Emperor Taizong's Growth Plan

Chapter 289 Why Me?

Xia Guo, in the city of Jinling.

In front of Prince Qi's mansion, several court ministers bowed together and said:

"His Royal Highness, please stop!"

King Qi, who was wearing a luxurious royal robe, stood in front of the mansion gate, solemnly raised his hand in return, and said in a deep voice:
"Thanks to your lords' guidance today, this king will be of great benefit, please go slowly!"

Seeing King Qi's respectful and virtuous corporal attitude, all the ministers showed satisfaction in their eyes, and bowed again before turning around and leaving.

When King Qi slowly got up, at this moment, Commander Zhou Quan, who had been standing beside King Qi to protect him, suddenly raised his head and looked forward to the left, his eyes suddenly became sharp.

After a while, he moved closer to King Qi, lowered his voice and said:
"Your Highness, someone is spying on you, do you need to take it down?"

King Qi followed Zhou Quan's line of sight, and only glanced there, then turned and walked into the mansion, and said casually:

"unnecessary."

Hearing this, Zhou Quan glared fiercely in the direction where someone was spying on him, and quickly followed behind King Qi.

When the gate of the palace was closed, King Qi suddenly sighed exhaustedly, and said to Feng Chu and Zhou Quan behind him with a wry smile:

"This government affairs is really hard work, far less refreshing than fighting. The most uncomfortable thing is that you have to wear a mask all day long!"

When Feng Chu heard his prince's slightly complaining words, he couldn't help grinning, and said with a smile:

"What is your Highness talking about? How can this be hard work? The few adults who came to the mansion today are all important officials in the court and are deeply trusted by His Majesty. The most important thing is that even if the other princes try their best to win them over, they can But they have never been involved in the battle for the heir apparent! I don’t know how many princes and lords in Beijing want to be able to deal with them openly. His Highness’s words are somewhat ignorant!”

Upon hearing this, King Qi sneered twice, shook his head and said:
"That's right, the eyeliner is all placed in front of the palace, I'm afraid I can't sit still!"

Zhou Quan blinked his eyes and said hastily:
"Your Highness, why don't I go and pull out those eyeliners!"

Without waiting for King Qi to refuse, Feng Chu at the side hastily stopped him and said:

"Hey, it was His Majesty's order that these courtiers came to discuss matters. If so, what eyeliner is your Highness afraid of? Let it go, the more eyeliner you have, the more you can show that Your Highness is upright and not avoiding suspicion!"

Having said that, Feng Chu paused for a moment, then looked at King Qi, and continued:
"Your Highness, the princess has just entered the palace!"

When King Qi heard this, his brows softened immediately, and he hurriedly asked:
"Yingyao is here? No one noticed!"

"Please rest assured, Your Highness, the Embroiderer's method will never be so unbearable!"

Upon hearing this, King Qi quickened his pace and rushed towards the study.

In the study, Yu Yingyao, dressed in men's attire, stood with her hands bowed. Hearing the sound of footsteps outside, she turned her head to look at the door, and smiled brightly at King Qi who had just arrived, saying:
"Brother Emperor!"

King Qi looked at Yu Yingyao who was standing in front of him, hid his smile, and first taught with a straight face:

"You are supposed to be in Zhongqing City, Yunguo. It's okay to go out for a stroll. If you see it, you can explain it. But in my palace, you should come here less often, so as not to arouse suspicion!"

Hearing this, Yu Yingyao blinked her eyes, and said in a charming voice:

"Isn't this here to congratulate the emperor's brother... Congratulations to the emperor's brother, the great cause will be accomplished! When the emperor's brother ascends the throne in the future, I don't have to worry so much!"

When King Qi heard this, his eyes paused slightly, he nodded and said:

"Exactly, I also have a few things I want to ask you!"

Feng Chu and Zhou Quan, who followed behind, immediately understood, bowed to them, turned and left the study.

Yu Yingyao looked at the somewhat serious King Qi, her heart moved, and she asked quickly:
"Brother Huang, what do you want to ask? Now my ability is already great. In the world, there are few things that I don't know!"

Upon hearing this, King Qi nodded and said:
"Well, I just want to ask, how powerful are your subordinates now?"

Yu Yingyao blinked, noticed the seriousness on King Qi's face, sighed slightly in her heart, and said in a deep voice:
"Among the embroiderers, eighty percent of their hands obey my command. The remaining two percent of their hands have been under direct orders from my father, and I can't stretch out my hands yet!"

King Qi had already been prepared in his heart, so he couldn't help frowning at this time, showing surprise.

"It's only been less than a year!"

Yu Yingyao said seriously:

"Four months to be precise! Four months after returning to Beijing, the embroiderer almost fell into my hands!"

Speaking of this, Yu Yingyao showed hesitation again, and said after a while:
"However, at that time, I could only call, and I couldn't use my arms. It took several months before I transferred all the people placed by the father and re-arranged people to take over."

