In fact, Wang Zichao was still grateful to Li Ran after all.
He also knew that if he had not received Li Ran's help, he would not have been able to claim the title of king, and it would have been impossible for him to return to Luoyi alive.
However, now the differences between the two of them have become more and more obvious as the situation changes.
For example, on the matter of becoming king, the two people have completely different views. Also, regarding the matter of Gan Loach coming to vote, the two of them had completely opposite opinions!
Wang Zichao knew in his heart that it might not be appropriate to continue like this, and someone would have to negotiate for him. After all, the conflict between him and Li Ran has not yet reached their respective bottom lines.
However, looking at it further, who can make peace for him at this time?
Most of the people around Wang Zichao were quite wary of Li Ran. Although Li Ran had served in the Zhou Dynasty before, he had never made friends with any prominent family except Prince Jin.
Just because Prince Jin was not favored by King Zhou Ling at that time, naturally no one in Luoyi would take the initiative to make friends with the crown prince like Li Ran.
Therefore, although Li Ran was somewhat famous at the time, he seemed a bit insignificant within Wang Ji.
As for his father and son, although he is still the leader of the Daoji Sect, after all, he is a divine dragon who sees the beginning but never the end. Even Li Ran didn't have much impression of his own life experience, so outsiders naturally had no way of knowing.
Therefore, it can be said that Li Ran has nothing to do with these wealthy families in the Zhou Dynasty.
Unlike Yin Yu, Ji Huan, and Mao De, he was not a feudal lord in Jinei, nor was he a prince. He had known each other for a long time, and most of his interests were in common with each other.
It's not like Yin Buyi and Nangong Hao, who have been officials in the Zhou Dynasty all year round. They know each other well and depend on each other.
Therefore, Wang Zichao was unable to find such a person who could bridge the relationship between him and Li Ran on his behalf.
What's more, when these people learned that Wang Zichao wanted to make Li Ran the Grand Master, and also wanted to make Sun Wu the Grand Sima, although they failed. But seeing his lord trusting an outsider so much, he became even more jealous, let alone acting as a lobbyist.
So, taking advantage of the gap between the two, the courtiers around Wang Zichao immediately behaved like monsters again, and suddenly came to see Wang Zichao to discuss matters.
When the prince saw them all here, he couldn't help but be startled:
"The second and third sons have all come to see me, but what's the important matter?" (The second and third sons: you)
Several people looked at each other, and Nangong Lao spoke first:
"Your Majesty, I do have something important to report! It's just that it may make Your Majesty unhappy. Please forgive me for being disrespectful!"
Wang Zichao knew that these people had been following him for many years. They had never left him when he was still a prince. They were by his side, and they could be said to be his direct confidants.
If they had anything to say, they could say it in front of him.
"You have been alone for many years. Even if you say something offensive, it is fine. Just say it!"
Nangong Ye then said:
"Your Majesty, I have come to see you today, and what I did was only because of one person - Li Ran and Li Ziming!"
"Mr. Ziming has made great contributions. I originally wanted to grant him an official position, but he was indifferent to fame and fortune and refused to agree. Even if he was offered the title of Grand Sima to his subordinate Sun Wu, he refused. Do you have any doubts about this?"
Yin Buxie took a step forward:
"Your Majesty! This person is neither seeking fame nor profit. He is not a descendant of the clan. Your Majesty is so kind to you, but he is rejected by him. If he has no other intentions, wouldn't it be suspicious?"
"No nonsense! Mr. Ziming has a good reputation. I just had a temporary quarrel with him. But after all, this man wants to help my Zhou family and has no other intentions. I also know that he is not the queen of the clan, but even so , You don’t have to arrange it for him like this!”
Mao De saw that Wang Zichao still valued Li Ran more highly, but he disagreed:
"Your Majesty is generous and treats people with the heart of a gentleman. However, you must be careful about others. When Li Ziming fled to Wangji, it is impossible to find out what he committed. However, after all, this person had betrayed the Zhou Dynasty. Room. It is inevitable that he has resentment in his heart. Judging from this, this person seems to be indifferent to fame and fortune, but in fact, he does not know what his intentions are!"
