Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 202 Brother Ji’s Twelve Hours

The general of the Longwu Army is Chen Xuanli, who is the supreme leader of the Longwu Army.

And the general on the left is Wu Zhiyi, so who is the general on the right who has a very low sense of presence, rarely says anything on weekdays, and rarely performs important tasks?
His name is Zhang Lingxin, a well-documented direct descendant of Zhang Han. He was born in Bailuyuan. His family has been a true Guanzhong native since the Han Dynasty. He is now almost 60 years old.This man joined the army during the Wu Zhou Dynasty and began to hang out among the Forbidden Army.

Now he is still entrusted with important tasks by Ji Ge, which shows that his foundation is deep.

Although the Longwu Army was formed by recruiting various "brave men" from Chang'an, rather than selecting elite soldiers from the Guanzhong area as in the past, it still had to represent the interests of the Guanlong circle.

Brother Ji wanted to get rid of the constraints of Guanlong's forces, but he couldn't completely get rid of it.

Therefore, people like Zhang Lingxin became the anchor of Long Wu Army.It is precisely because of people like him that we can ensure that Long Wujun will not become Ji Ge's butcher's knife to cleanse Guanlong's forces.

On weekdays, he does not interfere with Chen Xuanli's military affairs, and Ji Ge does not remove him. The two parties live in peace and cooperate happily. This is actually a compromise between Ji Ge and some Guanzhong forces.

At this moment, in the first custody room of Xuanwumen City behind the Imperial City, Zhang Lingxin read and reread the "anonymous letter" sent by someone last night, his heart pounding.

Failure to report this letter is usually a serious crime!

It would be fine if nothing happened, but burning the letter would be fine.

If something happens... Whether the whole family's heads are still around their necks depends on how things develop later.

All in all, things are a little bit bad!

"General Zhang, General Wu Zhiyi of the left is bringing some people into the camp. They look... not quite right."

A soldier ran up to Zhang Lingxin and whispered.

"Take someone to see."

Zhang Lingxin nodded slightly and said, folded the anonymous letter and put it into his sleeve quietly.

When he came to the top of the city, he saw more than 100 Longwu soldiers under the Xuanwu Gate. Almost all of them had dried blood on their bodies, and their uniforms were damaged, as if they had experienced a fierce battle.

"General Wu, aren't you escorting the saint to the wedding of King Shou? Why are you all covered in blood?"

Zhang Lingxin ordered his soldiers to shout at the top of their lungs.

"Eh? That's a long story. I was unlucky enough to meet a few thieves.

I said, why are the doors of Xiyuan closed? The brothers have to come back to the camp to drink and eat meat after their duties are over. "

Wu Zhiyi shouted pretending to be nonchalant, his heart already in his throat.

On weekdays, the main door of Xuanwu Gate will not be opened, but a small door will be opened, so that only one person can file in.

This is to facilitate the entry and exit of Long Wujun!

By default, this small door will be guarded by several Longwu soldiers, but it will not be closed.

Teams of more than five people need instructions from officers at the level of General Longwu.If only one person comes in and out, as long as he is an acquaintance and has an approval note from an officer of the rank of division commander or mid-level officer, then he will be asked one or two questions.

But today, this small door is actually closed!Wu Zhiyi originally planned to sneak in with Li Heng!

"There is a holy order here. The Xuanwu Gate is under martial law. Without the saint's will, the Longwu Army is not allowed to enter or go out. I have offended.

Of course, if General Chen Xuanli is here, you can let him speak out. "

Zhang Lingxin was businesslike, he said with a cold face, and then asked his soldiers to shout to the city!

The anonymous letter I received last night said that if there are smoke rising from the direction of Shengyefang today, it must be that something happened to the saint and someone rebelled.

As long as Longwu Army guards the barracks and prevents outsiders from coming in and Longwu Army soldiers from going out, then they are serving King Qin and there is no need to do anything extra.

When the counter-rebellion is over, it will naturally be a great achievement.

Because the original order from the Emperor was for the main force of your Longwu Army to stay in the military camp and not move around!