Hearing this, King Qi suddenly let out a long sigh, and said in a daze:
"Without Royal Father's secret help, how could you take over most of the embroiderers in such a short time!"

Obviously, King Qi at this time has already guessed that behind this, there is always the figure of his father.

Seeing King Qi's inexplicably bewildered expression, Yu Yingyao pursed her lips and said:

"Brother Huang, it seems that you have guessed it before?"

King Qi came back to his senses, looked at his sister helplessly, and said:
"I'm not a fool! The Embroidered Clothes Envoy has a special status. Even if he gets involved in the fight for the throne, he doesn't dare to express his position in the open. As for Feng Chu, he is a high-ranking Embroidered Clothes Envoy, but since returning to the capital, he has He followed me all the time. Others don't know his identity, how can the old man not know? But you look at the palace, do you have the slightest reaction? And now that I think about it, Feng Chu's contribution is somewhat too easy!"

Although the embroidered envoys have long been involved in the battle for the heir apparent, before Yu Yingyao thoroughly cleaned the embroidered envoys, there were even many high-level embroidered envoys who already had princes who secretly supported them and contributed a lot.

But the identity of the embroidered clothes envoy is special after all, he is the personal army of Emperor Xia.Involvement in seizing the heir is something that must never be put on the bright side!

After Feng Chu returned to the capital, he has been obeying orders in front of King Qi. Although he is an official of Honglu Temple on the surface, how can he hide his identity as a high-ranking embroiderer secretly from Emperor Xia?
And at the beginning, King Qi let Feng serve under his command with just a few words, which seemed logical.But now that I think about it, if there is no other reason for a high-ranking embroiderer, how can he serve him, a prince who is not valued?
It was from here that King Qi had a guess in his heart!
When Yu Yingyao heard the words, she blinked her eyes and hurriedly applauded:

"Okay, I thought Brother Huang would act straightforwardly, but I didn't know that Brother Huang still has such meticulous thoughts, so serious..."

Seeing Yu Yingyao's gag, King Qi's mouth twitched slightly.

He waved his hand to stop Yu Yingyao, then took a deep breath, looked straight at Yu Yingyao, and said:
"Although I have the feeling of being manipulated by others, I am not a person who does not know what is good or bad. Now I am far away from the reserve position, but I am only short of a name. After all, I have obtained such a huge benefit...I believe that you will not harm me, imperial sister, but But I still don't understand, why me?"

Looking back, it was the old Emperor Xia who used tricks to force King Qi to embark on the road of seizing the heir.Then Feng Chu was arranged to serve under his command.After that, after many efforts, even an organization like the Embroidery Envoy was handed over to Yu Yingyao.

It seems that from the very beginning, the old Emperor Xia had already decided that King Qi would inherit that position!
That is to say, he was convinced that his fellow sister would not harm him, otherwise he was somewhat worried at this time.After all, the old Emperor Xia really didn't have a good image in his heart.

Hearing King Qi's question, Yu Yingyao opened her mouth, hesitated for a while, and then said:

"Brother Huang, can you think of when did your father change his attitude towards you?"

King Qi immediately showed a thoughtful look, and after a while, he said with some doubts:
"Ever since I became an adult, I haven't been very close to the old man, but I didn't pay much attention to his attitude... Maybe it was after I drove my troops into Yun Kingdom without authorization?"

Yu Yingyao blinked and said:

"Almost, to be more precise, it should be after the emperor's brother sent troops to slaughter the southwestern generals."

"Because of this?" King Qi asked with a puzzled expression.

Yu Yingyao nodded and said:
"Our brothers, there are long-sleeved and good dancers, and there are also those who are good at calculating, but there is no one who is as decisive and responsible as the emperor's brother! And our Great Xia is full of problems now, what is lacking is a king like you, the emperor's brother. ..."

"But to be an emperor, isn't the most important thing about selecting talented people, knowing how to use them well, and balancing power?" King Qi couldn't help asking.

When Yu Yingyao heard this, her eyelids drooped, and she said:
"Brother Huang, I was just guessing. I have to ask Brother Huang himself about father's thoughts and plans!"

King Qi frowned, and opened his mouth to ask more questions.

But at this time, Yu Yingyao obviously didn't want to continue this topic, so she changed the subject and said:
"By the way, come here today, there is one more thing I want to tell Brother Huang!"

Yu Yingyao looked solemnly at King Qi, and said solemnly:

"Brother Huang, the Embroidered Clothes Envoy secretly reported that the tens of thousands of southwestern frontier troops who encircled and suppressed the rebels were ordered to station in Rongzhou two months ago!"

"Stationed in Rongzhou? What about the rebels? Have the rebels been wiped out?" Hearing the words, King Qi really didn't care about anything else, so he hurriedly asked.

He has been in charge of the Southwest Frontier Army for several years, so he is naturally familiar with the Southwest Frontier Fortress.Rongzhou belongs to Dejiang County, and soldiers and horses are also stationed here, and the guards are the soldiers and horses stationed in Shicheng County of Yun Kingdom.

