After giving instructions to the two of them, Qin Mu asked them to retreat first, while he studied the formation map in the imperial study.
Su Li and Xu Jinyan left the imperial study one after the other.
There was a gentle smile on Su Li's face, and he said: "In the future, you and I will serve as officials in the court together, please give me your advice from Eunuch Xu."
"Don't dare." Xu Jinyan hurriedly bowed, "In the future, if I don't understand something, I have to rely on the Prime Minister to clarify."
The smile on Su Li's face faded, and he looked at Xu Jinyan carefully for a moment with those slightly shallow eyes. The latter was not humble, and let the other party observe. , you and I are equal now, in the future we should support each other and share the emperor's worries together."
"The prime minister taught that." Xu Jinyan replied humbly.
Even though he is in a high position now, he has never shown a domineering momentum.
Seeing such a young and smooth young man with no leaks, Su Li's eyes flashed thoughtful. At this critical moment, Qin Mu suddenly set up the East Factory to support such a young eunuch with no background. Could it be that he sensed something? Thinking of this possibility, Su Li lowered his eyes, hiding the gloomy look in his eyes.
Three days later, Qin Mu led a group of generals to formally set off to meet General Chen who was far outside the pass.
Before leaving, Qin Mu asked Su Li and Xu Jinyan to handle the government affairs for him temporarily, and if there were important matters, they would send a letter to him in time for him to make a decision. The two agreed one by one. Qin Mu ordered someone to bring three bowls of wine, one for each of the three. Qin Mu said with the wine, "I'm going on this trip, the journey is far away, I will leave the safety of this country to you."
"The minister will not disappoint the emperor's entrustment."
Su Li and Xu Jinyan said in unison.
"good."
Qin Mu laughed loudly, raised his head and drank the strong wine in the bowl in one gulp.
There was a bang, and the wine bowl was thrown on the ground, making a crisp sound. Su and Xu followed suit one after another. Regardless of the sharpness of the spirits, they gulped down their stomachs and smashed the wine bowls. Qin Mu reached out to wipe off the wine stains on his mouth, and fixedly looked at the thinly clothed Su Li, as if he was the only one in his eyes.
The gust of wind blew up Su Li's thin shirt.
Taking off the cloak on his body, Qin Mu took a step forward, put the cloak on Su Li's arrow, and then put his lips to Su Li's ear, and said, "Wait for me to come back." The hot and warm breath sprayed on Su Li's ear At the side, he was stunned for a moment, and when he came back to his senses, Qin Mu had already got on his horse and rode away without looking back.
For a moment, he really wanted to stop Qin Mu and tell him not to go to the battlefield to die.
But can't.
His position is different from Qin Mu's. He has been dormant for many years, just for today, and must not let his country be exposed to the fire.
—
Qin Mu arrived at the camp where he camped on the battlefield, and after listening to the reports from General Chen and other generals, he realized that this war was more dangerous than he had imagined. When Qin Mu conquered the Xun State in one go, he had already prepared for the Li National Assembly to counterattack, and he was confident that he could destroy the Li State.
However, he miscalculated Li's military strength.
Over the years, he has destroyed several other countries one after another. It is not that there are no alliances with other countries, but this Li country has always stood still and never allyed with other countries. Qin Mu was consciously puzzled, and sent people to investigate the situation of the Li country, but found no abnormalities. Qin Mu only thought that the king of the Li country did not know how to adapt and thought that the Xuan country would not attack them. The troops they fought against were far more than the 300,000 troops they had originally thought.
It was a fully doubled 600,000 army.
Qin Mu advocated military power, relying on the strength of the soldiers of the Xuan Kingdom, the number of soldiers once expanded to as many as one million, but after several wars, the original one million army has dropped to the current 500,000, if not for intelligence If there is a mistake, Qin Mu will not fall into the current dilemma.
Relying on his military talent, Qin Mu led fifty troops to hold on for three months. Neither side could decide the outcome.
Qin Mu stayed up all night, discussing strategies against the enemy with his military advisers and generals, and finally decided to send people to burn the food and grass of Li Guo's army, cutting off their retreat, and then marched all the way to take it down. But he didn't want to, the other party seemed to be very familiar with Qin Mu's routine, and transferred the food and grass before him. Qin Mu's people rushed to ignore it, but Li Guo's people used their own methods to deal with him. Burning a small part of Qin Mu's food and grass, if Qin Mu hadn't been vigilant, the consequences would have been disastrous.
