"All the generals of the Western Expedition have been imprisoned!"
The people of Chang 'an didn't see the triumphant army parade through the streets. Instead, they heard the news that all the generals of the Western Expedition had been imprisoned. In an instant, the entire Chang' an City was in an uproar.
"As the saying goes, once the cunning rabbit is caught, the hound is cooked; once the birds are gone, the bow is gone! This is a principle that hasn't changed since ancient times. I didn't expect that even His Majesty would … "An old man said in a deep voice.
"Bullsh * t, His Majesty is in his prime. He's far from being senile and muddle-headed. Why would he need to kill the country's founding heroes?" Someone said in disbelief.
"That's right. Hou Junji has just contributed to the destruction of the country. Even if the cunning rabbit is caught, he wouldn't be in such a hurry. But I heard that Hou Junji is a little arrogant and domineering. Moreover, the ones imprisoned this time are the generals of the Western Expedition. It seems that they must have made a big mistake during the expedition. That's why they angered His Majesty. "A wise person analyzed.
"What mistake can be compared to the contribution of destroying a country?" Everyone guessed.
…
The people of Chang 'an were speculating and discussing. It wasn't until the real news spread that everyone was in an uproar.
"The generals of the Western Expedition led their troops to rob Gao Chang!"
All the people were in an uproar. As the people of the lower class, they felt the most empathetic. Every time there was a disaster of war, they were the ones who got hurt. As the saying goes, bandits pass by like combs, and soldiers pass by like moats. A disaster of war was far more hateful than a disaster of bandits.
Moreover, ten years ago, Li Jing sent troops to the Turks. He only tacitly allowed the soldiers to rob and didn't participate. But this time, Hou Junji took the lead to rob Gao Chang, and the other generals followed suit. The nature of their actions was even worse. It was no wonder that Li Shimin was so angry that he directly imprisoned Hou Junji and the other generals.
"Not all the generals of the Western Regions. Mo Jiazi didn't participate in the robbery," a merchant said.
"Mo Jiazi!" Everyone was stunned for a moment before they nodded their heads in agreement. The people of Chang 'an would not believe it if it was someone else who could emerge from the mud untainted. However, when they heard that Mo Jiazi did not participate in the robbery, everyone believed it without hesitation. That was because the Mo Family's village did not care about Gao Chang's money, let alone this kind of ill-gotten wealth, which was against the Mo Family's philosophy.
There was an uproar among the people, and there were even more undercurrents in the imperial court. Whenever there was a war, soldiers would plunder. This was unavoidable, and most of the time, it was tacitly approved. It was a way to gather the morale of the army and motivate the soldiers. However, this was the first time that the Head Chief had personally participated in a plunder. The military could not help but secretly hate Hou Junji for being blinded by wealth. He actually did such a thing and exposed the rules that the military had always tacitly approved in front of the world.
"Your Majesty, the generals of the Western Expedition have just made a meritorious deed of destroying the country and returned triumphantly. Although they were wrong, I think that the flaws outweigh the merits. Your Majesty, please give a lighter punishment." Xue Wanche pleaded. His brother Xue Wanjun was also imprisoned. As the younger brother, he had to plead for mercy.
All the generals pleaded for mercy, hoping that the meritorious deed could offset the demerits and reduce the punishment.
"Absolutely not. Meritorious deed is meritorious deed, and demerits are demerits. Meritorious deed and demerits cannot offset each other," Ma Jiayun quickly objected.
"Even the meritorious deed of destroying a country is not allowed?" Xue Wanche said angrily.
Ma Jiayun could not help but be stunned. The meritorious deed of destroying a country was the highest meritorious deed of the Tang dynasty. If he objected, he was afraid that he would really annoy the military.
Seeing this, Yu Zhining stepped forward to help and said, "The meritorious deed of destroying a country is indeed a meritorious deed. However, Hou Junji is arrogant because of his meritorious deed. As a Great General and the General Manager of the Marching Army, he knowingly broke the law and corrupted the military discipline of the Tang dynasty. His crime is even worse. I'm afraid that even the meritorious deed of destroying a country is not enough to make up for it."
