In the imperial study, Xiao Lie stayed up late at night, staring at the secret letter in front of him that had been roasted by the fire and showing the shadows behind him, with a condensed expression, for a long time, he handed it to Li Yuangui who was on the side: "burn it, pass on my words, there is no need for anything for the time being. Do it, wait for my life."
Li Yuangui answered the letter, walked to a Boshan stove in the corner of the hall, and lifted the lid.
At the beginning of his ascension to the throne, the emperor secretly sent Jinyiwei spies to sneak to the southern coast where the young emperor was most likely to disappear, and secretly traced his whereabouts. The Golden Dragon Island, where the Golden-faced Dragon King is located, is naturally within the Emperor's sight. It's just that the location of the Golden Dragon Island is secret, and the Golden Mask Dragon King is well organized. It was also a year later that he finally joined a highly experienced spy and became a low-level sailor on the outskirts of Dragon King Island. This time, when the Japanese pirates attacked, all members of the Golden Dragon Island were dispatched. This person fought bravely and was able to board the big ship where the Dragon King was. He secretly spied. In half a month, he finally got some news.
The secret letter stated that when the Dragon King commanded the naval battle, the advance and retreat flag was very similar to the style of the Duke of Wei, and he became more and more certain of his identity, and there was a young man on the same ship. Judging from the young man's behavior, it seems that he is not a master, neither a servant nor a servant. His age is comparable to that of the young emperor who disappeared back then, and his identity is suspicious.
Li Yuangui threw the paper into the furnace, and the paper turned to ashes in the spices, accompanied by a burst of flames carrying black smoke.
"Long live, the three watch drums are over, long live the hard work day after day, it's time to rest."
Li Yuangui came back and persuaded.
Xiao Lie pinched his brows and got up after the case.
"Can you call the imperial concubine to serve the bed?"
Xiao Lie waved his hand and was about to leave when a palace servant bowed in and said that the prince asked to see him.
Xiao Lie was slightly startled: "What's the matter?"
"I don't know. The prince only said that there is something urgent to report, and now people are waiting outside the palace."
"Come in."
Accompanied by the sound of footsteps, Xiao Yintang walked in quickly, and after paying homage, he got up and glanced at Li Yuangui.
Li Yuangui bowed to him and exited the study.
"It's so late, what's the matter with you coming to see me?" Xiao Lie sat back with a light expression.
Ever since the Crown Princess's incident, Xiao Lie's face has always been the same towards his son.
Xiao Yintang looked respectful, but the light in his eyes flickered slightly, as if he was trying his best to suppress his mood at the moment: "My son knows that the father and the emperor are working hard for state affairs. Delayed for half a minute. Does the emperor still remember the matter that he ordered his son to look for the whereabouts of the young emperor Xiao Yu? When the son went to Quanzhou, although he returned without results, he never dared to forget the father and the emperor, and left a name called Liu Yi His personal accompaniment, thoughtful handling, and secret investigation there, Huangtian paid off, this time I finally asked Erchen to find out some news!"
After he finished speaking, he glanced at the emperor and saw that his expression was still, and said: "My father should also know about the thief in the Southern Sea, who is called the Golden-Masked Dragon King. Just recently, Liu Yi found out that this Golden-Masked Dragon King is very It may be Dong Cheng Subaru of the Tianxi Dynasty!"
Xiao Yintang looked at the emperor, saw that the emperor still had no expression, hesitated for a while, and said again: "Father, if this person is really Dong Chengsubaru, because Shun'an rebelled against the king and was a gangster, in the past few years, Erchen heard about him. He has never harmed the people along the coast, so that's fine, but this Dong Cheng Subaru is very likely to hide the young emperor of that year!"
He couldn't hold back his excitement any longer, and his voice became a little higher: "Father, according to Liu Yi's news, beside this golden-faced Dragon King, there is a boy of fifteen or sixteen years old, with no name, his identity is suspicious, and he They all call him the little son. My son guessed that this little son is most likely Xiao Yu! Father, you think, this Dong Chengsubaru was once the old department of Duke Wei. Duke Wei and the Tianxi Dynasty have a lot of origins. Wouldn't it be logical to be a pirate, hide Xiao Yu at sea, and wait for the opportunity to make a comeback?"
The emperor narrowed his eyes slightly, noncommittal.
Xiao Yintang paused.
"And I have one more consideration! I don't know if I should say it or not."
