Lanting prelude
Chapter 48
Chapter 48
Wang Xizhi's deep plan is definitely not seeking the power of a moment or a dynasty, but a terrifying power that controls the trend of history and manipulates the change of dynasties!
In the private room of Langguanqing Winery, Xiao Junmo and Li Ke drank happily, and then each told their experiences after parting.
Xiao Junmo reviewed his fleeing experience for more than half a year. Although he deliberately understated it, it was extremely thrilling to Li Ke's ears, especially when he heard that Xiao Junmo defeated Qi Wang Li You's rebellion plot in just one day, he couldn't help but praise him .
Of course, Xiao Junmo didn't tell everything.He concealed the part about the Sky Punishment Alliance, including the fact that he has become the leader of the alliance.
Li Ke also talked about how he cracked the Yang Bingjun case and was promoted to General Zuo Wuhou, but he also concealed the fact that he joined forces with Jiu Gaoduo Sun Boyuan and gradually participated in the battle for the heir apparent.In the end, he suddenly stared at Xiao Junmo and said, "You have traveled so many places with Biancai in the past half a year, and you haven't dug up any secrets of the Heavenly Punishment Alliance?"
"Your Majesty just questioned me, and I was so scared that I was sweating profusely." Xiao Junmo took a sip of his wine and smiled slightly, "Why, now His Royal Highness King Wu plans to interrogate me again?"
"If you have no ghosts in your heart, why are you afraid?" Li Ke played with his expression.
"Holy Majesty is mighty, who is not afraid?"
"Go, go, don't do this with me! I don't know you yet? Even if the sky falls, I don't think you will blink."
"Hehe, Your Highness is flattering me too much."
"Stop talking nonsense and answer my question."
"What if I don't answer? You still want to sing out-of-key military songs to disgust me?"
As Xiao Junmo said, he drank all the wine in the glass and reached out to get the jug, but Li Ke snatched it away.
"If you don't answer, don't even think about drinking again!"
"If you don't drink, don't drink, anyway, I have to report back to Xuanjiawei later..."
Xiao Junmo didn't care, picked up the chopsticks to pick up the food, but was knocked off by Li Ke with the chopsticks.
"Hey, let me tell you, is there anyone who treats you like this?" Xiao Junmo stared, "You are not allowed to drink or eat food, what's wrong with you?"
Li Ke just stared at him and didn't speak.
After a while, Xiao Junmo sighed, and slapped his chopsticks on the table: "His Royal Highness, as the saying goes, there is no injustice, if you want to take something out of my mouth, you have to show some sincerity and tell me a few words." Tell the truth, right?"
"What do you mean?" Li Ke pretended to be confused.
Xiao Junmo snorted coldly: "I don't doubt your ability to handle the case, but to be honest, Yang Bingjun and Yao Xing are both Mingzang's confidantes, if Mingzang wants to protect them, I'm afraid it won't be so easy for you alone? "
"I didn't say it's just me, isn't there Xuanjiawei to help?"
"I know the strength of the Xuanjiawei best. It may be more than enough to deal with corrupt officials, but it is still far from being able to deal with the forces of the world like the Tianxing League!"
Li Ke was silent, and then said after a while: "Jun Mo, let's make an agreement, if I tell you the truth, you are also not allowed to hide it from me."
"Of course!" Xiao Junmo smiled, "Didn't I just say that courtesy is reciprocal!"
"Then listen carefully." Li Ke looked at him with burning eyes, "Not long after you left Chang'an, I teamed up with Sun Boyuan of Jiu Gaoduo of the Tianxing League."
"Jiugao rudder?" Xiao Junmo was slightly startled, his thoughts turned, "Is this Sun Boyuan a descendant of Sun Chuo?"
Li Ke nodded: "Now I'm not the only one citing the forces of Jianghu. As far as I know, Ming Zang has joined forces with King Wei long before me. As for the East Palace, I guess there must be people from the Heavenly Punishment League."
Xiao Junmo couldn't help but gasped.
If, as Li Ke said, the power of the Heavenly Punishment Alliance is behind their two kings and one prince, then this battle for succession will inevitably turn into a great turmoil sweeping Chang'an and spreading across the government and the public—the Tang Dynasty is in danger of being overthrown !
Seeing that he frowned and said nothing, Li Ke went on to say: "This time the imperial court suppressed the gentry, Sun Boyuan was severely injured, and Jiugao Tuo's vitality was seriously injured. Just now, he has bid farewell to me. In addition, Li Daozong and Yuchi Jingde I am worried that the current situation is too sensitive, and I dare not get too close to me in the future. You said, the situation is so dangerous, what should I do?"
Xiao Junmo pondered for a long time, then suddenly raised his head and stared straight at Li Ke: "I just ask you one question - do you want to be the emperor?"
Li Ke didn't expect that he would suddenly ask such a direct and explicit question, and was stunned for a moment: "Why do you ask such a question?"
"You just need to answer me, want to, or don't want to."
"So what if you want to? So what if you don't want to?"
"If you talk like this, then we will have nothing to talk about." Xiao Junmo said, and he was about to get up.
"Wait!" Li Ke was anxious, "Of course I want to, but..."
Xiao Junmo raised his hand to stop him: "That's enough, your words are enough. Next, you just do what I say, and I will do my best to assist you in seizing the throne!"
Xiao Junmo made this decision not just because of his brotherhood with Li Ke, but more because of the long-term stability of the Tang Dynasty.Among the dozen or so princes today, Wu Wang Li Ke has the most outstanding endowment. No matter whether it is literary, military or moral, he is beyond the reach of other princes, so he is also the most qualified person to succeed the Datong.Even Li Shimin is aware of this.Li Ke's only disadvantage is that he is a bastard, but if he can knock out Prince Li Chengqian and Wei Wang Li Tai, then Li Ke has a great chance of winning, and the emperor is most likely to choose him.Therefore, what Xiao Junmo will do next is to assist him vigorously, bring down the crown prince and King Wei one by one, and seize the position of crown prince.
This is an indispensable and important part of Xiao Junmo's plan to "protect the world".
Li Ke was surprised and delighted when he heard the words: "Are you really willing to help me?"
Xiao Junmo smiled: "Throw me a peach and repay it with Qiongyao. You have been open and honest with me, how can I say nothing?"
"It seems that what I expected was right. You really found a treasure this trip." Li Ke was in a good mood, "Can you tell me, what secrets do you have about the Heavenly Punishment Alliance?"
"You don't need to ask." Xiao Junmo smiled mysteriously, "You just need to know that I have the strength to help you."
"Hey, you are not kind!" Li Ke stared, "Didn't you just promise not to hide it from me?"
"I have already promised to help you seize the heir, what are you dissatisfied with?" Xiao Junmo stared back, and grabbed the jug, "Call a few more jugs, this little wine is not enjoyable!"
When Xiao Junmo returned to Xuanjiawei with a blushing face, Li Shiji was already impatient.
"I appointed you an official by the order of the Holy Majesty, and I have been waiting for you here for a long time, but you ran to drink and have fun. I think you don't want to be an official?" Li Shiji began to scold him.
Xiao Junmo laughed and hiccupped: "His Royal Highness Wu Wang cleans up the dust for his disciples. The kindness is hard to turn down, so I drank a few more glasses, and I ask the master to forgive me."
"This is the yamen, don't get too close to me!" Li Shiji said angrily.
"Yes, this subordinate made a mistake, please punish the general." Xiao Junmo quickly changed his words, bowed his head and clasped his fists.
"Okay, the brothers are waiting for you to show up in the school grounds, change your armor and come here quickly!"
"As ordered."
Xiao Junmo returned to his duty room, and found that a brand new, shiny and majestic armor had been draped on the hanger.He put on his armor and came to the school grounds, and saw dozens of generals of the Xuanjia Guards lined up to greet him.Among them, Huan Dieyi and Luo Biao have both been promoted to brigade commanders, and they are also wearing brand-new armor, looking radiant.Pei Tinglong and Xue An were also in the queue, but their attire did not change, obviously neither of them had been promoted.
Previously, in the memorandum presented to the emperor, Xiao Junmo emphasized the achievements of Huan Dieyi and Luo Biao in the suppression of the rebellion, and repeatedly urged the emperor to reward them for their merits and promote them.At the same time, Xiao Junmo also truthfully reported the credits of Pei Tinglong and Xue An out of public interest.But now it seems that the emperor does not seem to recognize the latter.Xiao Junmo speculated that the reason must be that Pei Tinglong suffered repeated setbacks in this pursuit and lost troops and generals. Therefore, although he participated in the pacification of King Qi's rebellion, at best, his merits and demerits were equal, so the emperor did not reward him.
At this time, the snow was coming and the sky was gradually opening. Xiao Junmo followed Li Shiji up to the high general platform and faced the generals.A ray of sunlight shot out from the clouds, shining brightly on Xiao Junmo's black armor.
Li Shiji cleared his throat, gave some encouragement and lectures to everyone on behalf of the emperor, and finally announced the imperial court's appointment of Xiao Junmo.
"My subordinates congratulate General Zuo, and congratulate General Zuo!"
All the generals clasped their fists together and shouted in unison.The sound was deafening and resounded through the sky.
Yes, at this time, Xiao Junmo has been promoted to five ranks in a row from General Lang on the fifth rank, and has become General Zuo from the third rank!
The left general is the second in command of Xuanjiawei, second only to the great general Li Shiji, and his official position is still higher than the right general Pei Tinglong.So far, Xiao Junmo, who is not yet 23 years old, has become the youngest third-rank official in the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty, and he is still in the key department of Xuanjiawei.
Just over half a year ago, I was still a fugitive on the run and in danger. At that time, I didn't even dare to imagine whether I could return to Chang'an in this life. Unexpectedly, I have changed suddenly and stepped on the pinnacle of life that everyone is looking forward to.Such ups and downs, treacherous and unpredictable fate and encounters really filled Xiao Junmo with infinite regret and emotion.
After the appointment ceremony, a group of colleagues came forward to congratulate one after another.While socializing with them, Xiao Junmo paid close attention to Pei Tinglong from the corner of his eyes.I saw him with his hands behind his back, looking up at the sky, with a rather sad expression, Xue An seemed to want to comfort him, but he shoved his hands away.
Li Shiji invited Xiao Junmo to his house to have a banquet tonight, saying that he would clean up the dust for him, and asked Huan Dieyi, Luo Biao, Hongyu and others to accompany him, and at the same time named Pei Tinglong and Xue An.Pei Tinglong declined on the grounds of family affairs, and Xue An also agreed.Li Shiji smiled, said nothing, and left first.
