Valley Emperor

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The role models and goals that many temporary residents yearn for, but Gerdes is already lying in bed in the Gerdes Manor on the outskirts of Guangzhou, waiting for the call of death.

He is already old, and his physical condition has declined sharply since last year, and he has spent most of the last year lying in bed.

Now he is lying on the bed, his wrinkled face and deeply sunken eyes all tell that he is old.

The trees outside the glass window are still green, but this still cannot stop the arrival of cold winter.

He knew that his time was running out.

He closed his eyes slightly, thinking about his life over and over again in his mind.

Back then, the girl with beautiful red hair who made her not think about tea and rice in her hometown was probably already turned into spring mud at this time.

It's just that what does the girl look like except for the red hair?

Guedes thought about it many times, but he still couldn't remember it, he forgot!

Not only her, but even the appearance of his hometown he no longer remembers.

The brothers who went to sea together in those days, I am afraid that few are still alive now. Many people were buried in the sea when they were very young, and the few who survived are afraid that they will not be able to live to this age like themselves.

Perhaps, the brothers who traversed the Caribbean Sea together back then were only themselves.

Being able to live for such a long time, and being able to become a decent and prominent Tang Dynasty noble, is also due to his accurate vision back then, and he bet on the Tang Dynasty, which just went south to Guangdong and Guangxi.

Then he searched for the craftsmen who cast guns and guns for Datang, and then obtained the nationality of Datang and became a glorious Tang Dynasty.

Later, it opened up overseas trade routes for Datang, and opened up the Banten route, India route and African route with Datang Western Ocean Trading Company, and even personally took the expedition ships of Datang Western Ocean Trading Company to Europe.

Datang's early overseas trade, especially the most important route exploration, was inseparable from the help of Gerdes, an old captain who traveled all over the world.

And for this credit, he was awarded the title and became a viscount.

Later, Guedes stopped going to sea, but a trading company of his own elite, and began to get involved in the textile industry, shipbuilding and other industries.

Having spent nearly thirty years in Datang, he has earned a lucrative family business for himself and for his family.

Including a title, a fief in Australia, and a Ge's trading company named after his Chinese surname "Ge".

This trading company owns a textile factory, a domestic trading company, a small shipyard and, more importantly, a 16 percent stake in an ocean-going trading company.

The assets of the Gress Trading Company add up to at least two million yuan.

Such huge assets are enough to make Gerdes a rich man, whose worth is not much worse than that of the old-fashioned official family.

Moreover, in order to improve the social status of the family, he also spent huge sums of money as gifts to marry a concubine of a declining scholarly family in Guangzhou.

Even though she is not a direct daughter, she is not even a concubine of the long house, just a concubine of a side branch.

However, with the help of the personal connections of this declining family, coupled with the money to open the way, this still greatly improved his social status, making Viscount Guedes a veritable aristocrat, and truly able to rank among the upper classes of the empire.

To become a noble of the Tang Dynasty, a real high-class person, and a decent gentry, this is the proudest thing in Gerdes' life.

In contrast, the district industry is nothing.

What made him even more gratified was that the eldest son he and his wife gave birth to inherited his wife's black hair and black eyes in appearance, not his own red hair and blue eyes.

This made him quite happy.

He Guedes was despised by the upper class because of his appearance. Later, he simply shaved his red hair and wore a bald head for more than 20 years because of his illness.

He didn't want his son to be despised like himself.

With black hair and black eyes, this made his son truly belong to the upper class of the empire.

In this life, he felt that he was successful and did not waste it!

And now, this family is about to be handed over to his eldest son.

Beside the bed, Ge Hongan looked at his father. He was already twenty-three years old, but now he looked at his father without the hostility he had in the past.

But full of regret.

The doctor told him that his father was running out of time, and he was afraid that it was only a few days ago. Even the prefect of Guangzhou came to visit him.

After all, Guedes is a Viscount of the Empire, and his Geshi Trading Company is also a big business in the local area, and he is a person who has been praised by the Son of Heaven. When this is about to go west, the local officials will naturally also. Come to see one or two.

When he thought of this, Ge Hongan was full of regret. When he was young, because his classmates often ridiculed him for being a barbarian, his popularity in school was not very good, and this resentment was transferred to him when he was young. on the father.

Because his father was a barbarian with red hair and blue eyes!

However, as we get older, this mentality gradually changes, but the relationship between father and son is difficult to repair, and the two cannot speak a few words throughout the year.

Even if he realizes his mistakes when he was young, but he has received traditional education since childhood, the arrogance of the scholar in his bones cannot be erased.

Even if he knew he was wrong, he didn't want to show it.

But now, he regrets it a little!

But now Guedes has no interest in paying attention to his son.

He recalled his life, so many dangers and passions.

