What Prince Yu said was true, but Qining didn't seem too surprised.
As the Minister of War, Lu Xiao came to see Beitang Yu in person. With Beitang Yu's shrewdness, he naturally guessed the clues. He guessed that there was a problem in the frontline war. If the Chu army won every victory, the Chu country would naturally not fight again. Thinking about the world map, it is even less likely that the Minister of War will personally come to lobby.
"Your Majesty knows things well." Qi Ning smiled and said: "Zhong Li'ao set up an ambush, causing more than 2,000 casualties in our army. The losses were considerable."
Beitang Yu said: "You have invaded Han territory. Zhong Li'ao knows the terrain of Han territory well. It would be weird if you could successfully advance to Luoyang."
"But the prince must also know that Zhongli Ao is now at the end of the war." Qi Ning said: "Our Chu army has already penetrated deep into the hinterland of the Han Dynasty, so it suffered such a setback. However, this also shows that our Chu army is getting closer and closer to Luoyang." close."
As soon as he finished speaking, Beitang Yu suddenly leaned forward. Qining saw the fish float shaking. Bei Tang Yu skillfully pulled up the fishing rod. A carp was struggling on the hook. Bei Tang Yu retrieved the fish. Hook, he laughed, took the carp off the hook, put it into the bucket next to him, rearranged the bait, and then put the hook into the water. He still didn't look at Qining, but just said: "Even if there is a battle for the throne among the big men, , but if the chaos subsides and the monarchs and ministers are united, your Chu country may not be able to take advantage of it by going north this time."
"The State of Qi has been annexed by our great Chu." Qi Ning said: "The northwest is also in the palm of our great Chu, and the Han Kingdom is just hanging on."
Beitang Yu was startled, and finally turned to look at Qi Ning. Seeing Qi Ning's calm expression, he frowned and said, "Qi State was attacked and destroyed?"
Qi Ning did not hide anything, and briefly informed Beitang Yu of the current situation. Beitang Yu sighed: "It turns out that when you go north to attack the Han, you are not interested in drinking. You are indeed clever. Those boys only want to fight for the throne. , I thought you wanted to take advantage of the chaos to capture Luoyang, so you naturally didn’t expect that your target was Qi and the northwest.”
"According to the information we have received, Qu Yuangu now controls the government of the Han Dynasty. Although Beitang Feng ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor, he is just a puppet in Qu Yuangu's hands." Qining said: "The Northwest Army in Qu Yuangu's hands is completely After taking control of Luoyang, I heard that the Northwest Army was causing trouble in Luoyang, and Beitang Feng did not dare to take any more care. Many high-ranking officials in the Han Dynasty met a miserable end."
Bei Tangyu's face became even more ugly, and he sneered: "Qu Yuangu is mediocre and incompetent. He is cruel and extravagant in the northwest. He...!" He did not continue.
Qi Ning smiled and said: "Qu Yuangu has always regarded himself as the emperor of the northwest. On the land of the northwest, he has the power of life and death. In the name of your Northern Han Dynasty, he has amassed a large amount of property, but those properties have now become our The trophies of Chu." After a pause, he said: "Qu Yuangu set up an army to plunder Luoyang. There are only two possibilities."
Bei Tangyu finally put down the fishing rod, stood up, put one hand behind his back, looked at Qining, and asked, "What are the two possibilities?"
"The princes of the Northern Han Dynasty fought against each other. In the end, although Beitang Feng won, the Beitang clan lost." Qining said: "After this internal strife, the vitality of the Beitang clan was severely damaged, and Qu Yuangu also became a good man. I took this opportunity to support Beitang Feng in power, but the troops and horses in Luoyang are now in the hands of Qu Yuangu. Without Qu Yuangu's order, Beitang Feng could not mobilize a single soldier, so I said Beitang Feng The wind is a puppet in the hands of Qu Yuangu. The folk customs in the northwest are fierce. As far as I know, after the founding of the Northern Han Dynasty, they did not show kindness to the northwest. In fact, the people in the northwest did not have a good impression of the Northern Han Dynasty. Although Qu Yuangu conquered the northwest, But he is very generous to the northwest soldiers and horses under his command, and he knows how to win people's hearts. He is actually a warlord in the northwest. He brought a group of tiger and wolf warriors to Luoyang. His proud soldiers will not obey Beitang Feng's orders. I will only take Qu Yuangu's order as an imperial edict." He sighed softly: "Your Majesty, once a person has power in his hands and enjoys the taste of power, it will be difficult to let go of the power in his hands."
Beitang Yu was so shrewd that he naturally understood the meaning of Qi Ning's words. He frowned and said, "You mean... Qu Yuangu has the ambition to usurp the throne?"
"The Northwest Army has been stationed in the bitter cold land of the northwest. Now that they have arrived in Luoyang, they have seen the prosperity of Luoyang and enjoyed the rich food and clothing. Do you think these people are willing to lose it all?" Qining sighed: "These people want to keep it all. It is necessary to keep Qu Yuangu. In their view, if Qu Yuangu becomes emperor, then the life of fine clothing and fine food will naturally not disappear. Qu Yuangu can gain a foothold in Luoyang because he relies on these soldiers under his command. If these soldiers have the support of To establish Qu Yuangu as emperor, even if Qu Yuangu had no such intention, he had to obey the opinions of the soldiers."
Beitang Yu sneered: "Qu Yuangu is just a slave of my Beitang family. What qualifications does he have to ascend the throne and become emperor?"
