After the Chinese officer finished reporting, there was a silence in the imperial tent, except for Chai Rong's face with an expression of "you are finally here", the other civil and military generals were all surprised, and their faces were full of expressions of "how is this possible". Immediately afterwards, the ministers ignored the rudeness in front of the king and discussed there. For a while, the royal tent was filled with noisy sounds.

However, after all, the tents were all important ministers of the imperial court, and after a short gaffe, everyone realized where they were, and they closed their mouths one after another, and the imperial tent gradually quieted down. As the noise faded away, everyone returned to their normal thinking, and many questions came to their minds - why did Xu Shaoan dare to return to Zhou Ying after committing the crime of bullying the king? What is his purpose here? What was the intention of the 800 cavalry and 4,000 infantry to go south? Is it to be detrimental to Zhou Jun?

Unlike the ministers who were guessing and thinking nonsense there, Chai Rong raised his eyebrows slightly when he first heard that the nearly 5,000 horse infantry troops of the "Qingyuan" private soldiers were going south in two ways, and there was no surprise or uneasy expression on his face, but he calmly looked at the Wenchen generals in the tent who were talking and hesitating. In his opinion, it is normal for Xu Shaoan to bring some people here. After all, the other party is guilty of defrauding the king, and it is not impossible to push him out and behead him if he gets angry at the moment - although a mentally healthy person will not make such a trouble-seeking decision in the current situation, Xu Shao'an should take precautions and make some preventive preparations. Therefore, Chai Rong did not think much of the 5,000 soldiers and horses behind Xu Shao'an, what he wanted to know most now was how Xu Shao'an would find a suitable excuse for him and his brothers to defend their behavior of deceiving himself and the imperial court - although it didn't matter whether Xu Shao'an could find a reasonable reason to defend himself, and he would not treat him and his brothers as well, but Chai Rong still wanted to hear Xu Shao'an talk about it, because only in this way could he understand what the other party wanted from him, And what can I give myself?

The peace and composure on Chai Rong's face also affected the civil and military forces in the imperial tent, and everyone's originally somewhat uneasy thoughts slowly calmed down. At this moment, the guards outside the door entered the tent and announced: the vanguard commander, the "Shenji Army" commander, and the Yunlu general Xu Shaoan asked to see him outside the tent.

Chai Rong, who had been waiting for Xu Shao'an's arrival for a long time, naturally immediately issued an order to summon him. There was not much time, Xu Shao'an walked into the imperial tent in a military uniform, and knelt on the ground before coming to Chai Rong's imperial case, and bowed: "The ministers and pioneers are all commanding envoys, the 'Shenji Army' are all commanding envoys, and the Yunlu general Xu Shao'an knocks on Bixia, long live my emperor, long live my emperor." ”

Chai Rong calmly accepted Xu Shao'an's gift on the throne, but he didn't tell him to get up immediately, but asked in a deep voice: "Xu Shao'an, can you be guilty?" ”

"The minister is guilty." Xu Shaoan replied very dryly.

"Tell me, then, what sin thou hast committed?" Chai Rong continued to ask knowingly.

Xu Shaoan replied calmly: "First, in the past few years, the minister knew that the minister's brothers were secretly developing Liliang and recruiting troops and horses, not only did not disclose the true situation to Bixia, but also deceived Bixia with false news, committing the crime of not reporting it and deceiving the king.

Second, the minister clearly knew that the minister's brothers had already set up a formation around the Khitan camp, and when the time came, they launched a surprise attack on the Khitans and wiped out the main force of the Youyun Khitan soldiers and horses in one fell swoop, but they pretended not to know, and they also committed the crime of knowing and not reporting.

Third, yesterday, the minister obviously went to join up with the minister's brother in the mountains and command the battle against the Khitans together, but he lied to Bixia that he was going to contact the minister's brother to provide food and grass for the army, so as to take the opportunity to leave the camp, and he also committed the crime of deceiving the king.

