The fire that night only burned a granary and was extinguished. It had no impact on the several groups of buildings in the main house.
In the past ten days or so, a total of 2,000 soldiers from two elite regiments entered Xianyang respectively to increase the strength of Wufu.
Riding Gale, he entered the gate of the outer wall with Teng Yi, Jing Jun and the iron guards, and immediately heard the loud noise of soldiers busy building a sentry tower, which was very lively.
Xiang Shaolong was in a cheerful mood and jumped off his horse. Just as he was about to watch the excitement, Tao Fang came up to him and said, "Long Yangjun is waiting for you in the hall."
Teng Yi looked at the large square in front of the main house and saw no carriage entourage. He wondered: "Did he just come alone?"
Tao Fang nodded yes.
Xiang Shaolong also wanted to see this old friend and asked about various aspects of the situation, including Mrs. Ya of course. He followed Tao Fang to the hall to meet Lord Long Yang.
Although he didn't have a beard this time, he was wearing ordinary civilian clothes to avoid being noticed.
When there were only two people left, Long Yangjun said happily: "Brother Xiang is here well. The slave family is very happy."
Xiang Shaolong smiled and said: "Listening to Your Majesty's tone, it seems that it is very rare for me to be alive."
Long Yangjun sighed quietly: "There are countless people who want your head, both inside and outside Qin. Recently, there are rumors that you and Lu Buwei are at odds with each other. Now that Lu Buwei is becoming more powerful, it is natural that
Make people worry about you."
Xiang Shaolong has long been accustomed to this charming man's "deep love" and said with a wry smile: "It's like paper can't cover up the fire. You can't hide anything from anyone."
Long Yangjun asked in astonishment: "What is 'paper'?"
Xiang Shaolong secretly cursed himself for being confused. This was something that was only popular in the Han Dynasty, but he quickly said it out loud: "This is my hometown dialect, and it refers to things like silk."
"This is when I understood," Long Yangjun said, "I am here as an envoy to pay homage to your late king. It's really strange. Two Qin kings died in four years. Now everyone is full of doubts. Lu Buwei can be considered audacious."
Xiang Shaolong knew that he was listening, so he sighed and changed the topic: "How is Lord Xinling's situation?" Lord Longyang said coldly: "This is the fate you deserve for betraying our king. This time he will do it again.
There is no chance of recovery. I heard that he turned to indulgence in drinking and debauchery, and dismissed a large number of generals. Under such circumstances, the king will not do anything to him again."
Then he lowered his voice and said: "Zhao Ya fell ill."
Xiang Shaolong was shocked and said: "What?"
Lord Long Yang sighed: "I heard that when she was sick and croaking, she just called your name. Lord Xinling was so angry that he never set foot in her bedroom again."
Xiang Shaolong was so traumatized that he couldn't help himself. He wished he could use his wings and fly to Daliang immediately.
Longyang Jun said: "Brother Xiang, don't worry. I have already asked the king to bring the lady into the palace in the name of treating her illness, so that someone can take good care of her. If Brother Xiang is willing, I can send her to Xianyang."
, but then you can wait until her condition gets better."
Xiang Shaolong asked in shock: "Is she so ill?"
Long Yangjun said sadly: "Heart disease is the most difficult to cure."
Xiang Shaolong still had time to chew on the pun in his words, so he said anxiously: "No, I will go to Daliang to bring her back."
Long Yangjun said softly: "Brother Xiang, please don't be emotional. Xianyang is now crowded with dragons and tigers, and the wind and clouds are turbulent. If you leave rashly and find that everything is completely different when you come back, it will be too late to regret it."
Xiang Shaolong calmed down a little and said: "Then I will send someone to pick her up. Can your Majesty send someone with him who can do the job?"
Long Yangjun said: "Of course there is no problem. Prince Zeng of our country has a very good impression of you. As long as he knows that it is your matter, he will help you to the end. Your Majesty also knows that the return of Prince Zeng depends entirely on you, otherwise it will be impossible."