"Speak." The emperor looked at him.
"I know that my father has always trusted Pei You'an, and my son has no intention of slandering him. I just want to remind my father that Pei You'an is a person who is very forbearing and deep, and is beyond the reach of ordinary people. Dong Chengsuba has a long history with him. It's the teacher-student relationship, if Xiao Yu is still alive in the world now, the royal father may have to guard against Pei You'an, lest there will be an accident in the future!"
The emperor stared at Xiao Yintang without saying a word, thoughtful.
Xiao Yintang gradually felt that the emperor's reaction was extremely abnormal.
He was so calm, strangely calm.
From the first day when Xiao Lie was still the king of Yunzhong, under the banner of re-emerging Xiao Yu as emperor, although Xiao Lie never mentioned a word in front of him as a son, Xiao Yintang also knew that he The father of , should not really have such thoughts.
The emperor's dragon chair only has a chance. Who in the world doesn't want to sit on it
The reason why he used such a banner is just to make the world return to his heart and make things happen quickly.
It is very likely that the young emperor has died. Even if he is alive, he has become a young man who is alone in the true sense. Even if there are a few people who are willing to embrace him, he is only a symbol of life. In front of the audience, it is completely impossible for him to make a real splash. To be found and then to disappear, this is his most reasonable ending.
So tonight, when receiving this news, Xiao Yintang was very excited.
Under the disadvantaged situation that the Crown Princess, Zhou Jin, Zhou Hou, and even himself all saw the emperor one after another, he was still eager to use this newly obtained important news to try his best to regain the emperor's father's goodwill and trust in him. .
Even if the dream he once had was true, and Pei You'an was really his father's illegitimate son, if Pei You'an dared to take a different stance from the emperor on the throne, the emperor would never tolerate it.
Xiao Yintang was very sure of this.
But at this moment, Xiao Lie's reaction made him suddenly feel a little out of place in his heart.
"If your news is true, then in your opinion, how should I handle this matter?"
After a long while, the emperor suddenly opened his mouth, his face was like water, and he could not distinguish between joy and anger.
"Treat Pei You'an for conspiracy to end the party? Hunt down the young emperor and get rid of him? Yintang, don't you forget how I promised the people in the world at the beginning. I listened to your tone just now. Could it be that I wanted to force me to get rid of the young emperor? , let me bear an unkind and injustice in front of the world?"
Xiao Yintang was stunned, and some couldn't believe his ears: "Imperial father! My son and minister don't understand! Emperor Tianxi hated his father and trapped his father in Yunnan. , Nine deaths and one life, Fang will eventually become a great cause, does the father really intend to be inferior to Xiao Yu's child? How can he be treated like this by the father?"
The emperor got up a few hours after the case and walked to the window to look at the night. After a while, he turned around and said, "Yintang, if I really keep my promise and give this country back to Xiao Yu, what are your plans?"
His tone was gentle, like a father-son gossip.
Xiao Yintang froze for a moment, and then knelt down slowly: "Your Majesty, this world is the world that the Father has won. How to deal with it is entirely up to the Father. The sons and ministers are only loyal to the Father, and they obey orders!"
After he finished speaking, he lowered his head.
Xiao Lie looked down at him for a moment, then nodded: "Your father is very pleased that you can think like this. You just reported the matter, and I will send someone to check it again. You can't disclose it to a third party, and you don't have to intervene. ."
Xiao Yintang kowtowed, got up, backed out, and when he stepped out of the palace where the imperial study was located, he stopped and looked back.
The night was blurry, and his expression was also a little tense. His eyes were turned to the window behind him that revealed the lights, and a shadow quickly passed through his eyes. Then he turned his head and continued to walk forward.
…
After Pei Youan left the palace, he returned to Pei's house.
Mrs. Xin, Pei Quan, didn't know that he was returning to Beijing tonight. Seeing him returning suddenly, she learned that she was ordered to return alone, and Jiafu stayed at home in Quanzhou to serve her grandmother.
It was only after so many days that the emperor was about to take his love for him. Several people were envious of each other, but their faces were calm and warm, and Mrs. Xin asked the servants to take him back to the house. Pei Quan and him. After some talk, Pei Youan returned to the courtyard where she and Jiafu used to live together. After taking a bath, she walked out in her middle clothes, habitually walked to the coat rack, took a few steps, and when she looked up, she saw that it was empty, and there wasn't anything she used to do. Rihui prepared clean clothes for himself, paused for a while, turned around, and came to the wardrobe, opened the door, and took a set of home clothes. on the outer cloak.
