Chapter 21: The Aristocratic Family's Gate

  "My dear officials, the Broken Army Camp has achieved such a great merit. What do you think I should reward them with? Especially Chen Broken Army, who is the first to conquer Liaodong this time. I must reward him handsomely." Yang Guang returned to his throne and stroked his long beard, asking the ministers below. At this moment, he had lost half of his previous anxiety, and his heart was full of confidence in the certain victory of the Eastern Expedition against Goguryeo.

  Pei Shigui and Pei Yun, both of whom were leaders of the Pei clan, exchanged a subtle glance, and both had an idea in mind. Pei Shigui stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I think that General Chen not only has bravery that inspires the three armies, but also understands military strategy and tactics. Such a precious talent should be given a high position, always by Your Majesty's side, to protect you. I believe that General Chen this time not only defeated an enemy army of over 10,000 people, but also captured nearly 20,000 enemies, and took down a strong city. Not to mention that he also secured precious grain and military equipment for our army, worth over 200,000, and even captured one of the princes of Goguryeo who commanded an army. I think that such achievements should be rewarded with the position of Jinzi Guanglu Daifu."

  As soon as Pei Shijie's words fell, several high-ranking officials in the account shook their heads, especially Su Wei, a veteran politician in his eighties, who sighed inwardly. It seems that Chen Pogun, who made great contributions today, is envied by others. This Jinzi Guanglu Daifu is a third-grade official position, which is equivalent to the level of the twelve guards and four major generals. However, those who know the truth all know that it's not that simple, and there are big problems hidden inside.

  The Sui dynasty's official system largely followed the Northern Zhou system, with officials having specific duties being called duty officials, and those without specific duties being called scattered officials. They were specifically used to grant to those virtuous and renowned civil and military officials, but these official positions were all non-administrative, that is, idle positions.

  In the third year of Dà Yè, the emperor changed many official systems, merging the original 16-grade officials and 11-grade meritorious officials. The merged scattered officials were also divided into nine products, with the highest being the Guanglu Daifu of Zhengyi Pin, and the lowest being the Lixinwei of Jiu Pin. Now, Pei Shijie's Jinzi Guanglu Daifu is the fourth-ranked Zheng Sanpin scattered official title, which sounds good but has no real job at all. Putting it in later generations, it's like a municipal party secretary who was doing well and suddenly got promoted to deputy director of the provincial people's congress. One is a substantive position, and the other is an idle job in a nursing home, indicating retirement from the second line.

  Now Pei Shijie's plan is to temporarily put Chen Kefu on ice before it's clear whether he can be used for himself. A clever move, demoting him from a general with real power to an idle advisory position that only follows the emperor every day. If they can tame Chen Kefu and make him their own, then let him lead the army again later.

  Yuwen Shu, on the other hand, had always remembered that Chen Kui was nominally his subordinate and had been thinking of ways to win him over. Moreover, he had never gotten along with Pei Xuan, and now seeing Pei Shi's intention to set a trap, he immediately stood up.

  "Your Majesty, I think Chen Kefu, although he has achieved great merit this time, has only won a single battle. Considering the greatness of our Sui dynasty, Your Majesty's military achievements are renowned, with numerous conquests and victories in the south and north. Now, Chen Kefu has only just captured a small city, if Your Majesty rewards him with a high-ranking official position of the third grade, what will you do if he wins another victory? Moreover, Chen Kefu is only 23 years old this year, too young, it's better for Your Majesty to let him temper himself further, and in the future, he will surely achieve new merits for our great Sui dynasty."

  Yuwen Shu was also very clever, without directly saying that the Golden Purple Light Grand Master was a idle position. Instead, he said the opposite, saying that the official position given was too high and the person was too young, which was not suitable. Let's promote him slowly and give him a smaller position.

  However, once he spoke out, all the officials understood his meaning. Yang Guang stroked his beard and smiled, "The position of Jinzi Guanglu Daifu is indeed not very suitable, does General Yuwen have any good suggestions?"

  "Your Majesty, now that our great army is marching east to conquer Goguryeo, we need a fierce and wise general like Chen Kefu. Coincidentally, the position of Left Wing Guard General has been vacant for some time, and Chen Kefu happens to be from my Left Wing Guard. Why not appoint him as the Left Wing Guard General? This would demonstrate Your Majesty's great benevolence and not waste his talent. With Chen Kefu as my Left Wing Guard General, I am sure that my Left Wing Guard will achieve new merits for Your Majesty."

  Many officials were shocked by Yuwen Shu's words and whispered to each other. Just now, Pei Shimou had mentioned a third-grade official position, but no one took it seriously, because even if the emperor really granted Chen Kefu that official position, it would only be an honorary position, except for being able to receive more salary, there was no significance. However, this Left Wing Guard General position is not an idle position.

  The Sui dynasty had 12 guards and 4 garrisons, collectively known as the 16 Guards. Each guard had one Grand General, two Generals, four Wu Biao Lang Jiang, and six Wu Ya Lang Jiang. The Grand General was equivalent to a military district commander, a third-grade official ranking just below the Prime Minister. The two Generals were equivalent to a military district chief of staff or political commissar, also third-grade officials. The Wu Biao Lang Jiang, equivalent to an army corps commander, was a fourth-grade official, while the six Wu Ya Lang Jiang, equivalent to deputy army commanders, were fifth-grade officials.

  Chen Kefu was originally a Yingyang Langjiang, which is a fifth-grade official, estimated to be equivalent to a division-level commander. That's still below the fourth-grade Wuyalang Jiang, but now Yuwen Shu directly proposed to promote Chen Kefu as the Chief of Staff of the Military Region, which is a three-level promotion! Moreover, such a position is generally equivalent to being a reserve for the position of General-in-Chief, and the next step would be to take over the position of General-in-Chief.