Thus, the war has been stalemate.
Qin Mu was skeptical. Through the analysis of Li State's various formations, he always felt that this kind of combat technique seemed familiar. If he hadn't been convinced that Xun Yeyu was dead, he would really have thought that it was Xun Yeyu who was fighting him. I am.
In one side, the war between the army of the Xuan Kingdom and the army of the Li State is intensifying, while in the other side, the territory of the Xuan Kingdom is also in danger.
Since Xu Jinyan took over Dongchang, he knows people well and is very good at winning people's hearts. Under his leadership, Dongchang has flourished, and its intricate network of relationships has quickly spread all over Xuanguo. When he was a young eunuch, he lived frugally, and used the saved silver to ask a literate court lady to teach him how to read. Later, he established a good relationship with the eunuch who was working in the Taifuyuan, so that he had the opportunity to be in the palace. Listening outside Fu Yuan, he learned a lot of valuable knowledge step by step.
Now that he has become the general manager of the East Factory, he has not stopped. He handles official duties during the day and stays up late at night to read at night. He is talented and hardworking. In just three months, he has benefited a lot. Although the ministers of the DPRK and China looked down on him in private, they still wanted to address him as the chief executive in public.
Qin Mu's decision to set up the East Factory was undoubtedly correct. It didn't take long for Xu Jinyan to find out several spies that Li Guoan planted in the palace. He didn't say anything, and personally interrogated those spies. From these spies, he learned that among the ministers of the DPRK and China, there were their accomplices. Of course, there were also some spies who were more loyal to their own country. identify with the party.
Xu Jinyan made a list, listing the names of the ministers mentioned by the spies, and then deliberately asked his subordinates to disclose the news, saying that the spies of Li Guo had been found out, and they were about to be interrogated, in order not to expose himself Because of his identity, there must be someone in the court who can't help but send someone to silence him.
Once the news got out, quite a few people came to see Xu Jinyan, asking him what he had learned from the spies of the enemy country. Some of them were on the list, and some of them had unknown motives. In order to prevent those spies from being poisoned, all the food they ate had to be tested for poison with silver needles. Under Xu Jinyan's strict defense, none of these prisoners died unexpectedly.
On this day, Su Li found Xu Jinyan and asked him if he had any new progress. Xu Jinyan shook his head and sighed: "This work of extorting confessions by torture should be handed over to Dali Temple for investigation, but I am afraid of accidents, so I personally supervised it." , I still lack some experience.”
Su Li complimented: "Eunuch Xu has made such a great contribution not long after he took office. When the emperor returns to court, there will be a great reward."
Xu Jinyan replied modestly: "It is my blessing to be able to serve the emperor."
Su Li said again: "I have some friendship with Dali Temple Minister Wang Jun, and I have learned a lot from him, can you let me go and meet these prisoners?"
Xu Jinyan smiled and said: "Prime Minister Su is willing to help, so I naturally can't ask for it." He stretched out his hand and said, "Please, Prime Minister."
After the two went in, Xu Jinyan listened for a while. Su Li did have some tricks, and persuaded the prisoners with a few words. Later, Xu Jinyan withdrew first as planned and gave the place to Su Li alone. He didn't know what Su Li said in it, and then Su Li came out and said to him apologetically: "These people are too tight-lipped, obviously they have undergone special training, and I can't do anything about it."
Xu Jinyan comforted him in turn: "It's good that the prime minister has this kind of heart."
Three days later, a prisoner committed suicide by biting his tongue. The two seem to have nothing to do with each other, but out of intuition, Xu Jinyan feels that Su Li is not a simple person. He originally wanted to further investigate Su Li's background, but it happened that many people were incited by people to rise up. Before Qin Mu left for the expedition, he had left 30,000 Imperial Forest Army stationed in Xuanguo. Now the people rioted, and some people took the opportunity to massacre some civilians and put the blame on the Imperial Forest Army. The leader overthrew the government.
Seeing the critical situation, all the ministers in the DPRK and China were panic-stricken. Someone with ulterior motives urged them to pack up their belongings and leave for others. Only a few upright ministers stuck to their posts.
Seeing the situation clearly, Xu Jinyan knew from the bottom of his heart that Daxuan might not be able to hold on anymore. Now there are two roads ahead of him, one is to find a place to hide with his family and belongings like those courtiers, and the other is to go far away. Go to the border to follow Qin Mu, live and die with him.