Huan Dieyi noticed Pei Tinglong's face, felt a little uneasy, and whispered to Xiao Junmo to go with her.Xiao Junmo said: "You go first, I have to go home later, and then I will come." Huan Dieyi glanced at Pei Tinglong uncomfortably, and said in a low voice: "He has been posing all day today. Smelly face, as if the whole world owes him, just ignore him, let alone pester him."
"We are all colleagues, and we will work together in the future. There is no need to be in the same situation." Xiao Junmo smiled lightly, "Looking at him like that, he should have something to tell me, you go first."
"But..." Huan Dieyi was still worried.
"Don't be so." Xiao Junmo interrupted her with a smile, "At the beginning he led you number one hundred and ten but failed to do anything to me, now you are still afraid that he will eat me?"
Huan Dieyi gave him a white look: "Go, go, stop talking to me, if I hadn't helped you several times, would you have escaped so easily?"
"Yes, yes, yes." Xiao Junmo smiled all over his face, "Huan Lushuai is so kind and virtuous, I, Xiao Junmo, feel very grateful, and I will repay you with a straw title in the future. Is this the head office?"
Huan Dieyi approached him, pinched his hand suddenly, and said in a low voice: "You said this yourself, don't break your word."
Xiao Junmo let out a "hiss" in pain, stared and said, "Why pinch me?"
"You can remember it only after you have some pain." Huan Dieyi snickered, and then walked away with Hongyu.
When Pei Tinglong saw this scene, the muscles on his face couldn't help twitching a few times.
Before Luo Biao left, he glanced at Pei Tinglong, winked at Xiao Junmo, and loudly said deliberately: "Boss, today is your day when you feel proud and elated, we have to celebrate it well, and you won't go home if you don't get drunk at night!"
"It's a deal!" Xiao Junmo said.
Everyone dispersed one after another, and only Xiao Junmo and Pei Tinglong were left on the school field in a blink of an eye.
Pei Tinglong finally lowered his raised chin, and stared at Xiao Junmo with gloomy eyes.
Xiao Junmo walked forward calmly, and smiled slightly: "General Pei has been silent for a long time, did you have something to say to me?"
"General Xiao is on the rise, he is proud of the spring breeze, and the big guys are all around you to flatter and flatter me. I can't be ranked, so I have to wait until the end."
"It's a fact that it's a fact, but it's not a matter of being proud of the spring breeze. The Holy Majesty has promoted him many times and bestowed extra favors on Xiao, and Xiao's panic is not as good as it is, so how dare he be proud?"
"General Xiao, it's just the two of us here, so you don't need to speak bureaucratically with me, do you?"
"I speak from my heart."
"Don't do this with me." Pei Tinglong sneered, "Once upon a time, you, Xiao Junmo, were a fugitive fugitive who was chased all over the world by me. Where do you believe?"
"Pei Tinglong, do you want to tell me these sour words after holding back for a long time? If you have nothing else to say, please forgive me." After Xiao Junmo finished speaking, he turned around and wanted to leave.
"Stop!" Pei Tinglong shouted in a deep voice.
Xiao Junmo stopped, but didn't look back.
"Xiao Junmo, don't think that I just lost to you, the relationship between us is not over yet!"
"What do you want?"
"I will fight you to the end!"
"Is it interesting?" Xiao Junmo still didn't look back, "What if I win?"
"Of course it's interesting, it's very interesting!" Pei Tinglong smiled ferociously, "I now feel that the most interesting thing in my life is to defeat you. Only by defeating you can I prove myself!"
Xiao Junmo laughed dumbfounded, turned around and looked at him: "Pei Tinglong, don't you think it's sad that a person has to prove himself by defeating others? You are also a scholar, which sage book teaches you to be such a person? Chengji To become a thing, cultivate yourself and comfort others, this is called proving yourself. You understood this truth when you were six years old, right?"
"Stop singing high notes in front of me!" Pei Tinglong gritted his teeth, "Xiao Junmo, don't think that you can sit back and relax if the Holy Majesty favors you now. Let me tell you, I will let you show your original shape in a short time!"
Xiao Junmo's eyes flashed, and he walked up to him, staring into his eyes: "What do you want to say?"
"You know what I want to say."
"Speaking only half of the threats is an expression of sternness and indifference. If you do this, I will look down on you." Xiao Junmo smiled gently, "Say all the words, and let me see if you are qualified to be my opponent."
Pei Tinglong snorted coldly: "Do you want me to remind you how much you have in private with the Tianxingmeng? You can hide it from the Holy Majesty and the world, but you can't hide it from me. I even suspect that you are already a member of the Tianxingmeng Already!"
Xiao Junmo narrowed his eyes slightly, with a cold light in his eyes.
"What, are you afraid?"
"It's not fear, it's excitement." Xiao Junmo smiled silently, "You were not qualified to be my opponent, but now, congratulations, you have successfully aroused my interest and given me the desire to continue playing with you."
"Very good." Pei Tinglong met his gaze without fear, "Then just wait and see how miserable I will make you die!"
"A dog that can bite doesn't bark." Xiao Junmo smiled, "If you want me to die, you have to show some real skills."
The eyes of the two were strangled together.
At this moment, the sky darkened again, and the haze over Chang'an City became thicker.
The carriage ran over a stone on the road and bumped a bit. At the same time, there was a violent coughing sound in the carriage.
Hearing the sound, the driver quickly slowed down the speed of the car.
Wei Zheng covered his mouth with a sweat towel, coughed a few times with difficulty, and then took the sweat towel away to see, there was indeed another cluster of blood on it.He smiled wryly, folded the sweat towel, and stuffed it into his sleeve.
After contracting a cold in the early autumn of last year, Wei Zheng fell ill and lingered on the sickbed for more than a month.The emperor was very concerned about his condition, and sent several groups of imperial physicians to treat him, and visited the Wei Mansion twice in person, and sent his servants to come to condolences every now and then.Perhaps it was to make him feel better, so that he could recover as soon as possible, or to thank him for his great help over the years, the emperor actually acted as a matchmaker himself, announcing that his daughter, Princess Hengshan, would be betrothed to his eldest son, Wei Shuyu, and a marriage contract was entered into.
Wei Zheng was deeply moved by all these things.After a period of time, his condition seemed to improve, but it became worse after winter.Although he drank the medicine vigorously every day according to the prescription prescribed by the imperial physician, he still coughed day and night, and recently he coughed up blood even more.
Wei Zheng realized helplessly that his illness might not get better this time.
The deadline is approaching, and there are not many days to go.
In this life, he has also done a lot of vigorous things, among which he is most proud of assisting Li Shimin to create a prosperous age of Zhenguan, bringing peace and tranquility to the common people in the world that has suffered from turmoil.With such a feat, Shu could almost make him famous in history.In this regard, Wei Zheng has no regrets.However, during these months of illness, there were still a few things that made him worry all the time.One of the most important ones is the intensified battle for succession.
At the end of last summer, as soon as Du He's assassination happened, the prince was put under house arrest by the emperor. Wei Zheng was so anxious that he couldn't rest, and immediately went to the palace to express his feelings to the emperor, saying that the prince must have been framed.The emperor said that the assassin Li Feng had confessed, and the evidence was solid.Wei Zheng was stunned for a long time, and suggested that the emperor personally interrogate Li Feng, looking for suspicious points, and he would definitely be able to catch the flaws.The emperor was reminded by this, and then he planned to cheat Li Feng out of the truth, and returned the prince's innocence.
Wei Zheng expected that Li Feng must have been ordered by King Wei, but out of consideration for the stability of the overall situation, he hinted that the emperor would find a way to downplay the matter.This remark was exactly what the emperor wanted, so he found Chen Xiong's son as a scapegoat.Wei Zheng knew that the crown prince was quite dissatisfied with this result, so he planned to go to the East Palace to have an in-depth talk with him, but he suddenly fell ill at this time, and the matter was delayed.
During his illness, the prince came to visit him once.Wei Zheng seized the opportunity, tried his best to discuss the court situation with him, and advised him not to act rashly, but the prince didn't answer, and kept talking about him, and finally said some polite words such as peace of mind and recuperation, and left in a hurry.Wei Zheng saw a dangerous aura in the prince's eyes, and became more and more worried, which invisibly aggravated his condition.
In the past few days, although the cough has not stopped, and it is accompanied by hemoptysis, Wei Zheng suddenly feels much more relaxed physically and mentally.He suddenly realized that this was likely to be a flashback before death, so today, regardless of the persuasion of his family, he resolutely decided to come to the East Palace to speak to the prince one last time.
He had a premonition that the prince was likely to take risks and put all his eggs in one basket, so he had to stop him no matter what, otherwise the bloody tragedy of father and son turning against each other and brothers killing each other in the ninth year of Wude would surely repeat itself!
The carriage stopped in front of the Li main hall of the East Palace, and the driver helped Wei Zheng carefully step out of the carriage.
Li Chengqian, who had been notified in advance, was already waiting in front of the hall. At this time, he walked up quickly with a cane, ordered the eunuch who was by his side to help Wei Zheng, and said softly: "Grand Master, you are not feeling well, what do you want me to do?" That’s fine, why bother coming here in person?”
In the morning, when he received the news that Wei Zheng was coming, Li Chengqian's first reaction was to find an excuse to avoid him, but he thought that the grand master had been helping him wholeheartedly in the past few years, and he couldn't bear it, so he gave up the idea of avoiding him. .
Anyway, he had already made up his mind, no matter what Wei Zheng said today, he would ignore it, and he just had to pretend to be humble and perfunctory.
Wei Zheng glanced at him: "Your Highness probably doesn't want to see me, a dying person?"
Li Chengqian was startled, and laughed dryly: "Look at what the grand master said, am I so cold-blooded in your eyes?"
"It's not surprising that people born in the royal family have colder blood than ordinary people."
Li Chengqian's heart trembled.
What do you mean by that?Could it be that the grand master has already realized that he has the intention of doing something?
After the two entered the study room of Lizheng Hall and sat down, Wei Zheng went straight in and said, "I don't know what your Highness is busy with these days when the old man is sick?"
"It's the same as usual." Li Chengqian smiled, "Read books, meet guests, do some things assigned by the emperor, everything is as usual."
"I don't know what kind of guest His Highness is seeing?"
"Famous scholars, literati, and some courtiers with official business contacts."
"What is the official business? Which courtiers?"
"Teacher..." Li Chengqian felt a little uncomfortable, so he simply tore off the mask of humility that he had prepared in advance, and his face darkened, "You are asking me so hard that you want to interrogate me?"
"As far as this old man knows, Hou Junji, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, has been in close contact with His Highness recently, is there such a thing?" Wei Zheng didn't give him the slightest chance to change the subject.
"Couldn't the grand master have set up eyes and ears by my side?" Li Chengqian sneered slightly.
