The army led by Prime Minister Du and the army secretly recruited by King Qinnan for many years confronted each other across a field outside Yaozhou City. Although the two sides had two small-scale battles, the casualties were not large, and it seemed that they were testing something. In terms of military strength, King Qinnan could not match the court army, but King Qinnan had occupied Yaozhou City for many years and built high walls and fortresses. Today, Yaozhou City is a city that is easy to defend but difficult to attack.
If they just retreated into the city, the imperial army would be helpless. If they tried to attack, they would probably suffer heavy casualties. After testing the situation, the prime minister had no choice but to retreat and station.
Prime Minister Du was not wholeheartedly willing to sacrifice his life for the emperor. He could see that there was a dead end ahead of him and was not willing to just go down like that. It was inevitable that he had other thoughts.
As for the King of Qinnan, he naturally wanted to persuade the Prime Minister to revolt. The two sides formed an alliance, which would be more beneficial to his situation. In addition, with Chen Yun's many suggestions, the King of Qinnan was more inclined to win over the Prime Minister. The two sides had their own ideas and I had my own intentions, so they secretly contacted each other.
At this time, the emperor's carriage and ceremonial procession arrived and entered the imperial army's camp, where he was respectfully invited in by the prime minister.
Soon, King Qinnan and Chen Yun in Yaozhou City knew the news. King Qinnan had been feeling unwell for some reason and had been lying in bed for two days, becoming increasingly listless. He was slightly encouraged by the news and said to Chen Yun, "Your guess was right. That Sima boy really came here to take risks for a woman."
Chen Yun was handsome and knelt beside the bed of King Qin Nan. He said solemnly, "Sima Jiao didn't necessarily come here for Concubine Liao. It's just that as an emperor, Sima Jiao can't tolerate anyone insulting his face or trampling on his dignity. It's normal for him to come here in person to supervise the siege after being inspired by the letter we sent."
Although he had a guess that Sima Jiao came here mostly for Liao Tingyan, as the male protagonist of this world, how could he possibly admit such a thing? Thinking carefully, wouldn't it be like cheating on himself? Of course, the female protagonist can only be with him, the male protagonist, and can only love him. This is natural. What male supporting role Sima Jiao, if he gets in his way, he must die.
King Qin Nan was obviously very proud. "That little Sima is so arrogant that he thinks he has hundreds of thousands of troops to protect him. He doesn't know that the 'loyal ministers' around him have already rebelled. Let's see how long he can continue to be so rampant!"
"Go contact Prime Minister Du again to make sure our plan is foolproof!"
Chen Yun received the instructions from King Qinnan and answered honestly. Just then, the waiter brought the medicine, and Chen Yun did not stay any longer. He said goodbye and left, walking past the waiter without looking around.
As soon as Chen Yun left King Qin Nan's place, he was entangled by Qin Wuxia.
"Why are you getting busier and busier lately? You don't even have time to play and talk with me. Father has so many people under him. If you have something to do, just ask them to do it. Why are you so busy yourself?" Qin Wuxia was very dissatisfied.
Chen Yun had no choice but to patiently explain to her, "I promise, this will all be over soon." He reached out and stroked Qin Wuxia's cheek, his eyes passing over the bedroom of King Qin Nan. It was indeed soon, everything had been arranged, and he only needed to wait for everyone to fall into the trap, so that he could gather the threads in his hands, catch all those annoying characters in one fell swoop, and take over the kingdom that belonged to him.
Seeing Chen Yun hurried away, Qin Wuxia was upset. Then he thought of the news he had just heard from Chen Yun, and immediately ran to the yard where Liao Tingyan was imprisoned and said proudly, "Sima Jiao has arrived in Yaozhou, and your death is getting closer!"
He actually came. After Liao Tingyan put on a noble and cold face to drive the people away, his expression suddenly fell, and he frowned, looked at the sky outside the window, and pursed his lips.
Although every time she encountered danger, she would think that she was the heroine and would definitely survive, this was just self-consolation. She knew better than anyone that this was not a story. To her, this was the real world, and many accidents would happen. She was not special, and death would only take a moment. This was true for her and for others.
... So will Sima Jiao take the risk to save her
Sima Jiao did come to Yaozhou, but he was not in the camp where the army was stationed at that time.
When Prime Minister Du invited the "Majesty" who came from Luojing into the tent, he did have bad intentions. However, he soon discovered that there was something wrong with the "Majesty". He could not help but get closer to take a closer look. He immediately noticed the unnaturalness on this person's face, as if he had been painted like this by something. His eyes and movements did not have the viciousness of the real Majesty.
