first minister

Chapter 369: Late at night in the palace, words set the tone

Great prince?
After Xia Jingyun heard this, he began to search for memories about the prince in his mind. The old owner of the village, Zhao, had already given an explanation.

"The eldest prince Dongfang Ping's mother was a young citizen from the mountains in the southern border of Yunmeng Prefecture. She was born as pure as water and as beautiful as a flower. She was noticed by the late emperor who was traveling abroad and took him with him. At that time, he was called Mrs. Hua. Mrs. Hua His belly also strived for success, and he soon gave birth to the eldest son of the late emperor, who was just a prince at the time. It has always been a problem for the eldest son to be born in a powerful family, not to mention that Mrs. Hua was of Shaomin descent, and the late emperor wanted to compete for the throne, so he gave birth to him. The name Ping means peace and tranquility, and his thoughts are clearly revealed."

Mr. Zhao said slowly: "Dongfang Ping himself knows that his bloodline is destined to miss the throne and he has always been peaceful. I think it was precisely because of this that the late emperor could safely hand over the military power on the eastern front of Northern Xinjiang to him. Him. Although the eastern route is not a route often taken by Beiliang invaders, this trust is also extraordinary."

Xia Jingyun pursed his lips, "If the late emperor had not died, he would have been a loyal minister and good general. But now that the late emperor has passed away, and seeing the changes in the court, the two younger brothers have taken turns taking the throne, and no one cares at all. If he has no idea in his mind, then It’s impossible.”

Yanzhi, as a female, had a more delicate mind and said, "But no one is interested in him, the eldest son of the late emperor, and no one even cares about him, so that he actually colluded with Beiliang and did such a treasonous thing."

Everyone briefly exchanged a few words, which was able to calm down the mind of the first big change and calm down their emotions.

Xia Jingyun looked at the night outside the window, "Old owner, how many people know this news now?"

Mr. Zhao said softly: "The news came from me behind the scenes, but the messengers from other forces and the imperial court will not be too far behind."

"That's enough. This little bit of head start is extremely valuable."

Xia Jingyun ran a circle of thoughts in his mind and said in a deep voice: "Since many people will be woken up in a while, let's just stop sleeping. Yanzhi, go to Gongsun Jing and ask him to immediately invite the center and the third-rank or above in the court. Officials, come to the palace to discuss matters. Old owner of the village, please accompany me into the palace."

Both of them said nothing and nodded in agreement.
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Who can serve as an official in the capital, except for the children of aristocratic families with hereditary favor, who is not very thoughtful?

And who is able to survive these two storms safely and still hold a position of third rank or above in the court as an absolutely important minister, who is not the Qiqiao Exquisite Heart?
Therefore, since they were woken up from their warm beds late at night in this early winter, even though many people were in high positions and pampered, when they learned that Marquis Jianning personally sent people to summon everyone to the palace, everyone did not hesitate. Get dressed quickly and head to Miyagi.

But now in the palace city, in the warm spring-like imperial study room, after listening to the reports of Xia Jingyun and Mr. Zhao, Concubine De was worthy of having seen strong winds and waves, and she could still remain calm.

What made the two of them even more delighted was that Dongfang Bai, who was still sleepy before, was able to sit up straight and stabilize his expression after being shaken away from all sleepiness by their words.

This is only seven years old!
"The Great Prince"

Concubine De sighed, thinking of the young man who was always taciturn.

The bitter cold in the north had wiped away all the whiteness his mother had given him, leaving only the roughness and darkness that had been beaten in the storm and snow.

She used to sympathize with this young man, but she didn't expect him to do such a thing quietly.

As a prince, he colluded with foreign enemies and led troops into the country. What he did was no less than that of Dongfang Ming who killed his king and his father!

"What do you two love gentlemen think?"

Xia Jingyun said: "Go back to the Queen Mother. The most urgent task is to first stop the bandits in Yuyan State and prevent the situation from getting bigger. The second is to order the states to strengthen their defense and suppress the bandits. The officers and soldiers will act prudently. Once the incident is reported, there may be someone with ambitions. He is ready to take action and fish in troubled waters."

Mr. Zhao lowered his eyes slightly, "The other thing is to stabilize the situation in the court. The situation in the court seemed to be calming down, but at first many powerful people were slaughtered, and many people were usurped by Dongfang Ming. The matter has been dusted off, and there are many secret connections, waiting for the situation in the court to change. Now that the eldest prince and Beiliang have joined forces, there may be a lot of dust left."