He chose the latter without hesitation.
As humble as he was, he was supposed to live in a dark corner. It was Qin Mu who gave him the present glory. To him, Qin Mu was the moon that was out of reach that day. Accompanied from afar, watching.
He dismissed the eunuchs in Dongchang, and originally wanted to take the Queen Mother away, but he had no choice but to give up when the Queen Mother was placed under house arrest. When he was packing his bags and preparing to go to the border, Su Licha came to visit. Seeing Xu Jinyan's appearance, Knowingly, he asked, "Grandpa Xu is going on a long trip?"
Originally, Xu Jinyan was only suspicious of Su Li, but now seeing that he was not in a hurry and was not affected by civil riots at all, Xu Jinyan affirmed his judgment, he did not say anything, just smiled slightly, "Yes, I feel that the mansion is too boring, and I want to go out and live for a while."
"So that's how it is." Su Li said lightly, "Then I'll send off Eunuch Xu here."
Xu Jinyan nodded with a smile, pretending to be ignorant, and said: "Nowadays, the world is not peaceful, Prime Minister Su should make plans for himself earlier."
"Thank you, Eunuch Xu, for your suggestion." No matter how sincere Xu Jinyan's words are, Su Li has to admit that he is a talent, if he can use it—
With a flash in his eyes, before Xu Jinyan got into the carriage, he said aloud to stay: "Grandpa Xu, please slow down."
Xu Jinyan paused for a moment, then turned around slowly, "Is Prime Minister Su still doing something?"
Su Li thought about his words, and said meaningfully: "Although the world is not peaceful, but if Eunuch Xu really wants to stay, he can still protect himself." Both of them are smart people. Although their words are reserved, there are some things that need not be said through.
Knowing that the other party wanted to recruit security, Xu Jinyan smiled, leaving some leeway in his words, "I have been in the palace for so many years, and I have always been cautious about people's eyes, and I have never looked at the scenery outside. Now that I have this opportunity, I still I want to visit some mountains and rivers first.”
"Everyone has their own aspirations." Su Li nodded and said, "If Eunuch Xu figured it out one day, you can come back and have a look."
Xu Jinyan said: "Thank you, Prime Minister Su, for your kindness, I will take note of it."
—
Su Li only thought that Xu Jinyan had fled for his life, but never thought that he had gone to the most dangerous place.
Ten days later, Xu Jinyan came to the barracks and did not see Qin Mu. Instead, he was arrested as a Li Guo spy. At this time, the battle situation is critical, and if there is a mistake, the whole army will be wiped out. Qin Mu is busy discussing with the generals how to deal with the enemy, and has no time to deal with other things.
Qin Mu didn't expect Xu Jinyan to come here, and while he was taken aback, he suddenly had a bad premonition in his heart.
Before falling into a coma, Xu Jinyan grabbed Qin Mu's hand and only had time to say: "Su Li...he is from Li country, he...rebelled."
The news poured into Qin Mu's ears. He almost thought that he was having auditory hallucinations. How could Ziqing betray him? Qin Mu instinctively wanted to deny it, and then he thought of the scene when Daxuan almost fell four months ago. At that time, he suspected Su Li, but the scene of Su Li was seriously injured and almost died was too impactful. Worried about Su Li's safety, he dispelled the doubts in his heart a long time ago. Now that he thinks about it, it is very likely that Su Li will be the one who has the opportunity to enter the imperial study and pass on the imperial decree.
But what the imperial doctor said still rings in my ears, Su Li's injuries are indeed serious, especially his left leg, which is permanently disabled. Could it be that in order to gain his trust, Su Li did not hesitate to use cruel tactics on himself, just to soften his heart with bitter tricks? If this is the case, then Suli's city, strategy and courage are definitely beyond the reach of ordinary people.
Thinking of this, Qin Mu felt cold all over his body.
Xu Jinyan was in a coma for three days, and when he woke up, the first thing Qin Mu said was to ask him about the situation in Xuanguo. Su Li had already ordered the news to be blocked, Qin Mu had no idea what happened to Daxuan, Xu Jinyan intermittently told him what happened these days.
After understanding what happened, Qin Mu remained silent for a long time.
He had a foresight long ago, he hid the Jade Seal of Chuanguo, and secretly moved the treasury's silver to a safe place. With these two things, plus the Xuanguo's military talisman, it would not be difficult to restore the country.