"What exactly are Hou Junji and His Highness planning?"
"Grand Master is sick in bed recently, and stays behind closed doors. Unexpectedly, he still sees six directions and listens to all directions!"
Although Li Chengqian's words were sarcasm, he didn't wrong Wei Zheng when he said that.Since his illness, Wei Zheng ordered Li Anyan and Linchuan helmsmen who were lurking in the court and the opposition to closely monitor the East Palace, so he naturally learned a lot of the situation.
"Your Highness, the Holy Majesty doesn't think I'm old and stupid, and he insists on letting me be your master. If I don't know anything about your situation, wouldn't it be a disappointment to the Holy Majesty and your Highness?"
Wei Zheng's remark was almost tantamount to tacitly monitoring the matter.Li Chengqian couldn't help laughing sarcastically: "The Grand Master is really frank, you even admitted to sending someone to monitor me frankly."
"The old man is only thinking about the safety of His Highness and the country, not out of self-interest, so why hide it?"
"If the grand master really thinks about me, he should know how I feel when I was almost killed by King Wei!"
"Of course I understand His Highness's feelings, so when you went to visit the doctor, the old man wanted to discuss this matter with you, but you avoided it."
"That's because I respect you, I want you to recover from your illness with peace of mind, and I don't want you to worry about me when you are seriously ill."
"But if you do something unspeakable behind my back, how can you let me recuperate at ease?"
"Don't tell others?" Li Chengqian laughed a few times, "Grand Master, you have been an official for many years, you might as well ask yourself, if you could tell people everything in the officialdom, would you still be alive today?"
"City government and conspiracy are two different things, don't confuse them!" Wei Zheng became emotional, and immediately caused a series of coughs, which could hardly stop.
"Come on!" Li Chengqian panicked, and hurriedly called out to his servants.
Several eunuchs ran in from the door.
"Let them... go down, I... I'm fine." Wei Zheng panted heavily, and managed to subside his cough.
"Teacher, how about... let's talk about it another day, and I'll let them send you back?" Li Chengqian asked with concern.Although he really wanted to take Wei Zhengzhi away, this concern was somewhat genuine.
Wei Zheng waved his hands again and again: "You...you answer my question just now."
"What's the problem?" Li Chengqian pretended to be confused, while shaking his hands, he drove those eunuchs out.
"What the hell are you and Hou Junji... planning?"
Hearing this, Li Chengqian regained his indifference: "It's nothing, just chatting about anecdotes and allusions from the previous dynasty."
"Allusions from the previous dynasty?" Wei Zheng frowned slightly, "Like what?"
"For example..." Li Chengqian smiled charmingly, "For example, the former prince Yang Yong, if he hadn't been so weak and attacked the king of Jin Yang Guang as soon as possible, he would not have been deprived of the position of heir; if Yang Guang had been removed earlier, Then there would be no subsequent military arrogance and excessive expropriation, then the world would not fall apart, and the Sui Dynasty would not perish in the second generation."
Wei Zheng smiled wryly: "Your Highness, you are finally willing to speak your mind."
"Is there? What did I say? Isn't what I said just now a fact known to all women and children?"
"Your Highness, today's sage is an unborn Ming Lord, not Sui Wendi, who was mean and jealous; Your Highness, you are not Yang Yong, and King Wei is not Yang Guang. So, as long as Your Highness is patient, this world will be yours sooner or later!"
Li Chengqian sneered: "Even if the king of Wei is not Yang Guang, what about the king of Wu? It is not uncommon for a bastard to be the emperor since ancient times!"
"As long as your Highness is cautious and cautious in your words and deeds, the King of Wu will have no chance! But if you are stubborn and do something stupid, then you will really fulfill the wish of the King of Wu."
"I think you persuaded me in the same way when I was fighting with the King of Wei, but what happened? The result is that he made a shocking case, which almost put me in prison and moved my head!" Li Chengqian suddenly Standing up, his pale face turned red with excitement, "Now you're persuading me to endure, God knows if he Wu Wang Li Ke will make another Li Feng case and put me to death?!"
"But aren't you standing here right now?!" Wei Zheng also stood up, the veins on his forehead bulging, "The Holy One is so wise, how could he be fooled by a bunch of young people? Like the king of Wei who thinks he is smart, Playing that kind of ghostly trick, so what in the end? Isn’t it self-defeating, but completely chilled the heart of the Holy One? Those who play with fire will burn themselves, and if they do many unrighteous actions, they will die themselves. This is the eternal truth!”
"You don't need to tell me any great truths!" Li Chengqian flicked his sleeves, "In this world, those who move first control others, and those who move late control others. What happened in the ninth year of Germany! The situation of Prince Yin and my father back then is so similar to today. Naer, you were the prince Xima and the assistant minister of the East Palace at that time, you must have been persuading Prince Yin to hold back? But what happened? Didn't my father act preemptively? Didn't he wait for the bloody slaughter at Xuanwumen? Prince Yin, my fourth uncle, and my ten underage cousins all became fathers. The ghost under the emperor's sword! But what about you? You have become a member of the Qin Palace in a sudden transformation, have you ever felt a little guilty? If you were really loyal to Prince Yin, you should have died for the old lord back then, not for the glory and wealth. My royal father, who has lived until now, persuades me to be patient and let me repeat the mistakes of Prince Yin back then!"
After hearing these stern words of indignation and unexpected sarcasm, Wei Zheng's whole body was shaken, as if he had received an electric shock.
As if a wound that had scabbed for many years was torn open again, Wei Zhengmu, who was already seriously ill, stood on the spot, trembling all over, but couldn't say a word for a long time.
Li Chengqian only cared about having fun, and said all that should be said and should not be said in one breath. At this moment, seeing Wei Zheng's ashen face and scary appearance, he couldn't help feeling a little flustered. There was no movement.
After a while, Wei Zheng suddenly reached out to cover his mouth.
But his hand was a step slower after all, a mouthful of blood sprayed out from his mouth, splashed on his back into the air, and turned into pieces of blood and fell one after another...
"Come here!" Li Chengqian screamed in horror.
Wei Zheng closed his eyes tightly, and fell straight backward...
When the heavy snow fell again, Xiao Junmo returned to his house in Lanlingfang.
In the palace before, when the emperor appointed him an official, he also announced that he would be given a mansion close to the imperial city, but Xiao Junmo politely refused.He said that his father had passed away, and he was not yet married. Living alone would not only be a waste of space, but also look deserted. The original old house was comfortable and comfortable.The emperor smiled and praised him a few words, and agreed.
The old housekeeper He Chongjiu received his letter more than a month ago, knowing that he has been pardoned by the court and will return to Beijing soon.Old He rejoiced, and called back all the servants and servants in the family one by one.At this moment, He Chongjiu led his subordinates to stand in a row outside the gate. When they saw Xiao Junmo, everyone couldn't help but burst into tears of excitement.
Xiao Junmo talked to them one by one, and finally held He Chongjiu's hand: "Uncle Jiu, how is your health?"
"It's okay, it's okay..." He Chongjiu choked up, his hands were shaking, "It's just that Erlang has suffered a lot in the past half a year, right?"
"It's nothing, it's all over." Xiao Junmo smiled, "Didn't I go home intact? I don't have any missing arms or legs."
"Yes, it's good to go home." He Chongjiu smiled wrinkled all over his face, "It's really an eye-opener, the Lord has a spirit in heaven!"
Xiao Junmo chatted with him a few more times, and then asked in a low voice: "Uncle Jiu, are my friends here?"
"It's here, it's here in the morning, I let them rest in the backyard."
In order to avoid people's eyes and ears, Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan did not go with Xiao Junmo, but went ahead of him and arrived in Chang'an half a month ago.They specially summoned their subordinates, totaling as many as a hundred people, and then rented several houses near Xiao's house, and settled down.As agreed in advance, once Xiao Junmo returned to Beijing, they would come to report and accept the task.
In the guest room in the backyard, Xiao Junmo met Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan.
The two knelt down and saluted at the same time: "This subordinate has seen the leader."
"Get up quickly." Xiao Junmo helped the two of them up, "This is Chang'an, there are many people, so you don't need to call me like that from now on, just call me Xiao Lang."
"How can it be done?" Xi Yan hurriedly said, "The leader of the alliance is the leader of the alliance, how can we mess up the status?"
"What Lao Xi said is true." Yuan Gongwang also said, "We can't break the rules."
"Okay then." Xiao Junmo smiled helplessly, "You can call me as you like in private, but when there are outsiders, don't forget to say it."
The three sat down, Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan reported their respective situations, and then asked about their plans to return to Beijing this time.
Xiao Junmo pondered for a while, and said: "You two, what we are going to do next is extremely dangerous, and the matter is of great importance. It is not only related to the safety of the Tang Dynasty, but also to the fate and well-being of the people in the world, so I would like to ask Two, have you made enough preparations?"
Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan looked at each other.
"Leader," Yuan Gongwang said with emotion, "'Guarding the world' has always been the purpose and mission of this alliance. We are honored to follow the leader to perform this sacred duty. It is truly an honor.
"That's right." Xi Yan also said seriously, "I, Xi Yan, have guarded the coffin shop for most of my life, and I have been useless for most of my life. I hope that one day I will be able to do some great things! Now the opportunity has come. As long as the leader gives an order, I, Xi Yan There is no other word about Yan, even if you go to the fire or the edge, you should not hesitate!"
Although Xiao Junmo already knew that both of them are loyal people, he was still a little moved when he heard the words: "You two are so righteous, it is admirable! Since this is the case, I will not say more. You should know that the situation in Chang'an is complicated , there is a struggle for succession in the imperial court, and there is a secret wrestling between the various branches of the alliance. As far as I know, Wang Hongyi's Mingzang helm is behind the King of Wei, and there is a possibility that the alliance's forces are behind the crown prince. In addition, when Among the important court officials, there are also three members of our Heavenly Punishment Alliance..."
"Three important ministers at the court?" Xi Yan was taken aback, "Who are they?"
Xiao Junmo hesitated for a moment: "One of them is Wei Zheng, the prince and grand master. His hidden identity is the rudder master of Linchuan. I know Grand Master Wei. Even if he is not on our side, at least he will not be our enemy. The other two, one is Xuanquan and the other is Subo. Xuanquan can be sure to be a member of Mingzang, as for Subo...whether it is an enemy or a friend, it is still hard to say."
"How did the leader know these secrets?" Yuan Gongwang was very confused.
