The three of them talked about Bai Su, and then talked about Rong Wu's investigation in the Huainan area. In order to avoid alerting the enemy, there has been no news from Rong Wu recently.
However, the things that the secret guards sent over last time have already been checked by Chen Sheng, the coroner of the Dali Temple. They are all newly buried bones, and the preliminary judgment is that the date of death is within two months.
That is to say... there is a huge burial pit in Huainan, and at least some of the people buried there died in the twelfth month of this winter.
Huh... so many people died, yet they say that the people came to see them off and were grateful to the court
Duan Changchuan wanted to crush the teacup in his hand.
Thoroughly investigate Huainan!
It is imperative.
-
At this time, the three of them were sitting around Datong's sand chart.
"If we want to thoroughly investigate Huainan, we must send a trustworthy army there. Otherwise, there will be many obstacles and no matter how many people we send, they will all be defeated."
Yun Xie said, inserting the signs into Huainan, the Western Border, and the Southern Border respectively: "Huainan is located in the heart of our country, and the Western Border Army and the Southern Border Army are not very close."
Feng Yu grabbed a handful of fine white sand and in just a moment he had spread out two roads leading to Huainan.
"If I remember correctly, these two roads are the shortest. But in terms of straight-line distance, the south and west are the same, but if you look at the walking route, the southern border is faster. The western region is mountainous, and it is difficult for horses to walk."
Yun Xie's eyes lit up: "Then God is really helping you and me. If something happened in Huainan, don't we have sufficient reason to dispatch the Southern Xinjiang Army to assist in the investigation?"
Duan Changchuan looked at the two routes spread out by the white sand and frowned. "If the Western Xinjiang and Southern Xinjiang troops really start to travel along this route, it will only take two or three days. But the Western Region is a natural barrier, easy to defend and difficult to attack; the Southern Region is mostly open land, and there are more invasions from enemy countries, and each sentry post cannot do without people. If it is discussed in the court, the ministers will be more inclined to dispatch soldiers from the Western Region."
The Western Region is guarded by Duan Qinxue's uncle.
If the Western Frontier Army was dispatched to Huainan, it might not be assistance but outright sheltering.
It is easy for the Regent to smooth over anything he wants.
The one guarding the Southern Territory is Duan Changchuan's uncle.
If it really comes to the court, the Regent will definitely try his best to suppress Southern Xinjiang and will never let the Southern Xinjiang army move even a single step.
Of course, Duan Changchuan would argue with reason. The final result would be to dispatch the military from Shengjing.
Once Shengjing sends troops, it will involve various forces in the court, and the situation will only become more complicated.
Moreover, the Regent knew in advance that Huainan would be thoroughly investigated, and he would send people there in advance to cover up any clues.
In this case, Rong Wu might die in Huainan.
The room fell silent for a moment.
The three of them frowned in thought, and no one spoke.
The boy sitting in the middle bit his lips tightly, his fingertips clenched into his flesh.
Another dead end.
After much difficulty, they managed to catch the Regent's clique's weakness, but the situation became a dead end because the Regent had absolute power in the court.
The young man's clear eyes gradually sank.
Their overt power has been eroded to the point where there is little left.
Now, the emperor, who had just come of age and was about to make a name for himself, had become a trapped beast in a cage... He had a pair of sharp claws, but was surrounded by prison walls on all sides.
After a long silence, the usually gentle young emperor's eyes turned as dark as ink.
He said: "He has been in the court for twenty years. I will not confront him head-on. I will play dirty with him."
The voice was clear and cold, with a hint of cruelty.
"Let's show him our cards. Expand the Huainan incident to its fullest extent. Investigate it thoroughly. All those who are guilty will be sentenced to death. If they are innocent, all those who are under the Regent's command will be executed. This time, I will remove all the chess pieces he has buried along the entire southern front."
Yun Xie whistled excitedly when he heard this.
He threw the jade card in his hand high into the air, and said jokingly, "Oh, has our gentleman finally figured it out? I've said that if you want to win, you have to do everything you can. What's fair and aboveboard? Is Duan Jing'an fair and aboveboard? We should be gentlemen when we should be gentlemen, and we should be villains when we should be villains. Tell me, how do you show your cards? Do you show all of them? Everyone in Baimu Palace has been waiting to deal with him for more than ten years."
The young man was too excited. Duan Changchuan glanced at him coldly and said, "When I say show my cards, I don't mean yours."
Yun Xie almost failed to catch the jade pendant he threw out.
"If you don't show the Baimu Palace, then what cards do you have? Are you going to show the card of the secret guards? Don't be silly. Why are secret guards called secret guards? Isn't it because they can't be in the open? If you show them all out to do things, who else can protect you? This time we have to shed a layer of skin of the regent in one fell swoop. What if the old guy gets pushed into a corner and becomes mad and directly kills the king?"