However, now that the army of the Li Kingdom is overwhelming, if he loses this battle, no matter how smart he is, he will be hopeless.
From the gloomy and gloomy expression on Qin Mu's face, Xu Jinyan could roughly guess their current situation. He kept silent and said, "Your Majesty, this servant is willing to live and die with Daxuan." As early as when he chose to come to Qin Mu's side, he He made a decision to die.
Qin Mu came back to his senses, stared quietly at Xu Jinyan for a while, then lifted his lips and smiled: "No, with me here, Daxuan will not perish." When Qin Mu said these words, a certainty flashed in Qin Mu's eyes, and his whole body Exuding a haughty and awe-inspiring aura like a lion.
Perhaps knowing that they were in a desperate situation and there was no turning back, the soldiers of Xuan Kingdom were completely inspired to fight more and more bravely on the battlefield. Coupled with Qin Mu's proper command, they reversed the original decline. Seeing Li Guo's army retreating steadily, the person who had been hiding behind the scenes and pointing the country also showed up. It was Xun Yeyu who was supposed to die.
Surprised for only a moment, Qin Mu quickly collected himself, and said with a sneer, "I was wondering why Li Guo's coach refused to show up, so it was you."
"Are you disappointed to see that I am not dead?"
Xun Yeyu's expression was cold, his eyes were no longer infatuated with Qin Mu. After walking through the gate of hell, he completely saw Qin Mu's character, a ruthless tyrant who would do anything for power, such a person would never love anyone. And he once naively thought that he could win Qin Mu's heart.
Fortunately, it was not too late for him to wake up.
His heart was born different from that of ordinary people. Qin Mu's knife missed the vital point. After he was kicked off the cliff by Qin Mu that time, he happened to land on a tree. His subordinates found him in time and saved his life. When Qin Mu raised his troops to attack Xun State, he happened to be recuperating from his wounds, so he could only hide with some soldiers and watch Xun State be destroyed. At that time, he swore that Qin Mu must pay the price.
Later, the king of Li State took a fancy to his military talent and personally persuaded him to submit to Li State. For revenge, he joined Li State without hesitation. Only then did he have another confrontation with Qin Mu on the battlefield. He and Qin Mu fought many battles successively, and they were basically tied. This time they had a large number of people, and they should have won an overwhelming victory. Unexpectedly, Qin Mu has survived until now.
"Why are you disappointed." Qin Mu twitched the corner of his mouth, "I just took this opportunity to defeat you, and let you be convinced that you lost."
I didn't expect this man to be so arrogant until now.
A sharp light flashed across his eyes, Xun Yeyu said: "Then try and see who loses to whom." After a pause, he said: "Qin Mu, this time, I won't let you. "
Hearing the words, Qin Mu sneered, with deep disdain hidden in his tone: "I can win you without your concession."
After finishing speaking, he raised the long sword in his hand high and shouted: "Soldiers, charge me!" His voice was as loud as a bell, and everyone's spirits were lifted, and they raised their weapons in their hands to fight.
In this war, Qin Mu won a small victory.
Before Xun Yeyu temporarily withdrew his troops, he said with a sarcasm: "Qin Mu, no matter whether you win or lose this battle, you are still a loser. You have lost the hearts of the people long ago. Even if you return victorious, Daxuan will not have you." It's a shelter."
Qin Mu said coldly: "Thank you, General Xun, for your concern. When I destroy the Li Kingdom, I will be the only emperor in the whole world. I will slowly regain the lost hearts of the people."
Xun Yeyu laughed loudly after hearing this: "Just wait, I will personally shatter your dreams."
This temporary victory made all the soldiers change from their previous decadent and sluggish appearance. They were all full of energy, with longing for life and hope for the future in their eyes.
When Qin Mu returned to the camp, Xu Jinyan had already cooked a table of delicious food waiting for him. Food in the army is not as particular as in the palace, as long as you can eat enough and have the strength to fight. Although Qin Mu is an emperor, everything is simple, and what he eats and uses is no different from that of ordinary generals. After fighting here for three months, the wind, frost and gravel inevitably made Qin Mu's face a bit vicissitudes, but he was in good condition and was not affected by the events in Daxuan territory at all.
Qin Mu laughed when he saw such a table of dishes, raised his eyes and asked with a smile: "Little Xu, did you know that I would win in advance, so you made a table of good dishes to celebrate for me?"
Xu Jinyan stood aside respectfully, with a trace of scar on his face, "I saw that the food in the military camp was monotonous, so I wanted to try to make some myself, but I don't know if it tastes like the emperor."