I refuse to take care of Zhao Ya anymore."
Xiang Shaolong suppressed his longing for Zhao Ya and asked: "Besides Tian Dan, Li Yuan and Pang, who else came from the Six Kingdoms?"
Long Yangjun said: "The person from Yan should be Prince Dan, and South Korea is your old friend Han Chuang. Now everyone is vying to curry favor with Lu Buwei, so you have to be careful. Of course they don't dare to do anything in Xianyang, but if
If Lu Buwei sends you to another country, someone will be able to deal with you."
When Xiang Shaolong was hesitating whether to tell Lord Long Yang that the people who attacked them outside Handan that day were Xu Yi rebels sent by Prince Dan of Yan State, Lord Long Yang said again: "Li Yuan went to Xianyang today and brought some information from Chu State."
The little princess hopes to be the princess who will become the prince. I heard that Lu Buwei has verbally agreed. However, Lu Gong, Xu Xian, Du Bi and others from Qin Dynasty strongly opposed it. If this matter fails, Lu Buwei's face will not be known.
It should be placed there.”
Xiang Shaolong said: "The success or failure of this matter depends on the Queen Mother's intention. However, Lu Buwei is very powerful and will find ways to make the Queen Mother obey his suggestions."
Long Yangjun lowered his voice and said, "I heard that Queen Mother Ji is very fond of you. Can you do some work on her so that Li Yuan's dream can come true?"
The thing Xiang Shaolong fears most at this time is to meet Zhu Ji. If something bad happens, not only will his conscience be condemned, but his reputation and image will also be severely damaged. He sighed dejectedly and said: "
It's precisely because she has a crush on me that it's even harder for me to talk."
Longyang Jun knew his character and said: "I came to you in secret, so I shouldn't stay for a long time. I will send someone to find you tomorrow morning. This man's name is Ning Jia. He is my confidant. He is very smart and capable. He will accompany you."
If you go to Daliang, everything will be fine."
Xiang Shaolong thanked him and sent him out the door.
After coming back, I immediately discussed it with Teng Yi and Tao Fang.
He originally wanted to send Jing Jun to pick up Zhao Ya, but since Xianyang was in the middle of hiring people, he finally decided to let Wu Guo lead 500 elite soldiers to handle the matter.
When the discussion was over, Qin Qing actually sent someone to look for him.
The three of them were shocked. Could it be that this beauty, who was famous for her chastity, had finally fallen in love with her?
When Xiang Shaolong, Teng Yi, Jing Jun and the Eighteen Iron Guards arrived at the Qin Mansion, it was already dark, adding to the ambiguity of the matter. After everyone sat down in the elegantly decorated hall, two beautiful maids presented them with fragrant tea.
, Uncle Fang, the butler who had already met, invited Xiang Shaolong, Teng Yi and Jing Jun into the inner hall at the same time.
Jing Jun was overjoyed to see this touching widow treating him as a person. Xiang Shaolong was a little disappointed, knowing that the matter had nothing to do with the privacy of men and women.
Men are like this, even if they don't have any ambitions, they don't mind falling in love with multiple women, as long as it doesn't cause any trouble.
Qin Qing was still dressed in plain clothes, with a solemn expression. He politely exchanged greetings, and sat down with the three of them respectively as guest and host, following the proper etiquette.
Knowing that everyone had not yet eaten, he asked his maid to bring out cakes for them and the guards waiting in the outer hall to enjoy.
Xiang Shaolong and others were not polite, they bent over the desk and munched. They found it extremely delicious, and Jing Jun was full of praise.
Seeing her frown, Xiang Shaolong couldn't help but said, "Teacher Qin called us here. I wonder if I can give you some advice?"
Qin Qing sighed quietly and said, "I don't know if I'm paranoid, but something happened today, and I feel it's a little inappropriate."
The three of them were so surprised that they put down the cakes in their hands and all six eyes were fixed on her beautiful face.
