Military power secretly manipulated

  Military power secretly manipulated

  Mo Jingqi looked at the flattering officials below, nodded in satisfaction. Then he turned to Ye Li standing aside, hesitated for a moment and frowned: "General Leng and the Marquis of Nan's son are willing to take the lead, their bravery is commendable, I am very pleased. However, since the King is not in the capital now, we cannot hang the flag and go on an expedition, the tens of thousands of troops under the Wangfu banner cannot be mobilized. What does the Queen think?

  "Yelü Xiū's eyebrows rose slightly as she looked up at Mo Jingqi and said calmly, 'Your Majesty, please excuse me, but what opinion could a mere woman like Yelü possibly have?'"

  "The Queen is being overly self-deprecating, who doesn't know that the mistress of the Ding Kingdom's royal family also has the right to command and deploy the Mo Family Army and the Black Cloud Cavalry? Now that the Xiling Great Army has invaded our borders, are the Queen and the Ding Kingdom going to sit back and do nothing?" The young man standing behind Mo Jingqi said with a sinister tone.

  Ye Li sneered inwardly, what a big hat! She glanced at the man and was about to speak when Hua Guo Gong suddenly stepped forward, staring at the young man with a stern expression: "How dare you! Who are you to stir up trouble between His Majesty and the King of Ding's royal family?!" Although Hua Lao Guo Gong had been through many battles over the years and was now old, he still had a sharp mind.

  Can the majestic momentum of a great man be something that a young person can sell? The young man was taken aback, his face stiffened for a moment before he bowed to Lord Hua and said: "Student Tan Jizhi has seen Lord Hua."

  The Duke of Hua looked at Mo Jingqi with a hint of dissatisfaction, and Mo Jingqi smiled: "Old Duke, please don't get angry. Next is a young talent with great learning, I'm thinking of granting him the position of Imperial Study Room, so he can serve the country." The Duke of Hua bowed to Mo Jingqi and stroked his white beard, saying loudly: "Your Majesty's words are really beyond my comprehension...

  Tan Gongzi has talent and learning, why not go to participate in the imperial examination? If he got a champion's title, when the emperor reused him, no one would be able to say anything. The Imperial Study is an important position in front of the emperor, giving it to someone who hasn't even been heard of before will make it hard for people to accept." Mo Jingqi and the young man also felt somewhat embarrassed, not because they didn't want to take the normal path, but because the imperial examination was a road

  The road is not as easy to walk. Especially this year's imperial examination, without mentioning that the chief examiner is Mr. Su, a man of great integrity and honesty in Da Chu, just saying that three out of five sons of the Xu family have been eliminated from the exam in recent years. Tan Jizhi has spent a lot of time studying and plotting, to be honest, he doesn't have much confidence in the imperial examination. Even if he really passes the exam, unless he is one of the top three winners, it's likely that

  Even if he wasn't demoted, at most he would be a sixth or seventh rank official, and it's impossible for him to hold such an important position as the Imperial Study Room. Originally, when the Emperor wanted to promote one of his trusted officials, no one would interfere, but Tan Jiye made a mistake by stirring up trouble between the Emperor and the Ding Wangfu at this time, which naturally made Hu Lao Guogong, who was devoted to the country, look

  He was extremely displeased and would never consider giving him any face-saving opportunities.

  Mo Jingqi coughed lightly and said, "Old Guogong, let's discuss this matter later. For now, the most important thing is the deployment of troops. With Ding Wang not present, the Mo family army of several hundred thousand cannot be mobilized, what should we do?"

  Hua Guo Gong originally didn't really want to make the Emperor lose face, so he also cooperated and said: "Ding Wang will definitely rush back as soon as he receives the news. Before that, Your Majesty, why not first mobilize troops from other places to provide support?"

  Mo Jingqi shook his head and sighed, "The old national grandfather also knows that the south is now facing off against King Li, and outside the Broken Snow Pass, the Nan people are eyeing them covetously. Where can we spare troops from elsewhere?"