When the meeting came to certain things, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

This life is worth it!

Three days later, the Guangdong version of the Tang Dynasty Daily reported that the leader of the early overseas trade of the empire, the founder of the format trading company, the Viscount Guedes of the empire died at home.

The death of Guedes, to some extent, also means the end of an era.

Because in the past few years, not only Geddes, but also more early heroes of the empire have also died one after another.

Many of the founding heroes who joined the Tang Dynasty at the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, in fact, many are already in their rare years.

Even the group of people who were only about twenty years old back then are now in their fifties.

For the medical level of this era, it is not easy for even nobles to live to their fifties.

So far, many heroes of the founding of the country have passed away one after another, and many nobles in the empire have inherited one or even two or three generations.

No way, the average life expectancy is relatively short, and they die early.

The group of founding heroes of that year are basically not active in the front line anymore. Even the slightly younger military generals such as Hao Bainian and Li Chunjing have actually launched the front line one after another.

This is not to say that their health is dying, but that they have been in high positions for a long time, and Li Xuan can rest assured that they are not at ease.

Therefore, after these big bosses went to the imperial study room for a while, they usually took the initiative to apply for an official position.

In the past few years, the duty minister of the royal study of the army and navy has basically maintained the rhythm of changing one every year.

And this year, Hao Bainian took the initiative to apply to be transferred to the reserve.

General Hao Bainian knew that his status was too special. Even if he was no longer the minister on duty in the imperial study, there were still countless people who regarded him as a veteran of the army.

And as time passed, he also knew that something needed to change.

Even if you don't think about yourself, you have to think about the next generation.

Hao Bainian took the lead in applying for transfer to the reserve, and the most important thing was that although the Son of Heaven refuted, Hao Bainian continued to submit the application. After Li Xuan's second refusal, Hao Bainian applied for the third time, and this time, the Son of Heaven did not directly apply. refuted, but chose to stay and not send.

This move instantly caused waves in the high-level army and navy!

Immediately, many people, whether willingly or unwillingly, took the initiative to apply to be transferred to the reserve.

Li Xuan's goal in doing this was not to liquidate the heroes, but the high-ranking military generals who were young at the time were not very young.

Although Li Xuan has suppressed it, for so many years, not a single marshal rank has been awarded, all are generals. As a result, there are now more than 30 active generals in the army, and more than 20 retired ones.

So many generals, naturally it is not normal.

But Li Xuan would rather get a large number of generals than a few marshals or generals, because this will change the military.

There are dozens of generals, although some of them have deep experience and high prestige, but they have the same rank and have held similar positions, and the actual gap is not too big.

However, if a few active-duty marshals or generals are created, there will be several big hills in the army immediately, affecting the stability of the military and the stability of the empire.

But now, Li Xuan intends to let go of this hole.

Some time ago, he hinted at Hao Bainian, saying that the rank of marshal has been established for more than 20 years, but it has never been awarded. He is going to award several people as field marshals.

This is said to be awarded to field marshals.

But everyone knows that in the past 20 years~www.wuxiaspot.com~, although the empire has two military ranks, field marshal and naval marshal, no one has actually obtained them. , not a field marshal or a naval marshal, the two are not of the same nature.

Many smart people know the reason why it was not granted in the past two decades.

At present, there are not many people in the empire who can be worthy of the rank of field marshal, only a few people such as Hao Bainian and Li Chunjing. Once these people are awarded the rank of field marshal, I am afraid that they themselves will not be able to sleep. .

And what kind of talent can make His Majesty confer the rank of marshal with peace of mind!

Naturally, the field marshal who has completely withdrawn from the power center!

Hao Bainian has followed Li Xuan for decades, and naturally he knew about the Son of Heaven's plan. He didn't say anything about it a few years ago, so he pretended not to know. But now that the Son of Heaven has brought it up.

Although it is not clear that he was awarded the rank of field marshal, the implication is already very obvious.

No matter how ignorant he is, he is afraid that he will be detained on a charge of treason.

Therefore, Hao Bainian did not hesitate in the slightest, and directly applied for retirement from active service.

As a result, the two kings and ministers staged a good show that shocked the entire empire!

On the 26th day of the 33rd lunar month of Xuanping, when the year was about to end, the Son of Heaven convened his ministers and officially awarded Hao Bonian the rank of field marshal in the council hall!

The next day, Li Xuan, the Son of Heaven, officially approved the retirement application of Field Marshal Hao Bainian!

The official retirement of Field Marshal Hao Bainian heralds the end of an era!

It also heralds the arrival of a new era!

Because the next day, Li Xuan was promoted to the leader of the new generation of generals in the army. Ying Yikang, who was only 35 years old, was the lieutenant general of the army, serving as the deputy director of the staff of the army Privy Council and the director of the combat department.