The carriage traveled through the streets and alleys of the Imperial Capital, and finally slowed down in a block close to the south city wall. This block is where ordinary middle- and upper-class citizens live. It has a beautiful environment and is lined with green trees. In particular, it attracts the fan river. A water channel passes by, adding to the pastoral scenery. The people who chose this area were mainly retired officials and urban wealthy businessmen. Many retired officials from the central and local empires chose this area as a place to buy property and start businesses. This area was also favored by the wealthy merchants of the upper class of the imperial capital. , it can be seen just from the surrounding mansions.
This is a courtyard that is no different from the surrounding mansions. There is a row of black tiles along the blue-gray courtyard wall. From the outside, except that the courtyard is a bit large, there is nothing special about it. The front door is also an ordinary double-leaf door. There are no stone lions or bronze lions that many wealthy people like at the door. There are three bluestone steps leading up to the door.
As soon as the carriage stopped, the two guards who had been sitting in the front compartment jumped out, and as the curtain was lifted, a thin figure also came out, got out of the car and knocked on the door.
The door opened and closed quickly, and the carriage quickly disappeared in front of the door.
In the back garden, a girl in palace attire was already sitting opposite an old man with white hair and beard. The koi carps were playing in the fish pond, flying back and forth like arrows, with water droplets shooting out. The old man was throwing fish food at will, teasing the fish in the pond. Very laid back.
"Mr. He, everything is ready, now we are waiting for Li Wufeng to enter Zhongzhou." Trying her best to suppress the joy in her heart, the girl in palace clothes was overflowing with joy, and her tone could not hide her excitement.
"Your Highness, are you really going to do this?" It seemed that he was not as happy as the girl in palace clothes imagined. The white-haired old man sighed and then said leisurely: "Your Highness must consider the consequences of this carefully. Many things may In the end it may not be as perfect as we imagined.”
With her eyes focused, the girl in palace attire calmed down a lot, "Mr. He, if you have anything else to worry about, you might as well tell me. Now that we have reached this point, the empire will only be supported by loyal ministers like you. If you are discouraged again, I’m afraid that the situation in the empire is truly irreversible.”
Shaking his head, the old man with white beard and hair showed a thoughtful look on his face, and said slowly: "Your Highness, have you ever considered how the situation will develop once Li Wufeng really has a problem in the imperial capital? Who can Can he control the hundreds of thousands of troops in Western Xinjiang? And if Li Wufeng escapes by chance, he will definitely raise the banner of rebellion. The former may lead to a melee, but the latter may mean that the empire may soon face a rebellion in Western Xinjiang. The entire empire will soon be at war, and such a result will inevitably allow those foreign nations to take advantage of the opportunity. The Machihans, Milanese, Japanese, and Liberians will cause us to lose the most important people's support. I sincerely ask Your Highness You can think about it again."
"No, Mr. He, there is no room for negotiation on this matter. Li Wufeng must be eliminated! He is the biggest enemy of our Situ family. No strong foreign enemy can destroy our Tanghe Empire. Only he is the biggest enemy of the empire. You and I know the danger better than anyone else!" The girl in palace attire looked solemn and said solemnly: "As for the Liberians, Machihans, and Japanese you mentioned, they are all just ringworm. The disease of scabies has nothing to do with the overall situation. As long as we can eradicate Li Wufeng, even if these foreign enemies can show their power for a while, as long as the empire recovers, we will definitely be able to take back what we lost step by step. I firmly believe that the empire can do this!"
The last piece of fish food was finally thrown into the pond and he nodded. The white-haired old man finally realized that this was the inevitable outcome. Of course he knew that if this continued, Li Wufeng would sooner or later become the gravedigger of the Tanghe Empire, but he would He couldn't tell what it would bring to the Tanghe people. But he was a veteran of two dynasties of the Tanghe Empire, and he couldn't just watch the empire collapse like this. Besides, considering how noble the thirteenth princess was to plead with him, He Zhiqiu had no excuse.
"Now that His Highness has made up his mind, I won't elaborate further. Since Li Wufeng has already set off, he will surely arrive at the Imperial Capital City within a week. As long as Li Wufeng enters the territory of Zhongzhou, Qinghe can arrange for the 14th Army Corps to immediately contact the city. The guards changed the defense and ordered the city guards to go south at night to take over the defense of Jinzhong. The Fourth Army was deployed to defend the southern part of the imperial capital. If Ying Jianming dares to resist, order Yusuf and Xu Xiangyang to join forces to solve it on the spot!" It seemed that he suddenly regained his previous determination. The former Minister of Military Affairs has piercing eyes and a murderous intent.
