Chapter 238

Chapter 238

The Xiao family has been silent in the capital for a year. Today, Emperor Xingping went to pay tribute to the old man in person and appointed Xiao Zhen as the first-rank commander of the East Camp. He also allowed the three Xiao Yan brothers to continue to serve as the third-rank commanders of the guards, which was to tell all the civil and military officials in Luocheng that the Xiao family still enjoys the emperor's favor.

On the Xiao Family's side, no one was happier than Madam He.

When He first came to the capital, the old man and his uncles and nephews were all high-ranking officials with generous salaries, and the women in the family also enjoyed glory. Except when they had to be respectful when entering the palace or in front of other wives of dukes and marquises, they were basically envied and fawned upon by the women of other families.

However, as soon as the old man left, the nephews were all dismissed from their posts. Although officials could either return to their original positions or be reassigned to positions of similar rank after the mourning period, until the matter was settled, there was always the possibility of changes, just like the silver promised by others to one's own family, no matter how much is spoken of, it is all illusory until it is in hand.

This time, I can finally put my heart at ease, but the only downside is that her husband, Xiao Shouyi, still has to continue mourning.

Back at the residence, Madam He removed her mourning clothes, dusted by the wind, and the maids brought hot water to serve her in washing her hands and face. They also wiped the dust from her hair with a cloth and combed it neatly again.

Madam He leaned back in her chair, comfortably closing her eyes as she reminisced about the days in Lingshui Village when she would rise early and retire late, scrubbing pots and cooking meals, feeling as if one side was in heaven and the other was on earth.

After cleaning up, He came to the second room and saw that her husband had also changed his clothes and was lying on the couch, looking out the window, wondering what he was thinking about.

He asked the maids to go down. She took off her shoes and sat next to her husband. She put one hand on his broad and strong chest and asked teasingly, "Your sons and nephews are all going back to work as officials, but you have to stay at home for more than a year. Isn't it a good feeling?"

Xiao Shouyi: "They are the grandsons, I am the son. It is a duty and a moral obligation to observe the mourning period for my father for three years."

He: "But military officers don't have to observe mourning. Judging from the emperor's attitude today, he doesn't doubt our family at all. You shouldn't have asked the second son to submit a memorial in March saying he had to observe mourning. He would have gained face by observing it for another six months. You will lose more than a year's salary by delaying it, and you won't have as much prestige in the barracks as your sons and nephews. Oh, and Sun Dian, if you don't observe mourning, he won't be able to take the position of deputy commander of the Southern Camp."

Xiao Shouyi sighed, "Look at you. It's only been a year since Dad passed away, and you're saying something that would alienate the two families. The reason the Emperor trusts us today is because the second son took the initiative to hand over the military power last year. There is a cause before there is an effect. If we didn't hand it over then, the Emperor would sooner or later become suspicious of us, and by then we might even lose our lives. How could we have the Deputy Commander of the Southern Camp?"

Madam He pondered for a moment, then approached the subject indirectly, speaking of the Xingping Emperor: "His Majesty's behavior, in my observation, seems to be..."

Xiao Shouyi swiftly covered his wife's mouth.

Madam He nearly suffocated under his grip. With great difficulty, she pried her husband's hands away and glanced outside before staring at her husband, saying, "Is it really necessary? Can't we even have a private conversation in our own room?"

Xiao Shouyi's face was as calm as water: "Such words that could lead to beheading, you must not utter even to me. If you dare to spread them outside, even to the maids by your side, be prepared for the confiscation of your family's property and the extermination of your clan!"

Madam He: "I'm not that foolish."

Xiao Shouyi chuckled.

Whether they are foolish or not, he and his wife are fortunate individuals. Above them is the unparalleled wise old man, and below them are the younger generations who are both cultured and martial. No matter how the outside world changes, the couple should just continue to stay at home and mourn for the old man.

Of course, please provide the text from the novel you would like to have translated, and I will proceed with translating each line elegantly and accurately into English.

On the eleventh day of the twelfth lunar month, just as the sky was getting light, Xiao Zhen appeared outside the Qianyuan Hall again, waiting with civil and military officials to attend court.

The Xiao family had never had much contact with the civil servants in Luocheng. When they met, they would just nod at most, so Xiao Zhen went straight to the military officers.

