incomprehensible

Chapter 58 Group Battle

--who knows?

The three words of light and delicate, but like thunder on the ground, struck Liang Wang's heart.

The Jingshou jade card is in Lan Qi's hands, but Lan Qi is not Yu Wushuang after all, and he doesn't have the confidence and energy to lead these secrets. It is impossible for Ye Xuehuan to believe that the spies trained by other countries' organizations will serve the center wholeheartedly. More than seventy people are a waste card to him.He put this waste card on Liang Wang's head, but turned it into a bargaining chip, adding a lot of weight to him, and wanted the Chongyang court to think that he was more valuable to support and use than the current King Yi, so that he could be used in the future. The Liu family won this fight.

The intelligence capability of the eye department has always been feared by the whole world, but most of the secrets in it rely too much on the eye head. Once there is no leader in the group, it will be a mess—but who knows this fatal flaw?Liang Wang knew, but he dared not say it.The core figures of Yushi and Yunshi knew it, but they couldn't say it.Ye Xuehuan and Lan Qi know, but they won't say it.

Whether Liang Wang is a hostage or uses Chongyang's troops to fight back to Yiguo, Yiguo will become Chongyang's vassal state on the surface. It seems that there is no difference, but in fact it is completely two results.If he becomes a hostage, Yiguo will become a pawn of the Liu family; if he returns to the country, he will only be held by Ye Xuehuan from now on, and the survival of the Yun family will depend on him.

King Liang was terrified, the third prince was so scheming and ambitious.

And this once-gold-eyed young man had even more venomous eyes and a sharp mouth. Seeing the weakness in his heart at a glance, he opened his mouth for a long time and kept his mouth shut, punishing his heart with every word, wishing to break his spine.

He was indeed cowardly, he did not dare to gamble and he did not dare to fight, and he was indeed using the justice of his family and country to appease his painful conscience, but that should not be the reason for being accused.He is just an ordinary person, most of the time he can only go with the flow, unable to make such a painful decision.

Just like at this moment, Xie Zifang and Ye Xuehuan each arranged a path for him, but he seemed to be just a trophy, he didn't even have a choice for himself, he could only obey the winning side of the two.

Lan Qi dared to come and tell him so unabashedly, because he was sure that he didn't dare to resist or make a statement, and wanted to suppress his last remaining backbone, and completely reduced him to a pawn.

——It was in such involuntary time and time again that he lost all his vigor and courage as a prince.

…………

The emperor and the king of Liang left early one after another, and the banquet ended early without the host and guest.

All the officials in the audience did not dare to leave the venue before the princes, and they all watched the princes get into their chariots outside the banquet hall, and walked out of the high-opened heavy doors, and then began to leave slowly.

Ye Xuehuan got into the carriage, and saw Lan Qi nestled on the soft couch, hugging her legs and curled up into a ball.

There was a smoker in the carriage, burning the best silver charcoal, hot enough without smoke, three points warmer than in the banquet hall, Ye Xuehuan immediately took off his cloak, but Lan Qi still wrapped it tightly Yes, the raw edge of the hood is still stained with snow particles, looking aggrieved.

"The red plums in Honglu Temple have always been famous, so I picked a branch for you."

Ye Xuehuan threw the plum branch in Lan Qi's hood into Lan Qi's hood, took the small hand stove that had just been warmed from Tong Xuan's hand, and handed him over, and then hugged him on his lap.Lan Qi held the hand stove with one hand, hooked his lower back with the other hand, and opened the cloak. The fragrant ambergris was mixed with a hint of red plum fragrance, and the airtight compartment was smoked a little when it was neutral. The charming and lingering taste comes.

Lan Qi curled her lips and said, "I've been waiting for you in the middle of the night, cold and hungry, so you just give me this."

He followed Ye Xuehuan's chariot into Honglu Temple day and night, and then sneaked into King Liang's chariot to wait. Now that the banquet was over, Ye Xuehuan came back with a faint smell of alcohol, but he was dripping water. If you haven't entered, you are cold and hungry.

"My kitten has been wronged." Ye Xuehuan put his cold face against her neck in a funny way, "Would you like to go to Jiuyin Pavilion for supper?"

