Four hundred and seventy eighth chapter: Conspiracy in the Palace
It's night in Jiangdu. In a palace in Jiangdu Palace. This is not a palace where the emperor or concubines live. It is just a place for some chamberlains or maids to work. But now in this palace, there is no half A chamberlain and the shadow of a palace maid were replaced by more than a dozen generals in armor. These generals sat in a circle by the dim candlelight and seemed to be discussing something.
One of the white-faced and beardless generals was Sima Dekan, the general of the Imperial Forest Army. He glanced at everyone, but sighed and said: "Today's meeting, the Holy One has given orders to prepare to build Danyang Palace and make it the capital. Yu Danyang. It seems that the Holy One has no plans to return to Luoyang."
Sima Dekan can be regarded as the emperor's confidant. When these words came from Sima Dekan's mouth, it must be correct. After hearing Sima Dekan's words, the generals immediately fell into silence. And sitting next to Sima Dekan A middle-aged general who was a good friend of Sima Dekan, Yuan Li, who also served as General Hu Benlang of the Royal Forest Army, also sighed and said: "In the past few months, many Xiaoguo guards in the army have escaped. If the Holy One really decides to make Danyang the capital and refuses to go back, I'm afraid more and more people will escape. When all the soldiers escape, the Holy One will be furious and our heads will not be saved."
As soon as Yuan Li finished speaking, there was a snapping sound. A young general jumped up to the scene. It was Tang Fengyi, the city gate lord. Tang Fengyi had a look of determination on his face and shouted: "I and my family members are all staying in Luoyang. Now Luoyang is besieged by thieves. The Holy One does not want to return to the army for rescue, but let us stay here. Do we have to watch our family members die at the hands of thieves? My parents, wife and children are all in Luoyang. I can't We cannot watch them die miserably. If the Holy One insists on staying in Jiangdong, then I will return to Luoyang even if I lose this His Majesty's head."
"General Tang. Keep your voice down. Keep your voice down." Seeing Tang Fengyi say such words, the two men beside Tang Fengyi turned pale with fright. They quickly pulled Tang Fengyi down. The two men were Yuan Min, the internal historian, and Zhang Kai, the doctor. Yuan Min cautiously said to Tang Fengyi: "General Tang, be careful. Beware that walls have ears."
Tang Fengyi was young and energetic. He was a man who was not afraid of anything. When Yuan Min said this, his eyes immediately widened and he opened his mouth to shout. But at this time, Sima Dekan shouted: " Fengyi." During the battle at Yanmen Pass, Tang Fengyi was saved by Sima Dekan. He respected him very much. When he saw him speaking, Tang Fengyi could only shut his mouth and stop talking.
Tang Fengyi stopped, and all the generals were relieved. After all, if the emperor knew about their current conspiracy, with the emperor's temper now, it would definitely be a death penalty. Everyone is the emperor's close ministers. Wei Na was the most understanding. He had a heartfelt fear of the Emperor.
After a moment of silence, Sima Dekan said to a middle-aged man with a beard sitting opposite him: "Master Niu, how is the mood of the Holy Emperor today?"
The middle-aged man was Fu Xilang Niu Fangyu. The so-called Fu Xilang was an official who was in charge of the emperor's seals. He was also considered a close minister of the emperor. When Sima Dekan asked, Niu Fangyu immediately shook his head and replied: "These days The Sun Sage is not in a good mood. He has nightmares every day. When I was serving the Sage just now, the Sage was preparing to write an edict urging the prefectures and counties to transport building materials to Danyang and speed up the construction of the Danyang Palace."
Niu Fangyu's words made the faces of Sima Dekan and the generals darken again. They took a deep breath. General Meng Bing of Yingyang Yang said in a deep voice: "Brother Sima, we can't delay it any longer. I heard that Tang Guogong Li Yuan has already Chang'an has been captured, and Luoyang is also besieged by bandits. If it is delayed any longer, I'm afraid there will be no place in the world. We can only accompany the Holy Spirit to wait for death in Jiangdong."
If Tang Fengyi's previous words were disobedient, then Meng Bing's words are tantamount to treason. But Meng Bing is a veteran in the Royal Forest Army. He has served in the army for more than ten years. The loyalty of the Holy One is no less than that of Sima Dekan. Even he said such words. This shows what the mood of the lieutenants of the Royal Forest Army is like now.
The commanders, Xu Hongren and Xue Shiliang, looked at each other. Xu Hongren also said in a deep voice: "There were several generals who reported to the Holy One about Xiaoguo's escape. Before they met the Holy One, they ate a meal first. After meeting the Holy One, he was directly ordered to be killed outside the palace by the Holy One. If this continues, I'm afraid it won't be long before we all end up with the same fate. General Sima, tell us what we should do."
As Xu Hongren finished speaking, everyone's eyes were focused on Sima Dekan. And Sima Dekan's expression changed again and again. In the past, it goes without saying that he was loyal to the emperor. But now What the emperor did had completely chilled Sima Dekan's heart. Seeing everyone's eyes focused on him, Sima Dekan also took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "Rather than wait for death here. Why don't we leave here with the soldiers and return to Luoyang?"
