Tang Dynasty: The seventh rank of official residence, and you will be given the Ten Thousand People

Chapter 327 The civil war begins!
When the news of Yingniang's arrest reached Prince Yan's Mansion, there was indignation in the hall.

"Your Highness, Lady Ying has made a lot of contributions to the prince over the years."

"Now that he was killed in front of the stone monument like this, it would be unjustifiable if our Prince Yan's Mansion didn't have an attitude!" Fan An said with red eyes.

He was the chief steward of Prince Yan's palace, and he had close contact with Ying Niang on weekdays. When he suddenly heard the bad news, he felt extremely sad and angry.

"Sister, what Fan An said is true. The imperial court first kidnapped Wan'er and then forced Yingniang to death. It's so deceiving!" Yin Zhu slapped her palm on the table and said in anger.

Faced with everyone's gaze, Princess Taiping said nothing with a cold face.

To be honest, she was also extremely angry at Yingniang's death.

In the eyes of outsiders, Ying Niang might just be a servant of their Fan family.

But she knew that Yingniang was no different from her elder sister to her husband. She did everything by herself and never asked questions.

Even ladies like me have to be polite when instructing Ying Niang to do things.

Who would have thought that such a person would bump into a stone monument in order not to betray his husband.

But she couldn't take revenge on the court, let alone kill Duan Yi. There were more important things waiting to be done.

Seeing that Princess Taiping didn't speak, Yinzhu urged impatiently.

"Sister, please tell me something. If you want to avenge Ying Niang, my sister will gather the guards and go to the Yulin Guards!"

Princess Taiping glanced at her, shook her head and refused.

"The current situation is not conducive to us. You cannot show up in Luoyang with the guards at will."

"Sister, there is a more important thing for you to do."

"what's up?"

"Take the young and old of the Fan family, all relatives, friends, and villagers to leave Luoyang through the secret passage and return to Youzhou."

Princess Yinzhu, Fan An and others were shocked, and they all looked at Princess Taiping in disbelief.

"We're all gone, what should we do?"

"It doesn't matter. I am the princess of the country. As long as Fan Xin doesn't die, the court will not dare to do anything to me."

"But you can't stay in Prince Yan's Mansion. Once the imperial court sends an army, the guards in the mansion alone are no match for the army."

"So you have to leave tonight, the sooner the better!"

Everyone in the Fan family is used to power struggles, and they also know that now is not the time for mother-in-law and mother-in-law, so they agreed without thinking.

"Sister, it's too dangerous for you to stay here. It's better for you to leave first if I stay here!" Yinzhu said.

"Yes, Your Highness Princess, you can leave first and the old servant can stay." Fan An said with a smile.

Princess Taiping had been planning the evacuation for a long time, so naturally she would not leave everyone behind and escape on her own.

Hearing this, her pretty face sank and she said coldly.

"I am Fan Xin's legal wife. According to family rules, you all have to listen to me!"

"Li Cunxiao, Li Kaigu, you two immediately lead the bodyguards and Qianniu Guards to escort the Fan family out of Luoyang."

"Take care, Your Highness Princess, I will ensure that all ladies are delivered safely!"

Li Kaigu and Li Cunxiao cupped their fists and led everyone in the Fan family towards the secret passage.

Several women turned back as they walked away, with deep reluctance in their beautiful eyes.

Not long after, the secret tunnel opened wide, and everyone in Prince Yan's mansion, his disciples and old friends, and the villagers disappeared into the tunnel.

It wasn't until an hour later that the door to the secret passage was closed again.

"Your Highness, Princess, all the people and wealth in the Yan Palace have been transported away. I think we can go north to Youzhou before dawn."

"Wherever they pass along the way, the confidants we have placed will help them reach Youzhou safely."

Looking at the masked man who was reporting calmly, Princess Taiping sighed.

"Tiangang, why don't you Seventy-two Tiangangs leave too, and I can stay here alone."

"His Highness is joking. We have already died once. We are where we are today thanks to His Majesty's kindness back then."

"In my humble position, I promised the prince that I would protect your safety to the death and never say anything about driving us away again."

"Well, they are worthy of being trusted by my husband. All of them are heroes who speak like mountains!"

Princess Taiping shook her sleeves and said coldly with a pretty face.

"Organize your troops and surround the Yulin Guard camp! Ying Niang is a member of our Prince Yan's Palace, and she will die in our Palace even if she dies!"

