From before the New Year to after the Spring Festival, heavy snow fell in the capital and northern Zhili. Looking around, the cold wind was bleak and white in the vast world.

During the New Year, red couplets were posted in the streets and alleys outside the capital, and the sound of firecrackers and the laughter of children from time to time, the blessings of adults for New Year greetings, and the sounds of hawkers selling New Year’s goods were mixed together, making the huge capital clearly feel a joyful atmosphere.

However, in sharp contrast to the outer city, the heart of the Ming Empire, in the capital palace, was bleak and silent.

Since Emperor Chongzhen issued the crime edict that day, the emperor took the lead in reducing food and withdrawing joy. Naturally, the palace was frugal and solemn everywhere. There was no happy atmosphere of the New Year in the entire palace.

Because heavy snow blocked the road, it was not until the fifth day of the New Year that Lu Xiangsheng's memorial for victory was sent by Zhang Fengyi, the Minister of War, to the East Warehouse where Emperor Chongzhen was located.

In the cold weather, the small East Warehouse is very warm. In the Diaolong White Copper Charcoal Brazier in front of the imperial desk, the charcoal fire is blazing, shining with a warm orange red color.

"Your Majesty, great victory, great victory in Henan!"

Zhang Fengyi, Minister of War, said that old voice was filled with joy and trembling outside the hall.

"Oh, my dear, enter the palace quickly."

When Emperor Chongzhen heard the shouts from Zhang Fengyi from afar, the eyes of Emperor Chongzhen, who had been in a state of irritability due to the mutiny of Ningxia and the rampant bandits in Shaanxi and Gansu for a period of time, had a clear light.

Cao Huachun, the eunuch who was the Sili Supervisor, hurriedly welcomed Zhang Fengyi into the hall.

"Report to Your Majesty, our Ming official army, led by Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of the five provinces, has won consecutive battles since October and has destroyed most of the bandits in Henan. The bandit leader Gao Yingxiang has also been killed by our army. The land of Henan has returned to peace! The memorial of Lu Xiangsheng is here, so please check it out."

"Okay! Very good! It's rare good news!"

After hearing the report from Zhang Fengyi who was kneeling on the ground, Chongzhen, wearing a bright yellow robe, rose up and stood up from the dragon chaise. A long-awaited smile appeared on his haggard face.

"Jiubao, you get up and talk."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Zhang Fengyi stood up and quickly handed Lu Xiangsheng's memorial to the eunuch Cao Huachun.

"Lu Jian is capable of fighting fruits. In the past two months, he has eliminated all the more than 200,000 that have invaded Henan and beheaded the bandit leader Gao Yingxiang. He is really a rare loyal minister and general in the Ming Dynasty." Chongzhen sighed while stroking his beard and holding Lu Xiangsheng's memorial from Cao Huachun.

Seeing the emperor happy, Zhang Fengyi hurriedly continued, "Your Majesty, under the severe attack of our official army, the bandits suffered a great damage to their vitality. It would be difficult to think that they were as rampant as before."

"Well, the Ministry of War can send people to check quickly. If Lu Jiandou's report is true, immediately reward the meritorious soldiers."

As Chongzhen said, he opened the memorial of Lu Xiangsheng, watched it quickly, and laughed to the sky.

"Sure enough, it's this Li Xiao again!" Emperor Chongzhen laughed and read Lu Xiangsheng's memorial again, sighing: "Li Xiao is so capable of fighting. He is alone, and he is able to retreat two reinforcements and beheaded the bandit leader Gao Yingxiang. He is a rare tiger general in the Ming Dynasty!"

Chongzhen walked a few steps by the imperial table and praised: "Lu Jiandou is not greedy for me. It is rare to report Li Xiao's contributions truthfully. Jiubao, after the record is found, I will definitely give them the two of them and reward them well!"

After hearing the emperor praised Lu Xiangsheng and Li Xiao, Zhang Fengyi's expression was a little complicated. He whispered: "Lu Xiangsheng is the governor of five provinces. He deserves this great merit and deserves rewards. But I don't know how Your Majesty plans to promote Li Xiao."

When Chongzhen saw him ask, he immediately replied: "Lu Jiandou has requested me in the memorial and Li Xiao was promoted to the position of General Denglai. If the military achievements are true, I will not hesitate to reward him with this position."

Zhang Fengyi had a worried look on his face and his eyes were very complicated. He whispered: "In theory, Li Xiao made such a great contribution and should be promoted to the general of Denglai. It is not an exaggeration to have him promoted to the position of General Denglai. However, I have heard a lot of gossip about Li Xiao in recent times and felt quite worried."

"Oh, what is the rumor? Jiubao, come to the truth."

"Your Majesty, I heard that the reason why Li Xiao was able to build such a strong army is that he had sufficient food and money in his hands, but his food and money came from smuggling with Mongolia and Jin Tartars!"

"Ah? Take this seriously?"

Chongzhen changed his face instantly.

Cao Huachun next to him was also full of nervousness.

