novelAbuy Chapter 24: Emperor Wu of Han is furious, "Am I not as good as the Crown Prince?"
Chapter 24: Emperor Wu of Han is furious, "Am I not as good as the Crown Prince?"
"His Majesty."
Seeing that Emperor Wu of Han's anger had been ignited, Su Wen spoke up again: "Zhao Anguo, the son of Marquis of Cong, has also gone to the Crown Prince's Palace."
"Bang!!!"
These words thoroughly enraged Liu Che. He kicked over the table on the couch and roared, "Zhao Ponu, how dare he?!"
"I'm not even dead yet, and he's already thinking about having his son find a new ruler."
"This lackey, without my favor, how could he have obtained his current high position and generous salary?"
"This is rebellion! This is truly rebellion!"
Previously, Crown Prince Liu Ju had recruited members of the Wei and Shi families, as well as descendants of founding heroes, but this was not enough to cross Emperor Wu of Han's bottom line.
Zhao Ponu's actions were different. He was the most deeply rooted cavalry general in the army. Wei Qing had been ill at home for many years, and Huo Qubing had died young. The Han army needed cavalry generals to deal with the Xiongnu.
Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, intended to heavily rely on Zhao Ponu in order to annihilate the Xiongnu who had fled to the northern deserts. Therefore, Zhao Ponu only lost the title of Marquis of Congpiao after experiencing the "reward for gold and stripping of title" incident, but did not lose his trust and still held a high position.
But now, Zhao Ponu has taken the initiative to send his eldest son to serve under the Crown Prince, which has touched a nerve with Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che.
The alliance between military generals and the crown prince has been the most direct threat to imperial power since ancient times.
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger."
Su Wen immediately knelt down and offered his advice.
"Draft an imperial edict!"
"promise!"
The eunuch standing nearby listened intently, ready to jot down the contents of the imperial edict at any moment.
"Zhao Ponu was appointed as the governor of Dunhuang, in charge of the garrisoning of Yumen Pass and Yang Pass."
"Tell him to get out of here. Get him to Hexi, the farther the better. Don't let him get in my way in Chang'an."
Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, waved his sleeve and shouted.
"promise."
Huangmen Shilang Su Wen was overjoyed. With Zhao Ponu gone, the Crown Prince had lost one more supporter in Chang'an.
The eunuch hurriedly responded and went to draft the imperial edict, preparing to go to Zhao Ponu's residence to announce it.
"Tap tap!"
At this moment, Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, walked step by step to the entrance of the Greenhouse Palace and looked southeast, where the Crown Prince's Palace (Bowang Garden) was located.
"His Majesty."
"It's cold and the dew is heavy, you..."
Su Wen stepped forward and asked with concern
"I am not so old and senile as to be senile; what is a little cold?"
Liu Che paid no attention to his words, his speech filled with imperial majesty and pride.
He was the supreme emperor of the Han Dynasty, sweeping away the decadence since Emperor Gaozu, expanding the territory by thousands of miles, and driving the Xiongnu, his greatest threat, to the northern desert, where they dared not graze their horses southward. He believed his achievements were comparable to those of Qin Shi Huang, the only shortcoming being that he had a son like Fusu.
But the changes in the past few days caught him off guard. Crown Prince Liu Ju acted with lightning speed and was far more decisive and ruthless than him. He consolidated the Crown Prince's palace with a sweeping and decisive approach and eliminated all external factors.
Now, only the Crown Prince's voice remains in the Bowang Garden. It's likely that even the Emperor of Han's words might not be able to penetrate it. This has instilled a sense of fear in Emperor Wu of Han. Some things are gradually slipping out of his control, a scene that the Emperor absolutely cannot allow to happen.
"The fledgling eagle has grown wings, and its feathers are becoming more and more complete, so it wants to soar through the sky."
"The first place its sharp gaze fell upon was precisely its eagle's nest."
Under the setting sun, Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, stood with his hands behind his back, his figure casting a long and magnificent shadow in the sunlight.
"His Majesty."
Su Wen, the Yellow Gate Attendant, was somewhat unsure of Emperor Wu of Han's thoughts, so he simply stepped back a body and served him humbly.
"Now that he's grown up, he should learn how to govern a country."
"Governing a large country is like cooking a small fish; if you can't even sweep your own room, how can you sweep the world?"
