Zhu Di was silent, not saying a word, but looking solemnly at the person in front of him.
When the scholar saw this, he seemed a little impatient.
In his opinion, now it's just these water bandits who want to raise the price.
Then he added: "I also ask you all to leave the city and garrison as soon as possible. Otherwise, the people will be in panic. I am afraid that Mr. Xu will not be able to explain it. After all, Mr. Xu is the chief envoy, so he still needs to pay attention to it."
Zhu Di asked at this time: "Where are they?"
The scholar looked at Zhu Di and said without thinking: "I'm just afraid of the inconvenience at this time..."
"Where are they!" Zhu Di emphasized his tone and spoke sternly.
At this time, the scholar's momentum finally weakened, and he was very eloquent. Unexpectedly, these rough guys were all dumb-headed, and what they said was in vain.
He was quite unhappy in his heart, but looked calm on his face: "It's not far away."
"Tell them to come see you."
"This... I'm afraid it will be inconvenient..." The scholar said with some confusion: "Everyone in charge, Mr. Xu has the same difficulties as Mr. Xu. He is an official, you and others..."
He wanted to say that you are bandits.
But when the words came to his lips, they never came out.
But when he looked up, he saw Zhu Di looking at him angrily.
He knew in his heart that these water thieves were all stubborn, so he had no choice but to say sadly: "I'll go and report them."
After that, he hurriedly returned to Xu Qi and others' place. He met Xu Qi, as well as the commander-in-chief and other officials.
Everyone was impatient. When they saw him coming, Xu Qi asked first, "How is it?"
The scholar said worriedly: "Something big has happened."
Xu Qi frowned and said, "What's the big deal?"
"Zhang Anshi and... are with His Majesty."
As soon as these words came out, there was a deathly silence.
Xu Qi started to tremble.
The commander on the side made Liu Rong's expression suddenly change.
The few confidants who came with him were even more frightened and trembling.
This result was something Xu Qi never expected.
"This... this..." Xu Qi looked panicked.
"It's no wonder...these water thieves came here on a starry night. What did they...say? Your Majesty...How is your Majesty?"
The scholar then said: "Your Majesty is probably in private, and he probably doesn't have many guards. Judging from the tone of the water thieves, it seems...it seems that he died in the rebellion. Your Majesty passed away."
Xu Qi shivered.
Liu Rong on the side felt even more weak in his legs.
There was deathly silence again.
Everyone's face was ashen.
This matter is too big.
To put it bluntly, this is called regicide.
This alone is enough to completely turn everyone's heart upside down.
Xu Qi felt as if he had been struck by lightning, and even felt dizzy for a while.
But that's how people are, and he couldn't accept such a result at first.
But when he accepted the reality, his eyes immediately flashed. Finally, he tried to maintain a calm posture and said slowly: "This is not necessarily a bad thing. The emperor of Daxing was tyrannical. It was the Han Dynasty that used military force, abused ministers, and tortured officials.
Monitoring the subjects of the world. Now that he has passed away... he may be a blessing to the world."
The scholar smiled bitterly and said: "The student also said the same to the thieves. I saw that the thieves were in unusual moods. Although these people are thieves, they are just thieves after all. They have no ambitions. I am afraid that they will be frightened this time."
It’s not a big deal, and in order to prevent them from misbehaving, the students comforted them like this, but..."
Xu Qi raised his eyebrows and said, "Just what?"
"It's just that they said that they hope Mr. Xu will wait and come to see him."
Xu Qi's face was livid, he snorted coldly and said angrily: "A group of thieves, what's there to see? I don't have time to see them now."
The scholar said: "If this is the case, they will not leave. Mr. Xu, if this matter continues to be deadlocked, I'm afraid... something will happen. It's very ugly now. They have entered the city. Even if the officers and soldiers fight with them, there is no way to protect them."
... They will not have any survivors to escape, and then... they will be afraid of going to other places to sue."
"Xu Gong, when the matter has reached this point, once the Jiujiang Mansion's affairs are leaked, how can we bear the crime of regicide? The students think that the more this time is, the more we should stabilize them, and then slowly figure it out.
