Chapter 149: Questions from the Civil and Military Officials
The fifth day of the eighth month in the seventeenth year of Yuanzhen.
Near noon, Andingmen.
Tu Liu, the lieutenant commander of the Guoyong Camp, stood on his horse outside the city gate with a sword in his hand, his face gloomy and sinister.
The more than 10,000 troops he brought had launched several attacks on Anding Gate, but the gate was high and strong, and they lost thousands of their own men before they could even touch the defenders. What made him even more uneasy was that the troops from the other three brave camps had not yet joined them.
"Stop attacking the city!" Tu Liu had lost confidence in taking down Anding Gate, and ordered a captain beside him, "Go to the Jiedushi camp and see what Xu Kun and his men are doing. How could it take so long for an army of more than 20,000 to kill Wang Ziteng?"
"Yes."
The captain responded and was about to ride away when he saw two scouts coming from the left and right.
"Report——"
"General, this is bad! A large army is approaching our left wing quickly."
"There's a large army approaching on the right wing!"
Tu Liu's eyelids twitched wildly when he heard this. He was terrified and had a bad premonition. If they were friendly troops, they shouldn't be coming from a different direction. He hurriedly asked, "Can you see who they are?"
"They should be from the Yangwei Camp."
"And the Zhenwei Camp."
"Not good!" Tu Liuda felt something was wrong and shouted, "Quick! All troops, listen up, turn around and retreat immediately!"
After saying that, he changed direction first, but before he could increase the speed of his horse, he saw dust flying not far away, followed by a burst of hurried horse hoof sounds.
"New...new military guards!"
Before Tu Liu could finish his surprise, he heard a deafening roar. When he looked up, his eyes widened instantly, his face full of disbelief...
At the same time, on the Andingmen city wall.
The new army soldiers guarding the city also looked towards the horizon not far away, and suddenly a cheer broke out.
"Longwei Camp! The brothers from Longwei Camp are here!" Hundreds of hot air balloons in the sky were rushing towards the city gate.
"Look! Lord Shen is leading his army to support us!"
On the city wall, the new army guards saw their commander leading thousands of troops galloping towards them, and they were all very excited.
The Five City Army and Jinyiwei who were helping to defend the city were stunned by the countless large balloons in the sky...
At this time, some soldiers also saw the Beijing army attacking quickly from the left and right wings, and asked in confusion: "Are those two armies enemies or friends?"
Feng Ziying replied calmly: "The people from the Yangwei Camp and Zhenwei Camp are reinforcements."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they heard this. It seemed that the situation was settled and the rebels under the city wall had been surrounded on three sides.
At this time, Zhao Huan looked at Feng Ziying and asked, "Should we go out of the city and attack together?"
Feng Ziying waved his hand and said in a clear voice: "No need, we can just guard the city gate."
They were on the city wall and could see the current situation very clearly. There was no need for the soldiers defending the city to go into battle. This group of rebels would surely be crushed.
If the defenders leave the city, it might create opportunities for the rebels. It is better to stay still at the moment.
As for whether they would miss out on military merit, the answer is no. For them, keeping the city gate without any mistakes today is already a great achievement.
There is no suspense in the battle outside the city gate. What awaits Tu Liu and his 10,000 rebels is only annihilation.
Then turn your attention to the city of Shenjing.
Imperial Palace, Golden Throne Hall.
The morning court session had ended, but all the civil and military officials had not left. Everyone was anxiously awaiting news from outside.
Emperor Yuanzhen's expression was particularly solemn, and his hands holding the dragon throne turned slightly pale. He said anxiously, "Zhao Quan, send someone to investigate again."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Quan, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, was slightly stunned, but he still went to make arrangements. He had just sent out one group when His Majesty urged him again.
It is no wonder that Emperor Yuanzhen was anxious. The Beijing camp mutinied and the situation was unknown, so the emperor was naturally uneasy.