Qin Qing was obviously not used to being stared at by such three men, especially Jing Jun's greedy "thief eyes". She lowered her head and said: "Today I went to the Ancestral Temple to change the fragrant flowers for the coffin of the late king. When I left, I met the diners of the Prime Minister's Mansion.
Poison, he blocked the way."
The three of them all turned pale.
Jing Jun said angrily: "You are so brave. I will give this lunatic a lesson, no matter who his backer is."
Teng Yi said: "Master Qin doesn't have any generals accompanying him?"
Qin Qing said: "Not only were there family generals accompanying us, but Prime Minister Xu Zuo and Prime Minister Lu were also at the Ancestral Temple at that time. They heard the noise and rushed out."
Jing Jun sneered: "I want to see how Lu Buwei handles it."
Of course, he kicked Teng Yi next to him.
Qin Qing looked at Teng Yi, with a frank look in her beautiful eyes, and said softly: "Brother Teng, please don't treat Qin Qing as an outsider, okay? Yan Ranmei and I hit it off as old friends and we feel like sisters. That's why I will not avoid suspicion tonight.
Invite everyone to my humble residence to discuss."
Teng Yi's face turned red and he said awkwardly: "How can Lu Buwei handle this matter?"
Qin Qing's face became more worried, and she said slowly: "Lu Buwei did an extremely beautiful job. In front of me and Prime Minister Xu, he first kowtowed to the poison and admitted his mistake, and then announced his punishment in public."
Xiang Shaolong already knew what was going on. It was written down in the history books. He sighed dejectedly, "Should we castrate him and send him to the palace as a eunuch?"
Qin Qing said in shock: "How could you guess that?"
Teng Yi and Jing Jun stared at each other. They had been sitting with Xiang Shaolong all day long. They should know what Xiang Shaolong knew.
Even if the philosopher were to come back to life, he would never be able to guess such a special punishment.
Xiang Shaolong screamed in his heart, knowing that he had spilled the beans and revealed the secret. And no matter how he explained it this time, no one would believe it.
Qin Qing thought someone had told him about this, but when he saw Teng Jing and Teng Jing looking stunned, he was shocked and said in disbelief: "Master Xiang really just guessed it."
Xiang Shaolong was "just recovering from his shock" and sighed to himself: "This is not too difficult to guess. The person Lu Buwei wants to fawn over the most now is the Queen Mother Ji. Right now, no one in Xianyang knows the Queen Mother's weaknesses and poison better than him.
It is his most powerful chess piece. Only by pretending to turn him into a eunuch can this chess piece be put into the palace and exert its magical effects. When it comes to tricks, compared to Lu Buwei, we are really behind."
Teng Yi and Jing Jun began to understand, but they were still too shocked to recover from the inference of Xiang Shaolong's level and miraculous skills.
Qin Qing stared at Xiang Shaolong fiercely, and after a while he said unconvinced: "I came to this conclusion only after thinking for a long time afterwards. But Taifu Xiang knew everything as if he had witnessed it before he even heard the whole story.
, Qin Qing sees that Taifu’s wisdom is so high that Lu Buwei is not as good as him, no wonder he is so jealous of you."
Xiang Shaolong secretly felt ashamed and worried at the same time.
Zhu Ji and Du are inseparable, and no one can stop them. How should we deal with this?
Jing Junya said: "Let me enter the palace and give him a painful blow, then he will have to be a eunuch forever."
Qin Qing finally couldn't bear his explicit words, her pretty face turned red, and she said displeasedly: "Brother Jing, we are discussing business matters."
Teng Yi glared at Jing Jun, but the latter was unhappy. Why did Xiang Shaolong speak more vulgarly than he did, but the pretty widow didn't blame him? Knowing that Xiang Shaolong had gotten away with it, he felt relieved and his mind suddenly changed.
Flexible, he said: "Master Qin thinks highly of Mr. Xiang too much. It's a pity that no one can stop this."
Qin Qing said in astonishment: "But the Queen Mother is most willing to listen to the Taifu's opinion."