Li Shimin's expression could not help but change. What he was most angry about was that Hou Junji knowingly broke the law and took the lead to plunder Gao Chang. If it were the actions of other generals, Li Shimin might not be so angry. However, Hou Junji took the lead to break the military law and directly caused the military discipline of more than 100,000 soldiers to collapse. This was something that no Emperor would allow.
Li Shimin did not care about Gao Chang's little wealth. What he really cared about was the 100,000 elite soldiers. This was the foundation of the Tang dynasty. Once it was destroyed, the foundation of the Tang dynasty would be in danger.
"You all don't need to say anymore. As the General Manager of the Marching Army, Hou Junji took the lead to break the military law and failed to live up to my trust. He deserves to be punished." Li Shimin coldly snorted, flicked his sleeves, and left.
The generals could not help but sigh. They immediately knew that Li Shimin was angry. It was useless to persuade him anymore.
"Vulgar martial artists!"
Many civil officials immediately showed complacent smiles. This was why most civil officials looked down on generals. They were rude and did not understand etiquette. It was not that civil officials did not have vermin, but even if they were corrupt, they would do everything possible to carefully cover it up. As long as they were not caught and sent to prison, all civil officials were above the law.
Moreover, in recent years, the generals had repeatedly destroyed countries. Each of them was arrogant, which led to Hou Junji's current situation. The civil officials could use this opportunity to reduce the prestige of the generals.
In the prison, Hou Junji sat upright in his cell. Even though he was in prison, he still maintained his demeanor as a general. However, in his heart, the anger had long been burning.
Although he was in prison, it did not affect Hou Junji's knowledge of the situation outside the prison, as well as the movements in the court. He committed the crime of robbing Gao Chang. According to the new military law, he was beheaded. Not to mention that he was a general who knew the law and violated it. His crime was even worse. The court and the common people were all against him, and the Emperor was furious.
Returning with the merit of destroying a country was the proudest moment of Hou Junji's life. Now that he had become a prisoner, it was simply the biggest joke in the world. How could the arrogant Hou Junji accept this?
"It's over! If I had known … "Niu Jinda said regretfully.
He had bitterly stayed in the three provinces for five years. Only then did he manage to get a chance to go on an expedition to the west. He could have used this opportunity to raise his title and official position. Unfortunately, all his previous efforts were wasted because of a few treasures.
The other generals could not help but sigh. Their faces were ashen. This time, not to mention the merit, even their lives were another matter.
"If Hou Junji had not taken the lead …"
Suddenly, the generals could not help but focus their attention on Hou Junji. Xin Yaoer sensed the gazes of the generals and could not help but snort angrily. "What are you all worried about? We have just returned in triumph with the merit of destroying a country. This mistake is nothing. In my opinion, His Majesty will let us out in a few days. "
Suddenly, hope rose in the hearts of the generals.
However, as the days passed, His Majesty still had no intention of letting them out. Not many people had the intention to come out. Instead, the wave of civil officials impeaching them was growing.
"Mo Jiazi is still the smartest!" In the prison, the generals of the western expedition looked at each other. Suddenly, they realized that all the generals of the western expedition were present except for one person. That person was Mo Jiazi.
Xin Yaoer's face suddenly changed. Jealousy and hatred rose in his heart. "I don't think so. If we are all in prison, why is Mo Jiazi able to stay out of trouble? Perhaps it is because of the Mo Family that we are in prison today."
Suddenly, the generals couldn't help but pause. They couldn't help but have a few more thoughts in their hearts. Although they all knew the reason why the Mo Clan didn't participate in the plundering, they were all in prison and were about to be beheaded. However, the Mo Clan's disciples were outside enjoying splendor and wealth. This disparity caused a seed of hatred to grow in their hearts.
"Mo Jiazi!"
Hou Junji's eyes flashed like cold stars.
In the chaos of the world, innocence was perhaps a sin.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
