The first poisonous scholar in Daxia, starting from the abdication of the prime minister

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How come the court has become a place for officials to chat?

However, Wei Xuan was his imperial examination instructor, so Gu Jingzhi still said politely, "I'm not qualified to answer your questions. Lord Wei, please speak!"

"Well!"

Wei Xuan nodded with satisfaction and said with a smile, "I wonder what price Lord Gu paid in exchange for these five states?"

"cost?"

Gu Jing was stunned, then asked cautiously, "Sir, is it considered a price if Daxia doesn't send troops?"

"what?"

There was an uproar in the court. It was just not sending troops. What was the price to pay?

Song Pu narrowed his eyes slightly and said with a forced smile, "Master Gu, are you joking with the officials in the court?"

"We are not as powerful as Prime Minister Song, how dare we joke around in front of the emperor?"

Before Gu Jingzhi could answer, Wei Xuan smiled and said something disgusting to Song Pu.

He had always been at odds with Song Pu and often called Song Pu a treacherous prime minister. Gu Jingzhi could be considered half a disciple of his, so he had to say a few words to help him in the court.

On the other hand, Emperor Xia, upon seeing Wei Xuan and Song Pu arguing, could not help but say, "Gu Qing has done a truly remarkable job on this matter. Simply by promising not to send troops, he has exchanged five states for fifty thousand war horses. Not only has this saved the people of Great Xia from the suffering of war, but it has also helped Great Xia recover the five states, a great contribution to the nation!"

This one sentence was of great merit and directly put an end to the conflict between Wei and Song.

When the two bosses saw that the emperor had spoken, they returned to their seats.

However, one of the generals stepped forward and said in a gloomy tone, "Earlier, Prime Minister Song proposed an alliance with Li Yue. Our Great Xia sent troops to the north. If the two northern countries went to war, our dynasty would seize the opportunity and strike back to reclaim our homeland in one fell swoop... Although Lord Gu regained the five states, he also squandered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. This question of gain and loss... is truly difficult to determine!"

When Gu Jingzhi heard the familiar voice, his eyes narrowed immediately.

Gu Heng...

Since you came out to feel uncomfortable, don't blame me.

Without even turning his head, he said calmly, "In the fourth year of Jianwu, our dynasty went to war with the Northern Frontier. Considering that Gui Yuanbo was from the north and was familiar with the landscape, customs, and people of the north, I appointed him as the commander-in-chief! However, after that battle, not only did we fail to capture a single state, but tens of thousands of my men also died on the battlefield..."

"As a general, what you couldn't get on the battlefield, do you expect us civilians to get it back at the negotiation table?"

What the hell!

Everyone looked at Gu Jingzhi and Gu Heng in astonishment. They never expected that Gu Jingzhi would be so tough.

After all, he is an earl of a country...

This guy actually slapped someone in the face and exposed his scars in front of all the civil and military officials!

Seeing everyone looking at him, Gu Heng immediately said in shame and anger, "You...you are so insolent!"

"Master Gu! I am His Majesty's subject. Do you think what you said is...appropriate?"

Gu Jingzhi, however, was calm and fearless. Now that he knew his own life experience, he no longer had the same concerns about Gu Heng as before.

He said this so bluntly just to disgust Gu Heng.

In the battle of the fourth year of Jianwu, Gu Heng led the Gu family army of Yun State, which had defected to Daxia in the early years, to fight. As a result, not only did they fail to capture any land, but the old generals of the Gu family were killed or injured. He really didn't believe that there was no trick in this.

Gu Heng was so angry at these words that his lips were shaking. Looking at Emperor Xia who was sitting on the dragon throne with a somewhat unhappy look, he secretly gritted his teeth and swallowed his anger.

The reason why he shouted this outrageous word was that he was used to teaching Gu Jingzhi a lesson in the past. But this was the court, not his home, and Emperor Xia was the boss.

Educating the ministers of Emperor Xia in front of him is really overstepping the bounds!

Moreover, among the civil and military officials in the court, only a few knew about the relationship between Gu Jingzhi and him, so naturally no one would use the word "filial piety" to suppress Gu Jingzhi.

But the more this happened, the more aggrieved Gu Heng felt.

He exchanged the northern states for the title of Marquis of Daxia. In the battle of the fourth year of Jianwu, because he was worried about the influence of the old generals of the Gu family and got the high positions and noble titles he wanted, he selfishly caused most of the generals to lose their lives on the battlefield.

But he never expected that his selfish desire would become the key to the defeat of the North.

If it weren't for his meritorious service in donating the land and Song Pu's guarantee for him, and the fact that Emperor Xia might have had the same idea as him, he would have been fired long ago.

But even so, he later only held a title and an official position of neither high nor low in the court of Daxia, but he never had the opportunity to lead troops again.

Emperor Xia could be concerned about the aristocratic family behind Song Pu, and he could also acquiesce in Gu Heng sending the old generals of Yun State into danger, but he could not let his selfish motives cause him to lose his strategic goal of regaining the country.

Gu Jingzhi's words tore off Gu Heng's last fig leaf, leaving only the word "incompetent" written on his face.

Looking at the mocking eyes in the court, he felt a little unwilling, but he didn't expect Gu Jingzhi to turn around and look at the officials in the court.

"You all may share the same idea, but I would like to ask, even if this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a decisive battle, is Daxia ready?"

"Guarding the ten states in the south of Beili is the world-renowned general Nangong Shouyi. He commands an army of 300,000. Our northern dynasty hasn't been at war for over a decade. But which general dares to claim he can recapture more than five states in a single battle?"

"The northern land is vast and boundless, making it ideal for large-scale cavalry warfare. However, the size of our northern cavalry is less than 10% of that of the northern Li. Relying solely on infantry, they are more than capable of defending but less capable of advancing. How can we achieve a quick victory?"

"Humph!"

Suddenly, an old general snorted coldly: "If it's too difficult, then why don't you fight?"

Gu Jingzhi looked up and saw that it was the number one military general of the dynasty, Duke Ying Li Ye.

This guy is really extraordinary. Not only was he honored with the title of Duke, but Li Sheng, one of the three most famous generals in the world, is his eldest son!

The military commanders were originally speechless after hearing Gu Jingzhi's words, but now they were shocked when they heard him speak.

This old Duke has extremely high prestige in the court and the army. When he speaks... you, Gu Jingzhi, should be a little scared, right?

He looked at Gu Jingzhi coldly and said, "A few days ago, I heard that your Lord Gu said in front of the Liyue prince, 'Sovereignty is not negotiable.' And he shouted in front of the Beili delegation, 'Whoever offends Daxia will be punished, no matter how far away they are.' Such passionate words, even for a soldier like me, feel very inspired!"

"I originally thought that when I meet you, Master Gu, one day, I will praise you in person as 'a good son of Daxia'!"

"I didn't expect that after listening to your words today, you didn't seem to have the same heroic spirit as before! Could it be that Master Gu is just spouting slogans?"

"..."

Gu Jingzhi glanced at this person and his eyelids twitched slightly.

Aren’t you military generals not good at speaking?

How come he speaks more eloquently than a civil servant like me?

However, even so, it did not pose a problem for Gu Jingzhi. After all, the victory in this negotiation was not due to the condition of not sending troops.

He said: "..."