At noon, Gao Jiancheng left the palace and went home for lunch.
As soon as I got off the carriage and entered the house, I had no intention of eating, so I went straight to the study. The butler Fan Zhuan did not ask me to use it, but followed him to the study.
Gao Jiancheng looked calm on the outside, but on the inside he was anxious and his mouth was dry. He had drank a lot of tea this morning and was still thirsty.
After he moistened his mouth, Fan Zhuanfang, who looked worried, asked, "Master, how is the situation?"
Gao Jiancheng put down the tea cup and said, "The heads of Feihua Pavilion and Zhenlingyuan have been hung on the city walls of Qingshan County. The situation in Nanzhou is not good. According to the news, Shang Chaozong seems to be gathering people to rush to Dingshan."
state."
"Ah! Is it possible that in order to attack Dingzhou, how could the Shang Dynasty be so bold?" Fan Zhuan was surprised.
Gao Jiancheng: "What a dare, he still swallowed Nanzhou. Logically speaking, he would not dare, but Tong Mo was already arranging manpower to re-count the soldiers, horses, money and food in the state controlled by the imperial court, and gave instructions to the ministries below.
The government is saving money. It can be seen that he is already making preparations for emergencies."
Fan Zhuan was a little suspicious, "Just because they attacked Maolu Villa, Niu Youdao is going to start an army and start a rebellion. Can the three major factions just sit back and watch?"
"A small thatched villa can actually thwart such a powerful attack, and even Zong Yuan was killed. This is obviously a precaution. Having foreseen it in advance, Niu Youdao did not warn the three major sects. He would rather take risks and then
Think about the fact that the Song envoy was killed and the Song army pressed on the territory...Old Fan, I don’t dare to think about this matter in detail, it’s very scary!” Gao Jicheng lightly knocked on the table, “It has been planned for a long time, Dingzhou is probably doomed!”
Fan Zhuan was thoughtful, and then worried: "What should I do? Once Nanzhou comes to break up with me, how will it make this uncle feel better?"
Gao Jiancheng sighed quietly: "It doesn't matter whether that evil son lives or lives, but the Gao family is full of children and grandchildren, and the lives of more than a hundred people in the family may be affected by him. From the current situation, there is still a glimmer of hope."
Seeing that his eyes were strange and he seemed to have made some plans, Fan Zhuan said hurriedly: "Master, if you have any plans, it's better to do it sooner rather than later!"
Gao Jiancheng's tone was low: "If the Shang Dynasty doesn't send troops, the imperial court will never admit that Shaoming was sent by the imperial court. This is a glimmer of hope!"
Fan Zhuan was confused, "Where is the hope? Didn't the master himself say that Niu Youdao has someone in his hands, so I'm afraid he won't let it go!"
"So we need to stop Niu Youdao from making a fuss about Shaoming!" Gao Jicheng tapped the table gently, "The imperial court does not admit that it sent Shaoming to attack Maolu Villa. Niu Youdao also pretends that Shaoming does not exist, and the result will be again
how?"
Fan Zhuan suddenly realized and understood, "In this way, the court will not shoot itself in the foot, and will suppress the people in the court from pursuing the whereabouts of the uncle, and will not implicate the master, and the crisis of the Gao family will be solved."
It’s over! But..." He looked embarrassed, "How could Niu Youdao be at our mercy?"
Gao Jiancheng snorted, "Doesn't he want money? Just give it to him! Compared to the life, death and future of more than a hundred members of the Gao family, that little money is nothing. As long as you can keep what you have, the money will naturally come back in the future.
.”
Fan Zhuan was immediately confused, "Master, didn't you say that even if Niu Youdao took the money, everyone would make a fuss? What's more, what Niu Youdao asked for was 100 million gold coins! Where is the wealth of the Gao family?
Go get the money, if you really want to make a big show of it, I'm afraid you won't be able to cover it up."
Gao Jiancheng: "Who said we should give him 100 million? Where can I come up with 100 million to give him? Do you think you can come up with 10 million?"
