Chapter 1568: Favoring culture over military power, gifts become enemies

Five days later.

Su Mingzhe chased for three hundred miles before returning with his army fully loaded.

Guo Jing led all the people in the city out of the city for ten miles to welcome them.

Ever since Yue Fei was killed due to a false accusation, the Song Dynasty hasn't won a decent victory for a long time.

Even if we repel the invading Tartars, it will be a tragic victory.

Only Su Mingzhe, with only 8,000 men, wiped out 70,000 Tartars, and killed and captured more than 60,000 people.

Everyone thought that this was an unprecedented achievement and the pinnacle of Su Mingzhe's life.

As a result, only more than a month has passed.

Su Mingzhe brought another exciting and thrilling victory to the Song Dynasty.

The Tatars claimed to have an army of 400,000, and Su Mingzhe led 50,000 cavalrymen to chase them all the way.

After Kublai Khan fled back to the north, he checked his troops and found that there were only more than 20,000 people left by his side.

in other words.

Three hundred and eighty thousand Tatars remained in the territory of the Southern Song Dynasty.

That’s 380,000 people!

During the hundred years that the Song court moved south, the number of Jin and Mongolian peoples eliminated was not that large.

A few days later, the military report was delivered to Lin'an.

The people of Lin'an simply bought out all the fireworks shops.

In the following days, there was an endless stream of people going to the West Lake to sprinkle wine and worship their ancestors. It was even more lively than the Qingming Festival not long ago.

……

"My dear nobles, the Champion Marquis defeated the strong with the weak, captured and killed more than 200,000 Tartars... His contribution is invaluable!"

Zhao Yun's body, which had begun to hunch over due to alcohol and sex, now straightened up again. When he faced the ministers, his eyes were full of brilliance:

"I want to confer the title of Champion Marquis on him, so that he can continue to work hard and recover our Song Dynasty's homeland. Do you have any suggestions?"

"Your Majesty, it is urgent to recover our homeland. However, Marquis Guanjun has just repelled the Tartars. If we exhaust the army and continue the expedition, I am afraid something unbearable will happen. I think it is safer to let Marquis Guanjun rest for a while, summon him to the court, and ask him a question..."

Minister of Rites Xie Zonghe made a long speech, which can be summed up in two points:

First, Su Mingzhe’s contributions are so outstanding that it would be difficult to reward him without a generous reward.

However, it would be fine for the court to just give him a casual reward. There was no need to praise him too much and give the important task of recovering the homeland to a young man!

Second, recovering the homeland is not only a heavy responsibility, but also a greater achievement. Even if the imperial court wants to rely on Su Mingzhe to recover the homeland, it is better to arrange someone above him.

In this way, not only can Su Mingzhe's credit be divided, but the key point is to prevent Su Mingzhe from becoming too powerful, so as to avoid him becoming a scourge to the Song Dynasty and causing the "Chenqiao Incident".

I have to say that Xie Zonghe was really capable to become the Minister of Rites.

His words largely eliminated Zhao Yun's passion.

He even began to feel melancholy about Su Mingzhe's reward.

There is no way. Su Mingzhe's contribution is really too great. It can be said that it is second only to expanding territory and recovering lost territory.

The Song Dynasty had an old system, where anyone who expanded territory and recovered lost territory could be crowned a king.

Before this, those who were granted the title of king included Wang Anshi, Yue Fei, Han Shizhong, and the eunuch Tong Guan.

Of course, most people were crowned kings posthumously.

Only a few were crowned kings during their lifetime.

Zhao Yun was not a monarch with a strong will. He was moved by Xie Zonghe's words and had to ask:

"Then according to Master Xie, how should we handle the reward for the title of Champion Marquis?"

Throughout the Song Dynasty, there was a particular discrimination against military generals. This view was not only held by civil officials, but even the emperor and military generals themselves were not immune.

"Make him a duke!"

Xie Zonghe heard the emperor's tentative intention and shouted loudly:

"As far as I know, the Marquis of Guanjun is from Jizhou Prefecture. Why not confer him the title of Duke of Jining County?"