Xiang Shaolong smiled calmly and said: "The problem is that I can't replace Poison, so I lose the qualification to speak."
Qin Qing still didn't understand what he meant. After thinking for a while, Xia Sheng's jade cheeks suddenly appeared, she lowered her head, bit her lip and said softly: "Qin Qing understands, but this matter is not trivial. It not only involves the dignity of the royal family, but also the dignity of the royal family.
It can also make Lu Buwei more domineering and difficult to control, isn't Taifu Xiang worried?"
Xiang Shaolong said in a gentle and thoughtful voice: "Master Qin, why don't you go to Bashu and spend some quiet days with Mrs. Huayang, out of sight and out of mind?"
Qin Qing's delicate body trembled, and she looked at him with a complicated and unspeakable expression. She hesitated to speak, and finally lowered her head and whispered: "Qin Qing has her own ideas. Don't bother Taifu Xiang. I stayed up three nights
please"
The three of them did not expect that she would suddenly issue an order to expel guests. They were very bored and left in despair. Qin Qing did not get up to see the guests off. When they left Qin Qing's house, the evening breeze blew in their faces.
Teng Yi couldn't help but said: "Does the third brother really not intend to expose Lu Buwei's conspiracy to Empress Ji?"
Xiang Shaolong sighed: "The problem is that for Empress Ji, that is a great gift that will bring relief to her after a long drought. Who can stop it?"
Jing Jun praised: "After a long drought, nectar comes. Lu Buwei's skill is really amazing."
Teng Yi rode his horse, took a deep breath and said, "If Queen Mother Ji is controlled by poison, will we still have a foothold?"
Xiang Shaolong sneered and said: "The Empress Dowager Xianji is not so easily manipulated. Secondly, we can use the trick and use as much poison as possible to get him out of Lu Buwei's control. At that time, Lu Buwei will have the biggest headache, not us."
When Teng Yi and Jing Jun were shocked, Xiang Shaolong had already rushed to the other end of the long street with the strong wind at his head.
At this moment, he was full of confidence to fight against Lu Buwei.
Because no one can rewrite history, including Lu Buwei.
Therefore, this evil man is destined to end up playing with fire.
No one can change it. What he can’t know is his own future.
In the early morning of the next day, before dawn, Li Si led a large number of internal servants and Wang Zhao to Wufu to represent Xiaopan and formally appointed Xiang Shaolong as the commander-in-chief of the capital cavalry. Teng Yi and Jing Jun were appointed as the left and right generals of the capital cavalry.
Tiger runes, bows and arrows, swords, military uniforms and armor, and five hundred personal guards, it can be said that the king's favor is vast.
Xiang Shaolong knew full well that these arrangements came from the head of one of his own, Li Si, so they were so perfect. After kneeling down to receive the king's order, Teng Yi immediately selected five hundred people, all of whom put on military uniforms and rushed to the palace.
Arriving at the large square in front of the main palace, Xiaopan had just finished his morning court. Accompanied by Zhu Ji, he led the left and right prime ministers and a group of civil and military officials to the altar to pay homage to the general. The ceremony was grand.
Xiang Shaolong and others were very busy that day. They had to take over the Duqi Yamen office located in the east of the city, inspect the Duqi soldiers, complete liaison affairs with other government offices, and prepare for King Zhuang Xiang tomorrow.
, hundreds of things are piled up to handle.
Fortunately, Xiang Shaolong has a good relationship with the military at present, and Lu Buwei still wants to support him for the time being, so things go smoothly without encountering difficulties or resistance.
The most impressive one is Jing Jun, who has officially become the deputy general of Duqi. He is majestic and high-spirited.
On the same day, under the arrangement of Tao Fang, Wu Guo and Ning Jia, who were sent by Lord Long Yang, led a regiment of 500 elite soldiers and hurriedly set out on the road to Daliang to welcome Zhao Ya back.
In the evening, Xiaopan summoned him into the palace, met him alone in the inner court, and said angrily: "Do you know about poison?"