  Huaguogong's expression changed slightly, his snow-white eyebrows moved and he stopped speaking. The emperor's thoughts were not beyond his understanding, but taking advantage of Ding Wang's absence to make things difficult for Ding Wangfei, even disregarding the safety of the border, was really not something a qualified emperor should do. Muyang Hou stepped forward and said: "Since Ding Wangfei can mobilize the Mohist army and the Black Cloud Riders, please ask Ding Wang

  The princess prioritized the overall situation and ordered the Mo family army to immediately rush to the border to provide support.

  Ye Li raised her head and glanced at Marquis Muoyang with a calm gaze, saying softly: "Marquis Muoyang means that I should replace the King to lead the army in battle?"

  Marquis Mu Yang choked, since ancient times, even if there were one or two female generals, there has never been a woman as the commander-in-chief leading troops into battle. Moreover, Princess Dingguo is only in her teens, and even if she does nothing now, no one can criticize her. On the contrary, if Princess Dingguo really takes command of the army, it would be a loss of face for Da Chu and these military generals.

  Marquis Mu Yang dodged Ye Li's gaze and said, "I didn't mean it that way, I just ask the princess to prioritize state affairs."

  On the other side, Liu Chengxiang also stroked his white beard and smiled: "The king is right, please, Queen Wang, for the sake of the people and soldiers on the border, temporarily hand over the command of the Mo family army to the leading general. When King Ding returns, everything will be restored to its original state."

  The sarcasm in Ye Li's eyes couldn't be concealed any longer, waiting for Ding Wang to return and restore the Zhao family's honor? Did she think he was an idiot?

  Yelü's eyes narrowed slightly, and she raised her head to smile: "Prime Minister, you're making me feel a bit uneasy. Let's not talk about whether I can mobilize the Mo family army or not. Are you saying that... as long as I say one word, the military power of the Mo family can be transferred to anyone? I'm afraid even if the king himself were to come, it would still be impossible." Mu Jingqi's face turned slightly red

  Chen frowned and said: "What good idea does the queen have? Should we just let the Xiling army ravage and even invade our Great Chu territory?"

  Ye Lixi couldn't help but want to slap the man sitting on the dragon throne, staring at her with his hypocritical words. Was she supposed to just let the Western Hill army run amok in Great Chu if she didn't agree? She finally understood why Mo Jingqi had been acting so calm these past few days - it was because he wanted to take advantage of Mo Xiuyao's absence to seize control of the Mo family's military power. He wasn't being calm, but rather, from his perspective, things were still under his control.

  The Xiling army outside the border didn't have to look far to see that the Dingwangfu's military power was even more urgent. However, Ye Li was somewhat puzzled as to where Mo Jingqi got his confidence from, thinking that as long as he got the military power of Dingwangfu, he could manipulate it freely and even drive away Xiling? Did he not consider at all that if he wasn't careful, there might be a mutiny?

  Ye Li lowered her head and said: "As a woman of the Ye family, I really don't have any good ideas to offer for Your Majesty's reference. Please forgive me."

  The Emperor's brow furrowed, somewhat anxiously saying: "Your Majesty, since the military power of the Dingguo King's mansion is uncertain for the time being, please quickly declare the return of the Dingguo King to the capital... no, directly lead the troops to the border would be better. Moreover, this old minister remembers that our great Chu has over a million soldiers, excluding the Mohist army and the southern and Li Wang armies facing off, at least 100,000 more troops can be mobilized to support the border. Please, Your Majesty, first dispatch some troops to take the lead." Mo Jingqi was somewhat unwilling in his heart, but Hua Guogong's words were not easy to refute, and just as he was hesitating, Nan Hou Shangqian, who had not spoken until now, said: "Your Majesty, Lord National Grandfather is right, please first dispatch troops to support the border. The Xiling army took down two cities in one day, at most ten days later they can reach Xinyang, the northwest granary of Chu. If Xinyang falls..."

