Just as Qin Mu, the groom, was toasting the guests at each table, an undercurrent was surging in Ganzhou City.
The garrison in the city was first ordered not to act alone, and each team had to supervise each other. If anyone was found leaving the team alone without reporting, the entire team would be held accountable.
At the time of Wei, when it was still far from dark, the gates of Ganzhou City were closed and locked one after another. Teams of soldiers wearing helmets and armor, with swords and spears drawn, lined up inside the city gates, waiting as if they were facing a powerful enemy. For a moment, the atmosphere became extremely tense and made people feel that things were unpredictable.
When the people near the city gate saw this situation, they were all worried and talked about it.
"What's going on? Look what's going on. The city gates are closed before the time has even come."
"Is there another rebellion? They look as if they are facing a formidable enemy. Oh my God, I'm afraid there really are rebels coming to Ganzhou again."
"Impossible. Didn't they say that Gu Xiancheng was just wiped out in Jiulongzhang?"
"You are stupid. Even if there are rioters, they are not outside the city. Look carefully, they are lined up inside, with their swords and guns pointed at the city. They are clearly preventing someone from forcing their way out of the city."
"Yes, yes, I haven't heard of any rebellion in the city. Could it be that there is a thief?"
"Go home quickly and check if something happened at my place."
“… ... ... ... .”
While the discussion was going on at the city gate, a large group of soldiers from the military camp of Zuo Ze, the Ganzhou Guard Office in the south of the city, marched out and headed straight for the Xu family's villa in the north of the city where a wedding banquet was being held. The soldiers in front cleared the way with guns and shouted coldly;
Anyone on the street who was unable to avoid the crowd was immediately pushed to the side of the road. Wherever the troops passed, dust flew everywhere, people were in chaos, people carrying loads and setting up stalls were knocked over, their goods were scattered all over the ground, adults screamed, children cried, and the scene was in chaos.
In the main hall of the Xu family's villa, Yang Tinglin made the excuse that he was drunk and was resting his eyes.
He appeared calm on the surface, but his heart was in turmoil. As a minister, he should be loyal to the emperor. This was the integrity he always adhered to in his heart. Even though Wen Tianxiang died, his integrity remained. This was the character that a minister should have.
Qin Mu has his own army and is already separatist. All this can be said to be caused by Yang Tinglin alone. If he had not fully supported Qin Mu and let Qin Mu take full control of the military power, there would not be the crisis today.
If Qin Muruo really rebelled, even if the court was unable to pursue him, Yang Tinglin would find it difficult to forgive himself.
Fortunately, there is still room for remedy. Meng Ke, Ma Yongzhen and other generals are only temporary and have not been officially appointed by the court. As long as they are captured and the troops of Huichang and Xinfeng are controlled, Qin Mu, a small county magistrate, will find it difficult to make any big waves without the help of Meng Ke, Ma Yongzhen and other right-hand men.
When Ganzhou City was in danger, it was thanks to Qin Mu that the situation was resolved and the rebellion was quickly put down. Yang Tinglin was not an ungrateful person. He had no intention of taking Qin Mu's life and even allowed his daughter to marry him, hoping that after he lost his military power, he would honestly serve as the magistrate of Huichang.
Of course, if Qin Mu refused to compromise and insisted on a fight to the death, he would also not hesitate to sacrifice his own family for the sake of justice to prevent future troubles.
But Yang Tinglin had no idea whether things would develop as he had imagined. Qin Mu, Meng Ke and others had already established a very high prestige in the army, and their marching and fighting orders were strictly enforced. Even if they could successfully capture Qin Mu, Meng Ke and others, it was still too early to say whether Hu Ge and Qian Qing could successfully control the thousands of arrogant soldiers in Huichang and Xinfeng.
If you can control it, then everything will be fine.
If the situation could not be controlled, Ganzhou would most likely be filled with war and rebellion again. Then all Yang Tinglin's efforts would become a crime. Therefore, one can imagine how much pressure he was under.
This was like a gamble, Yang Tinglin had staked everything on it, including his life. So far, the game seemed to be going well. Outside the hall, Qin Mu was already drunk, and was being supported by Liu Meng and Zhu Yijin as he went from table to table to toast the guests. Without any further tricks, he would not be able to hold on for long before he passed out.
Qin Mu came to Sima An's table to toast. Everyone at the table stood up, except Sima An, who sat still, with a slightly uncertain expression. This inevitably attracted everyone's attention.
Qin Mu thought that as Yang Tinglin's trusted aide, he was still feeling sorry for Yang Zhiming because of Li Xiangjun's matter, and was deliberately giving him a hard time. Just like the last time Yang Zhaocai, the housekeeper of the Yang Mansion, went to Huichang and spoke very rudely.
He laughed and stepped forward and said, "Mr. Sima, you think I have been neglectful. I want to apologize to you. Come on, I will offer you a toast first."
Sima An stood up, shook his head and said, "Master Qin has misunderstood. I just saw that Master Qin was already drunk. If he drank any more, it would be embarrassing in public. What's more, every moment of love is worth a thousand gold. The bride is still waiting in the bridal chamber. If the groom gets drunk, wouldn't it be a waste of the beautiful scene tonight?"
"Haha, Mr. Sima is right. I am indeed drunk. Mr. Sima thinks of others and is concerned about their needs..."
"Master Qin, there is no need to say more. I have a prescription here that is very effective for sobering up. Master Qin, please go get the medicine according to the prescription first, drink it, and then come to serve the guests."
"Please tell me the recipe quickly, Mr. Sima. If I can avoid getting drunk today, I will be very grateful."
Sima An coughed lightly and said in a serious tone, "Listen carefully, Lord Qin. The recipe for hangover is one coin each of wolfsbane, saposhnikovia, cicada shell, jujube and angelica. Boil them quickly and drink them. Lord Qin may as well try it first."
"Thank you, Mr. Sima. Thank you very much."
Qin Mu still toasted the guests at the table, and then left with Liu Meng's help. He boiled wolfsbane, saposhnikovia, cicada shell, jujube, and angelica before drinking. He repeated Sima An's prescription twice in his mind, and his heart could not help but skip a beat.
The doubt that had dissipated after the wedding ceremony surged into his mind again. No matter whether Sima An's prescription hinted at something or not, he could no longer take it lightly.
He pretended to be drunk, leaned against Liu Meng, and ordered urgently: "Liu Meng, I'm afraid things have changed. Go and gather the brothers we brought with us. At the same time, let Meng Ke and the others return to the Qianhu Division immediately to control the army. Go, go quickly."
"Your Excellency..."
"Don't worry about me, just go."
"yes."
Liu Meng handed Qin Mu to Zhu Yijin and walked quickly towards Meng Ke's table.
Meng Ke, Huo Sheng, Cui Feng and Ling Zhan had been through life and death together in Liaodong. Naturally, they sat at the same table at the wedding banquet today. When Liu Meng rushed over to take a look, he found that they were all drunk and lying on the table unconscious.
Slap! Slap! After two slaps, Meng Ke still showed no sign of waking up, as if he had been drugged.
It's impossible. It's impossible for several people to be so drunk. They must have been tricked by someone.
Liu Meng's head buzzed, and in a hurry he didn't care about losing his composure. He retreated and ran towards the East Courtyard. The one hundred men they brought were all in the East Courtyard.
Qin Mu saw Liu Meng running wildly from afar, and his heart was shocked. Without thinking too much, he ordered Zhu Yijin who was supporting him: "Quick, go into the hall and control Yang Tinglin, quickly."
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