The situation in the outer (Guo) city at this time is like oil cooking on a fire.
According to Xu Huai's plan, the news of Wang Zhen's death should be reported directly to the generals in the army to further add fuel to the current situation.
Only in this way can Emperor Tianxuan and Wang Qiyong and their like be forced to make greater concessions in front of the angry generals of the main war faction.
If King Jing is determined to resist the decree and continue to lead his troops to fight against the Chihu people, only in this way can the pressure on King Jing be reduced to the greatest extent.
However, Wang Zhen obviously still had his own ideas, and he did not want to become the target of the peace negotiators at this time.
Zhu Hang pondered and said:
"The captive soldiers have not withdrawn, and the inside and outside are boiling. When the palace learns that the husband has passed away, in order to avoid causing unpredictable changes, the news will probably be sealed. However, the more links the news goes through, the harder it is to keep it secret, so it is not necessary to go to the palace to report the funeral.
Whatever the problem, we still have to show that we are trying our best to consider the government. Wang Fan had better change into court clothes and go to the palace to report the news. The mourning hall can be set up in the house first..."
Zhu Hang said this based on the opinions of Xu Huai and Wang Fan.
It is true that Wang Fan had his own scruples and did not want to be the target of public criticism at this time, but at this time, the news was reported to the palace. Even though the palace strictly blocked the news of Wang Zhen's death, there were many steps to go through. They secretly spread the news again.
While not afraid of being targeted, Xu Huai's intention of spreading news can also be realized.
Seeing what Zhu Hang said, Xu Huai no longer insisted on anything.
"Then I'll save you all the trouble!" Wang Fan bowed to Zhu Hang, Lu Xiong, and Wang Kong, then knelt down in front of Wang Chen's body and bowed before him and Zheng Shou hurriedly walked to the west courtyard where he lived.
, preparing to change into court clothes and enter the palace to report the funeral.
Before Wang Fan set off with Zheng Shou, he, Zhu Hang, Lu Xiong, and Wang Kong gathered all the servants at home.
On the one hand, they wanted to announce the death of the king in the house and arrange the funeral hall first. On the other hand, they told everyone in the house to strictly keep secrets and to make decisions on all matters after going to the palace to announce the funeral.
Wang Zhai suddenly fell into grief and anger.
The house had already made preparations for Wang Zhen's death.
Wang Fan and Zheng Shou set out for the palace. Zhu Hang, Lu Xiong, and Wang Kong led people to move Wang Cun's body to the main hall, clean it, and put it on shrouds.
While everyone was arranging the mourning hall, Zheng Shou left and returned. He hurried to Xu Huai and Zhu Hang and said:
"I followed Mr. Wang Fanlang out of the palace and just walked out of Lixu, when I met Yang Yongdong who came with a decree to summon Mr. Wang to the palace to discuss matters. Mr. Wang Fanlang wanted to enter the palace with Yang Yongdong to report the news, but Yang Yongdong wanted to come first to pay homage to Mr. They.
Come here with your back legs."
Zhu Hang was also startled, and said to Xu Huai: "Yang Yongdong is well known to all ministers in the province, and is deeply favored by officials. He came here with the decree, and it was probably because of the chaos in Guocheng, and Wang Qiyong, Wang Boqian, Liang Fuzhong and others were powerless.
To clean up the mess, this forced the officials to come to my old husband for advice, right?"
"It's a pity that these people have never really trusted my husband, and they may not be able to think of my husband until they are in a hurry." Lu Xiong lamented.
Zhu Hang asked Xu Huai: "Do you want to avoid it?"
Wang Fan asked Zheng Shou to rush back to report the news first, presumably because he was afraid that too many flaws would be exposed here, so Zhu Hang wondered if Xu Huai needed to avoid it temporarily.
"There is no need to evade, just say that I learned that my husband was seriously ill, so I rushed back to the capital to see him off for the last time." Xu Huai frowned and said solemnly, "If I have this opportunity, I also want to meet the people around the official.