"Besides, he is now very popular among the people, and he has the temporary post of Sima Sun Wu as his subordinate, so he has made great contributions. The less he seeks fame and fortune, the more he seems to be trying to buy people's hearts. It is really hard to say what he wants to do at that time. If you keep this person by His Majesty's side, there is no guarantee that he will not become the second single banner in the future!"
When Wang Zichao heard this, he felt his eyelids twitching. In terms of credit, Li Ran really took the greatest credit. Although it is still too early to say that he has great achievements, but he is not receiving a reward at the moment, which is indeed an abnormality.
When a person is not motivated by fame and wealth, the master will inevitably be suspicious of him and think that he is acting like this because he has a greater purpose.
"Your Majesty, Li Ran's contribution is indeed not small, and it is natural to reward him according to his merits. But now it seems that neither the Grand Master nor the Grand Sima can satisfy him. Is it possible that he still wants to be the Grand Uncle? He has no clan status. , if you have such an idea, it is simply wishful thinking!”
】
Yin Buyi further said.
Everyone in the prince's court was very prejudiced against Li Ran, but for a moment he didn't know what to do:
"Then...according to your wishes, how should we deal with Li Ran?"
"Currently Sun Wu is fighting abroad and has military power. We can put Li Ran under house arrest and prohibit him from contacting the outside world. We will discuss it later after sending someone to surrender Sun Wu's military power!"
Yin Buyi offers advice like this.
Wang Zichao lowered his head and thought for a long time:
"Is it too much for you to treat Mr. Ziming like this?"
"Your Majesty, there is a saying in "Poetry": 'The mother follows the treacherous and is unscrupulous; she uses her style to stop the bandits and abuses, but she is ruthless and does not fear the light.' We are just keeping him under house arrest now and will not hurt him. We will wait until the single-banner thieves are removed. First of all, if the overall situation is stable, I can use my idle position or a generous salary to show your majesty's tender heart."
(Old translation: Don't indulge in treachery, be on guard against unscrupulousness; find ways to stop the robbers from wreaking havoc, for evil is not afraid of virtue.')
"I think this is inappropriate, and I'm afraid that the world will not accept it..."
"Your Majesty, thunder, rain and dew are all gifts from God. In the end, Li Ziming is just your Majesty's minister. No matter what, he deserves it. As the saying goes, this is just a way to test whether he has ulterior motives!"
The prince thought about it, but he was helpless at the moment. He knew that if this matter was not handled properly, the officials would be dissatisfied in the future.
Moreover, Li Ran offended many old clans in the DPRK because of his military exploits. Although these people are coming to surrender one after another, after all, they are soldiers first and courtesy second. What are these people thinking in their hearts? It is impossible for Wang Zichao not to completely understand.
Therefore, if he insists on protecting Li Ran at this moment, he may directly offend these old clans. And when that happens, will his throne be affected by it?
Wang Zichao really couldn't afford to gamble.
Then he thought about it again and thought that although Li Ran was grounded now, it was not to kill him after all. There is nothing wrong with providing compensation after the fact.
Therefore, Wang Zichao ordered that Nangong Hao take people to Li Ran's residence and confine Li Ran so that he was not allowed to move outside, let alone contact the outside world.
And immediately asked Yin Yu to go to the front line and take back Sun Wu's military power.
After Li Ran had a bad time with Wang Zichao, he felt depressed, but he quickly regained his composure. I feel that as long as I can help Zhou Shi, it is nothing to suffer a little grievance.
But he never expected that at this moment, Nangong Luo would directly lead his troops to surround his mansion.
Li Ran was informed about this by Fan Li. He was surprised and a little angry. He immediately wanted to go into the palace to see Wang Zichao, but Nangong Huo stopped him in front of his chest.