Only then did Lan Qi give him a good face and nodded.Jiuyin Pavilion is usually open all night, and there are many classic Jiangdong snacks. Nangong Xiuren often invites Lan Qi to eat, and Lan Qi is also the favorite.

Tong Xuan got out of the carriage, and told the coachman to change the way to Jiuyin Pavilion, and he wisely didn't go in again, he would rather be outside with the northwestern wind blowing than see those two people getting bored.

"You little cat, you're becoming more and more pampered." Ye Xuehuan stroked the back of Lan Qi's neck and said with a low smile, "Did King Liang bully you?"

"I was the one who bullied him."

Lan Qi leaned on his chest, and the warmth melted into his body, but he always felt uncomfortable in his heart.He is spoiled too well, and he can't understand those heartless people who use "helpless" as an excuse; his sweetheart is too dazzling, which makes Liang Wang even more useless and hateful.But that kind of King Liang was once a glorious prince, and he was also the crown prince supported by the Yu family. Once he was defeated, he fell so low that he had nothing and was at the mercy of others.

Yi country is just a small country in the southwest, and the struggle for imperial power is so cruel; he can't imagine that if Ye Xuehuan also loses, what awaits him will be a life that is worse than death.

He didn't want that kind of gloom and despondency to appear on Ye Xuehuan.

His sweetheart will always live up to his name, always radiant and energetic.

Now that you have fought, you must win.

——It is better to be a knife than a fish.

Ye Xuehuan didn't know what kind of decision he had made at this moment, but he knew very well that when Lan Qi acted like a baby, he was often in a bad mood.This little thing's mind is as sensitive as his body. He used to be ignorant of human feelings. After following him, he really came into contact with all kinds of things in the world, and only then slowly began to understand these coldness and warmth.

There are very few people in this world who can have Lan Qi's perseverance, so he can't understand and forgive the weakness that retreats so easily.Ye Xuehuan has seen a lot, so she can understand, and that's why she feels Lan Qi's heart is more precious.After so many years of tempering, he has inevitably become a little numb, and some things are no longer so persistent, but Lan Qi always has the principle and persistence of never giving in. That clear heart will only become stronger forever, and he can always Let him think back to himself when he went to the battlefield at the beginning of the year.

——How could he not like such Lan Qi.

"I'm very lucky, Rongcai." Lan Qi whispered in his ear, "You are strong enough."

Ye Xuehuan sighed: "If I am really strong enough, why are you always restless?"

Lan Qi said softly: "I'm not used to it yet. Give me some more time."

"It's okay if you're not used to it, it should be my battlefield after all."

Ye Xuehuan kissed his forehead, grabbed his hand and covered his heart, the palm that was ironed by the hand stove could warm his heart even through the cloth, "You just guard here for me, okay? good?"

Lan Qi squeezed his palm tightly, felt the steady and powerful pulsation under the chest, and felt extraordinarily stable. He raised his head and kissed his chin, and replied in a low voice: "Yes. I will guard you."

It was already halfway through the night, and the wind and snow became more and more heavy, but it did not affect the excitement in Jiuyin Pavilion at all.There was a curfew in Danlu City at the end of Xu Dynasty, and no one was allowed to walk on the streets without a pass token, but there was no restriction within the walls of Beishi City. Many dignitaries would play here all night and return until sunrise.

So even if a distinguished guest like the Third Prince was welcomed in the middle of the night, there was no panic in the Jiuyin Pavilion, and a small private seat was quickly cleared away.Lan Qi was a frequent visitor to Jiuyin Pavilion, and the cooks in the building knew his preferences and appetite, and Ye Xuehuan was already full, so he simply served a plate of soup dumplings, a bowl of small shrimp wontons, and two cups of white jasmine. , and no one dared to disturb him, only let Tong Xuan guard outside.

Lan Qi was afraid that it would be hot, so he had to blow it for a long time after taking a bite, his face was steaming in the white heat, and he ate quietly and slowly; Ye Xuehuan just stood aside and watched, until Lan Qi was satisfied with the tea and rinsed his mouth Only then did the two discuss what happened tonight.

King Liang's reaction was actually within expectations, but Yu Tian's attitude was really surprising.She stood outside the Yu family and the Liu family, which turned out to be a variable, but since she was able to confess to Ye Xuehuan, it showed that at least she was not an enemy for now.