Sending all the secret guards out actually removed Duan Changchuan's protection in the palace.
And the generals of his faction were ordered to go to Huainan to investigate.
If Duan Jing'an is really driven crazy and forces the emperor to abdicate, Duan Changchuan will probably not even have anyone to save him in the palace.
Although the imperial guards were all carefully selected men from Datong, each of them could fight against a hundred people.
However, Duan Jingan has a large number of soldiers in Shengjing, so they will definitely not be reliable if something happens.
What's more, it is still unclear whether this group of people are loyal or not.
Only the secret guards who have followed their father since childhood and were trained by his father personally can be entrusted with their lives.
But the young emperor showed no fear, and said calmly: "Taking risks is also a means of action. A monarch has his own luck. If I fail here, it means I am destined not to get this position."
Yun Xie was going crazy: "Why did you start to believe in luck? Besides, even if there is such a thing as luck, can it be used like this? Knowing that there is a tiger in the mountain, you are willing to gamble whether the tiger will come out of its den today? What's wrong with calling a few more people to fight the tiger together? No matter what, you have to save your life first, otherwise, what have my aunt and I worked hard for so many years for? Is it to better collect your body? I don't agree."
Hearing the words "collect corpses", Feng Xian, who had been silent all this time, spoke sternly: "Yun'er, don't talk nonsense."
The young man shut up angrily, holding his folding fan.
I dare not say anything, but I am still angry.
Feng Yu was much calmer than him and remained silent, thinking.
Then he slowly said, "Your Majesty's decision is not a bad one. Although this decision is risky, your Majesty's uncle is in charge of Southern Xinjiang, and the Southern Xinjiang Army is well-known. If the Regent wants to force the emperor to abdicate, he will also consider whether he can keep the throne he has seized. Moreover, Yun'er and I don't know how many secret guards your Majesty has, and the Regent doesn't know even more."
Duan Changchuan: "But my father left the secret guards to me, and everyone in the court knows about this."
"The Huainan incident is indeed a serious matter, but for the regent, even if he loses the fight, he will only lose his right arm. In the regent's heart, your majesty has staked his entire family fortune. If he loses, he will no longer have the confidence to turn the tables."
In fact, the difference in chips between the two parties is not that big, but if the other side underestimates the enemy, then it will be a different situation.
The young man, who was depressed just now, suddenly smiled arrogantly.
With a click, Huainan's blue flag was folded down and replaced with a bright yellow one.
"I am not afraid of losing, but I will win."
-
Duan Changchuan discussed countermeasures with Feng Qian and others, and then left the Sitianjian.
Outside the yard, the hibiscus flowers are in full bloom.
The two men saluted one after the other:
"Farewell, Your Majesty."
One spoke respectfully, while the other spoke in a nonchalant voice.
Duan Changchuan curled his lips and said, "No need to send me off. I will come to drink the tea made by my aunt next time."
"Feng Yan is always at your service, Your Majesty."
Then the young man turned and left, and the door of the Sitianjian slowly closed.
The conversation between the two was heard through the high vermilion wall:
"Still angry?"
"How dare I? You guys are so powerful, and I am just a firecracker."
“That’s being angry.”
"I already said I'm not angry."
"oh."
"Oh... what? What do you know? Give me some money. I want to go to Yujinlou for dinner."
"What do you want to eat? Can't the cooks at the Imperial Astronomical Bureau make it?"
"I want to go to Yujinlou to see the girls and listen to music. Please ask the cook to sing for me."
…
I couldn't hear clearly what was said afterwards.
But he had already walked quite far when he heard Yun Xie's angry cry.
The sound was so loud that it might scare away all the birds in the garden.
Duan Changchuan paused and shook his head helplessly.
Just say... In this world, everything has its own strengths.
-
After returning to the Mingsheng Temple, I received a report from the Grand Tutor around dusk, saying that the spring examination was over and the test papers had been sent to the cabinet to be reviewed by several selected examiners.
The results will be announced in seven days at the latest.
It was time for dinner in the evening, and the empress dowager came over slowly, saying that she had specially asked the imperial physician Fang and personally cooked some medicinal porridge for him.
During this period, the mother was loving and the son was filial, and they got along quite harmoniously.
Duan Changchuan rarely experienced the feeling of being cared for by his mother, and he was still a little dazed until he saw the empress dowager off.
Changle wiped the corners of his eyes and said, "That's great... The Queen Mother cares so much about Your Majesty, and I am happy to see it."
Duan Changchuan looked at the elegant sedan chair that was leaving and whispered to himself, "Really...? I'm happy too."