This is not Sima Jiao! Seeing the Prime Minister's face change, Gao Taibao, who was following His Majesty, took a step forward, walked in front of His Majesty, and smiled at him.
"Du Xiangguo."
"Gao Taibao, what do you mean?"
"Your Majesty should have come in person, but for some reason he fell ill and couldn't stand the long journey. He wanted to stay in Luojing, so he had no choice but to resort to this last resort and send someone to come on his behalf. By the way, the things here are more suitable for a fake Majesty to cooperate, aren't they?" Gao Taibao said meaningfully.
Prime Minister Du narrowed his eyes. He heard the deep meaning behind Gao Taibao's words and denied it without thinking: "I don't know..."
When he said this, Gao Taibao took out a box and handed it to him. "Prime Minister, there is no need to deny it in a hurry. Why don't you take a look at the gift from His Majesty to comfort you first?"
Prime Minister Du had a bad feeling in his heart, so he snatched the box and opened it to see some personal accessories, jade locks, etc. He recognized them, of course, these were personal items of his family, including his wife, several children, and the longevity lock that his grandson had worn since birth.
Prime Minister Du's eyes instantly turned red, and he glared at Gao Taibao fiercely. Gao Taibao, however, remained unmoved, and even smiled as he said, "Although Prime Minister secretly settled his family before leaving Luojing, Your Majesty was worried that those people would not take good care of them, so he had already taken them to a safe place to protect them, and was just waiting for the news of the Prime Minister's victory to be reported back."
"You..." Prime Minister Du never thought that the arrangement he thought was foolproof would be discovered by Sima Jiao.
Seeing that he was shocked and angry, Gao Taibao slowed down his tone and said, "The Prime Minister is loyal to Your Majesty. Your Majesty will naturally not let him down. After all, the Prime Minister has watched Your Majesty grow up since he was a child."
Prime Minister Du's face twisted for a while, and he looked at the boxes with struggling eyes. Finally, he slowly showed his dejection and lowered his head and said, "Your Majesty, I obey your command."
Gao Taibao was not surprised at all. Although Prime Minister Du was ambitious and cruel, ruthless in dealing with political enemies, and never satisfied with his greed for money, he valued his family very much. He had a very good relationship with his old wife and was very caring for his children. It was because of this that the late emperor dared to let him be the prime minister. His Majesty and the late emperor had completely different personalities, but they had the same things in their bones. It was also because of this that he allowed Prime Minister Du to call the shots in the court over the years.
It's not that they are afraid of him, but they think there is no need to touch him. First of all, Prime Minister Du is useful, and the court needs such a person. Secondly, he has not really done anything to anger His Majesty, so he can live until now. Now that he wants to kill his master, Sima Jiao will naturally not let him go. They all know that this time, Sima Jiao wants Prime Minister Du's life. No matter whether this game is a win or a loss, Prime Minister Du's life must be left here in exchange for the safety of his family.
"The Prime Minister needs to know that His Majesty is also giving you face. If the Prime Minister is sensible, at least he can be known as a loyal and patriotic person after his death, and his family will not be implicated."
…
Prime Minister Du walked out of the emperor's tent with heavy steps, his eyes filled with deep anger, fear, and helpless resignation. When he heard his subordinates report that another person had come quietly from King Qinnan's side, his expression became stern, and he remembered what Gao Taibao had said just now, and gritted his teeth: "Bring him to my tent as before."
Facing the envoy of King Qinnan, Prime Minister Du did not show any strangeness and agreed to the plan he conveyed. "Sima Jiao is indeed in the tent. When the time comes, I will naturally lead him to his death. Tell your prince not to forget his words and cooperate well."
After the waiter quietly left, Prime Minister Du ordered his son to come, the only son who had come with him to the battlefield. After this battle, he was afraid that he would not be able to return alive, so he could only take advantage of the time to make arrangements for his funeral. He had indeed been blinded by Sima Jiao's performance over the years, and thought that he was just a mediocre person with a bad temper. Unexpectedly, he was really a dog that bites without barking. Now he only hoped that if he did what Sima Jiao ordered, he would let his family go as he said.
Regardless of what everyone was thinking at the moment, Sima Jiao, who had forced Prime Minister Du to voluntarily die, was now sitting in an ordinary-looking carriage with dozens of guards, dressed as a child of an ordinary small family, and temporarily resting in an inn outside Yaozhou City.
Because of the tense war situation in Yaozhou City, people entering the city were strictly checked. It was impossible for them to sneak in with guards sitting in a carriage, all of whom were strangers. However, it did not prevent some people from leaving the city to deliver messages.
