The news that Youtun Guards set fire to the Rain Master Altar and burned more than 100,000 stones of food and supplies for the rebels was only delivered to the Neizhongmen near dawn. At the same time, the news that Qi King Li You was "captured" by Cheng Wuting...
Listening to the chamberlain's announcement, Li Chengqian was stunned for a while before he got up from the bed and left the warm and soft body of the princess...
After putting on his clothes, Li Chengqian sat alone in the study, drinking tea and frowning as he pondered the current situation.
Although everyone in the government and the public called Fang Jun "Bang Chui", Li Chengqian never thought that Fang Jun was a arrogant person. On the contrary, he believed that this was just Fang Jun's way of doing things, and faced him with an unruly attitude. Can we use brute force to break all kinds of shackles, but how much more effort can we use to break them?
However, he repeatedly violated the strategies formulated by the entire East Palace and launched attacks on the rebels, causing the peace talks to reach deadlocks or even collapse. This made Li Chengqian find no reason to understand...
For example, right now, without any warning in advance, news suddenly came in that the rebels had successfully burned more than 100,000 stones of food and fodder, causing the rebels to almost run out of logistics supplies, completely reversing the current situation. From now on, Guan Longqiu will Peace talks in the East Palace.
But by doing this, did Fang Jun ever take him as the prince seriously?
Why is Fang Jun so persistent in fighting Guan Long to the end and never stop fighting to the death?
In addition, the news that King Li You of Qi was captured by Cheng Wuting also made him frown. After all, he personally convicted his brother of treason and either sentenced him to death or imprisoned him. He couldn't bear it...
…
It didn't take long for a chamberlain to report, and Fang Jun had an audience with the King of Qi.
Li Chengqian took out a breath and said: "Summon!"
"Here!"
The servants left, and after a while, Qi Wang Li You and Fang Jun came in together.
"Brother Prince, I can't help you, wuwuwu..." Li You stepped into the study, then rushed to Li Chengqian in two steps, knelt on the ground with a "pop", hugged Li Chengqian's thigh and cried loudly, The cry was piercing and sad, as if he had suffered the most aggrieved thing in the world...
The corners of Fang Jun's eyes twitched, and he was a little impressed by Li You's talent. He knew in his heart that this guy was all fake. You could watch his actions and listen to his voice, but there was nothing pretentious about it.
Li Chengqian was originally angry with Li You. The King of Wei and Jin, who was the most qualified to compete for the throne, could sternly refuse Changsun Wuji's attempts to win over him. Why did you, a bastard, jump out in such a hurry? Do you think it fell from the sky? Pie dropped on your head?
Naive! Stupid!
However, seeing Li You in disheveled clothes and looking haggard, I feel a little distressed and can't bear it. After all, he is still his brother. What's more, now that Li You has fallen to this level, there is no longer any threat to his throne, so why bother to kill him? What about killing them all?
However, the current situation is quite delicate. If it wants to promote peace talks and end the mutiny, the East Palace needs to take the initiative to help the Guanlong clan to clear out the charges of "treason". Otherwise, the basis for peace talks will not exist. How can the orthodox imperial power compromise with rebellion? ?"Evil does not overwhelm righteousness" is the most basic principle in the world, and it must be upheld at all times. Once it is subverted, the order will often be out of order, and the ethics will be reversed. His orthodox status as the current prince will also be doubted and criticized, sowing trouble. the root of.
The best way for Guan Long to get rid of his guilt is to shift the blame to Qi King Li You, and the Guanlong clan has changed from the mastermind to an accomplice - as for how the Guanlong clan, which has all the power in the government and the public, will be at the mercy of a prince, that is not important. All he needs to do is give the people of the world an excuse, not to mention that the King of Qi wants to fight for the throne and slandering the prince is a fact and is by no means innocent.
Then the key question is: if King Qi is found guilty of treason, can he still save his life?
The serious crime of treason involves the country and the country. As a prince, he cannot solve it with just one word. All the civil and military officials in the dynasty said that "this beast must be punished." What can he do?
It's really a dilemma.
Fang Jun observed his words and saw that the prince was not too angry, so he whispered: "Before coming here, His Royal Highness the King of Qi privately wrote a letter to the ministers in Chang'an City, detailing how he was persecuted by the Guanlong clan and what happened. How could he be coerced by Changsun Wuji to write that slanderous article that slandered the prince..."
Li Chengqian froze, first looking at Li You who was crying and begging for his life, and then looked up at Fang Jun, his eyes full of shock and disbelief.
