Wind rises time and space gate

Chapter 495 No One Can Be Reliable
In the Jiying Hall, Jiang and Xiang's crying made the ministers unable to bear it.

Thinking of the status of the King of Yue and the difficulties he had gone through over the years, the ministers chose to remain silent even though they had different political views. As for the King of Qin, although the ministers were confused about why the King of Qin spoke for the King of Yue in the palace, they would not jump up and make the King of Qin unhappy.

The prince was somewhat dissatisfied when he saw that the situation in the palace was in favor of the seventh prince.

Originally, he did not regard the Seventh Brother as a stumbling block on his way to the throne. On the contrary, he wanted to win him over and use him.

Originally, even if the Seventh Brother did not stand on either side, the meaning he showed clearly told him that the Seventh Brother would not stand on his side. The prince still showed his best intentions and did not want to push him to the side of the King of Qin.

But the Seventh Brother actually used a stand-in to deceive everyone, and personally went out of Beijing to various states and counties to check the completion status of the water conservancy project!

The prince then knew that the seventh brother was standing against him.

It was not until this moment that the prince realized that during the ten years in the imperial mausoleum, the seventh brother was lying in wait, waiting for the best opportunity. It turned out that the seventh brother returned to the capital not only to redress the injustice of the former prince and Duke Lu's family.

He revealed his ambition.

He concealed this ambition very well, and it did not show at all in the more than a year since he returned to Beijing.

It turns out that Lao Qi wants to change the world!

Zhao Guanghuan had been the crown prince for twelve years and had long understood the importance of power. How could he give it up? Even if he could, how could his subordinates, his staff, his subordinates, and his civil and military officials who chose to rely on him, be willing to give up?

To follow the prince, isn't it just to gain the merit of serving the emperor?

How can I give in?

"King Qin, the Great Qi Dynasty has been established for nearly three hundred years, and the country is at peace. You need to be careful with your words and don't cause unrest among the ministers." The prince spoke slowly.

A prince who received a secret imperial decree to go out of the capital on official business was chased all the way back to the capital. This matter was widely discussed in the hall and magnified, causing panic among the civil and military officials.

The King of Qin looked at the Crown Prince leisurely, "Hasn't the Crown Prince always advocated filial piety, brotherhood, benevolence and love for his brothers? How come when you heard that your seventh brother met with an accident outside, you pretended not to hear anything?"

"I didn't pretend I didn't hear it. I'm naturally worried when Seventh Brother is not well. But Jiying Hall is a place for discussing state affairs, and we shouldn't create panic."

The King of Qin sneered, and before he could say anything, Jiang Xiang jumped up.

"Prince, the matter of the King of Yue is not a small matter for one person or one family. He was sent by the Emperor to inspect water conservancy projects in various places. During the inspection, two senior officials of the court died. Now on his way back to Beijing, he was assassinated again. Is this a small matter?"

"Yes, if this is a small matter, then what is a big matter?" The King of Chu also looked at the prince and said slowly.

Although he did not agree with the King of Qin's decision, he was very happy that he could make the Crown Prince suffer a setback.

The princes of Wei, Wu, and others had already begun to discuss among themselves. They had also received some news sporadically, and all of them had come to the court today, but they had only heard a little bit and did not know what the situation was.

Although they may have different political views, the King of Yue is also a compatriot and a brother. If someone cannot tolerate him and wants to assassinate him when he goes out on a mission, leaving him to die in a foreign land, the princes will also feel that the lips and teeth are in danger.

"Your Majesty, since my seventh brother is in trouble, please send someone to pick him up." Prince Lu made the request.

"Please ask your Majesty to send someone to pick up my seventh brother!" Prince Jin and others also made requests.

If the King of Yue returns to the capital safely, the Crown Prince will not be very happy to see it. But if the Emperor ignores and lets the Crown Prince do what he wants, the other princes will also feel sad and helpless.

The princes in the front row all knelt down and begged. Prince Qi Jiang Xiang and others who were on good terms with Zhao Guangyuan also knelt down. Most of the other ministers followed suit. The officials from the crown prince's faction looked at each other, feeling that it was awkward to stand there, and their legs weakened.

Emperor Zhizheng glanced around the hall and his eyes fell on the prince who bent his knees unwillingly.

"Be flat."

Emperor Zhizheng called out, "It's fine if you didn't know before, but now that the King of Yue is asking for help, I should respond. And the King of Yue is on a mission under my secret order this time, so no matter how well he does, we should wait until he returns to the capital to discuss it."

Jiang Xiang was dissatisfied, "Your Majesty, the dikes in Luocheng and Linzhao burst. Regardless of the internal situation, the King of Yue said in his memorial that the reconstruction of the dams in Wanhua County, Zhutou County and other places and the comfort of the people have cost more than 2 million taels. In addition to the donations from local wealthy families and gentry, the King of Yue also paid a million taels of his own money. Shouldn't this money be allocated?"

It had been so long, but the Ministry of Revenue still refused to release the silver, which made Jiang and Xiang very dissatisfied.

Every penny of the King of Yue is useful! He shouldn't be used to advance funds for the court.