With an order, seventy-two Tiangang Guards with double swords on their backs and Mo Dao in hand poured out of Prince Yan's Mansion and rushed towards the Yulin Guard Camp.

Seeing them coming out, Guo Yuanzhen straightened his official robe and was about to step forward to stop them, but unexpectedly a cold-looking Mo Dao was placed on his neck.

"When I'm on an errand, I'll avoid everyone else, otherwise, I'll die!"

Feeling the murderous intention of the armored warrior, Guo Yuanzhen was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat.

"Brother, if you have something to say, please don't do anything. We just get out of the way."

"roll!"

"Hey, yes!"

The armored warrior Mo Dao retracted his sword, waved to the Tiangang Guards and the team quickened their pace.

Looking at the departing team, Guo Yuanzhen sat down on the ground, breathing heavily, and a stream of yellow soup flowed out of his crotch.

Just now he almost thought he was dead.

"What should General Guo do now? Looking at the Fan family, they are obviously rushing to vent their anger." The deputy general said with lingering fear.

Guo Yuanzhen wiped his cold sweat, glanced at him, and suddenly slapped his subordinate on the face with a big slap.

"If you're going to do it for your mother, why don't you help me get up and report to His Majesty!"

……

Yulinwei Camp.

Snapped!
"Tell me! Did Fan Xin instruct you to secretly win over people's hearts and win over the ministers?"

Duan Yi whipped Ying Niang and asked fiercely.

But Yingniang, who had just walked away from the gate of hell, spit out a mouthful of blood after being whipped, and looked at Duan Yi with contempt.

"Okay, okay, don't say yes, come here, give me the soldering iron..."

"Report! Sorry, General, Princess Taiping led a team of guards to come in. Brothers can't resist it anymore!"

Duan Yi's expression changed drastically, he grabbed his subordinate's collar and said in disbelief.

"What are you talking about! Princess Taiping has led people into the camp. How many people have come!"

"I don't know, there must be more than seventy people!"

Duan Yi almost spat out a mouthful of blood. Damn it, looking at the posture of the guards, he thought how many troops were coming, but it turned out that there were only more than seventy of them.

"It's useless. I have thousands of soldiers and horses stationed here by the Lin Guards on your right. A few dozen people are so scared. Take them and follow me out!"

After glaring at Yingniang, Duan Yi came to the camp grounds with his guards in high spirits.

At this time, there were only a few Princess Taiping and Liao Liao here, and the others were all missing. They must have been driven away by their subordinates.

Thinking of these, Duan Yi felt even more confident and said loudly.

"Princess Taiping, you actually dare to attack the Yulinwei camp. Aren't you afraid of being punished by the court? Please be wise and quickly put down your weapons and surrender."

"This general may be able to spare your life, otherwise I will kill you without mercy!"

Princess Taiping sat on the horse and looked at Duan Yi with a cold face.

After a short period of massacre, Seventy-Two Tiangang had occupied the entire Yulinwei camp.

In other words, Duan Yi is the only one left here who is still alive and kicking...

Duan Yi thought he heard it wrong and looked up to the sky and laughed.

"Your Highness, what are you talking about in your sleep? You don't even look at who's around you!"

"Ok?"

"Hey, who are you?"

Looking at the indifferent Tiangang Guard behind him, Duan Yi was stunned.

If he remembered correctly, the person standing behind him should be the Habayashi guards. Why did he become a stranger?

Is it...

Thinking of the terrible consequences, Duan Yi's face suddenly turned pale.

Then his knees weakened and he fell to the ground, swallowing hard.

"Misunderstandings are all misunderstandings. If you have anything to say, you can just give me an order. Why bother to fight and kill.

Princess Taiping's pretty face sank, her eyes stood upright, and she said coldly.

"Duan Yi, I ask you, where is Ying Niang's body?"

"Your Highness is in the torture tent at the back, but she is not dead, just slightly injured."

"What did you say? Ying Niang is not dead?" Princess Taiping was startled and hurriedly jumped off her horse and came to Duan Yi.

After getting the latter's approval, he walked towards the prison tent behind without saying a word.

When she saw Ying Niang dying on the torture rack, she took a deep breath and hurriedly stepped forward to ask with concern.

"Ying Niang, how are you now? Open your eyes and see it's me!"

Hearing the noise, Yingniang slowly raised her head, barely opened her eyes, and a trace of blood flowed from the corner of her mouth.

