The next day, Deng She woke up in the morning, refreshed. Pulling open the crystal curtain hanging next to the bed, I saw the sun shining outside the window, and I put it indoors, and the case was clear.

Because she was too tired last night, Mrs. Wang hadn't woken up yet. Deng She didn't want to alarm her, and he was not in a hurry to get out of bed, holding his head, and first admiring the beauty of the beautiful woman sleeping soundly. But seeing his jade wrist pillow fragrant cheeks, sideburns and red face, about the night charcoal fire is too strong, a little too hot, only with brocade is covered half of the body, two pretty bare legs and half-bent fine breasts that can be held by people, are exposed, and the corners of the mouth are full of a satisfied smile. The things of men and women, also called Wushan clouds and rain, are as expensive as oil as spring rain, sneaking into the night with the wind, moisturizing things silently. After a night of clouds and rain, look at this Mrs. Wang, the fruit is different from usual, although it is in a dream, the jade body under the mandarin duck brocade is horizontal, and there is a charming and attractive taste.

Deng She looked at it for a long time, and then got out of bed lightly. The maids heard the commotion and hurried in to wash and dress.

Last night, Mrs. Wang was particularly sensitive, easy to be emotional, and always difficult to control when she was in dire straits and confused, or * again and again, or begged for mercy, all kinds of things, and the movement was not small. Although the maids who are now serving Deng She to get up are not the two who stayed in the room at the time, they have all heard about it.

They can be Deng She's maids-in-waiting, but they are not very old, and they are easy to be shy and curious. While serving Deng She to dress, his cheeks were flushed with shame, and he didn't dare to raise his head, but he couldn't restrain his curiosity, and from time to time he glanced at Mrs. Wang on the bed. He thought that Deng She didn't pay attention, but he didn't expect that he had already seen all these small movements.

Deng She was amused in his heart, pretending not to know. There were not many maids in his house to serve, only fifty or sixty. Compared with when Wang Shicheng was there, it can be said that it is much inferior.

Wang Shicheng is so beautiful, there are dozens of concubines alone, and the maidservants are even more conceivable, not to mention hundreds. After Deng She entered the main Yidu, he specially ordered people to select Wang Shicheng's concubines and maids who were young and beautiful, or had a skill, and left some of them for their own use, and the rest were all rewarded to the civil and military ministers who had made meritorious contributions.

Concubines and maids have no status, and this is the case in all dynasties, even in prosperous times such as the Tang and Song dynasties, among Sven scholars, it is still a matter of grace to transfer concubines. Not to mention the troubled times? And, now in the eyes of others, Deng She is also a first-class "hero". Beautiful women, if they are placed in the eyes of those who pity the fragrance and cherish the jade, they may be "the fairy of the nine heavens descending to the earth", and they should be pampered. However, in the eyes of the "heroes", they are just a thing that can be used to win people's hearts.

"How can a wife be a big deal, and the hero is helpless and amorous." If you are amorous, how can you call it a "hero"? Even if it is like a "wife and son", it should not be cared about. Not to mention a little rouge woman? If you care too much, it's not good. It is precisely because of this that Deng She's unstingy behavior of rewarding meritorious heroes with Wang Shicheng's concubines and maids not only did not receive criticism, but also increased the reputation of "benevolent and loving people".

As for whether the women who were given away as goods would get a satisfactory life, it was only up to fate. Either Caesar or nothing. Their original master, Wang Shicheng, was still defeated and disappeared, and no one cared about him except for the soldiers who had been in charge of searching for him. How much more are they like accessories? It's good to be able to save your life.

Having said that, Mrs. Wang still had a good impression and admiration for Deng She at first, but now she has gradually become more dependent and flattering. Even last night, when he heard Deng She talk about the death of his step-ancestor, he didn't dare to show the slightest bit of affection, not only that, but he deliberately begged for pleasure. Why? That's exactly what happened.

There is also Li Aguan, who originally came from a high position and did not take Deng She in his eyes, but later took the initiative to abandon his husband who had knotted his hair, and willingly flattered him, low and low, and flattered him in all sorts of ways, just like a slave, in addition to coveting Deng She's power, but also part of the reason for this. Because, only by attaching to the strong can she ensure her prosperity and wealth.

