Free Web NovelChapter 1255: Chapter 1224: Handsome Men
He fought wars to bring peace to the realm, and it was certainly not for that Little Emperor in the Imperial Palace, who couldn’t make any decisions and only knew how to shrink back and tremble; he fought for the future peace and unity of the world.
To prolong this peace and unity, the realm must have a heroic sovereign to lead it; the Little Emperor, or any emperor bearing the Sima surname, was unsuitable.
Their family did not possess enough prestige to convince the gentry clans and the common people of the world.
Believe it or not, the moment Zhao Hanzhang transfers power to the Little Emperor, someone will rise in rebellion.
If one’s virtue does not match one’s position, Heaven will surely destroy him.
Zu Ti even felt that Zhao Hanzhang had made too little of the matter of enfeoffment, and said, "Our entering the city is a small affair; the Great General’s enfeoffment as a prince is the major event, the priority should not be reversed."
He suggested to Shi Hua, "May I ask Prince Yu to wait for a while in the palace, and I will lead the officers and soldiers into the palace to offer our congratulations to Prince Yu."
Shi Hua said, "The Great General’s enfeoffment as prince is precisely so that the prince’s banner can be used to welcome the generals into the city. If the General refuses, would that not be failing the Great General’s intentions?"
He insisted they enter the city the next day according to the predetermined time and arrangements.
Zhao Shen quickly came back to his senses as well. "Why be so shy and fussy? Let us enter the city first, then we can persuade the Great General to hold a grand enfeoffment ceremony."
"Who’s being made a prince?" A voice suddenly sounded outside the main gate. Everyone turned their heads and saw Yuan Li walking in with a horsewhip in hand, his face dark.
Everyone withdrew their gaze and lowered their heads to avoid looking at him; even He Xun shifted his eyes away, turning his head to the side.
Zhao Shen and Zu Ti, however, were not afraid of him.
Zu Ti asked, "Didn’t you set out long ago? How are you still behind us?"
Moreover, Yuan Li had traveled with a light escort and few attendants; he ought to have been faster than they were.
Yuan Li said, "I went to Luzhou to fetch some things and was delayed on the way."
Zhao Shen stared at the scar on his face for a while, then shook his head and said, "You have to get that scar treated. Leaving a scar on your face will ruin your physiognomy and hurt your fortune."
Yuan Li had originally not cared, but upon hearing that it would hurt his fortune, he immediately frowned and asked, "Do you have a good physician to recommend?"
Zhao Shen said, "Go to an Imperial Physician, they’re the best doctors. This scar is rather serious; I don’t know if it can be completely cured."
Yuan Li’s brows furrowed tightly, and he decided that once he returned he would ask Zhao Hanzhang to summon an Imperial Physician to treat his injury.
Having made up his mind, he pulled the topic back. "Just now, who were you saying is being made a prince?"
He looked suspiciously at Zu Ti. It couldn’t be Zu Ti, could it?
On what grounds? He himself had not done poorly in merits this time.
Zhao Shen said, "The Great General. The Great General has been promoted to Prince Yu."
Hearing this, Yuan Li’s heart settled, and he nodded. "The Great General indeed deserves to be Prince Yu."
The character "Yu" is such a fine one; just hearing it, you know it’s an auspicious title.
Night fell. The next day Yuan Li followed behind Zu Ti as they entered the Capital City. Zhao Hanzhang was already leading the civil and military officials, waiting at the city gate.
Among the fluttering banners were the Zhao character banners and the prince’s banner, snapping loudly in the wind. Zu Ti urged his horse forward, but when he was still a hundred paces from Zhao Hanzhang, he pulled on the reins and dismounted, then hurried forward on foot. Joyfully clasping his fists, he dropped to one knee and saluted, "This subordinate pays respects to the Great General. On the campaign to Pingnan, I am fortunate not to have disgraced the mission!"
Zhao Hanzhang also stepped forward a few paces, delighted, and helped Zu Ti up. "In the battle of Pingnan, the realm returned to peace; General, your merits are towering."
Her gaze swept over Yuan Li, Zhao Shen, and the others behind him, and she smiled. "You as well. The people of Liangjiang are overjoyed. A banquet has been prepared in the palace today, and I will personally toast you all."
Yuan Li and the others quickly bowed. "We do not dare."
