"The six towns are vast and sparsely populated, and they have to deal with creeping infestation from time to time, and their condition is not bitter. In the past, the noble relatives of the clan, or the children of the Central Plains Haoqiang were recruited to go to the town, and everyone worked together, so that the imperial court could have no worries in the north. But after several generations, now the descendants of these national soldiers are actually made up of 'town households', and they cannot be promoted to the officials of the Qingliu Dynasty, and they are not allowed to intermarry with the high families. ”

This is a day in June of the fourth year of Wei Zhengguang (North), in the city of Luoyang, the capital of Beijing, on the Taiji Palace, an old man with white hair talked eloquently, speaking of excitement, unconsciously clenched his fists, very excited. This old man's name is Li Chong, the official worship Shangshu Lingjia servant, his life of military exploits, recently longer to drive the north for 3,000 miles, the future of the Rouran Lord Anapu far away, back to the dynasty to be awarded the hussar general, is really prominent. Li Chong is seventy years old, but he does not see the old dragon clock, and today he is more dressed in martial arts, and he is more ambitious.

It's a pity that Li Chong spoke vigorously, but the ministers in the palace were drowsy and listless. Although this is a hot summer, it is easy to make people lose their spirits, but the behavior of everyone at the court meeting is too congestive. Li Chongwei felt annoyed, and was about to cough heavily to express his dissatisfaction, but when he raised his eyes, his anger instantly turned into nothingness--- just in the direction of his head, the Great Wei Emperor Yuan Xu hunched his waist and leaned in the huge throne, his face was expressionless, and his eyes were empty, as if everything in the palace had nothing to do with him.

Li Chong smiled bitterly and shook his head secretly: Eh! No wonder Your Majesty... Since the fight in February, the Queen Mother designed to kill the powerful minister Yuan Cha, and once again came to the court to listen to the government, His Majesty lost his authority, and since then he has no heart at all. . .

Thinking like this, Li Chong set his gaze a little farther away--- behind Emperor Yuanxu, a graceful figure could be vaguely seen in the thick curtain. The person behind the curtain is naturally the Empress Dowager Hu of the powerful Great Wei, but her blurred figure not only does not sit upright, but lies on the couch, and can smell a lazy smell through the curtain, which is really not in line with such a solemn thing as the Great Dynasty Meeting.

Li Chong smiled bitterly, and a trace of anger rose in his heart: Eight years ago, the Queen Mother came to the court for the first time because Her Majesty was young. But now the second time is coming... Hehe, I'm afraid what he does is no better than the Yuan Fork who messes with power and government, obscene the court all day long, abandons the government, and disrupts the discipline, so that people's hearts are scattered and rebellions are everywhere. . .

Suddenly, there was a soft voice from behind the curtain: "Is the Shangshu order finished?" Why is there no sound? Although it is a female voice, it is very majestic, and it was Empress Dowager Hu who opened her mouth.

Li Chong shook his head, put away his thoughts, and said, "Minister... Minister... It's not over yet... ”

"Then let's go on!" Empress Dowager Hu's voice rose a few points, becoming more and more shrill: "What is the reason? ”

Li Chong's face changed greatly, and he hurriedly said: "The old minister obeys the order." He cleared his throat and continued: "The children of the six towns have been reduced to 'town households', and they have lost their way to move in, and most of them are poor. But all those who moved to Luoyang were in important positions, glorious and rich... Comparing the two sides, how can it not make the children of the six towns feel cold? Lao Chen's northern expedition this time creeped, through the six towns, the town soldiers and townspeople rarely came to help, and more people robbed military funds privately. In the long run, the six towns... Not only can the six towns not be able to guard the frontier for the imperial court, but they are afraid that they will cause trouble! ”

Finally finished speaking, Li Chong's voice became smaller and quieter, and he lost his previous confidence. There was a buzzing sound in the hall, mixed with a lot of sneers, and Li Chongjue felt a chill behind him.

