Li Ke was lying on a bed made of wooden planks and marching quilts, leaning on his arms and looking at the dilapidated roof, feeling a little lonely and unable to sleep.
"Are these two people planning to sit outside all night?" Li Ke glanced outside and said to himself. Wan'er couldn't help but smile and secretly said: "No matter how smart Qin Mubai is, he can't escape from Gao Yang's little hand. Which man can refuse a girl who has just begun to fall in love? This girl has been domineering since she was a child. Except for her father and her mother, she will let anyone do it." I didn’t look down on her either. I didn’t expect that once she got emotional, she would be a full-fledged little woman, quite cute.”
Time passed by minute by minute, and it was already midnight in the blink of an eye. Li Ke finally felt a little sleepy. Looking outside, Qin Mubai and Princess Gao Yang were still sitting there hugging each other, with no intention of getting up.
"These two are crazy." Li Ke stood up and walked to the door, chanting, "Although the flower moon is nice, the chill is already strong. When do you two little mandarin ducks plan to return to their nests?"
"Ah... Third brother, aren't you asleep? I hate it!" Princess Gao Yang shouted angrily, her face flushed, and she was indeed a little embarrassed. After all, it's late at night, so it's not right for a man and a woman to stay together. They always have to be separated. Is it possible that...
"Go back and rest." Qin Mubai said with a smile, "You must be tired after running around all day, and you have to rush back to Puzhou tomorrow. Have a good rest, and you will have the energy to go on the road tomorrow."
"Okay..." Princess Gao Yang nodded reluctantly and said sadly, "Then will you come to see me off tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow I will arrange for you and King Wu to leave early. Early in the morning is my busiest time. There are so many things in the army that I have to deal with." Qin Mubai smiled a little apologetically, "So, I I can’t come to see you off.”
"I hate it. Why are you stinky men always so busy? Nothing is interesting when you are so busy." Princess Gao Yang was quite unhappy and knocked Qin Mubai's elbow with her pink fist. , said, "Then you have to go back to Chang'an as soon as possible! I'll wait for you in Chang'an!"
"Yes, I will." Qin Mubai smiled.
"Remember! Go back to Chang'an as soon as possible. I'll wait for you in Chang'an!"
"At a young age, you can learn from your mother-in-law. Go back to the house quickly, King Wu is waiting for you!"
"I want to! I'm going to be chatty with you. Don't be annoying or dislike my mother-in-law!" Princess Gaoyang finally got up, walked backwards toward the house, and looked at Qin Mubai reluctantly. , eyes unblinking.
"Go!" Qin Mubai nodded and smiled, "Have a good time and don't fall down again."
"Ouch-"
Before she finished speaking, Princess Gao Yang stepped on her long cloak and fell to the ground.
Qin Mubai shook his head and smiled bitterly, went over to help her up, and said, "It's cold in the morning, so I'll give you the cloak. You wear it all the way. But remember not to step on it and fall down again, understand?"
"I know! Hehe!" Princess Gaoyang happily patted her butt and said with a smile, "I'm leaving! You should go back too, rest early, don't miss me!"
"I definitely don't want to."
"you dare!"
…
Li Ke's face kept twitching, and he finally couldn't help it anymore: "Are you done feeling numb? Let's go back and rest!"
…
Qin Mubai left the grove, and several Baiqi guards were still waiting for him to return to the camp.
"General, just now Chu Suiliang sent someone to deliver a message, asking the general to go to the palace of the King of Jiangxia for a banquet in three days." A soldier said.
"I know." Qin Mubai thought to himself, it seems that Li Daozong really invited a lot of people, even Chu Suiliang. Chu Suiliang and I are both close ministers of the emperor. When he "put on a show" like this this time, he also intended to show it to the emperor, right
Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, there has never been a situation where "all the good birds are gone and the bows are hidden" to suppress the founding fathers. This is better than many dynasties. But this does not mean that the emperor is really not afraid of those senators who have made outstanding contributions. It was not because of Li Shimin's achievements, ability and courage, but because he was afraid of being overpowered by someone. As an emperor, he wanted more to let his descendants inherit his legacy.
If any hero's reputation among officials and common people is as good as that of the emperor, that would be a bad thing. Who can tell whether their descendants will use this to replace them
Therefore, because the emperor wants to guard against minor mistakes, things like high achievements and high achievements will shock the emperor. Li Shimin's intention in this Jiangzhou case was very obscure, but he also had some intention of targeting Li Daozong. Because Li Daozong has been active in Li Tang's camp since Li Yuan raised his army. In terms of merit and popularity, he is not much worse than Li Shimin. Apart from a minor problem with money-grubbing, he was almost perfect. In contrast, Li Shimin had a major stain: he killed his brothers and forced his father to abdicate. Moreover, he was greedy for women and took wives from his younger brothers. His personal morality was not as good as that of Li Daozong.
Perhaps in Li Shimin's heart, this too-perfect heroic brother has always been a worry for him. But the two of them have always had a very good relationship, and Li Daozong has always followed Li Shimin's lead, and he has been hard-working, low-key, cautious, and not at all arrogant.
But the more he behaved like this, the more uneasy it made Li Shimin feel.
Because he is so perfect, he is far more respected than the emperor.
After finally finding out about his greed for money, Li Shimin gave some hints to investigate. It's just that I don't know how the two people compete in private, but Qin Mubai is very interested.
