The table is full of delicacies, but no one uses chopsticks. The diffused heat carries an alluring aroma. To ordinary people, it is naturally a table of gourmet food, but to the three people present, it is nothing.
Wei Shutong had already smiled and said: "Your Majesty is wise, your Majesty is wise and wise, and your coming to Beijing this time will definitely make a huge contribution to the country's construction." Xiang Qining said: "Don't worry, Sir, I will arrange a guard immediately. I will definitely let the prince arrive in the capital safely."
Li Hongxin opened his mouth slightly, but did not say anything. He just picked up the wine glass and took a drink.
"Your Majesty, Mr. Wei has made arrangements here. I wonder if your Majesty has anything to take care of? Or do you want to take your family to the capital?" Qining said very considerately: "Although the Holy One has not said it, if your Majesty wants someone to take care of him, , you can bring your family to Beijing with you, and there will be official receptions from various places along the way, and the prince will never be neglected along the way."
Li Hongxin said: "Since I am going to Beijing, I naturally have to make good preparations. Since the Lord has reminded me, it is okay for me to bring my family with me to Beijing. There will not be too many people coming, but I still need to tidy up a little. thing."
"Your Majesty, we have all arranged for food, clothing, housing and transportation in the capital. In fact, Your Majesty doesn't have to spend too much time to clean up." Qining said with a smile: "I wonder how many days it will take Your Majesty to prepare?"
Li Hongxin thought for a while and then said: "My king is from Shu, and my family members are also from Shu. I am used to the food and clothing of Xichuan. It will still take some time to prepare these things. Sir, how about setting off in half a month?" "
"This month?" Qi Ning shook his head and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, rescuing troops is like putting out fires. Now our great Chu has sent troops to the Northern Expedition. Your Majesty wants to discuss the strategy with your Majesty. I am afraid that I am already desperate. Half a month is too long. , let’s do this, the prince will try his best to pack everything within three days. If it is really not done, the prince can go to the capital first, and we can arrange for the prince’s family to pack here for a few more days, and then send them to the capital.”
Wei Shutong nodded and said: "Your Majesty, if you arrive in Beijing as early as possible, you will be able to know the battle on the front line as early as possible. Between the officials and the officials, the sooner the better. The officials will start preparations immediately. Within three days, everything will be done." We can arrange for the prince to come to Beijing."
Li Hongxin pondered for a moment, and finally showed a smile and said: "Your Majesty can think of my humble ability and come to the capital to use it. Naturally, I will try my best to serve the court. Mr. Wei, please make some preparations here, just like the lord As he said, I will definitely go to the capital within three days, and the family members in the mansion will see if they can be ready within three days. If they are packed properly, they will set off with me within three days."
Qi Ning clapped his hands and said with a smile: "That's great. Your Majesty can come to Beijing, and the errand entrusted to me by your Majesty can be considered completed." He held the cup and said, "Come on, Your Majesty, this glass of wine will be treated as if I am your Majesty." Farewell, I wish you a safe journey, Your Majesty, and I hope that after entering the capital, you can make great contributions to our great Chu."
Li Hongxin also picked up the wine glass and the three of them drank it together.
"Sir, Lord Wei, since we have decided to go to the capital, I will go back to the palace to make arrangements first, and will not delay here." Li Hongxin stood up: "The sooner you arrive in the capital, the sooner you can serve the court."
Qi Ning and Wei Shutong also stood up at the same time. They did not hold back and sent Li Hongxin out of the house together. Except for the gate of the Governor's Mansion, there was already a carriage waiting. Li Hongxin was very quick on his feet and got on the carriage directly. He just asked Qi Ning waved slightly and urged the driver to leave.
The car rolled and quickly disappeared at the end of the road.
"Sir, your Majesty, the emperor announced his arrival in Beijing. Do you really want him to participate in the Northern Expedition?" Wei Shutong turned to Qi Ning and asked in a low voice.
Qi Ning smiled half-heartedly and asked: "Master Wei, do you think the emperor will reuse Li Hongxin?"
Wei Shutong shook his head and said: "If the Holy One really declares him to come to Beijing, it is possible for him to come up with some strategies, but he will never reuse this person." After a pause, he said: "Langcha Tulu usurped the throne of the Miao King. Your Majesty, Your Majesty has obtained the incriminating evidence, why do you want to destroy it in front of your face?"
"Master Wei, with that evidence, can we really convict Li Hongxin?" Qi Ning chuckled and said, "He refused to admit it. Do we have any other evidence in our hands? Are we really going to forcibly convict him?"
Wei Shutong's lips moved slightly, but he said nothing, but there was a look of worry on his brows.
"What does Mr. Wei seem to be worried about?"
Wei Shutong looked around, then raised his hand and said: "Sir, let's go in and talk." The two entered the inner hall, and Wei Shutong said softly: "Sir, I'm just worried. Li Hongxin agrees. Going to Beijing is a tactic to delay the attack."
"A delaying tactic?"
"Sir, if Li Hongxin stays in Xichuan, although he is half dead, he can still be at ease." Wei Shutong sneered: "But once he leaves Xichuan, he will be like a fish out of water. Even if he tries his best, it will be like a fish out of water." He couldn't use it. He knew very well that if he really went to Beijing, life and death would be completely out of his control. This man was cunning and cunning, and he would never be willing to stay away from Xichuan. We should have kept him in the Governor's Mansion just now , don’t let him leave.”
