"I often feel some kind of mysterious guidance, as if a great mission has come to me," Zhao Kuangyin murmured.
Zhao Pu listened attentively and said hurriedly: “When God is about to confer a great responsibility on a man, he must first make his heart and mind suffer, his muscles and bones tired, his body hungry and empty, and his actions frustrated. This is to stimulate his heart and harden his nature, and increase his ability to do what he could not do before.”
Kuang Yin came back to his senses and said with a smile: "Didn't you say that half of the Analects can rule the world? Why did you recite Mencius?"
Zhao Pu smiled and said: After reading Confucius, you will naturally want to read Mencius.
Kuang Yin said: According to Mencius, our temporary setbacks are only to temper our character.
That's right. Zhao Pu bowed and said, "No one can stop those who are destined by heaven. But in order for those who are destined by heaven to achieve greater things, heaven will train and require them to be even higher. It's not always smooth sailing, and there will always be some hardships. Are you ready, lord?"
I am not afraid of hardships. Kuang Yin said hurriedly, "That's too much. You've gone too far."
Zhao Pu smiled but said nothing.
Kuang Yin pondered again and said: Can the strategy we discussed really be implemented
Zhao Kuangyin looked very strange at this time. He was a burly man with a dark face, but he spoke very softly and cautiously, which was totally different from his usual bold and cheerful self. The man suddenly became like a young wife, hesitating and hesitating, not very happy.
Zhao Pu said: Please make the decision, my lord. But in my opinion, the longer we delay, the more disadvantageous it will be for us.
Kuangyin turned over a wooden plaque on the table and saw four words engraved on it: Nu Fu Dai Wang.
Zhao Pu whispered: If there was no such woman, the wooden sign should have written "The Inspector is the Emperor", and then everything would have gone smoothly. Now there is only this wooden sign, and it may not work.
Kuang Yin said: It is not necessarily true. But Guo Shao's letter was also a slanderous statement, but he still achieved his goal; the emperor kept Han Lingkun in Xiongba, and it is hard to say whether he thought Guo Shao's words were reasonable. At this time, this wooden sign can also play the same role. Give him a taste of his own medicine.
Zhao Pu said: This is just the first move, it is not enough, we need to keep up. The lord will have to find an opportunity to personally make the wooden sign. I will go back to Beijing early tomorrow morning to do another thing.
Kuangyin finally nodded and said: Let’s do it.
Zhao Pu suddenly laughed and said: This plan is full of loops. The key is that the two things seem to have nothing to do with each other. In addition, the emperor knows that his serious illness is difficult to treat, so he will definitely be more suspicious. The right way is to believe it rather than not believe it. I don't believe that the emperor has no suspicion at all. If these two things happen, the woman will be skinned alive.
After hearing this, Kuangyin also smiled, touched his beard, and gradually became calm.
The army has returned recently and all units have started to set off one after another.
There are more than 100,000 troops and a lot of baggage and equipment that need to be sent to Cangzhou by boat. It is very complicated to mobilize them all at once, and some details are inevitably confusing.
Chai Rong set off in a four-horse carriage. The carriage was wide and large, and looked flat like a giant turtle.
He was in poor health, and the bumpy ride often left him physically exhausted, but he still endured it and read the memorials whenever he stopped. Just two days after he set out, a cloth bag caught his attention, and he asked the eunuch Wang Zhong to take it out and see what was inside.
Wang Zhong fished out a wooden sign, then checked the bag to see if there was anything else. He lowered his head and glanced casually, his expression suddenly changing.
Seeing this, Chai Rong immediately asked sternly: What is this
Wang Zhong knelt down on the carriage and handed it to me with both hands. Chai Rong's expression changed when he saw it, and he asked, "Who presented this to me?"
Wang Zhong was at a loss and kowtowed, saying: I have been busy returning to the army these past two days, and everything is complicated. I didn't notice it, but the person who could put something in the memorial to the emperor is probably not an ordinary person. Who is it
Chai Rong held the wooden sign for a long time in silence.
Wang Zhong asked: Your Majesty, do you want to investigate
Chai Rong raised his hand and gestured: No. What's the point of causing unrest in the family? What's the point of finding out who it is
Wang Zhong didn't dare to say more.
After a full half day, Chai Rong suddenly issued an order: change the itinerary and pass through Daming Prefecture.
At this time, the Zhou army returned, and the baggage was transported by water, but the main force of infantry and cavalry took the land route, which was faster. The land route did not require going through Damingfu, and it was a little roundabout, but not much. The key point was that the emperor changed the itinerary temporarily, probably specifically to go through Damingfu.
Wang Zhong, the king of Nufu Dai, thought this was a serious matter.
The female talisman should refer to the queen. Could this wooden sign be a revelation from heaven? Otherwise, it would be strange if it came to the emperor without anyone noticing. Wang Zhong was also reminded that the queen's power might really grow stronger in the future.
He decided to take another risk and try his best to get closer to the queen.
But to reveal the news to the Queen, a trusted person is needed. There is a small problem here. Wang Jie'en, who was sent back last time, has not returned yet and may not return. Waiting in Tokyo after delivering the secret letter can save an extra trip.
Wang Zhong had no choice but to choose someone else. He had adopted several adopted sons in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Wang Jie'en was just one of them. He also had a adopted son, the eunuch Peng Hanju, who was a skinny but strong-boned guy. Wang Zhong didn't like this adopted son because he was older than him. But there was no one available at the moment, and Peng Hanju was still a confidant, so he sent him back to report the news; this time Wang Zhong didn't write anything, but just asked him to go back and tell the message orally.
Peng Hanju quietly left the military camp, and no eunuch asked about him because he usually carried out tasks assigned by the emperor.
This time Peng Hanju really returned to Tokyo, because he had only taken refuge with the eunuch Wang Zhong, who was a close confidant of the emperor, and had no choice but to follow his godfather.
He didn't even see the queen, but met Cao Tai. Now the problem came. Peng Hanju specifically mentioned that he had sent a letter back last time and asked if the queen had received it.
Cao Tai immediately denied having any previous dealings with Wang Zhong, and was also certain that he had no way of knowing that the eunuchs on Wang Zhong's side wanted to see the queen.
Peng Hanju felt something was a little strange, but he didn't say much and only told him about the wooden sign.
Cao Tai had found out exactly who were Wang Zhong's subordinates, and he did not trust this eunuch Peng. But since he had brought back the news, Cao Tai hurriedly told Fu Shi whether it was true or not.
I thought the queen would be very angry, but Fu Shi didn't say a word and continued to close her eyes to rest. After a long time, she suddenly said: Didn't he say that he sent someone to send a letter last time? Where is Wang Jie'en? You should find out first.
Cao Tai was surprised that the queen ignored the slander of the Queen's daughter, who was the king of Dai, and didn't care whether it was true or not, but instead made a fuss about a seemingly unimportant detail. However, since it was the queen's own request, Cao Tai quickly agreed.
Seeing his doubts, Fu smiled and said: Even if the wooden sign is real, we can only bear it now. So don't ask about the wooden sign for now, and take this opportunity to find out what's going on with those eunuchs. What exactly does Wang Zhong mean and who is Wang Jie'en