Prime Minister Yang Yanzhi pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, with Prince Beijing coming forward to supervise, the situation will surely be stabilized."
Upon hearing this, all the civil servants could only lower their heads and shake their heads.
In this kind of dangerous and fierce situation, the only way to deal with it is through military exploits. Civil officials like them really can't do anything.
This is also the reason why no matter how much they suppress military officers, they cannot go too far. After all, the army cannot do without generals who can lead troops into battle.
Emperor Yuanzhen sighed and said in a deep voice: "I am afraid that people's hearts will be unstable and the rebellion will be difficult to suppress for a while."
If Huaizhong had been allowed to train more new troops, it would have been better. Now the new army only has one guard with 5,000 people, and they have to defend the city and suppress the rebellion. It is really stretched to the limit. Even if the young man has the talent of Sun Wu, it is impossible for him to do it.
However, the city gates and palace gates were closed at this time, so at least it was safe now. Even if the situation deteriorated extremely and the rebels broke into the palace, there was a hot air balloon hidden in the palace that was enough to save his life, and the most serious consequences no longer existed.
Upon hearing this, the ministers' faces became solemn again.
As Emperor Yuanzhen and all the civil and military officials in the court were anxiously waiting, time passed quietly. At noon, Zhao Quan, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, suddenly came into the hall again to report.
"Your Majesty, the rebellion has been completely quelled, and the outcome is set!"
Emperor Yuanzhen was delighted when he heard this and asked, "What are the details? Tell me quickly."
All the ministers in the palace breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that the turmoil did not harm them after all.
Zhao Quan took the summarized information and spoke loudly:
"After the Four Brave Battalions mutinied, Lieutenant General Xu Kun of the Ganyong Battalion gathered more than 30,000 rebels and divided them into two groups.
One group, led by Tu Liu, the lieutenant general of the Guoyong Camp, and more than 10,000 rebels attacked Andingmen. Another group, led by Xu Kun, more than 20,000 people besieged the stronghold of the Jingying Jiedushi.
Wang Ziteng, the governor of the Beijing Camp, led 5,000 personal guards of the central army in an unsuccessful attempt to break out, and then fought and retreated. At the critical moment, General Yunwu Shen Yuan sent people to rescue Wang Xian, the governor of the Yangwei Camp and Zhenwei Camp.
Afterwards, Wang Xian returned to his headquarters camp and assembled 35,000 men from his two camps to encircle Xu Kun's troops and cut off the rebels' retreat. However, Wang Xian followed Shen Yuan's suggestion and surrounded them without attacking.
Afterwards, Shen Yuan sent the Longwei Battalion of the New Army to attack the rebels, severely damaging the rebels and causing more than half of them to be killed or wounded. Immediately afterwards, Shen Yuan personally led 2,000 elite cavalry of the New Army to charge directly at the remnants of the rebels, killing more than half of the remaining rebels. Finally, Wang Xian killed the rebels who were about to flee. At this point, all the more than 20,000 rebels led by Xu Kun were killed, and not a single rebel escaped.
In this battle, eight or nine out of ten of the five thousand soldiers in the central army camp were killed. Jiedushi Wang Ziteng had one arm cut off by the rebels and barely managed to save his life. However, except for Wang Xian, all the commanders of the regiments and camps summoned by Wang Ziteng were killed by the rebels.
Afterwards, Shen Yuan and Wang Xian led a large army back to Anding Gate to reinforce, and killed all the more than 10,000 rebels led by Tu Liu outside the city gate. So far, more than 30,000 rebels from the Four Brave Camps who participated in the rebellion had been killed.
In addition, the soldiers of the other six regiments have also been pacified and controlled by Beijing Prince Shui Rong, and the Beijing Battalion has returned to the control of the court."
Zhao Quan read out the quick reports compiled by all parties in one breath without pausing.
Emperor Yuanzhen listened quietly, and his originally extremely solemn mood finally relaxed.