, find an opportunity and catch them all in one fell swoop, so that nothing can be missed."
After Xu Qi heard this, he said: "I am an official of the imperial court, how can I meet the thief?"
"This is easy to do. Just go to Chao'an in the name of protecting the country and the people. This is called compromising. After killing them all in the end, that's..."
Xu Qi did not continue to listen. He turned and looked at Liu Rong.
Liu Rong frowned and muttered: "This... is not a bad idea..."
"General Liu also agrees?"
"That's all we can do now."
"In that case, you can go with me." Obviously, Xu Qi was worried.
Just as he wanted to kill the thieves to silence them, for such a huge matter, he couldn't guarantee whether Liu Rong and others would sell him if he went to see the thieves alone.
No one is trustworthy right now, and anyone may stab you in the back in the end.
Liu Rong suddenly had a troubled look on his face. At this time, everyone was in confusion, but they also knew that according to Xu Qi's temperament, if he and others did not obey, he would naturally refuse to go.
It's just that the longer these thieves stay in the city, the greater the risk to them.
Finally, Liu Rong nodded heavily and said, "Okay, I'll order my lieutenant to lead the troops to suppress the formation, and you and I will take the people with us, how about that?"
Xu Qi secretly breathed a sigh of relief and then said: "What a spirit."
The two agreed to leave immediately without delay.
But along the way, both of them were in a state of confusion.
Liu Rong suddenly said coldly: "Mr. Xu, what are you worried about?"
Xu Qi said: "I was worried before, but now, I am not worried anymore."
"oh?"
Xu Qidao: "If only Zhang Anshi dies, according to your Majesty's temperament, I, the chief envoy, will definitely die without a burial place. But if your Majesty is also great, although it is hard to escape the blame, once the emperor dies, the world will
There is a tremor, the government and the public are in chaos, the prince has ascended the throne, and his foothold is not stable. It is the time to win over the hearts of the world, maybe... I have a glimmer of hope."
He took out a breath and continued: "The prince is generous and kind-hearted, not to mention... there are many ministers of Zhan Shifu around him, most of them are native to Jiangxi, and I have more or less connections... As long as these people are
All the responsibilities have been put on these water thieves, and things...may really have room for change."
"In this way, it is a good thing that His Majesty passed away."
"Of course it's a good thing, it's a huge good thing. With his death, I don't know how many people can have a good sleep." Xu Qi said with a smile.
Liu Rong only nodded and said nothing...
…………
At this time, the Taoist hurriedly came to the old man's house.
When he saw the old man, he said: "The sky is falling, but you are still studying?"
The old man was sitting in his study at this time, holding a book in his hand. When he heard the sound, he raised his head and glanced at the Taoist, and said with a smile: "Here you come..."
The Taoist said with some anxiety: "It seems that you are old and your ears and eyes are no longer good."
The old man still said calmly: "Why do you say this?"
The Taoist frowned and said, "You don't know that such a big event happened in the city?"
The old man slowly put down the book and said, "Who says I don't know?"
The Taoist said: "You know this, but you still have such leisure and elegance?"
The old man smiled: "Everything is under my control. Just like you and me playing chess, before the piece falls, I have already figured out how to win. So... this victory or defeat, what is there to make people sad or happy?
What about?”
The Taoist said: "Did you expect the thieves to enter the city?"
The old man still looked calm and said: "I did hear some news, and... the people from the Chief Envoy just now... also came to confirm it. This matter is indeed unexpected, but it is reasonable. Those thieves did not expect that,
There is actually Zhu Laosi in Jiujiang. At this time, they are afraid of crime, so naturally... they come here to kill them. They know that they may become the scapegoat, so they must go to settle the account with Xu Qi and ask for an explanation."
"But what does this have to do with me? Whether Xu Qi killed all these thieves or these thieves massacred Nanchang, as far as I am concerned, my goal has been achieved. Everything else is just a detail and there is no need to go into it.
Take it seriously."