"Your Highness, you shouldn't be here, this is a trap!"

Princess Taiping wiped her eyes and nodded.

"You don't have to say anything. I know it's a trap set by the court."

Speaking of this, Princess Taiping turned around and urged: Hurry up Tiangang, put Yingniang down and take her back for healing. "

"Yes, Your Highness!"

After carrying Ying Niang onto the stretcher, the Tiangang Guard kicked Duan Yi to the ground, tied his hands to the horse, and the group walked out.

Just as everyone was about to leave the Yulin Guard camp, a group of guards holding open fire came from a distance and surrounded them.

The crowd parted, and Zhang Tao, the general of the Yulin Guards, came out with his sword in hand and said solemnly to Princess Taiping.

"Princess Taiping, you are so brave. You dare to lead your generals to attack the official camp without permission. Do you want to rebel?"

"What the General said is different. I am just rescuing a slave who was raped by gangsters. How can I talk about rebellion?" Princess Taiping said without changing her expression.

Zhang Tao sneered: "Your Highness, what you hear is false and what you see is belief. You have been tricked by this general and you still want to quibble!"

"I asked you, General, that Ying Niang is the grand treasurer of the Luoyang Chamber of Commerce. Many royal family members and nobles have done business with him. How can a domestic servant tell you?"

As if expecting Zhang Tao to ask this question, Princess Taiping took out a deed of betrayal from her arms.

Above it is clearly a document signed by Yingniang when she was at the Luoyang Chamber of Commerce.

Although Yingniang's current status is equivalent to useless paper, according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, Yingniang is still a servant of the Fan family.

It was okay for the court to arrest the big boss of the Luoyang Chamber of Commerce, but if they arrested the Fan family without evidence, it would be a big deal, because this was a frame-up.

"General, open your eyes and take a good look to see if Yingniang is our Fan family!"

"Who gave you the courage to arrest Fan's family without any evidence?"

"This……"

Zhang Tao hesitated and didn't know how to answer. He thought that Duan Yi dared to take action because he had the evidence of Yingniang's rebellion.

I didn't expect that he was arrested by force. What should I do now?
a long time.

He took a deep breath and forced a smile on his face.

"It turns out that I, the general, wrongly blamed Your Highness, how about this, you release Duan Yi, and I, the general, let you go?" Princess Taiping shook her head and said with a solemn face.

"The state has national laws, and families have family rules. As a general of the Yulin Guards, Duan Yi arrested and lynched people without the authorization of the court."

If Prince Yan's Mansion doesn't punish him, won't he be laughed at by everyone in the world? "

"Hmph, let's go!"

Princess Taiping flicked her sleeves and led the seventy-two Tiangang Guards away. The Yulin Guards all gave way to them along the way.

"What should we do, General? If Princess Taiping is let go, we may not be able to keep up the good work." the deputy general whispered.

Zhang Tao's face was ashen, his eyes were fixed on the retreating figure, and his teeth were clenching.

"You can run away, monk, but you can't run away from me. Immediately surround Prince Yan's Mansion and don't let anyone inside escape!"

"Yes!" All the Yulin guards shouted in unison.

……

"Trash! They're all trash!"

"The Eight Thousand Yulin Guards actually asked a little Princess Taiping to take people away. Why do I feed you?"

In the main hall of Daming Palace, Li Longji kicked over the sandalwood copper stove and roared loudly at Zhang Tao.

Zhang Tao knelt on the ground with a face full of shame, lowered his head and said.

"I am incompetent, please punish me!"

"Of course you are guilty!" Li Longji said angrily: "The Luoyang Chamber of Commerce earns as much as 12 million yuan in profits every year."

"Such a huge fortune can be transported to Youzhou under your noses."

"What do you mean by raising trash like you!"

Seeing that the emperor was done venting, Zhang Jiuling stood up and said.

"Your Majesty, I think there is no need to blame Zhang Zhangjun. Although Shangguan Wan'er's rebellion case involves the Fan family, there is no evidence after all."

"Under such circumstances, it is not appropriate for the imperial court to surround Prince Yan's Mansion and seal up the Luoyang Chamber of Commerce, lest it end badly when Prince Yan comes back in the future."

Upon hearing this, the ministers present were unhappy, and Guo Yuanzhen immediately jumped out with a strange expression.

"Prime Minister Zhang, everyone here knows that Shangguan Wan'er is his estranged wife, Fan Xin. Isn't it inappropriate for you to say that there is no involvement?"