"It's ridiculous!" There was a person in the hall, with a white face and a beard, a beautiful appearance, and a voice like a bell: "Now the queen mother is in the court, the government is clean and harmonious, and the world is under great rule." Two days ago, Huaihuang Town will return to the table, saying that the children of the six towns often bathe in heaven's grace, and they are inexhaustible, and they congratulate the Queen Mother. Why did it come to your Li Chong's mouth, and he was about to cause trouble? Nothing to say! ”

Li Chong looked at it, and felt a surge of anger, and he couldn't help but want to refute it several times, but he still didn't dare, and forced himself to suppress his anger. It turned out that the person who spoke was surnamed Zheng Mingyan, and the official was in the middle of the book, and he was a big favorite of the Empress Dowager Hu, who was so red and purple in the court, and his power covered the sky. The reason is simple--- this guy is beautiful, and he is called the Empress Dowager Hu to be the head of the face, and he lives in the palace day and night, and everyone knows it.

Zheng Yan, the big favorite minister, questioned Li Chong in a voice, and the words "The Queen Mother is in the court, the world is under great rule", the ministers of the palace are many corpses and vegetarians, which one is willing to meddle at this time? There was a sudden silence in the hall, and the needles could be heard.

Li Chong's face was blue and white for a while, and when he was embarrassed, someone opened his mouth again: "If what Li Qing said is true, can there be a countermeasure?" There was a commotion in the Taiji Palace, and the buzzing was more than doubled--- it turned out that the one who took over the topic was actually the puppet emperor Yuan Xu, who had not spoken at the court meeting for a long time!

Since the emperor spoke, Zheng Yan was arrogant again, and he didn't dare to make a mistake after all. Li Chong was secretly happy, hurriedly bowed to the top, and said loudly: "The old minister thinks about it, when the town is changed to a state, and the counties under its jurisdiction are no different from other states." All 'towns' are interpreted as commoners, and entry, promotion, and intermarriage are still the norm. With both civil and military use, both grace and power, the children of the six towns should be the minions of the country and defend the border with peace of mind. In this way, the country no longer has to worry about the north! ”

On the throne, Emperor Yuanxu's eyes flashed with a gleam, and the whole person suddenly became much more energetic. He straightened up, sat up straight, coughed lightly, and was about to open the mouth again...

At this moment, after hanging the curtain, the Empress Dowager Hu stood up suddenly, touched the bead curtain, and there was a loud noise, which was very harsh, and the ministers were quiet. Then the shrill female voice resounded in the hall again: "Just as Li Qing said... However, if you want to change all the border towns into prefectures and counties, and promote the town soldiers, where will the money come from? ”

Li Chong sweated profusely: "The treasury... ”

Zheng Yan lost no time in jumping out: "The general chased three thousand miles to the north, spent countless dollars, and the treasury was already empty!" ”

"I... Old minister... Li Chong's words were inconclusive.

There was a snort, and someone near the left laughed in a low voice: "Isn't Shang Shuling's family known as the richest man in Heluo?" Since this proposal is raised, why not use family resources to help the imperial court? This is Guangyang Wang Yuanyuan teasing Li Chong.

Li Chong was speechless--- he was kind to the official, he was decisive, but he was partial to good fortune, he was selling and accumulating, and his family had a huge amount of money, and he was still asking for it. Yuan Yuan said this, he was really speechless, even if Yuan Yuan himself was also a famous money fan in the court, and the money and cotton beads at home were piled up, which could not be counted...

For a moment, Li Chongzhen wanted to shout loudly: The old minister is willing to dedicate his family wealth and be determined to serve the country! It's a pity that a mouth has been open for a long time, and after all, I didn't spit out even half a word, and the white long beard trembled up and down with the shape of the mouth, and it was ridiculous to see what I couldn't say...

Smack! Emperor Yuanxu sat down in the throne in a dejected manner, withering as before, and there was no sound again.

"Scatter!" The bead curtain sounded again, and the Empress Dowager Hu swayed her temples and mist buns, and disappeared after disappearing into the palace. Zheng Yan's eyes are fiery, like a shadow...