"Okay." Almost everyone shouted in response to Sima Dekan's words. What Sima Dekan said was exactly what they thought. However, as the leader of the people, Sima Dekan did not speak. They He didn't dare to bring up this matter. Yuan Li nodded repeatedly and said, "That's it. We will go back tonight to pack up Xinruan and escape from Jiangdu overnight. After leaving Jiangdu, we cannot go directly north. We must beware of the Holy Sect. People are chasing you. Don’t forget General Dou’s mistakes.”
The General Dou mentioned by Yuan Li was actually Dou Xian, a general in the Imperial Forest Army. However, there were some problems with his identity. He was the brother-in-law of Li Yuan, Duke of Tang, who had rebelled. After the news of Li Yuan's rebellion came, Dou Xian He immediately escaped from Jiangdu with his troops and horses. As a result, the emperor sent people to chase him. The meaning of Yuan Li's words was to remind everyone that they must be on guard against the emperor sending soldiers to pursue him. And everyone responded to Yuan Li's words. They were convinced. After all, the emperor was still the emperor. Over the years, the emperor's dragon power had always been imprinted in their hearts. Even if they were determined to escape, they were still very scared in their hearts.
"Hahahaha." At this moment, a burst of laughter suddenly spread from the crowd. It shocked such a group of people with ulterior motives. Some of them even subconsciously pulled out their swords. But after everyone reacted, they found that the person who laughed was among them. It was Zhao Xingshu, the Huyalang general who had been silent before. This Zhao Xingshu's military power in the Royal Forest Army was no lower than that of Sima Dekan. However, Zhao Xingshu usually behaves in a low-key manner. It is rare to see him laughing like this.
Seeing Zhao Xingshu laughing so loudly, everyone was frightened. Zhang Kai's face suddenly turned pale. He hurriedly stepped forward to grab Zhao Xingshu and shouted: "Zhao, General Zhao, General Zhao, don't, don't laugh. Come on. Stop laughing. Others will hear you. Stop. Stop laughing."
However, Zhao Xingshu pushed Zhang Kai away. Poor Zhang Kai was originally a civilian official in the imperial hospital. Although he was wearing armor, his body was very thin. How could he withstand such a push from the powerful Zhao Xingshu? And Zhao Xingshu finally managed to He stopped laughing. Instead, he glanced at the crowd and sneered: "You guys, do you think that if we gather together like this, we can really cover up people's eyes and ears? It is simply too naive. I dare to say that now the Holy Spirit's ears and eyes have been On the way to the Holy Emperor's palace."
As soon as Zhao Xingshu said these words, everyone was immediately frightened. Many people were so frightened that they paralyzed in their positions. They were covered in cold sweat and could not even speak. And Sima Dekan was considered to be more courageous. Yes. He said in a deep voice: "General Zhao, what do you want to say?"
"Don't worry." Seeing Sima Dekan's look, Zhao Xingshu's eyes flashed with approval. The corner of his mouth curled up and he said with a smile: "Even if the Holy Emperor's ears and eyes tell the matter to the Holy Lord, the Holy Lord will not listen. Someone had already informed His Majesty about the secret meeting between General Sima and Lord Pei. As a result, General Sima was still sitting here peacefully. I heard that the secret agent was beheaded by His Majesty. So, Sirs, General, you can rest assured."
Zhao Xingshu's words finally made everyone breathe a sigh of relief. However, Sima Dekan's face was ugly. The Lord Pei that Zhao Xingshu mentioned just now was Pei Qantong, the prison gate's Zhige. He and Sima Dekan were also close friends before. It was Pei Qiantong's words that made Sima Dekan firm up his mind, and then he called everyone here to discuss secretly. However, Pei Qiantong was not a general of the Royal Forest Army, and secondly, he was not an official in the palace, so it was inconvenient to enter at this time. Sima Dekan of the palace thought that no one knew about his secret meeting with Pei Qian. However, he did not expect that the Holy Emperor’s eyes and ears would have found out about it. Naturally, he was terrified. However, Sima Dekan hid it better. .It’s just that his face looks a bit uglier.
Sima Dekan calmed himself down a little, stared at Zhao Xingshu with his eyes wide open, and said in a deep voice: "General Zhao, what exactly do you want to say? It's better to just say it clearly."
Sima Dekan's straight-to-the-point statement also made Zhao Xingshu stunned. However, Zhao Xingshu soon laughed again. He nodded and said: "General Sima speaks quickly, so I won't hide it. But, it's best to leave this matter to the public. It would be more appropriate for another person to explain. Shi Lan, please invite him over."
As Zhao Xingshu finished speaking, a thin man who had been sitting behind Zhao Xingshu immediately turned around and walked towards the outside of the palace. Most people did not recognize this thin man. Only Xu Hongren and Xue Shiliang recognized that it was Gong Xingshu. Zhongxun served Yang Shilan. But no one knew who Zhao Xingshu wanted Yang Shilan to invite.