This was the first time Chu Jiaoping showed such an expression, his eyes were full of anger, he didn't expect his brother to actually join the crown prince, he put the teacup heavily on the table with a bang, lowered his voice and scolded: "Do you think the fight for the throne is fun? Who asked you to get involved!"
Xie Jingyuan heard the noise on the roof and felt a little worried. He frowned and looked down, only to see Chu Xinian calmly saying, "Brother, don't you know that when you joined the King of Jin, the Quyang Marquis's Mansion could no longer escape. If you succeed, the whole family will be honored, but if you choose the wrong master, the whole family will be buried with you."
He spoke in the lightest tone about the ending that frightened Chu Jiaoping the most, and the atmosphere in the room became increasingly tense.
Chu Jiaoping stood up from his seat and paced back and forth. At last, he suddenly slammed the table with his palm, stared at Chu Xinian and questioned him word by word: "Even if the King of Jin is not a wise leader, how strong can the Crown Prince be?! Are you going to ignore the century-old friendship between the Mei and Chu families for the sake of the Crown Prince?!"
Chu Xinian said, "He will be a good emperor."
He said: "The prince will be a good emperor..."
Chu Jiaoping suddenly became quiet after hearing this. His expression changed several times, as if he didn't know what to say. Finally, he turned into a slightly sarcastic expression: "No strategy, no talent, no wisdom, frivolous and reckless, idle, this is what you call a good emperor?"
Chu Xinian suddenly felt that Chu Jiaoping was very much like his former self, and also like the spectators in the audience who were unaware of the true feelings.
They were on the stage, and saw only the Jinling Jade Palace and the Qinhuai Waterside Pavilion. They saw no green moss and blue tiles, and had seen the rise and fall of fifty years.
"Although the prince is foolish, he is honest; although stubborn, he is righteous. If he is full of wisdom and strategies, what is the use of having a court full of officials? He will be the emperor in the future. It is enough for him to have a heart that does no harm to others and know how to use people well."
If you want strategy, you have ministers; if you want poetic talent, you have the top scholar.
If an emperor knew everything, all the civil and military officials in the court would be useless.
Chu Jiaoping said coldly: "You are just making excuses!"
Chu Xinian was indeed making a sophistry, but they did not require the crown prince to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. It would be fine if he was just an ordinary emperor with no merits or faults. He smiled and asked, "Brother, do you think what I said is wrong?"
Chu Jiaoping slowly clenched his fingertips: "What kind of soup did the prince feed you?"
"I'm not doing this for him."
Chu Xinian slowly lowered his eyes. In the candlelight, he was dressed in white, as if he was a banished immortal, his mind was far away, as if he was thinking of someone.
Then who are you doing this for
Chu Jiaoping didn't ask this question, and Chu Xinian didn't say it either.
Only someone lying on the rooftop eavesdropping sat up as if aware of something. Xie Jingyuan, dressed in black, almost blended into the night sky. The evening breeze blew his robes up, like a knight who came and went without a trace in the rivers and lakes, and would be gone with the wind in the next second.
He slowly took off the mask that was still warm on his face and rubbed the edges for a while, not knowing what he was thinking. After a while, he looked down along the gap in the tiles and chuckled.
Who else could it be for? Of course it’s for this general.
Xie Jingyuan hooked his little finger on the mask, crossed his legs, and leaned lazily on the roof, not even bothering to hide his figure. The corners of his lips were slightly raised, with a bit of pride and a bit of pleasure that was hard to understand.
Chu Jiaoping obviously couldn't be easily persuaded: "You don't have to say anything. I will never turn against you and help the prince."
He saw clearly how a slave of two families could have a good ending and who would dare to employ someone who betrayed his former master.
Chu Xinian smiled and said, "I don't need my brother to turn against me. On the contrary, I am here to help my brother."