Glancing at the dishes on the table, they are all Qin Mu's usual favorites. Although there are relatively few ingredients available here, he can see Xu Jinyan's heart from them. He picked up a piece of rabbit meat with his chopsticks and chewed it slowly in his mouth. To be honest, the meat quality of the rabbit meat was a bit old, and the taste was not good enough. Compared with the craftsmanship of the royal chef in the palace, he was really far behind, but he still relished it. He started to eat and greeted Xu Jinyan to sit down as well: "Little Xu, sit beside me."
Xu Jinyan hesitated: "Your Majesty, this slave is not hungry."
Qin Mu: "I told you to come here, did you not listen to my orders
Xu Jinyan didn't dare to refuse any more, so he obediently sat down beside Qin Mu, and was handed a pair of chopsticks beside him, and he took it flattered, after tasting the dish, his expression froze, and he lowered his head: "Your slave will be fine in the future." Learn to cook."
Qin Mu was a little amused: "When did I say it's not delicious?" Looking at Xu Jinyan's thin face, Qin Mu ordered: "Eat more, I don't want people to think that I don't feed my subordinates enough."
When Xu Jinyan heard this, he quickly lowered his head and tried his best to pick up the rice.
With a faint smile on the corner of his mouth, Qin Mu couldn't help but think that in the end, the person who still chose to stay by his side would be Xu Jinyan. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but think of another person, that person was tall and elegant, and his appearance was even better, elegant and handsome, making people forget the vulgarity. But it was this person whom he loved with all his heart, who betrayed him in the end.
The matter has come to this point, his country is in jeopardy, Qin Mu no longer has the heart to feel sad for Su Li's betrayal.
"Your Majesty, the traitor Su Li is here. He is outside the door right now. He said he has something important to say to the Emperor."
Just when Qin Mu was in a daze, a report from a soldier came from outside the tent, Qin Mu's expression turned cold, Su Li still had the face to see him? !
He lowered his face and said, "Bring him in."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Two soldiers lifted the curtain and escorted Su Li in.
"Retreat first." Qin Mu ordered quietly, and the two soldiers bent down and retreated.
Qin Mu cast a glance and saw Su Li with disheveled hair, ragged clothes, and a discomfited face kneeling on the ground, he laughed and said, "What wind brought Prime Minister Su here."
Xu Jinyan sat beside Qin Mu and stopped the chopsticks in his hand.
Su Li glanced at Xu Jinyan, and said: "Your Majesty, I came here this time to expose Eunuch Xu's collusion with the rebel party and his intention to rebel."
Qin Mu didn't believe him, "Oh? You accused Xiao Xuzi of this crime, do you have evidence?"
Su Li raised his head, spoke earnestly, and said: "My minister received a secret report that Xu Jinyan approached the emperor to murder you, so he rushed over overnight to rescue the emperor."
"Now that things have happened, do you think I will still believe you?!"
Qin Mu was furious, slammed the table and stood up from his seat.
As soon as the words fell, his complexion changed, and his figure swayed slightly. In order not to let himself fall, he had to support the edge of the table with his hands. The strength in his body was drawn away like silk, Qin Mu slowly turned his head, and looked at Xu Jinyan with unbelievable eyes: "You..."
"My lord, what's the matter with you?"
Xu Jinyan noticed something strange, and was about to go forward to help Qin Mu, but Qin Mu threw his hand away, "Don't touch me!"
After belatedly realizing something, Xu Jinyan glared at Su Li: "It's you..."
Su Li got up from the ground, quickly stepped forward to support Qin Mu, and said worriedly: "Your Majesty, are you alright?"
"I do not… "
Qin Mu shook his head, before he finished the last word, he suddenly stopped, lowered his head slowly, and his eyes fell on the handle of the knife inserted in his belly. Severe pain quickly swept through his body, he staggered back a step, and leaned into Xu Jinyan's arms behind him. Xu Jinyan's eyes were red, he covered Qin Mu's wound with his hands, and said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty."
"It's useless... I trust you so much."
Qin Mu smiled miserably. He actually believed in Su Li at the last moment.
Slowly wiping the blood on the dagger with his sleeve, Su Li glanced at Qin Mu, who was limp in Xu Jinyan's arms, with a cold smile like a cold moon on his face: "Don't blame me, if you want to blame, you can only blame me for trusting me too much."