As far as Deng She is concerned, of course he knows this.

If at the beginning, he was still a little disgusted and blamed himself. For example, Li Aguan and Mrs. Wang, who felt that they were snatching their wives, were very bad, and they were worried that they would hear the rumors and sarcasm of Confucian literati and feel uneasy. However, as time goes by, I have long become accustomed to it and do not care about it.

People change subtly.

Now, Li Aguan's generation flatters him, not only does he have no guilt, but he enjoys it with peace of mind. When he was comfortable serving, he gave him some jewels. If you get bored of it, just ignore it. It's like using your possessions to keep a plaything, so why not? Or if there is really someone who doesn't know how to advance and retreat, which annoys him very much, he doesn't beat or scold, so he simply gives it to his subordinates just like rewarding Wang Shicheng's concubine and maid to meritorious heroes. Kill two birds with one stone, and you can also spread his name of "generosity" again.

Why not?

Of course, perhaps it is not appropriate to compare Li Aguan with Mrs. Wang. In the end, Mrs. Wang had a good impression of Deng She first, and Deng She seemed to be more favored to her now than Li Aguan because of her flattery and beauty. That's only superficial, though. Fundamentally, his attitude towards the two of them is not very different. It's like two utensils, one rare and the other ordinary. Like the rare, human nature. However, the utensils are just utensils in the end.

In fact, if you really want to compare the daughters of Deng She's backyard with each other. Deng She's attitude towards Mrs. Wang, not to mention that compared with his attitude towards Luo Guannu, he was even inferior to Li Jixiu.

Luo Guannu is young, scheming, innocent and cute. When Deng She was opposite her, he always felt very relaxed. Li Jixiu is as her name suggests, and her background is that she was tragically disturbed by the war and became a concubine who accompanied her. At first in Liaoyang, when Guan Duo taught her to come to serve Deng She, Deng She didn't care much about her, and was even a little wary. But after learning about the misery of her life experience, and finding out that she didn't do anything like a secret report, the vigilance was gone, and it was inevitable that something strange would arise.

Li Jixiu has been clothed and fed since she was a child, she has never done any rough work, her body is well cherished, her complexion is particularly pale, and she looks like ice and snow from a distance. Because of the tragic changes and blows, he is introverted and dull, just like a wooden man.

Even when she was serving Dunshe, she didn't seem to understand the charm at all. Whatever Dunshe told her to do, she did without a word. Sometimes I show a little emotional change, such as in a dream at night, but I always look frightened, like a rabbit who has encountered a tiger wolf.

seems boring, but if it is matched with her life experience, coupled with her appearance, and her usual casual expression, it can often give Deng She an indescribable feeling. It's not love, it's not goodwill, it's a strong name, it seems to be called "pity". This kind of "pity" is different from the "pity" of "pity for the fragrance and cherish the jade". If you have to find a word to describe it, only "I see pity" is similar.

Everyone has soft corners in their hearts, and Dunsher is no exception. Perhaps, his strange feeling for Li Jixiu, this kind of "pity" comes from "softness".

Or, it was just because he subconsciously felt a little guilty about some things he had done to himself, such as agreeing to Hong Jixun's smuggling of Korean women, acquiescing to Li Ye's generals' wanton killing of prisoners, etc., so he wanted to seek peace of conscience by treating Li Jixiu well. What is the truth? Such a complex emotion, not to mention outsiders, is himself, I am afraid that it is also inexplicable.

Deng She looked at Mrs. Wang's sleeping state again, and temporarily suppressed the affairs of her children. Let the maid help him get dressed, and after washing, he ate a little breakfast, and then went to the front yard.

A guard has already come to report, and Hong Jixun and others have been waiting for a long time.

There are many things that need to be dealt with in a timely manner. Yesterday, it was discussed in the hall that Deng She and Hong Jixun only made a slight analysis of the gains and losses of this battle, and handed over the task of dealing with the aftermath in the city and caring for the people to the left and right Siluo Li Lang and Yidu prefect Yan Zhixi.

The military is more important than civilian.

