Chapter 507: Cutting off the grass must remove the roots
Chapter 509: Cutting off the grass must remove the roots
While Guo Ziyi was waiting for King Qin, the food and grass in Jingzhou City gradually became scarce.
Even Li Heng's cabin began to have insufficient food and clothing. At this time, Zhang Ting went against her usual simplicity and ordered the chickens that laid eggs for her son to be eaten every day to be slaughtered for soup.
He boiled water for her to bathe. Since there was insufficient water in the city, Li Heng might not have bathed for a long time.
"Bang!"
Zhang Ting had just come out of the bathtub and was wiping down. There were sounds of kicking on the door and the exclamations of the slaves outside.
"saint……"
Li Heng rushed in angrily, as if he had not seen Zhang Ting's graceful body, pointed at her and yelled: "What are you doing? Can you finally stop pretending to be virtuous and kind?!"
"What are you still pretending to be?" Zhang Ting asked sarcastically, "At this point, do you still think of yourself as the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty?"
Li Heng had always been in awe of her. After scolding her, he softened his tone and said, "Why don't you stop being patient? Guo Ziyi will come to King Qin soon."
"He won't come." Zhang Ting said, "Whenever there is any sign that Guo Ziyi is coming to Qinwang, Li Chu will definitely encourage people. But you look at him, he is only thinking about persuading you to surrender. It can be seen that the situation is irreversible."
Zhang Ting claims to be Li Chu's enemy, so she knows him very well. Although she wants to get rid of Li Chu, she also knows that he is more capable than Li Heng.
"Wait a moment." Li Heng stepped forward and advised, "What if things turn around? I wholeheartedly want to make you the queen."
"Your Majesty, you should continue to stop and suffer the chaos." Zhang Ting sighed: "There is no hope for the throne. Now that it has been reduced, the glory and wealth will not be lost."
"That's not what you said when you persuaded me before. I don't understand, how could you just give up? You shouldn't be such a person."
"Have you forgotten, Your Majesty?" Zhang Ting suddenly became displeased, his eyes narrowed, and he seemed to be going crazy, "How many times have I told Your Majesty? Your Majesty is sick, and I want to take him back to Chang'an to hire the best doctor."
Famous doctor. We, mother and son, can no longer stand such a homeless life! I come from a noble family and have endured countless hardships since marrying you, but have I ever enjoyed any blessings?!"
Li Heng was stunned and opened his mouth.
He vaguely remembered that his son Li Yi was indeed ill, and Zhang Ting did often talk about it. But he was too anxious recently to care about it.
"I...I also hope..."
Zhang Ting threw away the bathrobe in her hand, walked up to Li Heng wetly, and put her hands on his shoulders.
"Go back to Chang'an. I've had enough. When we get back to Chang'an and Ji'er's illness is cured, we will find a solution."
This woman who had always been strong and ambitious suddenly became so weak when Li Heng needed her most.
She lost her ambition, and after going crazy, she leaned her head on Li Heng's shoulder, as if she wanted to rely on him.
At this moment, Li Heng was not tempted at all. He had already ignored her beauty. What he felt more was sadness, because he suddenly figured out that relying on a woman as his backbone was ultimately unreliable.
The cold wet hair stuck to his neck, but he pushed Zhang Ting away, staggered two steps, turned around and walked out.
"saint?"
"You all only care about yourselves." Li Heng murmured, "Xue Ni wants to bury me alive, but I will never surrender."
"He won't." Zhang Ting said, "He is not as unwise as Li Jingzhong."
"You are wrong, he will bury me alive one day."
Li Heng murmured to himself and walked out, not knowing where he was going. He did not want to see Li Chu, Du Hongjian and others who persuaded him to abdicate and surrender, nor did he want to go to the top of the city to see Xin Yunjing, Ma Lin and others defending the city.
.
Although he held the supreme position, he felt that he could not find even one supporter. In the end, he returned to the lobby of the palace and looked around. Only the eunuchs such as Li Fuguo, Yu Chaoen, and Luo Fengxian remained.