Liu Qi, the Minister of Revenue, frowned deeply after hearing what Jiang Xiang said. Although he was in charge of the Ministry of Revenue, how could he allocate money without the emperor asking for it? Moreover, the prince had asked for eight million taels of silver before, and he was still feeling the pain.

Now the eight million taels are not being used for any useful purpose, the dam has not been repaired, and more money needs to be spent. The Ministry of Revenue is not a mountain of gold and silver.

And... Liu Qi glanced at the position of King Jin. He was not without selfish motives.

The longer the emperor delayed, the more he would like to see it happen. If the Crown Prince and the King of Yue were to fight, it might be his grandson, the King of Jin, who would take advantage of the situation.

The King of Qin? The King of Qin had been suppressed by the Crown Prince before, which had seriously damaged his vitality. Liu Qi did not take the King of Qin seriously now.

Moreover, the King of Qin is much older than the King of Jin. The Emperor is in his prime. By the time he wants to pass on the throne, the King of Qin will be very old!
His grandson, the Prince of Jin, was just right. The emperors of every dynasty loved their youngest sons, not just for show.

Before Emperor Zhizheng spoke, the crown prince said, "Don't worry, Lord Jiang. Father has always been concerned about people's livelihood and will not ignore it. The people of Luocheng and Linzhao are the people of Daqi and the people of father. How can we allow one person to advance money to support the people? What will father become then?"

"Prince, stop trying to sow discord!" Jiang Xiang jumped up, very dissatisfied.

Is the prince saying that the King of Yue is overstepping his authority and treating the people of the two places as his own people? Otherwise, why would he generously provide funds? Would he make the emperor jealous of the King of Yue?
His heart is worthy of death! The King of Yue did something wrong by doing good things?

"Sir Jiang, this is in the imperial court, please be polite."

"Prince, please behave yourself! You are in charge of the water conservancy project in various places this summer, and there has been such a big mistake. You did not think about how to remedy it, and you let everyone say that the King of Yue acted improperly, and let the rumors spread that the King of Yue forced the magistrate of Zhutou County and the prefect of Linzhao to death, and let their families petition to appeal for justice..."

"Sir Jiang, please be careful with your words!" Prince Qi interrupted him.

"Why should I be so cautious!" Jiang Xiang did not appreciate the protection of his old relative.

"There are rumors out there that the King of Yue has been convicted before he even returned to the capital to report. Now they have sent someone to assassinate him, vowing to prevent him from returning to the capital. They want to destroy both him and the evidence!"

He was so angry that he said, "Don't look at me. I don't know who did it. Are they planning to do the same as the former crown prince and make him commit suicide out of fear of punishment?"

"Jiang Xiang!" Emperor Zhizheng shouted.

Jiang Xiang shut up unwillingly.

The former crown prince was still like a thorn in the emperor's heart, and he could not bear to see anyone mention him. His poor student, among all the civil and military officials in the court, few still remembered him.

Jiang Xiang felt sad.

When Emperor Zhizheng saw that Jiang Xiang was suppressed by his words, he still acted like a stubborn donkey. He stood there gasping for breath, feeling angry and resentful.

I wish I could let him resign immediately and send him back to his hometown, so that he wouldn't stand there and prick his heart. But this man was like a blind and deaf person, and he just refused to leave, no matter how much I hinted at him.

"The people of Da Qi are my people, my subjects. How can I just leave them alone? Jiang Xiang is capable of that! The King of Yue is on the road, and everything is unclear. We have to wait for him to return to the capital before we can know the inside story. How can you just talk nonsense?"

"The King of Yue might not even come back!"

The ministers thought Jiang Xiang was brave enough! He dared to talk back when Emperor Zhizheng was furious. They secretly raised their eyes to glance in his direction and at the dragon throne, secretly giving him a thumbs up.

Be brave!

Emperor Zhizheng was so angry at this troublemaker that he felt suffocated.

"I will send someone to escort the King of Yue back to the capital!"

After Emperor Zhizheng finished speaking, he did not want to discuss state affairs any more. He gave the eunuch in charge of the palace a look, and the eunuch sang, "Dismiss the court!"

Well, there’s no more gossip to read, so I’ll just leave the court.

But Jiang Xiang secretly breathed a sigh of relief. With the emperor's words, the prince would no longer send people to hunt down the King of Yue. As long as the King of Yue returned to Beijing, everything would be done with hope of killing him.

He was not worried about the King of Yue's ability, as he was confident that the King of Yue could return to the capital safely. However, since the Crown Prince was determined to kill him, the offensive would only become more fierce. Many people on the King of Yue's side were killed or injured, so Jiang Xiang was not without worry.

Now with the emperor's words, the King of Yue can avoid some troubles.

After leaving the palace, Prince Qi couldn't help but say to him, "You are too rash. If you anger the emperor, not only will you be demoted, but you will be dismissed and stay at home. Who in the court will help the King of Yue keep an eye on you?"

Jiang Xiang glanced at Prince Qi leisurely.