  A positive third-rank Jinzi Guanglu Daifu is the kind that stays at home drinking tea and waiting for death, while a third-rank Zuo Huwei Jiangjun is the second-in-command of the Zuo Huwei, one of the sixteen Wei Fu in the country, with troops accounting for about one-twelfth of the country's total. Although it's not yet his call, it's almost his call.

  If it were just a minor official being promoted three ranks, no one would say anything. After all, the emperor favors him. However, someone equivalent to a mid-ranking provincial governor, a fifth-grade official, suddenly gets promoted three ranks and becomes an official of the same rank as the Secretary of the Secretariat, one of the central government's three departments, which makes many officials in the imperial court who have spent their entire lives without achieving even a third-grade rank extremely dissatisfied.

  However, Yang Guang seemed to feel that there was nothing wrong with this place at all, and nodded his head, saying, "Minister Yuwen has spoken very reasonably!"

  Now, everyone understood the emperor's meaning. Since the establishment of Sui, starting from the previous emperor, the emperor has been constantly suppressing the aristocratic families. Not only was the nine-rank system abolished, but also a civil service examination that gave all commoners an opportunity to become officials was created. Moreover, Yang Guang often promoted some commoner scholars beyond their rank. For example, Shen Guang, who was promoted to the fifth rank of Wu Yonglang yesterday, was not an exception. Now it seems that the emperor had his heart set on promoting this young man with no background. Earlier, he just borrowed Yuwen's words to express his intention. At this time, everyone could only envy and resent Chen Kefu, who had been lucky twice, and there was nothing more to say.

  Pei Yun and Pei Shi Kui exchanged a look, both feeling somewhat resentful. If things were really going to end like this, then Chen Ke Fu would definitely harbor resentment towards them in the future, and might even turn against them and side with their arch-enemy, the Yuwen family - something they could not tolerate.

  "Your Majesty, I think that although the defeat of the enemy camp was a great achievement, our own casualties were also significant, with over a third of our troops lost. It's not suitable to continue keeping them stationed outside to guard the new city. To reward the soldiers who fought bravely in the defeated army camp, why not let General Pei Renji, the Grand Master of Remonstrance and the Left Wuwei General, lead his troops to replace them? And have General Chen Kefu lead his troops to escort the captured grain and equipment back to the main camp. Moreover, although General Chen is brave, he's still too young. I think it's not quite suitable for him to hold the position of Left Wing Guard General. Why not promote him to the rank of Deputy General of the Left Bodyguard Office, let him command the elite troops, and guard Your Majesty's side? This way, he can also learn some military strategies and tactics from Your Majesty over time. If you think this reward is too light, Your Majesty can add the title of Silver Blue Light Lu Master of the Third Rank, and grant him more gold, land, and slaves to show the emperor's generosity."

  Pei Yun's thoughts were simple, even if he couldn't stop the emperor from rewarding Chen Kui, he couldn't let him join his rival's camp. He directly promoted him to be the Zuo Bei Shu Fu's Zhē Chōng Láng Jiàng, the Left Bodyguard Office was the imperial guard beside the emperor and did not command troops. This also served as a way to prevent him from joining forces with Yuwen Shu.

  Yang Guang sat on the throne and swept his eyes over the various generals in the account, and he was also very satisfied with this proposal. In this way, Chen Kefu would be completely by his side, and he could cultivate this powerful general who had no foundation or backing into his confidant. Yuwen Shu was also considered one of his confidants, but the power of the Yuwen family was now a bit too great, and he had to guard against some things. If Chen Kefu hadn't come from a poor background, if he had been born into a noble family, Yang Guang would have even considered marrying his 13-year-old second daughter to Chen Kefu. However, thinking about Chen Kefu's background, Yang Guang gave up on that idea. When the emperor's daughter married, more consideration was given to political interests and alliances rather than being so casual.

  "Very well, the Eagle General Chen has broken through the enemy's camp and demonstrated exceptional bravery throughout the three armies. His intelligence surpasses that of others. With 3,000 soldiers, he defeated an army of 10,000 men, captured a large city, obtained 10,000 horses and cattle, over 200,000 stones of grain, countless equipment, and several tens of thousands of people. I am extremely pleased. Now, I specially appoint him as the Silver Blue Light Lu Daifu of the third rank, the Left Bodyguard General of the fourth rank, and grant him a mansion in the Eastern Capital, 1,000 taels of gold, 10,000 strings of cash, 100 mu of land, and 100 slaves. Order the Eagle General to immediately send all captives from the new city, including people from Goguryeo, military equipment, and grain back to the main camp. All soldiers in the Eagle General's camp will be promoted one rank, with officers above the rank of team leader being rewarded with 500 strings of cash and 100 mu of land. Soldiers below the rank of team leader will be rewarded with 100 strings of cash and 20 mu of land. Those who have made contributions will be appointed as team leaders or deputy team leaders. The 3,000 soldiers from the Eagle General's camp will all be transferred to the Left Bodyguard General's office, still under Chen's command."

  All the ministers who heard this reward were envious, not only did Chen Kefu receive a generous reward, but the entire Broken Army Camp also received a generous reward. When Pei and his wife heard that the three thousand soldiers still belonged to Chen Pojun's command, although they were still unhappy in their hearts, these three thousand people originally belonged to the Left Wing Guard, which was equivalent to taking away three thousand elite soldiers from Yuwen Shu at once, and their hearts balanced a lot. They didn't gain an advantage, but at least Yuwen Shu was more unlucky, losing his wife and three thousand soldiers directly.

  Vote for me to continue rushing up the chart.....