.
"What do you think I should do?"
"This servant swears to defend the saint to the death."
The firm attitude of the eunuchs pleased Li Hengdun. As if grasping at straws, he even thought of letting them serve as his commander to defeat Xue Bai.
Hearing this, several eunuchs were frightened. They said it nicely, but in their hearts they were afraid of death. Their courage may not be as courageous as Zhang Ting's.
Yu Chaoen quickly bowed down and said: "Saint, although I am willing to fight to the death for the saint, I am afraid that I will offend the saint."
"I think that instead of fighting to the death right now, it is better to unite with King Qing to deal with Xue Ni..."
Li Heng was furious and scolded: "After all, you are the same as Li Chu, Du Hongjian and other Confucian scholars!"
"No." Li Fuguo knelt down, climbed two steps, kowtowed and apologized: "Slaves are different, slaves consider the safety of the saint."
"Do you know why you can become my personal attendant? Because Li Jingzhong was killed by Xue Ni!"
"It is precisely because of Xue Ni's cruelty that the servants are worried that he will be harmful to the saint after he breaks the city." Li Fuguo said, "And if he returns to Chang'an, for the time being, Xue Ni will not dare to touch the saint in order to appease various officials."
"But what about the future?"
"The saints can unite with King Qing and get rid of Xue Ni first."
"You put it simply, once I abdicate, am I still left to my own devices?"
Li Fuguo hurriedly said: "The slaves and others must eliminate adultery for the saint."
Luo Fengxian also spoke up: "It is not the slaves who are responsible for fighting on the battlefield. When we get to Chang'an, we will contact King Qing and persuade him to join forces with the saint to deal with the traitors who usurp the country. The slaves will definitely do it."
Yu Chaoen said: "Yes, saint, don't worry, as long as the slaves are here, Xue Ni can be eliminated."
"In the worst case, assassinate him." Li Fuguo said, "In any case, it will be easier to deal with him than the current confrontation between the two armies."
The high-pitched voice said something to you, and Li Heng finally hesitated and asked: "Really?"
"You will definitely live up to the saint!"
All the eunuchs swore their oaths loudly and loudly, appearing to be very manly.
Yu Chaoen said again: "After Xue Bai is eliminated, King Qing is weak and has no heirs. How can he be the opponent of the saint?"
"Yes, sooner or later the world will still belong to saints." Li Fuguo said.
Li Heng finally wavered. He had been tired of fighting due to military defeats and lack of food and grass.
Perhaps, we should change our approach and use Machiavellian tactics to get rid of Xue Bai. In terms of Machiavellian tactics, who can compare to him who has been the prince for more than ten years and is known for his forbearance?
With this thought, he also began to miss Chang'an, and even couldn't wait to return to Chang'an as soon as possible.
"Xue Ni...won't harm me for the time being?"
"Don't worry, saint." Li Fuguo said, "My servant asserts that he will not dare."
~~
Li Heng finally decided to abdicate.
He issued an edict stating that the reason why he temporarily ascended the throne was because the clan was not in peace and the country was in trouble. Now that he had succeeded and retired, he should honor his eldest brother as the emperor.
As soon as the abdication edict came out, many people in Jingzhou City felt sad. For example, Ma Lin wanted to guard Li Heng and guarded the city every day. Unexpectedly, Xue Ni didn't come and Li Heng actually gave up. .
Ma Lin then looked up to the sky and cried loudly, saying: "I am willing to die for the clan, but your majesty surrenders first?!"
No matter how reluctant he was to give up, he could no longer stop Li Heng from surrendering.
On the day when the edict was issued, Li Heng, with his hair disheveled and plain clothes, led the civil and military officials of Jingzhou out of the city to surrender.
When he was walking on the street in the city, he heard the eunuch report: "Sage, an official hanged himself at home, which can be said to be a martyrdom."
Li Heng was stunned for a moment and thought to himself, after leaving this city gate, he would no longer hear others calling him "saint".
After a while, he came back to his senses and asked: "Which official?"