"If my son can't even manage his own household, how can he talk about governing the country?"
"An imperial edict was drafted: the Crown Prince has acted improperly, and his fiefdom of forty counties shall be reduced as a punishment."
"Immediately summon all officials to the Crown Prince's palace."
"promise."
Su Wen was overjoyed. All the fiefdoms of the forty counties had been abolished, and the Crown Prince had no fiefdoms left. How would he support his troops?
Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice. Princess Wei and the others can't keep supplying the Crown Prince's palace with resources forever. If this continues, how will the Crown Prince build up his power base?
............
At five quarters past the hour of You (5:45 PM), as the sun began to set in the west, we arrived at the main hall of Bowang Garden.
"Your Highness."
"The treasury currently holds six million coins, two hundred thousand catties of gold, and one hundred and fifty thousand bolts of silk."
"Sixty thousand shi of grain, twelve thousand dan of firewood, and two hundred and forty-three mules and horses."
The newly appointed chief clerk of the Crown Prince's palace, Xiao Shoucheng, has completed a thorough inventory, including confiscating the homes of wandering knights and selling off the proceeds from the sale of their relatives.
"Um."
Liu nodded, his expression calm and composed.
The Battle of Mobei alone cost the Han Empire 276 billion coins (about 6-7 years' income), sent out 24 horses, but less than 3 returned, consumed more than 2800 million shi of grain, and distributed more than 50 jin of gold as rewards.
The Crown Prince's palace treasury, though seemingly vast, was actually a drop in the ocean; even the treasuries of ordinary feudal lords were not necessarily this meager.
Over the years, Crown Prince Liu Ju has spent lavishly on supporting Confucian scholars of the Guliang School and wandering knights, and has also been generous in rewarding his servants, which has earned him a reputation for virtue.
To cultivate their own power to counter Emperor Wu of Han, simply cutting expenses was not enough; they had to find ways to increase revenue.
"Your Highness."
Zhang He, the Crown Prince's steward, quickly entered and reported, "An angel has come to proclaim an imperial edict."
"Oh?"
Raising an eyebrow, Liu Ju said calmly, "Let him in."
"promise."
Zhang He went down to arrange for people to welcome the angel.
A moment later, a young eunuch appeared in the main hall and announced loudly, "His Majesty has issued an edict."
"read."
Liu Ju didn't move an inch, remaining seated on the couch, looking down at the eunuch.
Thinking of the corpses being dragged out of the Crown Prince's palace these past few days, the young eunuch broke out in a cold sweat. He hadn't considered the Crown Prince's rudeness and quickly opened the yellow silk, reading: "The Crown Prince has acted improperly; forty counties of his fiefdom are hereby stripped as punishment."
Boom!
The moment those words were spoken, the entire audience was stunned.
Zhang He, the Crown Prince's Household Steward, and Xiao Shoucheng, the Chief Clerk, both changed their expressions and looked at Crown Prince Liu Ju.
"hehe."
Liu Ju chuckled lightly, and said sarcastically, "Is that all the tricks you've got?"
"Go back and tell Su Wen that I said so, and let him stir up trouble."
"The mighty Emperor of Han only knows how to use such low-class tricks, which only makes him a laughing stock."
"This servant takes her leave!"
The eunuch was sweating profusely. Was this something he could convey?
He hurriedly left the Crown Prince's Palace, fearing that he might hear something he shouldn't have.
"Your Highness."
"All of Tangmuyi have been abolished."
"This matter violates the rules of etiquette."
After the eunuch left, Zhang He said impatiently.
"Without the Tangmuyi, the Crown Prince's palace will have no income and will be difficult to sustain."
Xiao Shoucheng was just as anxious.
Apart from the salaries of the eight hundred guards on the left and right sides of the Crown Prince's palace, which were paid by the Grand Minister of Agriculture (formerly the Minister of Grain), all other expenses of the Crown Prince's palace came from the Crown Prince's inner treasury, which was the income from the royal fiefdoms, including the salaries of the Crown Prince's Household Steward, Crown Prince's Palace Steward, Crown Prince's Palace Attendant Steward, and Chief Clerk.
Without Tang Muyi, how will the Crown Prince support so many people? He might even have a hard time supporting himself.