But what I was thinking about was someone else.
Yun Xie said that it was she who single-handedly debated with all the ministers at the dinner and left everyone speechless.
Perhaps... it was because of the quarrel between her and the Queen Mother that she received her mother's concern, which came many years late...
White element.
The boy chewed on this name silently in his heart...
I wonder what she is doing now
Have you had your meal
The day before yesterday, the teacher told him that the Empress had a photographic memory and was extremely intelligent. She had her own opinions on the books she had read. When it came to politics, she was sometimes more insightful than him, the teacher.
All in all, she was a heroic woman who was no less capable than any man.
I don’t know if it’s because of something in my heart… I can only see it before my eyes.
Just as his mother was leaving, he vaguely saw another figure.
A bright red brocade, embroidered with a phoenix with its wings spread, walked towards him in the night, holding a lantern.
"Why are you standing at the door in a daze? I heard that the Queen Mother came to see you. What, did she bully you again?"
The woman stood on the ivory-white stone steps and looked up at him quietly.
The curved eyes and brows seemed to be filled with stars.
The boy blinked and came back to his senses.
He quickly stepped aside for her to come in and said, "No... How did you get here?"
The woman raised her lips and smiled, saying, "Nothing, just came to take a look."
Then he followed him into the inner hall.
It wasn't noticeable when they were both outside, but after they entered the house, they discovered that the pheromones emitted by the Alpha were strong and fragrant.
It was inhaled from his nasal cavity into his lungs and flowed into every inch of his blood.
She was comforting him.
He had experienced this the other night when he was suddenly attacked.
This morning... also.
When I just woke up, my whole body was immersed in such pheromones.
And the person who was hugging him was still unconsciously releasing soothing pheromones from the back of his neck even in his sleep.
"you… "
The boy pursed his lips and spoke softly.
But I don’t know what to say…
Feng Yan said that his union with Bai Su brought new life to Ziwei Star, and they were destined to give birth to a prince who would bear the heavy responsibility of the country.
If it is destined...
If it was her.
The young emperor was decisive and ruthless when it came to government affairs, but when facing his new wife, he could only glance at her secretly and could not say a word.
A suspicious blush appeared on his face.
"Hmm? What's wrong?"
Seeing that he only said one word and then nothing else, Bai Su simply spoke directly.
Seeing the young man hesitant, he said, "Uh... I just want to ask, will the release of so much pheromone have any effect on the body?"
Obviously, that's not what I wanted to say at all.
But Bai Su still answered patiently, saying, "No."
"oh… "
The two were speechless for a moment.
Duan Changchuan sat at the table watching the students from various factions taking the imperial examination, preparing to pick up his pen to make some comments.
Bai Su had nothing to do, so she simply took over Changle's job and ground ink for him.
The ink stick and the inkstone rubbed gently, making a delicate rustling sound.
The beauty adds fragrance to the beauty...
Especially the scent of peony, wafting from the side...
Duan Changchuan held the wolf hair brush in his hand, his head was dizzy, and his concentration was much worse. After a long time, he didn't approve many people.
"Are you worried?"
He was staring at the memorial in his hand in a daze when he heard Bai Su ask him softly.
Perhaps he was distracted too many times and attracted her attention.
The next moment, a slender, beautiful hand appeared on the letter, pointing at the words on it and asking him, "Lin Qing... ? Is there something wrong with this person?"
I realized that I had unknowingly turned to the page with Lin Qing's name on it, and the tip of my pen had been lingering on it for a while.
It's also an inexplicable fate.
"He is a scholar from a poor family. I heard that... he has a high reputation among the students."
He pursed his lips and spoke carefully.
As he spoke, he observed the woman's reaction.
But the other party didn't have any special reaction. He just said "Oh" and said, "Failed the exam four years ago? You worked hard for another four years, so you should be able to get in this year."
In fact, Bai Su's reaction is totally understandable for anyone else.
There are countless scholars like Lin Qing in the whole Datong, not to mention the whole Shengjing.
What does it matter if you are famous among the students? Without status and background, how can you catch the eye of the emperor if you cannot perform well in the exams
But he is Bai Su's lover.
The lover who secretly promised to spend his life together...
The young man turned to look at Bai Su, his eyes blank but filled with inquiry.
Bai Su was a little confused by the look and asked, "He... uh, is there anything special about him?"
In return, a soft "No."
It sounded like a cat scratching, with a hint of grievance in it.
Bai Su:
This is... what happened
She clearly didn't do anything, but why did she have the inexplicable feeling that she had done something shameful
The kid's reaction...
It's like she's a scumbag.
The author has something to say:
Bai Su: ...Did I do something wrong? (Looks confused)
Duan Chuanchuan: (feeling aggrieved)