Hong Jixun, as the right man of Haidong, although he is not the chief of the Privy Council, he has always been one of the masterminds of Haidong, and he actually bears the responsibility of the Privy Council. It is true that he does not have the authority to command the army, but the counselor of the military aircraft has never been incompatible. Planning before the war, dealing with it during the war, and summarizing it after the war, it has been like this since he defected to Deng She, and it can also be regarded as a common practice.

Because today's discussion of military affairs was decided after Deng She's discussion in the hall yesterday was dismissed. Therefore, in addition to Hong Jixun, there are also Monk Li, Bi Qianniu, Ju Sheng and others.

In addition, Ji Zongzhou, Zhang Yu and others are also there.

There are two of them, Ji Zongzhou is the right minister of Yidu Province, and Zhang Yu is the left and right division of Yidu. Ji Zongzhou is not enough, Zhang Yuben is not qualified to participate. But the fierce battle was over, and the strong enemy retreated, and Deng She, in order to stabilize the heart of the Yidu Department, was particularly gracious and allowed them to come together.

Deng She sat in the hall with drums, and everyone came in.

Headed by Hong Jixun, more than a dozen people knelt on the ground and made a great salute to the lord and ministers. Deng She smiled: "You are all my confidants, why be polite? Get up! Before talking about the matter, I asked Hong Jixun, "Yesterday we watched the camp in Chahan, and I ordered someone to draw it in detail. Is it done? ”

"The Chahan camp is too big, stretching for dozens of miles. And the camp it built is adapted to local conditions, so the camp style is different. Although the minister has already transferred many people to participate in the depiction, he is in a hurry, and it is estimated that it will be difficult to complete the drawing without three or two days. Please rest assured that after the painting is completed, you must first ask the lord to watch it. Then, according to the instructions of the lord, it was sent to the armies and military academies in various parts of Pyongyang for reference. ”

Deng She nodded, looked around at everyone, and said, "In the past few days, I have been fighting with the Tartars, and the princes have had a lot of hardships. The text is resourceful, and the martial arts are heroic. I saw it all. The reason why Chahan fought in vain and finally had to withdraw his troops was actually due to the strength of all of you. The ancients said: 'Punishment is to punish evil, reward is reward'. Today, I have summoned you here to discuss the matter of "rewarding" after the war. ”

After a pause, he said again: "Because Zhao Guo, Tong Shengyang, Zhang Ji'er, and Chen Yutou have not yet entered the city, so today, all of us are actually discussing a draft first." Ladies and gentlemen, you have all been through this battle from beginning to end, what should be the rules for this reward? If you have any suggestions, feel free to say them. ”

Zhao Guo is the Zuo Cheng of Yidu, and he also serves as the deputy of the Privy Council of Haidongxing, Tong Shengyang is now the Tongzhi of the Yidu Branch, Zhang Xiaoer is the same of the Haidong Branch, and Chen Yutou is the deputy of the Yidu Branch. They are the real Privy Councillors, and they should have the right to make recommendations on meritorious deeds.

So, why didn't Dunshe wait until they entered the city before they discussed? There are two reasons for this.

First, if the regulations for remuneration can be taken out as soon as possible, it can play a role in boosting morale and calming the morale of the army, and second, it is also a bit balanced.

Zhao Guo, Tong Shengyang, Zhang Xiao'er, and Chen Yutou were all generals who led the troops to fight and personally participated in the battle. It is not a strange thing to compete for merit, and it is commonplace.

If you really have to wait until that time, it is not very good to see their faces and thick necks fighting. And these few of them do have great merit. If they hand over the dispute to Deng She for adjudication, they are now collecting and employing people, and the generals have different factions and have their own mountains, and Deng She will ask himself, and it will be difficult to deal with it. For example, Chen Yutou's military system, Tong Sheng's Jurchen people, if they are not careful, they may be regarded by their subordinates as "favoring one over the other".

Hence today's advance discussion. Before the generals entered the city, the overall framework was laid down. Once the framework is established, even if the generals strive for merit, as long as they cannot get out of the scope stipulated in the charter, they will also not be able to get out of Deng She's control. Even if the generals were dissatisfied with the constitution, at most they were dissatisfied with the ministers who participated in the regulations, but they would never complain to Deng She. This can also be used as a form of power.