  Mo Jing Qi's face changed, he glanced at Ye Li and gritted his teeth: "Pass down the imperial edict, appointing Leng Qing Yu as the commander-in-chief, Nan Hou Shizi as the deputy, leading 1.5 million troops to depart immediately!"

  "The final general has received his orders!" Coldly, Yu Hao and Nan Hou's son, Qi, bowed in unison.

  Mo Jingqi's expression remained unchanged, his face gloomy as he waved his hand for everyone to withdraw.

  Out of the imperial study, Ye Li accompanied Old Master Hua walking out of the palace. All along the way, Old Master Hua also had nothing to say and just kept sighing. It wasn't until they reached the palace gate that he stopped and looked at Ye Li saying: "Coincidentally, the Crown Prince is not in the capital now, it's hard for the Crown Princess."

  Yelü pressed her lips together and smiled faintly: "Letting the old duke worry, these are just matters within Yelü's own power."

  The old Duke of Hua shook his head and said, "This time the Emperor has gone too far. After all, he was raised by a woman's hand, and compared to the previous emperor, the current emperor is still far inferior." Ye Li understood what the old Duke of Hua meant. When the previous emperor ascended to the throne, it happened that Xiling and Da Chu were at war for many years. At that time, Ding Wang Mo Liu Fang was not only excellent in literature but also outstanding in military merit. He could be said to be the first person in the Dingguo King's Mansion since Mo Lan Yun. Under such a glorious name, the previous emperor was able to endure and show respect and courtesy to Mo Lan Yun until the previous emperor's wings were full and Mo Liu Fang handed over power and returned to politics. The previous emperor only began to take action, although he couldn't be considered a wise and virtuous ruler, but also a capable ruler who guarded his industry. And between him and the regent king, it was passed down as a good story of monarch and minister. Now, Mo Jing Qi has shown too much hostility towards the Dingguo King's Mansion, even when Ding Wang had already become a useless person and lived in seclusion in the Dingguo King's Mansion, he still didn't give up on suppressing him everywhere. If he really was a talented and capable person who could control the fate of heaven and earth, then it would be fine. But his actual strength is not enough to suppress the Mo family army. Even if Mo Xiu Yao willingly handed over the Mo family army to him, it's still the same question: can he really command the Mo family army? Can he treat the Mo family army with kindness?

  "National affairs, be careful what you say." Ye Li said with a low smile.

  Huaguogong waved his hand to signal Yeli not to see him off, turned around and walked towards his own carriage. Yeli watched Huaguogong get on the carriage, then turned her head to find Nanhou Shizi standing not far away with a smile on his face. Yeli sighed in her heart, she only had a few encounters with this brother-in-law, having dinner together at Ye Manor, and could be said to be completely unfamiliar with him. Now that the Ye family has declined, Ye Zhen's days at Nanhou Manor were still going well, it was clear that the people of Nanhou Manor knew how to treat others. For this reason, Yeli also treated him with courtesy.

  "Have seen the princess."

  Ye Li nodded and smiled slightly: "Your Highness is too polite. Is there something you need?"

  The young master of the South Mansion smiled and said, "Nothing much, Zhen'er has been thinking about the princess a lot. If the princess is free, she might as well come to our mansion for a short visit."

  Upon hearing this, Ye Li raised an eyebrow in surprise. At present, the Emperor's attitude towards the Ding Wang Fu was something that anyone with eyes could see, and yet at this time, as the Crown Prince, he was still inviting her to his residence as a guest... Ye Li's eyes flickered slightly as she smiled: "It's Eldest Sister's good fortune to have met the Crown Prince; I hope the Crown Prince will take care of her." The Southern Marquis's son smiled magnanimously: "Since Zhen'er has already entered the Southern Marquis's residence, naturally I regard her as family. Your Highness can rest assured."