Concubine De said softly: "I think many people will blame the Ai family for summoning the state pastors from various states to the capital without authorization, leaving the Yuyan Prefecture without a leader, allowing the traitors to take advantage of it."

Xia Jingyun felt warm in his heart. He had decided on the policy for that day. Her sister said that she was going to take the blame for herself.

He looked up at Concubine De, who looked at him with a flash of tenderness in her eyes, and then said sternly: "You two can handle the affairs of the outer court. As for other matters, the Ai family will take care of them for you. As before. The difficult situation has been over, how can we let them overcome the current situation!"

Under the flash of domineering power, Xia Jingyun and Mr. Zhao Lao Zhuang calmed down, "I obey the order!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Jin Zhong came over quickly and said, "The Queen Mother, Your Majesty, Duke Wei, Marquis Jianning, and Commander Shang sent people to inform you that all of you have arrived."

"Please come to Qianyuan Hall."

"Yes."

Outside the palace gate, the most important officials in the court stood outside the gate wearing thick cloaks. When the palace gate opened, they filed in.

Wan Wenbi looked at Mr. Su's back and frowned slightly.

He didn't know what was happening, and it was this lack of knowledge that made him very worried.

The world is in turmoil, and if the information is not timely, you will lose the opportunity.

If you lose the opportunity, you will be less prepared, which may be your fatal weakness at a critical moment.

But this worry is still a long-term worry. He is more curious about what is happening now, so that he can summon the ministers to the palace to discuss matters in such a late night.

With thoughts flying around and confused steps, everyone walked into the warm palace.

The chamberlains stepped forward one after another and took over the cloaks of the ministers.

"It's late at night, don't be formal, just watch your seats. Jin Zhong, please order someone to bring some charcoal basins. Don't let the gentlemen get cold due to the strong wind in the night."

Everyone stood up to thank him.

They are all in this position, they have come, they can hold their temper and wait calmly.

After everyone sat down, Concubine De said slowly: "I called everyone here because I just received an urgent report from Yuyan Prefecture."

She looked around, her eyes passing over everyone's faces with different expressions. Her elegant and noble face was as calm and collected as ever.

"The late emperor's eldest son, Prince Yong, and the commander-in-chief of the East Route Army, Dongfang Ping, colluded with the Northern Liang invaders and invaded the bandits, and has swept through most of Yuyan Prefecture. Counting the days, they may have occupied the entire Yuyan Prefecture at this moment."

The calm tone was like water, but the ministers below were like boiling oil, causing panic in an instant.

The rebellion of the frontier troops has been a major event that shocked the court since ancient times;
The commander of the frontier army is still a prince, and there is also a subtlety of seizing the throne;

In addition, Beiliang is a haze that has shrouded the hearts of all knowledgeable people since the death of the late emperor;

The combined efforts of the three parties completely caused these important ministers who pride themselves on being calm to panic instantly.

Even the central princes changed their minds. They knew the situation in the empire very well. Now the government has decided, the state pastors have been rotated and adjusted, and the counter-rebellion troops have been re-dispatched. All the focus is on quelling the rebellion, calming the people, and restoring the order of rule. superior.

The focus of defense against northern Xinjiang is also on the center line guarded by the Wudang Army.

Now if the Eastern Front Army and the Northern Liang Army counterattack together, where will the imperial court have enough troops to resist?
If all of Yuyan Prefecture is lost, there will be only Dahe Tianxian and Sishui Pass from Langya Prefecture to the capital. And the river freezes in winter, so the cavalry can easily cross it.
Do we just rely on the fortifications and cities built by the imperial court in Langya Prefecture?

As soon as they thought of this, everyone felt that the light above their heads was covered by dark clouds again, making them even more breathless.

At this moment, there are all officials of third rank or above in the palace, most of whom have benefited from the current court, and no one wants to lose such achievements just after they have obtained them.

In the silence, someone couldn't help but tugged on his collar. I don't know if it was because the charcoal fire was too hot or because his chest was too tight.

As the prime minister, Wan Wenbi spoke in a hesitant voice, breaking the oppressive situation and saying with some disbelief: "That shouldn't be the case. Even though the eldest prince colluded with Beiliang, in addition to the Eastern Border Army, Yuyan Prefecture also has There are [-] Yuyan troops and two great passes, how could they just take over half of Yuyan Prefecture?"