On the other hand, among the ministers who participated in the formulation of the statute, there were not without clever men, and one or two might guess what Dunsher meant. But even if you guess it, what can you do? As Deng She said: "You are all confidants. "People who are not valued by Dunshe are difficult to participate in this meeting. In other words, it is also an affirmation of their status in Haidong. I can't ask for it.

Hong Jixun glanced at everyone's eyes, stepped out of the train, and first said: "Since the independent public army, there have been no less than hundreds of large and small wars in Haidong. However, after counting the battles of Liaoxi, Shuangcheng, Liaoyang, and South Korea, there is really no tragic battle for Yidu.

"In this battle, there were Zhao Zuocheng, Monk Li, Chen Yutou, and Gao Yanshi, either defending the enemy outside the city, or sticking to the key pass. Later, there were Wen Pingzhang, Zhang Zhener, and Liu Yang, who either rushed to aid from Haidong, or shipped food and wages. Generous and fierce like Gao Yanshi, singing and crying like Chen Yutou, long-distance surprise attacks like Guo Conglong, and brave like Zhang Yan'er when encountering strength. There are also suggestions such as micro-ministers, such as Liu Shize, not afraid of danger such as Yang Xingjian, and such as Yan Zhixi in the city. Honesty can be said: loyal and brave. ”

"Giving advice is like a micro-minister", and only Hong Jixun can say this kind of thing. Liu Shize, the elder brother of Liu Shimin, the prefect of Tai'an, is the prefect of Laizhou. Guan Bao broke Laizhou, he refused to abandon the city and left, and died with the city. This news was not long after Deng She and others learned about it.

Yan Zhixi is the prefect of Yidu. The Chahan soldiers surrounded Yidu, and Deng She brought his courtiers to the city many times, but Yan Zhixi did not accompany him once. It was not because Deng She forgot to take him, but because he was responsible for pacifying the city, and he really couldn't leave. He has contributed a lot to the preservation of the benefits. Today, the military council was supposed to invite him here, but he was busy with the aftermath in the city, so he didn't have time to come.

Hong Jixun continued: "It's not just the civil and military who work together. The officers and men of the three armies also played a decisive role in this battle. Guo Conglong has Liu San, a small hundred households, who have sent letters to and from Wendeng and Yidu many times. Braving ice and snow, hundreds of miles, three days. Even outside the city, he regarded the encirclement of tens of thousands of troops as if there was nothing, and rode in and out lightly, his face was slow, and he did not change. Brave and commendable! It is expected that among the rest of the armies, there must be many such brave warriors.

"The ministers heard: 'Don't ignore their merits for their humble position, and don't ignore their faults for the sake of high rank. Although the merit is small, it must be rewarded, and although it is small, it must be responsible. It's what the Lord does. In this battle, the total number of casualties has not yet been counted, and only the two armies of Yidu and Zhang Ji'er suffered nearly 10,000 casualties. It can be seen that the total casualties are certainly not small.

Therefore, to sum up, the minister thinks that if the lord wants to be worthy of the name, the principles of the constitution can be three. First of all, the rewards need to be heavy. If it is not heavy, it will not be able to compensate for the tragedy of this battle. Second, the rewards need to be equal. If it is uneven, it will not be able to show the loyalty of the civil and military. Third, the rewards need to be widespread. If it is not wide, it will not be able to unite the military spirit of the soldiers.

"If we can do these three things, then although we have won a crushing victory in this battle in Haidong, the lord has just entered the Central Plains, and the reputation of being wise and promising, and rewarding and punishing properly will be able to be recited in the north and south because of it, and with a little push, I will be able to win the hearts of the warriors of the four seas and the admiration of the wise men of the world in one fell swoop." Lost in the east, harvested mulberry elm', that is, this meaning. ”

Hong Jixun was really extraordinary, and his first speech not only followed Deng She's words and summed up the three principles of the charter, but also further exerted it, pointing out the importance of this reward and expanding its political significance.

