Chapter 483 A court meeting in the capital (5k)
"So, are you going to go back to Beijing to stabilize the situation?"
In the courtyard, the wind blew through a large sheet on the clothesline. Zhao Duan sat on the stone bench and raised his eyebrows.
Xu Zhenguan sat opposite him. He put down the tea cup with his slender fingers and nodded: "This is the best result."
Zhao Duan was not surprised, because the current situation was to a certain extent what he expected.
According to the original plan, the empress was successfully granted Zen status, and she could safely handle the "competition" that was supposed to happen "next year".
It can also intimidate the Eight Kings, with a high probability of making them give up resistance, accept the reduction of vassal status, and solve hidden dangers in a gentle way.
However, Feng Chan failed and the eight kings competed. It should have turned into a new chapter of competing for the new emperor, and the layout of Shenlong Temple was also successful.
However, the empress ascended to heaven again unreasonably, which led to a series of chain reactions.
Nowadays, Xuan Yin's masters have suffered a large number of casualties, and the Shenlong Temple main altar will also be destroyed. The Eight Kings are unable to get off the tiger, so they can only bite the bullet and continue to rebel, with no way out.
As for Xu Zhenguan, although he was successfully promoted, when he looked up, war was everywhere and the situation was corrupt.
It can be said that in the Yu State's game of chess, all parties have not achieved their goals and have no way out. They can only go to the dark side and fight for a win or loss under a weak balance.
"With your Majesty's current level of cultivation, it will not be difficult to stabilize the situation after returning to the capital. The original plan of the eight kings to rush to the capital failed. It is very likely that they will join forces with each other and turn to a new strategy of separatizing local areas." Zhao Duan analyzed calmly.
Zhenbao is in charge of the capital, and any of the eight kings who attack the capital will be killed.
After all, when it comes to life and death, the so-called agreement naturally does not count.
Therefore, the best strategy for the eight kings is to "encircle but not attack", form an alliance with each other, and first devour the territories of Yu State and separate them from each other.
When the imperial court is left with only a solitary piece of territory, all they have to do is work together to block the entry and exit of supplies, and the capital will be destroyed without attack.
By then, the empress will exist in name only.
Perhaps there is no need to fight, the people within the imperial court will be disorganized, and everyone will lose the will to resist, similar to the last emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Han Xiandi, during the Three Kingdoms era.
In that case, Zhenbao could not withstand the pressure of the ministers, so he could take the initiative to abdicate in favor of someone worthy of his position.
Or they are in a stalemate, and the emperor's throne exists in name only. To a certain extent, the eight kings have won.
In the same way, Zhao Duan suspected that if in the next war, the imperial court successfully defeated all the rebels and the winner was completely decided, Xuan Yin, the old bald ass, might still break the agreement.
But at least for now, when both sides have a chance of winning, no one wants to flip the chessboard directly... because this is purely a lose-lose situation.
"Yes, so the top priority is to return to the capital first and stabilize the situation. As long as I am still there, the local area will be willing to resist. Today, various places are looking forward to the wind. To a large extent, it is because there is no leader in the capital."
Xu Zhenguan nodded, his tone serious, but then turned worried:
"Moreover, I suspect that after so long, Beijing may have changed."
change? Yes, many times, a city is not conquered from the outside, but collapses from the inside.
With the capital's military strength, it is impossible for the rebels to invade in a short time, but if something goes wrong internally, there is no telling.
"In this case, there is no need to waste time, we should set off immediately." Zhao Duan stood up, then patted his head and said:
"There are still some trophies here. I can't fit my scroll. Your Majesty will help me store some."
As he spoke, he pulled out a cloth bag from nearby, which contained various weapons and magic weapons... which he had obtained by touching the corpse.
This is a harvest!
Xu Zhenguan raised his eyebrows and smiled: "Do you like these?"
After finishing her words, she lightly brushed her white hand on the ground, light flashed, and there were a bunch of various magical instruments, weapons, elixirs, talismans on the ground...
Hiss...are these just captured? Are there still so many enemies blocked by the Tianshi Mansion disciples outside?
Speaking of which...after returning to Beijing, I have to go to Lao Zhang to express my gratitude in person. Basic human relations cannot be lost...
And, is Lao Zhang so interesting? He sent someone specifically to catch me, and he always felt that he had an agenda... Zhao Duan was surprised and happy, rubbing his hands like a fly.
Xu Zhenguan glanced at the "imperial husband" who had never seen the world before and reminded:
"I'll give you all these things you want. But I want to remind you, be careful of greed. You don't need too many miscellaneous magic weapons now, or even martial arts skills and techniques. The correct idea is to be the only one."