What kind of person is the concubine? How could he instigate officials to make such a disgraceful decision?"
It is certain that Emperor Tianxuan was fatuous and incompetent, but it was precisely because of Emperor Tianxuan's fatuousness and incompetence that the court begged for peace so grovelingly, without even considering that this move would only inflate the greed of the Chihu people, and even more so for Wang Qiyong.
, Wang Boqian and Yang Yongdong, close ministers, led Emperor Tianxuan by the nose.
As the chief seal officer of the newly established Chushan County, he also had the important task of leading troops. He came to Bianliang to see Wang Zhen for the last time. It seemed to be against the law, but Xu Huai didn't feel that the war was in chaos now.
There is chaos and chaos inside and outside the government. Who will grasp this point in a short time?
What's more, before he came here, he had considered the possibility of showing his face in Bianliang, and made some arrangements. He even informed the Defense Envoy Office and asked Wang Ju to temporarily serve as Chushan County Magistrate and Chushan Capital Inspection Envoy.
In addition, although Xu Huai was not familiar with the ministers of the DPRK, he still understood some rules.
Yang Yongdong is well known to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and he is actually one of the two or three internal ministers.
Unless such a person comes to the palace to express condolences to the king on behalf of the official family, or directly asks the king for advice, if he just comes with an edict to announce that the king has entered the palace, there is really no need to bother him to go there in person, just like who does Xu Huai need to call?
When we met in the past, it was impossible to call Zheng Tu. Su Laochang and the others went to run errands.
That's not how you order people.
The greater possibility is that the palace is worried that Wang Zhen may not respond to the edict, or even that some people suspect that the civil unrest in the outer (Guo) city is related to Wang Zhen. Yang Yongdong, who is deeply trusted by Emperor Tianxuan, needs to come to check the truth in person?
Wang Fan also took this into consideration and asked Zheng Shou to come back in advance to report the news, hoping that he could avoid it?
Xu Huai didn't want to avoid it: Wang Zhen had indeed passed away, so why should he deliberately avoid suspicion?
Zheng Shou didn't say much. After a while, Wang Fan walked in accompanied by a middle-aged official in his forties with fair face and beard.
Wang Fan saw that Xu Huai did not avoid it, but he was not surprised. He just walked with Yang Yongdong to the mourning hall.
"Mr. Zhu Lang is also here,"
Yang Yongdong walked to the corridor and cupped his hands with Zhu Hanggong, who came out of the mourning hall, and said with emotion,
"Today the thieves made a rebellion, kidnapped the courtiers, and incited countless unscrupulous people to burn, kill, and plunder in Guocheng. For a while, the soldiers were unable to control it. Now there are worries about disturbances in many military camps in the inner and outer cities. Wang Qiyong, Wang Boqian, and others are helpless.
, the officials sent me here, and wanted to summon Wang Xiang to ask for advice, but I didn't expect that bad news would come one after another. It is unfortunate for Vietnam to lose this pillar!"
Yang Yongdong walked into the mourning hall, first took three pillars of incense, lit them on the big candle, inserted them into the incense burner, then looked at the coffin hidden on the side of the mourning hall, looked at Wang Fan and asked, "Can I see the remains of the Prime Minister?"
"If there is any suspicion in the palace, you can send another envoy to check. Why do you want to be such a bad person, Mr. Yang?" Seeing that Yang Yongdong wanted to open the coffin for an autopsy, Zhu Hang was furious and asked rudely.
At this time, he obviously also believed that someone like Yang Yongdong personally came to the king's house with an edict to announce the summons. Someone must have suspected that Wang Ji was related to the civil unrest in Guocheng today, and he came to check the truth. It was Yang Yongdong who was suspicious, so he took the unnecessary step.
Xu Huai saw that Yang Yongdong didn't notice him, so he stood aside silently and said nothing, so as not to waste time explaining.
