It has been more than half a month since I left Beijing, and it has been several days since I arrived in Jianglingfu.
Chen Ping had been thinking about urging the King of Chu to set off in the past two days, but experiencing Nangong Ming's incident only aggravated Chen Ping's uneasiness.
It seemed like a long night and many dreams, so Chen Ping took the initiative to come to the Prince of Chu's Mansion the day after the banquet to express his attitude to the King of Chu.
"The country is in crisis. I was a free prince in Jingzhou. Due to the great love of the emperor, I invited him to Beijing to serve as regent. This is an unworthy honor."
"I am also feeling anxious and uneasy when I enter the capital this time. From now on, I will need the help of a loyal minister like Mr. Chen when I am facing difficulties both internally and externally!"
The King of Chu agreed readily. After completing the necessary polite procedures, he immediately ordered the prince's assistant officials and thousands of guards directly under the prince's palace to step up the packing and be sure to leave for the north tomorrow.
After receiving this definite answer, Chen Ping's wavering little heart finally returned to its original position. After complimenting the King of Chu for a few words, he was about to leave. The King of Chu pretended to keep him to continue the banquet, saying that he hoped that what happened yesterday would not affect the relationship between the two of them.
relationship between.
Chen Ping laughed in his heart, but showed a little panic on his face, and apologized to the other party for what happened yesterday.
After seeing Chen Ping's gesture, King Chu's mouth curved slightly, and he waved his hand very generously to express that the past was over.
After chatting for a few words, Chen Ping could no longer refuse King Chu's invitation to enjoy tea, so he started chatting with King Chu in a side hall.
He knew clearly that the King of Chu was a weasel paying New Year greetings to the rooster, and he had no good intentions.
But before the other party, Prince Regent Ren, showed his flaws, he had to deal with him carefully, so as not to alert the king of Chu and make him vigilant.
As for what King Chu was thinking, Chen Ping didn't intend to think about it. He just had to think that it was a snake.
Chen Ping's plan was perfect, but on the eve of its completion, something went wrong.
The chief minister of the Prince of Chu's Mansion quickly ran in from outside, leaned next to the Prince of Chu and whispered a few words in a low voice.
He noticed that King Chu's face instantly became ugly, and his whole aura was as gloomy as water. He waved his hand for Chang Shi to step aside, and then he picked up the tea cup by himself.
"Master Chen, why do you think you are playing tricks on me?"
Chen Ping's pupils shrank, his heart sank, the expression on his face changed slightly, and he put on a smile and asked: "I'm sorry that I don't know, but what is your highness talking about?"
On the surface, he looks extremely calm, but deep down he is already complaining. Can't he go through the process properly? Do he have to cause trouble at this last moment?
I worked so hard to deliver the letter from the capital, how can it be easy for me?
Without thinking about it, he already guessed that this was probably news from the capital, which could be good or bad, because it was bad news for the King of Chu, and it might also be bad for him!
The King of Chu snorted twice, with a hint of contempt in his eyes. He took a sip of tea and slammed the teacup on the table, and asked coldly.
"Master Chen, is he really ignorant or is he pretending not to know?"
"Although I make friends with famous people and respect them, I am not a clay statue of Tathagata and Guanyin!"
He narrowed his eyes to look at Chen Ping, and the threat in his words was ready to come out.
"Is this news from the capital? Your Highness just needs to explain it to me. If His Highness doesn't believe it and wants to kill me, you'd better make me understand, right?"
Facing the huge pressure of this personal threat, Chen Pingping did not change his attitude.
The King of Chu's eyes sifted through Chen Ping's body carefully like a grate, and he raised his head and looked down at him: "I haven't even entered the capital yet, but the emperor's brother passed the throne to the prince. I can't trust him!"
"The prince is not a child. He also has the assistant minister that the emperor's brother has found for him. In this case, there is no need to go to the capital alone."
"Master Chen, what do you think?"
Chen Ping's facial features couldn't help but twitch, "Well, why did Mr. Tianqi ask me to go to Jingzhou to express my intention to come? So that's what happened!
It’s just a matter of letting me, who has a grudge against the King of Chu, come to Jingzhou to deliver a message. I have to hide it and keep it secret. Now I am in Jingzhou, but you are passing the throne to the prince in the capital. Oh, you are planning to let me take the lead.
To appease the King of Chu?
He cursed in his heart. In order to pave the way for the prince, Emperor Tianqi asked him to go to Jingzhou to stabilize the King of Chu, while at the same time passing the throne to the prince and arranging manpower for him.
Chen Ping admitted that doing so was indeed a good choice, but using him as a shield to attract the King of Chu's firepower would be a bit unethical, right?
"Whether your Highness believes it or not, the envoy did not know about this matter."
"But I don't think this matter will affect His Highness's determination to go to Beijing to assist the government, right? After all, it doesn't matter if the Crown Prince succeeds to the throne earlier or later, but why is Your Highness so angry?"
The best defense is to attack. Chen Ping used Tai Chi Push Hands to defuse the King of Chu's attack, and then he counterattacked and asked the King of Chu.
King Chu snorted coldly when he heard this. Of course he knew that it was inevitable for the prince to ascend the throne.
However, there is still a big difference between the crown prince succeeding to the throne after he arrives in the capital and others succeeding to the crown prince in Jingzhou. Not to mention the personnel arrangements, at least he, the regent, is present when the throne is passed.
People will be more accepting of him.
Now that he has been tricked by Emperor Tianqi, it is impossible to say that he can still have the same mentality as before.
It's just that I'm unhappy. If I give up the opportunity to serve in Beijing because of this, it will be even more of a loss than the gains are worth it.
And judging from the look on Chen Ping's face, it seems that he also has a grudge against this. If he can win Chen Ping over for his own use, it will definitely be of great help to him in the future.
As for those old grievances, in the eyes of King Chu, it was nothing at all. After all, it was done by the scoundrels below, so what does it have to do with him?
Thinking of this, King Chu smiled again on his face and put on a magnanimous expression: "Gu believes in Mr. Chen, but the emperor's posture is too obvious to guard against Gu, right?"
"It doesn't matter, the emperor's brother is working hard for the sake of fame, and I can understand it."
"If Mr. Chen does not give up, Mr. Chen may wish to discuss it with Mr. Gu after he comes to Beijing to assist the government. I still appreciate an outstanding person like Mr. Chen."
The meaning of King Chu's words was very clear, but Chen Ping did not agree immediately, pretending to be ignorant.
"Your Highness, please be at ease. I am from a humble background, but I am able to achieve the fame and fortune I have today. Why don't I dedicate myself to the great honor? I will work with Your Highness to assist His Highness the Crown Prince wholeheartedly!"
The King of Chu smiled with a smile on his face when he heard this, and muttered "Uh-huh" and "Haha" to pass it off.
Chen Ping shunned the donkey and decided not to stay any longer. He explained to the King of Chu that he needed to go back to the capital first to pave the way for the King of Chu to enter the capital. Then he stood up, bowed and left regardless of the King of Chu's attempts to stay.
"This boy! Could it be that he really doesn't understand what I mean? Or is he unable to let go of his past grudges?"
"Hmph! That's a shame for him. It doesn't matter if he gets six yuan. If he's stubborn, it's still a way to die!"
Looking at Chen Ping's leaving figure, King Chu's face became sinister, and he felt an unknown anger in his heart and slapped the case.