"Wang Lengran is despicable and short-sighted. How can he have the nerve to question senior brother?"
In the study room of Juxian Garden in Prince Xunyang's Mansion, Xie Lingjiang said with a cold voice:
"He didn't bother to think about it. Li Zhengyan, Wei Shaoqi and his party passed by Xunyang City before and lingered for a long time. Didn't they just want to carry out the current Guizhou Uprising and look for opportunities?
"If it weren't for the senior brothers who have been dealing with them, looking at them, there is really no loophole in Xunyang City. Now it is not Lan Changhao who is imprisoned, beheaded, and sent to several states, but Wang Lengran, Wang Dashi.
"
Today there was only one lamp lit in the house, which was placed quietly on the desk.
The open window next to it let in the evening breeze, and the flames swayed in the wind.
The orange halo pushed the figures of Ouyang Rong and Li Xian's family reflected on the wall to sway.
After Xie Lingjiang made the sound of uneven packing for senior brother, the room was quiet for a while.
Li Xian, Li Dalang and others turned their heads and looked at Ouyang Rong, who was motionless.
He sat on a pearwood chair, holding a teacup that Wei Mei had just handed over to warm his hands, staring down at the tea leaves floating on the water in the cup without saying a word.
"The four states with statues, apart from Taiyuan in the north, are Yangzhou, Jiangzhou, and Guizhou in the south. They are the three states most affected by the central statue crisis.
"Li Zhengyan and others are resentful when they are demoted. They are looking for justice and people's support. Guizhou is the biggest flaw."
It was Li Guo'er who spoke. Today she didn't bring the cat. She leaned sideways on the chair. She had a pretty face with a lady's red makeup and plum blossoms on her eyebrows. She frowned slightly:
"Looking back now, Jiangzhou is actually better than Guizhou, followed by Yangzhou. If I were Li Zhengyan, I would give priority to these two states for the uprising."
After a pause, her red lips pursed into a thin line:
"Especially Jiangzhou, where father and brother are here.
"When Li Zhengyan and the others were in Xunyang, they probably couldn't find any opportunities, so they went all the way to Guizhou to take advantage of them.
"Lan Changhao, Lan Changhao, has big ambitions but little capacity. He has more talent but not enough knowledge. He is arrogant and complacent. In the end, he fulfilled Li Zhengyan. He is just stupid. The situation in the southwest is also corrupt. It is simply not a pity to die."
"Okay, it's useless to talk about this now."
Li Dalang sighed and looked a little scared:
"Fortunately, my father and I did not see Li Zhengyan at that time, otherwise we would have been in big trouble and we would have no excuses."
Wei Mei was worried about Zhongzhong:
"I'm afraid that if Li Zhengyan is still under the melon field, he will use the clothes and belt edict as an excuse. This matter cannot be verified or falsified. His Majesty may have doubts about us."
Xie Ling Jiang Gai raised his head lightly: "If you haven't done it, you haven't done it. You're not afraid of their investigation, you're not doing bad things, and you're not afraid of ghosts knocking on your door. Don't they all say that Si Tianjian's Yin-Yang family's spiritual watchmen are very powerful? In the worst case, we'll investigate."
Li Bao'er on the side lowered his head to adjust his cuffs and spoke softly:
"The important thing is not whether we did it or not, but whether grandma believed it or not. People's opinions are worth the money, and the accumulation of money is worth the loss."
Xie Lingjiang said crisply:
"The Wei family is not the only one in the imperial court. Let them slander and throw dirty water at will. My father is also there in Luoyang. With him and his master, Uncle Shen is here, and he will not let Sheng Ting be deceived.
"Besides, Empress Wei is not a fool. She is just suspicious. But when Uncle Li was dethroned, there were people who rebelled under the banner of Uncle Li.
"At that time, he was even more sensitive and Uncle Li was more suspicious. Empress Wei didn't even give him poisonous wine, let alone now?