At dawn the next day, Li Ke and Princess Gaoyang set off in an inconspicuous old carriage. Before the carriage left the official road and turned a big bend to leave Jishan County, Princess Gaoyang had been holding up the curtain of the rear compartment with her little hands and staring blankly.
"Don't look at it. He is the busiest in the morning and won't come to see you off." Li Ke advised her, "Look at you, your hands are red from the cold."
"I know he won't come, but I just want to take a look..." Princess Gao Yang bit her lips and murmured in a low voice, "Third brother, I really can't bear to leave here! Although this is my first time here, But I feel that this place is very friendly and has left me with the best memories. If possible, I will build a house here and live here for the rest of my life!”
"Stop talking nonsense, sit back quickly and see how frozen you are!" Li Ke hurriedly came to pull her away.
"No! I'm going to watch like this, watch..."
…
Three days later, early morning.
After taking care of the military affairs, Qin Mubai returned to the back tent and changed into a neatly dressed brocade suit for a long journey, equipped with a long sword, a mandarin cloak, a golden crown in his hair and a jade certificate hanging at his waist, transforming himself into a handsome and elegant young man.
"General, Mr. Chu is here." The soldier came to announce.
Qin Mubai went out to greet him, and Chu Suiliang smiled from a distance: "General Qin, you have become even more elegant after a few days apart! Such a handsome and handsome gentleman has the style of a Confucian general like Zhou Gongjin of the Three Kingdoms. !”
"Haha, Mr. Chu is really good at joking! It's hard to find time to relax after a busy day. Let's get on the road to Jinzhou as soon as possible! Get in the carriage and we'll probably arrive at noon." Qin Mubai said with a smile.
"Okay, let's go! I've been so busy these days. Going to the palace for a banquet is just as easy and relaxing!" Chu Suiliang also laughed, and boarded the carriage with Qin Mubai.
As the carriage meandered towards Jinzhou, Qin Mubai and Chu Suiliang chatted all the time in the carriage.
Chu Suiliang was born into an authentic scholarly family. He was refined, knowledgeable, and knowledgeable. Talking to him was like drinking a bottle of fine wine, and you were intoxicated.
After chatting about some poems and songs, Chu Suiliang said casually: "Yesterday I was in the Yamen of Jiangzhou Prefecture and suddenly received a secret envoy from Chang'an."
"Secret envoy?" Qin Mubai asked curiously, "Where did the secret envoy come from?"
"In the palace." Chu Suiliang smiled mysteriously and said only two words.
Qin Mubai frowned slightly and asked, "Does the emperor have any decree?"
"No. They were not sent by the emperor." Chu Suiliang smiled even more mysteriously.
"Who else could it be?"
In fact, Qin Mubai had already suddenly thought of a person - Concubine Yin De!
Princess Gaoyang must be missing, she sent people out to look for her! If it were someone sent by the emperor, he wouldn't be so low-key and careful. He might be aggressive and take someone directly!
"Princess Gaoyang is missing," said Chu Suiliang. "Her mother-in-law was so anxious that she sent people everywhere to look for her. Of course, she sent people to search secretly and did not dare to make a big splash. She was worried that Princess Gaoyang would go north to her hometown in Bingzhou privately and hide in her At my uncle's house, I sent someone to ask me if there was any news about Princess Gaoyang passing through Jiangzhou."
"I see..." Qin Mubai nodded slightly, thinking: It seems that Concubine Yin De is quite cautious. She must have suspected that Princess Gaoyang came directly to me, but she only went to Chu Suiliang's place first to spy on her. information. She is not worried about Princess Gaoyang meeting me, but she is worried that Chu Suiliang will find out about it and inform the emperor... This Concubine Yin De is so smart!
"Brother Mu Bai has been busy with military affairs. He must have never met Princess Gaoyang, right?" Chu Suiliang asked.
Qin Mubai couldn't help but smile in his heart, Chu Suiliang's question was interesting. But the word "ye" was added in the middle of that sentence. He was clearly telling me that he had never "seen" Princess Gaoyang. Maybe he was very suspicious that Princess Gaoyang had indeed come to see me. He might even have solid evidence in his hands. He knew clearly that I had already met the princess, but he deliberately told me this way, but there was something "coinciding" about it. It means informing the emperor.
"Of course I have never seen it before." Qin Mubai smiled and said, "How could Princess Gaoyang, with her golden branches and jade leaves, come to a military camp full of rough men?"
"That's right. I didn't hear any news about the princess in Jiangzhou, so I replied to the secret envoy yesterday, and the secret envoy went north to Bingzhou to continue searching." Chu Suiliang said casually, without even mentioning the reason for Princess Gaoyang's death. He disappeared.
The two of them had a tacit understanding and never mentioned the matter again.
Qin Mubai had a vague feeling that Chu Suiliang was intentionally "showing goodwill" to him, or that he had a hint of "I caught you, but I didn't betray you, but you owe me a favor this time."
"All officials are like this! Try not to offend others if you can. Chu Suiliang doesn't want to offend me, nor does he want to offend Concubine Yin De, let alone get involved in any disputes within the royal family. Just think that I owe him a favor. Well, I'll just find a chance to pay him back in the future. Wouldn't it make me more friends if I go back and forth like this?" Qin Mubai thought to himself.