Fan Zhuan was puzzled, "Ten million can be made up, but if one hundred million becomes ten million, isn't the difference too big? Can Niu Youdao let go?"
Gao Jiancheng asked in a low voice, "How much is the country of Yan worth?"
"..." Fan Zhuan was stunned, confused and hesitant to speak.
Gao Jiancheng stood up, came to his side, and whispered: "Everyone knows the ambitions of the Shang Chaozong, and this plot further proves this. I hold a high position in the court, have been operating in the Yan Kingdom for many years, and my disciples are old
There are officials all over the place. If I am willing to help, how can I compare to their ambitions? How do you think they will make a choice?"
Fan Zhuan understood his intention and what it meant, and took a deep breath.
Gao Jiancheng knew what he was thinking, waved his hand and said: "At this point, our Gao family has no way out. You and I both know who are the people in the court. They are all jackals, tigers and leopards. If I collapse,
, break the wall and push me, break the drum and beat me, but you are not allowed to trample me to death. Even those cats and dogs will dare to do whatever you want. How can you let me watch the Gao family become worse than a pig and a dog in an instant?
?At that time, it will not only be my Gao family that will be unlucky, but all the disciples and former officials who are dependent on me will be in trouble!"
Fan Zhuan said in a trembling voice: "Master, this is..." There were some words that he couldn't say out loud, but he had to be reminded, "Once the matter is exposed, it will be irreversible!"
Gao Jiancheng: "If I don't do anything, I will be doomed. I know Shang Jianxiong very well. Although he has the heart to strengthen the country, he is not a responsible person and cannot tolerate loyal ministers. Therefore, everything in the court is full of idleness."
Those who flatter the state are those who distort the affairs of the state. If the upper beam is not straight, the lower beam will be crooked. This is a wise saying. The state of Yan is now in chaos, which is all caused by the rampant evildoers in the court."
He raised his hand and patted Fan Zhuan on the shoulder, "He will not take any responsibility for my Gao family. I can foresee that my son is obviously working hard for him, but our Gao family will end up with the whole family destroyed and everyone attacked. It's cheap.
How can I be willing to kill those jackals, tigers, and leopards? Since he was the one who was unkind and unjust, he can’t blame me for being unfaithful!"
Fan Zhuan's eyes turned red and he nodded, "I understand, I understand, but the imperial court is still powerful after all!" He reminded him of the consequences of doing so.
Gao Jiancheng: "So I can't lie to others about this matter. You can only go to see Niu Youdao in person, and you must not leak any rumors. I asked you to bring 10 million to not redeem the person, but to represent my sincerity.
I'll stabilize him. As long as you clarify your intentions for me, he will take Shaoming as a hostage, thus saving Shaoming's life. I just want Niu Youdao to give me an explanation and let the court know that Shaoming is dead! This
It is not difficult for him, but it affects the life and death of everyone in my Gao family!"
Fan Zhuan understood, he understood everything. At this point, he still didn't understand. He nodded with tears in his eyes.
Gao Jiancheng touched his arm, "Lao Fan, without further ado, you must rush to Qingshan County to see Niu Youdao as soon as possible. You must hold down Niu Youdao before Niu Youdao makes a fuss about Shaoming. Gao Jiancheng
The misfortunes, fortunes, honors and disgrace of our family all depend on your trip!"
Fan Zhuan: "I understand, but the journey is long and I'm afraid I won't be able to make it in time..."
Gao Jiancheng raised his hand to stop, "You don't have to worry about this. Prince Long is in charge of the affairs of the Shang royal family. There is a large manned bird over there that is matched by the imperial family. The royal family, the scope of my power and responsibility to supervise, the children of the Shang royal family in these years
I don’t know how much I put down for them the bad things they did, Prince Long wouldn’t even deny me this little face.”
Fan Zhuan was a little embarrassed: "I'm old, and I can't bear to fly around in the sky, and I can't control it. This matter is confidential, and it's not appropriate to let the monks escort me."
"Let the monks escort you, and arrange people later..." Gao Jicheng raised a finger and made a gesture like wiping his neck to silence someone.
