The Bad Guys: Everyone, let’s revive the Tang Dynasty together!

Chapter 328 Boiling Water
Yunji.

No wonder the empress refused to tell Xiao Yan her name in person, because "Ji" is usually just a pseudonym. Whether it is an outsider or a close family member, it is mostly just a compliment used to address women instead of their names.

Whether it was the Qin and Han Dynasties or the Sui and Tang Dynasties, it was difficult for women in the dynasties to have a famous name, because a woman's famous name was basically useless. For example, no one had ever investigated the name of Yu Ji, the concubine of Xiang Yu, the Overlord of Western Chu. After all, if you really did, it would probably not have one.

There is also Cai Yan, the daughter of Cai Yong, a great Confucian scholar in the late Han Dynasty. She is also widely known by the name "Wen Ji". Even if she had a real name, few people would care.

When women in the imperial dynasty interacted with outsiders, basically no one cared about what their names were. Most of them were addressed as "Ms. So-and-so". This was the case for all women from wealthy families, let alone Li Maozhen's family who had started from scratch.

Before Li Maozhen was promoted to the commander of the Shen Ce Army and appreciated by Emperor Xizong Li Xuan for his military achievements, he was just an ordinary guard. Although his family was not poor, they were not from a noble family either. The empress and he were siblings, so probably no one in the family would think of giving her a big name.

In the imperial court, the more ordinary the family, the lower the name of the child, because it is popular that low-brow names are easier to raise. The empress probably didn't want to tell Xiao Yan her nickname. The word "Yun Ji" must have been called by her close elders when she was young, so it has been retained and became her name.

However, according to the empress's current status and identity, no one has called her by these two words for many years. After her parents passed away, the only person who might remember this name was Li Maozhen. Who knows if he still remembers it? Maybe Xiao Yan is the second person in the world who knows this name.

Xiao Yan figured this out, and seeing that Duo Wentian, who had chased for hundreds of miles, didn't know what was in the brocade bag, he knew that the empress must think this name is very important, because if Li Maozhen had forgotten it, then she would be the only one who remembered it, and of course now Xiao Yan has joined the list.

Holding the note with elegant and heroic handwriting in his hand, Xiao Yan smiled knowingly. These two words contained too many things. He felt that replying anything would be too deliberate. He just said to Duo Wen Tian: "Thank you, Saint Duo Wen. This thing is very important to me."

Duo Wentian had been wondering what the empress wanted her to send to him in such a hurry, but after hearing Xiao Yan's words, he felt that this trip was really worth it and hurried back to report.

This little episode did not delay the time for too long. Xiao Yan and his group were traveling in secret and still used false identities. Chang'an was still under martial law. Yang Shihou, the Prince of Hongnong in Daliang, the Inspector General of the Grand Marshal and the Commander-in-Chief of the Luzhou Camp, was stationed in Chang'an to supervise the troops and guard against invasion by the Qi State.

If Xiao Yan wanted Guanzhong to withdraw the threat to Qi State, he would certainly not go to find Yang Shihou in person. It was not Yang Shihou who could decide where the Daliang court would send troops. After returning to Bianliang, he could find Jing Xiang to discuss opinions. Moreover, his "real body" Ji Ruxue had almost arrived in Yingzhou, and would reach Bianliang by water in some days. He needed to rush back as soon as possible.

------

Duowentian did not return to Fengxiang until the next day. The empress was busy with government affairs, but she still summoned him as soon as she heard that Duowentian had returned.

Although Xiao Yan was no longer in Fengxiang, his words "this thing was very important to him" still made the empress feel a little strange.

Xiao Yan's guess was indeed correct. The empress did attach great importance to her name, which was not a real name. Of course, this was only for her personally. The empress also knew that perhaps she was the only one who felt this way.

But now there is Xiao Yan.

After hearing what Duo Wentian relayed, the empress couldn't help but support her cheeks, a gentle smile appearing on the corners of her mouth.

That guy seems to be really good at teasing people.

------

The news of the Fengxiang coup arrived in Taiyuan nearly seven or eight days later than the letter from Li Maozhen ordering Li Keyong to send troops to Xiazhou to force the Dingnan Army to return.

Because when Li Maozhen fled Fengxiang again, the whole city of Fengxiang was under martial law for several days, and several bad guys including the fake Li were detained and were not able to escape until Xiao Yan was released.