Lu Gong, Qi Heng, Fan Zhao, Luo Xiao, Zhao Jin were all present, with the addition of Sun Dian, who had officially been promoted to the deputy commander of the Southern Camp.

There were originally four military officers of the first rank. It used to be the Duke, Feng Ji, and Lu Gong, the three Dukes, ranked by age. Now that the Duke has passed away and Feng Ji is far in the north, Lu Gong has become the sole Duke.

Lu Gong would undoubtedly be at the forefront among the military officers. Before Xiao Zhen's arrival, Fan Zhao held the second position, relegating Qi Heng, who, despite being older and of similar rank, had fewer military merits, to a position behind him.

As soon as Xiao Zhen arrived, Lu Gong gave Fan Zhao a meaningful look.

Fan Zhao glared back. Over the past two years, Xiao Zhen had indeed enjoyed a moment of glory, but while he was accompanying the Emperor in resisting the iron cavalry of the Wu country, Xiao Zhen was still farming at home. Now that they were both Marquises and first-rank officials, with Xiao Zhen being several years younger than him, on what grounds did Xiao Zhen stand in front of him?

Fan Zhao refused to move, so Qi Heng took a step back and gave the third position to Xiao Zhen.His founding military exploits were not as good as Xiao Zhen's. Last year, he led tens of thousands of soldiers to run around. He could not compare with the old man Tong Sui, nor could he compare with Xiao Zhen who had made great contributions in defeating the Liao in Wuzhen.In addition, the East was the most respected, and Xiao Zhen led the East Camp, which was higher than him as the commander of the West Camp.

Xiao Zhen modestly declined for a moment, but seeing Qi Heng's persistence, he also stepped forward to accept, which was too quick, making his previous modesty seem somewhat insincere.

Qi Heng: "……"

Fan Zhao was pleased. If Xiao Zhen really stepped back because of age, allowing Qi Heng to take the lead, wouldn't it make him seem discourteous for not yielding?

For a military general, only military achievements are considered, not seniority!

"Haven't seen you in a year, I truly miss you. How about we grab a meal at a restaurant tonight?" Fan Zhao said with a smile, patting Xiao Zhen on the shoulder.

Xiao Zhen: "I appreciate the Marquis's kind intentions, but I am not inclined to drink before the New Year."

After all, he had just finished his mourning period, Fan Zhao understood: "Alright, then we'll drink after the New Year."

Soon after, the Xingping Emperor arrived, leaning on a cane as he took his seat on the dragon throne.

Seeing Xiao Zhen standing behind Fan Zhao, the Xinping Emperor glanced at Fan Zhao, shifted his gaze, and began the discussion.

In this year, Great Yu experienced favorable weather and no wars. As officials from influential families in Liaozhou, Hezhou, and Jingzhou surrendered their previously ill-gotten properties, the land taxes collected by Great Yu increased by several tenths compared to the previous year. However, in the regions of Liangzhou and Qingzhou, there were still local officials who were insincere in their obedience, and the number of wrongful cases among the people was significantly higher than in the other states.

Additionally, there is another matter, which is the recruitment of new troops by the court, that has sparked some discontent among the common people.

The combined forces of the eastern and western camps amount to a staggering 260,000 new troops, and it has only been two years since the recruitment in the second year of the Xingping era.

Recruitment was Luo Xiao's duty, he stepped forward and said, "I have failed in my task, and I beg the Emperor to punish me."

Xingping Emperor: "It's none of your concern. With years of continuous warfare, the people are suffering and barely making ends meet. Every household is short of able-bodied men, yet the court still demands these men to join the army. The people must surely harbor resentment. Have the compensations for the casualties and the salaries for the new recruits been distributed as they should?"

The Ministers of War and Revenue once again stepped forward to report that officials from various regions, aware of the Emperor's abhorrence for corrupt officials, dared not secretly embezzle funds for the most part.

Xingping Emperor: "Anyone who dares to embezzle military pay or compensation, regardless of the amount, shall be sentenced to death upon discovery."

当然，我会根据您提供的中文文本进行专业的英文翻译。请提供您想要翻译的小说段落，我会逐行进行翻译。

After the court was dismissed, Xiao Zhen and Luo Xiao rode out of the city together, side by side, heading towards the eastern camp.