He still remembered the dress. It was that night that he rescued the disheveled girl in the post house in Changjiang Prefecture, Yunnan, took her back to his residence, and wrapped her body.
The clothes were old clothes at that time. Later, when he ran around, he had long forgotten that he had such an outside thing, but he didn't expect that at this moment tonight, he suddenly saw it folded neatly and left in the closet. , For a moment, she was in a trance, and there seemed to be a scene in front of her that night when she was barefooted and standing in front of her uneasy.
Pei You'an looked at it for a moment, put the clothes back in his hand, put his long fingers on the old clothes, stroked them, took them, shook them away, and put them on.
It was night, after the third watch, a figure pushed open the door of the hidden study and entered.
There was no light on in the study, the south window was half open, Pei Youan sat behind the desk, his figure was drawn out by the cold moonlight as a half-bright and half-dark silhouette.
After listening to the instructions, Yang Yun said in a low voice, "Don't worry, my lord, I will send someone I trust to deliver the news to General Dong as soon as possible. Madam, I will also act according to the instructions of the lord, and I will never dare to neglect."
Pei You'an nodded: "Thank you. You have followed me all these years, and now I have to take risks. I am very grateful."
"If it wasn't for the kindness of the prince, my Yang family would be executed, and the life of my subordinates was originally owned by adults. There is only one thing I don't understand..."
Yang Yun hesitated.
"The less people know about General Dong and the young master, the better. The subordinates really don't understand. Even if the prince's people are aware of it now, if they want to come here, they will only know about two or three out of ten. Why did your lord deliberately arrange it? , to let all the people of the prince know? In this way, is it true that there is a long live?"
Pei You'an was silent for a moment, before answering the question: "Yang Yun, what do you think of the court's sea ban this time?"
Yang Yun was startled: "Isn't it because of preventing Japanese pirates?"
Pei You'an said: "This is just an appearance. Long live this man, ambitious, admiring the emperor's virtue and good fortune, what he wants is the saint, the god, and the martial arts. What he wants is for all nations to come to the court, to demonstrate my great Wei's cultural and martial arts, so A harassment by Japanese pirates will never make Wan Sui retreat, he is not such a person. When I was in Quanzhou, the thing I was most worried about happened."
Yang Yun was surprised: "Your Excellency is saying that Long Live already knows about the young master? Is the purpose of banning the sea related to the young master?"
"When I received the urgent call from Wan Sui, I became more and more sure of my previous guess. Wan Sui knows that even if it is not ten, it is almost inseparable. He called me back just to test me. Even if I cover up the past this time, he must have It can also be verified soon. It is also a matter of human beings who are not as good as heaven. I thought that the matter of the young master would not be leaked so quickly even if the paper could not cover the fire in the future, but I didn’t expect it. Since it was accidentally leaked, there is not much time left for me. The emperor's heart is unpredictable, and I am afraid that I will be unable to protect myself in the future. If I were alone, I would have nothing to worry about, but now there is still the Zhen family. , If something happens to me, the prince will definitely not let the Zhen family go in the future, so I can only take the risk and force the prince to move first. As long as the prince moves, I'm not afraid of failing to catch his omissions.
Yang Yun became more and more confused: "Sir, I really don't understand, what does this have to do with the Lord deliberately leaking news to the prince?"
Pei You'an smiled slightly: "You don't understand. The father and son of the Tian family are often as thin as a piece of paper. If I was right, Long Live and the prince, father and son have more suspicion than trust. I'm gambling, I hope I can win. "
Yang Yun has always believed in Pei You'an's wisdom and plans, in addition to following him willingly to repay his gratitude.
Since he arranged it like this, he must have his own considerations.
Although Yang Yun was still puzzled, seeing that Pei You'an no longer explained, he closed his mouth and stopped asking more questions. He just knelt down at the figure behind the case: "Master Pei, take care of you."
After Yang Yun saluted, he got up and left quickly, disappearing into the night.
Pei You'an sat alone in the dark for a long time, looking at the shadow of the dripping copper pot in the corner, thinking that it was too early for her to go back to her room and sleep at the latest time, she stretched, got up, and stepped on the moon. Back to the room.