Upon hearing this, the ministers in the court were shocked beyond words. They chewed over the key information with different expressions and remained speechless for a long time.
First of all, everyone is shocked by the casualties caused by this unrest.
More than 30,000 rebels were all beheaded. It was hard for these ministers to imagine how cold-blooded and cruel Shen Yuan and his men were. They killed people like butchering dogs and as if they were killing gods. Although the deaths of the rebels were not a pity, so many people died in less than half a day, which inevitably shocked them.
In addition, Wang Ziteng's 5,000 personal soldiers were almost wiped out, and the commander-in-chief of the Beijing Camp also lost an arm. The governors of all the regiments and camps were all killed. This may not be a bad thing in the minds of many civil servants, but they are also worried that with the loss of so many generals, the Beijing Camp will be in turmoil again.
It is not difficult to hear that in the entire battle to quell the rebellion, one person played a crucial role, and that was Shen Yuan. Without Shen Yuan, the rebel Tu Liu's troops would probably have already invaded the Shenjing City. Without Shen Yuan, the rebel Xu Kun's troops would not have been wiped out.
It can be said that the decisive factor in the entire war was Shen Yuan. This young general was the greatest contributor to the suppression of the rebellion.
Of course, there are also people who have doubts.
Sun Xingchang, the Grand Secretary of the Jinshen Palace and the Second Assistant of the Cabinet, came back to his senses from his shock and questioned, "How did Shen Yuan know that someone was rebelling?"
Not only was he confused, but everyone here, including Emperor Yuanzhen, was also a little curious.
It was as if Shen Yuan had opened his clairvoyance during today's riot suppression and was able to foresee events in advance.
Zhao Quan said: "I don't know. The Jinyiwei has not had time to verify the details yet."
Emperor Yuanzhen pondered for a moment, then instructed the Minister of Internal Affairs Dai Quan, "Open the palace gates and send someone to summon General Yunwu Shen Yuan to the palace to report on the matter."
Dai Quan bowed and left.
Some things did need to be clarified to avoid giving people a chance to talk. Wang Xian and other generals should have been summoned for questioning, but considering that the army was just beginning to be settled and a general was needed to maintain order, only the most important general, Shen Yuan, was summoned.
As the palace gates and city gates opened, the originally anxious hearts of the people in Shenjing City gradually calmed down.
At the same time, what happened outside the city and some details of the mutiny gradually spread among the people, like a huge rock hitting the sea, causing waves. People gathered in groups of three or five and discussed it heatedly.
Less than half an hour later, Shen Yuan was summoned to the palace.
Facing the gazes of all the officials, Shen Yuan looked solemn, and walked with his head held high into the Golden Palace. When he reached the center of the palace, he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I am Shen Yuan, your servant."
Minister of Rites Zhou Xian saw that Shen Yuan's clothes were stained with blood and scolded him, "How dare you, Shen Yuan, disregard the etiquette and wear bloody clothes to enter the palace!"
Hearing the voice, Shen Yuan turned to look at Zhou Xian. The indifferent and cold eyes made the latter shudder, and he even had the urge to step back and avoid him.
Emperor Yuanzhen also glanced at Zhou Xian, seeming to be displeased. He was still fussing over such a small matter at this time. He simply didn't know what was important.
"It's alright, Huaizhong has worked hard to suppress the rebellion, please leave without any formalities."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Emperor Yuanzhen looked at Shen Yuan with warm eyes and asked with concern: "Huaizhong is not injured, right?"
Shen Yuan said: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I am not injured, but the blood on my body is from the rebels."
This is also a response to Zhou Xian. He is leading troops to kill the enemy outside, and this man still has the nerve to talk about etiquette here.
"That's good." Emperor Yuanzhen said, "Huai Zhong should be credited with the first achievement in quelling the rebellion so quickly this time."
"It's all thanks to the hard work of all the soldiers."