As he spoke, he suddenly lowered his voice and said enthusiastically, "If the King of Jin wants to rebel one day, he will not have enough troops. Brother, remember that Zhou Wenchen has a lover in Qingpingfang. The woman gave birth to a child with him. The child is the only bloodline of the Zhou family."
After he finished speaking, he smiled in an ambiguous manner, turned around, pushed the door open and went out, leaving Chu Jiaoping standing there alone, confused and uncertain.
Prince Jin...rebellion
Is it really possible…
Chu Jiaoping staggered back a step and fell into a chair, looking distraught.
When Chu Xinian walked out of the courtyard, Xie Jingyuan had already put the tiles back in place, then quietly jumped off the roof and quickly returned to his residence from another road.
So when Chu Xinian returned to his room and pushed the door open, he saw Xie Jingyuan leaning against the bedpost, wiping the dagger in his hand out of boredom.
Chu Xinian walked over and sat down, pulled out the dagger from his hand, slowly put it back into the sheath, and then put it aside: "General, have you been here all the time?"
Xie Jingyuan raised his eyebrows, as if to agree: "What else?"
Chu Xinian picked up the hem of his robe, patted off the dust and a small piece of broken leaves on it, and sighed, "General, don't sit on the roof next time. Getting your clothes dirty is a small matter, but getting bitten by insects and ants is a big deal."
Seeing this, Xie Jingyuan realized that his clothes were stained with dust. He looked a little embarrassed and said, "This general is doing this for your own good. What if your brother gets impatient and beats you up? This general is doing this for your safety."
As soon as he finished speaking, he was suddenly pressed down by Chu Xinian between the quilts, half kneeling on the edge of the bed. Xie Jingyuan's Adam's apple moved, and he was inexplicably nervous. He turned around and looked at him: "You... what are you doing?"
Chu Xinian hugged him tightly from behind without saying a word. He pulled out a ribbon from somewhere and tied Xie Jingyuan's hands together, neither too tight nor too loose.
Xie Jingyuan felt that the thing tied in his hand looked familiar, and he subconsciously looked down and found that it was his belt. He was too lazy to struggle, and chuckled and said, "You are quick."
It would be a pity not to become a thief.
Chu Xinian's low, laughing voice rang beside his ear: "Of course I'm not as eloquent as the general."
He took off his clothes and threw them on the ground.
Xie Jingyuan felt a little cold, and was about to say something, but Chu Xinian covered his mouth silently. He didn't understand why, but the next second his pupils suddenly shrank, and the sudden pain made his body tense, and he couldn't help but gasp.
It was... too sudden.
Xie Jingyuan's legs were shaking and he almost fell down. Looking back, he saw Chu Xinian still looking like a gentleman with a slow and gentle smile.
Chu Xi bit Xie Jingyuan's earlobe, which seemed to hurt and itch. He asked with a smile, "General, do you want to keep a concubine?"
Xie Jingyuan then realized that he had been a little too arrogant during the day and said something he shouldn't have said in front of the prince. His breathing was disordered, and while he was catering to Chu Xinian, he panted in a low voice: "Of course... naturally I don't want to..."
The prince was right. Chu Xinian had a cruel heart and would really deal with him.
Chu Xinian, however, seemed not to have heard anything, and slowly repeated what Xie Jingyuan had said during the day, and said with a smile: "General, if you want to raise as many as you want, then raise as many as you want. Naturally, I dare not say anything."
"Even if I raise several people, they can't compare to you..."
Xie Jingyuan felt both pain and pleasure. He tilted his head and kissed Chu Xinian with difficulty, thinking that this man was good enough and no one in the world could compare to him.
Chu Xinian pinched his chin and kissed him lightly, as if to seduce him, but he just didn't go deeper. He let Xie Jingyuan's broken voice overflow from his lips.
Chu Xinian wiped the ambiguous silver hair on Xie Jingyuan's lips and said, "If the general doesn't raise them, how can he know that they are not as good as me?"