"The elders of the Yu family are delusional, but these women are more interesting." Ye Xuehuan said with a smile, "There was Yu Wushuang first, and now there is Yu Tian, ​​if Liu Ting knows that all his calculations in his life will be ruined by women , I don’t know if I will die of anger.”

Lan Qi thought for a while and asked, "Do you believe her?"

"At this juncture, I have to believe it if I don't believe it." Ye Xuehuan tapped the edge of the cup with her fingertips, a rare look of exhaustion flashed in her phoenix eyes, "After this, she can't turn it over." The storm is coming."

Lan Qi was silent, and took a long time to breathe a sigh of relief.No matter how good his mind is, he can't make unfounded deduction. For Yu Tian, ​​who knows nothing about it, he really can't make any predictions, so he can only temporarily put aside this variable and focus on the immediate contradiction.

As long as this encounter is over and the Liu family is successfully brought down, it will be a new world for both Chongyang court bureau and Ye Xuehuan himself. At that time, the whole situation will have to be reshuffled, and Yu Tian will be Whether the enemy is a friend or not is unpredictable at all.

——The Liu family is just the beginning, and the turmoil that the Chongyang Dynasty is destined to experience has only just begun.

…………

Yi Guo's envoys traveled long distances, so they naturally had to take a good rest, not to mention that Chongyang had to discuss the results first, so after the court meeting on the second day, a group of people gathered in the imperial study to read the papers submitted by Yi Guo. The document copy, the content is naturally about the case of Zhao Ying.The three princes, the left and right ministers, and the four ministers of rites, officials, households and punishments all stand under the imperial case.

In principle, it is not the prince's turn to take care of this matter, but Ye Xuehuan was the one who investigated the case, and the prince has already assisted the government. Only Ye Xuequan seems not to be in the room, but everyone takes it for granted.

The second prince has always skillfully stood on a seemingly fragile but extremely stable balance point. The prince and the third prince are tit-for-tat, but he can enjoy both sides. With him present, the other two princes would not be able to quarrel.Although he himself always said that his brothers pity him for being blind, countless people think that he is the one who truly possesses great wisdom and understands the way of life.Even if his mother's family is weak, even if he is disabled, he still has many fans, because no matter who succeeds in the future, he will have a place in the court.There will be no great achievements in following him, but it is absolutely safe.

Right now he was standing in the arena, the prince and the third prince just glanced at each other very unfriendlyly, silently listening to the little eunuch in front of him recite the documents submitted by Yi Guo one by one.

The reason why this case has not been closed until now is because the whereabouts of those trafficked people is still unknown.Although they all know it well, there must always be a clear statement, so that Zhao Ying can be finally convicted.

According to Zhao Ying's own confession, he was only doing it for money, so he didn't know the specific situation of the buyer.According to the instructions, the Luanyang Yamen took out hundreds of small gold bars from the underground warehouse of Guixin Building, all of which were unmarked private mints.Private casting of gold and silver is also a felony, but Zhao Ying is not bad for this anyway.Ye Xuehuan knew very well that this was an arrangement made by the Liu family, but being able to spend so much private money to fill the hole in a short period of time, I have to say that it was a real waste of money, which is enough to show how rich the Liu family is. .The Youling Governor's Mansion's goal is too big, and instead of arranging the stolen goods in the Guixin Building, it can be regarded as the Liu family's quick response.

Ye Xuehuan didn't interrogate Zhao Ying in Pingxu City at the beginning, but he knew that the Liu family would definitely prepare a confession and evidence for him. He will also bite him back and beat him into a trick, and it will be true for nothing.

Zhao Ying is just a stepping stone in this matter, used to break open the door of Yiguo.

Yi Guo's investigation results on this matter were extremely subtle, and he completely ignored the responsibility.

Compared with Chongyang, Yi Country is naturally a tiny place, but among many small countries in the southwest, Yi Country is already considered powerful. For example, Xiyue has been oppressed by it all year round and can only seek the protection of Chongyang.These small countries are backward and closed, but they are rich in products, not only rich in medicinal materials and spices, some even have gold mines.Zhongyang has his own demeanor of a big country, and sits on the mine veins of the Southern Desolation, he doesn't bother to look far away, but to the merchants of Yi Kingdom, he is a big piece of fat.It's just that these small countries are really chaotic, and some of them can only be regarded as settlements or market towns in the eyes of the central people, and they are not a system at all, so there is no mention of public security.To negotiate business in such a dangerous place, financial resources are secondary, and the real capital is a hard enough fist.Ordinary martial arts guards can't handle it at all, so most of the wealthy businessmen in Yiguo will choose to hire private troops.

