What do you mean? Hey, it’s strange that you don’t know what this means. If you don’t show some sincerity, do you want to do nothing? There is no way! Li Xian is very smart, how could he not guess what Li Hong is thinking? What, they just don’t want to see Li Xian become powerful, let alone the existence of the Alliance of Two Kings, but there is nothing fishy about it. It is true that Li Xian wants to help Li Hong get the river work done. , but this does not mean that Li Xian will become "Yang Bailao". Without sufficient exchange of interests, even if Li Xian is willing, Li Xian on the other end will definitely not be willing. It is really possible that the advantage of Empress Wu was in vain.
"Brother Prince Mingjian, there is an ancient saying: When promoting a virtuous person, one should not avoid relatives, and the younger brother is just following the example of the gourd. Haha, he is like Song Xian. He has been the head of the younger brother's house for three years. He is loyal, honest, and diligent. He has always made mistakes and is capable of hard work. Now he is transferred to Dali Temple as Dali Cheng, which is just a slight promotion. He can't be regarded as an outstanding person. Furthermore, He Long has already served as a recorder in his younger brother's house and joined the army. After three years, I have been appointed as an official. Now that there is a vacancy among the doctors in the Ministry of Justice, it seems not inappropriate to transfer him. There are all kinds of things here, so I will not list them one by one. I think the prince's brother will definitely help me. That's it." Since they were talking about business, Li Xian was naturally not afraid of Li Hong's anger and explained it in an understated manner. He really seemed to be trading the imperial position as cabbage.
Complete? Li Hong was dumbfounded by Li Xian's relaxed tone. Yes, the official positions Li Xian requested were not very prominent positions. They could only be regarded as middle- and lower-level officials at most. For those who held For Li Hong, who has great power in the official department, this is just a small effort. The problem is that with such a completion, wouldn't it greatly increase the momentum of the two kings? It would be suspected of shooting himself in the foot. How could Li Hong be willing to do it? Such a stupid thing, but seeing Li Xian's appearance, if he doesn't agree, it's really hard to expect that Li Xian will make concessions on the river project. Which of the two is more important, and Li Hong is not free. It's hard to think about the last time Yes.
"Seventh brother, it will be morning again in two days, but I don't know how seventh brother plans to operate on the river project?" Li Hong thought about it for a long time, but still couldn't make up his mind, so he turned to ask about the river project. , I plan to listen to Li Xian’s plan first and then make other calculations.
"Brother Prince, don't worry. This matter is easy to hear. As long as Brother Prince takes the lead first, Brother Chen and Brother Six should follow suit. No matter how treacherous those villains are, they won't be able to do anything strange if they are caught off guard." ." As for how to pass the river construction project at the court meeting, Li Xian had naturally planned it for a long time. When he heard Li Hong's question, he laughed and answered in a relaxed manner.
"Um."
Li Hong obviously agreed with the charter mentioned by Li Xian. The reason is very simple. Li Xian, who was the first to propose the river engineering issue, and Li Xian, who was pushed out as a target by the North Gate bachelors, both agreed that Li Hong would take charge of this matter. Gao Zong had no reason to object, and if Empress Wu was not properly prepared, she would not be able to compete with the three kings in the court. Li Hong had already thought of this before and was not sure about it. It was just a matter of whether the Li Xian brothers would go back on their word on this matter. Therefore, even if Li Xian was telling the truth, Li Hong was not in a hurry to express his position. He just made a noncommittal sound and frowned. The state of deep thought.
Seeing that Li Hong did not express his position for a long time, Li Xian was not in a hurry. He had the initiative to control the matter. Li Xian really did not need to rush and bluff. He did not believe that Li Hong dared to do anything on such an important matter as river engineering.
What happened was that as for the list of official promotions, Li Xian really didn't care about it. First of all, there were only two and a half Li Xian people there. Except for Song Xian and He Long, the other half were people who were supposed to be promoted.
King Luo Bin, who will be the censor, and the others are all Li Xian's confidants. Whether they succeed or not is not a big deal to Li Xian. They are just chasing rabbits and catching rabbits. Secondly, why did Li Xian propose such a thing?
The real purpose of this exchange condition is to calm Li Hong's heart and lay the groundwork for the next step of secretly assassinating Chen Cang. The real secret here cannot be explained to outsiders.
"What the seventh brother said is very important. Can I allow you to think about it carefully before making a calculation?" Li Hong thought over and over in his mind for a long time. He felt that he had no idea and he really didn't dare to agree to Li Xian's request.
, in desperation, I had no choice but to request a postponement.
"What the prince brother said is true. This matter is serious and we should make a good living before discussing it. Don't be anxious, I just wait for the news about the prince brother. It's getting late. Let me leave for now." Li Xian thought in his heart.
It was expected that Li Hong had no choice and he didn't care when Li Hong would make a decision, so he stood up and said his resignation with a smile.
"That's fine. Seventh brother, go slowly. I won't see you off for my brother's sake." Li Hong hurriedly discussed with Yan and Liu. He didn't plan to keep Li Xian any longer. When he heard that Li Xian was leaving, he agreed as expected.
One sound.