Before he could hear an answer, there was a loud noise in front of him, and the city gate had already opened. He still didn't know the names of the martyrs, so he had to put the matter aside and look at Li Fuguo, Yu Chaoen, Luo Fengxian and others to strengthen his courage.
All the eunuchs either came forward to tidy up his clothes, or whispered encouragement to cheer him up.
With a long sigh, Li Heng stepped out of the city gate.
From a distance, one can see Xue Bai wearing bright light armor, sitting majestically on a tall horse.
When the distance between them gets closer and closer, until they are only a few steps apart, and others can see the two of them at the same time, they will understand why Xue Bai wins and Li Heng loses.
The two have completely different temperaments. Xue Bai is firm and confident, with calm and deep eyes; Li Heng is haggard and restless, with evasive and anxious eyes.
If one side is strong in heart and has a long-term vision; if the other side is weak and cares about small profits and forgets the great righteousness, victory or defeat is already doomed.
Li Heng raised his head and looked at Xue Bai, thinking of that afternoon in Tianbao's fifth year, when Li Jingzhong carefully walked in front of him.
"Your Highness, someone from the Du family is here. The person Suo Douji is chasing says he has brought evidence."
"Can the verdict be overturned?"
"I'm afraid it's difficult. I'm worried that if you reverse the case for the Du family, it will implicate Your Majesty even more. Or is it better to make a clean break with the Du family?"
"Um."
"Then the slave will go and do it?"
"Um……"
Memories came flooding back, and Li Heng felt regret for the first time. He couldn't help but think about how much better it would have been if he hadn't listened to the eunuch Li Jingzhong at that time.
I hope Xue Bai keeps his promise and will not retaliate against him now.
really.
"What's wrong with King Zhong?" Xue Bai said: "At that time, Hu Ni was causing chaos and the country was in turmoil. King Zhong also wanted to boost people's hearts."
"yes."
Li Heng responded in a low voice, not wanting to say more, and Li Chu behind him remained silent.
Anyway, after saying this in public, Xue Bai couldn't kill them again.
Just as they were preparing to enter the city, Xue Bai suddenly changed the subject.
"However, the saint has long been established as the prince, and the loyal king claims to be the emperor without authorization. There must be someone on the side to confuse and instigate him with ulterior motives!"
Hearing this, everyone was shocked.
Especially the ministers like Du Hongjian, who had made great achievements in supporting the establishment, lowered their heads one after another, thinking in their hearts how could King Yong go back on his promise and trick them into surrendering and then pursue the case again. This would greatly lose the hearts of the world.
Du Hongjian even persuaded Li Heng to surrender, but he regretted it endlessly.
He raised his eyes and saw that Xue Bai had raised his hand and seemed to be pointing at Li Heng. Li Heng's face suddenly turned pale and he froze in fear.
"Li Fuguo."
Xue Bai called his name, and Li Fuguo trembled in response.
"Take it!"
Before anyone could react, two soldiers pounced on Li Fuguo like wolves and tigers, knocking Li Fuguo down.
Li Heng stood aside and felt the strong wind blowing past his ears. Then he heard Li Fuguo yelling, and felt the cold sweat on his back.
But Xue Bai was still calling names before it was finished.
"Yu Chaoen."
"Prince Yong, spare your life!" Yu Chaoen was so shocked that his face turned ashen.
"Luo Fengxian."
"Cheng Yuanzhen."
"Zhu Huiguang."
"Ma Yingjun."
"..."
When Xue Bai opened his mouth, he read out the names of more than thirty eunuchs, including the internal officials around Zhang Ting, who were almost the core eunuch force of Li Heng.
After a while, more than thirty eunuchs were escorted out, crying and wailing in high-pitched voices.
"Your Majesty, please save this slave!"
When Li Heng heard Li Fuguo's cry for help, his face changed drastically, and he yelled: "Don't call me... don't call me your majesty!"
??????????.??????
He felt that he was almost killed by this slave.
"Loyal King, this slave is unjustly accused!" Li Fuguo cried again, "Save this slave."