These private armies were initiated by veterans at the beginning. They have a strong foundation, and they also have some connections in the army. They can get excellent equipment, are well organized and disciplined, so they develop rapidly; The rewards are generous, and gradually there are many desperadoes, and they are no longer just doing escort work, and even get involved in the disputes and firefights of other small countries, gradually becoming the nature of mercenaries, as long as the money is paid It's enough, you can kill and steal.The big fish eat the small fish among the private armies, annexing and merging with each other, and now the territory of Yi Kingdom has become a monopoly, only a few dominate; while some small organizations that do not want to be incorporated have transferred to other small countries, and each has its own conflicts. The default boundary division.

——According to Yi Guo, the flow of those trafficked people is the private army, and he also clearly stated that it is the private army in other countries, and even "at any cost" got the transaction accounts of those private army, so as to prove all the cases The people involved are all outside the country of Yi, but they are transferred in the hands of the unification of the country of Yi, not the final flow.

The meaning of this result is obvious. He Yiguo has no responsibility in this case. If Zhongyang wants to pursue it, he can go to the other small southwestern countries. He wants to fight or kill whatever he wants. Yiguo has done his utmost to provide this information. There is no longer any obligation.

The situation of the private army is indeed true, and Yiguo has nothing to do with them on the surface; but in fact, at least before the eyes are paralyzed, no private army has ever escaped the surveillance of the skylark.But for any large-scale private army, there must be Yingmei lurking around its leader, and the largest ones even need golden eyes like Lan Qi to check regularly to ensure that they will not pose a real threat to Yiguo.So Lan Qi knew that these private troops were involved in all kinds of illegal transactions, including human trafficking, and he had imagined that Yi would use them to shirk responsibility, but he really expected it.

Although it was a bit out of date, Ye Xuehuan still felt a little proud, her kitten was really smart and sharp.However, even if he had expected it, he still had to admire the Liu family's speed of destroying corpses and forging evidence, and their thorough consideration. Together, they match exactly with Zhao Ying's book, and even the transaction amount matches the value of those small gold bars.

It can be seen that the Liu family's control over the Yi country is much deeper than he expected, and that the Yun family and the Yu family may be in jeopardy.

——Among them, the contribution of that Xie Jianguo is probably indispensable.

The emperor swept around condescendingly, and said indifferently: "Let's talk about your opinions."

The two sides on the left and right each had smiles on their faces, and the four ministers looked at each other in blank dismay, neither of them wanted to be the first to speak.As a matter of course, courtiers shouldn't speak before the prince, but among the three princes present, Ye Xueyuan naturally bears the brunt.

He glanced at the two younger brothers beside him, one really couldn't see it, the other pretended not to see it, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and say: "I don't think it seems like a fake."

This is indeed the beginning of throwing a brick to attract jade, but unfortunately it is really nonsense.If there were any flaws in these evidences, Xie Zifang would definitely not dare to bring them.But no matter how much Ye Xueyuan knew, he was still looking up at Liu Ting's breath, so naturally he couldn't express any opinions.

Ye Xuehuan also behaved as usual, not paying attention to him at all, and said with a sneer: "A mere ant dares to violate our country's prestige. You should be punished."

He has been in the army for a long time, and he has already been full of fighting spirit. The light word "Dangzhu" seems to have a bloody smell, which makes people feel terrified. The two Yushitai writers in the corner who are responsible for recording even bear I couldn't help shaking my hands, and I was trembling when I wrote these two words.

Liu Ting knew that he was going to lead the battle, so he said with a smile, "Your Highness the Third Highness leads the army for a long time, it is too murderous. No matter how small the southwestern countries are, they are all countries after all. If you send troops, wouldn't it make people think that I, Chongyang, is bullying the weak? False, aggression is true?"

"What Liu Xiang said is true." Ye Xuehuan nodded in agreement, "That's exactly what I mean."