""Preface to the Lanting Pavilion"." Xiao Junmo said, "The lords of the past dynasties used alum water to write the inheritance and lineage secrets of each sub-ruler one after another in the blank space of the original "Preface to the Lanting Pavilion". I also discovered it by accident. "
"That's not right, leader!" Xi Yan was thinking about something, with a horrified expression on his face, "Didn't you say before that you planned to dedicate the "Lanting Preface" to the emperor? With this dedication, all the secrets of the alliance will be shaken?"
"When I entered the palace in the morning, I had already offered it." Xiao Junmo smiled, "However, I made a move in advance, and now the genealogy list of the alliance is all installed here." Xiao Junmo pointed to his head.
Suddenly, Xi Yan smiled at Yuan Gongwang.
Before Xiao Junmo dedicated the "Preface to the Lanting Pavilion" to the emperor, he had already completely covered the lineage table with alum water. Now the "Preface to the Lanting Pavilion" that Li Shimin got is not only the treasure of the ancient calligrapher, but also invaluable in the art of calligraphy. There is no other value.Before Xiao Junmo overwrote the lineage list, he had carefully memorized it - in the process, he made a discovery far more terrifying than Xuanquan.
When he discovered Xuanquan's true identity at the beginning, he was already horrified, and the discovery of Su Bo later shocked him beyond words.
The current Subo rudder is a descendant of Xu Fengzhi who joined the army in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The word "Subo" comes from a short four-character poem written by Xu Fengzhi at the Orchid Pavilion:
Swing Subo down, and Fanglan upside down.I still want to be a guest, but I hope the wind will sigh forever.
Today's Mr. Subo not only holds an important position in the court, but to some extent is even more relied on by the emperor than Xuanquan, so Xiao Junmo was deeply shocked and astonished.What makes him even more worried and troublesome is that he has no idea what position this Mr. Subo stands in this battle for the heir apparent, and whether he will be his enemy in the next power game .
In case the two sides become enemies, Xiao Junmo doesn't know what to do...
"Leader," Yuan Gongwang interrupted Xiao Junmo's thoughts, "You just mentioned the struggle for succession, so among the crown prince and the second king, who should we support?"
"The prince is vicious, surly, willful and reckless. If he inherits the throne, it will definitely not be a blessing for the country and the people. Wei Wangquan is greedy, cruel and cunning, and will use any means to achieve his goals. He will not be a good emperor in the future."
"So, we can only choose King Wu?" Xi Yan asked eagerly.
"King Wu is not our choice in desperation, but he is the top choice. He is both intelligent and brave, and he is a man who values love and righteousness. He is very important. The only disadvantage of King Wu is that he is not his son, but a concubine, but as long as we help him defeat the crown prince and King Wei, I believe he will be crowned prince today."
"Leader, since you have made your decision, let's give the order. What should Lao Yuan and I do?" Xi Yan rubbed his fists.
"There are two urgent tasks: first, to find out the stronghold hidden in Chang'an; second, to find out which branch of the alliance is behind the prince. After these two things are done, we will decide on the next move."
"I lost Miss Chu," Xi Yan said embarrassingly, "Let's leave the first task to my subordinates."
"Okay, then I'll have to work." Xiao Junmo said, took a pen to write a name on the paper, and handed it to Xi Yan, "Keep an eye on this person, he may connect with Mingzang at any time, follow this clue, you will It's not hard to find Mingzang's lair."
Xi Yan took a look and asked in confusion, "Who is this?"
"He is what I just said - Xuanquan."
Xi Yan was startled, looked again, and then threw the paper into the brazier beside him: "Don't worry, leader, the subordinates will definitely keep an eye on him, and find out Mingzang as soon as possible!"
Although Xiao Junmo didn't explicitly say that he wanted to find Chu Lisang, as long as he found Mingzang, he would naturally be able to find her.This matter is actually the most urgent for Xiao Junmo, but now that he has the status of the leader, it is not appropriate to say such things about the personal relationship of his children, and he can only let his subordinates understand.
"Then I'll be in charge of the prince's side." Yuan Gongwang said, "This subordinate has dealt with several larger sub-helms in the alliance, and maybe I can find some clues."
"Very well, then split up and keep in touch at all times." Xiao Junmo stood up, with a strategizing and commanding light in his eyes.
While entrusting these two tasks to Xi Yan and Yuan Gongwang, he also gave himself three tasks: [-]. Deal with Pei Tinglong, Xuanquan, Su Bo and others, and try to get them out while preventing his identity from being exposed. Second, continue to trace his life experience; third, wait until the time is right to launch a fatal blow to King Wei and avenge his adoptive father.
After seeing off Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan, Xiao Junmo found He Chongjiu and said, "Uncle Jiu, I have something to trouble you."
"Erlang just follow orders."
"Help me make a cleaner room, I want to set up some memorial tablets."
"Tablets?" He Chongjiu had never heard that "several" tablets would be set up at once, and he felt a little creepy, "I wonder how many tablets Erlang wants to set up?"
"Seven." Xiao Junmo smiled.
He Chongjiu felt the hairs all over his body stand on end.
In the inner hall of Ganlu Hall, the lights are flickering.
A roll of calligraphy framed with dark yellow cloud pattern silk was quietly spread out on the desk.
This is the best running script in the world that Li Shimin has devoted all his efforts to obtain at any cost in the past 17 years——"Orchid Pavilion Preface"!
At this moment, Li Shimin was the only one in the huge bedroom, Zhao Dequan and other eunuchs and court ladies were all pushed back.
Li Shimin stared at this scroll for a long time, and a clear and elegant face with hale eyes gradually appeared in front of his eyes.
However, what Li Shimin saw was not the scene of Yixing Trentfei's generation of scholar scribbled ink at the Lanting Meeting, but the grief and desolation of a gentry leader who was worried about the world when he faced the division between the North and the South and the worries of his family and country.
Behind this grief and desolation, there is a kind of deep and far-sighted ambition unimaginable by the world.
Since ancient times, emperors such as Qin Huang, Han Wu, including Li Shimin himself, can be regarded as heroes who conquered the world, but no matter whether their hegemony is to unify the world or expand the territory, no matter how much land they occupy and where they expand the empire, after all, they are just A hegemony about space.
But what Wang Xizhi played was a kind of intrigue related to time.
Although Li Shimin at this time has not yet cracked the core secret of "Lanting Preface", let alone know the secret history of the Tianxing League, he can conclude by intuition that Wang Xizhi's deep conspiracy is definitely not seeking the power of a moment or a dynasty, but It is a terrifying force that controls the trend of history and manipulates the change of dynasties!
Isn't that what the so-called "a state with the Dao will hide, and a state without the Dao will appear"? !
Wang Xizhi must have foreseen that it is impossible to see the unification of the world and the peace of the world in his lifetime, so he established the Tianxing League.He condensed his beliefs, ambitions and missions into the four words "protect the world", and then injected it into the Tianxingmeng like a soul possessing.In other words, this mysterious organization possessed Wang Xizhi's soul from the moment it was born.Therefore, even if Wang Xizhi's physical body is wiped out, as long as the Tianxingmeng exists, his soul will still relentlessly pursue the ideal of prosperity that the physical body has never realized.
This frightening Wang Xizhi just hides behind the gentle mask of "famous scholar" and "sage of calligraphy", planning this kind of grand plan that travels through history and time, and all the people in the world have been deceived by him for hundreds of years. In the drum!
Li Shimin, the first hero, has never been so afraid of a person as he is now - and it is an ancient man who has been dead for more than 200 years.
How powerful is the Heavenly Punishment Alliance?Apart from Ming Zang, how many other forces from the Heavenly Punishment Alliance have infiltrated Chang'an?Who is that Xuanquan who has been lurking in the court for many years and has been hiding right under his nose?In the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty, how many lurkers like Xuanquan are there?Could they have been involved in the battle for succession?Is their ultimate goal to change the dynasty, to overthrow the Tang Dynasty, and to recreate a bright universe in their minds?
Li Shimin knew that only by deciphering the secret of the "Lanting Preface" in front of him can he hope to solve the above problems.
However, no matter how much he held the scroll of Fatie in his hand and read it dozens of times, his anxious eyes almost penetrated the scroll of ancient silkworm cocoon paper, but he still didn't find anything.
Could it be that what Xiao Junmo offered was a fake?
impossible.
With his superb calligraphy attainments and his understanding of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy, Li Shimin is very clear that the characters in front of him, which are floating like clouds and astounding like a dragon, as well as the unrestrained, charming and elegant brushwork, are indeed from Wang Xizhi. Hand, no other person in the world can write it, and it is impossible to copy it to this level.
A detailed study of ancient and modern times, intensive study of seal script, perfect and perfect, only Wang Yi rarely!Look at the workmanship of pointing and dragging, the ingenious cutting, the smoke is scattered and the dew is knotted, and the shape is broken but still connected;If you don't feel tired after playing, you can't understand it when you look at it...
This is Li Shimin's public evaluation of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy.In all fairness, what he said was the truth.He really likes Wang Xizhi's calligraphy, not just because of the secrets of the Heavenly Punishment League hidden in this scroll.
If you don't feel tired after playing, you can't understand it when you look at it.
Thinking of this sentence, Li Shimin laughed at himself unconsciously.At this moment, facing this volume of 320 four-character postcards, I am really "not tired of playing, and unable to understand the meaning of reading".
Could it be that from the very beginning, he misunderstood the meaning of Lu Shiheng's bloody words?Isn't the secret of the Tianxingmeng hidden in the authentic "Lanting Preface" at all?
No.Li Shimin shook his head.Since the day when Xiao Junmo was dispatched to Yique, Luozhou to arrest Biancai, how many people from the government and the opposition have sacrificed their lives fighting for this calligraphy, which is enough to prove that there must be a big secret hidden in it!
However, where is the secret hidden?
Li Shimin rubbed his sore eyes and let out a long sigh.
Since it was already in his hands, he was not in a hurry. I have been waiting for 17 years, why should I care about waiting a few more days?Li Shimin believed that as long as the secret of the Heavenly Punishment League was indeed hidden in this letter, he would decipher it sooner or later.
Of course, there is another possibility, that is, there was a secret hidden in this scroll, but it was tampered with and covered up.
Thinking of this, a cold light suddenly appeared in Li Shimin's eyes.
If so, the person most likely to do so is undoubtedly Xiao Junmo.
This young man's response in the Hall of Eryi today was almost impeccable, but out of the intuition of a hero, Li Shimin still had a vague feeling that he was hiding something from him.Although Li Shimin did not show the slightest doubt, it does not mean that he believes in Xiao Junmo's innocence, nor does it mean that this young man can be his third-rank official from now on without incident.
If you want to capture it, you must first release it.
This is the most basic game technique, and it is also the emperor technique that Li Shimin is familiar with.
Xiao Junmo, you'd better not lie to me, otherwise, I will definitely make your life worse than death!