A military general said directly, "What is there that I can't understand? The Swift Army returned to the state to control the animal husbandry, and now the state animal husbandry is not in the state."

Halfway through his forthright words, he suddenly realized something amidst the inexplicable coughing of the person next to him, and immediately shut up.

The eldest prince succeeded because the Swift Army was incompetent;

The Swift army was disabled because the state pastor was not in the state;
The reason why the Zhou Mu was not in the Zhou Dynasty was because the Empress Dowager and Marquis Jianning asked them to enter the court.

Therefore, it is roughly equivalent to saying that the eldest prince succeeded because of the stupidity of the Queen Mother and Marquis Jianning.

How many heads?
The general suddenly felt sweat on his forehead, while everyone was staring at the ground or the tips of their boots.

Wei Yuanzhi suddenly snorted coldly, "Tell me, why don't you say it anymore? Do you want to say that just because the governor of Yuyan Prefecture is not here, the eldest prince succeeded? If this is true, the governance of Yuyan Prefecture is too stupid. What, the whole state will collapse without one person? The governor of Yuyan Prefecture has left, and he doesn’t know how to ask someone else to take charge? The chief historian and prefect of Yuyan Prefecture are just wooden piles? If this is true, then this governor is called a replacement. Good!"

He had an angry look on his face, "It was clear that Dongfang Ping had evil intentions and was hiding evil intentions. At the same time, the whole Yuyan Prefecture had been almost infiltrated by this rebellious official and traitor, which caused the situation in Yuyan Prefecture to repeat itself in an instant. Marquis Jianning offered his advice and summoned all the prefectures. When Mu enters the court, everyone will see the outcome, so how can we slander this move because of the behavior of a traitor?"

"That Mr. Wei, Mr. Wei, I didn't say anything!"

"You didn't say it, but you clearly meant it!"

Wei Yuanzhi now fully understands the role he plays. Like an unscrupulous mad dog, he is not afraid of offending anyone and has no taboos with his words.

Just when the general knelt down to apologize and all the ministers were solemn, the Queen Mother said leisurely, "Okay. Wei Qing, you said this wrong." Wan Wenbi was the first to raise his head and looked at De in surprise. Concubine.

Concubine De said slowly: "The matter of summoning the state pastors to the court was brought up by the Ai family and has nothing to do with anyone else. Now that the matter is over, let everyone decide what is right and what is wrong."

All the ministers silently warned again in their hearts that the relationship between the Queen Mother and Marquis Jianning was still unbreakable, and they must not try to provoke it unless absolutely necessary.

"For today's plan, we still have to focus on how to deal with the army that may overflow from Swift State. Guarding the country's security and quelling the rebellion are the top priorities."

Wan Wenbi seemed to have not instigated what he said just now, and brought the topic back to the topic as if nothing had happened. It must be said that this veteran minister who had experienced ups and downs in the officialdom was still very good at his methods.

As deputy prime minister, Yang Weiguang honestly implemented Wan Wenbi's strategy. He did not sing any objections, but followed his words and said: "Yes, the land of Yuyanzhou is rich in cavalry, and the land of Hebei is thousands of miles fertile. The river is about to freeze again, and if we can't stop it, perhaps the world, which has finally had some stability, will fall into chaos again."

"What Yang Xiangzhi said is true! Although the current situation seems to be far away in Yuyan, it has already reached an extremely dangerous situation!"

An honorable veteran and veteran general in the army said in a deep voice, "Our Daxia Cavalry has always been led by the Wudang Army. The Wudang Army is also the only one that can confront the Beiliang Cavalry head-on and win steadily. In the Wudang Army In addition to the army, the Liangzhou Cavalry of Wuwei Prefecture and the Swift Cavalry of Yuyan Prefecture are the most powerful, and can compete with the Beiliang Cavalry. They are also the main force defending the western and eastern fronts of Northern Xinjiang. Now the Swift Cavalry has turned inward, Neither the Wudang Army nor the Liangzhou Cavalry dared to leave without permission, so where could they find so many troops to fight against them at once?"

Yang Weiguang secretly cursed, "Fuck you, what Yang Xiang said is true," but the other party did follow what he said, and he couldn't refute it, so he had to sulk.

Then someone else said: "Yes, after crossing several dangerous passes in Yuyanzhou, the land of Hebei is almost undefeable. If the eldest prince leads his troops to attack, and there is Beiliang's help, I am afraid that the army will come to Si." The day of Shuiguan is not far away!"