Zhao Duan calmed down and nodded seriously:
"Your Majesty said so."
Before, he fought with Tianhai and defeated him in a cool way. It seemed easy, but in fact, in a short time, he had to support himself and Pei Niannu at the same time, which caused a huge loss of internal energy.
In other words, he is now strong in martial arts and martial arts, and the lethality he can unleash in a short period of time is astonishing, beyond the same level.
The flaw is that it does not last long and cannot fight a protracted war.
"With Pei Niannu existing, I only need to collect the artifacts for her to use and concentrate on martial arts. But every time I use Pei Niannu, my body will be drained..."
Zhao Duan pondered:
"So, what I pursue is a short-term burst, rather than mastering more means. Zhenbao reminds me to avoid being greedy and distracted, and to be precise. This is the truth."
Xu Zhenguan saw him thinking deeply and continued:
"After returning to Beijing and stabilizing the situation, I will take you to see the next scene of the Martial God Picture."
The third picture scroll after "The Picture of the God of War" and "The Classic of Six Chapters"? Zhao Duan asked curiously: "What is that?"
Xu Zhenguan smiled without explaining:
"It's hard to describe in just a few words. Once you've seen it, you'll know it."
Zhao Duan was stunned, and became more and more curious about the third picture scroll left by Lao Xu.
However, the top priority was to return to Beijing quickly. Zhao Duan got up and packed his bags. He looked up at the mansion with traces of the battle between the two in every corner, and felt a little reluctant to leave.
Xu Zhenguan twirled the teacup with his fingers and asked unexpectedly:
"By the way, what's the relationship between Zhang Yanyi and you? If you help you like this, you won't be secretly communicating with Tianshi Mansion behind my back, right?"
Cold sweat broke out on Zhao Duan's forehead. He turned around to face the empress's smiling eyes and forced out a stiff smile:
"Your Majesty, please listen to my explanation..."
……
……
Huai River Road.
Near a wharf, the "Jiangcheng Army", armed and tenacious, was in full force and was extremely oppressive.
Prince Jing Xuwen walked out of a house on the dock with a gloomy expression.
He was not wearing armor, but was wearing noble purple clothes. Standing outside the door was a general under his command. The latter raised his hand and said:
"Prince Qi, the remnants of Feng Chan appeared here last time. Unfortunately, they have moved and cannot be captured."
Prince Jing nodded, not surprised.
The so-called "remnants of Feng Chan" naturally refer to Mochou, Sun Lianying and their group.
"This group of people are surrounded by expert guards, and local shadow guards can also be mobilized to support them along the way. It is indeed difficult to bite them." Prince Jing sighed softly, with a little regret in his eyes:
"It's a pity. If I had known that this group of homeless dogs could do such things, I should have paid the price from the beginning and left them on Jiancheng Road."
Not long ago, the ship on which King Jing was traveling was blocked by a bunch of sunken ships due to the narrow channel of the canal. He was forced to park early and board the ship ashore.
As a result, the army's progress northward was hindered, and the reason was the work of Ning Zechen, the governor of water transportation.
"He is a ruthless person by building boats to intercept the river. It's a pity that such people cannot be used by this king." Prince Jing felt a little regretful.
On the side, the Crown Prince Xu Jinglong said attentively:
"Father, there is no need to blame yourself. The false emperor was on the run at that time. It was not enough for you to send all your masters to hunt her down. It was also a wise move for you to have no time to deal with this group of miscellaneous fish. A little hindrance is not worth it compared to the great cause. Mention.”
Prince Jing's expression softened slightly, and the corners of his lips rose:
"Nowadays, five rebel kings are rushing to the capital. They all think that whoever attacks the capital first will have the upper hand, but this is not the case. Xue Shence is in charge of the capital and is in charge of the army in the capital. No matter who goes there, it will be difficult to win if they attack by force. The only way is to cooperate with the outside. , to break the city.”
After a pause, he said: "At this time, the Li family should have arrived in Beijing."
Xu Jinglong smiled and said: "It should be in these days."
Prince Jing nodded slightly:
"As long as we succeed, the capital will not fall into the hands of others. As long as we work steadily, we can aspire to the top."
Xu Jinglong said: "It's a pity that King Yunfu Mu has used checks and balances to slow down our march. This time we go overland, it will be much slower and more difficult."
King Mu... Xu Wen snorted coldly. Among the kings, the King of Huai'an and the King of Lingnan are not worthy of concern. King Chen has no ambitions. King Heng of Qingzhou is ambitious but is actually a straw bag. The two kings of Yanshan and Hejian are both checked and balanced by the border troops. .
Only King Yunfu Mu poses a threat to him, and apart from that, the missing empress remains a serious concern.