Although the fake Li did not want Yuan Tiangang to know about his embarrassing appearance, he was even more afraid that he would be cruelly criticized by the bad leader because of this matter. However, as the saying goes, truth will come out sooner or later. Even though he had made up his mind not to go to Taiyuan in such a disgraceful manner, he immediately asked his bad men to pass the news to the Taiyuan branch.

Before receiving this news, Jing Xinmo already knew that Fengxiang had lost contact with Taiyuan, but he never thought that the matter would be so serious. He was shocked and hurriedly went to see Yuan Tiangang in person without telling Li Cunxu.

"Li Maozhen is really an idiot."

Dozens of miles north of Taiyuan, in a private house in the suburbs, Yuan Tiangang stood with his hands behind his back. On the wall was a map of Jin State and Hebei, with many ink marks on it, all of which were the work of this great commander.

Mirror Heart Demon pinched the corner of his clothes, bent over and stood in the corner listening to Yuan Tiangang's calm voice.

"If we had killed the Empress of Huanyinfang earlier, how could we let others take advantage of the situation? He is so indecisive that I wasted my time sending him to the Twelve Caves to train for fourteen years."

Not daring to make any judgment on the matter of killing the empress, the Mirror Heart Demon just whispered: "At this point, Li Maozhen has been defeated and Qi State is out of control. I'm afraid Li Keyong will not send troops according to the plan..."

Yuan Tiangang sneered and said without even turning his head: "How can I let Li Yaer do whatever she wants?"

The Mirror Heart Demon was startled, and bowed with his hands folded: "Please give me your instructions, Marshal..."

Yuan Tiangang's eyes under the mask slowly scanned the map on the wall, and he said calmly, "How does Li Cunxu react to your Highness's matter?"

“That guy…” Jing Xin Mo pinched his fingers, hissed, and whispered with his hands covering his mouth: “That guy was quite disdainful of Your Highness. He just said that Your Highness is a boy and it is wishful thinking for Your Highness to want Jin to make wedding clothes…”

Very few people knew about Li Xingyun's entry into Taiyuan, but Li Cunxu was the crown prince after all, so he was qualified to know.

Li Cunxu was arrogant, even conceited. Unlike Li Keyong, he did not care about the legitimacy of the Li Tang Dynasty. If he really saw an orphan of the Li Tang Dynasty appearing out of thin air falling on his head, he would probably find it difficult to accept it even if it was just a nominal mascot.

After hearing this, Yuan Tiangang sneered even more and turned to look: "Spread the news about Your Highness. I want to let the world know that the bloodline of Li Tang is in Taiyuan. Make arrangements quickly, otherwise something unexpected will happen."

Jing Xin Mo was a little pale, and said hesitantly: "In this case, I'm afraid that His Highness..."

"Heh." Yuan Tiangang said indifferently: "How can he hide this identity just because he wants to?"

"My subordinate understands."

Jing Xinmo didn't ask any more questions. Letting Li Xingyun's identity be revealed was already one of the established plans, but it was just brought forward a great step now. If Zhu Liang knew that the Jin State wanted to bring out the entire Li Tang emperor, Zhu Wen would probably be the first one to be unable to sit still. Under the threat of both sides, it was not a question of whether Li Keyong wanted to use military force or not.

Given the situation, there was no time to worry about how Li Xingyun would feel.

The foundation of Jin State was very strong, and the wealth of Hedong was immeasurable. Even though Li Keyong had been waging war for many years, he could still make Zhu Liang suffer a great loss from time to time. In addition, due to Li Keyong's identity as a Shatuo man, he had a lot of followers on the grassland. With a single call and a hundred responses, he could really unleash a strength that Zhu Liang dared not underestimate.

Not to mention the fierce internal struggles within Zhu Liang, Zhu Wen was gradually getting older, and the factional struggles were becoming more and more intense. The seemingly glorious situation was about to be exposed, not to mention the Marshal's 30-year layout for Zhu Liang. If he wanted to push it forward, all he needed was the right opportunity.

At this moment, we must use Li Keyong's hand to start the game for Li Xingyun, so that the prince hiding in Zhu Liang will be too busy to deal with the external threat from Jin State and the secret killing moves of internal party struggles.

"I knew Li Maozhen would do bad things, but I didn't expect him to be so despicable."

