! I have no regrets about what I did! What I'm saying is nothing but the truth! At present, the empire is already a corpse, even if it can successfully put down the rebellion, but it has hurt the foundation of the country! The superficial praise of virtue and gossip are just adding a useless aura and bubble, and they can't hide the fact that the tree is about to wither! I just regret that no one in the Empire has the courage to face this fact, and no one in the Empire has the talent and vision to usher in a new era, not even you, King Alexander!

I took Li Binglan's hand and got out of the car and walked away, and when I approached the door, I suddenly turned around and said: Let him in!

In the living room, I leaned back in my chair and stared at the black-eyed Qiyin standing in front of me, and was silent for a while before I said: Simon. Sr. Statg, there is no shortage of useful people around me, how can you convince me that I must risk the crime of the military department, or even the danger of conflict with Your Majesty?

Your Highness is indeed surrounded by a lot of talents, but there is a lack of people like Xia Guan who can deal with all kinds of intrigues and tricks, and I can deal with all kinds of crises from the rotten court and the dark grooves for Your Highness! Moreover, I can plan all kinds of insidious and spicy strategies for His Highness, deal with all kinds of things that His Highness himself does not want to touch in person, and bear all kinds of unrighteous infamy for His Highness. Simon. Stage replied calmly.

I hate all kinds of intrigues! I said coldly.

Your Highness! As an emperor, you must not only have a bright and charitable side, but also a ruthless and vicious side! It is worthy of respect to be upright and upright, but if you don't know how to trick and schem, you will never be able to get rid of the quality of a martial artist, and it is not enough to succeed! Where there is light, there must be darkness! The road of the king is originally a sinister road alternating between light and dark, and His Royal Highness not only needs a famous general like Generalissimo Li who acts above board, is respected by the world, and can fight a decisive battle for thousands of miles, but also has some staff who are good at scheming and deceit, bearing infamy, and being able to strategize! And I can be such a shadow of His Highness! Simon. Starg's voice was as cold as ice, and people couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts.

Can I trust your loyalty? You have betrayed the Lord twice, and there is no guarantee that he will not betray me to you!

Simon. But Starg calmly replied: I betrayed the court of Pharadis because such an empire was not enough for me to pay for my allegiance. At present, the young lord of the empire is ignorant, although the regent is kind and fair, he is unable to break the rules and turn into a declining government, the imperial family is rotten and rotten, the nobles are extravagant and corrupt, the officials of the imperial court are mediocre and incompetent, nepotism, and corruption is rampant, and the people are poor, poor, and poor. And I turned my back on James because he betrayed me first, and he didn't have the amount of tolerance, the sage of advice, and the quality of being a man. Entrusting myself to such an empire and such a prince is just a fool's errand, not a wise man's doing. A sharp sword that can blow out hair can only play a real role in the hands of a true swordsman - sweeping thousands of miles and sweeping the group; If it falls into the hands of a butcher, it can only become a butcher's knife for killing pigs and cattle. Your Highness doesn't need to question my loyalty, as long as Your Highness has enough ability and strength to control your subordinates, Your Majesty will not dare to betray the Lord, and you don't need to ask Your Majesty whether he is loyal or disloyal, this is meaningless!

What a powerful statement! If I don't use you, does it mean that I don't have the talent to be a human king? I smiled slightly, but as a human king, you should have a bearing commensurate with it, so as a human minister, shouldn't you also have the ability to match it? If you don't show your due value, then how can Benwang be able to value it?

And rightfully so. Simon. Stagg replied succinctly.

Well, I ask you! What are your best responses to the current crisis facing the Empire?

Your Highness is asking for the way to win! The lower officer believed that in order to repel the rebels from the three sides, it was necessary to seek a solution from outside the battlefield.

I want to hear about it!

First, it is necessary to divide the alliance of the three parties, and secondly, to disintegrate the relations between Aruton and the northern barbarians, and between Ettiria and the Republic of Dotyr. To achieve the first aspect, you can send envoys to lobby the three parties, promising that as long as one party is willing to withdraw its troops, it can be allowed to claim the throne, so that the fragile alliance of the three parties will inevitably create a gap, as long as one of them claims to be emperor on its own, coupled with appropriate provocations and spreading rumors unfavorable to the three parties, so that they will be suspicious of each other, and the alliance will break up, and the most likely first to claim the emperor must be James. Then send an envoy to the barbarians, give them a large amount of jewels and goods, and promise them land, and the barbarians will be tempted and will not seriously help Aruton. Then send people to contact other forces opposing the Grand Duke of Shaduff in the Kingdom of Dotir, give support in terms of money and weapons, let the Grand Duke Shaduff's backyard catch fire, so that he can take care of himself, and then send an envoy to lobby the Grand Duke Shaduff in due course, promising land and money, and Shadif will inevitably withdraw his troops. In this way, the empire has the greatest advantage on the battlefield. If you give Xia Guan a day, I can give me a detailed plan. Simon. Stage habitually rubbed the back of his left index finger against the left side of his nose, and then talked eloquently.

My face finally changed color, and I said eagerly: Okay! Governing the world and employing people only with virtue regardless of their talents, and employing people with talents in troubled times without asking about their virtues, I decided to buy your sword! Hope you have what you call sharp! You stay and be my staff, the rank is still black-eyed banner Yin!

Thank you, Your Highness! I will not disappoint Your Highness! Simon. When Starg received my reply, he did not show any joy, as if everything was taken for granted, and he bowed back to me.

After he left, I turned to face Li Binglan and said, "Binglan, are you against my arrangement?"

Is my objection valid? Li Binglan smiled and said, I don't like this person! The gloomy aura is too heavy, and it is not easy to control, and it lacks the loyalty of a soldier! But, as he said, where there is light, there must be darkness, and you need a shadow like him.

Binglan, thank you for your understanding and support! I sighed, and said with a dark look in my eyes, my enemy will never attack only from the front—to deal with the insidious killers from behind, you have to be more ruthless and insidious than the enemy, and that's exactly what I need Simon. Stagg's reason! Although he is not a person to be respected and liked, he is definitely an excellent staff member!

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