Within Lan Zhou City, the army had gathered and barracks were everywhere.
In the Firearms Surveillance Barracks, cries of agony could be heard continuously.
"Sss! Be careful! "Meton laid on the bed with a pained expression.
Mo Wu looked helplessly at the dead skin in his hands and said patiently, "Young Master, please bear with it. The sunburn on your back has been delayed for too long. If it is not disinfected and becomes inflamed, the consequences will be unimaginable."
Meton crossed the desert and went to Tulun Chuan. Although the results were great, his back was severely sunburned and the red patch was extremely frightening.
Mo Wu picked up a bottle of alcohol and gently rubbed it on Meton's wound. The intense pain almost caused Meton to jump up.
"Young Master, now that the war has ended, when can we return to Chang 'an City?" Mo Wu asked, wanting to distract Meton to lessen his pain.
After Li Jing brought the army back to Lan Zhou City, they had already rested for many days. However, they still did not give the order to return to Chang 'an City.
Modun gasped and explained, "I'm afraid it will take some time to get back to Chang 'an. The war has just ended, and the soldiers are still emotionally unstable. If we rush back to the capital, I'm afraid there will be chaos. Even if we go back, I'm afraid we'll be the first to go back, followed by the soldiers."
Post-war Stress Syndrome was not something that only existed in modern times. In ancient times, although there was no such term, the wisdom of the ancient people had already found a way to prevent it. Otherwise, if the soldiers returned to their hometown to injure people, it would be extremely dangerous.
The army had been on the expedition for more than two months and it could be said that the soldiers were in a state of high tension every day. If they rushed back without rest, the consequences would be dire.
"I see!"
Mo Wu said, but his hands did not stop moving. Very quickly, he finished bandaging Meton's wound.
"Don't touch water for the next few days. Change the bandage every three days and you will recover in seven days." Mo Wu said.
Meton nodded his head weakly and laid there like a dead dog, enjoying this rare moment of leisure.
However, Meton's leisure time did not last long. Following the sound of drums, Meton's ears perked up. Ignoring the pain, he suddenly stood up.
"General Drum!"
Modun donned a simple set of armor and leaped onto his horse, heading straight for Li Jing's temporary residence, the governor's mansion.
As soon as the first drumbeat fell, Meton stepped into the governor's office and found that all the generals had already gathered.
"What happened?"
Meton moved closer to Su Dingfang and asked softly. At this moment, the battle had already ended, so why would the drum roll suddenly sound?
Su Dingfang pointed to the east and whispered, "Someone from Chang 'an City has come!"
Meton immediately understood. Now that the army had returned victorious, the Imperial Court would naturally send out officials to console them.
Not long after, the imperial envoy who came to console the army arrived. Unexpectedly, it was the Minister of Personnel, Gao Shilian, whom Meton had met when he reported to the Ministry of Personnel.
"Greetings, Imperial Envoy!"
"Everyone, please rise. You are the great heroes of the Western Expedition. This Old Man is not worthy of your praise!" Gao Shilian said politely.
Li Jing stepped forward and said in a clear voice, "Sir Gao, you have come from afar. You must be tired from the journey. Thank you for your trouble."
Gao Shilian's eyes turned and saw Meton behind the generals. He couldn't help but smile and said, "If it was before, this Old Man would have definitely lost half his life by traveling thousands of miles. However, with the four-wheeled carriage and brick roads built by Mo Jiu, the Old Man only needed to lie comfortably in the carriage for three days to reach Lan Province. This is truly several times more convenient!"
It had to be said that if it weren't for the convenience of the brick roads, Gao Shilian wouldn't have dared to accept this imperial envoy's task. Otherwise, the long journey would have taken his life. Li Jing also had a look of approval. The convenience of the brick roads could be said to be incisively and vividly displayed in this Western Expedition. It could be said to be the greatest hero of the Western Expedition.
Meton immediately smiled awkwardly and said, "Sir Gao, you flatter me!"