Now it seems that that anonymous letter was so correct!
The person who is afraid of rebellion is Wu Zhiyi, the general of Zuolong Wujun!
Zhang Ling has made a decision in his confidence.

"General Zhang, open the door! Both the Saint and General Chen Xuanli were killed. King Shou has rebelled in the city. Now it is urgent for the Longwu Army to step forward and quell the rebellion! Time is really tight!"

Li Heng took off his helmet and shouted towards the city.He pretended to be Wu Zhiyi's personal soldier and saw that he could not deceive the Xuanwu Gate now, so he had to step forward in advance.

"Do you have the imperial edict?"

Zhang Lingxin asked slowly.

Because of yesterday's letter, he was the first to not believe Li Heng's words.

"General Zhang, there is an imperial edict, and it is in the hands of this king. Before the saint died, he designated me as the prince. The other brothers all died at the hands of King Shou, alas!
You see, King Xue behind me can testify. "

Li Heng, who was riding on the horse, squeezed out a few crocodile tears, turned around and pointed at the anxious-looking Xue King Li Xuan behind him.

"Okay, Prince Zhong will come in alone, and the others will wait outside."

Zhang Lingxin asked his soldiers to shout to the people below.

Under the Xuanwu Gate, Li Heng, Wu Zhiyi, Li Wei and others looked at each other. They never expected that Zhang Lingxin would play such a trick!
If Li Heng went up alone, what would be the use?
But if you don’t go up, wouldn’t all your previous efforts be wasted?
superior?Still not going?Zhang Lingxin posed a problem for everyone!

"Okay, General Zhang, please put down the hanging basket."

Li Heng shouted towards the city.

"Your Majesty! Absolutely not!"

Wu Zhiyi became anxious, grabbed Li Heng's arm, and shouted in a low voice.

"Don't worry, I will convince them."

Li Heng said confidently, in fact, he had no way out now.

Taking advantage of the window period of information asymmetry, drag the Longwu Army generals and colonels into the water and take advantage of the situation to control the imperial city. This game can still be turned around.Otherwise, no matter how hard you try, it’s just nonsense and it’s totally useless!

The game that was originally going smoothly was completely fooled by King Shou!

Why didn't this guy give Li Longji a knife?Doesn't he hate him to death?Why not kill?

At this moment, Li Heng's heart was actually on the verge of collapse.

If he knew that Shou Wang Li Xuan would never kill Li Longji, then why would he mutiny?
If you don't want to kill, then why do you, a son of a bitch, go to Daqin Temple to buy a soft sword?Why do you still go there to buy datura pollen that makes you feel weak after eating it?

Li Heng didn't understand what the longevity king Li Chen was thinking, but he knew that this time he rushed too far forward and could no longer retreat.

This time, whoever has better information will be more likely to fall into King Shou's trap!He, the loyal king with the fullest wings, unfortunately fell into the trap!

Moreover, if King Shou makes such a fuss, Li Longji and all the princes will be suspicious of each other, and there will no longer be any open trust!
From now on, it's a matter of life and death!
Why did things come to this?

While Li Heng was thinking about these things, the hanging basket at the top of the city had already been lowered.

"Go to Shengyefang to look for that old immortal, maybe he is still hiding in a Buddhist temple.

Find him, kill him, and win this game! "

Li Heng whispered to Wu Zhiyi and Xue Wang Li Xu.

"Your Majesty, please proceed with caution."

Wu Zhiyi and Li Qi crossed their hands and saluted, said goodbye to Li Heng, and then led more than 100 people towards the south with murderous intent.

Li Heng was hoisted to the top of Xuanwu Gate in a hanging basket by Zhang Lingxin's soldiers.Li Heng handed the yellow silk in his hand to the other party, crossed his hands and saluted: "Old General Zhang, the safety of the country now depends on your thoughts. Please put the country first..."

Before he finished speaking, Zhang Lingxin didn't even look at the "imperial edict". He waved his hand and said, "Come here, take Prince Zhong down and take good care of him. Don't neglect it."