The Taoist looked at the old man's calm demeanor and sighed: "If you really massacre Nanchang, you will be a sinner for thousands of years."
The old man said calmly and calmly: "I don't care about trivial matters when it comes to big things. What I want to do determines the life, death, honor and disgrace of the people in the world. There are only a few tens of thousands of people in Nanchang. Even if they die for the future peace of the world
, it’s also a blessing for them.”
"It is said that a gentleman works hard and a villain works hard. In the same way, a gentleman plans strategies and aims for a thousand miles, while villains are ignorant. If they can exchange their ant bodies for eternal peace, why not?"
The Taoist was speechless for a moment.
After a long time, the Taoist asked again: "What are your plans?"
The old man said: "When Zhu Di died, it was a God-given opportunity. At this time... Nanchang Mansion, and even the Chief Envoy of Jiangxi Province, are actually not important anymore."
"Oh?" The Taoist looked at him with satisfaction and doubt, "Where is the most important thing?"
The old man smiled and said: "In the temple, in the capital! I have already made plans and arrangements. The power of the world will soon be in my pocket. Just wait and see."
The Taoist obviously didn't understand what the old man meant, so he frowned and said, "What do you mean?"
The old man just smiled and said: "There are some things that you might as well not know."
The Taoist looked at the old man steadily for a while, then sighed quietly: "It's really hard to guess what you are thinking."
"Then there's no need to guess." The old man said with his eyelids lowered, continued to hold up his book, and continued to read carefully.
…………
Xu Qiren and others came to Zhu Di's place in a happy mood.
Xu Qi was sitting in a sedan. When the sedan stopped, he opened the curtain, and then tried his best to squeeze out a smile.
He felt that it was very easy to paralyze these water thieves. All he had to do was be kind and make some promises.
Then wait for the opportunity and catch them all in one fell swoop.
He smiled and bowed politely. When he saw the bandit leaders standing on their horses one by one, although he was unhappy in his heart, he didn't care.
He and Liu Rong, leading the officials, got closer.
However, when he got closer, Xu Qi's feet suddenly became weak.
Then, the smile on his face became stiff and his face gradually lost color.
Xu Qi was stunned.
Liu Rong, who was on the side, was originally looking a bit ferocious. He pressed the handle of the knife at his waist, looking menacing.
But now seeing Zhu Di on the horse, he suddenly became numb.
These two people are high-ranking officials in the border area. They have seen Zhu Di's true appearance, but the person in front of them... is not the emperor of today, who is he?
In an instant, Xu Qi was extremely panicked.
All the calculations, all the plans, and countless thoughts were completely wiped out in this moment.
His face was stiff, and deep in his eyes, there was only an unparalleled shock and fear.
Zhu Di had already led his men and came straight on horseback.
Xu Qi and Liu Rong were still frozen in place, as if they were frozen in place, motionless.
Zhu Di said: "You're here? It's good to be here!"
He was riding on a tall horse, looking down at Xu Qi and Liu Rong.
It's like...a cat looking at two interesting mice.
"Bold."
Someone shouted loudly.
This loud shout seemed to wake everyone up at once.
Everyone looked around, but behind Liu Rong was Liu Lu, the prefect of Nanchang.
Liu Lu's official position is obviously not high enough, so he has never met the emperor before.
He felt that these thieves were so arrogant, and if they could not curb their arrogance, it would give these water thieves an opportunity to take advantage of them.
As for Xu Qi and Liu Rong's silence at this time, it should be because they relied on their status. As a subordinate, he should be the black face.
So Liu Lu put on a majestic posture and shouted sternly: "When you see the chief envoy and the capital commander, why don't you get off your horse and kneel down to worship."
Zhu Di was shocked too much today.
Now he is immune to any absurd things.
He raised his eyelids, glanced at Liu Lu, and said, "Who are you?"
"Liu Lu, the prefect of Nanchang." Liu Lu continued in a dignified tone: "Don't think that you can show off your power by entering the city. This is a place with royal laws."
Zhu Di said with a bit of ridicule: "Where is the king's law? When did this place become a place with the king's law?"