"Are you wronged?"
Some officials stopped working as soon as they heard this. Just now King Yong said that these people were guilty of "beguiling the loyal king to proclaim himself emperor." If these eunuchs were unjustly accused, could there be other people influencing the loyal king?
So many officials stepped forward one after another and identified Li Fuguo and others with righteousness and righteousness.
When Li Fuguo saw these people throwing shit basins at his head, he was also furious and shouted: "Du Hongjian, you speak! Tell me who was the first to support the loyal king!"
"I just dedicated my life to the Tang Dynasty!"
Du Hongjian quickly interrupted and saluted Xue Bai: "Prince Yong, I am just asking the official to return Prince Zhong to Chang'an..."
"You are shameless!" Li Fuguo cursed: "You are more shameless than us eunuchs!"
"Treacherous sycophant! Even now, you still don't know how to repent."
"Old Goupi! You give me money and ask me to speak nicely in front of the saint and make you the prime minister!"
"You, you, you..."
Xue Bai didn't stop, and allowed them to make noises and spread scandals one after another.
Over there, Cheng Yuanzhen saw that Li Heng had no intention of helping, so he turned to Li Chu and cried and begged: "Your Highness, please save this old slave."
Li Chu sighed and closed his eyes without answering.
"It's so pitiful that this old slave has always served King Guangping and never encouraged King Zhong to proclaim himself emperor." Cheng Yuanzhen howled loudly.
Xue Bai heard that he also said King Guangping, looked at his subordinates, and immediately someone asked for an imperial edict.
"King Chu of Guangping, Zuan inherits the ancestors, Keshao Jiqiu, it is appropriate to increase the title of prince, and he can be granted the title of King of Yu."
All the officials were stunned.
A simple decree, using only two words to praise Li Chu, saying that he could inherit his father's ancestors and prosper the family business.
But this sentence also has two meanings. Maybe it means that Li Heng has been deposed and wants Li Chu to inherit the family business of King Zhong; but it may also mean that the emperor Li Cong wants to cultivate Li Chu.
This inevitably reminds everyone that when Li Cong first became the crown prince, he also tried to win over Li Tan, but what happened? As a result, Li Tan was deeply jealous of Li Heng and ended up dead.
So I plan to do it again.
After Li Hengzhi was stunned for a moment, he turned his head and looked at Li Chu, his eyes full of disbelief.
He understood in an instant why Li Chu changed his previous attitude and persuaded him to surrender. It turned out that he had sold him.
Li Chu also didn't expect that Xue Bai could ask for the imperial edict so quickly. He originally thought he would have to wait until he returned to Chang'an.
At this time, there was no emotional buffer, and the relationship between father and son seemed to be suddenly torn apart.
"Grandpa, I..."
Li Heng said nothing, but turned his head indifferently.
Seeing this scene, Zhang Ting smiled, but her eyes were a little sad. If it were before, she would really like to see their father and son break up. This is something she has tried hard for a long time but failed to do. Xue Bai made it happen with just one sentence.
It's a pity that Li Heng has nothing to inherit, except for the vague position of "King Si Zhong".
"King Yu." Cheng Yuanzhen was the only one who was still begging for mercy without any insight, crying: "Looking at the fact that I have no merit but hard work these years, please save me."
Cheng Yuanzhen also knew that Li Chu was difficult to convince, so he looked at the female relatives behind and shouted: "Ms. Dugu, please persuade King Yu to save this slave. I have done so much for you. Concubine Cui..."
When Yu Chaoen heard this, he seemed to be grasping at straws and asked Li Chu for help.
"King Yu, please save me! I have done so much for you."
Seeing these two people acting like this, even Li Fuguo turned to look at Li Chu and shouted: "King Yu, don't forget your servants."
Li Heng and Zhang Ting were both surprised and didn't understand how these slaves suddenly became Li Chu's people again.
Zhang Ting thought about it first, only to realize that many things had been plotted and exploited by Li Chu without her knowing it, and she couldn't help but be furious.