"Sir, the situation is currently chaotic, and Wang Ji is not stable. There was a report that assassins were supposed to infiltrate last night. Your Majesty is concerned about your safety, so I have specially ordered you to come and protect me. I hope that you can calm down and rest in the mansion for a while. It’s not appropriate to move around anymore!”
Li Ran couldn't help but snorted coldly.
"Hmph! You don't need to worry about Li's safety! Li wants to meet the king!"
"Your Majesty said that the situation is urgent and nothing else can be tolerated. As long as we can protect your safety, sir. The only thing I can do today is offend you! Your Majesty will explain this matter to you in the future!"
Fan Li said angrily:
"You must be slandering me and instigating it to harm my husband!"
"How dare you? Your Majesty is doting on you, and you are clearly thinking about your safety. Your Majesty is doing all this for your sake. I hope you will not be suspicious!"
Li Ran knew that he was under house arrest, and his heart suddenly felt cold.
——
Chapter 475_Sun Wu releases military power
Li Ran and Nangong Hao failed to negotiate, so they had no choice but to return to the house. Now the area around the mansion was guarded by Wang Ji's guards, and Nangong Hao was guarding outside the gate. The new Sikong Gan Loach also had many more people around Li's house. A thousand soldiers surrounded the official residence.
Li Ran was really treated as a prisoner.
Li Ran and Fan Li returned to the inner room. He knew very well that although Nangong Xi looked nice on the surface, he was actually under house arrest. Moreover, if nothing happens, Sun Wu who is out there may also be dismissed from his military post.
Fan Li was also a smart man and knew that this matter was dangerous, so he frowned:
"Sir, why don't we run away together tonight and stay away from this place! Since the king has become suspicious, even if he has no intention of harming sir's life, there will be others who will do it secretly!"
Li Ran shook his head when he heard this.
"Chang Qing is leading the troops outside. I just hope that he will not hand over the military power for the time being and continue to lead the troops to make achievements. In this way, our lives will be safe!"
"Sir, I'm afraid it's up to Brother Changqing to do this!"
Li Ran also knew that in such a situation, Sun Wu might not be able to withstand the pressure, and although his reputation in the army was great, his status did not have an advantage after all. Compared with Yin Bo Zhaogong, he was quite inconvenient.
In the end, Sun Wu will probably hand over military power.
"Young uncle, please find an opportunity to escape from Wang Ji. If I go with you, I will only drag you down! It will be easier for you to do it alone. After you go out, go to Zheng Yi immediately and meet up with Owl Wings to protect you. Madam’s safety! I will handle it on my own here, and the king will not kill me!”
"Sir, the king acted like this because he obviously listened to the words of a traitor. If someone wants to harm you again, it is not impossible!"
"Even so, you can't keep me safe just by staying here. And if you are outside, there is still a way to save me! And if I run away together, won't I be directly convicted of being a traitor? You'd better go out first! "
Fan Li lowered his head and thought for a moment, and felt that what Li Ran said was reasonable. It would not be helpful for him to stay here. It was better to go out first and then find another way!
"That being the case, sir, take care..."
"Young uncle, don't worry, I have Guan Cong by my side!"
Guan Cong is quite quick-witted. Although the two of them can't guarantee safety here, at least they can still have a discussion if anything happens.
That night, Fan Li put on his night clothes. He had nothing but the money he needed to carry around, so he went into battle lightly. Although he was closely guarded, Fan Li was already familiar with this area and had strong skills. Then he went into battle. Despite all the obstacles and darkness, he escaped from Wang Ji silently.
The next day, Li Ran was relieved to learn that Fan Li had not been arrested. Guan Cong also knew that the current situation was critical, because like Li Ran, he was trapped in the mansion, unable to go out, and didn't know what to do.
However, Guan Congzi will not sit still and wait for death. He tried every means to get in touch with the informant placed in Luoyi.
After all, there is still Sikong Yan who is in charge of Baigong in Luoyi. It was through this person that Guan Cong first let him reveal the news that Li Ran was banned.
As soon as the news came out that Li Ran was under house arrest, there was an uproar within Wang Ji.