"What if Ying Jianming complies with the order and adjusts the defense?" Regarding these tactics in the army, the girl in palace clothes was obviously not as ruthless as the military veteran in front of her. She was a little worried about the deputy commander and third officer of the Fourth Army who had been suspected of being a secret chess player by Li Wufeng. Is the commander of the First Division really what the intelligence agency suspects
"That's better. This is enough to prove his innocence. As long as he obeys the order, we will do nothing for ourselves. The suspicion on his identity needs to be further confirmed. It is also taboo to tamper with the general. It can easily shake the morale of the army. Unless we have reliable evidence. But in order to ensure the absolute success of this operation, as long as Ying Jianming refuses to obey the order, His Highness can order the military department to authorize Yusuf to completely eliminate the opponent." He Zhiqiu knew that in this case, even if it was a wrongful death, it would be a mistake. There is no choice, after all, once something like this goes wrong, it will never be undone. "However, City Guard Yusuf is a difficult person to figure out. Can His Highness be absolutely sure? Once something goes wrong, then we will really There is no way to recover."
"Don't worry, Mr. He. Yusuf's son has been hanging around me all day long. I have sent a message to his father through him. As long as his father supports me, I can marry him when the matter is completed." The girl in palace dress had a pale expression on her face. After changing, he said decisively, "Yusuf has always loved his son very much. I think he should be willing to take this gamble."
He Zhiqiu was silent for a while. Of course he knew that although Yusuf's son could be regarded as a well-known scholar in the imperial capital, he was obsessed with him for some reason and had been pursuing him for several years to no avail. But if he wanted to get the favor of the Thirteenth Princess, then indeed It's too slim. But if this matter is used as a deal, there is indeed a possibility that Yusuf will be tempted, but it is a bit wrong to marry the thirteenth princess with her literary talents and appearance, but he cannot interfere in this kind of thing, otherwise It is difficult for Yusuf to serve himself sincerely.
"Your Highness, is this..." Before He Zhiqiu finished speaking, the girl in palace clothes had already understood the meaning of the other party's words. She interrupted him irritably and said coldly: "Mr. He, there is no need to say more about this matter. I have my own opinion. .”
"How is your work going over there, Ma Yuan? I'm afraid not only will it take a hard battle to start operations outside the city, the division led by Song Tianxiong used to be Li Wufeng's Guards Division, and now Li Wufeng is in Hejian, Longquan has deployed heavy troops. Once things change, the Western Xinjiang side will definitely do its best to help. Although there are city guards, the city guards have suffered too much loss in the last bloody battle with the Kaman people. Many of the soldiers are new With the additions, the combat effectiveness has also been weakened to a certain extent. It is still quite difficult to resist the main force of the Western Xinjiang Army. If we can do it in the city, we will be much more confident." He Zhiqiu sighed secretly in his heart and had to change the topic. , Her Royal Highness the Princess's stubborn temper is well known, and it is extremely difficult to convince the other party.
"There are still some difficulties here. Brother Six has been hesitating on this issue and refused to admit it clearly. But I can feel that Ma Yuanwang's abnormal behavior must be related to him. I think it probably has to wait until he comes to Beijing. There will be a definite result later, but I believe he can see the current situation clearly. I also plan to persuade the eldest brother to make some concessions in exchange for the support of the sixth brother. Ma Yuanwang’s family is in his hands. Without Ma Yuanwang, we If we can't control the imperial guards, then Li Wufeng will be safe after entering the city." The girl in palace clothes said bitterly.
"Your Highness, don't worry too much. Although the Imperial Guard is in Ma Yuanwang's hands, as long as Ma Yuanwang doesn't show up, the old man can still exert some influence. Although Huangfu Tiancheng is colluding with Xijiang, I know this Huangfu Tiancheng has always been loyal and brave. He must have thought this way because he felt that the situation was hopeless. The old man planned to have a deep talk with him and persuade him to repent. If he is really stubborn, His Highness might as well send someone to deal with him. Lao Cao will be responsible for appeasing his subordinates. As for the other divisions, it depends on His Highness." He Zhiqiu analyzed the strength comparison between the enemy and ourselves in a leisurely manner, "As long as Huangfu Tiancheng's power is cut off, the other two divisions will I judge that all the members of the group were bribed by Li Wufeng. Zhu Jian has connections with His Highness and Xijiang, so it is difficult to get through. However, Your Highness clearly supports His Highness’s ascension to the throne and becomes the new emperor. I don’t think Zhu Jian dares to act rashly. Wu Pengju is a The grasshopper used to be very close to His Highness the Third Highness. Now it is difficult to determine who he will be loyal to in the end. However, Xijiang has also been in contact with him. It is difficult to say whether he will collude with Li Wufeng. As for Kutaki and Ma Yuanwang and Mao Lan are both direct descendants of Ma Yuanwang, and they only take orders from Ma Yuanwang. Their subordinates are also loyal to Ma Yuanwang and are difficult to bribe, so in the end we were able to keep Ma Yuanwang in our hands."
"He Lao, who knows people but not their hearts, Huangfu Tiancheng, Zhu Jian, and Wu Pengju, although these three people are loyal to each other on the surface, but now that Li Wufeng is so powerful, it is hard to say whether these three people will all be loyal to each other." What about Li Wufeng? You said that only Ma Yuanxiang can command Kutaki and Mao Lan, but what if Ma Yuanxiang cannot show up for a while? What will happen to these two people? They will obey the orders of the military headquarters Really?" Situ Yushuang shook her head lightly, she did not completely agree with the other party's view.