When Emperor Xingping went south to attack the previous dynasty, Luo Xiao, Fan Zhao and Feng Ji always followed Emperor Xingping and had little contact with the Xiao family. During the campaign against Liang last year, Luo Xiao became familiar with old man Tong Sui, but was still unfamiliar with Xiao Zhen.

Luo Xiao: "The other day marked the first anniversary of Xiao elder's death; I should have gone to pay my respects, but I was entangled in military affairs and couldn't find the time."

Xiao Zhen: "Marquis still remembers the old master, Xiao is already deeply grateful."

Luo Xiao: "We are both Marquises and of similar age. In the future, as we serve together in the same camp, let's address each other as brothers. It will be more convenient to call each other that way."

Xiao Zhen smiled and bowed to him: "Brother Luo."

Luo Xiao returned the greeting and said, "Let me first tell Brother Xiao about the situation of the new recruits in the East Camp?"

Xiao Zhen: "Thank you for your help."

After arriving at Dongying, the 150,000 new soldiers all greeted the newly arrived commander.The new soldiers came from all over the country, some were recruited earlier, and some just came from their hometowns last month. They put on their armor and looked like soldiers. But when the 150,000 people stood together, Xiao Zhen and Luo Xiao, standing on the platform, saw that the ranks were crooked, and some soldiers were scratching their heads and backs or even picking their noses. It was a horrible sight.

Luo Xiao: “...”

Xiao Zhen, however, knew that Luo Xiao could not be blamed for this. With the imperial mandate to recruit a sufficient number of new troops and the task of appeasing the discontented people, Luo Xiao had likely spent most of the past year on the move, unable to pay attention to the discipline and training of the new army.

Training such a large army into an elite force is not something that can be done in a day or a month.

After saying some polite words, Xiao Zhen said loudly: "The East Camp has 150,000 troops, divided into 27 guards. Each guard needs to select a commander, five thousand households, fifty hundred households, one hundred general flags and five hundred small flags."

"Before Bendu took office, the emperor said that, except for Luodu and my three brothers, all military officers in the East Camp would be selected and recommended by Bendu."

"To tell you the truth, whether it is the Imperial Guard or the Border Army, there are a group of soldiers who have made military achievements and are qualified for the vacant positions in the East Camp. I can ask the emperor to transfer them over to help me train you, but if I transfer them over, the garrisons they belong to will have to recruit new people. Instead of wasting the energy of the garrisons in various places and the time of the East Camp waiting for foreign military officers to travel, it is better to choose from among you, right?"

The new recruits were, of course, eager and excitedly responded, "Yes!"

Xiao Zhen: "You are all new soldiers, without any military merits. You will not have the opportunity to earn military merits before you are trained. We can only select the best from among you through the small examinations in the camp. The first examination will begin today. It will only test martial arts. The selected military officers are only temporary. There will be a civil and military examination every month in the future. In the end, we will recommend them to the emperor based on the results of the third civil and military examination. Do you accept this selection?"

Some comply, some resist, for they are illiterate!

Xiao Zhen: "After training, we will arrange for teachers to give lessons to the new recruits for one hour every day. Those who want to learn can go directly, and those who don't want to learn will not be forced. But we guarantee that as long as you can persist in learning for three consecutive months and really study hard, you will definitely pass the camp's literary examination."

All the new recruits were now convinced.

Xiao Zhen: "Xiao Yan, Xiao Ye, Xiao She, step forward!"

The three brothers stood majestically in front of the command platform.

Xiao Zhen: "For the sake of fairness, I will dismiss the three of you from your positions as guard commanders and order you three to take the civil and military examinations with the new recruits. If your scores can rank in the top 27, I will continue to recommend you as guard commanders. Otherwise, I will let you serve as thousand households, hundred households, or even small flags or soldiers. Do you accept this?"

Xiao Ye: "I am convinced!"

Xiao Yan: "Let's compete. If there is anyone who can beat me, I will be willing to serve under them as a captain!"

Xiao She: "So am I, let's compete!"

The three brothers turned around and looked at the 150,000 new recruits like three wild wolves.

Most of the recruits didn’t even have the courage to compete with the three brothers, but there were some who were confident in their martial arts skills and puffed out their chests with ambition.