"Report to Your Majesty, I dare not deceive you. It is said that Li Xiao was in Xuanfu Town, and he opened the joints everywhere and secretly built a Jintang City, which was used for external smuggling. He smuggled and trafficked all kinds of important goods that were prohibited by our Daming order to the Mongolian tribes and the Later Jin Dynasty, and made huge profits. Although his actions were secret, the paper could not contain the fire. Li Xiao's smuggling was heard in various parts of Xuanfu. If Your Majesty did not believe it, he could send the Jinyiwei to investigate it secretly."

Chongzhen's face became more and more ugly.

"Zhang Jiubao, according to your wishes, how should I deal with Li Xiao?" Chongzhen asked hesitantly.

"Your Majesty, according to my opinion, although Li Xiao has made great contributions, his smuggling matter must be investigated. You can decide after the Jinyiwei has found out that the result is Wuwang and Li Xiao has no smuggling matter, so you can agree to Lu Xiangsheng's request and promote him to General Denglai. If it is found that Li Xiao has indeed smuggled and colluded with the enemy..." Zhang Fengyi's voice lowered.

"Speak!" Chongzhen shouted.

"Your Majesty, if Li Xiao had such a smuggling incident, I thought he should be dismissed immediately and cut off his post and found out the illegal gains. He was interviewed strictly by the Jinyiwei to respect the best!"

"Oh." Chongzhen's gloomy face was obviously covered with a layer of gray.

"If Your Majesty remembers his great achievements in the past and cannot bear to take him off his post, he should send an internal official to Chifeng Guard, severely rebuke Li Xiao, and confiscate his illegal property to serve as the national treasury, and then he will make meritorious contributions in the future to observe the future."

After Zhang Fengyi said that, a hint of ruthlessness appeared on his face.

Chongzhen was speechless.

In the East Warehouse, only the charcoal fire was clattering, but the whole room was silent.

Cao Huachun and the eunuchs stood up, and they didn't dare to show up.

"I'm afraid it's not good to treat my tiger general who has just made great contributions in the Ming Dynasty like this."

After a long time, Chongzhen frowned and murmured to himself.

"His Majesty......"

Zhang Fengyi was still trying to speak, but Chongzhen made a stop gesture.

"No need to say it, let me think about it first. My dear, please step down first."

Zhang Fengyi bowed silently and retreated, Chongzhen's face was full of anxiety.

Li Xiao, do you know how much weight you are in my heart now?

Although you are just a small general of Chifeng, I actually think of you as a general of the border like Zu Dashou, General of the Forward Battalion, General of Ningyuan, Wu Xiang, and other generals of border control.

Besides, I have married the daughter of the royal family and made you hereditary commander, which is very honorable. However, why do you, such a young general who is so popular with me, still secretly engage in smuggling matters that the court explicitly prohibits!

How should I deal with you when I ask this?

Chongzhen was in a mess.

"Cao Daban, go and call the chief assistant Wen Aiqing. I have something to ask him." Chongzhen ordered.

Cao Huachun responded urgently and walked away quickly.

Soon, the chief assistant Wen Tiren and the eunuch Cao Huachun came quietly together.

After practicing the etiquette of the monarch and ministers, Chongzhen did not speak nonsense, but went straight to the point and told Wen Tiren about the possible smuggling of Li Xiao and the disposal opinions of the Minister of War Zhang Fengyi.

"Changqing, is it appropriate to deal with Li Xiao like this in your opinion?" Chongzhen suppressed his uneasy mood and asked in a calm tone.

"Your Majesty, can you tell the truth?"

Emperor Chongzhen was very surprised to see Wen Tiren say this with a serious expression.

"Your dear, I will not blame you even if you have any mistakes."

"Your Majesty, I think that Zhang Jiubao's handling of this is really a hasty and irresponsible consequences. I am afraid that when the Jinyiwei goes to Chifengwei to get people, it will be the day when Li Xiao rebels against the court!"

"ah!"

"Your Majesty, I'm sorry to say that if Your Majesty is so mean and ungrateful to the generals who are outstanding in military achievements, they will be so mean and merciless, and they will catch the pigtails and correct their mistakes, then Li Xiao will probably become the second Kong Youde to surrender to the Tartars!"

Chongzhen rose from the dragon throne and his face was pale as bloodless. Then, he whispered tremblingly: "I just want to investigate his smuggling, so why shouldn't it be like this?"

"Your Majesty, the affairs of the country are so decayed, there are wars everywhere, and bandits and bandits poison Zhongzhou. It is time to use good generals to eliminate the ugly people. How could he deal with such a rare tiger general as Li Xiao like this because of the smuggling incident? Wouldn't the soldiers in the world be so disappointed!"

Wen Tiren paused and continued to say with a worried look on his face: "I heard that Li Xiao destroyed the two bandits in Henan and made such great achievements for the court. He was extremely successful and beyond the reach of others. If he had not received any rewards, he was taken over by the court for smuggling, his subordinates would inevitably be angry and rebellious. When Li Xiaozhen raised the flag of the rebel, how could His Majesty deal with it?"

Chongzhen's face was gray and he sat down depressedly.

"Well, my dear, did Li Xiao smuggle?" Chongzhen's voice was very low.

"have!"

"oh?"