"You mean to say that he will play tricks when he returns to Prince Shu's Mansion?"
Wei Shutong nodded slightly: "I'm just afraid that if he makes a desperate move, he will really die."
Qi Ning stared at Wei Shutong and said with a smile: "If the fish dies and the net breaks, it also depends on whether the net is strong. If the net is very strong, even if the fish can struggle, it will only die in it."
Wei Shutong vaguely understood something, and there was a look of astonishment on his eyebrows.
Li Hongxin, the King of Shu, left from the Governor's Mansion and drove the carriage almost at full speed back to the Prince of Shu's Mansion. After getting off the car, he immediately entered the Mansion and ordered the guards to close the door tightly. Before he reached the main hall of the Prince's Mansion, several people had already come up to him. The first person was standing in front of him. It was Shi Ximen Hengye, the Chief of the Shu Palace. Before Ximen Hengye could speak, Li Hongxin said in a deep voice: "Go in and talk."
Several people entered the main hall. After Li Hongxin took his seat, someone came to check. A burly black-faced man asked: "Your Majesty, if the surnamed Qi invites you to come over, what tricks are you planning to play?"
Li Hongxin sneered and said: "He took out a letter. It was the secret letter I wrote to Langchatulu, and it actually fell into his hands."
Everyone's expression changed. A middle-aged man who looked like a scribe said: "Your Majesty, that letter was a low-level copy. When Langchatulu asked the prince to give him a handwritten letter of commitment, we were well prepared. That copy The handwriting seems to be the same as that of the prince, but anyone who knows calligraphy can easily see the difference. At first glance, it seems that someone is forging it. If the person named Qi wants to use that letter as evidence of crime, we will refuse to admit it. , even if it goes to the capital, we are not afraid."
"Mr. Huang prepared for a rainy day, so I am not worried about the letter." Li Hongxin said: "Qining also burned the letter in front of me."
Everyone was startled, and Ximen Hengye finally smiled and said: "It seems that Qi Ning also understands that it is impossible to rely on that letter as evidence of guilt against the prince."
"But he suddenly said that Longtai issued a secret order for me to go to Beijing to participate in the Northern Expedition." Li Hongxin looked solemn: "And he also set a time limit, so that I must set off within three days."
"Going to Beijing?" Mr. Huang's face suddenly changed and he said in a voiceless voice: "Your Majesty, you absolutely must not!"
The black man also said: "Your Majesty, entering the capital will definitely bring bad luck. You must not leave Xichuan."
Li Hongxin looked at Ximen Hengye and asked, "Ximen Changshi, what do you think?"
Ximen Hengye pondered for a moment and then said: "Your Majesty, Qining said it was Longtai's secret decree. Did he come up with the decree? Or is he talking empty talk?"
"He didn't come up with a secret decree, so I suspect that he made the decision on his own." Li Hongxin sneered, "A yellow-haired boy actually played this trick with me."
Ximen Hengye nodded and said: "What the prince said is absolutely true. The so-called going to Beijing was definitely not Longtai's intention. It could only be Qining's own decision. He arrived in Chengdu a few days ago and left soon to go to Heiyan Cave. If he is serious With Longtai's secret edict, no matter how hastily he was, he would have conveyed the secret edict to the prince last time, but he did not do that. Instead, after getting the letter, he suddenly told the prince that Longtai had an edict. If he had not guessed wrong, This person has sinister intentions and knows that the letter cannot be used as evidence to convict the prince, but he believes that the person behind Langchatulu is the prince, so he wants to use this trick to deceive the prince into the capital first."
"What Chang Shi said is what I think." Li Hongxin said: "This person has already suspected that I am the person behind Langchatulu."
Mr. Huang asked: "Does the prince agree to come to Beijing?"
"If I didn't agree at that time, I might not be able to leave the Governor's Mansion." Li Hongxin said: "Since he wants me to come to Beijing, I will give him a delaying strategy and agree to him first. At least in this way, we can buy three days. "
"My lord, three days will pass soon." The black man clenched his fist and said, "After three days, are you really going to Beijing?"
Mr. Huang sneered and said: "Of course not. Your Majesty is just buying time so that we can find a way to deal with it." He looked at Ximen Hengye and said: "Chang Shi, what do you think we should do next?"
Ximen Hengye pondered for a moment and then said: "Your Majesty, Qining took it upon himself to let the prince come to the capital. It was obviously a false imperial edict. This is a serious crime of beheading, but why did he dare to do this?"
"This king knows that this person is Longtai's confidant." Li Hongxin said: "He relies on Longtai's trust in him and is lawless in Xichuan."
"The prince is half right." Ximen Hengye said: "This person is indeed Longtai's confidant, but for this reason alone, he does not have the courage to falsely pass on the imperial edict. There is another important reason why he dares to do this, and that is He guessed that this must suit Longtai's mind. If we now go to the court to accuse him of falsely passing the imperial edict, Longtai will not only not punish him, but will cover him up. There is no edict in the first place, and Longtai will also say that it is his own. A secret edict was issued.”
Mr. Huang nodded and said: "What Chang Shi said is absolutely true. Your lord, Longtai will definitely protect him. Moreover, the Chu State court has always been wary of your lord. It was just to prevent the world from hearing anything and did not dare to act rashly against your lord. This time we all Ning asked Prince to come to Beijing, just to use the excuse of the Northern Expedition, and this is exactly what Longtai was thinking."