Fu Shanhe

Chapter 274 Conspiracy
The unpleasant encounter made Marquis Wuyang decline the welcoming banquet and stay directly in a nearby post station, not even going to the residence arranged by the local government.

The game among the top leaders did not affect the good mood of the soldiers. They left the hold happily and stayed temporarily in the camp that had been prepared long ago.

Just after arranging military affairs, Li Mu was invited by Marquis Wuyang.

Prince Lu and Duke Yansheng are indeed difficult to deal with, but the foreign relative governor who holds real power is not someone who is easy to bully either.

After suffering such a great loss, I must find an opportunity to retaliate.

"My Lord, I wonder why you summoned me here so late at night?"

Li Mu asked knowingly.

It's not easy to be a confidant, and it's too early for him to get involved in this level of conflict now.

Although the status of Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi was prominent, his experience in the court was too shallow and he had not yet completed his work in the local area.

It doesn't matter if you offend the King of Lu. The two sides are far enough apart that the prince cannot reach out to him. At most, he can bribe a few censors to impeach him.

Anyway, there is no military general who has not been impeached, and he can withstand the general impeachment of the censors.

If pushed to the point of no return, the worst that can happen is to make the conflict public and then deliberately guide the direction of public opinion.

It was taboo for the princes to interfere in military affairs. Emperor Yongning was also a suspicious person, and once he suspected something, Prince Lu would suffer.

But Duke Yansheng is different.

Not only is he known as the direct descendant of a sage, he is also responsible for the main sacrifice to Confucius and has the right to interpret Confucian classics. He has a great influence in the literati community.

Offending this guy certainly wouldn't cost Li Mu his life, but one word from him could make him infamous among the scholars.

In feudal dynasties, reputation can be a life-threatening thing.

As long as he has a choice, Li Mu will not offend Duke Yansheng, at least not openly.

“You saw everything that happened during the day.

Those two old thieves actually dared to threaten me.

If I don't give them a taste of my power, how can I still have the dignity to stay in the court!"

Marquis Wuyang said murderously.

It was obvious that he was disgusted by what happened during the day. The essence of rescuing the emperor was not the incident itself, as the northern barbarians were not yet capable of conquering the capital.

The main reason for traveling all this way was to show loyalty to the emperor.

Now the team is kept in Shandong, how ridiculous.

"Asking for instructions from the imperial court" is equivalent to shifting the conflict upward.

There are many things that can be done but cannot be said.

After today's farce, neither Emperor Yongning nor the civil and military officials in the court would propose to give up Shandong.

It has almost become inevitable that the army coming to support the emperor will stay in Shandong, and the imperial court will most likely ask them to fight all the way from Shandong.

As long as there is a good record, all parties can explain it away, but the hidden dangers are still buried.

No one can guarantee whether the emperor will be suspicious of Wuyang Marquis. Maybe he won't show it now for the sake of the empress dowager, but it's hard to say in the future.

Countless prominent relatives in history disappeared, all starting with suspicion.

Marquis Wuyang worked so hard and tried so hard to get into the circle of nobles just because he wanted to keep his family prominent.

Now someone suddenly destroyed his plan. No matter what the reason was, they were his mortal enemies.

"My Lord, those two suddenly did this mainly to protect their own property, and there must be cooperation from the local government behind them.

They keep saying that they are all ordinary people. We cannot refute them openly, let alone retaliate.

Just because we can’t do something doesn’t mean no one can do it.

The grassland coalition army plundered everywhere and was extremely greedy. If an enemy army mistakenly entered..."

Li Mu answered with gritted teeth.

Marquis Wuyang must have known this traditional skill of "killing with a borrowed knife".

What he said was nothing more than a political statement. After all, no matter how good a plan is, it still needs someone to implement it.

It is not enough to just lure the grassland coalition forces over, but we must also deal with the aftermath in a timely manner to ensure that the situation does not get out of control.

The specific extent of the revenge will be decided by Marquis Wuyang.

The political impact would be completely different whether it was just causing Prince Lu and Duke Yansheng to lose some property or causing a family massacre.

If the incident really got out of hand and the imperial court held them accountable, not only would the local government be in trouble, but the reinforcements would also be held accountable.

Generals like Li Mu are fine, but the commander-in-chief, Marquis Wuyang, needs to bear the political pressure from the court.

“You are right, the situation on the battlefield is ever-changing and accidents are inevitable.

As officials appointed by the court, we should share the worries of the court. We must not let the enemy disturb the peace of the saint, and the provincial capital city must not be lost either.

If it is impossible to do anything, you should put your own safety first. If the court holds you accountable, I will take full responsibility!"

Marquis Wuyang said with satisfaction.

As expected of a trusted confidant, he can be relied upon at critical moments. Even when encountering big figures like the Prince of Lu and the Duke of Yansheng, he dares to take the lead.

"Killing someone with a borrowed knife" is never an easy task. If the grassland cavalry does not cooperate, then we can arrange someone to do it ourselves.

If you are not careful and the news leaks out, it could be fatal.

Even Marquis Wuyang himself was also very nervous. But there was no other way, to survive in the court one had to be ruthless enough.

According to the previous plan, after the war to support the king is over, his title will become a hereditary military title.

In order to ensure the smooth completion of the plan, the Empress Dowager has been praising them in front of the Emperor these days.

After laying so much groundwork, the appearance of Prince Lu and Duke Yansheng directly ruined the plan.

The troops led by Marquis Wuyang could not attack from Shandong. This meant that he could not be the first reinforcement to arrive in the capital.

Anyone who has played politics knows that the most valuable thing is always the first.

The emperor took the opportunity to reward Marquis Wuyang generously. It was a legitimate way to bury his bones with a large sum of money, and no civil or military officials would object.

If he missed this opportunity, and wanted to be awarded a title for military merit in the future, with his current achievements, he could at most be a hereditary earl.

If he wants to become a hereditary marquis, he must be able to pacify the Liaodong Peninsula after suppressing the rebels.

"Don't worry, my lord, this matter will be properly arranged.

Even if an accident happens, it will not have anything to do with us.”

Li Mu immediately assured.

Although he said that everything was arranged, deep down he was already planning to make the surprise bigger.

It would be perfect if we could take the opportunity to get rid of these two evils.

Anyway, he is the younger brother now, and if anything happens, Marquis Wuyang will be there to take the lead.

Don't look at the monk's face, look at the Buddha's face. The Queen Mother is recuperating in the palace. As long as there is no direct evidence to prove that they are involved, the officials in the court will not bite the Marquis of Wuyang to death.

Now is the time to recruit people, and the emperor will not deal with his uncle who has made great military achievements at this time. If the court holds people accountable, it is likely that the local government will take the blame.

It's not unfair, they were the ones who caused this incident.

Anyone who dares to forcibly keep the army to defend the king will naturally have to bear the backlash that comes with it.

……

Capital.

Looking at the memorial sent from Shandong, Emperor Yongning's face suddenly turned gloomy.

It was originally thought that after the arrival of reinforcements from Guangdong and Guangxi, they would be able to threaten the enemy from behind and force the grassland coalition forces to withdraw their siege of the capital.

Now everything has become a bubble. The reinforcements stopped in Shandong. By the time they get here, it will be too late.

(End of this chapter)