Liu Lu was furious. How could he let the thieves have the upper hand?
Then he said: "What is in front of you today is the king's law! The chief envoy is the king's law, the general commander is the king's law, and what I am in front of you is the king's law!"
Zhu Di: "..."
Zhu Di was fucked into silence again.
Xu Qi: "..."
The word "Wang Fa" was like a basin of cold water, which suddenly woke him up.
Xu Qi bent his knees and fell to the ground with a plop.
But when he wanted to open his mouth, his mouth moved but no sound came out.
When a person's fear and frustration reach their limit, they can no longer control their own body.
Liu Lu was shocked, thinking that Xu Qi had something wrong with his health, so he hurriedly stepped forward: "Xu Gong, Xu Gong..."
He wanted to help Xu Qi up.
At this time...Xu Qi was completely anxious.
He suddenly flicked his sleeves to throw Liu Lu away, and then finally roared: "Get out!"
Liu Lu: "..."
Xu Qi, who recovered his voice, fell to the ground in despair, and then... said with great difficulty: "My... minister... Xu Qi... I have met your majesty... Long live my emperor!"
As soon as this statement came out.
The commander of the capital, Liu Rong, had already bowed down. With a pale face, he stuttered and said: "I... I... I will... I will die..."
Liu Lu was trembling after hearing this. He looked at the scene in front of him in disbelief, and then... he fell to the ground like crazy.
The scholar who came with him suddenly fainted.
Zhu Di looked at this scene, feeling as if he was watching a play, and sneered: "You must be surprised to see me."
"Yes, no, I'm not surprised. His Majesty is unpredictable..."
Zhu Di looked at Xu Qi and said: "Xu Qi, you must be very disappointed that I am still alive, right?"
Xu Qi was completely out of his mind. He quickly said: "Your Majesty, I don't know whose sycophants your Majesty has listened to. I... I..."
Zhu Di seemed too lazy to listen to his nonsense and interrupted impatiently: "Now, do you still want to deny it?"
Xu Qi fell silent.
If you continue to deny it now, it would really be called being shameless.
However, Liu Rong on the side immediately said: "Your Majesty, this is all Xu Qi's idea..."
Xu Qi gritted his teeth after hearing this. In fact, he knew that it was meaningless to distinguish these things now.
The people who came were all frightened and bowed down.
Zhu Di sneered and said: "Sure enough, the winner is the king and the loser is the loser. If I do what you want, I'm afraid you still won't know how to celebrate today. It's a pity... you don't take a pee yourself and look in the mirror.
Are you worthy of rebelling and committing regicide?"
Xu Qi and others were stunned and could not say a word.
Zhu Di continued: "There are people in the world who are capable of regicide. How will it be your turn? Among all the people in the world, the only one who is so wise and brave is Zhang Anshi."
Zhang Anshi was behind, riding a horse.
After hearing this, his body trembled violently, and he was so frightened that he almost fell off his horse.
He subconsciously wanted to deny it, but it seemed inappropriate to say this at this time.
Xu Qi and others, all with ashen faces, were still worshiping tremblingly.
Zhu Di continued: "What should be done about the crime of regicide?"
Xu Qi finally said with a trembling voice: "I... I will die even if I die..."
Zhu Di laughed and said slowly: "Is it just ten thousand deaths? You are a dog-like person, what should you say now?"
At this moment, Xu Qi seemed to finally have some courage and looked up at Zhu Di.
"Your Majesty forced me to do this."
Xu Qi was crying. At this point, he actually knew that he was about to lose everything. The only thing he could do was to take this last chance to defend himself.
"If your Majesty hadn't been like this, how could I have gotten to where I am today? Your Majesty knows that there is already a lot of anger and resentment both inside and outside the court! I am in Jiangxi, and there is no one above and below who has not mentioned Your Majesty, and who has not complained?
"
"I am doing these things today. Does Your Majesty think that I can do it alone? If not for the past few years, the country has reached such a state, and all people with lofty ideals in the world are resentful... where would it be today?"