As an official of the imperial court, the minister is deeply favored by the emperor, but he makes mistakes again and again, which is really undeserved. Today's minister's return to the camp is to ask Bixia to govern the sins of the ministers, and ask Bixia to deal with the ministers according to the laws of the court, so as to show the power of Bixia and the law of the court. ”

Xu Shaoan listed his "sins" one by one there, and very sincerely asked Chai Rong to punish himself. If you don't know the details of Xu Shao'an, and don't know that Xu Shao'an has brought more than 100 personal guards into the camp, there are nearly 4,000 troops waiting in a formation not far from the camp, but I am afraid that including Chai Rong, everyone present will praise Xu Shao'an, "Dare to act, he is really a man." It's a pity that everyone present understands that Xu Shao'an is just making a gesture by saying this, or to give the official family and the court some face, so that when the court does not punish him or only deals with it symbolically, he can also find an excuse for himself -- a good attitude of "admitting guilt" can also be used as a reason for a lighter punishment. …,

Chai Rong naturally understood Xu Shao'an's intentions, but he was not in a hurry to give advice on the "illegal behavior" of Xu Shao'an and the "Qingyuan" brothers, and he still had many things to answer from Xu Shao'an before that. Therefore, he did not answer Xu Shao'an's request for self-disposition, but changed the topic and asked: "Xu Shao'an, you and your brothers, as officials of the court and important ministers of the country, are deeply favored by the emperor but have repeatedly done things that violate the laws of the imperial court. I really don't understand, why do you still do this when you are already a high-ranking official and a prosperous person. ”

Xu Shaoan replied with a bitter face: "Qiqi Bixia, the reason why the ministers and the minister's brothers will do those things that deceive the king and violate the law is really unbearable. ”

"Bitter? If you have any troubles, tell me what you want. If what I say is reasonable, I will forgive you for your sins. Chai Rong was very cooperative with Xu Shaoan's words, as if he was playing a rival with Xu Shaoan.

Xu Shao'an slightly organized the wording and replied: "Don't hide it, because the ministers and their brothers have experienced too many disasters and misfortunes in the process of returning to Middle-earth, so before we set foot on Middle-earth, all we want is to be able to live in peace and stability in the homeland of the Central Plains, do business happily, and enjoy the blessings comfortably, and there is nothing else to ask for." Who would have thought that the place where our brothers landed was the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun under the rule of the Khitan foreigners. There, no matter what kind of origin, what kind of status, and what kind of wealth the Han people have, they will always be one level lower than the Khitans. It is said that they are powerless and powerless ordinary people, even those once prominent families and wealthy businessmen, but in front of the Khitans, they are just lambs to be slaughtered by them. Far from it, just to say that the local Han Zhong Youpeng, who helped our brothers through the most difficult days when they first arrived in Middle-earth, is an example.

Zhong Yuanwai's original surname was Lu, which was a branch of the Fanyang Lu family, and his family was also prominent and beautiful in Youzhou. But just a few years ago, just because Xiao Siwen, who was left behind in Khitan Nanjing, coveted the wealth of his clan, he gave Fanyang Lu an charge of collaborating with the enemy and plotting rebellion. It's just that although the crime was cleared and his life was safe, he also ended up with a miserable end of losing his official position and having to change his name and surname.

Our brothers have been with Zhong Yuanwai for a long time, and they have empathized with his plight, and have vowed never to allow such a situation to happen to our brothers. Therefore, after our brothers had earned their first money on their own, they began to put to good use all that we had learned abroad. On the one hand, he accumulated money by doing business, established his own connections by making friends with local Han Chinese, and obtained necessary protection by bribing Khitan officials. On the other hand, our brothers invested enormous manpower, material and financial resources to recruit troops and horses, to establish their own private troops, the "Wyvern Army", and equip them with firearms that Middle-earth had never seen before, so that they could protect themselves in the event of danger.