A woman came out of the Qinnan Palace and went out of the city to the inn. She knelt down behind the screen and greeted the nobleman with a stuttering voice, waiting for the other party to ask questions. Although she was a pawn planted in the Qinnan Palace, she was of low status and could not do anything big in the palace. She never thought that one day she would be able to personally greet the nobleman. She was so nervous that she almost held her breath.
Someone behind the screen was heard asking, "How is she? Is her injury healed?"
The woman knew who he was asking about, and quickly answered, "The noble concubine is now in the palace, and a doctor is treating her. However, her arm was almost pierced, so it is not easy to heal. Now she still cannot exert any force, and she still feels pain from time to time."
"Have you lost weight?"
The woman answered for a while, and seeing that the legendary violent master didn't want to beat or kill her, she relaxed a little and spoke more carefully: "The imperial concubine has lost too much blood, and her complexion has been bad these days. I can't visit her often. I secretly went to see her a few times and found that the imperial concubine looked depressed, without any joy on her face, and seemed to be a little thin."
"Everyone in the palace knows that the princess is hostile to the imperial concubine and often makes things difficult for her..." The woman honestly told everything she knew.
After she finished speaking, she saw that there was no movement behind the screen, so she was arranged to go out. She met a eunuch dressed as an ordinary attendant, who told her: "You must take good care of the imperial concubine. If there is any movement, the news will spread and chaos will soon break out. You must protect the imperial concubine no matter what."
The woman answered yes repeatedly and returned to the palace without attracting attention.
The person behind the screen was Sima Jiao. He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead without saying a word. Jin De, who walked in, saw him like this and couldn't figure out what he was thinking. He could only stand aside and said softly, "Your Majesty, the people have been sent back. The concubine is not in danger of life at the moment. Your Majesty can finally rest assured."
Sima Jiao raised his eyes and glanced at him, causing Jin De to shrink his neck.
"Tell Gao Taibao to let the Prime Minister act faster." Sima Jiao said impatiently.
If you don't bring the person back quickly, your waist might be gone.
A few days later, Chen Yun suggested to King Qin Nan that the women of the palace be sent to a safe place first to avoid any worries. King Qin Nan was in better health and was arranging his men to defend. Even though there was an agreement in place, he still had to be on guard against the other party changing their minds at the last minute. Hearing Chen Yun's words, he thought for a moment and agreed.
Qin Wuxia refused to leave. Chen Yun persuaded him for a long time before Qin Wuxia asked him, "What are you going to do about Liao Tingyan?"
Chen Yun said: "Of course she can't leave. Father has decided to tie her up in front of the battle."
Qin Wuxia looked at him suspiciously: "Can you bear it?"
Chen Yun showed a sad expression, looked away as if to hide it, and said righteously: "The situation is changing rapidly now, how can I ignore the overall situation for my own selfish reasons."
Qin Wuxia: "Okay, I'll leave before the battle starts!"
Liao Tingyan was soon spoiled by Qin Wuxia again, and knew that she would be tied to the top of the city wall. So what kind of old-fashioned bloody plot is this, the heroine, or this kind of red line disaster, appears in front of the two armies. If she can't come up with a high-sounding speech to stop the war, then she can only jump off the city wall sadly.
This time she guessed wrong. Before she was tied to the city wall, someone entered her courtyard and wanted to secretly escort her away, leaving a fake substitute. The person who sent someone to do this was none other than Chen Yun. Of course, he couldn't let the heroine die like this, so he came up with the trick of stealing the day.
Liao Tingyan was escorted out of the Qinnan Palace. Just as she left the city through the secret passage, she was stopped by Qin Wuxia who was waiting nearby before she had gone far. Qin Wuxia, who should have left a day earlier, was waiting here because she guessed that Chen Yun might not be honest, so she blocked her here, and she was indeed blocked by her. As a female supporting role, her IQ was fully maxed out at this moment. This is probably the mysterious detective attribute that women have towards their men.
Qin Wuxia was angry, and Liao Tingyan was even angrier. She had been being tossed around for a while and was very dissatisfied. She was almost going crazy in silence. Why did she have to go through this kind of emotional entanglement with the original wife catching the mistress? Her original plot had already flown away, but the couple wanted to pull her back to act out their own plots. Listening to Qin Wuxia shouting "bitch, bitch", she really wanted to gag her and kick her off the carriage.
Qin Wuxia responded and rolled off the carriage.
Liao Tingyan: … I think I’m just thinking about it in my mind but haven’t done anything yet
A carriage drove out of the woods not far away, and an archer jumped down from the shaft.
The author has something to say: Although I haven’t written about the meeting yet, this chapter of mine is very long!