  Ye Li nodded and said: "Tomorrow, the young master will set out on a journey to the border, I wish the young master a smooth journey."

  "Thank you, Princess." The young master of Nanhou said, "I bid farewell."

  "I won't send it," said Yeli.

  Watching him walk away, Ye Li finally turned her head to look at the tall palace gate behind her, furrowed her brow and turned to leave.

  Leng Qingyu and Nan Hou's second son hastily led their troops away the next day. Ye Li, standing at the city gate to see them off, gazed at the departing army with furrowed brows that didn't relax. The King of Xiling Town in the south was known as the War God of Xiling, having controlled Xiling State for decades. Even Mo Xiuyao might not dare say he had a sure win. Could Leng Qingyu and Nan Hou's second son really succeed with just 1 million troops?

  "What's wrong with the princess?" Zhu Jing asked, following Ye Li and looking at her face.

  Ye Li shook her head. Da Chu wasn't just one general, Mo Xiuyao. If everything relied on Mo Xiuyao, then nothing else needed to be done.

  "Third sister... the princess..." Ye Zhen's voice came from behind. Ye Li turned around and saw Ye Zhen standing beside the Crown Prince's consort, looking at her with a surprised expression. It had been a long time since they last met, and compared to the radiant appearance she had seen before, Ye Zhen looked pale and haggard. Even her eyes were red, probably because her husband had gone to war and she was worried.

  The young lady of the Nanhou family is also a woman from a scholarly family, looking very gentle and virtuous. When she saw Ye Li, she came forward with poise to pay her respects and politely asked Ye Zhen to leave, leaving Ye Zhen and Ye Li alone to talk.

  The two sisters were originally not very familiar with each other and could hardly see each other a few times a year. For the time being, they were relatively speechless.

  After a long silence, Ye Zhen finally said in a low voice: "Has the princess returned home to take a look?"

  Ye Li shook her head, now that the Ye family's fortunes were declining, Old Lady Ye had obviously placed all her hopes on Ye Li. Every time she saw her, she would speak in a way that was both flattering and condescending. It wasn't until now that Ye Li realized that Old Lady Ye was not afraid to show off her wealth and status. Although Ye Shangshu didn't say anything, his expression subtly revealed his dissatisfaction with the princess's daughter. Ye Li wasn't someone who liked to put herself in uncomfortable situations, so unless it was necessary, she would rather not go back.

  Ye Zhen said in a low voice: "Father plans to go back to his hometown after a few days."

  Ye Li nodded and said, "Going back is also good. If you teach Rong Er well, there are still some family assets at home, and in the future, Father and Grandmother can also enjoy their old age." At this point, the Ye family has already withdrawn from officialdom, and staying away from the capital is the most correct choice. Otherwise, if they get entangled again in those intrigues and struggles, it's likely that simply resigning from office won't be enough to solve the problem.

  Ye Zhen's beautifully trimmed eyebrows furrowed slightly as she looked at Ye Li and said, "Third sister, do you really hate Father that much? Can't you help Father out?"

  Ye Li shook her head and said softly: "Everyone, it's precisely because I don't hate my father that I think he should go back now. Nothing is more important than life."

  Ye Li's eyes showed a hint of confusion and incomprehension, but more so, disbelief. Looking at Ye Li with a melancholic sigh, she said: "Second sister is dead, fourth sister is now also uncertain whether she lives or dies. Fifth sister, sixth sister... it's better not to mention them, how did we sisters..."

  "Elder sister, the Nan Hou Fu is still a decent household, and the young master's wife is also an intelligent person, she won't make things too difficult for you. You just take care of yourself and live your life well." Ye Li said in a low voice.

  Ye Zhen was taken aback, and when she came to her senses, Ye Li had already gone far away. A hint of sadness and regret appeared at the bottom of her eyes, and she said softly: "No children, no family, how can I live a good life? Third sister, not everyone has as good a fate as you."