Jiuxi

Chapter 617 Chapter 615 [The Final Entrustment]

In the flower hall, Li Tianrun leaned on a rattan chair, looking at the young man and woman who came hand in hand, feeling a lot of emotions in his heart.

He had been in the army since he was young, and had devoted his whole life to the Great Qi. He was recognized by the world as a loyal minister. No one dared to question it, whether the previous emperor conferred him the title of Duke or Li Zongben sent him out of the palace with supreme honor.

He is worthy of the Great Qi and the respect and trust of the late emperor. There is nothing wrong with him as a minister.

But he felt that he was not a competent father.

In fact, he had long noticed Li Bingxue's intentions, but under his influence, this child only thought about family and country, and because of the hardships of the battlefield, she was very opinionated, so she would rather watch some things happen than break this hard-earned superficial tranquility.

Therefore, Li Tianrun tacitly allowed the two young people to get along privately, mainly because he wanted to make up for his debt to Li Bingxue.

"Uncle Li's complexion is getting better."

Lu Chen has already hidden that beauty deep in his heart. Although some things are tacitly understood, expressing them publicly will inevitably make things difficult for both of them.

Li Tianrun smiled slightly, motioned Lu Chen to sit down opposite him, and then said to Li Bingxue: "Bingxue, go back to your room and rest first. I have something to say to Lu Chen."

Li Bingxue was stunned and couldn't help showing a little nervousness.

In the past, no matter what Li Tianrun wanted to discuss with Lu Chen, he would never deliberately avoid her. Could it be that his father was planning to bring up that matter today?

Li Tianrun knew her thoughts very well and said gently, "Go ahead, we need to discuss some important matters in the court."

Li Bingxue was relieved and nodded, "Yes, Daddy."

The flower hall became quiet again, and the rustling sound of leaves in the breeze could be faintly heard outside.

Li Tianrun looked at Lu Chen sitting upright, feeling a little amused, and then said calmly: "Bingxue has always had her own opinions, and you are not a frivolous person, so I have never interfered. It is better to let young people decide for their own decisions."

This sentence set the tone, and Lu Chen realized that he had misunderstood. However, Lao Li's posture just now did seem a bit like interrogating his future son-in-law.

Even so, he still said solemnly: "Uncle Li, please rest assured, I will definitely handle it properly."

"That's good."

Li Tianrun nodded slightly, then changed the subject and said, "You are a little impatient about the assassination case."

Before Lu Chen had lunch with the Li family, he had discussed this matter with Li Tianrun, but Li Tianrun did not give any opinion at that time.

Hearing this, he couldn't help but hesitate and asked, "What's the hurry?"

Li Tianrun asked, "Have you ever thought about the possibility that His Majesty killed Li Zongjian in anger, how would this end?"

Lu was silent.

After a moment, he said calmly: "I have thought that if Your Majesty kills Li Zongjian, Queen Mother Xu will definitely not let it go. Although this will cause some shocks, it should not be out of control. After all, Queen Mother Xu's influence is only in the harem, and she cannot interfere in the outer court."

"That being said, don't forget that His Majesty is just immature. Sooner or later he will come to his senses and realize the role you played in this matter."

Li Tianrun sighed softly and said earnestly: "Do you want a stable court that can provide support to the border troops, or a Shura battlefield with endless fighting and bloodshed?"

Lu Chen frowned.

Li Tianrun continued, "Now you seem to be in a prosperous situation, young and powerful, but have you ever seriously thought about how much capital you actually have? Let's not talk about Jiangnan for now. All your status and power come from the emperor. Let's talk about the Jiangbei border army. Apart from Li Chengen's Dingbei Army and Bingxue's Feiyu Army, how many people are willing to follow you through fire and water?"

Lu Chen fell into deep thought.

He did not mention Su Yunqing and Gao Huan before, not because he did not trust Li Tianrun, but because he took into account his condition and did not want to add any more burden to him. After all, keeping a secret is not an easy thing.

However, after being hit by Li Tianrun, Lu Chen quickly woke up.

There is no doubt about Su Yunqing's position. Gao Huan will also stand firmly on his side because of the secret. The question is how much influence these two people can play in the court?
A Supervisor of the Sutra Weaving Bureau and a Minister of Justice, before they make further progress, they can only play supporting roles and help Lu Chen deal with some trivial matters. Can they be expected to influence changes in the court structure?
Li Tianrun slowed down his tone and said calmly: "You have a high prestige in the hearts of the border soldiers, which is of course a good thing. It means that you can command them more calmly and freely, and ensure that they can do their best to execute your orders. But you have to understand that all this is based on your status as the Duke of Daqi County and the commander of the border army. If you lose this status, how many people are willing to abandon their families and careers and follow you unswervingly?"

Lu Chen nodded seriously.

Li Tianrun said, "You once said that you admired people like Marshal Yang, but you would not become the second Marshal Yang. Then I can't help but ask, who is stronger, Lu Chen's troops today or Marshal Yang's supporters in the army back then? When Marshal Yang was imprisoned, did the hundreds of thousands of troops on the Jinghe River defense line mutinied?" Lu Chen was shocked and said with guilt, "Uncle Li, I understand."