"Let's put private matters aside for now. Let's deal with official matters first!" Gao Shilian said solemnly.
Immediately, the generals' expressions became serious.
"His Majesty has ordered that we were able to destroy the Tuyuhun in one fell swoop because of the merits of all of you. Once we return to Chang 'an, everyone will be rewarded according to their merits," Gao Shilian said solemnly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
A sliver of a smile involuntarily appeared on the generals' faces.
Li Jing waved his hand, and immediately, a trusted soldier quickly ran out of the governor's manor. Immediately, waves of cheers came from all over the military camps in the city.
"Secondly, I have come here for another matter. I want to investigate the case of the generals accusing Li Jing of treason!" As soon as Gao Shilian finished speaking, there was an immediate uproar. Many people immediately focused their gazes on Li Jing and Li Daoyan, who was waiting to be punished.
Li Jing sighed in his heart. He immediately felt disheartened. After every battle, memorials accusing him of treason would always appear. This time, he had been very careful and had acted completely according to military orders. He had not thought that it would be the same this time.
However, Li Daoyan's expression was innocent. Logically speaking, Li Jing's punishment for Li Daoyan was extremely severe. The one most likely to accuse Li Jing was probably him. Although he resented Li Jing for punishing him so severely, he accepted it for the sake of Li Jing sending troops to seek justice for his 3,000 soldiers. He had never thought about accusing Li Jing of treason.
"Where is Gao Zhensheng?" Gao Shilian asked loudly.
"Gao Zhensheng?" The generals couldn't help but be shocked. Logically speaking, Li Jing's punishment was not excessive for Li Daoyan. With Gao Zhensheng's military service, it would not be difficult for him to maintain his official career. No one had thought that Gao Zhensheng would take such an extreme path.
"I am here!" Gao Zhensheng gritted his teeth and stepped forward. In his view, Li Jing's actions had long been madly testing the bottom line of the court. Since they had already shed all pretense of cordiality, there was nothing to worry about.
Even Li Jing glanced in surprise at Gao Zhensheng. He couldn't help but shake his head and close his eyes.
Gao Shilian suddenly shouted, "Governor Gao Zhensheng of Lizhou disobeyed military orders and stirred up trouble on the border. General Li punished him according to military orders, but he held a grudge and falsely accused General Li of treason. He is truly lawless. His Majesty has ordered that Gao Zhensheng disobeyed military orders and falsely accused a meritorious official. According to law, he should be executed. Due to his many years of military service, he will be spared the death penalty.
He will be exiled! "" Ah! "Gao Zhensheng felt like he had been struck by lightning. He had not thought that this would be the outcome.
"Impossible! His Majesty would not do this to me! " Gao Zhensheng seemed to have gone mad. He was an old man of Li Shimin's manor and could be said to be Li Shimin's direct line of command. He had originally thought that even if Li Jing had escaped, Li Shimin would let him off for the sake of their past relationship. He had not thought that he would end up like this.
Gao Shilian waved his hand. Immediately, two cavalry soldiers came forward to restrain Gao Zhensheng and take him away.
"General Li, you must be frightened." Gao Shilian cupped his hands toward Li Jing.
Li Jing shook his head and said, "This Old Man has been loyal to his country all his life. My conscience is clear. Thank you, Your Majesty, for your judgment and for helping Li Jing clear his name."
The other generals also came forward and said, "We have all seen General Li's character with our own eyes. Naturally, we do not believe that General Li is treason."
Even Li Daoyan's neck was red as he said, "Although General Li has punished me, I do not believe that General Li is treason."
After Li Daoyan finished speaking, Gao Shilian's gaze fell on him. Li Daoyan's heart trembled. Gao Zhensheng's crime was great, but so was his.
As expected, Gao Shilian said coldly, "Li Daoyan disobeyed military orders and stirred up trouble on the border. He caused the deaths of three thousand innocent soldiers. According to the law, he will be exiled to the border."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your mercy!" Li Daoyan said with mixed feelings.