(End of this chapter)
Wang Xizhi's deep plan is definitely not seeking the power of a moment or a dynasty, but a terrifying power that controls the trend of history and manipulates the change of dynasties!
In the private room of Langguanqing Winery, Xiao Junmo and Li Ke drank happily, and then each told their experiences after parting.
Xiao Junmo reviewed his fleeing experience for more than half a year. Although he deliberately understated it, it was extremely thrilling to Li Ke's ears, especially when he heard that Xiao Junmo defeated Qi Wang Li You's rebellion plot in just one day, he couldn't help but praise him .
Of course, Xiao Junmo didn't tell everything.He concealed the part about the Sky Punishment Alliance, including the fact that he has become the leader of the alliance.
Li Ke also talked about how he cracked the Yang Bingjun case and was promoted to General Zuo Wuhou, but he also concealed the fact that he joined forces with Jiu Gaoduo Sun Boyuan and gradually participated in the battle for the heir apparent.In the end, he suddenly stared at Xiao Junmo and said, "You have traveled so many places with Biancai in the past half a year, and you haven't dug up any secrets of the Heavenly Punishment Alliance?"
"Your Majesty just questioned me, and I was so scared that I was sweating profusely." Xiao Junmo took a sip of his wine and smiled slightly, "Why, now His Royal Highness King Wu plans to interrogate me again?"
"If you have no ghosts in your heart, why are you afraid?" Li Ke played with his expression.
"Holy Majesty is mighty, who is not afraid?"
"Go, go, don't do this with me! I don't know you yet? Even if the sky falls, I don't think you will blink."
"Hehe, Your Highness is flattering me too much."
"Stop talking nonsense and answer my question."
"What if I don't answer? You still want to sing out-of-key military songs to disgust me?"
As Xiao Junmo said, he drank all the wine in the glass and reached out to get the jug, but Li Ke snatched it away.
"If you don't answer, don't even think about drinking again!"
"If you don't drink, don't drink, anyway, I have to report back to Xuanjiawei later..."
Xiao Junmo didn't care, picked up the chopsticks to pick up the food, but was knocked off by Li Ke with the chopsticks.
"Hey, let me tell you, is there anyone who treats you like this?" Xiao Junmo stared, "You are not allowed to drink or eat food, what's wrong with you?"
Li Ke just stared at him and didn't speak.
After a while, Xiao Junmo sighed, and slapped his chopsticks on the table: "His Royal Highness, as the saying goes, there is no injustice, if you want to take something out of my mouth, you have to show some sincerity and tell me a few words." Tell the truth, right?"
"What do you mean?" Li Ke pretended to be confused.
Xiao Junmo snorted coldly: "I don't doubt your ability to handle the case, but to be honest, Yang Bingjun and Yao Xing are both Mingzang's confidantes, if Mingzang wants to protect them, I'm afraid it won't be so easy for you alone? "
"I didn't say it's just me, isn't there Xuanjiawei to help?"
"I know the strength of the Xuanjiawei best. It may be more than enough to deal with corrupt officials, but it is still far from being able to deal with the forces of the world like the Tianxing League!"
Li Ke was silent, and then said after a while: "Jun Mo, let's make an agreement, if I tell you the truth, you are also not allowed to hide it from me."
"Of course!" Xiao Junmo smiled, "Didn't I just say that courtesy is reciprocal!"
"Then listen carefully." Li Ke looked at him with burning eyes, "Not long after you left Chang'an, I teamed up with Sun Boyuan of Jiu Gaoduo of the Tianxing League."
"Jiugao rudder?" Xiao Junmo was slightly startled, his thoughts turned, "Is this Sun Boyuan a descendant of Sun Chuo?"
Li Ke nodded: "Now I'm not the only one citing the forces of Jianghu. As far as I know, Ming Zang has joined forces with King Wei long before me. As for the East Palace, I guess there must be people from the Heavenly Punishment League."
Xiao Junmo couldn't help but gasped.
If, as Li Ke said, the power of the Heavenly Punishment Alliance is behind their two kings and one prince, then this battle for succession will inevitably turn into a great turmoil sweeping Chang'an and spreading across the government and the public—the Tang Dynasty is in danger of being overthrown !
Seeing that he frowned and said nothing, Li Ke went on to say: "This time the imperial court suppressed the gentry, Sun Boyuan was severely injured, and Jiugao Tuo's vitality was seriously injured. Just now, he has bid farewell to me. In addition, Li Daozong and Yuchi Jingde I am worried that the current situation is too sensitive, and I dare not get too close to me in the future. You said, the situation is so dangerous, what should I do?"
Xiao Junmo pondered for a long time, then suddenly raised his head and stared straight at Li Ke: "I just ask you one question - do you want to be the emperor?"
Li Ke didn't expect that he would suddenly ask such a direct and explicit question, and was stunned for a moment: "Why do you ask such a question?"
"You just need to answer me, want to, or don't want to."
"So what if you want to? So what if you don't want to?"
"If you talk like this, then we will have nothing to talk about." Xiao Junmo said, and he was about to get up.
"Wait!" Li Ke was anxious, "Of course I want to, but..."
Xiao Junmo raised his hand to stop him: "That's enough, your words are enough. Next, you just do what I say, and I will do my best to assist you in seizing the throne!"
Xiao Junmo made this decision not just because of his brotherhood with Li Ke, but more because of the long-term stability of the Tang Dynasty.Among the dozen or so princes today, Wu Wang Li Ke has the most outstanding endowment. No matter whether it is literary, military or moral, he is beyond the reach of other princes, so he is also the most qualified person to succeed the Datong.Even Li Shimin is aware of this.Li Ke's only disadvantage is that he is a bastard, but if he can knock out Prince Li Chengqian and Wei Wang Li Tai, then Li Ke has a great chance of winning, and the emperor is most likely to choose him.Therefore, what Xiao Junmo will do next is to assist him vigorously, bring down the crown prince and King Wei one by one, and seize the position of crown prince.
This is an indispensable and important part of Xiao Junmo's plan to "protect the world".
Li Ke was surprised and delighted when he heard the words: "Are you really willing to help me?"
Xiao Junmo smiled: "Throw me a peach and repay it with Qiongyao. You have been open and honest with me, how can I say nothing?"
"It seems that what I expected was right. You really found a treasure this trip." Li Ke was in a good mood, "Can you tell me, what secrets do you have about the Heavenly Punishment Alliance?"
"You don't need to ask." Xiao Junmo smiled mysteriously, "You just need to know that I have the strength to help you."
"Hey, you are not kind!" Li Ke stared, "Didn't you just promise not to hide it from me?"
"I have already promised to help you seize the heir, what are you dissatisfied with?" Xiao Junmo stared back, and grabbed the jug, "Call a few more jugs, this little wine is not enjoyable!"
When Xiao Junmo returned to Xuanjiawei with a blushing face, Li Shiji was already impatient.
"I appointed you an official by the order of the Holy Majesty, and I have been waiting for you here for a long time, but you ran to drink and have fun. I think you don't want to be an official?" Li Shiji began to scold him.
Xiao Junmo laughed and hiccupped: "His Royal Highness Wu Wang cleans up the dust for his disciples. The kindness is hard to turn down, so I drank a few more glasses, and I ask the master to forgive me."
"This is the yamen, don't get too close to me!" Li Shiji said angrily.
"Yes, this subordinate made a mistake, please punish the general." Xiao Junmo quickly changed his words, bowed his head and clasped his fists.
"Okay, the brothers are waiting for you to show up in the school grounds, change your armor and come here quickly!"
"As ordered."
Xiao Junmo returned to his duty room, and found that a brand new, shiny and majestic armor had been draped on the hanger.He put on his armor and came to the school grounds, and saw dozens of generals of the Xuanjia Guards lined up to greet him.Among them, Huan Dieyi and Luo Biao have both been promoted to brigade commanders, and they are also wearing brand-new armor, looking radiant.Pei Tinglong and Xue An were also in the queue, but their attire did not change, obviously neither of them had been promoted.
Previously, in the memorandum presented to the emperor, Xiao Junmo emphasized the achievements of Huan Dieyi and Luo Biao in the suppression of the rebellion, and repeatedly urged the emperor to reward them for their merits and promote them.At the same time, Xiao Junmo also truthfully reported the credits of Pei Tinglong and Xue An out of public interest.But now it seems that the emperor does not seem to recognize the latter.Xiao Junmo speculated that the reason must be that Pei Tinglong suffered repeated setbacks in this pursuit and lost troops and generals. Therefore, although he participated in the pacification of King Qi's rebellion, at best, his merits and demerits were equal, so the emperor did not reward him.
At this time, the snow was coming and the sky was gradually opening. Xiao Junmo followed Li Shiji up to the high general platform and faced the generals.A ray of sunlight shot out from the clouds, shining brightly on Xiao Junmo's black armor.
Li Shiji cleared his throat, gave some encouragement and lectures to everyone on behalf of the emperor, and finally announced the imperial court's appointment of Xiao Junmo.
"My subordinates congratulate General Zuo, and congratulate General Zuo!"
All the generals clasped their fists together and shouted in unison.The sound was deafening and resounded through the sky.
Yes, at this time, Xiao Junmo has been promoted to five ranks in a row from General Lang on the fifth rank, and has become General Zuo from the third rank!
The left general is the second in command of Xuanjiawei, second only to the great general Li Shiji, and his official position is still higher than the right general Pei Tinglong.So far, Xiao Junmo, who is not yet 23 years old, has become the youngest third-rank official in the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty, and he is still in the key department of Xuanjiawei.
Just over half a year ago, I was still a fugitive on the run and in danger. At that time, I didn't even dare to imagine whether I could return to Chang'an in this life. Unexpectedly, I have changed suddenly and stepped on the pinnacle of life that everyone is looking forward to.Such ups and downs, treacherous and unpredictable fate and encounters really filled Xiao Junmo with infinite regret and emotion.
After the appointment ceremony, a group of colleagues came forward to congratulate one after another.While socializing with them, Xiao Junmo paid close attention to Pei Tinglong from the corner of his eyes.I saw him with his hands behind his back, looking up at the sky, with a rather sad expression, Xue An seemed to want to comfort him, but he shoved his hands away.
Li Shiji invited Xiao Junmo to his house to have a banquet tonight, saying that he would clean up the dust for him, and asked Huan Dieyi, Luo Biao, Hongyu and others to accompany him, and at the same time named Pei Tinglong and Xue An.Pei Tinglong declined on the grounds of family affairs, and Xue An also agreed.Li Shiji smiled, said nothing, and left first.