Li Chu's face was also extremely ugly. He originally thought that he could secretly deal with Xue Bai when he returned to Chang'an, but he didn't expect that Xue Bai would cut off the fire in advance and break up the previous relationship between him and Li Heng.
He wished he could grab a knife at this moment and kill the talkative Cheng Yuanzhen, Yu Chaoen and others, but he could only hold back and wait for Xue Bai's order to kill them.
But Xue Bai was very patient and refused to give orders, watching the farce as if it were a joke.
So, Li Chu stared directly at Xue Bai, releasing his anger.
What is regrettable is that Cheng Yuanzhen, Yu Chaoen and others only stop at many things, hoping to threaten Li Chu and force him to rescue him. If they really want to cry out in public, out of years of servility, they
It really can't be done.
Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Xue Bai was too lazy to look at their ugly appearance anymore, so he waved his hand and said: "Behead them."
"cut!"
Outside Jingzhou City, executioners were lined up. However, a group of demoted generals, including their female relatives, did not have time to enter the city. They just happened to observe the execution as a warning.
Zhang Ting narrowed his eyes, and Lonely Qin covered her eyes in fear.
"cut!"
Li Fuguo's waist was bent by a pair of strong hands. He tried hard to raise his head, but still couldn't see Li Heng.
When he was about to die, what he felt more was not fear, but regret. Because he thought he could change his fate against the odds.
From the humblest slave, he thought he had worked hard enough and sacrificed too many things. He no longer wanted his penis, his name, not even the person he loved most, and even his own personality.
Despite your efforts, you are still being teased by fate?
He couldn't help but think of a scene in his mind. It was when he was in the palace city before and accidentally saw the Supreme Emperor, blindfolded, playing hide and seek with a group of beautiful palace ladies... It was such an enviable scene. They spent their whole lives wanting to be like that.
The Great Emperor.
But when he tried hard to catch it while blindfolded, he couldn't catch anything. He wanted to catch freedom, a moth, and dignity, but in the end he lost them all. In the darkness, he tried hard to catch the power that was within reach.
"puff."
Li Fuguo's head fell to the ground.
"Puff puff puff puff puff..."
The executioners swung their swords one after another, and the heads of more than thirty eunuchs including Yu Chaoen, Cheng Yuanzhen, Luo Fengxian, etc. rolled to the ground.
Big head, small head, like a watermelon that fell on the ground.
The demoted officials all breathed a sigh of relief. They knew that King Yong was trying to establish his authority, but he was very considerate in not using them to establish his authority.
"Killing the traitor will... be very satisfying."
"I have long felt that it is inappropriate for eunuchs to interfere in politics."
The wind blew with the smell of blood.
Xue Bai Zhuma looked at the heads on the ground and thought to himself, if he failed in the end, he must have wiped out the tendency of eunuchs to interfere in politics in the Tang Dynasty.
If you can solve a drawback, you can solve a drawback.
~~
Chang'an.
The Daming Palace is still majestic and majestic.
On the straight passage from Danfeng Gate to Zichen Hall, there are several small figures running hard.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"
Li Cong, who was becoming more and more majestic as a king, frowned displeased and said, "Why is it so noisy?"
"Your Majesty, good news, good news!"
The eunuchs, sweating profusely and panting, knelt down on the ground and said with sincere joy: "Prince Zhong has abdicated and committed suicide. Your Majesty is now the Lord of the Tang Dynasty! Prince Zhong will be escorted back to Chang'an soon."
"Your Majesty has put an end to the Zhongwang rebellion and will definitely rebuild the Tang Dynasty."
Li Cong's face also showed joy.
Ever since he was scratched on the face while hunting, he has been oppressed by his brothers. As the eldest son, he cannot be the heir apparent. He has been cowardly for decades, and now he finally lets out his bad breath.
"Your Majesty, I have one more thing to say."
The speaker was a eunuch named Dou Wenyang whom Li Cong's wife Dou Yu had specially recruited for him not long ago.
