Besides lying down, I also know a little about power struggles

Chapter 21 It should be

When everyone heard this, they all turned around.

Seeing the person who spoke, the officials subconsciously dispersed.

The person who came was none other than the twelfth prince, Feng Twelve.

All the officials knew that Feng Twelve had been close to the Crown Prince since childhood and was a die-hard Crown Prince supporter. How could Feng Twelve tolerate Guo Yin criticizing the Crown Prince in public?

Guo Yin was also surprised when he saw him.

Before he left, Sui Yongdao specifically instructed him to help King Ping hold on to the Crown Prince, and to avoid Feng Twelve if possible and not to create any more trouble. Who would have thought that he would be bumped into by Feng Twelve just as he was building up momentum here.

Guo Yin stood up straight and bowed to Feng Twelve: "I heard that Your Highness is unwell. Why don't you rest in the carriage? It's windy here and I'm afraid it will hurt Your Highness."

He smiled again and said, "Of course, you are young, and you probably don't know how painful old injuries are. My general was stabbed in the heart to save Your Majesty, but luckily he survived. Fortunately, Your Majesty loved him and allowed him to lead the four states of Beihe. My general often said that Your Majesty treated him as a national hero, and he should repay you as a national hero. Not to mention the recurrence of old injuries, he would not hesitate even if his life was sacrificed."

He spoke passionately, and the officials beside him nodded secretly even though they knew there was irony in his words.

Sui Yongdao led troops for many years and won more victories than defeats. He was a fierce general in the Zhao Dynasty. That year, the emperor led the army in person and was ambushed by the enemy. Fortunately, Sui Yongdao risked his life to rescue him from the siege.

In order to commend the meritorious officials, the emperor promoted Sui Yongdao's sister in the harem to the rank of Defei. As a result, the Sui family was deeply favored and remained prosperous for many years.

The reason why Guo Yin dared to discuss the prince in front of everyone was because the assassination case involved Sui Yongdao's nephew, Prince Ping. Since Prince Ping was the victim, the Sui family certainly had the confidence to talk to someone about it.

Guo Yin glanced at Feng Twelve. He came here on behalf of Sui Yongdao. He didn't believe that even the emperor had to be courteous to the Sui family, and this unpopular twelfth prince dared to challenge the Sui family.

But Feng Twelve raised his eyebrows and smiled slightly.

"General Sui is thousands of miles away, but he is well-informed."

With just these few words, Guo Yin's expression changed slightly.

He had just hinted at Sui Yongdao's concern about the case in order to make Feng Twelve give up, but he didn't expect the other party to pay any attention and started to attack Sui Yongdao.

Sui Yongdao was stationed in the four states of Beihe. His base camp in Luozhou was a thousand miles away from the capital. Even if he changed men and horses without stopping, it would take seven days to get there.

The spring hunt lasted no more than twenty days, and it took Guo Yin less than half a month to reach the capital from Luozhou. Sui Yongdao received the news of Prince Ping's assassination before he set out, which shows that someone sent a message to Sui Yongdao as soon as possible.

Originally, it was not a big deal for officials sent to other places to contact the capital, and even the emperor was well aware of it. However, the matter was suddenly exposed by Feng Twelve, which made it difficult for Guo Yin to make up for it.

What do you want him to say?
It is said that General Sui missed his nephew, so he had frequent contacts with the capital? But Sui Yongdao's nephew was not an ordinary nephew, he was the emperor's son.

What does it mean that a prince has close contacts with military generals?
It should be noted that the emperor is not a fool. Even though he often expresses to his ministers on the surface that he envies the affection between the children and grandchildren of the common people, these words are just for fun. Anyone who takes them seriously is a fool.

The cold morning breeze made the roof rustle, and everyone in the shed felt a little chilly, except Guo Yin, who had sweat on his forehead.

He glanced around and the officials nearby seemed to be talking to others, but in fact, they were all staring at this end, afraid of missing a word.

Not every one of these people is on good terms with the Sui family and Prince Heping.

Guo Yin knew that if he avoided answering, it would give others something to talk about, but if he wanted to face it head-on, how should he respond?

