Jiuxi

Chapter 382 Chapter 380 [There is no holiday]

Beicheng, Huitongfang.

Jinshui Street was crowded with people. The people looked at the store that was completely burned by the fire and whispered to the people around them.

The fire last night happened very suddenly. Fortunately, it was almost night when the fire broke out. The shopkeeper and waiters in the store were very clever and escaped in time when they saw the situation was bad. In addition, the neighbors nearby came to help, so the fire did not spread. and the neighboring houses.

Unfortunately, the store itself suffered heavy losses, and all the silks and other goods in the warehouse were destroyed.

"Master Marquis, after rough statistics, our company's loss this time is about more than 13,000 taels."

Chen Shu came to Lu Chen with a heavy expression.

For the Lu family, more than ten thousand taels of silver is certainly not a big deal, but it is still a considerable loss.

More importantly, this sudden fire is like a warning.

Lu Chen looked at the charred facade and asked calmly, "Has the cause of the fire been found?"

Lu Chen rode his horse slowly and said calmly: "Senior, do you know who set the fire?"

……

Yu Chigui smiled and asked, "Which sentence?"

Yuchi returned and said, "It seems you really don't care about these threats."

"Starting from the warehouse..."

The middle-aged man asked with great interest: "Then how do you plan to retaliate?"

This sentence was very plain and did not contain any murderous intent, but when it fell into Yuchi Gui's ears, it contained the arrogance and wantonness that is common in the world of martial arts.

Lu Chen looked forward and said word by word: "Afraid of power but not moral."

Lu Chen repeated these words in a low voice, with a bit of coldness in his eyes, and then ordered: "First settle the shopkeeper and clerk in this store, other stores will be closed to welcome customers, and important goods can be temporarily stored in the Hou Mansion. "

The middle-aged man said meaningfully: "This time, the warehouse of a store was burned. Next time, it is possible that all the stores of the Lu family in the capital will be burned. What's more, the Lu family's stores in various prefectures in Huaizhou will have various incidents. All kinds of problems. If setting fire doesn't solve the problem, then draw a knife and kill people. Even if they can't touch you, they can still threaten the people you care about, such as your father and the men, women, and children of the Lu family."

Yuchi Gui sarcastically said: "Who else could it be besides these dignitaries from the south? You are now not only the imperial envoy responsible for investigating Hou Yu's case, but also the emperor's greatest support in overcoming the stubborn diseases of the Beijing army. You can be said to have important responsibilities in one person. You mentioned it before Regarding the details of Mo Yuan’s night banquet, you used a wine glass to block those people’s hopes of seducing you, and naturally the next step was threats and intimidation.”

Imperial Palace, Wende Hall.

When Lu Chen walked in, there were already two important ministers in the palace. The one standing on the right was Qin Zheng, the Sutra Weaver, and the one on the left was Xue Nanting, the right minister.

Everyone walked southward, and Yu Chigui appeared next to Lu Chen at some unknown time.

Lu Chen looked at the street scene in front of him and said slowly: "I just think the gentlemen in the south think of things too simply. They thought they could scare me by setting fire to it, but they forgot how I walked into the palace from the border. .”

Chen Shu quickly agreed.

Before Lu Chen came to the capital with his brilliant military exploits, the three monarchs and ministers in the palace were a very fixed match.

Lu Chen took one last look at the store destroyed by the fire, then turned and left surrounded by dozens of soldiers.

Lu Chen smiled.

Chen Shu said with shame: "We haven't found out yet. One of the clerks said that the fire started in the warehouse, and when it was discovered, it was too late to put it out."

Lu Chen did not answer this question directly, but said leisurely: "Senior has previously quoted Uncle Xiao's evaluation of these powerful people in Jiangnan. Those three sentences are still fresh in my memory. It is said that they know small etiquette without great righteousness, stick to small details without great virtue, and pay attention to small things without great virtue. Self-interested and shameless, this evaluation is appropriate, but I think I can add one more."

The emperor Li Duan, who was sitting behind the imperial desk, looked at Lu Shen and asked gently: "You went to the eastern suburbs for a military parade yesterday. Did anything interesting happen?"