Yang Yongdong was embarrassed to call Zhu Hang such a scolding, but he insisted on seeing Wang Xun's remains and said: "Yongdong just wants to see the Wang Xiang's remains. Where do you want to go, Mr. Zhu Hang?"
Wang Fan thought that if Yang Yongdong was driven away at this time, the palace would probably send envoys to check. He and Lu Xiong stepped forward to remove the coffin lid that was not yet nailed, and said in a deep voice: "It's best for Senior Officer Yang to be here.
It also saves me the embarrassment of going to the palace to report the news, I can ask Senior Officer Yang to do everything for me."
A row of candles were lit against the wall. Yang Yongdong looked over to see Wang Xun lying in the coffin. His face was real and could not be faked. After a while, he looked at Wang Xun. Zhu Hang held his hands and said solemnly: "Guocheng untouchables."
There is chaos, people in several military camps are unstable, and I don’t know if someone is secretly instigating it. The news of the king’s death must not be leaked out lightly. I also ask the government to strictly block the news. I will go back to the palace and ask the officials to make a decision!"
"This matter is extremely involved. Before my father passed away, I also asked Wang Fan to think about his family and country and not stick to common sense. I also asked Senior Officer Yang to rest assured." Wang Fan said.
"My condolences! Yang will go back to the palace first." Yang Yongdong cupped his hands, turned around and walked out. However, he was not at ease with the people in Wang's house. Before leaving, he left six people behind, saying that they were keeping watch for the king.
Seeing Yang Yongdong leaving in a sedan, Zhu Hang and Wang Fan looked at each other.
Their original plan was for Wang Fan to go to the palace to report the news. Wang Fan was not qualified to see Emperor Tianxuan directly. After entering the palace, they would naturally report the news of Wang Fan's death layer by layer. This is what Zhu Hang said.
The more links there are, the easier it is for secrets to leak out. In the end, they are not afraid that the DPRK will hold them accountable for leaking, and they avoid becoming the target of the peace negotiators.
But he didn't expect that Wang Fan didn't rush to the palace and met Yang Yongdong halfway.
Now Yang Yongdong not only leaves people to keep an eye on this place, but also goes to the palace to report the matter in person. If the secret is leaked at this time, can he still shirk responsibility?
Xu Huai sighed slightly, and when Wang Fan and Zhu Hang came back with a sad face, they stood in the corridor and whispered to them: "I will be responsible for everything. You can cooperate with me in acting later!"
In order to respect the king's legacy, when the mourning hall was arranged, Xu Huai and Xu Wu Qi placed the swords and weapons in the side courtyard. Xu Huai and Xu Wu Qi walked to the side courtyard to get the swords and weapons. The manpower left by Yang Yongdong guarded the front and back yards.
Yes, there were two people who followed Wang Fan and Zhu Hang closely on the pretext of keeping vigil at the funeral.
At first they saw Xu Huai walking towards the side courtyard and didn't pay much attention. However, when they saw Xu Huai and the others taking knives and walking outside the house, they hurriedly walked over to stop him:
"Official Yang has an order. No one is allowed to leave this house until there is an edict!"
"..." Xu Huaibo's big fist hit the leader's face, "How dare you stop Grandpa Xu from coming and going if you don't have a chicken? Damn you, why don't you take a piss and show who you are?"
"Xu Huai! What are you going to do?" Wang Fan pretended to yell harshly, "Stop this fool quickly!"
"The imperial court asked these grandsons to take control. My husband died in frustration. Let's go find a hotel to drink. What's wrong?" Xu Huaixian pushed the two servants of the king's house ten feet away, and then raised his foot to kick Wang Kong, who was trying to stop him.
go.
Wang Kong gathered strength with his arms, collided with Xu Huai's heavy spring leg, took advantage of the momentum, flew out, and broke a thigh-thick miscellaneous tree with a "crash".
Seeing how brave Xu Huai was, the eunuchs left by Yang Yongdong dared to stop them. They could only watch Xu Huai and the others walk away...