"Huaizhong, there is no need to be modest. If you hadn't planned ahead and anticipated the enemy, I'm afraid the capital city would have been in danger." Emperor Yuanzhen was silent for a moment, and then said in a clear voice: "I wonder how Huaizhong knew in advance that there would be a rebellion in the capital camp?"
Shen Yuan bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I did not know about the rebellion in the Beijing camp in advance. The arrangements I made were just to prepare for a rainy day."
"What a plan for a rainy day." Second Assistant Minister Sun Xingchang questioned, "You are not from the Beijing camp, how could you foresee the mutiny?"
He didn't suspect Shen Yuan of having ulterior motives, he just felt that something was fishy.
Shen Yuan said calmly, "Ever since Marshal Wang started investigating corruption and dismissing the old and weak in the Beijing Camp, I have been alert and sent people to investigate in various regiments and camps. Recently, I learned that the generals of the Four Brave Camps had secretly colluded. Therefore, when I learned this morning that several officers had died suddenly in the Jiedushi Camp, I had a premonition that these people might cause chaos, so I made a series of arrangements in advance based on my own judgment."
He didn't care about Sun Xingchang's thoughts, and this was actually an explanation to Emperor Yuanzhen.
It is no secret that many voices of dissatisfaction were heard from the Beijing camp as soon as Wang Ziteng began to reorganize his army. As for Shen Yuan sending people to investigate, if it was before the incident, perhaps someone would still hold on to it. But looking back now, this was indeed a move to prepare for a rainy day, and other ministers would not be able to use this as an excuse to attack him.
Emperor Yuanzhen could not possibly suspect this. Shen Yuan had reminded him of this before, but he ignored it at that time because of Wang Ziteng's solemn assurance. Looking back now, it was fortunate that Shen Yuan was so vigilant that the situation did not get completely out of control.
Nan'an County Prince Zheng Chong said: "How did you rescue Wang Xian from the rebels' encirclement? Why didn't you rescue the other generals as well?"
As a top military hero, he was particularly concerned about this. This time, all the commanders of the military heroes in the Beijing camp were killed. This was a heavy blow to the military hero, and it would inevitably weaken his voice in the court in the future.
If all the senior generals of the Beijing camp were dead, he would have nothing to say, but how could he not be suspicious when only Wang Xian and Wang Ziteng, who were not honored with military honors, survived.
Shen Yuan did not hide anything and gave a brief account of how Wang Xian was rescued using a hot air balloon. After this battle, the Longwei Camp made such a big fuss that the hot air balloon corps naturally could not hide it.
As for why he didn't rescue the other governors at the same time, he naturally had an explanation. At that time, the rebels surrounded the central military tent, and it was impossible to land a large number of hot air balloons. He could only rescue one person with the greatest chance of success.
As for why he chose to save Wang Xian, Shen Yuan didn't need to explain. Everyone would understand after a little thought.
Not to mention that Wang Xian was the emperor's confidant, just looking at the situation at the time, who else except Wang Xian could lead the army to cooperate with Shen Yuan in suppressing the rebellion?
Wang Ziteng can hardly protect himself and has long lost the support of the soldiers in the Beijing camp. It may be impossible to mobilize a single soldier to rescue him.
As for the other regiment and battalion commanders, they are just sitting there doing nothing and have mediocre abilities. They are only able to control their own troops and prevent them from causing chaos. How can we expect them to dispatch troops to quell the rebellion?
Next, Shen Yuan answered the questions of the civil and military officials one by one.
Of course, not every question requires Shen Yuan to answer.
Many people here question Shen Yuan just to reduce his contribution in this battle from various angles.
There is no way. Today's contribution to suppressing the rebellion is indeed too great. If no corresponding doubts are raised, I am afraid that Shen Yuan can be directly awarded the fifth-class nobility.
Duke, Marquis, Earl, Viscount, and Baron, even the lowest baron is a first-class title. How shocking is it that a young boy, not even twenty years old, grew from a commoner to a first-class military hero in less than a year?