Lu Chen carefully noticed a dull look on the emperor's eyebrows. He did not rush to ask, but briefly recounted what happened yesterday, and finally said: "Your Majesty, I have left 900 cavalry and placed them in Zhenwei, Chongwei and Liwei. In the army, he temporarily serves as the military law team. In fact, although the problems of the Beijing army are many, they are not rotten to the root. Give me a period of time, which is enough to change the appearance of these three Beijing armies. "

"Very good, I did not misjudge the person."

The smile on Li Duan's face grew thicker, and he continued: "The restructuring of the Beijing Army is not a day's work. You have already made a good start, and you can slow down the pace appropriately."

Lu Chen lowered his head and said, "I understand, your Majesty, please rest assured."

Li Duan asked again: "How was the investigation of Hou Yu's case?"

Lu Chen was about to speak when he saw Xue Nanting took a step forward and bowed: "Regarding the case of Marquis Nan'an, I sincerely ask your Majesty to think twice!"

This sudden change interrupted Lu Chen's thoughts. He looked at the Prime Minister with some confusion, and saw that this middle-aged man with a strong temperament had a look of worry on his face that was hard to see at ordinary times.

Li Duan's previously gentle expression was a little cold. He raised his hand and rubbed the white jade paperweight on the table, and said slowly: "Think twice? Why should I think twice?"

Xue Nanting knew that his advice was not liked by the emperor, but as the right prime minister of the court, and because the left prime minister was old and presided over most of the government affairs, he knew better than anyone else the structure of the Da Qi court and the problems it was currently facing. .

Some things have to be said, must be said.

He cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, the things Nan'an Marquis has committed cannot be forgiven, especially the two items of using weapons without permission and bullying the emperor. Even if he confiscates his family and asks for execution, it is not an exaggeration. But his relationship with those high-ranking families is not an exaggeration. It is too deep, and it involves the relationship between Daqi and the Seven Tribes of Shazhou. If the Marquis of Nan'an is heavily punished for this, will it cause riots in the Chengzhou Dudu Mansion, and will it cause the Seven Tribes of Shazhou to take advantage of it, thus threatening the The stability of the western border?" At this moment, Lu Chen felt a strange emotion in his heart.

Perhaps these words should have come from the mouth of the left prime minister, but the right prime minister has always been the emperor's staunchest supporter, and he actually opposed the emperor's decision.

Li Duan looked at Xue Nanting steadily, and after a long silence asked: "According to Xue Xiang's wishes, how should I make a decision?"

Xue Nanting looked up at the emperor and said sincerely: "Your Majesty, the Marquis of Nan'an is a military meritorious officer, so he can atone for his crime. In my humble opinion, I can deprive him of his title and demote him to a commoner, and never hire him."

Li Duan was noncommittal and asked, "What about the others?"

Everyone in the hall knew exactly who this "other person" was.

During his tenure in the Chengzhou Dudufu, Hou Yu first took the initiative to cross the Yunling Mountains to hunt Shazhou people. In this way, he gained heads and military merits and was promoted. When the people of Shazhou could not bear to fight back, he lied about the military information and said that it was the Seven Shazhou troops invading the border, and once again gained credit by blocking the enemy.

These things seem very simple. If you want to completely hide it from the court, you can't do it without the help of some ministers in the court.

Li Duan had endured it for fourteen years, and if he didn't want to endure it any longer, he would definitely take advantage of Hou Yu's case to stir up trouble in the court.

Xue Nanting knew this very well. He looked at the emperor and said with difficulty: "Your Majesty, going too far is still not enough."

"boom!"

Li Duan suddenly raised his hand and patted the case, and said angrily: "Too much is not enough? How many opportunities have I given them in the past fourteen years? Do they know how to cherish it? These people secretly give and receive the power of the imperial court, and are intertwined with each other. Even if I want to change Even the Minister of War has to look at their faces!"

Xue Nanting looked solemn.