Liu Ting was taken aback, he didn't expect him to speak so bluntly, he was speechless for a while.Ye Xueyuan showed hesitation, Ye Xuequan remained calm, all the four ministers were waiting and watching, just waiting for him to write.

Ye Xuehuan said: "My central government established the country with military force, so there is no need to talk about the Taizu. Emperor Xian took over the lost land in the south, Emperor Chen settled the East and South Seas, and Emperor Ying opened the trade routes in the Western Regions. How have we ever really cut off the war? Now that the world is peaceful, the country If the people are rich and strong, it is time to expand the territory."

The words made the rest of the people tremble with fear, it sounded like they were praising the successive kings of Chongyang, but in fact they alluded to Ye Xue's mediocrity, she had been in power for the longest time in history, but she had the least merit. If you don't do anything this time, it will be really lackluster in the history books after that hundred years.

From the purely king's point of view, no matter whether he should be angry or ashamed when his prince mentioned this, this is an irresistible provocative method.It's a pity that Ye Xueji's mansion was too deep, he was invulnerable to swords and guns, and his face was calm, as if he couldn't hear the sound of his words.

Liu Ting was well aware of his attitude, and still smiled and said, "It's been less than three years since the flames in Mobei have been extinguished, and the wars are too frequent, which will damage the foundation of the country. What's more, it's really worthless to send troops to ant small countries."

Ye Xuehuan asked politely, "What does Xiang Liu think?"

Liu Ting said: "The matter in the southwest, naturally let him solve it by the countries in the southwest. Although Yiguo intends to shirk, but if he holds his prince as a hostage and wants to come to a few small private troops, he can handle it with Yiguo."

"It seems that Liu Xiang misunderstood me." Ye Xuehuan's smile deepened, and her tone became more gentle, "I mean, Yi Guo should also be punished."

Liu Ting's face changed slightly. He didn't expect him to be so tough this time. He vaguely felt that he had some unknown trump cards, and couldn't help feeling cold.

"There are so many private armies in the southwestern countries, which one didn't go out from the other country? In this case, more than 400 people died, and which one did not go to the other country?" Ye Xuehuan sneered with his hands behind his back, " So what if you send a prince here, how much is this prince worth?"

Asked three times in a row, with sharp sentences, even Liu Ting did not answer immediately.

Taking advantage of the victory, Ye Xuehuan pursued and called out playfully, "Pei Shangshu."

The Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishments came out in response, and he asked word by word: "If you follow the central law, what is the crime for privately raising troops and privately selling arms?"

Pei Shangshu settled down, and replied in a deep voice: "Rebellious crime, there is no pardon for killing."

Ye Xuehuan asked again: "What if these traitors not only fled to other countries, but also intended to harm Chongyang?"

"..."

How could Pei Shangshu not know what kind of answer he wanted, but he didn't dare to be such an early bird, with cold sweat running down his back, he looked at his former boss and now left minister Lu Qiuyan as if asking for help.

Lu Qiuyan didn't turn his back on death, and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, Yi Guo is not my center of gravity, so I can't be my center of gravity."

Ye Xuehuan retorted without hesitation: "You can't calm the people inside, and you can't show your power outside. How can we call it a country? If it wasn't for Yun's intentional connivance, why did the private army run so rampant? Now that they are all committed by me, Chongyang, how dare you shirk responsibility? Such contempt and disrespect, how can you not be punished?"

"Your Highness is still young after all." Liu Ting finally pulled his face down and turned old, "Your Highness has great military achievements, and he wants to make a name for himself, but have you ever thought that if you are punished, how much military pay will be consumed and how many soldiers will be damaged? The Yun family is certainly at fault, but how innocent are the people of the southwestern countries to suffer from this war?"

Ye Xuehuan sarcastically said: "Liu Xiang turned out to be such a benevolent woman. It's no wonder that the military style in the southern border is slack and the combat power is low. The two consecutive border commanders ended disastrously. It's really embarrassing."

He has already said this in a blunt manner, exposing people's scars and stepping on people's feet, even Liu Ting can't maintain his rationality. When he thinks of his beloved son who will never be pardoned and will dig mines in the Southern Wilderness for the rest of his life, Resentment flashed in his eyes.