"Besides, Fan Xin has been demoted to the title of Marquis of Northern Xinjiang, but you keep claiming to call him King Yan. Could it be that you are dissatisfied with His Majesty's decree?"

I have to say that Guo Yuanzhen's words were indeed heartbreaking. Originally, Li Longji didn't think much about it.

As soon as these words came out, the look in Zhang Jiuling's eyes changed instantly.

Suspicion tinged with disgust.

Zhang Jiuling wanted to explain his position, but was severely interrupted by Li Longji.

"That's enough! Prime Minister Zhang doesn't need to say more. The person involved in Shangguan Wan'er's rebellion also got the stolen goods. There is nothing wrong with sealing up the Luoyang Chamber of Commerce."

"I think you have been too tired recently, so you should go back to your hometown to recuperate for a while and leave the work at hand to Li Linfu."

As soon as he said this, Zhang Jiuling was struck by lightning. His face was pale and he froze in place. His pair of cloudy eyes looked at the emperor in disbelief.

Since he took office, he has been diligent in official duties and neglected food and sleep. Unexpectedly, he ended up being dismissed as prime minister.

Seeing Zhang Jiuling's miserable look, Li Longji turned his head and waved his hand.

Seeing this, Zhang Jiuling laughed miserably, knelt on the ground and kowtowed respectfully.

"The common people thank Your Majesty for your kindness. Long live, long live, long live!"

After saying that, he stood up and walked out. His shadow stretched far under the setting sun...

As soon as Zhang Jiuling fell, the prince Li Ying who was protected by him immediately became the target of public criticism.

On the spot, more than a dozen ministers impeached him for being related to Shangguan Wan'er's rebellion.

Although Li Longji didn't believe it, he still gave his son a warning out of disgust and locked him in the East Palace without being allowed to step out of the room.

After the meeting ended, Li Longji took several important ministers to the Qinzheng Hall.

"My dear friends, this is the memorial jointly signed by Guo Zhiyun and Li Linfu, the governors of the Duyou Festival. Please take a look."

Taking the memorial from Gao Lishi, several important ministers opened it and read it over.

After a long time, he closed the memorial and bowed his hands.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty. Congratulations, Your Majesty. Guo Jiedu used his troops well. He defeated a mere 60,000 troops and made hundreds of thousands of Four Kingdoms troops flee in panic."

"This is a rare feat since the founding of the Tang Dynasty."

"Yeah, a few days ago, a report came from the front line saying that Tibet united with 600,000 troops to attack Tang Dynasty. I was shocked. I didn't expect it to be so useless," several ministers said in a loud voice.

Li Longji smiled slightly, and the suffocation in his heart improved a lot.

To be honest, he didn't expect Guo Zhiyun to be so powerful. He only used 60,000 troops to defeat the Tibetan coalition forces and fled in panic.

However, when he thought of Wei Dayuan's impeachment of Gao Xianzhi Tongfan in the secret letter, his heart became heavy again.

Sensing the change in the emperor's mood, Guo Yuanzhen said in confusion.

"Your Majesty, we have such a great victory on the front line, why are you so depressed?"

Seeing everyone asking, Li Longji sighed and stood up, went to the window and looked at the palaces outside.

"You may not know that the defeat of the Four Nations Allied Forces this time was not due to Guo Zhiyun alone, but also to the Anxi Army!"

"Anxi Army?" The ministers were startled and looked at each other, unable to understand what His Majesty meant. "

Li Longji sighed, picked up Wei Dayuan's book from the table and threw it to everyone.

"Look, my Anxi Army has almost become Fan Xin's private army."

Several ministers looked at each other while stroking their beards, then lowered their heads to read the memorial.

When they saw Wei Dayuan saying that Gao Xianzhi had a secret meeting with Fan Xin, they all showed disinterested smiles.

Originally, they had no good opinion of eunuchs supervising the army, but this time they were more determined to have eunuchs interfere in politics.

Zhang said Gong Gongshou.

"Your Majesty, I think Wei Dayuan's words are not credible. Gao Xianzhi is a fierce general who only fights wars but never interferes with government affairs."

"I'm afraid it's unconvincing to say that he is Tongfan."

"I mean the same thing," several ministers agreed in unison.

Li Longji was not surprised at all by the attitude of the ministers, and smiled bitterly upon hearing this.

"My dear friends, if this is all, I certainly won't believe it either."

