Volume 1 The Wind Rises Chapter 6 Guo Rong and the Zhao Brothers
"Ha ha!"
A burst of hearty laughter came from the Yanhe Hall in the Kaifeng Palace.
Guo Rong, the second emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, looked at Cui Yan, the deputy governor of Kaifeng Prefecture, who was reporting to him, with a happy face and said, "Did Zhao Kuangyi really kick Luo Youdu to the ground?"
Cui Yan said with a bitter smile: "Under the watchful eyes of the public, how can it be false?"
Thinking of the time when Luo Youdu escorted the embarrassed Zhao Kuangyi to Kaifeng Prefecture, he, the chief of Kaifeng Prefecture, couldn't help but be shocked.
The nominal highest official of Kaifeng Prefecture was the prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture, but during the Five Dynasties period, the prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture was mostly the de facto crown prince.
Guo Rong's son had just turned one year old, so naturally he was not yet qualified to be the prefect. The Kaifeng Prefecture Assistant Governor was the de facto chief of the Kaifeng Prefecture.
"I never thought that the problem that troubled Wei Shumishi and Zhao Qing was solved by a small official. This Luo Youdu is really brave, and this kick really won my heart!"
Guo Rong was filled with joy. This matter was a big deal for Wei Renpu and Zhao Kuangyin, but it was insignificant in front of him, the Emperor of the Great Zhou. Just one word, either restriction or punishment, and neither Wei Renpu nor Zhao Kuangyin dared to say anything.
However, Guo Rong understood that as a superior, even if he could not treat everyone equally, he could not be biased. Otherwise, the officers and soldiers would be alienated and he would not be able to stay emperor for long.
But from the very beginning, Guo Rong had secretly set a bottom line on this matter, turning a big thing into a small thing.
There is no other reason.
The warning brought to him by the Battle of Gaoping was too profound. He saw with his own eyes his soldiers kneeling in front of the enemy and shouting "Long live the enemy" in front of the battle line of the two armies.
Guo Rong will never forget this kind of mockery and shock.
Even if we won that battle, it would have been a great humiliation.
For this reason, he killed more than 70 generals in one go to show his determination to rectify military affairs.
He recruited strong and brave men from all over the country, incorporated them into the imperial army, and handed them over to Zhao Kuangyin for training.
If at this critical moment, Zhao Kuangyi's incident leads to instability in the training of the new army, it will be detrimental to the future of the Great Zhou.
As an emperor who aimed to be like the Qin Shi Huang and Han Wudi, Guo Rong would not allow this situation to happen.
But what Guo Rong didn't want to see even more was that he was emboldening the military's arrogance.
Arrogant and brave generals were the benchmark of this era. By over-indulging Zhao Kuangyin , a bad precedent was set, and it would be even more difficult to control them in the future.
Guo Rong simply left the matter alone and gave Zhao Kuangyin a headache. When Zhao Kuangyin couldn't bear it anymore, he would take action to teach him a lesson.
For this reason, Guo Rong also informed Cui Yan, the attendant of Kaifeng Prefecture, in advance, asking him not to deal with it in a hurry.
This also led to this major case falling on Luo Youdu.
They never thought that Luo Youdu could solve the problem. Now Luo Youdu used this method to punish Zhao Kuangyi and gave Wei Renpu a way out, which was indeed an unexpected surprise.
"Who is this Luo Youdu? I don't remember such a person in Kaifeng Prefecture!"
Before Guo Rong ascended the throne, he served as the prefect of Kaifeng and the envoy of merit. This was only half a year ago, not a long time.