For a time, rumors spread everywhere in Luoyi, and most of the people who had been friends with Li Ran began to feel insecure.
Duke Zhao, Ji Huan, has never spoken out about this matter from beginning to end. Although he is now following Wang Zichao and is an old acquaintance with Yin Bu Ni, Mao De and others, his wise and self-protective character still makes him speak very little. Moreover, most of them just echoed them.
However, his son Ji Ying is young and vigorous after all. Although he doesn't say much outside, he still expressed his concerns about this matter when he was alone with his father:
"Father, what does your Majesty mean by treating Li Ziming like this?"
Ji Huan glanced at his son.
"Ying'er, now you still need to be careful with your words and behavior!"
Ji Ying snorted coldly.
"There are only two of us here, father and son, so why should we be afraid? I think that Li Ziming and Sun Changqing have made outstanding contributions, and your Majesty allowed him to ascend to this great position. These two people can be said to have made great contributions, but Your Majesty really shouldn't be like this!"
"As a father, I also feel that something is wrong, but Li Ran has done too much, offended too many people, and is suspected of shaking the master due to his great achievements. Putting him under house arrest on the grounds of protecting his safety, and with a generous salary in the future, it is considered a proper handling."
Ji Ying let out a long sigh.
"The child doesn't care whether Li Ran is dead or alive. I'm just worried that His Majesty is so suspicious. If we encounter villains again and set fire to our house, it will be terrible!"
Ji Huan's face was straight:
"Ying'er, we have inherited the title from generation to generation for hundreds of years. The ancestors of our clan have contributed more to the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, but they can't be moved down as others say. As long as we are cautious, this kind of worry will disappear. It’s really unnecessary.”
Ji Ying shook her head and disagreed:
"Father, your Majesty has become king now, but there is another emperor outside of him! In the future, if the situation is reversed, what should we do?"
Ji Huan took a deep breath:
"Hey... there are no eggs left after the nest is overturned? If this day really comes... we can only say that it is God's will, and it is definitely beyond human power..."
At this time, Ji Ying was about to blurt out a sentence, but she still held back after all.
He wanted to say that it would be better to contact Shan Qi secretly when the time came, so as to leave a way out for his family. Since Wang Zichao was able to put Li Ran under house arrest today, could it be that they were still wrong in leaving a way out for themselves? However, he knew that his father would definitely not be able to accept such words, so he said no more.
…
On the other side, Yin Yu came to the front line and met Sun Wu.
"Lord Sima has been working hard, fighting in the north and south, and working hard. Your Majesty feels sorry for Sima, and hopes that Lord Sima can return to Luoyi to rest for a while!"
Sun Wu was shocked when he heard this. Now he was invincible and captured several cities one after another. He even made some preparations to capture Liu Yi directly, or even capture Shan Qi and Liu Di alive.
He didn't know what happened in Luoyi, nor did he know that Li Ran was under house arrest, so he couldn't help but feel doubts in his heart.
Just listen to Yin Yu say again:
"Lord Sima, this is the king's intention, and it is also Mr. Ziming's intention. Didn't Mr. Ziming exchange letters with Lord Sima?"
Sun Wu could only say:
"This... I really don't know, but since it is the king's will, I will accept it willingly!"
Sun Wu immediately handed over the tiger charm and Wang Zichao's sword, and Yin Yu took them one by one.
"General Sun, the king and Mr. Ziming miss the general very much. Please set off today!"
Although Sun Wu had doubts, he had to hand over military power, otherwise wouldn't he be suspected of committing rebellion?
Little did he know that Li Ran was actually under house arrest at this moment. The transmission of war information was not fast. Although he and Li Ran exchanged letters, there was no information for several days, so he didn't think much about it.
No matter how smart Sun Wu was, he couldn't guess how sinister the human heart could be.
After he handed over his military power, he immediately rushed back to Luoyi.
However, as soon as he entered Luoyi, he was assigned to a residence and was placed under house arrest. Only then did Sun Wu realize that the situation was not good, but it was too late...