Huan Dieyi noticed Pei Tinglong's face, felt a little uneasy, and whispered to Xiao Junmo to go with her.Xiao Junmo said: "You go first, I have to go home later, and then I will come." Huan Dieyi glanced at Pei Tinglong uncomfortably, and said in a low voice: "He has been posing all day today. Smelly face, as if the whole world owes him, just ignore him, let alone pester him."
"We are all colleagues, and we will work together in the future. There is no need to be in the same situation." Xiao Junmo smiled lightly, "Looking at him like that, he should have something to tell me, you go first."
"But..." Huan Dieyi was still worried.
"Don't be so." Xiao Junmo interrupted her with a smile, "At the beginning he led you number one hundred and ten but failed to do anything to me, now you are still afraid that he will eat me?"
Huan Dieyi gave him a white look: "Go, go, stop talking to me, if I hadn't helped you several times, would you have escaped so easily?"
"Yes, yes, yes." Xiao Junmo smiled all over his face, "Huan Lushuai is so kind and virtuous, I, Xiao Junmo, feel very grateful, and I will repay you with a straw title in the future. Is this the head office?"
Huan Dieyi approached him, pinched his hand suddenly, and said in a low voice: "You said this yourself, don't break your word."
Xiao Junmo let out a "hiss" in pain, stared and said, "Why pinch me?"
"You can remember it only after you have some pain." Huan Dieyi snickered, and then walked away with Hongyu.
When Pei Tinglong saw this scene, the muscles on his face couldn't help twitching a few times.
Before Luo Biao left, he glanced at Pei Tinglong, winked at Xiao Junmo, and loudly said deliberately: "Boss, today is your day when you feel proud and elated, we have to celebrate it well, and you won't go home if you don't get drunk at night!"
"It's a deal!" Xiao Junmo said.
Everyone dispersed one after another, and only Xiao Junmo and Pei Tinglong were left on the school field in a blink of an eye.
Pei Tinglong finally lowered his raised chin, and stared at Xiao Junmo with gloomy eyes.
Xiao Junmo walked forward calmly, and smiled slightly: "General Pei has been silent for a long time, did you have something to say to me?"
"General Xiao is on the rise, he is proud of the spring breeze, and the big guys are all around you to flatter and flatter me. I can't be ranked, so I have to wait until the end."
"It's a fact that it's a fact, but it's not a matter of being proud of the spring breeze. The Holy Majesty has promoted him many times and bestowed extra favors on Xiao, and Xiao's panic is not as good as it is, so how dare he be proud?"
"General Xiao, it's just the two of us here, so you don't need to speak bureaucratically with me, do you?"
"I speak from my heart."
"Don't do this with me." Pei Tinglong sneered, "Once upon a time, you, Xiao Junmo, were a fugitive fugitive who was chased all over the world by me. Where do you believe?"
"Pei Tinglong, do you want to tell me these sour words after holding back for a long time? If you have nothing else to say, please forgive me." After Xiao Junmo finished speaking, he turned around and wanted to leave.
"Stop!" Pei Tinglong shouted in a deep voice.
Xiao Junmo stopped, but didn't look back.
"Xiao Junmo, don't think that I just lost to you, the relationship between us is not over yet!"
"What do you want?"
"I will fight you to the end!"
"Is it interesting?" Xiao Junmo still didn't look back, "What if I win?"
"Of course it's interesting, it's very interesting!" Pei Tinglong smiled ferociously, "I now feel that the most interesting thing in my life is to defeat you. Only by defeating you can I prove myself!"
Xiao Junmo laughed dumbfounded, turned around and looked at him: "Pei Tinglong, don't you think it's sad that a person has to prove himself by defeating others? You are also a scholar, which sage book teaches you to be such a person? Chengji To become a thing, cultivate yourself and comfort others, this is called proving yourself. You understood this truth when you were six years old, right?"
"Stop singing high notes in front of me!" Pei Tinglong gritted his teeth, "Xiao Junmo, don't think that you can sit back and relax if the Holy Majesty favors you now. Let me tell you, I will let you show your original shape in a short time!"
Xiao Junmo's eyes flashed, and he walked up to him, staring into his eyes: "What do you want to say?"
"You know what I want to say."
"Speaking only half of the threats is an expression of sternness and indifference. If you do this, I will look down on you." Xiao Junmo smiled gently, "Say all the words, and let me see if you are qualified to be my opponent."
Pei Tinglong snorted coldly: "Do you want me to remind you how much you have in private with the Tianxingmeng? You can hide it from the Holy Majesty and the world, but you can't hide it from me. I even suspect that you are already a member of the Tianxingmeng Already!"
Xiao Junmo narrowed his eyes slightly, with a cold light in his eyes.
"What, are you afraid?"
"It's not fear, it's excitement." Xiao Junmo smiled silently, "You were not qualified to be my opponent, but now, congratulations, you have successfully aroused my interest and given me the desire to continue playing with you."
"Very good." Pei Tinglong met his gaze without fear, "Then just wait and see how miserable I will make you die!"
"A dog that can bite doesn't bark." Xiao Junmo smiled, "If you want me to die, you have to show some real skills."
The eyes of the two were strangled together.
At this moment, the sky darkened again, and the haze over Chang'an City became thicker.
The carriage ran over a stone on the road and bumped a bit. At the same time, there was a violent coughing sound in the carriage.
Hearing the sound, the driver quickly slowed down the speed of the car.
Wei Zheng covered his mouth with a sweat towel, coughed a few times with difficulty, and then took the sweat towel away to see, there was indeed another cluster of blood on it.He smiled wryly, folded the sweat towel, and stuffed it into his sleeve.
After contracting a cold in the early autumn of last year, Wei Zheng fell ill and lingered on the sickbed for more than a month.The emperor was very concerned about his condition, and sent several groups of imperial physicians to treat him, and visited the Wei Mansion twice in person, and sent his servants to come to condolences every now and then.Perhaps it was to make him feel better, so that he could recover as soon as possible, or to thank him for his great help over the years, the emperor actually acted as a matchmaker himself, announcing that his daughter, Princess Hengshan, would be betrothed to his eldest son, Wei Shuyu, and a marriage contract was entered into.
Wei Zheng was deeply moved by all these things.After a period of time, his condition seemed to improve, but it became worse after winter.Although he drank the medicine vigorously every day according to the prescription prescribed by the imperial physician, he still coughed day and night, and recently he coughed up blood even more.
Wei Zheng realized helplessly that his illness might not get better this time.
The deadline is approaching, and there are not many days to go.
In this life, he has also done a lot of vigorous things, among which he is most proud of assisting Li Shimin to create a prosperous age of Zhenguan, bringing peace and tranquility to the common people in the world that has suffered from turmoil.With such a feat, Shu could almost make him famous in history.In this regard, Wei Zheng has no regrets.However, during these months of illness, there were still a few things that made him worry all the time.One of the most important ones is the intensified battle for succession.
At the end of last summer, as soon as Du He's assassination happened, the prince was put under house arrest by the emperor. Wei Zheng was so anxious that he couldn't rest, and immediately went to the palace to express his feelings to the emperor, saying that the prince must have been framed.The emperor said that the assassin Li Feng had confessed, and the evidence was solid.Wei Zheng was stunned for a long time, and suggested that the emperor personally interrogate Li Feng, looking for suspicious points, and he would definitely be able to catch the flaws.The emperor was reminded by this, and then he planned to cheat Li Feng out of the truth, and returned the prince's innocence.
Wei Zheng expected that Li Feng must have been ordered by King Wei, but out of consideration for the stability of the overall situation, he hinted that the emperor would find a way to downplay the matter.This remark was exactly what the emperor wanted, so he found Chen Xiong's son as a scapegoat.Wei Zheng knew that the crown prince was quite dissatisfied with this result, so he planned to go to the East Palace to have an in-depth talk with him, but he suddenly fell ill at this time, and the matter was delayed.
During his illness, the prince came to visit him once.Wei Zheng seized the opportunity, tried his best to discuss the court situation with him, and advised him not to act rashly, but the prince didn't answer, and kept talking about him, and finally said some polite words such as peace of mind and recuperation, and left in a hurry.Wei Zheng saw a dangerous aura in the prince's eyes, and became more and more worried, which invisibly aggravated his condition.
In the past few days, although the cough has not stopped, and it is accompanied by hemoptysis, Wei Zheng suddenly feels much more relaxed physically and mentally.He suddenly realized that this was likely to be a flashback before death, so today, regardless of the persuasion of his family, he resolutely decided to come to the East Palace to speak to the prince one last time.
He had a premonition that the prince was likely to take risks and put all his eggs in one basket, so he had to stop him no matter what, otherwise the bloody tragedy of father and son turning against each other and brothers killing each other in the ninth year of Wude would surely repeat itself!
The carriage stopped in front of the Li main hall of the East Palace, and the driver helped Wei Zheng carefully step out of the carriage.
Li Chengqian, who had been notified in advance, was already waiting in front of the hall. At this time, he walked up quickly with a cane, ordered the eunuch who was by his side to help Wei Zheng, and said softly: "Grand Master, you are not feeling well, what do you want me to do?" That’s fine, why bother coming here in person?”
In the morning, when he received the news that Wei Zheng was coming, Li Chengqian's first reaction was to find an excuse to avoid him, but he thought that the grand master had been helping him wholeheartedly in the past few years, and he couldn't bear it, so he gave up the idea of avoiding him. .
Anyway, he had already made up his mind, no matter what Wei Zheng said today, he would ignore it, and he just had to pretend to be humble and perfunctory.
Wei Zheng glanced at him: "Your Highness probably doesn't want to see me, a dying person?"
Li Chengqian was startled, and laughed dryly: "Look at what the grand master said, am I so cold-blooded in your eyes?"
"It's not surprising that people born in the royal family have colder blood than ordinary people."
Li Chengqian's heart trembled.
What do you mean by that?Could it be that the grand master has already realized that he has the intention of doing something?
After the two entered the study room of Lizheng Hall and sat down, Wei Zheng went straight in and said, "I don't know what your Highness is busy with these days when the old man is sick?"
"It's the same as usual." Li Chengqian smiled, "Read books, meet guests, do some things assigned by the emperor, everything is as usual."
"I don't know what kind of guest His Highness is seeing?"
"Famous scholars, literati, and some courtiers with official business contacts."
"What is the official business? Which courtiers?"
"Teacher..." Li Chengqian felt a little uncomfortable, so he simply tore off the mask of humility that he had prepared in advance, and his face darkened, "You are asking me so hard that you want to interrogate me?"
"As far as this old man knows, Hou Junji, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, has been in close contact with His Highness recently, is there such a thing?" Wei Zheng didn't give him the slightest chance to change the subject.
"Couldn't the grand master have set up eyes and ears by my side?" Li Chengqian sneered slightly.