Cui Yan said rather embarrassedly, "I didn't know much about it at first, and only looked through the archives after this happened. Luo Youdu is from Guangling. His ancestors served the Southern Dynasty and were good friends with the Zhou Dynasty. Because he defended the Zhou Dynasty, he was ostracized and suppressed by Song Qiuqiu. Many years ago, he followed his mother to Kaifeng to seek refuge with her family, but he didn't know that her family had been killed by the Liao soldiers. The mother and son were unable to return to the south, so they settled down in Kaifeng. The world was in turmoil, and only a few people could read and write. Those who knew how to write and write were considered talented. Luo Youdu was also a descendant of an official. He had learned classics, history, and miscellaneous books since he was a child, so he was hired by Kaifeng as a minor official. Over the past year or so, his performance was mediocre, with no merits or faults, and he was not very impressive."
Guo Rong nodded and said, "It seems that his performance is not mediocre, but a pearl covered in dust. He has the guts to kick Zhao Kuangyi's ass, but it is a waste of his talent to be a minor official." After a pause, he said, "Promote him to the position of legal officer first. As for Zhao Kuangyi, don't make it difficult for him. I still understand the temperament of Wei Shumishi. Now that he has a way out, he will not continue to pursue the matter. If it is difficult for you, just let it go. Demote him one level and fine him one year's salary."
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Cui Yan bowed.
Watching Cui Yan's departing figure, Guo Rong muttered in a low voice: "Luo Youdu, interesting."
Just as Luo Youdu had planned, Wei Renpu did not pursue the matter further.
Cui Yan also handled the matter in a low-key manner and released Zhao Kuangyi in just two days.
The problems between Wei Renpu and Zhao Kuangyin also disappeared.
Luo Youdu also officially became a minor official from a minor clerk!
The Legal Affairs Officer is the deputy of the Legal Affairs Officer and is responsible for assisting the Legal Affairs Officer in handling matters such as investigating crimes, supervising thieves, and confiscating stolen goods and bribes.
The local legal officials were minor officials of the ninth rank, but Kaifeng Prefecture, as the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty, had a special and transcendent status. It was considered a Beijing official, one level higher in rank, and was an eighth-rank official.
Du Yuhou Mansion.
Zhao Kuangyi strode into the inner hall as if he was at home, and his voice arrived before he even arrived.
"Brother, I see a generous gift in the lobby. Who are you planning to give it to?"
Zhao Kuangyin smiled and said, "You go and talk to mother, and we brothers will go visit Luo Youdu later."
Zhao Kuangyi's face suddenly changed, like a cat whose tail was stepped on, and he exploded in an instant, angrily saying: "If you want to go, go ahead. I won't go!"
In front of his brother, Zhao Kuangyi took off his disguise and his eyes blushed with shame.
Zhao Kuangyin was not angry either. An elder brother is like a father. His tolerance for his younger brother was endless. "Don't be like this. I know you care about your reputation. Luo Youdu humiliated you in public like this, which is really hateful. Do you know how I felt when I heard that he kicked you to the ground? I just wanted to chop off his head with a knife. What's the difference between you being humiliated and your brother being humiliated?"
"But after thinking about it carefully, I understood his intention. After all, you have hurt someone's life, so it is reasonable for you to suffer a little injustice. If Luo Youdu hadn't interfered, this matter would have to be resolved by Your Majesty. What would be the result if Your Majesty stepped in?"
"unpredictable."
"Even if they favor us, it will leave an impression of being arrogant."
"This is the lightest outcome right now. Even Envoy Wei has accepted it. So, you and I, brothers, have any reason not to accept it?"
He said earnestly, "Luo Youdu has done us brothers a favor by resolving this matter. As a man, you must repay a favor. Don't be petty and make people laugh at you."
"It's settled now. I'll go take a shower and get ready, and then we'll leave together."
Zhao Kuangyi was angry and anxious, but there was nothing he could do.
He understood his brother, who usually doted on him in every way, but once he made up his mind, he would not allow himself to refuse.
Thinking about the humiliation he had suffered, being kicked to the ground in public , his teeth itched with hatred, his breathing became rapid, and he said angrily: "It's not you who was humiliated, of course you should be generous."