Xiang Shaolong sighed and said, "Have the Queen Mother and him gotten together?"
Xiaopan said angrily: "Before the bones of the late king were buried, the traitor Lu Buwei used a pretty boy to pretend to be a eunuch to seduce the queen mother. I wish I could cut him into pieces."
Xiang Shaolong secretly thought that this poison is indeed very effective on women. He fell in love with Zhu Ji so quickly. His heart felt sour and bitter, and he blamed Zhu Ji for being so indiscreet. But when he thought about it, Zhu Ji had indeed been lonely for a long time.
With her passion, of course she couldn't stand the teasing and temptation of Du, a master of love.
Xiaopan was so angry that he paced back and forth in the middle of the hall, Xiang Shaolong had no choice but to stand aside.
Xiaopan suddenly stopped, stared at him and complained: "I left you alone with my mother that day just because I wanted you to comfort her. Among all men in the world, I can only accept you to be in love with her."
Xiang Shaolong could only repay him with a wry smile.
Of course he understands Xiaopan's mentality. Just as he used to think that he was the only one worthy of being Mrs. Ni's lover, now that he regards Zhu Ji as his mother, he naturally hopes that he will be Zhu Ji's man. To a certain extent, he
He is Xiaopan’s ideal father.
Xiang Shaolong sighed and said: "If I could do this, I would no longer be Xiang Shaolong."
Xiaopan was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said, "I understand. But now my heart is full of resentment, and I really want to break into the harem and beat him up with that poison before I can vent my anger."
After a pause, he said: "Well, what should I do now? I haven't been officially crowned one day, and everything has to be nodded by the Queen Mother. If Lu Buwei controls the Queen Mother, I will be even more restricted. The Queen Mother summoned me this afternoon.
I was asked to replace General An Gu with Lu Buwei's family general Guan Zhongxie as the commander of the imperial guards. Of course I argued hard and argued for a whole hour before my mother was willing to take back the order and appointed Guan Zhongxie as the commander of the imperial guards. I had no choice but to make the decision.
I had no choice but to agree."
Then he sighed again: "What do you think I should do?"
Looking at his still childish face, Xiang Shaolong said: "This is your mother's method. She knew that you were unwilling to agree to replace General An and retreated to the next best, so you had to give in."
Xiaopan was stunned. After thinking for a while, he said dejectedly: "The situation was indeed like this. I still can't defeat the Queen Mother."
Xiang Shaolong comforted him: "Don't be discouraged. First of all, because you are still young and you respect and love your mother, you are not good enough for her. Let's sit down and think about it first, and see how we should deal with Lu Buwei's treacherous scheme."
Like a deflated rubber ball, Xiao Pan sat back on the dragon's seat on the steps and looked at Xiang Shaolong, who was pacing back and forth like he had just done.
Xiang Shaolong asked in a deep voice: "How does the prince know about the poison?"
Xiaopan said angrily: "Yesterday morning, Lu Buwei's people kidnapped Du Wuhuada and took him into the palace. In front of my mother and I, they read out Du's charges and said that they had executed him and turned him into a eunuch and punished him to serve in the palace. At that time, I
I already felt that something was wrong, how could I still look like him after being cut off, but my face was a little pale?
"Then Lu Buwei had a private conversation with the Queen Mother, and then the Queen Mother took the poison into the Queen Mother's Palace. I felt bad and sent people to investigate. It turned out that the Queen Mother was mixed up with the poison that night."
Xiang Shaolong asked: "What is the attraction of this poison?"
Xiao Pan slapped the dragon table with his palm and said angrily: "He's just a pretty boy."
It’s just that her skin is much whiter, so no wonder the mother was fascinated by her as soon as she saw her.”
"Hey what should I do?"
This is the third time he has said this tonight. From this we can see that Zhu Ji's behavior has made him confused.
Xiang Shaolong came to the steps and whispered: "Has the Crown Prince discussed this matter with Li Si?"
Xiaopan smiled bitterly and said, "How dare I tell anyone else about this apart from my master's biography, and I have to try my best to hide it from the Queen Mother."
