The emperor suddenly spoke, which was more surprising than the fact that Liu Jie was dragged away by the soldiers. Yang Feng turned around suddenly, and it was too late to stop him.
Han Ruzi didn't want to sit on the sidelines any longer. He knew that he was just a puppet with no power and no power. No one would listen to what he said, but he still had to say something for Liu Jie, because this eunuch had publicly sent him a treasure seal. , even if it is a play, it should have a beginning and an end.
"Zhen... I want to know who the assassin is and why he wanted to assassinate him. Liu Zhangxi is a minister in the palace, so let's interrogate him here. Ministers... are also qualified to know the truth."
In an instant, a dark tide surged in the room, with dodging eyes, rippling clothes, and a mouth that was still trying to speak... Han Ruzi was both nervous and amused. After waiting for a while, no one responded, and he sat down. He lowered his eyes and said, "Of course, this is just me... just my humble opinion... "
Zuo Ji, who was standing at the door of the Nuan Pavilion, listened to the door for a while, and said loudly: "The queen mother has a purpose, the emperor's words are very true, right here to interrogate Liu Jie immediately, and make sure to find out the facts."
As soon as the Queen Mother spoke, no one objected, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Shangguan Xu called in a clerk to read the confession of the assassin's accomplice.
The clerk came from the Southern Army, never expected to speak in front of the emperor and many ministers one day, fearful in his heart, kneeling on the ground, his voice trembling all the time, as if he was an accomplice of the assassin, "Rebel... Shen Sanhua, forty... four Thirteen years old, from Linzi, Qi, height..."
Shangguan Xu became impatient, "Omit this and go straight to the content of the confession."
"Yes yes." The clerk slid his fingers over several lines and continued: "The criminal Shen Sanhua said, 'In the summer of the thirty-fifth year of Emperor Wu's beauty, Qiu Jizu entered the palace and gave me five taels of silver, begging me to take care of it' - Your Majesty, Ladies and gentlemen, Qiu Jizu is the name of the assassin - 'Since then, Qiu Jizu has given gifts from time to time, and he has accumulated more than 340 taels of silver in ten years. After my recommendation, Qiu Jizu worked in the laundry bureau, the Royal Horse Supervisor, and the Xifu Supervisor. On the fifteenth of this month, Qiu Jizu said to me, said to me...'"
"Don't be vague, what to say." Shangguan Xu encouraged.
"Ah? My lord, it was the criminal Shen Sanhua who said 'Tell me' twice." The clerk was too nervous, and indeed he said, "What are you talking about?"
Shangguan Xu blushed, bowed to the emperor and the concubine, and said, "The confessions are complicated, please choose a brief one."
The imperial concubine agreed, "Please read the confession to Prime Minister Yin."
Yin Wuxian took the confession quiveringly, and leaned in front of him to read it one by one. His movements were stiff, but he read very quickly. He finished reading the more than ten pages of the confession in no time. His expression changed greatly, he raised his head, looked around, and finally looked at After reaching the imperial concubine, he said: "Assassin Qiu Jizu claimed to Shen Sanhua that he was hiding in the palace under the order of King Qi. For ten years, the bribes, gold and silver have all come from King Qi. Disturb the court so that King Qi can take the opportunity to make trouble!"
As soon as this remark came out, the whole room was alarmed, disregarding etiquette, and discussing each other, every sentence was inseparable from "King Qi", with the exception of Han Ruzi, when everyone was quiet for a while, he asked: "What does this have to do with Liu Jie, the royal seal of the middle? Did he benefit from an assassin?"
Prime Minister Yin Wuhao bowed to the emperor, then looked at the eunuch Liu Jie, and said coldly: "Whether Liu Jie has benefited, there is no testimony to support it, but Liu Jie made trouble in the Qinzheng Palace yesterday afternoon and provoked trouble in front of the minister. His Majesty and the Empress Dowager's mother and son are affectionate, and then Qiu Jizu assassinated at the second shift in the night. Once this is done, the crime of murdering the king will be attributed to the Empress Dowager, which is extremely insidious."
Liu Jie's face was pale, and he said nothing. Years of experience told him that he could not escape this time, so he raised his head and said, "Qiu Jizu is a servant of the Xifu Supervisor, if he is really an assassin, Liu is guilty of ignoring and willing to surrender. Death. But I have no intention of rebelling at all, I am loyal to my liver and righteous, and the sun and the moon can learn from it, Your Majesty…”
Han Ruzi was thinking about how to use his extremely limited power to keep Liu Jie. Suddenly, there was a commotion outside, and a voice shouted "Assassin". The assassin appeared in broad daylight. All the ministers were shocked. One order after another.
The imperial concubine said to Yang Feng, "Take the emperor away."
Yang Feng bowed and said yes, grabbed the emperor's wrist, and dragged him into the Xinuan Pavilion. The King of the East Sea followed two steps and stopped again. He found that this was a good opportunity from heaven, and took advantage of the chaos to go to his uncle Cui Hong.
There are already two people in the Xinuan Pavilion, one is Meng E, who is standing by the window, the other is an ugly maid who once protected the imperial concubine in the imperial temple, standing quietly in the corner, like a statue forgotten by the master, two People did not bow down when they saw the emperor, and even turned a blind eye to Yang Feng.
"Will Liu Zhangxi be killed?" Han Ruzi asked, when the two palace maids did not exist.
"If Your Majesty stands up for him again, Liu Jie will surely die." Yang Feng said solemnly, not caring about the two of them.
There was a lot of noise outside, but Han Ruzi was not worried about the assassin, "I don't think Liu Jie is a bad person, he..."