"What exactly are Hou Junji and His Highness planning?"
"Grand Master is sick in bed recently, and stays behind closed doors. Unexpectedly, he still sees six directions and listens to all directions!"
Although Li Chengqian's words were sarcasm, he didn't wrong Wei Zheng when he said that.Since his illness, Wei Zheng ordered Li Anyan and Linchuan helmsmen who were lurking in the court and the opposition to closely monitor the East Palace, so he naturally learned a lot of the situation.
"Your Highness, the Holy Majesty doesn't think I'm old and stupid, and he insists on letting me be your master. If I don't know anything about your situation, wouldn't it be a disappointment to the Holy Majesty and your Highness?"
Wei Zheng's remark was almost tantamount to tacitly monitoring the matter.Li Chengqian couldn't help laughing sarcastically: "The Grand Master is really frank, you even admitted to sending someone to monitor me frankly."
"The old man is only thinking about the safety of His Highness and the country, not out of self-interest, so why hide it?"
"If the grand master really thinks about me, he should know how I feel when I was almost killed by King Wei!"
"Of course I understand His Highness's feelings, so when you went to visit the doctor, the old man wanted to discuss this matter with you, but you avoided it."
"That's because I respect you, I want you to recover from your illness with peace of mind, and I don't want you to worry about me when you are seriously ill."
"But if you do something unspeakable behind my back, how can you let me recuperate at ease?"
"Don't tell others?" Li Chengqian laughed a few times, "Grand Master, you have been an official for many years, you might as well ask yourself, if you could tell people everything in the officialdom, would you still be alive today?"
"City government and conspiracy are two different things, don't confuse them!" Wei Zheng became emotional, and immediately caused a series of coughs, which could hardly stop.
"Come on!" Li Chengqian panicked, and hurriedly called out to his servants.
Several eunuchs ran in from the door.
"Let them... go down, I... I'm fine." Wei Zheng panted heavily, and managed to subside his cough.
"Teacher, how about... let's talk about it another day, and I'll let them send you back?" Li Chengqian asked with concern.Although he really wanted to take Wei Zhengzhi away, this concern was somewhat genuine.
Wei Zheng waved his hands again and again: "You...you answer my question just now."
"What's the problem?" Li Chengqian pretended to be confused, while shaking his hands, he drove those eunuchs out.
"What the hell are you and Hou Junji... planning?"
Hearing this, Li Chengqian regained his indifference: "It's nothing, just chatting about anecdotes and allusions from the previous dynasty."
"Allusions from the previous dynasty?" Wei Zheng frowned slightly, "Like what?"
"For example..." Li Chengqian smiled charmingly, "For example, the former prince Yang Yong, if he hadn't been so weak and attacked the king of Jin Yang Guang as soon as possible, he would not have been deprived of the position of heir; if Yang Guang had been removed earlier, Then there would be no subsequent military arrogance and excessive expropriation, then the world would not fall apart, and the Sui Dynasty would not perish in the second generation."
Wei Zheng smiled wryly: "Your Highness, you are finally willing to speak your mind."
"Is there? What did I say? Isn't what I said just now a fact known to all women and children?"
"Your Highness, today's sage is an unborn Ming Lord, not Sui Wendi, who was mean and jealous; Your Highness, you are not Yang Yong, and King Wei is not Yang Guang. So, as long as Your Highness is patient, this world will be yours sooner or later!"
Li Chengqian sneered: "Even if the king of Wei is not Yang Guang, what about the king of Wu? It is not uncommon for a bastard to be the emperor since ancient times!"
"As long as your Highness is cautious and cautious in your words and deeds, the King of Wu will have no chance! But if you are stubborn and do something stupid, then you will really fulfill the wish of the King of Wu."
"I think you persuaded me in the same way when I was fighting with the King of Wei, but what happened? The result is that he made a shocking case, which almost put me in prison and moved my head!" Li Chengqian suddenly Standing up, his pale face turned red with excitement, "Now you're persuading me to endure, God knows if he Wu Wang Li Ke will make another Li Feng case and put me to death?!"
"But aren't you standing here right now?!" Wei Zheng also stood up, the veins on his forehead bulging, "The Holy One is so wise, how could he be fooled by a bunch of young people? Like the king of Wei who thinks he is smart, Playing that kind of ghostly trick, so what in the end? Isn’t it self-defeating, but completely chilled the heart of the Holy One? Those who play with fire will burn themselves, and if they do many unrighteous actions, they will die themselves. This is the eternal truth!”
"You don't need to tell me any great truths!" Li Chengqian flicked his sleeves, "In this world, those who move first control others, and those who move late control others. What happened in the ninth year of Germany! The situation of Prince Yin and my father back then is so similar to today. Naer, you were the prince Xima and the assistant minister of the East Palace at that time, you must have been persuading Prince Yin to hold back? But what happened? Didn't my father act preemptively? Didn't he wait for the bloody slaughter at Xuanwumen? Prince Yin, my fourth uncle, and my ten underage cousins all became fathers. The ghost under the emperor's sword! But what about you? You have become a member of the Qin Palace in a sudden transformation, have you ever felt a little guilty? If you were really loyal to Prince Yin, you should have died for the old lord back then, not for the glory and wealth. My royal father, who has lived until now, persuades me to be patient and let me repeat the mistakes of Prince Yin back then!"
After hearing these stern words of indignation and unexpected sarcasm, Wei Zheng's whole body was shaken, as if he had received an electric shock.
As if a wound that had scabbed for many years was torn open again, Wei Zhengmu, who was already seriously ill, stood on the spot, trembling all over, but couldn't say a word for a long time.
Li Chengqian only cared about having fun, and said all that should be said and should not be said in one breath. At this moment, seeing Wei Zheng's ashen face and scary appearance, he couldn't help feeling a little flustered. There was no movement.
After a while, Wei Zheng suddenly reached out to cover his mouth.
But his hand was a step slower after all, a mouthful of blood sprayed out from his mouth, splashed on his back into the air, and turned into pieces of blood and fell one after another...
"Come here!" Li Chengqian screamed in horror.
Wei Zheng closed his eyes tightly, and fell straight backward...
When the heavy snow fell again, Xiao Junmo returned to his house in Lanlingfang.
In the palace before, when the emperor appointed him an official, he also announced that he would be given a mansion close to the imperial city, but Xiao Junmo politely refused.He said that his father had passed away, and he was not yet married. Living alone would not only be a waste of space, but also look deserted. The original old house was comfortable and comfortable.The emperor smiled and praised him a few words, and agreed.
The old housekeeper He Chongjiu received his letter more than a month ago, knowing that he has been pardoned by the court and will return to Beijing soon.Old He rejoiced, and called back all the servants and servants in the family one by one.At this moment, He Chongjiu led his subordinates to stand in a row outside the gate. When they saw Xiao Junmo, everyone couldn't help but burst into tears of excitement.
Xiao Junmo talked to them one by one, and finally held He Chongjiu's hand: "Uncle Jiu, how is your health?"
"It's okay, it's okay..." He Chongjiu choked up, his hands were shaking, "It's just that Erlang has suffered a lot in the past half a year, right?"
"It's nothing, it's all over." Xiao Junmo smiled, "Didn't I go home intact? I don't have any missing arms or legs."
"Yes, it's good to go home." He Chongjiu smiled wrinkled all over his face, "It's really an eye-opener, the Lord has a spirit in heaven!"
Xiao Junmo chatted with him a few more times, and then asked in a low voice: "Uncle Jiu, are my friends here?"
"It's here, it's here in the morning, I let them rest in the backyard."
In order to avoid people's eyes and ears, Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan did not go with Xiao Junmo, but went ahead of him and arrived in Chang'an half a month ago.They specially summoned their subordinates, totaling as many as a hundred people, and then rented several houses near Xiao's house, and settled down.As agreed in advance, once Xiao Junmo returned to Beijing, they would come to report and accept the task.
In the guest room in the backyard, Xiao Junmo met Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan.
The two knelt down and saluted at the same time: "This subordinate has seen the leader."
"Get up quickly." Xiao Junmo helped the two of them up, "This is Chang'an, there are many people, so you don't need to call me like that from now on, just call me Xiao Lang."
"How can it be done?" Xi Yan hurriedly said, "The leader of the alliance is the leader of the alliance, how can we mess up the status?"
"What Lao Xi said is true." Yuan Gongwang also said, "We can't break the rules."
"Okay then." Xiao Junmo smiled helplessly, "You can call me as you like in private, but when there are outsiders, don't forget to say it."
The three sat down, Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan reported their respective situations, and then asked about their plans to return to Beijing this time.
Xiao Junmo pondered for a while, and said: "You two, what we are going to do next is extremely dangerous, and the matter is of great importance. It is not only related to the safety of the Tang Dynasty, but also to the fate and well-being of the people in the world, so I would like to ask Two, have you made enough preparations?"
Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan looked at each other.
"Leader," Yuan Gongwang said with emotion, "'Guarding the world' has always been the purpose and mission of this alliance. We are honored to follow the leader to perform this sacred duty. It is truly an honor.
"That's right." Xi Yan also said seriously, "I, Xi Yan, have guarded the coffin shop for most of my life, and I have been useless for most of my life. I hope that one day I will be able to do some great things! Now the opportunity has come. As long as the leader gives an order, I, Xi Yan There is no other word about Yan, even if you go to the fire or the edge, you should not hesitate!"
Although Xiao Junmo already knew that both of them are loyal people, he was still a little moved when he heard the words: "You two are so righteous, it is admirable! Since this is the case, I will not say more. You should know that the situation in Chang'an is complicated , there is a struggle for succession in the imperial court, and there is a secret wrestling between the various branches of the alliance. As far as I know, Wang Hongyi's Mingzang helm is behind the King of Wei, and there is a possibility that the alliance's forces are behind the crown prince. In addition, when Among the important court officials, there are also three members of our Heavenly Punishment Alliance..."
"Three important ministers at the court?" Xi Yan was taken aback, "Who are they?"
Xiao Junmo hesitated for a moment: "One of them is Wei Zheng, the prince and grand master. His hidden identity is the rudder master of Linchuan. I know Grand Master Wei. Even if he is not on our side, at least he will not be our enemy. The other two, one is Xuanquan and the other is Subo. Xuanquan can be sure to be a member of Mingzang, as for Subo...whether it is an enemy or a friend, it is still hard to say."
"How did the leader know these secrets?" Yuan Gongwang was very confused.
""Preface to the Lanting Pavilion"." Xiao Junmo said, "The lords of the past dynasties used alum water to write the inheritance and lineage secrets of each sub-ruler one after another in the blank space of the original "Preface to the Lanting Pavilion". I also discovered it by accident. "
"That's not right, leader!" Xi Yan was thinking about something, with a horrified expression on his face, "Didn't you say before that you planned to dedicate the "Lanting Preface" to the emperor? With this dedication, all the secrets of the alliance will be shaken?"