(End of this chapter)
The fifth day of the eighth month in the seventeenth year of Yuanzhen.
Near noon, Andingmen.
Tu Liu, the lieutenant commander of the Guoyong Camp, stood on his horse outside the city gate with a sword in his hand, his face gloomy and sinister.
The more than 10,000 troops he brought had launched several attacks on Anding Gate, but the gate was high and strong, and they lost thousands of their own men before they could even touch the defenders. What made him even more uneasy was that the troops from the other three brave camps had not yet joined them.
"Stop attacking the city!" Tu Liu had lost confidence in taking down Anding Gate, and ordered a captain beside him, "Go to the Jiedushi camp and see what Xu Kun and his men are doing. How could it take so long for an army of more than 20,000 to kill Wang Ziteng?"
"Yes."
The captain responded and was about to ride away when he saw two scouts coming from the left and right.
"Report——"
"General, this is bad! A large army is approaching our left wing quickly."
"There's a large army approaching on the right wing!"
Tu Liu's eyelids twitched wildly when he heard this. He was terrified and had a bad premonition. If they were friendly troops, they shouldn't be coming from a different direction. He hurriedly asked, "Can you see who they are?"
"They should be from the Yangwei Camp."
"And the Zhenwei Camp."
"Not good!" Tu Liuda felt something was wrong and shouted, "Quick! All troops, listen up, turn around and retreat immediately!"
After saying that, he changed direction first, but before he could increase the speed of his horse, he saw dust flying not far away, followed by a burst of hurried horse hoof sounds.
"New...new military guards!"
Before Tu Liu could finish his surprise, he heard a deafening roar. When he looked up, his eyes widened instantly, his face full of disbelief...
At the same time, on the Andingmen city wall.
The new army soldiers guarding the city also looked towards the horizon not far away, and suddenly a cheer broke out.
"Longwei Camp! The brothers from Longwei Camp are here!" Hundreds of hot air balloons in the sky were rushing towards the city gate.
"Look! Lord Shen is leading his army to support us!"
On the city wall, the new army guards saw their commander leading thousands of troops galloping towards them, and they were all very excited.
The Five City Army and Jinyiwei who were helping to defend the city were stunned by the countless large balloons in the sky...
At this time, some soldiers also saw the Beijing army attacking quickly from the left and right wings, and asked in confusion: "Are those two armies enemies or friends?"
Feng Ziying replied calmly: "The people from the Yangwei Camp and Zhenwei Camp are reinforcements."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they heard this. It seemed that the situation was settled and the rebels under the city wall had been surrounded on three sides.
At this time, Zhao Huan looked at Feng Ziying and asked, "Should we go out of the city and attack together?"
Feng Ziying waved his hand and said in a clear voice: "No need, we can just guard the city gate."
They were on the city wall and could see the current situation very clearly. There was no need for the soldiers defending the city to go into battle. This group of rebels would surely be crushed.
If the defenders leave the city, it might create opportunities for the rebels. It is better to stay still at the moment.
As for whether they would miss out on military merit, the answer is no. For them, keeping the city gate without any mistakes today is already a great achievement.
There is no suspense in the battle outside the city gate. What awaits Tu Liu and his 10,000 rebels is only annihilation.
Then turn your attention to the city of Shenjing.
Imperial Palace, Golden Throne Hall.
The morning court session had ended, but all the civil and military officials had not left. Everyone was anxiously awaiting news from outside.
Emperor Yuanzhen's expression was particularly solemn, and his hands holding the dragon throne turned slightly pale. He said anxiously, "Zhao Quan, send someone to investigate again."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Quan, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, was slightly stunned, but he still went to make arrangements. He had just sent out one group when His Majesty urged him again.
It is no wonder that Emperor Yuanzhen was anxious. The Beijing camp mutinied and the situation was unknown, so the emperor was naturally uneasy.
Prime Minister Yang Yanzhi pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, with Prince Beijing coming forward to supervise, the situation will surely be stabilized."