Yang Feng interrupted the emperor's words, his voice was even more severe, "I said that those who need His Majesty's protection are not worthy of protection. To have a long-term plan requires long-term people. Liu Jie alone protecting the seal can be called a warrior, but not the person His Majesty needs right now."
Han Ruzi was at a loss for words, and after a while he said, "Is there still a chance for me to use a warrior like Liu Jie?"
"Don't ask anyone for promises." Yang Feng's tone was a little slower, "What Your Majesty has to do is to wait quietly. If the opportunity does not come, no one can help His Majesty. When the opportunity comes, His Majesty must be able to seize it."
Han Ruzi turned to look at Meng E, "Like her?"
Meng E is good at waiting and is indifferent to all the disturbances around her.
Yang Feng nodded, and just as he was about to turn around and go out, Han Ruzi stopped him, "Wait, tell me the truth."
"Please, Your Majesty."
Han Ruzi was silent for a while. Every word he said here would definitely reach the Queen Mother's ears, but he had to ask, "Is there really an assassin? Is King Qi really going to rebel?"
"If Your Majesty wants the truth, it's useless to ask me. I don't know more than others. Your Majesty might as well think about other things. If there is a fire in the neighbor's house, if you can, carry a bucket to save it. , is also an option." Yang Feng paused, "It is because of King Qi that His Majesty can successfully ascend to the throne."
Han Ruzi's eyes widened, not understanding what Yang Feng meant.
"When the first emperor died, both His Majesty and the King of the East Sea were likely to take the throne. There was no conclusion for several days. It was I who went to see Cui Hong, the chief of the Southern Army at that time, and told him that King Qi was recruiting troops to buy horses and wanted to help the clan. Cui Hong started a rebellion in the name of foreign relatives. If the emperor was not established early, the imperial court would be uneasy, and Cui Hong would be in trouble. Cui Hong was willing to hand over the seal and ceded the position of the Southern Army Chief Sima to Shangguan Xu. Decided to elect His Majesty as Emperor."
The transaction between Mrs. Cui and the Queen Mother must be more than these. Han Ruzi did not ask any further questions. He understood one thing. Yang Feng is a fisherman in troubled waters, and now is the time for troubled waters again, "Yang Changshi, forgive me, I No more confusion."
The emperor showed the rare self-knowledge of a young man of the same age, which is what Yang Feng admired. "Now is not the time for His Majesty to show off his strengths. Let me first open up a path for His Majesty."
Han Ruzi hummed, vaguely feeling that the two had reached a deal.
Yang Feng is like a busy broker, roaming between different forces, helping all parties to reach a compromise, Han Ruzi is a little puzzled, Yang Feng spares no effort to swim in the muddy water, what fish do you want to catch
The door opened, and the reluctant East Sea King walked in, "The assassin committed suicide, it's not bad, there is no evidence of death..." Seeing Meng E and another palace maid, he hurriedly shut up.
"Your Majesty, please listen more and talk less." After saying this, Yang Feng returned to the noisy crowd. The emperor needed to wait for the opportunity, but he had to plunge into the whirlpool.
"Yang Feng is so bold, and he dares to speak to the emperor in a teaching tone, and you are not angry?" In contrast, King Donghai's tone was even more disrespectful, "It's nothing to hear, anyway, King Qi is not a good person, and he will assassinate him. The crime is definitely not wronged on his head. Now it depends on whether he dares to launch an uprising. The palace is really chaotic. The assassins are quite powerful. He killed seven guards and passed three palace gates before committing suicide. Hidden in the palace for ten years! During this period, the three emperors died... Hey, good luck."
Finding that the Queen Mother did not specifically target the Cui family, the King of the East Sea was much more relaxed.
Han Ruzi didn't say a word, he was really listening, listening to the voices outside, he understood the meaning of Yang Feng's last sentence: the time may never come, if it does come, he has to ensure that he is a qualified emperor, From now on, he must use every opportunity to learn the art of the emperor.
Assassination, treason, clan, relatives, ministers... Da Chu faces a huge crisis, and the chaos in the outside world is his excellent study material.
Several ministers were acting, and Han Ruzi heard it. Their panic and righteous indignation were all evading responsibility, waiting for others to make decisions, and acting on their own. Jing Yao and other eunuchs were bluffing. The most trustworthy person has nothing to do with the assassin and Liu Jie.
Han Ruzi suddenly realized that the people he needs to pay attention to the most are not ministers and eunuchs, but the empress dowager in the opposite court. At this moment, she is facing a rebellion on behalf of the emperor. There are not many measures taken.
What would you do if you changed it to yourself? Han Ruzi listened and thought, and found that it was really difficult.
The King of the East Sea has already found a place to sit down. In his opinion, the matter is very simple, "I really don't understand what they are fighting for. Sending a general to lead an army of 100,000 is enough to pacify the state of Qi. King Qi's assassination plan failed. I don’t dare to make trouble, and it’s almost the same as committing suicide to apologize.”
"How do you know whether the general you sent is going to attack Qi or join forces with King Qi?" Han Ruzi expressed his thoughts.
King Donghai frowned, "Then send a few more generals to supervise each other, or send Guan Xu. He is the Queen Mother's brother, so he should be trusted. Unfortunately, he is a fake general and doesn't know how to fight at all."
Han Ruzi shook his head, the queen mother would not send her brother, let alone a group of suspicious generals.
The outside suddenly became quiet, and an unfamiliar female voice said, "On the basis of one-sided words, it is impossible to determine that King Qi has rebelled. Mrs. Cui has ruled the army for many years and is a good general of the country. Please ask Mr. Cui to lead the army and go to Qi to find out the truth."
King Donghai jumped up from his chair and whispered: "The queen mother actually sent my uncle to fight Qi, what did she, she think?"
Han Ruzi suddenly understood the Queen Mother's intention.