"It's better to know a son than a mother. I think Empress Wei knows Uncle Li's temperament well and won't do anything to rebel. She doesn't dare to do anything rebellious."
Xie Lingjiang spoke clearly, and with his bare hands, he habitually peeled a pear, handed it to a certain senior brother, and said in a sincere tone:
"What's more, according to Senior Brother's analysis, Uncle Li's return to Beijing to serve as the emperor's heir is the most efficient choice to end the Liwei War with a low intensity.
"Empress Wei will not fail to know that in the absence of conclusive evidence that Uncle Li is collaborating with the enemy, no wise person will sabotage the arrangement."
Ouyang Rong took a bite of the pear, chewed it, and puffed his cheeks slightly:
"In this case, the more dirty water is poured out on the Wei family, the safer Uncle Li will be, because that saint has a clear heart, and there is a high probability that the two kings of the Wei family are fighting for each other."
Hearing his calm words, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Li Xian still had a sad face, took out a letter from his sleeve, and asked with a worried look:
"Does Tan Lang know about Wang Lengran's complaint? Guo Yu, the prime minister's palace, has sent new news from the Luoyang court, saying that Wang Lengran has filed a complaint against me and has communicated privately with Zhu Lingxu, the governor of Hongzhou, and Lilou, the king of Teng.
"Now these two people have rebelled with Li Zhengyan, and the suspicion has fallen on me again. What should I do? What should I do if the Queen Mother really believes it?"
He frowned in confusion, feeling that he shouldn't have been so proud before, so he accepted Zhu Lingxu's and Prince Teng's reply with a low hand.
Not every olive branch can be accepted casually, and it may become the source of trouble like it is now.
When Wei Mei, Li Dalang and others heard this, their faces suddenly became worried:
"It turns out that Wang Lengran and the Wei family have known this for a long time, and they are just waiting for something to happen now to file a complaint, right?"
Wei frowned and gnashed his teeth.
It was obviously bad news, but Xie Lingjiang didn't look panicked.
She immediately said on behalf of Ouyang Rong, who couldn't hold the pear in his mouth:
"Elder brother learned about Wang Lengran's letter immediately and immediately followed up with a letter to resolve it."
"What do you mean?" Li Xian and others were stunned.
Xie Ling Jiang Xiaoyin: "Uncle Li, have you forgotten that the senior brother took away the letters between Zhu Lingxu and Prince Teng?"
"Yes, what does niece Xian mean?"
"At that time, senior brother had already written a memorial, reporting the matter in detail, and also attached letters from Zhu Lingxu and others, giving an early warning, but it was not taken seriously at first.
"Now, I heard that the Central Feng Pavilion has found this dusty memorial in the high pavilion of the treasury, and found that it had indeed been reported earlier."
Xie Ling Jiang Qianran smiled:
"Oh, Wang Lengran has been embarrassed for nothing. He is the one who is embarrassed now. As the adjutant, the senior brother has already reported it. He is just talking about it now. Why didn't he say it before?
"Everyone with a discerning eye knows his little thoughts. In His Majesty's eyes, he has probably become a buffoon.
"Now the imperial court has discovered that the senior brother had warned Zhu Lingxu about his inappropriate relationship with Prince Teng Li Lou long ago. Uncle Shen and many court officials all praised the senior brother for his foresight."
Li Xian was stunned for a moment, and then his face lit up with joy.
Wei Mei and Li Dalang also breathed a sigh of relief.
Li Guo'er had been facing Ouyang Rong sideways since she entered the house. Now when she heard that someone silently made a comeback, her expression did not change, but she couldn't help but squint at him who was so unfazed.
Li Xian looked at Ouyang Rong with admiration:
"It's better for Tan Lang to predict things before they happen, otherwise our situation will be much more serious and dangerous."
Ouyang Rong shook his head: "It's just a coincidence. In fact, I didn't expect it to really work. It's just an unintentional insertion."