…
Outside the governor's office in Dingzhou, the sound of horse hooves could be heard galloping to and fro, and one after another the generals received the order and rushed there one after another.
When the personnel were almost there, Xue Xiao hurriedly issued military orders to mobilize troops and generals.
After the generals had taken their orders and left, two groups of monks arrived at the same time and bumped into them at the gate of the Governor's Mansion.
The two groups of monks are the two sects in charge of Dingzhou, namely Tianhua Dongfu and Xianyun Sect.
In any territory controlled by the imperial court, it is basically impossible for one faction to dominate. First, they are worried that it is difficult to control and need checks and balances. Secondly, the high-ranking officials in the court want to win one or two for the sect they hold. Therefore, the two factions coexist.
The situation is at a minimum, and in some state capitals, several sects even coexist.
And those sects are also waiting to slowly grow and become as dominant as Tianyumen and Dachanshan.
"Brother Wan is here too."
The two heads met in front of the gate, and Gai Huan, the head of Tianhua Cave Mansion, said hello first.
Wan Qingyan, the leader of the Xianyun Sect, said in a deep voice: "Can you not come?" She waved her hand to invite her.
The two led people in hand in hand and went straight to the political hall, where they saw Xue Xiao with a dark face.
No longer in a polite mood, as soon as they met, Wan Qingyan asked straight away, "Master Zhou Mu, I heard that the Nanzhou army attacked Dingzhou because your men killed the Shang Chaozong's people, robbed the Shang Chaozong's money, and returned the favor.
Is there such a thing as robbing a woman from the Shang Chaozong?"
Xue Xiao's cheek twitched, and he handed a piece of information to the two of them for viewing, and said in a deep voice: "Do Brother Wan and Brother Gai believe this kind of nonsense? This is the news from the border guard. The robbery has just happened.
When the incident happened, the Nanzhou troops rushed in directly and cooperated with each other in such a tacit understanding. This was clearly a deliberate provocation by the Shang Chaozong!"
After reading the information, Wan Qingyan said with a sullen face: "It doesn't make any sense to say this now. The key to the question is, did your people rob Shang Chaozong's women? Did your people provoke them first?"
Shaking the paper in his hand, he said, "Now they have obtained the stolen goods, and they have irrefutable evidence. Even your own people have admitted it, and you can't rely on them. Can you explain it clearly? They didn't force you, they were just passing by. Yes
Your people pretended to be robbers and took the initiative to rob, but you yourself failed to discipline them, so how can you say it was a trap dug by others?"
Xue Xiaotie's face was livid, "I have reported it to the court. The court knows whether Nanzhou is provocative. It is useless to talk about it now. You two came just in time. I was about to invite the two factions to join me in defending against the enemy!
"
Gai Huan said: "How to fight? Dingzhou has mobilized a lot of troops to defend South Korea and Song Dynasty. Many elite disciples from our two factions have left with the army, leaving Dingzhou empty. It is our two factions that can stop Da Chan.
Can the mountains, or Master Xue's men and horses stop the Shang Chaozong's tiger and wolf army? There is no way to fight this battle!"
Xue Xiao, who was feeling aggrieved, finally couldn't help but burst out, "What do you two say to do? Just sit back and watch without any resistance? Will the court spare me or both of you afterwards? The plan for now is
You have to fight even if you don’t want to fight, you have to fight even if you can’t win!”
Bang! Wan Qingyan kicked the chair aside, venting her anger.
Gai Huan tensed his face and said: "Immediately ask the court to contact the three major factions and ask the three major factions to come forward and stop it!"
Xue Xiao spread his hands and said, "Do you still need me to teach you about Yan State's current military deployment? As soon as the news spreads here, the imperial court will definitely want to find the three major factions. Maybe the Intelligence Department has already reported the situation before me.
Now we can only hold on, even if we pay a huge price, until people from the three major factions come forward to solve the problem. If we let the Shang Dynasty army march in, none of us can bear the responsibility!"
PS: Something delayed me, the next chapter will be later. Waiter, serve the durian!