Upon hearing this, all the civil servants could only lower their heads and shake their heads.
In this kind of dangerous and fierce situation, the only way to deal with it is through military exploits. Civil officials like them really can't do anything.
This is also the reason why no matter how much they suppress military officers, they cannot go too far. After all, the army cannot do without generals who can lead troops into battle.
Emperor Yuanzhen sighed and said in a deep voice: "I am afraid that people's hearts will be unstable and the rebellion will be difficult to suppress for a while."
If Huaizhong had been allowed to train more new troops, it would have been better. Now the new army only has one guard with 5,000 people, and they have to defend the city and suppress the rebellion. It is really stretched to the limit. Even if the young man has the talent of Sun Wu, it is impossible for him to do it.
However, the city gates and palace gates were closed at this time, so at least it was safe now. Even if the situation deteriorated extremely and the rebels broke into the palace, there was a hot air balloon hidden in the palace that was enough to save his life, and the most serious consequences no longer existed.
Upon hearing this, the ministers' faces became solemn again.
As Emperor Yuanzhen and all the civil and military officials in the court were anxiously waiting, time passed quietly. At noon, Zhao Quan, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, suddenly came into the hall again to report.
"Your Majesty, the rebellion has been completely quelled, and the outcome is set!"
Emperor Yuanzhen was delighted when he heard this and asked, "What are the details? Tell me quickly."
All the ministers in the palace breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that the turmoil did not harm them after all.
Zhao Quan took the summarized information and spoke loudly:
"After the Four Brave Battalions mutinied, Lieutenant General Xu Kun of the Ganyong Battalion gathered more than 30,000 rebels and divided them into two groups.
One group, led by Tu Liu, the lieutenant general of the Guoyong Camp, and more than 10,000 rebels attacked Andingmen. Another group, led by Xu Kun, more than 20,000 people besieged the stronghold of the Jingying Jiedushi.
Wang Ziteng, the governor of the Beijing Camp, led 5,000 personal guards of the central army in an unsuccessful attempt to break out, and then fought and retreated. At the critical moment, General Yunwu Shen Yuan sent people to rescue Wang Xian, the governor of the Yangwei Camp and Zhenwei Camp.
Afterwards, Wang Xian returned to his headquarters camp and assembled 35,000 men from his two camps to encircle Xu Kun's troops and cut off the rebels' retreat. However, Wang Xian followed Shen Yuan's suggestion and surrounded them without attacking.
Afterwards, Shen Yuan sent the Longwei Battalion of the New Army to attack the rebels, severely damaging the rebels and causing more than half of them to be killed or wounded. Immediately afterwards, Shen Yuan personally led 2,000 elite cavalry of the New Army to charge directly at the remnants of the rebels, killing more than half of the remaining rebels. Finally, Wang Xian killed the rebels who were about to flee. At this point, all the more than 20,000 rebels led by Xu Kun were killed, and not a single rebel escaped.
In this battle, eight or nine out of ten of the five thousand soldiers in the central army camp were killed. Jiedushi Wang Ziteng had one arm cut off by the rebels and barely managed to save his life. However, except for Wang Xian, all the commanders of the regiments and camps summoned by Wang Ziteng were killed by the rebels.
Afterwards, Shen Yuan and Wang Xian led a large army back to Anding Gate to reinforce, and killed all the more than 10,000 rebels led by Tu Liu outside the city gate. So far, more than 30,000 rebels from the Four Brave Camps who participated in the rebellion had been killed.
In addition, the soldiers of the other six regiments have also been pacified and controlled by Beijing Prince Shui Rong, and the Beijing Battalion has returned to the control of the court."
Zhao Quan read out the quick reports compiled by all parties in one breath without pausing.
Emperor Yuanzhen listened quietly, and his originally extremely solemn mood finally relaxed.
