Standalone Northern and Southern Dynasties

Chapter 90: The Greedy King
"Su Ze pays homage to King Guangyang!"

Yuan Shen, Prince of Guangyang, was the last capable member of the Northern Wei royal family. It was he who led his troops to quell the First Six Garrisons Uprising led by Po Liu Han Baling.

However, although he suppressed the first Six Garrisons Uprising, Yuan Shen still failed to prevent the military and civilians of the Six Garrisons from rebelling again. When the second rebellion broke out, Yuan Shen once again led troops to suppress the rebellion, but was feared by the court and was eventually defeated and killed.

After Yuan Shen's death, the last power of the Northern Wei royal family disappeared. From then on, Erzhu Rong came to the stage and Luoyang no longer had the power to fight back.

Yuan Shen could be said to be one of the few all-round talents in civil and military affairs among the Northern Wei royal family at that time, and he was also the minister with the clearest vision.

It's just that Prince Guangyang Yuanshen was not close to the royal bloodline and had never been valued. After wandering around for many years, he was recalled to Luoyang and appointed as the Minister of the Secretariat.

The Duguan Cao was one of the thirty-six Caos under the Shangshu Tai, responsible for military and criminal litigation. The Duguan Shangshu was the chief officer in charge of the Duguan Cao.

Su Ze suddenly understood why Su Cho said that Yuan Shen would be helpful to him. The Minister of the Capital Office was responsible for supervising the morale of the army. The Sima of the Cavalry Camp had also said that the Minister of the Capital Office had sent people to check the military books and military registers.

If he could get Yuan Shen's support, Su Ze would be able to rectify the atmosphere in the Tunqi Camp and drive out the corrupt officials.

Thinking of this, Su Ze's attitude became even more enthusiastic.

Yuan Shen was not arrogant, nor was he as difficult to approach as Li Daoyuan. He had served as a governor in another state and often came into contact with military generals. He was quite friendly towards Su Ze.

The two of them talked happily, and Yuan Shen smiled and said, "I heard from Ling Chuo that General Su was very arrogant when facing the King of Qinghe, and he did not expect to repay the favor. But why is he so respectful to me? Isn't this arrogant at first and respectful later?"

Su Ze looked at Yuan Shen's round face, and felt that there seemed to be a deep sense of distance hidden under his smile.

Moreover, compared with Li Daoyuan's inherent uprightness, although Yuan Shen's tone was filled with sorrow when he talked about the corruption and degeneration in the Yulin Huben Army, Su Ze always felt that there was something else behind his words.

Only then did Su Ze remember why Yuan Shen, Prince of Guangyang, had been the governor of Henan for a long time, but had not been promoted despite being sent out many times.

This guy is a huge corrupt official!
Although he was a prince, Prince Guangyang Yuanshen exploited the people wherever he went. During the reign of Emperor Xuanwu, he was dismissed from office and returned to the court because he was too greedy while serving as a governor, which led to a popular uprising. Emperor Xuanwu also forbade him from promotion and deposed him at home.

Later, after Emperor Xuanwu passed away, Yuan Shen found an opportunity and bribed Liu Teng, the Grand Chamberlain of Empress Dowager Hu, to be appointed to Sizhou.

He was rampantly corrupt while serving in Sizhou, so much so that when he was promoted and returned to the court, the people of Sizhou took to the streets to celebrate.

Such a person happened to be the kind of minister with low character but capable. As the situation in the Northern Wei Dynasty continued to deteriorate, Yuan Shen also climbed up step by step and became a wealthy man in Luoyang, holding great power for a time.

Such a person was actually transferred back to Luoyang and was also in charge of the Shangshutai Duguancao, which was in charge of military discipline. No wonder the problems of the imperial guards were so serious.

After understanding what kind of person Yuan Shen was, Su Ze also understood the meaning of his previous words, which was that he felt Su Ze was not "smart" enough.