Xie Jingyuan already regretted why he had said such things to show off his power during the day. He was really like a dumb person eating bitter herbs, unable to express his pain. He was already a little unable to hold on, but every time he fell down, Chu Xinian held his waist and helped him up.
The man seemed determined to deal with him.
Xie Jingyuan's voice was intermittent: "Compared to... not as good as... naturally not as good as..."
Chu Xinian seized the loophole in his words and nitpicked like a nitpicker: "Why, if I can compare, do I have to support the general?"
Xie Jingyuan couldn't even speak. He kept shaking his head, his eyes reddened and his eyelashes wet from the physical stimulation. He untied the restraints on his hands, then pulled Chu Xinian over with his backhand and fell onto the bed together.
Xie Jingyuan sat on Chu Xinian's waist, panting with every word: "No... No... You just think that I went crazy in the daytime... and said some nonsense..."
Chu Xinian held his shoulders and slowly pushed Xie Jingyuan down, causing him to groan. Then he wrapped the black belt around his eyebrows and eyes, and then kissed him with a little satisfaction.
"General, you must not lie in the future."
Xie Jingyuan nodded repeatedly. His vision was completely dark, and his other senses were infinitely magnified. He instinctively searched for Chu Xinian's lips and tongue, approaching and entangled with him like an addict, whimpering in his throat.
The curtain fell, and a tide of passion surged, which only stopped when the sky was just beginning to brighten.
Chu Xinian was lying on the bed, his eyes showing a kind of satisfaction after the event. He used his fingertips to gently trace Xie Jingyuan's eyebrows and eyes, and said lazily: "Go to sleep, it's still early."
Xie Jingyuan struggled to get up from the bed and put on his clothes. Seeing Chu Xinian not moving, he pushed him and said, "It's almost dawn. Go back to the general's mansion and sleep."
Chu Xinian didn't know what the inevitable causal relationship was between "dawn" and "returning to the general's mansion": "Why?"
Xie Jingyuan picked up Chu Xinian's clothes and threw them to him: "What if your parents wake up in a while?"
Chu Xinian understood that Xie Jingyuan was scared. He sat up a little late and put on his clothes slowly, thinking that Xie Jingyuan didn't need to be afraid, and it was good enough that others were not afraid of him.
"Why, General, are you afraid they will eat you?"
Xie Jingyuan thought that was not the case. He fastened his belt, glanced at Chu Xinian, and suddenly leaned over to kiss his handsome face, like a bandit from the northwest, and said half-seriously, "If this general was still the young man he used to be, he would have come to visit in a grand manner."
But he is not.
The Xie family, which once held great power and wealth, has now declined to the point where he is the only one left.
Xie Lanting, who was once handsome and beautiful, now lives only in the memories of a bunch of dead people.
All that was left was a half-human, half-ghost Xie Jingyuan.
He felt that he was not good enough now and did not have the confidence to stand in front of Marquis Quyang.
Chu Xinian looked at Xie Jingyuan, knowing that this was what was in his heart, and suddenly reached out and pulled him into his arms, and for no reason, pushed him against the bedpost and kissed him.
"The general only remembers one sentence..."
Chu Xinian panted heavily and said half-truthfully,
"I came here for you..."
Xie Jingyuan didn't understand his confusing words, but it didn't stop him from thinking that Chu Xinian liked him. He leaned against Chu Xinian's shoulder and nodded silently.
The system appeared again after a long absence: Ding! Please note that the villain's blackening degree has been reduced to 20
Its light is still bright and dazzling, even more dazzling than the rising sun. If you can pick a piece off and sell it, you will definitely become rich overnight. But hanging next to it, it inevitably looks like a large light bulb.
Only 20 left...
Xie Jingyuan no longer had much hatred in his heart...
Of the 20, one belongs to Emperor Yan and the other to Wenchen Zhou.
Chu Xinian already had a plan in mind.