"Your Majesty, Li Xiao's army is not a regular camp, but a military army in the garrison. He cannot get half a court military salary. He wants to support the army. If there is no special means, he wants to support the more than 10,000 military soldiers, wouldn't it be a joke?" Wen Tiren said with a bright look: "In fact, in the eyes of the empress, Li Xiao's behavior is also helpless. If there is no word for food and salary, everything will be free. If Li Xiao does not have this strong army under his command, how can he make contributions to the country and serve the court?"

Chongzhen sighed and his face slowed down a lot.

The eunuch Cao Huachun next to him also smiled slightly when he glanced at Wen Tiren.

Seeing that the emperor had changed his mind, Wen Tiren took the opportunity to say, "Your Majesty, the historical records once recorded that King Zhuang of Chu had a banquet for all the ministers at night. The Chu general Tang Jiao teased the queen while the candle was extinguished, and the queen was later pulled off the hat tassel. However, the King of Chu was broad-minded and did not remember Tang Jiao's actions, but ordered everyone present to pull off the hat tassel to relieve Tang Jiao's embarrassment. Later, the Chu general Tang Jiao was grateful for the kindness of the King of Chu and worked hard on the battlefield. A year later, Jin and Chu fought for hegemony, and Tang Jiao fought hard regardless of life and death, and rescued the King of Chu from the Jin army's encirclement. This is a story of eternal history. Your Majesty is a wise ruler in the modern era, and his mind is comparable to Yao and Shun. He has always understood such allusions. The ancients did not hide their great virtues with one stroke. My emperor's wise ruler for the ages should not lose good generals because of small matters."

After hearing Wen Tiren's talk, Chongzhen's face improved a lot. He nodded and said, "I think you are right, I deeply agree. If this is the case, how should Li Xiao be rewarded?"

Wen Tiren pondered for a moment and whispered: "Your Majesty, I think it is best to use the means of giving both kindness and power to make Li Xiao secretly alert when he receives the emperor's kindness."

"My dear, please tell me in detail."

"Your Majesty, the Chifeng Guard of Li Xiao is composed of the original small half of Huang County and Xiao Half of Zhaoyuan, and a small piece of land in Laizhou. Why not give the remaining Huang County and Zhaoyuan to Li Xiao's Chifeng Guard of Li Xiao and exempt him from taxes for three years, as the basis for establishing a military support."

"So, then, in addition to this, do I need to give additional money and official positions?"

"Your Majesty, if you act like this, you don't have to give him any additional rewards, nor will you be promoted to General Denglai. In this way, Li Xiao received a land reward for this great contribution, and he was at ease. The court did not give him money or official titles. A smart person like Li Xiao would understand that this was a tactful warning from the court, which would probably make him more alert in the future. When he practiced illegal means, he would be more scruples."

After listening to Wen Tiren's analysis, Chongzhen's face finally reappeared: "Your beloved is a good plan! Now the country is in the process of using people. Even if you have shortcomings, you should not be depressed by the loyalty and courageous spirit. Just wait for the Ministry of War to verify the results of the war, Changqing, please draw an edict."

"I am obeying the holy will."

......

Wen Tiren then returned from the palace, went to the cabinet department for a while, and then returned to the mansion.

As soon as he entered the mansion, a servant came to report: "Mr. Wen, the inner supervisor, Eunuch Gao, has been waiting in the living room for a long time."

Wen Tiren said oh, then slowly walked into the living room.

It was Cao Huachun, the eunuch who was the chief eunuch of the Silis, who saw Wen Tiren coming in, and put down the teacup and smiled: "Today, Master Wen, in front of His Majesty, was so frustrated by Li Xiao, but what was the fortune of the Red Phoenix General Li Xiao?"

Wen Tiren sneered and said lightly: "Since we eat the king's fortune, we should share our worries. Now there are many things in the court, such as Chen Qixin, the Grand Secretary Qian Shisheng, and other bad people, who have introduced the chapter to attack and impeach the original minister. Your Majesty is already unbearable. How can you worry about your Majesty for some minor things? Then Li Xiao is good at fighting, which is a rare tiger general in my Ming Dynasty. Some of his beards can be smeared, but he can also be beaten. Zhang Jiubao kept asking for fame and praying for a fuss, which is always the opinion of a scholar."

Cao Huachun smiled and said, "These are all Wen. The prime minister is loyal to the country and can make good decisions. Only by making good decisions can he make this safe and comprehensive strategy. Then Li Xiao is also a smart person. After receiving such kindness, he will understand Lord Wen's good intentions."

Wen Tiren smiled and said lightly: "If you do the spring breeze, you will have rain and dew. If Li Xiao got the Huang County and Zhaoyuan, he would be grateful that he is relatively good. There is no need to talk about his future filial piety. He is outside, so he can have some help."

Cao Huachun smiled so hard that his eyes narrowed into a slit: "The Chief Wen Sui has a long-term layout and is good at winning people's hearts. Our family also admires him. Seeing that Wen is so loving to him, Li Xiao will definitely serve Lord Wen in the future."

When the two of them said this, they understood and laughed unconsciously.
Chapter completed!