Li Xian patted the back of his hand and said sincerely: "Tan Lang, don't be humble."
Wei Mei, the Princess of Xunyang, saw him put down the tea cup and immediately stepped forward, smiling softly and filling him with tea again.
Ouyang Rong immediately stood up, but was pulled down by Li Dalang: "Tan Lang, why are you so polite?"
Wei Mei smiled and said:
"Da Lang is right. Tan Lang is a member of the family. It is not the wife's job to serve tea. However, it is mainly because she is lazy and is the youngest, so she should come. Well, who is the concubine?
A little ancestor."
"Don't."
Hearing Li Guo'er, Ouyang Rong subconsciously stretched out his hand to stop him.
Wei Mei and others looked curious, but he couldn't explain it, but he glanced at the tea leaves floating like intestines in the hot tea cup.
Li Guo'er suddenly stood up, took the teapot from the slightly surprised Wei Mei, walked over happily, and filled the tea cup for him.
Ouyang Rong glanced at the tea cup.
Good fellow, when you pour tea for guests, don’t you always fill it seven-tenths full? If you pour the tea fully, it will overflow. I don’t know, I thought you were chasing away guests.
I don't know if she was careless or intentional. Ouyang Rong tightened his lips and said thank you.
He turned his head and said again to Li Xian:
"Uncle Li immediately wrote another memorial, saying that he was willing to go to the capital to meet the saint to prove his innocence."
Li Xian was stunned for a moment, and then his eyes lit up:
"What Tan Lang means is... taking the opportunity to show his loyalty and take the opportunity to return to the capital?"
"That's right."
Ouyang Rong nodded:
"In addition, like the Prime Minister, I hope to be given a surname by His Majesty."
Li Xian hesitated, unable to save his face: "This... is not good."
"If you present it like this first, it doesn't matter whether it works or not. In fact, what matters is the attitude."
"Listen to Tan Lang, I will write it immediately."
"Thank you for leaving uncle."
"It's because of Tanlang's hard work."
Ouyang Rong suddenly said: "Wang Junzhi, have you seen him recently?"
Li Xian shook his head quickly and said awkwardly: "I haven't seen you in the past two days."
"It's better to talk less."
"What Tanlang means is..."
"This person has a close relationship with Li Zhengyan. It is best not to have any contact at this sensitive moment."
"good."
…
In the next few days, Ouyang Rong went to the Jiangzhou lobby every day to attend his duties.
At the same time, we are waiting for the court's reaction.
Xie Lingjiang, Yan Liulang found that his mentality was optimistic.
But during the period,
Wang Lengran, who was swayed by Ouyang Rong's memorial, began to interfere in the official affairs of Jiangzhou Hall, secretly ostracizing Ouyang Rong.
Seemingly worried that Ouyang Rong would defect to the enemy, he teamed up with the Hongzhou rebels and dedicated the city to Cai Qin.
Many Jiangzhou officials can feel that the contradiction between the two chief officials has become public.
Ouyang Rong is neither humble nor arrogant.
Continue to stabilize the city defense of Xunyang and strengthen the inspection of passing ships by Xunyang Ferry.
On this day, Ye Weilai suddenly told Ouyang Rong that the flowerpots on the wall of Zhenguang Street had been replaced.
Qin Heng asked to see him for something.
In the private room on the third floor of Yunshui Pavilion.
Ouyang Rong and Qin Heng met again.
The atmosphere was silent.
The two looked at each other.
The incident between Cai Qin and Li Zhengyan has almost declared that the drifting Captain Su is irreversible.
Qin Heng glanced at Ouyang Rong, feeling a little guilty in his eyes.
"I heard that Wang Lengran is squeezing out Ouyang Changshi and increasing his efforts to monitor the Xunyang Palace."
He suddenly spoke.
"It's not bad." Ouyang Rong smiled and waved his hands in a relaxed manner: "General Qin, there is no need to worry."