Li Tianrun sighed, "Your Majesty is still very young and not very steady in his dealings with things, but he is not as foolish as his grandfather after all. I can understand your difficulties in taking advantage of the situation, but you must understand that your current capital is still very weak, and it only looks impressive."

At this moment, Lu Chen felt very frustrated and whispered, "No wonder that day, Prime Minister Li advised me to go to Dingzhou earlier."

He recounted the brief conversation between him and Li Daoyan after they came out of Xiu'ren Hall that day.

After listening to this, Li Tianrun looked at him steadily and said with a complicated expression: "Li Xiang is really special to you."

Originally, Lu Chen just thought that Li Daoyan didn't want him to continue staying in the capital and stirring up trouble. But after Li Tianrun's reminder, he realized that the old man saw deeper.

Just as Li Tianrun said, Lu Chen climbed to the top of the dangerous mountain in just a few years, but precisely because the time was too short, his foundation was very weak. If he stumbled, he might never get up again.

Because the higher you stand, the harder you fall.

Li Daoyan asked Lu Chen to go to Dingzhou, not only to avoid conflict between him and the emperor, but also in the hope that Lu Chen could calmly hone himself.

This is a well-intentioned move.

Lu Chen sighed softly: "The more you experience, the more you realize how shallow you are."

"There is no need to belittle oneself."

Li Tianrun spoke in a gentle tone, "The reason why both Prime Minister Li and I have such high expectations of you is because the border army of Daqi must rely on you to lead, and only you can realize the long-cherished wish of our generation. In fact, you have done very well, but His Majesty has passed away, Prime Minister Li is old, Brother Xiao needs to return to the capital to preside over the overall situation, and my body is not up to the task, so I have to put the heavy burden on your shoulders. I just hope you don't blame us old guys for being so harsh."

Lu Chen looked at the middle-aged man's tired and lonely expression, and quickly shook his head and said, "Uncle Li's words make me feel ashamed. Even if I am stupid, I will not misunderstand your good intentions."

Li Tianrun looked relieved, and then he said thoughtfully: "But there seems to be some melancholy in what Li Xiang said."

Lu Chen remembered something and said softly, "Uncle Li, that day in Xiuren Hall, Li Shizhi suddenly jumped out."

After listening to his story, Li Tianrun was silent for a while and then said, "This is interesting. Li Shizhi actually got so close to Your Majesty without making any noise."

Although he has been staying in the borderland for many years, his insight into the chaotic political situation and complex human hearts is still better than Lu Chen's now.

Lu Chen said, "Logically speaking, with Prime Minister Li present, it shouldn't be the turn of Minister Li to ease the situation for His Majesty, but he still did it, which proves that he must have had very close contact with His Majesty in private. In my opinion, it was unusual for Minister Li to appear in Xiuren Hall that day. The several matters His Majesty wanted to discuss had nothing to do with the Ministry of Rites, but he summoned him to the palace, which shows that His Majesty values ​​Minister Li very much."

Li Tianrun thought for a moment and said calmly: "It seems that Minister Li will become Minister Li."

It was no secret in the court that the Minister of Rites Xie Zhen asked for his remains to be buried, so it was natural for Li Shizhi to take over.

Lu Chen said meaningfully: "It is not uncommon for father and son to serve in the same court, but one is the left prime minister, the head of all officials, and the other is the minister of rites, who is in charge of the court's sacrificial ceremonies. This situation is extremely rare. No wonder Mr. Li is in a heavy mood."

"Everything that rises must fall, which is a universal truth. Prime Minister Li naturally understands this truth. Li Shizhi is indeed a person who cannot be ignored. Now that I am staying in the capital, I will pay more attention to him. You don't have to pay too much attention to him."

Li Tianrun looked up at Lu Chen and said solemnly: "You must remember your most important mission."

Lu Chen responded: "Yes."

Li Tianrun tapped the armrest gently and said slowly: "After you go to Dingzhou, I believe you can build a strong enough defense line and train enough elite soldiers, but there are not many generals around you that you can fully trust. I have been the Grand Commander in Jingzhou for ten years and promoted many generals, but not all of them are willing to follow me. Your Majesty wants to weaken my influence in the Jingzhou border army, and the commanders of each army will definitely change. In this case, let those people go to Dingzhou."

How could Lu Chen not understand the profound meaning of these words?
He looked at the middle-aged man in front of him with great emotion.

What a deep trust this is?
Li Tianrun mentioned three names, and then said calmly: "They are capable of leading troops and are loyal to you. They can be the best helpers under your command. Before returning to Beijing, I have talked to each of them privately. As soon as the imperial court's transfer order arrives, they will go to Dingzhou Governor's Office to report to you."

Lu Chen admired: "Uncle Li, I——"

Li Tianrun waved his hand to interrupt him and said gently: "There is no need for us to say more. When the Jing Kingdom falls in the future, remember to pour a pot of muddy wine on my grave."

"That's enough."

(End of this chapter)