Deng She first entered the Central Plains. Although he is famous in Liaodong, in the end he is separated by the Bohai Sea, and because of the wars in various places, the news between Haidong and the interior is not smooth, except for a few people, most of the people of insight in Jiangnan and the north do not know much about him.

After the first battle of Yidu, his fame spread to the north and the south of the Yangtze River. Defeating Chahan shows military exploits. However, if you want to compete in the Central Plains, it is not enough to have military merits, and you must also show the "Ming Lord" demeanor to the people of the world. How to behave? The next act of reward is a great opportunity.

Deng She bowed his head and said, "Sir's words are exactly what I want. Asked Ji Zongzhou and the others, "What do you see?" Everyone said, "Mr. Hong is far-sighted and has a profound discussion." That's exactly how it should be. ”

"Sir, you said that there should be three principles of reward. From the heavy, from the level, from the wide. I understand both the front and back. From Ping, how from Ping? ”

Hong Jixun replied: "Congping, there are two more meanings. In this war, there are both civil and military meritorious personnel. Don't just focus on military exploits. If you are uneasy inside, how can you resist the enemy outside? For example, Liu Shize, Yang Xingjian and others, or generous and righteous, or supervising the city and fighting, their merits should be more worthy of attention.

"This is civil, military, and peaceful. It's one of them.

"The ministers look at the rewards of the lord in the past, and treat the ministers who have made meritorious contributions, and add more officials as rewards. In the past, when our Haidong Province was first established, there were many vacancies, and there were many vacancies. But now, most of the official positions with real power have been conferred, and most of the civil and military personnel who have made meritorious contributions this time have long been in high positions. As Wen Pingzhang, this time he led the reinforcements and saved me from Yidu, and he was the first of all the generals. However, he is already the official seal of the Korean province, and if it is according to the previous practice, it is really impossible to seal it. The minister thought that the practice of rewarding meritorious heroes seemed to be time to change.

"The former sages said: 'Officials are appointed with ability, and knights are rewarded with merit.'" This time, the official needs to be equal, which is the second also. ”

Wenhua is now the Pingzhang of the Korean province, and as Hong Jixun said, Deng She really can't be promoted to his official position anymore. Not only Wenhua State, but also Zhang Yan'er, now a marshal, the head town of Guanbei, in terms of military power, on the ground of North Korea, second only to Wenhua State, for the time being, there is no way to rise. In fact, not to mention that there is no way to be promoted, with the expansion of Haidong's territory, some official positions, especially prominent positions, even if they can be promoted, it is best not to be promoted. Why? "If you are not talented, it will be wasted, and the weight will be difficult to control."

So, what to do? Reward titles.

However, there is a difficulty. Deng She hesitated and said, "What Mr. said is true. But the lord did not have the right to knight me. He looked at the people in the hall, as if he had suddenly remembered the solution, and said happily, "Yes, let's discuss a list of rewards first, and then I will play with the court and ask the lord to decide." Very good! Very good! That's it. Ha ha. ”

Hong Jixun was unhappy, and said in a loud voice: "The lord's words are wrong! ”

Deng She was stunned and said, "The proposal to reward the lord is Mr. 's proposal. I followed my husband's advice and made such a decision. But why didn't the gentleman think so, and said it was wrong? Why? ”

"The minister's proposal to reward the lord is to ask the lord to reward the meritorious hero, but not to ask An Feng to reward the meritorious hero!" As soon as Hong Jixun's words came out, everyone in the hall changed color.

Deng Shegao sat in the hall, watched everyone's expressions, and said with a feigned smile: "Anfeng is where the imperial court is located, and the officials are added to the knighthood, and they are originally from the imperial court." I don't understand what Mr. said! ”

"Lile's expedition should have been for the imperial court. Chahan took Tianfeng's Jining Zhulu and re-attacked our Haidong Yidu and other places, but why didn't Anfeng see any expeditions? How can there be a conquest that doesn't matter what, and the soldiers of our three armies fight bloodily, but the reward for meritorious service comes from Anfeng's truth? The name is not right, the word is not good. ”

Hong Jixun stood up, turned to the hall, his eyes were blazing, he looked at the ministers, and asked, "May I ask you, dukes, are you fighting for An Feng in this battle?" Or is it for Haidong? ”