Zhao Hanzhang personally helped Zu Ti back onto his horse, and they returned to the city together.
The citizens of the Capital City lined the road to welcome them. Seeing the valiant Zu Ti, they waved and shouted loudly. Just now the county government had issued an order: to celebrate the triumphant return of the army, starting tomorrow and lasting until New Year’s Eve night, the curfew would be pushed back to midnight.
And the open spaces along both sides of the streets would be made available.
This meant that ordinary commoners could openly set up stalls along the streets of the Capital City without having to pay stall fees.
Although some street-side spots had already been free of charge and the Government Officials did not drive stall keepers away, the foot traffic there was small and the locations remote, and the people had always found it inconvenient.
The people truly were overjoyed, and they howled toward Zhao Hanzhang and Zu Ti, who were riding in the lead. The flowers and handkerchiefs they threw ended up landing on the heads and faces of the handsome young men behind—Wang Xuan and Zhao Shen.
Especially Wang Xuan; he was a beauty who could be mentioned in the same breath as Wei Jie. Since Luoyang’s reconstruction, Wang Xuan had not returned there, and the ladies of the Capital City had never seen him.
Among the handsome men of the Capital City, Fu Tinghan’s name was on the list, but he belonged to Zhao Hanzhang, so the ladies only dared look; they did not dare throw flowers at him.
Zhao Shen was on the list as well, but his mouth was foul, and the ladies often saw him galloping along the main avenue; they were already aesthetically fatigued.
Still, he was single, and his prospects were bright, so the ladies decided to tolerate him for the time being; many of them had come especially for him this time.
But at a sudden glance, Wang Xuan, riding to his right, was simply too dazzling. At this moment the ladies did not yet know who he was, but that did not stop them from taking a liking to him.
Thus they shouted while using their profound throwing skills to hurl flowers at him. When they ran out of flowers, they threw handkerchiefs; when that wasn’t enough, they took the Jade Pendants, jade rings, and such they were wearing and hurled those as well...
All the things thrown from both sides came down like rain, thudding as they struck, pelting Wang Xuan and Zhao Shen on their heads and faces. Zu Ti squeezed his legs, urging his horse two quick steps forward to widen the distance between himself and them. Without a flicker of emotion, he turned back to glance, his eyes full of schadenfreude.
The young ladies these days were growing bolder and bolder. Still, it was good—this was the vigor of youth.
Turning back, he found that Zhao Hanzhang had just withdrawn her own gaze from behind as well, her eyes mirroring his schadenfreude exactly.
Their gazes met, and both could not help but smile.
Riding on the far left alongside them, Yuan Li was accidentally struck by a Jade Pendant. With quick reflexes, he caught a second jade ring, then lightly tapped his heels against his horse’s belly and gave the reins a gentle tug. The horse hurried two steps forward and then stopped, still two steps behind Zhao Hanzhang and Zu Ti, yet one horse’s length ahead of Zhao Shen and Wang Xuan.
At this moment, however, no one noticed. Everyone was laughing as they watched Wang Xuan and Zhao Shen being submerged under the barrage.
Having just shared a smile with Zhao Hanzhang and turned his head back, Zu Ti quietly tilted his head to glance at Yuan Li. Everyone knew that the chief trusted aide at Zhao Hanzhang’s side mostly came from her old troops.
And all her old troops had been cavalry.
Yuan Li had been in Jiangnan all this time. Zu Ti had heard of his cruelty and that there was scarcely any information in the realm he could not ferret out, but he had not known that Yuan Li’s horsemanship was this good.
By the time they reached the palace gates, Wang Xuan and Zhao Shen were like defeated roosters, heads drooping. Zhao Shi and several other young generals crowded around, laughing as they picked quite a few Jade Pendants, jade rings, and handkerchiefs off their bodies...
The petals and flower branches scattered in their hair were left untouched. Not only did they not remove them, they even grabbed the two men’s hands to stop them from brushing them off. "These are what attract romance; you have to keep them."
Both men had marks on their faces from being struck. They had never taken a wound to the face on the battlefield, yet upon returning victorious to the Capital they ended up injuring their faces—it was utterly humiliating!
The men, however, felt this was an honor. Laughing, they said, "We should ask Zhao Zheng to paint a picture of this so that it can be passed down."