"When I entered the palace in the morning, I had already offered it." Xiao Junmo smiled, "However, I made a move in advance, and now the genealogy list of the alliance is all installed here." Xiao Junmo pointed to his head.
Suddenly, Xi Yan smiled at Yuan Gongwang.
Before Xiao Junmo dedicated the "Preface to the Lanting Pavilion" to the emperor, he had already completely covered the lineage table with alum water. Now the "Preface to the Lanting Pavilion" that Li Shimin got is not only the treasure of the ancient calligrapher, but also invaluable in the art of calligraphy. There is no other value.Before Xiao Junmo overwrote the lineage list, he had carefully memorized it - in the process, he made a discovery far more terrifying than Xuanquan.
When he discovered Xuanquan's true identity at the beginning, he was already horrified, and the discovery of Su Bo later shocked him beyond words.
The current Subo rudder is a descendant of Xu Fengzhi who joined the army in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The word "Subo" comes from a short four-character poem written by Xu Fengzhi at the Orchid Pavilion:
Swing Subo down, and Fanglan upside down.I still want to be a guest, but I hope the wind will sigh forever.
Today's Mr. Subo not only holds an important position in the court, but to some extent is even more relied on by the emperor than Xuanquan, so Xiao Junmo was deeply shocked and astonished.What makes him even more worried and troublesome is that he has no idea what position this Mr. Subo stands in this battle for the heir apparent, and whether he will be his enemy in the next power game .
In case the two sides become enemies, Xiao Junmo doesn't know what to do...
"Leader," Yuan Gongwang interrupted Xiao Junmo's thoughts, "You just mentioned the struggle for succession, so among the crown prince and the second king, who should we support?"
"The prince is vicious, surly, willful and reckless. If he inherits the throne, it will definitely not be a blessing for the country and the people. Wei Wangquan is greedy, cruel and cunning, and will use any means to achieve his goals. He will not be a good emperor in the future."
"So, we can only choose King Wu?" Xi Yan asked eagerly.
"King Wu is not our choice in desperation, but he is the top choice. He is both intelligent and brave, and he is a man who values love and righteousness. He is very important. The only disadvantage of King Wu is that he is not his son, but a concubine, but as long as we help him defeat the crown prince and King Wei, I believe he will be crowned prince today."
"Leader, since you have made your decision, let's give the order. What should Lao Yuan and I do?" Xi Yan rubbed his fists.
"There are two urgent tasks: first, to find out the stronghold hidden in Chang'an; second, to find out which branch of the alliance is behind the prince. After these two things are done, we will decide on the next move."
"I lost Miss Chu," Xi Yan said embarrassingly, "Let's leave the first task to my subordinates."
"Okay, then I'll have to work." Xiao Junmo said, took a pen to write a name on the paper, and handed it to Xi Yan, "Keep an eye on this person, he may connect with Mingzang at any time, follow this clue, you will It's not hard to find Mingzang's lair."
Xi Yan took a look and asked in confusion, "Who is this?"
"He is what I just said - Xuanquan."
Xi Yan was startled, looked again, and then threw the paper into the brazier beside him: "Don't worry, leader, the subordinates will definitely keep an eye on him, and find out Mingzang as soon as possible!"
Although Xiao Junmo didn't explicitly say that he wanted to find Chu Lisang, as long as he found Mingzang, he would naturally be able to find her.This matter is actually the most urgent for Xiao Junmo, but now that he has the status of the leader, it is not appropriate to say such things about the personal relationship of his children, and he can only let his subordinates understand.
"Then I'll be in charge of the prince's side." Yuan Gongwang said, "This subordinate has dealt with several larger sub-helms in the alliance, and maybe I can find some clues."
"Very well, then split up and keep in touch at all times." Xiao Junmo stood up, with a strategizing and commanding light in his eyes.
While entrusting these two tasks to Xi Yan and Yuan Gongwang, he also gave himself three tasks: [-]. Deal with Pei Tinglong, Xuanquan, Su Bo and others, and try to get them out while preventing his identity from being exposed. Second, continue to trace his life experience; third, wait until the time is right to launch a fatal blow to King Wei and avenge his adoptive father.
After seeing off Yuan Gongwang and Xi Yan, Xiao Junmo found He Chongjiu and said, "Uncle Jiu, I have something to trouble you."
"Erlang just follow orders."
"Help me make a cleaner room, I want to set up some memorial tablets."
"Tablets?" He Chongjiu had never heard that "several" tablets would be set up at once, and he felt a little creepy, "I wonder how many tablets Erlang wants to set up?"
"Seven." Xiao Junmo smiled.
He Chongjiu felt the hairs all over his body stand on end.
In the inner hall of Ganlu Hall, the lights are flickering.
A roll of calligraphy framed with dark yellow cloud pattern silk was quietly spread out on the desk.
This is the best running script in the world that Li Shimin has devoted all his efforts to obtain at any cost in the past 17 years——"Orchid Pavilion Preface"!
At this moment, Li Shimin was the only one in the huge bedroom, Zhao Dequan and other eunuchs and court ladies were all pushed back.
Li Shimin stared at this scroll for a long time, and a clear and elegant face with hale eyes gradually appeared in front of his eyes.
However, what Li Shimin saw was not the scene of Yixing Trentfei's generation of scholar scribbled ink at the Lanting Meeting, but the grief and desolation of a gentry leader who was worried about the world when he faced the division between the North and the South and the worries of his family and country.
Behind this grief and desolation, there is a kind of deep and far-sighted ambition unimaginable by the world.
Since ancient times, emperors such as Qin Huang, Han Wu, including Li Shimin himself, can be regarded as heroes who conquered the world, but no matter whether their hegemony is to unify the world or expand the territory, no matter how much land they occupy and where they expand the empire, after all, they are just A hegemony about space.
But what Wang Xizhi played was a kind of intrigue related to time.
Although Li Shimin at this time has not yet cracked the core secret of "Lanting Preface", let alone know the secret history of the Tianxing League, he can conclude by intuition that Wang Xizhi's deep conspiracy is definitely not seeking the power of a moment or a dynasty, but It is a terrifying force that controls the trend of history and manipulates the change of dynasties!
Isn't that what the so-called "a state with the Dao will hide, and a state without the Dao will appear"? !
Wang Xizhi must have foreseen that it is impossible to see the unification of the world and the peace of the world in his lifetime, so he established the Tianxing League.He condensed his beliefs, ambitions and missions into the four words "protect the world", and then injected it into the Tianxingmeng like a soul possessing.In other words, this mysterious organization possessed Wang Xizhi's soul from the moment it was born.Therefore, even if Wang Xizhi's physical body is wiped out, as long as the Tianxingmeng exists, his soul will still relentlessly pursue the ideal of prosperity that the physical body has never realized.
This frightening Wang Xizhi just hides behind the gentle mask of "famous scholar" and "sage of calligraphy", planning this kind of grand plan that travels through history and time, and all the people in the world have been deceived by him for hundreds of years. In the drum!
Li Shimin, the first hero, has never been so afraid of a person as he is now - and it is an ancient man who has been dead for more than 200 years.
How powerful is the Heavenly Punishment Alliance?Apart from Ming Zang, how many other forces from the Heavenly Punishment Alliance have infiltrated Chang'an?Who is that Xuanquan who has been lurking in the court for many years and has been hiding right under his nose?In the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty, how many lurkers like Xuanquan are there?Could they have been involved in the battle for succession?Is their ultimate goal to change the dynasty, to overthrow the Tang Dynasty, and to recreate a bright universe in their minds?
Li Shimin knew that only by deciphering the secret of the "Lanting Preface" in front of him can he hope to solve the above problems.
However, no matter how much he held the scroll of Fatie in his hand and read it dozens of times, his anxious eyes almost penetrated the scroll of ancient silkworm cocoon paper, but he still didn't find anything.
Could it be that what Xiao Junmo offered was a fake?
impossible.
With his superb calligraphy attainments and his understanding of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy, Li Shimin is very clear that the characters in front of him, which are floating like clouds and astounding like a dragon, as well as the unrestrained, charming and elegant brushwork, are indeed from Wang Xizhi. Hand, no other person in the world can write it, and it is impossible to copy it to this level.
A detailed study of ancient and modern times, intensive study of seal script, perfect and perfect, only Wang Yi rarely!Look at the workmanship of pointing and dragging, the ingenious cutting, the smoke is scattered and the dew is knotted, and the shape is broken but still connected;If you don't feel tired after playing, you can't understand it when you look at it...
This is Li Shimin's public evaluation of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy.In all fairness, what he said was the truth.He really likes Wang Xizhi's calligraphy, not just because of the secrets of the Heavenly Punishment League hidden in this scroll.
If you don't feel tired after playing, you can't understand it when you look at it.
Thinking of this sentence, Li Shimin laughed at himself unconsciously.At this moment, facing this volume of 320 four-character postcards, I am really "not tired of playing, and unable to understand the meaning of reading".
Could it be that from the very beginning, he misunderstood the meaning of Lu Shiheng's bloody words?Isn't the secret of the Tianxingmeng hidden in the authentic "Lanting Preface" at all?
No.Li Shimin shook his head.Since the day when Xiao Junmo was dispatched to Yique, Luozhou to arrest Biancai, how many people from the government and the opposition have sacrificed their lives fighting for this calligraphy, which is enough to prove that there must be a big secret hidden in it!
However, where is the secret hidden?
Li Shimin rubbed his sore eyes and let out a long sigh.
Since it was already in his hands, he was not in a hurry. I have been waiting for 17 years, why should I care about waiting a few more days?Li Shimin believed that as long as the secret of the Heavenly Punishment League was indeed hidden in this letter, he would decipher it sooner or later.
Of course, there is another possibility, that is, there was a secret hidden in this scroll, but it was tampered with and covered up.
Thinking of this, a cold light suddenly appeared in Li Shimin's eyes.
If so, the person most likely to do so is undoubtedly Xiao Junmo.
This young man's response in the Hall of Eryi today was almost impeccable, but out of the intuition of a hero, Li Shimin still had a vague feeling that he was hiding something from him.Although Li Shimin did not show the slightest doubt, it does not mean that he believes in Xiao Junmo's innocence, nor does it mean that this young man can be his third-rank official from now on without incident.
If you want to capture it, you must first release it.
This is the most basic game technique, and it is also the emperor technique that Li Shimin is familiar with.
Xiao Junmo, you'd better not lie to me, otherwise, I will definitely make your life worse than death!
(End of this chapter)
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