"The Beitang clan also took the throne from others." Qi Ning smiled faintly: "Right and wrong depend on strength. Now that Qu Yuangu has such strength, he can naturally do whatever he wants. He launched troops to kill and plunder in Luoyang, and the people just thought These soldiers were under the command of Beitang Feng, so they would naturally be resentful of Beitang Feng. Moreover, Qu Yuangu took this opportunity to kill courtiers indiscriminately and eliminate dissidents. By then, you officials in the Northern Han Dynasty would have been killed by Qu Yuangu. , If Qu Yuangu really wants to proclaim himself emperor, I'm afraid no one will dare to oppose him."
Beitang Yu took a breath of air. He naturally understood that Qining's words may sound alarmist, but they may not become reality.
"Of course, there is another possibility." Qi Ning said: "Qu Yuangu was used to being domineering in the northwest. He knew that if he usurped the throne in Luoyang, people would be dissatisfied, and he would inevitably become the target of public criticism. It will cause countless troubles. In this case, he might as well return to the northwest and continue to be his own local emperor. It is not impossible for him to take Luoyang's wealth and silk as his own and lead his army back to the northwest." Looking at Beitang Yu, he said : "But no matter which path he takes, Luoyang will definitely be devastated, and the Beitang clan will also suffer disaster. The dignitaries in Luoyang City all have rich families. Qu Yuangu will certainly not keep an eye on him if he wants to plunder their property. Those ordinary people will only focus on the prominent civil and military officials, and the Northwest Army is brave and rough, but they will never have any scruples about attacking them."
Beitang Yu sighed: "I understand what you mean. Are you saying that my family members are also in trouble?"
"Actually, I told the prince a long time ago that if your family members stay in Luoyang, they can only be slaughtered by others. There is no telling when they will suffer disaster." Qining said: "You think you Beitangfeng became the emperor, and because of his friendship with you, he would let your family go. However, the prince did not want to think about it. Now that Beitangfeng has become Qu Yuangu's puppet, he cannot protect himself, so what strength does he have to protect him? Your family?"
Bei Tangyu's mouth curled up slightly, but he didn't speak.
"That's too far." Qining said with a smile: "I heard that the prince wanted to see me for something. As soon as I got the news, I rushed over. I don't know what the prince has ordered."
Bei Tangyu said nothing, turned around and walked into the house. Qi Ning followed him inside. After the two of them sat down, Beitang Yu said: "You said that you can send people to rescue my family from Luoyang. Do you really have such strength? "
"If it had been earlier, I can assure you, Your Majesty, that we would definitely have the strength to bring your family members to Chu State unscathed." Qining sighed: "But now Luoyang is in chaos, whether your family members are still safe and sound, I There is no guarantee." He glanced at Beitang Yu before continuing: "But as long as they are still alive, I can guarantee that we can send people to take them out of Luoyang, and they will definitely be brought to the capital of Jianye to meet the prince. Reunion.”
Beitang Yu was silent for a moment, and finally said: "Is your condition the World Map?"
Seeing that the other party was no longer covering up, Qi Ning said bluntly: "If the prince can provide clues to the Huanyu Map, we can send someone to inform the spies in Luoyang today and let them start formulating a rescue plan. If the clues to the Huanyu Map are confirmed by then, If it is true, then I can only guarantee that as long as your family members are safe and sound in Luoyang, I can have them appear in front of the prince soon. Of course, by then the prince can leave the Shenhou Mansion and live with his family in the capital. The emperor will treat the prince There will definitely be a heavy reward, and the safety of the prince and his family will be guaranteed."
"After the World Map was completed, a total of three copies were made." Beitang Yu said: "One is in the hands of the emperor, one is in the hands of the general, and now it is in Zhong Li'ao's hands, and the other is hidden in the Han Palace treasure house. However, it is very difficult and almost impossible for you to obtain these three maps of the world."
Qi Ning knew that the world was uncertain, and in order to prevent the Map of the Universe from falling into the hands of the Chu people, the Northern Han Dynasty would certainly not print a large number of copies.
"The late emperor passed away suddenly, so no one knows the whereabouts of the map of the world in his hand. Of course, you can't get Zhong Li'ao's map of the world." Beitang Yu said: "As for the map of the world in the treasury of the Han Palace, I don’t know if Qu Yuangu plundered the treasure house after entering Luoyang, but when it was stored in the treasure house, he made dozens of fake maps of the world just in case. When these maps of the world were put together, only one was Really, unless I see it in person and can tell the authenticity, I can’t tell you whether that map is genuine.”
"The treasure trove of the Han Palace?"
"The treasure house of the Han Palace is heavily guarded." Beitang Yu said with a faint smile: "I know that the Shenhou Mansion of Chu State is all-pervasive, but they have absolutely no way to approach the treasure house of the Han Palace. In my opinion, they would rather snatch the World Map from Zhong Li'ao. , and don’t try to get close to the Han Palace Treasure House, there is no difference between getting close to the Han Palace Treasure House and committing suicide.”
Qi Ning thought that although he knew the whereabouts of the World Map, as Beitang Yu said, it would be really difficult to get the World Map.
"But no one knows that there are not only three copies of the Map of the Universe, but also a fourth Map of the Universe." Beitang Yu showed a sly smile in his eyes: "Only I know the whereabouts of the fourth Map of the Universe!"