"Indeed, the opponent's cavalry this time is not as easy to deal with as the two thieves Lu and Xiao before!"

"How about we hurry up and invite the little military god back!"

"The most important thing is, where can we find so many counterinsurgency soldiers at once! If we deploy troops from various states to suppress the bandits, we may ruin the overall situation!"

"The East Route Army has at least 5 people. If the Swift Army is conquered again, these two armies alone will have 8 people. If we recruit civilians, it will be easy to assemble an army of [-] people, not to mention that there are people like Beiliang behind it. A wolf-like army!"

The more everyone talked, the more melancholy they became, and a decadent atmosphere gradually spread in the palace.

Although the charcoal fire beside me is hot, my heart is getting colder and colder.

At this moment, a Qingyue voice sounded with a bit of cold anger, "Listening to what you guys want, we might as well hand over the surrender form directly to the traitor and let him sit on the throne?"

Everyone looked at Xia Jingyun who spoke in a cold voice and were immediately shocked.

Wan Wenbi quickly knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, Queen Mother, the ministers are just analyzing the matter and have absolutely no such thoughts!"

All the ministers also knelt down to apologize. Concubine De smiled and said, "Don't worry, gentlemen. The Aijia naturally knows your thoughts, so please get up."

After saying that, she looked at Xia Jingyun with feigned anger, "Xia Aiqing, if you have anything to say, just say it. It's wrong to slander the ministers like this!"

Xia Jingyun cupped his hands and said, "Colleagues, I am in a hurry, so please forgive me and don't blame me!"

Wei Yuanzhi laughed, "Whatever Marquis Jianning said, he was all making suggestions for the country, who can be angry about this!"

Everyone secretly cursed the two people who were working together, but no one really dared to be angry.

Old Xianggong Su opened his eyes that seemed to be drowsy and said slowly: "Master Xia, if you have any high opinions, let's just say it directly. I can't stand this old man for long!"

Xia Jingyun nodded and said loudly: "What you just said makes sense, but if we want to deal with an enemy, the first thing we need to figure out is what the opponent's intentions are!"

"You've already rebelled, so what ideas can you have?"

Bai Yunbian, who was fortunate enough to be in the imperial court for the first time and participate in major decisions, implemented the established strategy and directly expressed his inner murmurs.

Xia Jingyun smiled lightly, "Can he really make it?"

"Everyone think about it, why is it that Dongfang Ping is the eldest son of the late emperor, has grown up, and also holds military power, but no one supported him in his fight for the throne at the beginning, and he honestly never had such an idea?"

"Because of his foreign blood, right? Although our Daxia is inclusive and tolerant of the world, people of foreign races can be officials in the court or go out to be generals, but they will never inherit the rule of the country, so he himself knows this , he has long since given up his thoughts and just wants to be a wealthy prince. It was like this in the beginning, how can he convince the world now? So, in my opinion, his primary goal is definitely not the throne."

People who think faster, such as Su Yuanshang, Wan Wenbi and others, are thoughtful.

But others were confused, "It's hard to understand what Marquis Jianning said. If it wasn't for the throne, why would he rebel?"

Xia Jingyun smiled and said: "The truth is actually not difficult. I believe that not all of our elite border troops are rebellious officials and traitors. Of the tens of thousands of people he calls his subordinates, only ten or twenty thousand are actually effective. He The real reliance is on Beiliang. Let’s think about it from Beiliang’s perspective, what is the most beneficial thing for Beiliang?”

Mr. Zhao, the owner of the village, complained a little: "Mr.

Xia Jingyun handed over his hand and confessed, "On the surface, the most beneficial thing for Beiliang is to support Dongfang Ping to ascend the throne, and then our summer will be all Beiliang's pockets. However, we are all familiar with it." Historically, not to mention whether they can do it, even if they really do it, when Dongfang Ping really sits on the dragon throne, will he be willing to just be a puppet? Who will Beiliang turn to for reasoning if he turns his back on him? go?"

"So the best idea for Beiliang is to support Dongfang Ping to stand between our two countries. It is best to occupy the land of the two states. This will ensure that Dongfang Ping alone cannot resist the army of our court and continue to maintain the situation. , they must cling to the lap of Emperor Liang. At the same time, Beiliang no longer needs to organize troops to go south to plunder every year. Dongfang Ping will search for them and offer them with both hands. They only need to sit back and enjoy the harvest. At the same time, they can also use Dongfang Ping to contain them. It consumes our military and national power."