After that, considering that our brothers may have to confront the Khitan government in the future, even if they can rely on their private soldiers to deal with the government and rely on the high walls and deep bases to win a temporary respite, but they are ultimately in a weak position in such a confrontation, the Khitan government may not be able to arrest our brothers for questioning, but our brothers can also not get rid of passivity, and in the face of the Khitan government that occupies an absolute advantage, our brothers can only be trapped to death in the end. In order to find a way out for themselves, and also for the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun to get rid of the ravages of the Khitans as soon as possible and return to the rule of our Central Plains Imperial Court, our brothers have carefully considered and borrowed the introduction of the old immortal of Master Tai to help the old immortals, and in the third year of Xiande, they ventured south to the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty to meet Bixia. In this way, our brothers were able to see the sky and express their intention to serve the imperial court, find a way back for themselves when they were in a difficult situation in Youzhou, and borrow firearms to enhance the imperial court's military strength, so that the imperial court could go on a northern expedition as soon as possible and rescue our brothers and the people of Youyun from the hands of the Khitans. It can be described as killing two birds with one stone, and the harvest is quite fruitful.

If the matter ends here, and our brothers patiently wait for the king's northern expedition in Youzhou, then the kind of joyful and relaxed life that we have always longed for before will be just around the corner. However, as our brothers' business grew larger and larger, and as more and more land was purchased, the number of farmers, tenants, shopkeepers, and craftsmen who worked for our brothers also increased. And the increase in the number of farm shops and pit workshops means that our brothers need to invest more manpower to operate, manage, maintain, and protect. As a result, the number of private soldiers we recruited increased. As the number of private soldiers grew, so did the amount of money and rice they needed, so in order to minimize the expenditure on food, our brothers had to work on their weapons, in order to make up for the shortage of manpower with sharp weapons, and to save more money for more important things. …,

The reason why the minister did not report the recruitment of private soldiers to Bixia is that our brothers recruited private soldiers only to protect their family property and net worth when needed, which is the same reason as the big families and wealthy businessmen who support their families and homes, so our brothers think that there is no need to disturb Bixia because of such private matters. Second, although there are many private soldiers recruited by our brothers, most of them are arranged in various industries in the sixteen states of Youyun that have not yet been included in the imperial court, and only dozens of relatives and guards are stationed in the minister's mansion in the territory of the Great Zhou, and their number does not exceed the limit of the imperial court, and it is reasonable that the minister did not make it clear to Bixia. Moreover, before our army's Northern Expedition, the minister also proposed to Bixia that he hoped to help the court with his own private soldiers and make some modest efforts to recover Youyun. From this point of view, in the matter of recruiting private soldiers, in fact, it is not a deception.

As for our brothers' mobilization of private troops to besiege the Khitan army, it was entirely because the imperial soldiers and horses confronted the Khitan army at Baoxingzhuang, and it was difficult to distinguish the winner for a while, and the Khitan 100,000 reinforcements had already advanced to the left of Yuguan, and they would soon cross the Great Wall and go south. At that time, even if the imperial court soldiers and horses can defeat the Khitan army, the states in front of the mountain will also be devastated, and the gentry and common people will suffer greatly. Therefore, for the sake of their own property and the lives of the gentry and the common people of Youyun, our brothers dispatched troops in order to defeat the Khitan army of Baoxingzhuang in the shortest possible time, and then moved north to block the Khitan reinforcements from the Great Wall, so that the states in front of the mountains would be protected from war and the gentry and people would be kept away from disasters. However, the minister did not disclose the true number of the 'Qingyuan' private soldiers, and left the Zhou army camp before the siege began, firstly, because he was ordered by several brothers to participate in the command of this battle, and must go up the mountain to join the other brothers; second, to ensure that the news about the imminent siege of the Khitan army by the 'Qingyuan' private soldiers would not be leaked, and to ensure that this battle could be hit with one blow and wipe out the main force of the Youyun Khitan army, so that the 'Qingyuan' private soldiers could concentrate on dealing with the 100,000 Khitan reinforcements. After all, if the minister reported the siege of Bixia in advance, the imperial army would inevitably be prepared, and any movement on the side of the Zhou army camp might attract the attention of the Khitans, thus bringing unnecessary trouble to the siege of the 'Qingyuan' private soldiers. ”