"Brother Prince, stay here. I'll take my leave, younger brother." Everything that needs to be said has been said and everything that can be done has been done. Li Xianzi didn't bother to talk any more nonsense. He bowed to Li Hong with a smile and said,
After the ceremony, he turned around, exited the study, and went straight back to his palace.
"Yan Gong, Liu Gong, in the opinion of my two dear friends, is there anything fishy about what the seventh brother said?"
Not long after Li Xiangang left, a partition door at the back of the study quietly moved open. Yan Liben and Liu Xiangdao walked out of the partition side by side, and stopped under Li Hong, but neither of them was in a hurry.
When he opened his mouth to report something, Li Hong spoke first.
Truth and falsehood are not just casual talk. You must know that the river project is extremely important. If there is a mistake in judgment, the consequences will be serious. Because of this, Yan and Liu have already known it in their hearts.
Because of their plans, neither of them dared to answer this question easily. After they each looked at each other, Liu Xiangdao took the lead and said, "Your Highness, can I first take a look at the list of officials submitted by His Highness King Zhou?"
"Well, of course, Liu Aiqing, please take a look." Li Hong originally wanted to give this list to Liu Xiangdao, the new Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, for review. At this time, he listened to his initiative and it was natural for him to obey, so he nodded and agreed casually.
He handed the rolled paper to Liu Xiangdao, and at the end, he added: "Liu Aiqing, in your opinion, how long will it take to adjust this directory?"
"If I go back to Your Highness, all of the positions are not difficult, except for the position of censor, which is a little difficult. If nothing happens, it can be done within two days." Although Liu Xiangdao was older, he had good eyesight, and he just glanced at it quickly.
At one glance, he had gone through all the positions, and he felt confident in his heart, so he answered unhurriedly.
"Well, that's very good." Li Hong didn't think it would be difficult to transfer such middle and low-level officials. Now that he heard Liu Xiangdao's clear reply, he didn't take it to heart and nodded in agreement. After that, he brought the topic back to the main topic: "My dear friends, I am really not sure whether the seventh brother is using a delaying strategy, so please tell me."
"Your Highness, I think that although this possibility is possible, it is not very likely. There are three reasons: First, I look at His Highness the King of Zhou and his words, and it seems that he must hope that the river construction will go smoothly. If not, there is no need to mention it in many ways. Let’s highlight the key points of Your Highness’s river construction; secondly, since the imprisonment case last year, His Highness the King of Zhou’s actions have implicitly targeted certain aspects. This point actually coincides with Your Highness’s. If they are competing with each other in the court this time , the ones who benefit are actually not His Highness and the two kings, I am afraid that His Highness the King of Zhou may not be willing to do it; thirdly, judging from the current situation, even if the two kings want to fight forcefully, they are not your Highness's opponents, like His Highness the King of Zhou People will never do such a stupid thing, so it is inevitable to ask His Highness for a compromise. What you ask for is nothing more than a little compensation. There are only a dozen petty officials who are not worth mentioning. What can you do if you can't do it anymore? , I can just find some excuses and drive them out one by one in the future, so why worry about it!" Yan Liben was not worried that Li Xian would betray Yao'ezi on the river work. What he was worried about was that the exchange of official positions proposed by Li Xian was too critical. Liu Xiang said before When looking at the list of officials, Yan Liben also glanced at them and saw that they were all trivial officials, so he didn't pay much attention to them. At this time, when he heard Li Hong's question, he no longer hesitated. He will explain his analysis in detail.
"Your Highness, I think what Yan Shangshu said is true, and I have no objection." Liu Xiangdao still had some doubts in his heart, always feeling that the matter might not be that simple, but now that Yan Liben said it with such certainty, he couldn't bring it up again. I objected, so I thought about it and agreed.
"Well, in that case, let's just take what we need. I'll just send someone to tell my seventh brother." Li Hong thought about it carefully and felt that Yan Liben's analysis was reasonable and that it was of great importance. He didn't want to have any further delays. Now that he had made up his mind, he would take action immediately.
"Your Highness, wait a minute, this cannot be done like this." As soon as Li Hong finished speaking, Yan Liben hurriedly spoke to stop him.
"Well, why did Yan Gong say this?" Li Hong obviously didn't expect Yan Liben to say that. He was stunned for a moment, and then asked suspiciously.
"Your Highness, I understand. I was originally puzzled as to why His Highness King Zhou had a conflict with His Highness King Lu. However, after seeing the list earlier, I already understood His Highness King Zhou's intentions. This move was just to confuse some people. If His Highness, If you really want to show your merits in the morning court two days later, it is not appropriate to have any contact with His Highness the King of Zhou at this time. All you have to do is secretly adjust according to this list. His Highness the King of Zhou will definitely know about it and will definitely comply with his words during the court meeting. A sudden attack can work wonders." Yan Liben pouted in the direction of the palace, hinted, and then slowly explained the reason.
"Okay, this matter is settled. Liu Aiqing will work hard and arrange the matter personally. Don't let the news leak out. We will see the decision at the meeting in two days!" After thinking for a while, Li Hong made up his mind and took a shot. A few days later, he suddenly stood up and gave an unequivocal order...