Ok?
Li Heng was stunned. He was about to speak, but he heard Zhang Lingxin say:
"Maybe the saint was killed, maybe he wasn't. Maybe King Shou rebelled, maybe he wasn't.

These old men can't judge now.

But it's not that hard to find out.If King Shou came to deceive the Xuanwu Sect with an imperial edict, the old man would naturally take him down and hold him accountable.He led his troops to attack the city, and I risked my life to protect the loyal king Zhou Quan.His Highness must be worthy of his title!

But if King Shou launches a rebellion, he does not lead troops to attack Xuanwu Gate, nor does he come to deceive the city.

Then the old man may have to think about the meaning of the performance by King Zhong and Wu Zhiyi just below the city.

Take him away and keep him alone.

After the door is locked, no one is allowed to guard the door or talk to it. Anyone who violates the rules will be punished as treason and will be executed immediately! "

When he said the last three words, Zhang Lingxin almost gritted his teeth.

What's wrong with this horse?
Li Heng's heart sank to the bottom, and he was taken away by Zhang Lingxin's soldiers without any resistance.

After he left, Zhang Lingxin, a veteran in his sixties, breathed a long sigh of relief!
Now he can almost judge that this time it is the loyal king Li Heng who is rebelling, and the life or death of the saint is uncertain.

But having said that, it is still unknown who will win in the end.

The best solution is to stand aside and watch the formation, and not to leave the military camp without the sage's order.

If the saint is really dead, then Zhang Lingxin will treat Li Heng as a guest when he comes back, hand over the military power of Longwu Army, and order his subordinates to obey Li Heng's command and calm down all kinds of chaos in Chang'an.

If the saint was not dead, then...detaining Li Heng would be a great achievement, and there was no need for him, a sixty-year-old man, to take sides.

This response is simply the best plan to advance to attack and retreat to defend.

Thinking of the anonymous letter last night that had no signature but was sent by Zhang Guangsheng, the Longwu sergeant in charge of guarding Xingqing Palace, Zhang Lingxin secretly felt lucky that he had paid more attention to it.

Without this "anonymous reporting letter" as a basis, it's hard to say how he would have responded today.

Uncertain, he let Wu Zhiyi and his party in.

And it's hard to say what will happen to those people who enter the Xuanwu Gate.Maybe Wu Zhiyi could lead his men to seize power and kill him and the generals of the Longwu Army who were unwilling to surrender.

At that time, it was even harder to say who would be the emperor of Chang'an.

so close!

Zhang Lingxin wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

……

"The saint is now trapped in Shengyefang. Please follow a certain right minister into the Longwu Army camp and stabilize the Qiu Ba people so that they will not be deceived by those who are loyal to the king."

In Li Linfu's mansion in Pingkangfang, Fang Chongyong saw Li Linfu who was pacing in the lobby, and asked him to go to the military camp with him.

"Are you saying that Wu Zhiyi rebelled and King Xue rebelled?"

Li Linfu asked with a slight frown.

He has no information channels in the Longwu Army and no close confidants.

However, recently all the Nanya Imperial Army were mobilized out of Chang'an City by the Saint, which made Li Linfu, who had a keen sense of politics, feel something was wrong.

That's why he didn't go to the meeting hall today because he was worried about being blamed!
"Yes, exactly."

Fang Chongyong, wearing the "three robes" of a monk, nodded slightly and said, his shining bald head particularly eye-catching.

Li Linfu nodded slightly, weighing repeatedly in his mind whether to go to the Longwu Army Camp.

"Now that the defense of Chang'an is empty, King Xue's people and the small number of rebels in the Longwu Army may also occupy the imperial city, control the six ministries, and then use the right prime minister to endorse Li Heng and ascend to the throne in advance, and finally use his official position to bribe him The senior officials of the Longwu Army, in turn, asked the Longwu Army to swear allegiance and then take full control of Chang'an.

As long as the right minister goes to Longwu Army, even if he does nothing, Li Heng's conspiracy can be shattered.Time waits for no time, Right Minister! "

Fang Chongyong bowed and begged.