Xu Shao'an's reasonable speech not only explained the necessity for the "Qingyuan" brothers to secretly develop such a powerful strength, but also found a very good excuse for their behavior of hiding from Chai Rongduo. If we only look at his statement, he Xu Shaoan and other "Qingyuan" brothers are not only innocent, but should be rewarded and rewarded by the imperial court for completely annihilating the main force of the Youyun Liao army. Of course, the people present are all "old fritters" who have been in the officialdom for many years, and naturally they will not believe everything he said because of Xu Shaoan's generous statement, let alone regard Xu Shaoan and the "Qingyuan" brothers as loyal and righteous people who are committed to the court and seek the well-being of the people. In their opinion, although some of Xu Shaoan's words are indeed true, there is also no lack of lies used to cover up and whitewash. It can be said that the biggest effect of these words is not to tell everyone the truth, but to give the official family and the imperial court a step down, so that the official family can have a reasonable excuse when they are not guilty or lenient.

However, most of the courtiers present pretended to be confused, not only did they not stand up and accuse Xu Shao'an of the untruths and incomprehensibility in his statement, but kept nodding their heads in agreement. Among the ministers, only Zhang Yongde, who has been secretly taking the "Qingyuan" brothers as opponents, expressed his disdain for Xu Shaoan's remarks, and said sarcastically after Xu Shaoan finished speaking: "General Xu's eloquence is really good, and a matter of deceiving the official family and violating the laws of the court was told by the general, but it almost became a righteous act of the 'Qingyuan' brothers to endure humiliation, secretly accumulate strength, and help the court at a critical moment." Hmph, it's really impressive. -- With the current situation, Zhang Yongde can only use his ability to speak his tongue, and he will never disregard the safety of himself and others to have a more fierce conflict with Xu Shaoan.

Although Zhang Yongde's words were harsh, they would not have any impact on Xu Shaoan and the subsequent development of this matter. Therefore, when Xu Shaoan heard this, he neither refuted nor showed any displeasure, but smiled very generously, not taking it seriously at all. And Chai Rong, who was sitting on the throne, didn't seem to hear it at all, and didn't pay any attention to the meaning of Zhang Yongde's words, he first nodded, expressing his approval of Xu Shao'an's words, but said with a serious expression: "It seems that Xu Aiqing and Aiqing's brothers deceived me and did so many things that violated the laws of the imperial court. It's just that the heavenly family has the majesty of the heavenly family, and the imperial court has the laws of the imperial court, although what Xu Aiqing and Aiqing's brothers did is excusable, but the sin is unforgivable. and dismiss thy vanguard from command; You will be dismissed from the post of commander of the 'Shenji Army,' and the 'Shenji Army' will be relocated to Yu Hou, and you will be stripped of the rank of general of the third rank of Yunlu, and you will be relocated to the rank of general of the fourth rank of Zhuangwu, and you will be fined for one year. As for your brothers, they will be demoted by two ranks, and fined for half a year. ”

Demotion and punishment are the proper meaning of the question, and Xu Shaoan naturally has no opinions. He calmly listened to Chai Rong's will, and then Xiangshang said, "The ministers are grateful." ”

After Xu Shao'an's salute was finished, Chai Rong said: "Of course, merit is merit, and fault is fault." I have always had clear rewards and punishments, and Aiqing and Aiqing's brothers had to be punished for their past mistakes, but this time Aiqing, the main force of the Youyun Khitan Army, and Aiqing's brothers have made great contributions, and I will also reward them. It's just that now that the war in Youyun is in full swing, Aiqing and Aiqing's brothers are likely to make new contributions. Therefore, after the war in Youyun subsides, it is not too late for me to reward Aiqing and Aiqing's brothers for their meritorious deeds. ”

"Brothers of the ministers, thank you for your grace." Xu Shaoan saluted and thanked again.

"Aiqing, hurry up." The play that should be played is finished, so that Xu Shaoan knelt for a long time, Chai Rong also took a breath, and at this time he naturally wanted to show the king's compassion for the courtiers.