Yuan Tiangang said coldly: "One more thing, send someone to see Wang Jian in Shu and tell him that Qi is in internal turmoil and has enemies both inside and outside. If we don't take it now, how dare we call ourselves the Emperor of Shu?"

Jing Xinmo's heart sank and he hurried to do it.

The Marshal is really angry. Qi State was originally a part of the conspiracy, but now it is out of control. Since he can't control it, he might as well destroy it.

No one wants it.

As for whether Wang Jian would be tempted, it is not something that Jing Xinmo needs to worry about. Since the Marshal has spoken of it, someone will definitely facilitate it.

------

Taiyuan.

Li Keyong pushed his wheelchair by himself, his one eye slightly narrowed, thinking about something, and seemed to be walking aimlessly in the Jin Palace. The palace people he passed by knew the habits of their king and no one disturbed him without permission.

There were footsteps coming from behind, a little hurried. Although Li Keyong was dissatisfied, he still patiently stopped and looked back.

Li Cunren was clutching a letter, and naturally caught a glimpse of the displeasure on his adoptive father's face. However, the situation was urgent, so he just bowed hastily and whispered, "The spies reported that the Qi Kingdom's troops were moving unusually. The Fengxiang, Baoda, and Yisheng armies were heading north. I'm afraid they will fight with the Dingnan and Shuofang towns..." Li Keyong's white eyebrows suddenly frowned, and he looked around. The palace people around him had already retreated, so he asked in a deep voice, "Hasn't the king sent people to attack Xiazhou? Then Li Maozhen can't wait for this little time?!"

Li Cunren found it difficult to answer, so he just spread out the letter from the spy: "There is indeed something fishy. According to the secret report, Fengxiang changed a few days ago, there was a mutiny in the city, and there were even rumors that Zhu Yougui, the Emperor of the Mysterious Netherworld Sect, attacked Fengxiang at night, and there was a fierce battle, and his whereabouts are unknown afterwards..."

Li Keyong looked suspicious. What the hell was going on?
He pulled the letter over and glanced at it quickly. His face was gloomy and he sneered, "It's just a rumor. Did Zhu Yougui from the Xuanming Sect have his brain kicked by a donkey and dare to attack Fengxiang at night? I'm afraid he can get in but not get out!"

As far as he knew, Fengxiang already had two top-notch masters in the world, namely Li Maozhen and the Empress, not to mention the people kept under them. Even if the Underworld Emperor broke in, he would have no chance of escaping.

As an old fox who had been patient for many years, Li Keyong naturally knew some of the inside stories he should know, such as Li Maozhen's escape from the Twelve Caves and his return to the Central Plains.

However, he knew nothing about the hidden facts, such as Xiao Yan's identity, the private relationship between the empress and Xiao Yan, the conflict between Li Maozhen and the empress, etc., so it was naturally difficult for him to understand the nonsense in the letter.

Li Cunren was somewhat embarrassed. After all, the people she had under her control were not as good as those of the Tongwenguan. It was already not easy for her to infiltrate Fengxiang under the nose of the Huanyinfang. The affairs in the officialdom of Qi country were cleaned up as much as possible by the empress, so naturally she could only get these things.

Li Keyong shook his head, pondered for a moment, and said, "Call Li Siyuan..."

"Foster father." Li Cunren reminded, "Brother is currently deep in Hebei to gather military intelligence."

Li Keyong waved his hand, squinted his eyes and thought for a moment: "Let Li Cunli come to see me."

"Yes."

Li Cunren was about to leave but was stopped by Li Keyong.

"The third brother has been looking for the whereabouts of the Longquan treasure for the past two years?"

"Yes." Li Cunren answered in an orderly manner: "According to the news that Shang reports once a month, the third brother has indeed been sent out by the eldest brother to do this."

The so-called third brother is Li Sizhao, the second sage of Tongwenguan. His status in Tongwenguan is only below Li Siyuan. Among the Thirteen Guardians of Jin State, he ranks after the crown prince Li Cunxu, so he is the third brother in Li Cunren's mouth.

Li Keyong sneered and said, "Call him back."

Li Cunren did not ask any more questions, but this time he did not leave immediately. Instead, he waited for a while to see if Li Keyong had any other instructions.

Li Keyong really thought about it, then tapped the wheelchair armrest and said slowly, "How is His Highness these days?"