Fang Jun lowered his eyebrows and lowered his eyes, and stood with his hands tied to one side, as if those letters were really written by King Qi and had nothing to do with him...
Li Chengqian took a deep breath, his face became very ugly, and after pondering for a long time, he slowly said to Li You: "The crime you committed is of great importance to the country, the country, and the orthodoxy of the imperial power. Even if you are an orphan, you cannot be forgiven. Let me confine you first. Lock it up and wait until the matter is over and the government returns to normal before we can discuss it again."
Li You naturally knew that this was the best result, so he nodded with tears and said: "Thank you for your love and care, my brother. I feel so guilty that I have no face to face the world!"
He was crying on his face, but in his heart he admired Fang Jun very much: before, he thought he had other reasons for asking him to write those letters, but now he realized that he wanted to pass the crime to the Guanlong clan first, even if the prince did not agree. There is no other way. What can you do if you cook raw rice and cook it?
Otherwise, in order to take the overall situation into consideration, the prince would probably not agree to negotiate with Guan Long to clear his guilt...
…
When Li You was taken down by the chamberlain and temporarily imprisoned in a place, Li Chengqian sat silently behind the desk and drank tea without letting Fang Jun sit down.
He usually treats Fang Jun not like a monarch or a minister, but like a relative and friend, always treating him with courtesy. This situation is extremely rare...
Fang Jun didn't panic. He stood with his hands tied to one side and said nothing, waiting for the prince to ask questions.
After drinking half a pot of tea, Li Chengqian raised his head and glanced at the gloomy sky outside, and then slowly asked: "Why did Erlang do this?"
Not being given a seat seems to be a sign of distinction between the emperor and his ministers; calling him "Erlang" shows the closeness between each other... It is enough to see that Li Chengqian is confused and a little confused at the moment.
The person he trusts the most has been walking on the road that deviates from his own interests, again and again. If he didn't break out on the spot, it can be considered that Li Chengqian has a good character and a deep sense of self-cultivation...
Fang Jun said: "Your Highness will not always be the crown prince, but will definitely become the emperor in the future. Now that he is having an affair with the Guanlong clan, where is the imperial authority? This will become a stain that cannot be washed away in his lifetime. He will be praised or criticized in the history books, but it will become a controversy a hundred years later. , will definitely damage His Highness’ reputation.”
Li Chengqian frowned and said angrily: "What does a good reputation mean? Compared with it, being able to survive is the most important! Only by stabilizing the imperial court and calming down the chaos can the country be stabilized. If we continue to fight Guanlong to the death, the gains outweigh the losses." How can Erlang not understand this truth?"
Don't think that I have a soft character and am easy to bully, so you use such nonsense to fool me!
Fang Jun was silent for a while, then slowly said: "Your Highness, can you trust the loyalty of this humble minister?"
Li Chengqian laughed angrily: "So what if I believe it? In Gu's country, the survival of the East Palace is at stake, and then you rely on your loyalty and betray Gu's interests again and again? Gu has always regarded you as a good teacher and helpful friend,
Today we don’t distinguish between monarch and minister, I just want you to tell me clearly what exactly do you want to do?"
If it were anything else, Li Chengqian would never be so serious with Fang Jun. The reason why he is still sitting on the throne and becoming the prince of the empire today is because of Fang Jun's help. This was the case before, and it is like this now. However,
At stake was the country, the country, and the survival of the Eastern Palace. He could not just let Fang Jun do what he wanted.
Fang Jun was silent for a while, then sighed and said helplessly: "I really have no choice but to ask for Your Highness's understanding. But please believe that Your Highness, I will never change my loyalty to Your Highness! Everything I think and do is for Your Highness's sake.
If there is any discrepancy, I am willing to compensate with my life!"
Li Chengqian's eyes flashed, and his heart suddenly tightened as if he had been hit hard by something.
He didn't say any nonsense like "The survival of the East Palace and the overthrow of the country can be offset by your life." Since Fang Jun dared to say this, there is an inevitable reason for it. What is the reason? Li Chengqian didn't know. It seemed that
Fang Jun wouldn't say either.
However, Fang Jun did not say anything, but to Li Chengqian's ears, it seemed that he had said everything...
In the whole world, who else and what could make a great man like Fang Jun say "the difficulties of last resort" in front of him, the prince?
Thinking back to Li Ji's various weird performances up to now, Li Chengqian felt a little dizzy, his breathing was a little short, and stars were dancing in front of his eyes...