This punishment was extremely severe for him, but it was much better than Gao Zhensheng's. At least he would not be beheaded and would not be pardoned. There was still a chance for him to be reinstated in the future.
Seeing Li Daoyan being escorted by two hundred riders, the generals couldn't help but look at Li Jing with complicated expressions. This time, Li Shimin had supported Li Jing greatly. He had punished two generals who had disobeyed military orders. Gao Zhensheng was an old official of the King of Qin's Residence and Li Daoyan was a member of the imperial family. Both of them were merciless.
"Your Majesty, this old official blushes with shame for not being able to repay your kindness." Li Jing bowed toward Chang 'an City.
Gao Shilian said seriously, "Your Majesty naturally knows what is right and what is wrong. We only need to be loyal to our duties."
"Actually, I have come today for an even more important matter." Gao Shilian's expression changed as he stared at Meton at the back.
"It's me!" Morton walked out with a blank expression.
"That's right! You may not know this, but there is a flood in Shandong that has flooded seven counties. Millions of people have lost their homes. However, the imperial court has emptied its treasury in order to conquer the West. The only person who can solve this problem is not Mo Jiu, "Gao Shilian said solemnly.
"Flood in Shandong!"
"Millions of people have lost their homes!"
"Selling hundreds of thousands of cows and sheep?"
… … …
After the generals understood the extent of the flood, they couldn't help but be in an uproar. They all looked at Meton. In their eyes, Mo Jiazi had two major skills that everyone envied. One was to squander, and the other was to make money.
When Mo Jiazi squandered, he could make everyone's heart bleed. However, when it came to making money, it was as easy as pie.
"This kid is young and used to fooling around. I'm afraid he can't bear this heavy responsibility." Meton quickly waved his hand. That was hundreds of thousands of cows and sheep. He had learned about the relationship between supply and demand. Once these cows and sheep entered the Tang dynasty, it would immediately destroy the price of meat in the Tang dynasty and cause a series of chain reactions. It would be no less than an economic crisis.
Meton used to only feed 5,000 people in the Mo Family Village. However, at this moment, he had to bear the livelihood of millions of people. Even he couldn't help but shrink back.
Gao Shilian looked at Meton. He had already expected Meton to have such a reaction. He said calmly, "His Majesty said that as long as you solve this problem, the 6,000 horses will be written off."
"Ah!"
Meton was stunned. He didn't expect that in order to chase after Fu Yun, he planned to lose 6,000 horses to Li Shimin so quickly.
Cheng Yaojin couldn't help but cover his mouth and laugh. Sure enough, Meton was the scapegoat for being a prodigal. The other generals also revealed playful smiles, as if they were watching a good show.
"What 6,000 horses!" Su Dingfang said doubtfully. His position was lower, so he didn't know about this.
When he learned from the other generals that Meton lost 6,000 horses without hesitation, he couldn't help but gasp. He opened his eyes wide and re-examined Mo Jiazi. As a soldier, the most precious thing was the horses. The price of 6,000 horses was an astronomical figure, but Meton didn't hesitate to squander it.
Meton smiled awkwardly and quickly raised his head. He changed the topic and said with an impassioned look, "Although I am young, I am indebted to His Majesty. Even if there are difficulties and obstacles, I will share His Majesty's worries."
Gao Shilian nodded with satisfaction and said, "Don't worry, the imperial court won't make things difficult for you. If you have any requests, just say it."
"I want power!" Meton said with bright eyes.
"Yes!" Gao Shilian nodded without hesitation and said, "The Old Man will personally oversee Longyou and leave behind 100,000 soldiers to continue to be stationed in Zizhou Province. As long as you don't incite a revolt, the Old Man will definitely support you.
The generals couldn't help but be shocked. With Gao Shilian overseeing and supporting him and 100,000 soldiers, Meton became the most powerful person in the northwest region in a very short time.
"In this case, it's not impossible to succeed!" Meton's eyes suddenly sparkled. He was eager to give it a try.
Young people were frivolous. Who didn't want to control the world?
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