Su Ze lowered his head and said: "Excuse me, Your Majesty, I will definitely prepare a gift and visit you someday to ask for your advice on how to command troops."

Su Ze deliberately emphasized the word "束脩". Yuan Shen, who had heard similar words countless times, immediately understood what Su Ze meant. The smile on his face became even brighter. He said:
"As soon as I returned to Luoyang, Shanchang recommended General Su to me. Today I see that he is indeed a rare talent. Brother Qinghe Prince has lost a talent!" Su Ze would of course not take Yuan Shen's compliment seriously, but greed has its advantages. Since Yuan Shen is so greedy, Su Ze can get his support as long as he caters to his preferences.

There are many forces intertwined in the Yulin Army. If Su Ze wants to clear out the scum in the Tunqiying and replace them with his own capable subordinates, he needs the support of the high-level officials in the court. The Duguancao, who is in charge of military discipline, happens to be the best backer.

Seeing Su Ze being so understanding, Yuan Shen's attitude became more friendly. He had just been transferred back to Luoyang after spending a lot of money, and if he wanted to make money he also needed subordinates. Facing Su Ze who took the initiative to come to him, Yuan Shen naturally accepted him.

Yuan Shen then said goodbye to Li Daoyuan, saying that he had some matters to deal with at home, and left the Henan government office in an ox cart.

Su Ze looked at Li Daoyuan. He didn't understand why Li Daoyuan had anything to do with a corrupt person like Yuan Shen.

After Yuan Shen left, Li Daoyuan looked at Su Ze with complicated eyes and said:

"I invited Prince Guangyang to my house today just to meet you. You are a man who wants to do things. If you take charge of the Tunqi Battalion without a solid backing from the court, I'm afraid you won't be able to move forward."

"I already knew Prince Guangyang in Shouyang. Although he is greedy, he is very capable. With his support, you can do what you want."

Li Daoyuan returned to the Mingtang, drew out his sword and cut the straw mat he had just sat on: "But I have always hated greedy people. From today on, I will sever my ties with Prince Guangyang. You can go find him yourself in the future."

Su Ze felt somewhat moved when he looked at Li Daoyuan. He didn't expect that Li Daoyuan made friends with King Guangyang, whom he didn't like, just for his sake.

Su Ze said: "Mingfu, if there is anything I can do for you, please let me know!"

Li Daoyuan said tiredly: "You are also involved in the assassination attempt by the Rouran King, so it is not convenient for you to help. If you want to repay me, please clean up the Tunqi Camp. When Emperor Xiaowen was alive, I once accompanied him to inspect the Tunqi Camp. It was such an elite cavalry unit at that time."

Hearing Li Daoyuan mention Emperor Xiaowen again, Su Ze once again became very interested in this Sinicized emperor who occupied a page in the history textbook.

What kind of charm did he have that could make Li Daoyuan, Yafu Li Tong, and so many other outstanding people obsessed with him and willing to follow him to the death?

Su Ze said goodbye to Li Daoyuan and left the Henan government office. On the way back home, Su Ze opened the system to check the prompts.

[Su Bai, the envoy of Bailu Cao, monitored Zhang Zhongyu's secret meeting in the Sikong Mansion's annex and obtained "Intelligence on the Secret Meeting in the Sikong Mansion's annex 1"]

[Su Suan, a clerk in the Ministry of Revenue, has found some problems with the accounts in the military books of the Tunqi Battalion and is waiting to report to you at home.]

Su Ze first opened the "Information on the Secret Gathering in the Sikong Mansion Villa 1". This information was similar to the last party Liu Bozhi attended. All the participants in the banquet were from prominent families, but this time the family status of the participants was slightly lower. It seemed that Zhang Zhongyu used the Five-Stones Powder to deliberately make friends with prominent families in Luoyang.

Su Suan is worthy of being a purple follower. He spotted the problem in the military books so quickly.

(End of this chapter)