In the following month, the crown prince and his ministers supervised the state affairs and served the emperor at his bedside, showing filial piety and gaining great praise from the court and the public. In contrast, the emperor's health was deteriorating and it was said that he even had difficulty eating.
Concubine Mei was secretly anxious, and she tried like crazy to win over the ministers in the court, hoping to pave the way for the Prince of Jin, but all this was destined to be in vain. When she learned that the Emperor of Yan had secretly ordered the inner court to draft an edict to pass the throne to the prince, she was so angry that she spat out blood and her face turned pale.
If the prince ascends the throne, will they and their son still have a chance to survive? !
Chu Xinian has been paying attention to the movements of the Prince of Jin's mansion. With the current situation, the Prince of Jin has no other choice but to rebel. He only hopes that Chu Jiaoping can be more powerful and tell the Prince of Jin about Zhou Wenchen's "weakness" and make good use of it.
Xie Jingyuan was a little worried: "What if he hides it?"
Chu Xinian shook the unsigned secret letter in his hand and said, "If he doesn't tell us, we have plenty of ways to secretly tell King Jin ourselves."
Xie Jingyuan leaned his head and looked at Chu Xinian slowly, not understanding why he was always so sure: "Aren't you afraid that Chu Jiaoping will sell you out in front of King Jin?"
Chu Xinian said: "He won't."
Chu Jiaoping would not gamble with the lives of the people in Quyang Marquis's Mansion, not to mention that he still has some brotherly feelings for Chu Xinian.
Chu Jiaoping was unwilling to abandon the King of Jin now, simply because the King of Jin had not reached a dead end. He was a smart man, and when the time came, even if he was unwilling, he would make the most correct choice immediately.
In September of the 21st year of Qisheng, the Emperor of Yan was critically ill and summoned the Crown Prince to accompany him day and night. The edict of succession was sent to the three provinces and six ministries, stating that if the Emperor died, the Crown Prince Chenghao would succeed him.
The King of Jin wanted to rebel, but he was unable to do so due to his weak military strength. Jiao Ping of Chu suggested that he capture Zhou Wenchen's wife and take control of the imperial guards. Zhou Wenchen pretended to surrender, but secretly reported to the Emperor of Yan and told the King of Jin all about his rebellion.
That night, the Emperor of Yan summoned Wu De and the commanders of the Pingxiang camp into the palace and had a long conversation with them before they left.
"General, the King of Jin intends to launch a coup tonight at midnight. General Chang Zongping will lead his troops to break into the palace through the Suzaku Gate and coordinate with Zhou Wenchen inside and outside."
After leaving the palace, the commanders of Wude Camp and Pingxiang Camp secretly came to Xie Jingyuan's mansion and reported everything.
Xie Jingyuan closed his eyes, exhaled slowly, and sneered: "Prince Jin has been patient for two months, and finally couldn't bear it anymore. What about the emperor? What did he say to you?"
The commander of the Wude Camp said, "Your Majesty does not know that we are the general's men. He ordered us to wait outside the Tai'an Gate. When Zhou Wenchen and Chang Zongping are fighting, we will use fireworks as a signal and immediately lead troops to assist him."
Xie Jingyuan nodded slowly: "You should do as he said. After leaving the palace, gather your troops and wait outside Tai'an Gate. This general will be there shortly."
"yes!"
After receiving the order, the two commanders hurriedly left the general's mansion.
Chu Xinian hid behind the screen. When he saw them leave, he walked out from behind the screen and asked, "Where's the prince?"
Xie Jingyuan said: "He is now being kept in the palace by the emperor, and it is inconvenient for him to walk. He secretly sent a message yesterday, and it was exactly what they said. This general really underestimated Zhou Wenchen. He didn't even care about the life of his own son. What a loyal dog."
"They are not necessarily dogs, but they are heartless and ruthless. Most people like them will never have a good ending."