Prince Qi glanced at him calmly and said, "Don't count on me. If I don't say anything or do anything, I'm helping Old Seven."

Jiang Xiang knew it. But he was still chilled by the emperor's indifference. "If it weren't for what happened in the palace today, I'm afraid the emperor would still think he didn't know."

The two sons killed each other.

I couldn't help but feel sad for the King of Yue. The Emperor really didn't care about the King of Yue's life or death.

He raised his eyes and saw several princes walking together in twos and threes. He sighed leisurely. The emperor had many sons, and except for the sixteenth prince, all of them had grown up, not including the King of Yue.

Prince Qi followed his gaze and looked at the King of Jin, the King of Wei and others, and sighed secretly.

The seventh brother can't rely on his father, the emperor, so he has to rely on himself.

Two days later, Zhao Guangyuan's substitute found him. The two parties gathered together and talked about their experiences in the past few days. After hearing how many people had been killed, Zhao Guangyuan's eyes became darker.

"We haven't encountered any pursuit in the past two days." The stand-in comforted him.

"Your Highness, the King of Qin will definitely speak for us." They haven't received a reply from the capital yet, but there is no pursuit from either side. It seems that the emperor already knows the situation on their side.

"I think the prince wouldn't dare to go too far."

"Now that the King of Qin has agreed to cooperate, what's the next step?"

What's the next step? The next step is to pull Zhao Guanghuan down. He was born as the crown prince. As for who can sit on the throne, it depends on their ability. If the King of Qin thinks he is capable, then let him show it.

He is not afraid either.

"Return to Beijing!" Zhao Guangyuan ordered.

The two groups joined together, turned darkness into light, and passed through the city without stopping for long. Six days later, on August 13, two days before Mid-Autumn Festival, Zhao Guangyuan and his group returned to the capital.

The capital city at this time was rendered even more prosperous by the mid-autumn atmosphere, which made Zhao Guangyuan and his party feel a little dazed, as if they were in another world.

Those days of being hunted and hacked to death with eyes closed seem like yesterday, yet also like a dream.

Many times they thought they would never be able to return to the capital.

Zhao Guangyuan did not go to the capital to report the emperor's order, but went straight back to the palace.

In the palace, Emperor Zhizheng had received the news since Zhao Guangyuan entered the city. He waited and waited but did not see him come to the palace to report the emperor's order. He wanted to throw the memorial away, but he held back. Perhaps he thought that what he did was not authentic enough, so he summoned Liu Qi and asked him to bring some rewards and go to visit him.

"The king is fine. Thanks to the blessings of my mother and my brother in heaven. After the king has a day's rest, I will go to the palace to report tomorrow."

When Liu Qi arrived, Lin Zhaoxia was stripping Zhao Guangyuan's upper body and checking his wounds. When Liu Qi arrived, the two did not cover up, allowing Liu Qi to see more than a dozen wounds of varying sizes on his body.

The new and old wounds were crisscrossed, showing how dangerous the journey was. Liu Qi couldn't bear to look at it.

People outside said that the King of Yue fabricated the story of being hunted down in order to escape punishment, hoping to win the emperor's sympathy and reduce his guilt. They said that so many people died in the two places because of the King of Yue's visit.

Because of the King of Yue, a county magistrate and a prefect died. Their families all petitioned for justice.

Liu Qi just felt that those people outside were talking nonsense. They spoke in a very serious manner, as if they had experienced it personally.

"Please take care of yourself, King Yue. If I cannot report to the palace tomorrow, I will report to the emperor."

"No need. The King will come to the palace tomorrow."

"Yes. Then I'll take my leave." Just as he was about to leave, Zhao Guangyuan stopped him again and personally handed him a thick purse. "The princess entered the palace earlier, thanks to the care of Eunuch Liu."

Liu Qi felt guilty about accepting the purse, but he did not do anything. "Your Majesty, you are too kind. I did not do anything." He still accepted the purse.

Although Liu Qi was keenly aware that there was something wrong with the prince summoning the imperial physician to diagnose the Yue King's wife, he had someone hint to Zhou Maoan and asked him to help conceal something. However, Liu Qi did not know the specific situation of Lin Zhaoxia and what favor Zhou Maoan had returned to the Yue King.

Zhao Guangyuan did not tell him clearly. Liu Qi was a smart man, and smart people like to please both sides. He favored himself, but he did not dare to resist the prince. He did not fail to respond to the requests of the prince and the King of Qin.

But if he could help out occasionally, it would be worth it for Zhao Guangyuan to remember him as a favor.

After Liu Qi left, Lin Zhaoxia felt very distressed when she saw the new and old wounds on his body. If the family was on her side, such a thing would never happen. In a civilized society, how could people treat human life as a joke?

She has been worried these days and has been unable to eat or sleep well.

Zhao Guangyuan pulled up his clothes, pulled her to sit on his lap, hugged her tightly, and breathed in the fragrance of her hair and body. He felt that his anxious heart had finally settled down.

"I'm afraid I'll never see you again." She was left alone, unable to return to her world. How would she live without him in this world?

Just the thought of it made him feel heartbroken.