"Now there are only 500 soldiers in Zhe Chong Mansion. The general can feel that Wang Lengran has tightened his control over Zhe Chong Mansion recently, and the garrison at Prince Xunyang Mansion has also become more and more strict..."
"General Qin, don't think too much."
"Chang Shi holds this token."
Qin Heng suddenly took out a certain token from his arms and handed it to Ouyang Rong.
After receiving the private token, Ouyang Rong was curious: "This is..."
Qin Heng said calmly: "There are some soldiers of the last general in the Zhe Chong Mansion. Seeing the token is like seeing the last general. In addition, Wang Lengran actually doesn't know that the last general is familiar with Chang Shi."
Ouyang Rong was silent for a while, then lowered his eyes and asked:
"What news has General Qin heard?"
Qin Heng shook his head and sighed: "No, but I'm just not sure... just in case."
Ouyang Rong hesitated and nodded.
Before the two parted, he warned: "If you have any questions, please contact me at any time."
"good."
Qin Heng left cautiously.
Ouyang Rong sat alone in the box, poured tea and drank alone for a while.
His eyes fell on the small copper token in his hand.
After a while, Ouyang Rong's figure disappeared on the third floor of Yunshui Pavilion.
The token was taken away.
The next few days.
Wang Lengran's suppression became more severe. As the chief official of Jiangzhou, he exerted subtle command and gradually marginalized Ouyang Rong.
I don't know if it's a coincidence.
That day, a military intelligence report suddenly came from the direction of Hongzhou.
Cai Qin's army, who responded to Li Zhengyan's restoration of the banner in Guizhou, left Hongzhou City directly without waiting to join Li Zhengyan's troops heading north.
Cai Qin, Zhu Lingxu and others are leading their troops towards Jiangzhou, both by land and water, with their troops directed towards Xunyang City.
The imperial army was still on its way from Yangzhou, with nearly ten days to go.
The situation in Jiangzhou instantly became tense.
Wang Lengran stopped pretending and immediately stepped up his intervention in the Jiangzhou lobby.
Ouyang Rong began to openly "prevent" Ouyang Rong from possible collaboration with the enemy.
For example, stabilizing the city defense, inspecting the Xunyang Ferry, and the Hengjiang Iron Chain were things that Ouyang Rong had been worrying about before.
They were all taken away roughly by Wang Lengran using his identity and following procedures.
Almost ignoring Ouyang Rong.
Also being squeezed out was Yan Liulang.
It was also at this time that the arbitrary power of the governor of a state was fully demonstrated in front of everyone.
Moreover, he seems to have seen the situation in which he and the Xunyang Palace are currently under suspicion by the court,
Many Jiangzhou officials who had a keen sense of smell and had secretly shown favor to Ouyang Rong before quietly stayed away.
Ouyang Rong experienced the harshness of the world this time.
But as Yan Liulang said bitterly,
In the face of a formidable enemy, there is still internal strife in the Jiangzhou lobby, which is truly chilling.
But even though he was so mistrusted, Ouyang Rong remained calm and composed.
Go to Jiangzhou lobby on time every day and sit down to work in the empty main hall.
He would do whatever was at hand, even if it was just sitting around, watching the battle reports ahead and seeing how close Cai Qin's army was to Xunyang City.
If you have any opinions, write them down and give them to Wang Lengran, even if the latter looks wary and impatient.
In this regard, Xie Lingjiang was aggrieved. Needless to say, Li Xian's family was also worried about him and felt guilty for dragging him down.
But Ouyang Rong turned around to comfort him, and he calmly said three sentences:
If others want to knock you down, no matter how they hit you, don't knock yourself down.
If someone drives you away, no matter how hard they drive you away, don't leave.
No matter how others punish you, don't die yourself.
After leaving leisure, Xie Lingjiang and others were thoughtful.
Li Guoer stood up and silently poured another cup of tea for someone who remained unmoved.