"That Li Xingyun is a lazy guy." Li Cunren said as briefly as possible: "He has been taking Junior Sister to visit Taiyuan and the surrounding areas these days, and he doesn't allow our people to follow..."

Then she apologized, "Even now, I don't know where he is. I have to wait for the daily spies to come back to find out."

"Ah."

Li Keyong gently tapped the jade-inlaid armrest and said to himself, "Hide your incompetence?"

Li Cunren did not respond. She could tell whether Li Keyong was thinking or talking to her, and most of the time she would not take the initiative to disturb him.

"Send someone to look for them and tell them that the king has invited them. Temporarily arrange for them to stay in the Jin Palace. Don't let too many people have the opportunity to come into contact with them."

"Yes."

Li Cunren finally left and quickly began to arrange a few things.

Li Keyong waited for a while and soon saw his sixth son, Li Cunli. Li Cunli was always polite and elegant, with an extremely respectful attitude. He knelt down to pay homage a few feet away.

You have to know that kneeling was not popular in that era.

Li Keyong was too lazy to talk nonsense and went straight to the point. He asked Li Cunli to temporarily take over the Tongwenguan from Li Siyuan and try his best to find out what had happened in Qi State.

Li Cunli was shocked and frightened, fearing that this was Li Keyong's plan to alienate him and Li Siyuan, but he did not dare to disobey Li Keyong. No matter how scared he was, he had no choice but to agree.

"Oh, right, about that last time..."

Finally, Li Keyong called Li Cunli, then thought about it and seemed to have trouble remembering the name.

Li Cunli was thoughtful and immediately said softly, "Father, the man's name is Ba Ge."

"Oh." Li Keyong didn't care and just asked, "How is the progress?"

Li Cunli hesitated for a moment, then crossed his arms and said, "I have remembered my foster father's instructions last time and have not interfered too much in this matter. I will just wait for the report from the other side. If my foster father is concerned, I will ask someone to inquire about it when I go downstairs."

"Forget it." Li Keyong waved his hand casually and said, "If you are too deliberate, it will easily reveal your true intentions. Tell that Ba Ge that there is no need to rush this matter. I will not call her back. She will stay in the Central Plains honestly for the rest of her life. The most important thing is to get close to that person by any means necessary."

"I understand, son." Li Cunli bowed respectfully, and when he saw that Li Keyong had no other response, he was about to leave.

Unexpectedly, the moment he turned around, he heard Li Keyong's nonchalant voice from behind: "Does your elder brother know about this?"

Li Cunli was obviously stunned for a moment, his scalp tingling, and he turned around and bowed hurriedly: "The secret that my foster father told me, I dare not reveal to others. This matter, my foster father, I, Thirteenth Sister, Bago... Only four people in the world know about it."

Li Keyong narrowed his one eye and stared at Li Cunli from afar, then smiled and said kindly: "Not bad, you have worked hard, go down."

"I dare not complain about the hardship. This is the responsibility of the child."

Li Cunli kept bowing with his hands crossed, and stepped back more than ten steps before bowing again at the end of the corridor and leaving respectfully.

The moment he walked out of the corridor, Li Cunli's face turned pale and cold sweat broke out on his back. He felt his hands hidden in his sleeves trembling and he didn't even dare to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

He could sense that his adoptive father had murderous intentions towards him when he asked, "Does your elder brother know?"
Li Cunli was filled with rage and returned to his own Lizi Sect without stopping. The first thing he did was to call someone over: "Send someone out immediately to execute the messenger I sent to my elder brother. Do it immediately. Remember, don't do it too cleanly."

------

In Jinyang Palace, Li Cunren went and came back, whispering: "Sixth Brother sent someone to kill the messenger, and it was Shang who disposed of the body."

"good."

Li Keyong smiled faintly, very satisfied.

But soon, his smile disappeared, because someone came to report in a hurry, which made Li Cunren's face change drastically and he spoke in panic.

"Li Xingyun saw the Xuanming Sect committing a crime in Yuci, so he came to the aid of the injustice. However, Li Xingyun was recognized by some of the people there as he looked a bit like the late emperor. The Xuanming Sect members have now fled south..."

Li Keyong paid no attention to what was going on. He just laughed grimly after being greatly shocked.

"Well, what a bad guy..."

(End of this chapter)