There is no moon tonight, as if it can't bear to witness the upcoming fight. Chu Xinian walked to the door and looked in the direction of Taiji Hall, his robes fluttering: "General, are you going to Tai'an Gate? I will pretend to be a personal soldier and go with you."
Xie Jingyuan looked at him: "Are you not afraid of death?"
After he finished speaking, he didn't wait for Chu Xinian to answer, and curled his lips and said, "Oh, that's right, I have never seen you afraid of anyone. I didn't want to take you with me, but I felt that I had to keep you under my nose to feel at ease, so you should go with me."
Chu Xinian stared at him for a moment, then slowly smiled: "Who said I'm not afraid? If I really wasn't afraid, why would I follow the general so closely?"
He was actually a little afraid that Xie Jingyuan would die.
The ending has been changed to this point, he must save Xie Jingyuan's life at all costs.
Xie Jingyuan seemed to see through his inner thoughts and said in a low voice: "Xinian, I will not follow my father's old path. He died unjustly at Tai'an Gate that year. Tonight I will lead the troops into Taiji Hall and ruthlessly pull that man down from his high position."
It was the first time in many years that he called Xie Bi "father".
It turns out that some things are buried deep in the heart, but it does not mean that they are forgotten. Only after tonight, maybe Xie Jingyuan can see the light of day again and live a bright and upright life.
After the street-cleansing drums sounded, the capital fell into silence. Suddenly, a group of soldiers and horses came out from the direction of the Prince of Jin's mansion, holding torches. They walked through the streets and headed straight for the palace. The horses' hooves landed on the bluestone floor, making a rumbling sound.
Prince Jin and Chang Zongping led their troops into the Suzaku Gate.
Zhou Wenchen rode on his horse, waiting quietly, with tens of thousands of imperial guards behind him in complete silence. From afar, he saw flames rising into the sky, and a large number of soldiers on horseback were rushing in. They were the people from Xuanhu Camp.
Zhou Wenchen did not follow the plan to escort Prince Jin into the palace. Instead, he slowly drew his sword in the face of the other party's shocked gaze, pointed it straight ahead, and uttered three cold words: "Kill him!"
Xie Jingyuan, wearing silver armor, led 60,000 soldiers from the Wude Camp and the Pingxiang Camp to lie dormant in the streets outside Tai'an Gate. He tightened the reins, keenly smelled the blood in the air, moved his ears, and vaguely heard the roar of killing.
Chu Xinian was also wearing armor, and he looked quite decent. He saw the flames rising from the direction of Suzaku Gate and smiled, "Zhou Wenchen and the King of Jin's troops have started fighting."
As soon as he finished speaking, a flare whizzed up into the sky, exploding with a bright light in the night—
That was Zhou Wenchen's distress signal.
Xie Jingyuan raised his eyelids and smiled wickedly: "Chu Xinian, I haven't taken you to see the fireworks yet. Anyway, I have nothing to do now, so just watch it slowly."
Chu Xinian hummed and commented, "General Zhou's fireworks are very beautiful."
They were just watching the fun, and no matter how Zhou Wenchen signaled, they just kept silent. Seeing the fireworks rising into the night sky one after another, those who didn't know would think it was a festival.
Zhou Wenchen fired a total of 22 flares, but in the end, no one knew whether he had given up on seeking help, and there was no movement afterwards. It was not until the sky gradually turned pale that the people who went to get information came back to report.
"Reporting to the general, the 70,000 troops of Xuanhu Camp have been defeated and captured by Zhou Wenchen's imperial guards!"
Xie Jingyuan looked down at him and asked, "How many casualties did the imperial guards suffer?"
The spy said, "There are heavy casualties!"
Although Zhou Wenchen had 100,000 imperial guards, he had left another part of his troops to guard the imperial palace, so he was bound to have a hard time facing the Xuanhu Camp. This battle was a lose-lose situation.
Xie Jingyuan and Chu Xinian looked at each other, and after giving an order, they immediately led their troops into the palace.