"But do you know that when attacking the Dashi army, Fan Xin's Youzhou army surrounded the Anxi army several times, and in the end they were spared without exception."

"You know Fan Xin better than I do. He is a wise man with a long-term vision."

"If the two of them had no relationship, how could he let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to severely damage the Anxi Army?"

This time, the ministers were silent. They knew Fan Xin very well. He was a man with far-sighted vision, not to mention being a strategist.

They didn't believe that this kid would give up the opportunity to severely damage the Anxi Army.

Unless, as Wei Dayuan said, there is an ulterior secret between the two.

Thinking of this, Zhang Shuo sighed and said to Li Longji.

"Your Majesty, Gao Xianzhi is a rare warrior and must not be killed easily. I think it will not be too late to test him after he comes back before making a decision."

Zhang said he was a capable minister, but Li Longji couldn't help but give some face to his attitude, he said reluctantly.

"Okay, after the army commander returns to the court, I will give Gao Xianzhi another chance."

Turning the topic around, Li Longji suddenly narrowed his eyes and said in a cold tone.

"Gao Xianzhi can give him a chance, but everyone in the Fan family has to guard against him."

"Zhang Shougui, it has been several months since I appointed you as the governor of Youzhou. Why have you not gone to Youzhou to take up your post?"

Hearing the emperor ask himself, Zhang Shougui bowed and said guiltily.

"Your Majesty, it's not that I don't want to go to Youzhou, but it's Fan Xin's home base there. The local government has its own system and is not subject to my control at all."

"I had no choice but to return to Youzhou!"

Li Longji snorted heavily. It was the first time in the history of the Tang Dynasty that the Jiedushi minister dispatched by the imperial court was unable to take office.

This makes Li Longji, who is arrogant and determined to create a prosperous Kaiyuan era, endure it?

"What a great Fan Xin. He has grown to such an extent in just over ten years. It would be great if this continues!"

"My dear friends, do you have any good ideas to solve this hidden danger?"

Zhang Shougui rolled his eyes, stood up and replied.

"Your Majesty, I have a clever plan to kill Fan Xin!"

"Oh, tell me what clever idea you have!" Li Longji's eyes lit up and he said happily.

Zhang Shougui coughed.

"That's right. According to my observation, Fan Xin values ​​friendship the most. If we set up a dragnet in Luoyang, we can then release the news that Shangguan Wan'er is going to be killed."

"Do you think Fan Xin will take the bait?"

Li Longji laughed when he heard this, and the gloom in his heart was swept away.

"What a good person to put you in the urn. If Yi Fanxin knew that his woman was going to be executed, he would definitely come to Luoyang to save her."

"At that time, I can kill him on any charge."

"Come here, immediately tell the world about the execution of Shangguan Wan'er. I want to see Fan Xin come to die with my own eyes!"

At the end of the speech, Li Longji's eyes burst out with endless chill.

.........

Chongzhou, Cuipingshan Camp, tens of thousands of soldiers in armor were stationed here, looking at the prisoners squatting on the ground with mocking eyes.

Among them, a man wearing a red official uniform stood out the most.

"Li Guixian, I just took the road to go north, why did I sneak attack on the Youzhou Army?" Fan Xin sat on the chair and said calmly.

Hearing the question, Chongzhou Governor trembled all over, knelt on the ground and said.

"Back to your lord, I have received an order from the summit a few days ago. Once the Youzhou Army is discovered, they must immediately close the city gate and send a beacon fire message to the surrounding garrison."

"As for why, I don't know."

As soon as these words were spoken, all the generals showed indignation and shouted loudly.

"Your Majesty, we haven't done anything yet, the court treats us as enemies, why don't we just rebel!"

"Yeah, let's do the opposite!"

"Shut up!"

After glaring at the generals, Liuzi said to Fan Xin.

"Your Majesty, it seems that the court is now ready to take action against us."

"Whether it's a war or a negotiation, you have to come up with an idea as soon as possible, otherwise we will fall into passivity."

Fan Xin did not answer Liuzi's suggestion, but tapped the armrest with a thoughtful look on his face.

A showdown between him and Li Longji is only a matter of time, and there is nothing surprising about this.

The only thing that surprised him was that the process seemed a bit too fast.

At this time, several galloping horses suddenly came from the distance, shouting as they ran.

"Sorry, Your Highness King Yan, there is an urgent delivery from Luoyang, something happened to the Fan family!"

(End of this chapter)