bookrandom Chapter 149 The Difficult Reward
Chapter 149 The Difficult Reward
As soon as the emperor opened his mouth, all the ministers fell silent.
Even though they doubted Chu Ning's battle record at the beginning, even the Chang father and son died in the battle, and the commander-in-chief of the Great Zhao was killed. Who would dare to fake this?
Although the details of the battle are unclear, who would dare to fake such an amazing record? It can be easily found out with a simple search.
What's more, this time Chu Ning only destroyed 10,000 soldiers of the enemy, and his real achievement was beheading the general!
There are few records of a smaller force defeating a larger one, but there are records of victorious generals on the battlefield.
Moreover, with Chu Ning's temper and personality, he might have really used some provocation to kill Tuoba Yan.
But now the question arises, how to reward Chu Ning.
Killing the enemy commander and destroying 10,000 of their soldiers was a tremendous achievement.
If an ordinary general could do this, he would definitely be promoted.
But Chu Ning is different!
Chu Ning is already a prince and a prince of a county. If his title is raised further, he will become a prince.
It is not impossible to confer the title of prince at this moment, but if Chu Ning returns victorious, what title should be conferred then?
In the past, no one thought that Chu Ning could return safely.
But now that the commander-in-chief of the Great Zhao has been killed, Chu Ning might really have a chance to come back, and by then there will be nothing left to be done.
This is the problem. The reward is too great now, and there will be no more rewards in the future.
But if the reward is too little, there will be no way to explain to the soldiers on the front line.
Although only 10,000 enemy soldiers were killed, killing the enemy commander was also a huge victory!
"My dear ministers, why are you silent?"
Seeing everyone was silent, the emperor frowned and said, "This is such a big thing, everyone please tell us what you think."
The ministers looked at each other and discussed in low voices.
"The Prince of Penglai is a prince. If he is given another title, he can only be a prince."
"He can't be made a prince, otherwise it would disrupt the royal family rules. How can he be made a prince so soon after he was included in the family tree?"
"But His Royal Highness the Prince has made great contributions, and must be rewarded handsomely!"
To the prince's ears, what everyone said was as unpleasant as eating a dead fly.
Why is this damn Chu Ning so lucky that he actually killed Tuoba Yan on the front line!
The old fellow Tuoba Yan really wanted to die. He went to the battlefield in person when he was nearly seventy years old, and gave Chu Ning a great military achievement in vain.
No, Chu Ning must not be promoted to prince, otherwise he will have the opportunity to challenge my position.
Narrowing his eyes, the prince said in a deep voice: "Father, although my eighteenth brother's record is amazing, after all, he only faced an enemy force of 10,000. If the reward is too great, it will inevitably make people dissatisfied.
What's more, there will definitely be a major war coming up. If the rewards are too great, Eighteenth Brother, who is young and energetic, will inevitably become complacent.
Father, you also know that young people are easily impulsive. If Eighteenth Brother takes the initiative to attack in order to gain more military merits, it may result in casualties."
As soon as these words were spoken, the scene fell silent.
Everyone can understand the meaning of the prince's words, but it must be said that the prince's words are irrefutable.
The other dozen princes looked at each other at this moment. Their thoughts were the same as the crown prince's: Chu Ning must not be allowed to succeed.
The princes, led by the Second Prince, immediately stood up and said, "Father, what the Crown Prince said is absolutely right!"
"Yes, Father, we cannot let Eighteenth Brother be too confident, otherwise he will harm the soldiers on the front line."
"Father, you can reward the generals for this battle heavily, but reward my eighteenth brother lightly."
"Eighteenth brother has made such great achievements at such a young age, he must be very proud. If we reward him generously at this moment, it will definitely boost his morale, which will be disadvantageous to our soldiers on the front line!"
The princes all echoed the prince's words.
Anyway, with the prince taking the lead, even if the emperor disagrees, he will not blame them, but will only blame the prince.
The emperor looked at his sons and his expression became more solemn.
I originally thought that although my sons were fighting for power and profit, they would definitely work together on major issues.
But reality taught me a severe lesson!
None of these people hoped that Chu Ning could come back alive.
"enough!"
The emperor snorted coldly, glanced at the princes, and said coldly: "I asked you to come here to listen to Chu Ning's achievements, not to let you discuss Chu Ning!"
After he finished speaking, the emperor looked at Feng Anguo.
"Lord Feng, as the Minister of War, what do you think of this matter?"
Feng Anguo's daughter Feng Mulan is also on the list of people being asked for merit this time. As long as Feng Anguo speaks up for Chu Ning, I will have reason to reward Chu Ning handsomely!
Feng Anguo felt very helpless at this moment.
On the one hand, he hopes that his daughter will achieve success in her career.
But on the other hand, he didn't want his daughter to be involved in party disputes too early.
Although he was a member of the Second Prince's faction, his conscience made him feel that Chu Ning should be rewarded handsomely for this matter.
While deep in thought, the prince in front said calmly: "Master Feng, you have to think it over before you speak!"
This is a public warning!
Feng Anguo frowned, then walked out of the class and bowed: "Your Majesty, I think the Prince of Penglai should be rewarded, but the specific reward should be decided by the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Revenue.
Besides, my daughter is also involved in this battle. If I speak, I am afraid it will give people a chance to criticize me."
Reward, of course, must be given.
But as the Minister of War, and his daughter participated in this war, he needed to avoid suspicion!
The emperor frowned upon hearing this and glared at the second prince before turning his gaze to the Minister of Rites Wang Wenguang.
"The Ministry of Rites has always been responsible for these matters. I wonder how Lord Wang thinks I should reward Chu Ning?"
"This……"
Wang Wenguang noticed that everyone's eyes were focused on him, and cold sweat immediately soaked his back.
If you don't answer well, you will offend many people.
Wang Wenguang felt bitter in his heart, and stood up and said with a wry smile: "Your Majesty, this matter is of great importance. Please allow me to discuss it with other adults before reporting to Your Majesty."
Of course, this kind of thing cannot be decided immediately. One has to put the matter aside first and discuss it with the emperor in secret to avoid offending all the princes in public.
The princes breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as there is no immediate decision, they can work secretly to make the ministers involved in the matter give Chu Ning less rewards.
But the emperor was obviously not satisfied with this matter, and snorted coldly: "My dear Wang, you are just trying to shirk responsibility. You have no opinion at all for such a great achievement!"
"Humph, your Ministry of Rites must come up with a set of rules today!"
The emperor was very angry, and Wang Wenguang was frightened to the point of breaking out in a cold sweat.
Fortunately, at this moment, the eunuch's shrill voice came from outside the palace: "Your Highness, Princess Shen wants to see you!"
Everyone was stunned.
What is Shen Wanying doing here at this time?
The emperor was also a little surprised. The Shen family never entered the palace. This time Shen Wanying came here in person. Could it be that there was something important?
Forget it, for the sake of Chu Ning's contribution, let's see what Shen Wanying has to say.
"Let her in!"
"Announce, Princess Shen is here to see you!"
Under the gaze of everyone, Shen Wanying, wearing a purple dress and with a gentle face, slowly came in from outside the hall.
"See Your Majesty."
"No need to be so polite. Wanying, why did you come to see me?"
Shen Wanying smiled gently: "I came here today because of Chu Ning's reward."