"Now that we have joined forces to join forces, King Mu will still be our ally before the imperial court falls. The most important thing now is the empress," Xu Wen said.
The words trailed off.
Outside the pier, behind the dense crowd of sergeants, there was the sound of horns and the sound of rapid horse hooves.
That was the clarion call for urgent information in the army.
Prince Jing and his son were startled. They turned around and looked back. They saw a dark sergeant carrying a built-up military flag. They separated into a small road, like ink-colored sea water, splitting left and right.
The cavalryman galloped his horse and raised his whip, turned over and dismounted, and ran to the front. The cavalryman knelt on one knee and raised an urgent military report above his head with both hands: "Your Majesty, an urgent report from a secret spy!"
Could it be that... the hunt for the Empress has come to fruition?
Prince Jing's eyes lit up, he grabbed the envelope with his big hand and tore it open hastily. A densely packed urgent report with handwriting came into view.
Xu Jinglong observed curiously and felt a little thump in his heart.
Prince Jing's face suddenly turned pale, and then turned gloomy. His tall body staggered slightly, as if he had been hit by a thunderbolt. "Father!"
"Your Majesty!"
A group of rebel cronies around him were shocked and stepped forward to help him.
Prince Jing bit his lip and took a deep breath. His expression returned to normal, as if he just couldn't stand still, and he looked around at everyone with cold eyes.
After confirming that his gaffe did not attract the attention of more nearby sergeants, he squeezed out a sentence through his teeth:
"Follow me back to camp!"
As a coach, you must never make a public gaffe or shake the morale of the military.
……
The group of people turned back to a nearby camp. The moment Xu Wen stepped into the camp, he suddenly stumbled, covered his chest with his hands, and spat out a mouthful of blood!
"Father!" Xu Jinglong was stunned, and the other core officials of Prince Jing's Palace were also trembling.
What kind of news can make the prince who is sure of victory so angry that he vomits blood? !
"Don't make any noise, I'm fine."
Xu Wen spat out a mouthful of bruised blood, but felt much relieved. With the help of the prince, he sat upright in the camp and handed out the military intelligence report in his hand for everyone to circulate.
Soon, the expressions of all Taoist officials and generals in the camp changed drastically!
Urgent news ahead:
Please...you...Collect_6Ⅰ9ⅠBookⅠ(Six\\\Nine\\\Book\\\!)
The three parties that hunted the Empress all died tragically, and no one survived. The Empress seemed to have entered the realm of heaven and humans.
God!
"How is that possible?!"
"There must be a mistake. The false emperor Fengchan was defeated and seriously injured. There must be something fishy about this information!"
"How can a spy miss such a big deal?"
There was an uproar.
"Quiet!" Prince Jing slammed the table, suppressing his restlessness, and said with an unusually calm expression:
"Send the order. First, send someone to contact the Dharma God Sect to verify the authenticity. If it is true, tell me that I want to see the Dharma God."
"Second, send a copy of this information to King Mu and other kings. If this is really the case, invite King Mu to meet at Huai River."
"Third, block the news and strictly prohibit leakage. If it spreads among the army, kill it immediately."
"Fourth..."
As the orders were promulgated one after another, the officials and generals in the camp calmed down and responded to the orders one after another, walking in a hurry.
After a while, Xu Jinglong was the only one left in the tent. His voice was trembling and his face was no longer proud: "Father, she has really entered heaven? Then aren't we..."
"Trash! Even if you are a heavenly being, what do you have to fear?" King Jing's eyes were as fierce as a tiger's, and like a lone hero who emerges from despair, he showed his white teeth:
"If you were a heavenly being, you could rule the world. Wouldn't the throne of the dynasty have long been withheld from my Xu family? Xu Zhenguan... Okay, very good. My uncles can continue to play this game of chess with you. Who will win or lose? You know! ”
There was a bit of madness on his face, and he looked towards the capital:
"You'd better return to Beijing quickly, otherwise, haha..."
Outside the big tent, Princess Lu Yan'er walked out of the tent next door, looking thoughtfully at the large group of Taoist officials running out of the tent like they were mourning their heirs.
……
……
Beijing.
It was another cloudy day. The sky in the capital has been continuously gloomy recently, and the mood of the people in the city was as heavy as the clouds above their heads, as if a violent storm was brewing.
In recent days, news about the disappearance of the empress and that vassal princes from all over the country were marching to Beijing spread wildly in the city. At first, the court tried its best to suppress it.
But as more and more news spread, fueled by thoughtful people, it invaded the upper-class circles in Beijing almost pervasively, and relevant rumors eventually spread uncontrollably from top to bottom and spread to the streets.
Early in the morning, in the Taishi Mansion.