Dou Wenyang was a servant of the Fu Ren Dou family. When Dou Yu married Li Cong, he was used as a dowry and served in Prince Qing's palace. Now that Li Cong is the servant, Dou Yu is asked to find someone trustworthy and talented among the palace servants.
The eunuch, Dou Wenyang, stood out.
This man was indeed a talent. Taking advantage of Xue Bai's absence in Chang'an, he became a young eunuch and also recruited many talents for Li Cong from outside the court.
Li Cong thought highly of him and said, "You tell me."
"My servant believes that the day when the loyal king is escorted back to Chang'an is the opportunity for your majesty to appoint the king of Chu as the crown prince." Dou Wenyang said in a low voice.
The King of Chu refers to Li Cong's favorite son Li Qiu, who was conferred on him at the same time as Xue Bai conferred King Yong. Unfortunately, people in the world now only know about King Yong, but not about the existence of King Chu.
Li Cong said: "I'm afraid Li Qian won't agree."
He is one of the very few people who calls Xue Bai "Li Qian". Although he may not agree with it in his heart, he hopes that others will agree, and at the same time he does not want Li Qian to compete for the throne, which makes him feel conflicted.
Dou Wenyang said: "He can only agree. A few days ago, King Yong sent a horse back to Chang'an and asked His Majesty to draw up a decree to confer the title of King of Yu. Your Majesty thought that even Li Chu was canonized as the King of Yu, so he must establish a prince, and Yue
It will be more beneficial to the King of Chu if he is established early."
"Yes, otherwise Li Qian's foundation will only become stronger and stronger."
Li Cong was also convinced, but after thinking about it, he hesitated and said: "It's just that Li Qian will definitely object on the grounds of 'waiting until the Emperor is welcomed back'."
Dou Wenyang said: "In the past, wars continued and Chang'an was in crisis. The officials had no choice but to listen to King Yong, considering the overall situation. Now that the crisis in Chang'an has been resolved, there must be a large number of officials who are worried about the society and will support your majesty."
"Okay, okay."
"Furthermore, I have inquired. The reason why King Yong was able to persuade Feng Changqing to surrender was because Feng Changqing was loyal to His Majesty. He forced King Yong to promise not to compete for the throne."
Li Cong was overjoyed when he heard this and said: "There is such a loyal minister?!"
Dou Wenyang also smiled and said hurriedly: "Feng Changqing is your Majesty's minister."
This situation is like that when Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty, who was held hostage by Cao Cao, heard about Uncle Liu Huang. Li Cong was overjoyed and wanted to take the opportunity to establish a prince to check and balance Xue Bai.
But after thinking about it, he became worried again and asked, "Are you afraid that if this happens, Li Qian will think that I want to deal with him?"
"Your Majesty, there is no need to worry." Dou Wenyang said: "This servant has come to contact Feng Changqing, and he will come forward to propose. In addition, if we persuade Li Chu, Guo Ziyi and others, the King of Chu will be the crown prince, and the general trend will be."
Li Cong quickly put his hands on Dou Wenyang's shoulders and praised: "Well, God has given me a virtuous minister. I think you are more suitable to be prime minister than Yan Zhenqing."
"Your Majesty is ridiculous. Your Majesty is wise and discerning, so he chose this slave. I will die to repay you!"
The love between master and servant was so deep that both of them were deeply touched.
Then, Dou Wenyang introduced some of his newly selected capable eunuchs to Li Cong one by one.
"Bai Zhongzhen, Huo Xianliang, Wang Shoucheng, Yang Zigong..."
Just hearing these names, Li Cong knew that they were loyal and respectful, and they were all his good ministers.
At this time, there are brothers inside who are jealous, sons and nephews who are plotting to usurp, outside there are military ministers who are domineering and do not listen to the orders of the court, and most of the civil servants are from aristocratic families, each with their own private agendas.
Only these eunuchs' internal servants, who know the basics, are closely tied to his interests, are his confidants, and can also be relied upon as his right-hand man.
"Okay, okay, okay, I have you and others who are loyal and wise, so why worry about not being able to revive the Tang Dynasty?"