Going there, not only is it not to "save the driver", but it is to "do nothing"!
Li Linfu understood the mystery of this after a little speculation.It has to be said that Fang Chongyong is thoughtful and has a measured approach and retreat!

Anyone can do the work of counterinsurgency, but Li Linfu cannot.

If Li Linfu led troops to suppress the rebellion, what would Brother Ji think afterwards?
Li Linfu already has a great say in government affairs, and he has many party members in the DPRK and China.

He is already so awesome. If there is another one who can control the Longwu Army, Brother Ji will definitely be very happy and relieved. Finally, he decreed to "abdicate" the throne to Li Linfu, and then happily treat himself as a "suicide" Be the emperor.

This kind of thing is impossible even if you think about it!

Only Li Linfu arrived at the Longwu Army camp and used his authority to stabilize the Longwu Army, keeping it neutral and waiting for others to put down the rebellion. This is the attitude that a prime minister of the Tang Dynasty should have.

"Okay, I will go to the Longwu Army camp with you.

Need to prepare anything? "

Li Linfu asked curiously.Knowing that Li Longji was safe and sound now, he didn't panic much.

"Please ask the right minister to write a handwritten letter and order the six ministries and the political hall to take a three-day holiday!"

Fang Chongyong added a sentence.

"Well said, great idea!"

Li Linfu followed the advice and wrote a letter and gave it to his servants to give instructions.

Fang Chongyong's trick was brilliant: he gave hundreds of officials a holiday. Even if Li Heng wanted to rebel and ascend the throne early, he couldn't find enough officials to support him.

"Let's go and lead the way!"

Li Linfu shook his sleeves and walked out the door.

The two of them rode horses, followed by light carriages, and entered the imperial city all the way north.For some reason, none of the guards who were responsible for guarding the gates of the imperial city and the soldiers who were supposed to stay at their posts were seen.

"You're right, the situation is indeed not quite right."

Li Linfu rode his horse and said thoughtfully to Fang Zhongyong.

When the two of them arrived at the Xuanwu Gate Tower, they saw the Longwu Army on the tower looking very nervous as if they were facing a powerful enemy.He was fully armed, which was very different from his usual laziness.

"General Zhang, this is the Right Prime Minister, and this is Fang Chongyong, the halberd-bearing member of the Longwu Army guarding Xingqing Palace. We want to enter the camp, and we have important matters to discuss with General Zhang!"

Fang Chongyong shouted at the top of his lungs from the tower.

Without saying a word or even shouting, Zhang Lingxin ordered the hanging basket to be lowered and pulled Fang Chongyong and Li Linfu up to the Xuanwu Gate Tower.

"I have received the saint's will and have ordered the six departments and the Yizhengtang to rest for three days. The imperial edict also said that the Longwu Army should stay in the camp and not move rashly. No idlers are allowed to enter, and no soldiers are allowed to go out.

Now that I have nothing to do, I also want to stay in this camp. Does General Zhang have any objections? "

Li Linfu said to Zhang Lingxin with a smile on his face.

After hearing this, Zhang Lingxin was completely relieved.

If he were to support the situation by himself, he was really afraid that the sergeant with ulterior motives would mutiny, be bribed by Li Heng, and kidnap him to take credit.

Now there is a right-wing Prime Minister Li Linfu who comes from a clan, and he continues to carry out the order of lying down and pretending to be dead. There is no need to take the initiative to stand up and express his position. This can definitely be traded with the other party PY!

In the future, you and Li Linfu can prove each other if something happens, and if something goes wrong, you can take the blame together and cover for each other. It’s so cool!

Zhang Lingxin immediately showed a sincere smile on his face, touched his gray beard and laughed loudly:
"It's a good time that the right minister is here. I just want to have a drink and talk with the right minister. It happens that there is nothing going on in the military camp, and the court is closed for three days, so we have to have a good talk."

"I think so too, General Zhang, please."

Li Linfu said with a smile.

"Right Prime Minister, please come this way."

Zhang Lingxin glanced at Fang Chongyong calmly, and when he saw him nodding slightly to him, he suddenly realized.

(End of this chapter)