Ye Xueyuan sneered and said: "The frontier commanders are all recommended by the frontier troops from all sides, reviewed by the Ministry of War, and then ordered by the emperor, even you were the same back then. Even if the two offending commanders were both named Liu, and you What's the matter?"

The appointment of the Bian Shuai is obviously the same, but there are always some unspoken rules.Just like Xuehuguan has always been surnamed Mo and Luoxiaguan has always been surnamed Bai, Yunshuiguan has always been surnamed Liu since the establishment of the dynasty, but this time it was attacked by Ye Xuehuan and Nanfu back and forth, and the surname was changed abruptly.When Ye Xueyuan said this at this time, it sounded like he was helping, but there always seemed to be a little bit of gloating and backlash, and his intentions were very suspicious.

Ye Xuehuan took the opportunity and continued: "As the head of the Liu family, Prime Minister Right, and his nephew and nephew committed malfeasance, shouldn't he be held responsible for his upbringing?"

Ye Xueyuan spat: "You have no rules for raising a male pet in your own house, how dare you talk about education?"

Ye Xuehuan said: "I raised myself in the mansion, but I didn't let it out to harm others."

The two of them had already secretly formed a camp. Although they were facing each other as usual, they had actually subtly quarreled and left Liu Ting aside.

Losing a tiger talisman is a felony, and beheading is not an exaggeration, but back then he was only sentenced to exile; it sounds like it is lenient, but in fact it was extremely ruthless.Because even if it was a question of beheading, Liu Ting was able to steal Liu Xian's life and save Liu Xian's life; If you can't erase it, you can only be a sinner if you escape to the ends of the earth.However, Liu Ting was still exiled to the Southern Wilderness, and Liu Ting couldn't do anything, so he could only bribe some low-level supervisors and guards to make Liu Xian's life a little more comfortable, but he couldn't spare him the hard work and hardship in the mine. Haggard and sluggish year after year, from a side handsome back then to a hard worker without vigor.

That was the most outstanding son he had spent half his life cultivating, and it was inexplicably destroyed by Yu Wushuang's hands like this, and he was trampled by Ye Xueji and trampled forever.Although it is necessary to live, it is worse than death.

After the death of Empress Chu, the Chu family was once weak, and Ye Xueji helped Liu Ting to sit on the throne; now that Ye Xuehuan was in the upper hand, he turned to the other side and gave Yunshui Pass to the Bai family.It seems to be weak and incompetent, whoever is strong will rely on whoever is strong. In fact, the balance of these parties is skillfully grasped by him, and he can still pretend to be innocent.

——After all, this is an emperor who can stand on the sidelines without responding to his own prince's face-to-face quarrel in the imperial study.

In Liu Ting's eyes, the ones who have to pay for Liu Xian are not only Yu Wushuang who kills with a knife, but also Ye Xueji who pretends to be a pig and eats a tiger, and everyone with the surname Yu and Ye Xue, including his own grandson, Including his granddaughter-in-law.

Although the two princes quarreled and got off topic, the four ministers at the side all had an epiphany. The third prince dared to speak so righteously and eloquently for a long time, but the point is still here.He was deceived by the right minister to go on a southern tour. He was assassinated first, and then rebelled against. He was so angry that he could hold back his anger until now. He has accumulated energy for so long. It's true, they look different all the time.

Among the four Shangshu, the Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites is a vassal of the Liu family, and the Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment is biased towards the Chu family. Although they dare not join in at this time, they each encourage their master in their hearts; It was a joy to watch it; only Li Shangshu from the household department had the most complicated thought, and even trembled a little.

The Ministry of Households is not only in charge of household registration, but also governs all financial matters such as land, taxes, and salaries throughout the country, which has always been a fat job.Li Shangshu married the daughter of a wealthy businessman again, with ample food and clothing, a smooth official career, no great ambitions, just seeking stability, otherwise he would not have to spend a lot of money to inquire about news from Lu Yao.

At that time, Lu Yao made a strong oath, and the old god told him on the ground, "The Third Highness will never touch you." Li Shangshu was still a little skeptical, but now he finally understands.

——The third prince is not interested in these small shrimps at all, he is going directly to slaughter the big fish of the Liu family.

So this Li Shangshu took an action that seemed incredible at first glance, but was actually extremely clever.

——He quietly stepped forward and tugged on the second prince's sleeve.