Upon hearing this, the ministers in the court were shocked beyond words. They chewed over the key information with different expressions and remained speechless for a long time.
First of all, everyone is shocked by the casualties caused by this unrest.
More than 30,000 rebels were all beheaded. It was hard for these ministers to imagine how cold-blooded and cruel Shen Yuan and his men were. They killed people like butchering dogs and as if they were killing gods. Although the deaths of the rebels were not a pity, so many people died in less than half a day, which inevitably shocked them.
In addition, Wang Ziteng's 5,000 personal soldiers were almost wiped out, and the commander-in-chief of the Beijing Camp also lost an arm. The governors of all the regiments and camps were all killed. This may not be a bad thing in the minds of many civil servants, but they are also worried that with the loss of so many generals, the Beijing Camp will be in turmoil again.
It is not difficult to hear that in the entire battle to quell the rebellion, one person played a crucial role, and that was Shen Yuan. Without Shen Yuan, the rebel Tu Liu's troops would probably have already invaded the Shenjing City. Without Shen Yuan, the rebel Xu Kun's troops would not have been wiped out.
It can be said that the decisive factor in the entire war was Shen Yuan. This young general was the greatest contributor to the suppression of the rebellion.
Of course, there are also people who have doubts.
Sun Xingchang, the Grand Secretary of the Jinshen Palace and the Second Assistant of the Cabinet, came back to his senses from his shock and questioned, "How did Shen Yuan know that someone was rebelling?"
Not only was he confused, but everyone here, including Emperor Yuanzhen, was also a little curious.
It was as if Shen Yuan had opened his clairvoyance during today's riot suppression and was able to foresee events in advance.
Zhao Quan said: "I don't know. The Jinyiwei has not had time to verify the details yet."
Emperor Yuanzhen pondered for a moment, then instructed the Minister of Internal Affairs Dai Quan, "Open the palace gates and send someone to summon General Yunwu Shen Yuan to the palace to report on the matter."
Dai Quan bowed and left.
Some things did need to be clarified to avoid giving people a chance to talk. Wang Xian and other generals should have been summoned for questioning, but considering that the army was just beginning to be settled and a general was needed to maintain order, only the most important general, Shen Yuan, was summoned.
As the palace gates and city gates opened, the originally anxious hearts of the people in Shenjing City gradually calmed down.
At the same time, what happened outside the city and some details of the mutiny gradually spread among the people, like a huge rock hitting the sea, causing waves. People gathered in groups of three or five and discussed it heatedly.
Less than half an hour later, Shen Yuan was summoned to the palace.
Facing the gazes of all the officials, Shen Yuan looked solemn, and walked with his head held high into the Golden Palace. When he reached the center of the palace, he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I am Shen Yuan, your servant."
Minister of Rites Zhou Xian saw that Shen Yuan's clothes were stained with blood and scolded him, "How dare you, Shen Yuan, disregard the etiquette and wear bloody clothes to enter the palace!"
Hearing the voice, Shen Yuan turned to look at Zhou Xian. The indifferent and cold eyes made the latter shudder, and he even had the urge to step back and avoid him.
Emperor Yuanzhen also glanced at Zhou Xian, seeming to be displeased. He was still fussing over such a small matter at this time. He simply didn't know what was important.
"It's alright, Huaizhong has worked hard to suppress the rebellion, please leave without any formalities."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Emperor Yuanzhen looked at Shen Yuan with warm eyes and asked with concern: "Huaizhong is not injured, right?"
Shen Yuan said: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I am not injured, but the blood on my body is from the rebels."
This is also a response to Zhou Xian. He is leading troops to kill the enemy outside, and this man still has the nerve to talk about etiquette here.
"That's good." Emperor Yuanzhen said, "Huai Zhong should be credited with the first achievement in quelling the rebellion so quickly this time."
"It's all thanks to the hard work of all the soldiers."