"So, I guess, this is the real goal of the Beiliang people."

After hearing this, the ministers in the palace were stunned for a moment, and then couldn't help but nod, because Xia Jingyun's remarks were indeed very reasonable.

Dongfang Ping's background is destined to make him unable to secure this position, and he will definitely not rest assured that he will become the emperor of the Southern Dynasties and Beiliang. Separating one side and becoming a chess piece of Beiliang is indeed the best way.

Even speaking, Xia Jingyun didn't mention it, if Dongfang Ping succeeds, will Wuwei Prefecture be tempted?

Although he will still be a puppet after everything is done, he is still the leader of a country, powerful and independent, and there is still a huge difference between him and his ministers.

If the northern frontier of the empire is divided everywhere, Beiliang can make many bets and gradually disintegrate.

Thinking of this, many people feel a little relieved and have cold sweat running down their backs.

"Marquis Jianning, in your opinion, Dongfang Ping's troops will only stop in Hebei?"

"No!" Xia Jingyun shook his head, "He will still head towards Zhongjing."

Many people frowned again, wondering why you don't make sense.

Just as Xia Jingyun was about to speak, Wan Wenbi was the first to say: "What Marquis Jianning means is that although Beiliang and Dongfang Ping ultimately mean that, if we can take advantage of our empty strength and really capture the city of Zhongjing, we can take advantage of it." When they get to the throne, they will not refuse, not to mention the princes, nobles and relatives in the city, and the huge amount of gold and silver treasures. When the opportunity comes, they can decide what to do with it. Even if they can't defeat them, they will be frightened. It is conducive to him to separate himself and rule the roost. This is the reason why if you want to get it, you must seek for it."

"What's more, although we feel that Dongfang Ping's position is not secure, what if he is personally obsessed with it? Or worse yet, what if he promises to cede several states after the Beiliang incident is completed to fulfill his dream of becoming an emperor?"

He smiled slightly and said: "Marquis Jianning, are you correct in telling the truth?"

Xia Jingyun was very aware of Wan Wenbi's petty thoughts, but when he saw that he was still thinking about those things at such a time, he was quite disdainful of this person. He smiled and said: "What Wan Xiang said is true."

Everyone felt disappointed for a while, but their relationship still needs to be fought?Then what's the use of talking so much about some and nothing!
An honorable nobleman said with a gun and a stick: "Isn't this round about coming back again?"

"That's not the case!" Xia Jingyun said in a deep voice: "If our analysis just now is good, Beiliang's support and belief in Dongfang Ping's march will not be very strong. Therefore, we only need to win one battle, as long as we win, Even if there is a small defeat after a deadly battle, as long as there is no retreat, the opponent will retreat."

He looked around at the crowd, "Just one fight, just one fight! It will temporarily relieve the urgent need!"

If it were to defend the city, it would not be impossible to gather enough people for this battle.

While everyone was thinking about it, another courtier spoke up, "Jianning Hou, all this is your guess. What if we guess wrong? This is a matter of national importance!"

Concubine De, Mr. Su, Mr. Zhao, Mr. Su Yuanshang and others all frowned. They were trying to force Xia Jingyun to a dead end. If their guess was wrong, who could save him?

Just as they were about to speak, Xia Jingyun said decisively: "If our guess is correct, the envoy from Beiliang is already on the way and will arrive soon. As long as the envoy really comes, no matter what he says, the matter will be over. We are inseparable. What's more, no matter what, we must immediately gather our troops and head north to meet the enemy."

Of course he is not stupid, how could he put such a big pot on his head.

Mr. Su said: "In this case, we might as well wait for a few days while immediately gathering manpower, food, grass, and military supplies. Let's settle these things tonight."

Everyone looked at each other and could only think like this.
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And outside a post station more than four hundred miles away from Zhongjing City, a medium-sized team was slowly stopping.

Looking at the postmen who were waiting in the post station, a man stepped forward and spoke fluently in the Central Plains dialect, "We are the envoy of the Daliang Empire. The two post stations in front were destroyed by war, so we arrived here belatedly. This is a document. Please take a look at it, Yi Cheng."

　I forgot to mention that in response to the call, Mr. Bai's character is stuck. If you have time, please help and compare your feelings.

　　or2!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)