Li Duan continued: "For the sake of the overall interests of the country and the dynasty, I have endured it again and again, but these people are becoming more and more unwilling to restrain themselves and dare to do such things without telling me. Should I continue to treat them leniently?"

Xue Nanting did not flinch. He bowed and said: "Your Majesty, I have no selfish motives."

Li Duan looked at the white hair that had sprouted out of nowhere on the middle-aged man's temples, and an extremely complicated emotion surged in his heart. He said slowly, "I know that I wasn't blaming you just now."

Xue Nanting straightened up, first thanked the emperor, and then said: "Your Majesty, Nan'an Hou's case is not complicated. Although I have not read the case file, I can roughly guess who has secretly helped him. After all, this kind of thing only requires If it is revealed, there will be traces to follow. But I want to say that the most important thing for Da Qi is stability. Now that the Northern Jing Kingdom has destroyed Zhao Pingyan, the next step must be to point the sword to the south of the Yangtze River."

He turned to look at Lu Chen, then looked back at the Emperor, and said seriously: "Your Majesty, I firmly believe in the loyalty of the soldiers of the border army to Da Qi, and I will not doubt their combat prowess. However, no matter how brave a warrior is, he still needs a stable person." I hate what Hou Yu has done so much that I want to kill him faster than your majesty. The same is true for everyone else. However, the current Daqi cannot withstand the stormy waves. Before the Northern Expedition achieves the final success, it can only maintain stability. The two words are the most important!”

There was dead silence in the hall.

Xue Nanting saluted again and said: "Your Majesty, a little impatience will mess up the big plan. The temporary concession is just to take into account the overall situation!"

Li Duan remained silent.

Xue Nanting did not oppose for the sake of opposition. He considered this issue from the perspective of the stability of the DPRK.

Taking down Hou Yu and the ministers of the family who were colluding with him can indeed vent the anger in Li Duan's chest, but this happened after he restructured the Beijing army, which is tantamount to forcing the Jiangnan family into a corner. Cut them with a knife.

What is the imperial court?
It is not a specific person, but an interest group composed of countless forces, of which the Jiangnan family is the most important part.

The act of waving a knife at oneself to cut out the carrion may sound grand and majestic, like a strong man breaking his arm, but another result is that the carrion is not removed, but the body bleeds, and finally gives an advantage to the enemy in the north who is watching eagerly.

Li Daoyan remained silent because of this concern.

Xue Nanting also bluntly advised him based on this consideration.

Li Duan looked at Xue Nanting quietly, looking at this capable minister who had been loyal and protective of the country since he ascended the throne. Although he did not ask directly, he also knew that Xue Nanting, who was born in a wealthy family, was on his side. Especially how much pressure he was under to support the Northern Expedition.

He then looked at Qin Zheng on the other side. This lonely minister who was secretly called the emperor's eagle dog by many people, helped him strengthen the warp weaving department among all the forces and ensured that he did not become a blind man in the palace. and the deaf, who are now middle-aged and exhausted.

Finally, his eyes fell on Lu Chen.

Compared with the other two important ministers, Lu Chen was like the rising sun, exuding enviable vigor.

Li Duan couldn't help but have a look of relief on his face, and then suddenly started coughing continuously.

"His Majesty?"

Xue Nanting looked at the emperor who was gradually turning red. He couldn't help but take a step forward worriedly, and then said: "Do you want to teach the imperial doctor?"

Li Duan raised his hand and waved it, and finally stopped coughing. He shook his head and said, "No need, the imperial doctor has already seen it. There is no need to let them go in vain."

Lu Chen couldn't help but frown slightly when he heard this.

Li Duan picked up the cup on the table, took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, and then said to the three of them: "Although you have never asked, I know in my heart that you must feel that I am a little anxious during this time, and it seems that I have been disturbed by the border. The result of the great victory went to my head, and I wished I could handle everything in one day, but actually——"

Having said this, a bitter smile appeared on his face, and he said solemnly: "I will tell you today. It is not that I have lost my patience in the past, but that I have to do this."

As soon as these words came out, the three people in the hall were all shocked.

(End of this chapter)