Now Xia Guo and Yun Guo are fighting again, and the battle situation in Wuzhou is deadlocked, and the daily fierce battle is in full swing.It is in line with the way to use troops to find a way to send troops to capture this important place in Shicheng County, so that Yongzhou soldiers and horses will lose the support of Yunguo.

It's just that the southwestern frontier army was ordered to go to Rongzhou two months ago, that is to say, as soon as King Qi left for Beijing, the soldiers and horses were transferred away.

But at that time, tens of thousands of rebels were trapped in the city of Anshun County. Relying on the strength of the city, the old rebel battalion was brave and fearless of death, and had the intention of defending it.Looking at that posture, it is definitely not something that can be won in a day or two!
When Yu Yingyao heard this, she said in a deep voice:

"The king of Jin wrote a letter to appease the rebels and put an end to the chaos in the Southwest as soon as possible. The emperor agreed. After the emperor's brother returned to the capital, an imperial emissary went to summon peace. Hao Yuanhua, the leader of the rebel army, accepted the canonization of the imperial court and named him the capital of Leyi. Marquis Ting, the captain of Anshun County. His soldiers belong to the army of Anshun County..."

When King Qi heard this, his eyes widened suddenly, revealing a look of anger, and said:
"That's all for recruiting, why didn't you even pay the military power? Why did the third brother give such a stupid suggestion. The old man still nodded?"

When Yu Yingyao heard this, she said in a deep voice:

"This is to quell the rebellion as soon as possible and bring back the army... This time, the six counties in the Southwest have suffered heavy losses, and the people have a lot of resentment towards the imperial court. I'm afraid that the father doesn't want it anymore. He wants to use Jiangyang and Shaoyang in the Southwest , Anshun, Xiangzhou, and Dejiang five counties, in exchange for Yunguo Yongzhou and other four prefectures."

Hearing this, King Qi froze for a moment, and murmured:
"So, this is why the old man called me back in such a hurry?"

If you want to succeed to the throne in the future, you must not bear the responsibility of losing the country when you are the prince! ——
Yunguo, Shilin County under Shicheng County.

The soldiers of the Xia army, wearing black armor, lined up in an army formation, coming like a large dark cloud.

Xia Jun's flag fluttered, spears were like a forest, and the battlefield's evil spirit rose to the sky, forcing people to be abnormal.

With such power, ordinary people standing on the city wall of Shilin County, just took a look at the Xia Army formation in the distance, and suddenly felt their legs and feet go weak, trembling uncontrollably.

On the city wall, the county magistrate, county lieutenant, and the generals of the frontier army stationed here quickly walked up the city wall and saluted Wu Zixu who had just rushed to the city to sit in the town, saying:

"I've seen Mr. Wu!"

Wu Zixu was wearing a fifth-rank official uniform with bear pattern, looked at the Xia army formation in the distance, and said in a deep voice:
"How's the battle going?"

The frontier general hurriedly stepped forward, cupped his hands and said:
"Returning to my lord, the Xia army's vanguard has a total of [-] soldiers and horses. They arrived yesterday evening, rested overnight, and attacked the city at Maoshi today. Fortunately, the soldiers in the city worked hard, and there were five thousand soldiers from the Longbaoshan army camp outside the city. Only to return in vain."

Upon hearing this, Wu Zixu nodded immediately.

Since he came to take up his post, the important military village in Shicheng County will naturally be remembered in his heart.

On the outskirts of Shilin County, there is Longbao Mountain. A military fortress was built on it, and [-] soldiers were stationed there to guard against the Xia army's attack.

Wu Zixu looked at the Xia army who was purge the army in the distance, looking like they were about to attack the city, snorted coldly, and said:
"I'm here for the first time today, and I'm worried that I won't be able to make a name for myself!"

After saying that, he straightened his waist suddenly, and shouted:
"Come on!"

Several generals who followed Wu Zixu to the side took a step forward, clasped their fists and said:
"The end is here!"

Wu Zixu pointed at the Xia army formation ahead, and said in a deep voice:
"Lead one thousand iron cavalry to attack the Xia army's formation, followed by three thousand frontier troops. Ask the drum to advance, and the drum will stop. If you hear the sound of gold, return to the city immediately! This time, you must give me a setback. Xia Jun is sharp!"

When the generals heard the words, they immediately yelled, turned around and walked down the city wall.

After a while, only the "squeak" of the city gate opening, the neighing of horses, and the collision of weapons were heard.

The sound of war drums resounded loudly.

A thousand Guanning iron cavalry, with the sound of horseshoes like thunder, led three thousand infantry, with an unstoppable momentum, roared away, and rushed towards the Xia army's formation.

The smoke billowed, the vision of the army condensed again, and the mighty vision overturned. Xia Jun was caught off guard and horrified, and the sound of fighting and screaming sounded again and again...

　Damn, just a few minutes away...

　　Yep, I have to spend points to exchange for leave slips again!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)