"Your Highness, you don't know." Someone spoke from the side, and the person who answered was Wei Baichuan, the commander of Feng Twelve's guards.

Guo Yin was startled, thinking that what was going to happen next would be nothing good, and was about to interrupt, but the other party had already continued speaking quickly.

Wei Baichuan said: "General Sui is the uncle of Prince Ping. As the saying goes, even if the bones are broken, the tendons are still connected. No matter how far apart we are, we are still family. If a nephew has problems, of course he should tell his uncle. Everyone, do you think this is reasonable?"

When he shouted, all the officials who were pretending to talk nearby stopped. They looked at each other, regretting that they were standing in the wrong place.

Whether it's the Twelfth Prince or Prince Ping, they are all royal affairs. Why are they getting involved here?

But Wei Baichuan had already asked the question, and everyone could only respond.

At the moment, someone laughed it off: "People often say that nephews resemble their uncles. The Sui generals were loyal and righteous, and so was King Ping. It is natural for nephews and uncles to visit each other frequently."

It was unclear whether his words were an attempt to smooth things over or to add fuel to the fire; the officials all showed subtle expressions on their faces.

Guo Yin glanced at the man and said, "Your Highness Prince Ping follows the rules and never contacts the outside world without permission."

He must clear Feng Wuqiong from the matter. Sui Yongdao is far away, and even if the emperor is angry with him, he can't do anything to him for the time being. Feng Wuqiong is different. He stays in the capital every day, so how can people think that he is secretly communicating with the army?

That man was right in one thing: the nephew should be like his uncle. Feng Wuqiong had a bad temper, and Sui Yongdao's temper was even worse. Lin Tiande had just been whipped thirty times by Feng Wuqiong, and Guo Yin didn't want to go back and also be whipped thirty times.

Wei Baichuan laughed loudly: "Really? No wonder someone dared to wear the clothes of Prince Ping's Mansion and use the bows and arrows of Prince Ping's Mansion to plot against my prince. Prince Ping is so honest, I don't know which grandson got the advantage and let them kill each other under the banner of Prince Ping."

Guo Yin's face darkened: "Wei Baichuan, don't talk nonsense. Who said that the murderer is related to Prince Ping's Mansion?"

"Did I say that?" Wei Baichuan spread his hands. "I just told you what happened. Everyone in the enclosure that day knew whose clothes the murderer wore and whose weapons he held."

Guo Yin snorted coldly: "You are not in the enclosure."

"Oh, General Sui's people are really well-informed. They even know whether I am in the enclosure or not." Wei Baichuan said with a smile, "Deputy General Guo, I am just a small guard commander, but I am flattered that you pay so much attention to me."

Guo Yin choked: "You!"

He glared at Wei Baichuan angrily, and bowed to Feng Twelve: "Your Highness, the matter of the enclosure has not yet been concluded. Why are you so aggressive?"

Feng Twelve did not answer.

The cool breeze that blew into the shed lifted up a corner of his robe. Xiaonian had already brought a chair over: "Your Highness, you have been badly injured by someone, so please sit down and take a rest."

After that, he smiled at Guo Yin and said, "Deputy General Guo, I remember that only officials of the fourth rank and above can enter here. I think you are of the fourth rank, right?"

Upon hearing this, Guo Yin's face turned even darker.

Although he is of the fourth rank, he is also Sui Yongdao's confidant. Who here dares to talk about his rank?

But there are people who dare to do so.

Guo Yin glanced at Feng Twelve and couldn't help but say, "Your Highness, I don't know how skilled your guards are, but you are quite good at talking."

Feng Twelve took the tea Xiaonian offered and used the lid of the bowl to gently skim off the foam on the surface: "As you should."

Guo Yin was very angry.

No wonder Sui Yongdao repeatedly warned people not to mess with this guy. He was indeed as annoying as his subordinates.

He thought about the purpose of this trip, suppressed the anger in his chest, turned around and walked out of the shed.

At this moment, there was a loud thunder with a "clang".

(End of this chapter)