Xiang Shaolong secretly sighed in his heart, this is Xiaopan's difficulty. At this moment when everyone is watching eagerly, once there is no support from the Queen Mother and Lu Buwei, Xiaopan, a child who is only more than ten years old, will immediately become isolated and helpless.
Therefore, even though he was still young, he always tried to protect Zhu Ji and Lu Buwei to prevent the throne from being unstable. The situation was very complicated.
Xiang Shaolong moved to the long seats next to the banquet, looked up at the main beam extending horizontally on the top of the palace, and breathed out: "With a good two-pronged strategy, we will definitely help the prince to overcome the difficulties and securely ascend to the throne in the future."
Xiao Pan seemed to be in a lost wilderness and saw a guiding light, and said with great joy: "Master, please tell me!"
Xiang Shaolong saw that he was in high spirits and felt happy in his heart. He said happily: "First, we still need to win over the morale of the army. Now the Qin army can be roughly divided into four groups. The most powerful one is the neutral faction. This group of people is called Lu
Gong, Xu Xian, and Wang Wei support legal orthodoxy, but they are also the most dangerous. If they turn around and deal with us, no one can resist them. It can be said that as long as they lean towards one side, that side will be stable.
A sure winner."
Xiaopan frowned and said, "I understand this. The other three factions are those who support Lu Buwei, Gao Lingjun and Chengchong Qiao. But is there any way to win over Lu Gong and the others?"
Xiang Shaolong laughed dumbly and said: "The method is simple and easy, just let them prove their identity."
So he told the story that the deer man wanted to shed blood to recognize his kin.
Xiaopan was stunned for a moment, and then after exchanging strange looks with Xiang Shaolong, the two of them burst into laughter at the same time, completely unable to control the weird feeling that was both ridiculous and ridiculous.
Xiaopan, the future Qin Shihuang, choked with tears and gasped: "Then what is the other way to control it?"
Xiang Shaolong suppressed a smile and said, "Just win over Lu Buwei."
Xiaopan lost her voice and said: "What?"
Xiang Shaolong analyzed: "Although Lord Yangquan has been awarded, the power to support Cheng Chong Qiao is still very huge, and Lord Gaoling, who is watching from the side, has the strength to aspire for the throne. If we deal with Lu Buwei rashly, we will both lose.
Let these two groups of people have an opportunity. Maybe these two groups of people will unite and force you to abdicate, which would be even worse. Suppose that Lu Buwei regards you as his son, but Lu Gong and others know about another
Completely different truth, then you can have both sides. After eradicating the forces of the other two factions, and then turn around to deal with Lu Buwei, who will dare not listen to you then?"
Xiaopan said: "This is indeed the most feasible method, but Lu Buwei has a domineering nature. If he follows him in everything, the power will not fall into his hands in the end, but he will have his people placed in important positions in the military."
At that time, what should we use to compete with him?"
A smile appeared on the corner of Xiang Shaolong's lips, and he said calmly: "This move is called using the son's spear and attacking the son's shield. From today on, not only will we ignore your mother's affairs, but we will also vigorously cultivate poison."
Xiaopan lost her voice and said: "What?"
Xiang Shaolong said: "Poison is known as a ruthless and unjust person. Such a person must be selfish by nature and put self-interest first in everything. As long as he feels that there is an opportunity to take advantage of, he will definitely not be controlled by Lu Buwei. Because of his background,
The government will weaken part of Lu Buwei's strength, and your mother will also support him due to her passion for love and adultery, turning him into a force to compete with Lu Buwei, and then you can benefit from it."
After a pause, he continued: "If my guess is correct, after your royal father is buried, the queen will pester your mother to find him an official position. You should know what to do by then."
Xiaopan was dumbfounded after hearing this, and finally took a deep breath and said: "Is there anyone in this world who is more skillful than Master?"
At this moment, Xiang Shaolong knew that Xiaopan's mind had matured and he was no longer an emotional child.