Dong Da, dressed in a simple and elegant green shirt, stood respectfully outside the hanging flower door of his grandfather's back house and waited.
When he saw Dong Xuan, who was already an octogenarian wearing a university sergeant's robe, walking out, he hurriedly said:
"Grandpa, the car is ready. My grandson will take you to the palace."
Grand Master Dong's appearance remains as before, dignified and solemn, with the demeanor of an imperial master.
However, if you look closely, you will find that the old man's eyes are bloodshot. Although his face is painted with whitewash, he still cannot hide his fatigue.
Grand Master Dong has been in poor health these days, so Dong Da, the grandson of the eldest son, is responsible for taking care of his grandfather's travels.
"Well, let's go."
Grand Master Dong nodded gently, and with the support of Grand Master Dong, he walked out of the Grand Master's Mansion and got into a carriage of impressive specifications.
Rush towards the palace.
During the absence of the empress, the important affairs of the court were presided over by the Xiuwen Guan headed by Dong Xuan. Today, a "court meeting" in the absence of the emperor will be held in the palace.
There is almost at least one similar court meeting every day these days, but most of the time, they are small court meetings within the imperial party.
Today, the scale is larger.
The carriage rolled and rolled on the streets of the capital. Master Dong used his wrinkled hands to lift the trembling curtains and looked outside.
In the early morning, the streets were far less lively and lively than before, breeding uneasiness.
Pedestrians on the road were walking in a hurry, as if they were preoccupied. Restaurants and theaters were deserted, and there were long queues outside rice and grain shops.
"Are the food prices in the city still rising?" Master Dong frowned and asked.
Mr. Dong, who was riding in the same car, respectfully replied:
"In the past few days, the price has been almost the same every day. Not only rice and grain, but other items in short supply have also skyrocketed."
The mediocre-looking Young Master Dong is not bad in ability, and he answers these questions fluently.
"Didn't the government come forward to stabilize food prices and strictly investigate hoarding?" the grand master continued to ask.
"...I'm reporting back to my grandfather, if it hadn't been for the government's action, the current prices would probably have gone up by more than this." Dong Da was silent for a moment and said.
Master Dong sighed softly and closed his eyes.
The people in the city have already smelled the bloody smell of war, and those who are the first to take action are the more well-informed dignitaries in the capital.
He believes that this is just the beginning. If the situation continues unchecked and panic brews, the private economy will be paralyzed first.
"What are those people doing?" The carriage turned the corner.
Master Dong noticed that there were noisy arguments coming from the teahouse, but the windows and doors were closed, making it difficult to hear clearly. There were also scholars coming in and out nearby.
Dong Da hesitated for a moment and said: "It is the scholars who should discuss the situation. My grandson is in the Imperial College, and almost everyone is talking about it these days."
"Nonsense!"
Master Dong was annoyed and looked angry:
"Scholars gather in teahouses to discuss the government's situation. Isn't this creating panic? What about the government? Why are there no official officials to stop it?"
Dong Da said bitterly:
"Grandfather, let alone the many scholars here, they are all young men with backgrounds in their families. The subordinate officials do not dare to provoke them. Even if they dare, there are currently insufficient manpower.
These days, the gangs led by the Honghuahui are causing chaos in the city, and there is a surge in yamen cases. The police and yamen officers are not enough to deal with these, and there is really no one to take care of this kind of thing. ”
Master Dong was speechless and grunted. He did not get out of the car to stop him, but whispered:
"The imperial office should be responsible for this."
Mr. Dong was silent.
The carriage drove all the way and finally arrived at the palace.
And stopped outside the Meridian Gate.
When Grand Master Dong stepped forward, pushed open the vermilion door, and stepped into the side hall where the court meeting was held today, he heard the court officials in the main hall talking incessantly, and everyone's face was full of uneasiness.
"Hmph!"
Master Dong coughed heavily, attracting everyone to look over, and the noise stopped.
Inside the palace.
Yuan Li, Li Yanfu, Ma Yan... ministers from various ministries and other important officials were all present and looked at them sideways.
The bachelors of Xiuwen Pavilion, headed by Han Zhou, were also standing in the hall.
"The Grand Master is here!"
"I have met the Grand Master!"
"Be quiet..."
Under the attention of the courtiers and officials, Dong Xuan, a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy who was temporarily in charge of all affairs in the capital in response to the empress's orders, and the contemporary emperor's master, walked through the crowd step by step, came to the seat reserved for him, and sat down gently.
Yuan Li, Li Yanfu and others took the lead and took their seats
——Because it is not a formal court meeting, there are many seats in the hall.
After the ministers were seated, Grand Master Dong said calmly:
"Tell me about the situation."
(End of chapter)