"Huaizhong, there is no need to be modest. If you hadn't planned ahead and anticipated the enemy, I'm afraid the capital city would have been in danger." Emperor Yuanzhen was silent for a moment, and then said in a clear voice: "I wonder how Huaizhong knew in advance that there would be a rebellion in the capital camp?"
Shen Yuan bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I did not know about the rebellion in the Beijing camp in advance. The arrangements I made were just to prepare for a rainy day."
"What a plan for a rainy day." Second Assistant Minister Sun Xingchang questioned, "You are not from the Beijing camp, how could you foresee the mutiny?"
He didn't suspect Shen Yuan of having ulterior motives, he just felt that something was fishy.
Shen Yuan said calmly, "Ever since Marshal Wang started investigating corruption and dismissing the old and weak in the Beijing Camp, I have been alert and sent people to investigate in various regiments and camps. Recently, I learned that the generals of the Four Brave Camps had secretly colluded. Therefore, when I learned this morning that several officers had died suddenly in the Jiedushi Camp, I had a premonition that these people might cause chaos, so I made a series of arrangements in advance based on my own judgment."
He didn't care about Sun Xingchang's thoughts, and this was actually an explanation to Emperor Yuanzhen.
It is no secret that many voices of dissatisfaction were heard from the Beijing camp as soon as Wang Ziteng began to reorganize his army. As for Shen Yuan sending people to investigate, if it was before the incident, perhaps someone would still hold on to it. But looking back now, this was indeed a move to prepare for a rainy day, and other ministers would not be able to use this as an excuse to attack him.
Emperor Yuanzhen could not possibly suspect this. Shen Yuan had reminded him of this before, but he ignored it at that time because of Wang Ziteng's solemn assurance. Looking back now, it was fortunate that Shen Yuan was so vigilant that the situation did not get completely out of control.
Nan'an County Prince Zheng Chong said: "How did you rescue Wang Xian from the rebels' encirclement? Why didn't you rescue the other generals as well?"
As a top military hero, he was particularly concerned about this. This time, all the commanders of the military heroes in the Beijing camp were killed. This was a heavy blow to the military hero, and it would inevitably weaken his voice in the court in the future.
If all the senior generals of the Beijing camp were dead, he would have nothing to say, but how could he not be suspicious when only Wang Xian and Wang Ziteng, who were not honored with military honors, survived.
Shen Yuan did not hide anything and gave a brief account of how Wang Xian was rescued using a hot air balloon. After this battle, the Longwei Camp made such a big fuss that the hot air balloon corps naturally could not hide it.
As for why he didn't rescue the other governors at the same time, he naturally had an explanation. At that time, the rebels surrounded the central military tent, and it was impossible to land a large number of hot air balloons. He could only rescue one person with the greatest chance of success.
As for why he chose to save Wang Xian, Shen Yuan didn't need to explain. Everyone would understand after a little thought.
Not to mention that Wang Xian was the emperor's confidant, just looking at the situation at the time, who else except Wang Xian could lead the army to cooperate with Shen Yuan in suppressing the rebellion?
Wang Ziteng can hardly protect himself and has long lost the support of the soldiers in the Beijing camp. It may be impossible to mobilize a single soldier to rescue him.
As for the other regiment and battalion commanders, they are just sitting there doing nothing and have mediocre abilities. They are only able to control their own troops and prevent them from causing chaos. How can we expect them to dispatch troops to quell the rebellion?
Next, Shen Yuan answered the questions of the civil and military officials one by one.
Of course, not every question requires Shen Yuan to answer.
Many people here question Shen Yuan just to reduce his contribution in this battle from various angles.
There is no way. Today's contribution to suppressing the rebellion is indeed too great. If no corresponding doubts are raised, I am afraid that Shen Yuan can be directly awarded the fifth-class nobility.
Duke, Marquis, Earl, Viscount, and Baron, even the lowest baron is a first-class title. How shocking is it that a young boy, not even twenty years old, grew from a commoner to a first-class military hero in less than a year?
(End of this chapter)