After hearing this, Emperor Zhao Yun could not help but nod and asked his ministers:

"My dear ministers, is what Xie Xueshi said right?" Many of the ministers were Xie Zonghe's friends and followers. Some of them noticed that the emperor was satisfied with this opinion, so they stood up and shouted:
"I second the proposal!"

……

half a month later.

The chief eunuch Chang Xi arrived in Xiangyang with the imperial edict to announce it.

Wait until Chang Xi finished reading the imperial edict of reward.

"Duke of Jining?"

After Su Mingzhe received the imperial edict, he just frowned slightly, then bowed and smiled at the eunuch who announced the edict:

"Eunuch Chang, since the Jingkang disaster, Jeju Prefecture has been lost for hundreds of years. I wonder what the emperor's intention is in bestowing rewards now. Please feel free to give me some advice!"

"Master, I have another imperial edict here."

Chang Xi took out another imperial edict without any hurry, and after reading it again, he chuckled and said:

"Sir, the emperor has high hopes for you!"

Su Mingzhe smiled broadly after hearing the second imperial edict:
"I am deeply grateful for the great favor from the government, and I wish I could repay it with my own death!"

This first imperial edict was the court’s reward to Su Mingzhe.

In addition to the promotion of his title to Duke of Jining County, he was also rewarded with fertile fields, gold, silver, jewelry, beauties, and mansions.

The second imperial edict ordered Su Mingzhe to go to Lin'an for pilgrimage, and to take over quickly and return as soon as possible.

Su Mingzhe expressed his loyalty in front of Chang Xi, then turned around and asked someone to help him pack his luggage, preparing to return to Lin'an with Chang Xi.

Chang was pleased to see that Su Mingzhe had no intention of clinging to military power, and he felt quite satisfied.

You know, as the chief eunuch, he came to read the imperial edict in person. One of his most important tasks was that Emperor Zhao Yun ordered him to check whether Su Mingzhe was reluctant to give up the military power.

If Su Mingzhe had shown the slightest hesitation, or showed the slightest attachment to military power.

This time when Su Mingzhe returns to Lin'an, he will have no chance of coming out alive.

Fortunately, Su Mingzhe was "loyal" to the Song court.

Chang Xi was extremely satisfied with his performance.

Before the banquet.

Su Mingzhe took Chang Xi to his back house and gave him two boxes of treasures.

This time, Kublai Khan led his army south and plundered a lot of property from the people of the Southern Song Dynasty along the way.

After Su Mingzhe broke through the Tartar camp, these treasures became spoils of war and fell into Su Mingzhe's hands.

Although Su Mingzhe used most of the money to reward soldiers and appease local people at Guo Jing's suggestion, the remaining small portion was also valuable.

Even if Su Mingzhe had been an official for a hundred years, he would not be able to save up that much.

Chang Xi was naturally satisfied with the gift, and then he gave Su Mingzhe instructions:

"The emperor is a great ruler. After learning that you were a great warrior and easily drove away the Tartars, he wanted you to go north to recover the old territory. Unfortunately, the ministers in the court are content with their own pleasures and don't understand the housekeeper's thoughts... If you can help me restore the old capital of Song Dynasty, even if you are crowned a king, it is not impossible!"

"Thank you for your guidance, father-in-law!"

Su Mingzhe understood the emperor's thoughts and knew what to do next.

At the banquet.

Su Mingzhe and Lu Wende, as well as the eunuchs supervising the army, all flattered Chang Xi.

The banquet is over.

Lu Wende and the eunuch supervising the army also sent two boxes of gifts to Chang Xi.

After returning to his residence, Chang Xi opened the six boxes of gifts and began to curse at Lu Wende:

"How dare the Lu family kid bully me!?"

It turned out that the gift from Lu Wende was actually two boxes of silver.

These two boxes of silver, when fully filled, would only hold about five thousand taels.

The gifts presented by Su Mingzhe and the eunuch supervising the army were all rare and precious gold and jade articles, as well as jadeite, agate, and colored glaze, each of which was worth tens of thousands of gold, with a value of at least more than two or three hundred thousand taels.

Such a comparison shows that Lu Wende does not know how to be an official.