In the flower hall of the British government palace, Zhang Min was silent for a long time.
Jiao Jing was not in a hurry and just waited quietly. He believed that although Zhang Shi could be impulsive sometimes, he was not ignorant of current affairs.
There are some truths, but he doesn't need to explain them too thoroughly.
Sure enough, after a while, Zhang Shi seemed to have put down some baggage, his expression finally returned to normal, and he asked.
"There's no need to talk about other things. Consort Jiao is coming over today. What do you want to say?"
Seeing that Zhang Xi finally calmed down, Jiao Jing also returned to normal and said.
"To be honest, Second Master, I actually came here this time just for the purpose of planning for the future."
With that said, Jiao Jing selectively told Zhang Min about his conversation with Queen Mother Sun in the palace and a series of things that happened in Wuying Palace.
"This time, although the mission could not be saved, in order to convict the Third Master and others, the emperor had to send Zhu Jian to Oara for peace talks."
"The Wuying Palace has made a rough judgment on this negotiation. As long as Zhu Jian is strong enough, it will only be a matter of time before the Supreme Emperor returns to the south."
It should be said that this is exciting news.
After all, since the battle at Zijingguan, they have been thinking of ways to welcome the Supreme Emperor back to the capital.
Now, hope is right in front of us, and it is certainly worth rejoicing.
However, Zhang Min couldn't be happy when he thought of the price he had to pay for this.
Zhu Yi, who seemed to be aware of Zhang Shi's emotions, said aside.
"To put it bluntly, the Third Master and others have meritorious service in this matter. If it weren't for the envoy's trick to trap Xi Ning to death and this treacherous eunuch's obstruction, Zhu Jian's negotiations would not have gone so smoothly."
"In this case of the mission, the Third Master and others were actually sentenced to death for protecting the Supreme Emperor. I think the Supreme Emperor will be grateful for this achievement after he returns south."
Zhang Min's face looked a little better now, he glanced at Jiao Jing, and then sighed.
"This is what a minister should do. I only hope that the Supreme Emperor will return to the capital as soon as possible, so that I can live up to my third brother's hard work."
Logically speaking, Zhang Mian has already spoken softly. At this time, Jiao Jing's attitude should also be softened. The two sides should be harmonious, even on the surface, to bridge the vague rift that has always existed.
But Jiao Jing didn't. He seemed to have not heard the conversation between Zhu Yi and Zhang Min, and continued to talk to himself.
"Second Master should be well aware of the current situation in the court. The return of the Supreme Emperor is imminent, so we should make preparations in advance."
Zhang Xi was a little unhappy, but he still suppressed his emotions and asked, "What do you think, my consort? I am all ears."
"To be honest with the Second Master, the Holy Mother also gave instructions when entering the palace this time. I have two things to do when I come here, and I need the Second Master's help."
Jiao Jing heard Zhang Shi's emotions, but his expression remained unchanged as he continued.
"One is about the Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army. After the third master was imprisoned, the British government's many personnel in the military mansion were leaderless for a while. Fortunately, there is still a Marquis who is in charge of the Governor's Mansion of the Chinese Army."
"In recent days, Fan Guang, Yang Hong and others have started to attack many generals in the military government. Therefore, I and the Holy Mother hope that the second master can help and support Renhou to retain the manpower of the military government."
Zhang Xi's face darkened.
But Jiao Jing seemed unaware and continued speaking unhurriedly.
"The other one is a small matter. Since the Emperor has planned the situation this time and deliberately targeted the Third Master, it means that he has become wary of the British government. If I continue to discuss matters in the British government in the future, there may be something wrong."
"So, what the Holy Mother means is that if there is any business discussion in the future, it is best to go to my house. Although it is not as luxurious as the British palace, it is still the residence of the eldest princess of Qingdu. People from Dongchang and Jinyiwei dare not go there. There’s a lot of chutzpah around.”
After the words fell, the flower hall fell silent, and the atmosphere seemed a bit depressing.
Zhang Xi's hand holding the tea cup was trembling.
Of the two things Jiao Jing mentioned, the former asked him to give up control of the Fifth Army Commander's Mansion, while the latter was a naked grab for power.
All he had to do was say directly that after Zhang Fu's death, the British government was no longer worthy of taking the dominant position. The future leadership would have to be controlled by him, who represented the Holy Mother in the palace!
After a while, there was a burst of low laughter in the flower hall.
Zhang Min was so angry that he laughed, looked at Jiao Jing, and said coldly.
"Jiao Consort speaks with the wishes of the Holy Mother. Could it be said that this is how the Holy Mother treats meritorious ministers?"
As he said this, Zhang Xi looked distressed and said.
"At the beginning, when the Supreme Emperor was on his northern expedition, my elder brother stood up to support the Supreme Emperor as soon as he was seventy years old. Later, the civil war was defeated and my brother died in the battle. The third brother immediately tried to find a way to get Marquis Ningyang to return to the capital and stick to the country."
"Later the emperor ascended the throne and the victory at Zijingguan was achieved. In order to welcome the Supreme Emperor back to the capital as soon as possible, the third brother secretly worked to gather together the loyal ministers who were loyal to the Supreme Emperor. He worked hard and even went to Wala to negotiate in person."
"When we were in the north, the third brother could clearly refuse the Emperor's will and return to the capital safely. However, in order to eradicate Xi Ning and allow the Emperor to return to the capital as soon as possible, he took a strange risk, but was arrested by the Jinyi Guards and will be executed soon. "
"As a result, the third brother is still in prison and Prince Consort Jiao claims the Holy Mother's wishes and makes me fully support Ren Li in controlling the military government. Don't you think it's a bit too much, Prince Consort?"
Zhang Xian became more and more excited as he spoke. By the end of his words, he almost jumped out of his chair.
However, Jiao Jing was always very calm about his words.
Finally, Zhang Xi said coldly: "If the consort insists on doing this, then I have no choice but to go to the palace in person and ask the Holy Mother these words!"
After finishing speaking, the atmosphere in the flower hall became more and more depressing.
Zhu Yi sat aside and tried to persuade him, but looking at the expressions on both sides, he wisely kept silent in the end.
Jiao Jing's face gradually became colder, but he was not as excited as Zhang Shi and just said calmly.
"Second Master, don't be anxious. In fact, you have something to ask the Holy Mother, and the Holy Mother also has something to ask you. A few days ago, when I entered the palace, the Holy Mother asked me to ask the Second Master a question..."
As he spoke, Jiao Jing leaned forward, looked directly into Zhang Xi's eyes, and said.
"The Holy Mother asked, in the heart of the second master, which one is more important, the emperor or the third master?"
Zhang Xi's expression suddenly froze, and his aura gradually weakened.
He didn't answer. Instead, he frowned and asked, "What does Prince Consort Jiao mean?"
Jiao Jing snorted softly, sat up straight and said.
"What do you mean? Don't you understand, Master? In that case, I will ask more clearly."
"Why did the Second Master bother with the nobles of the seventeen families in the first place?"
"It was clearly agreed that we were only going to announce the facts of the case, so why did it end up being Tingju?"
"Yuan Bin is in court and he hasn't said anything yet. Why is the third master so busy saying that it's the Emperor's will?"
"Is all this a coincidence, or is it intentional?"
As Jiao Jing asked each question, Zhang Xi's face became more and more guilty.
Of course there are answers to these questions.
Moreover, Zhang Min knew very well what the answer was. From the beginning, they were ready to use the Emperor's will to protect themselves if they could not blame Xu Bin for everything.
But who would have thought that in the end, he would be defeated and an army would be defeated.
Jiao Jing looked at Zhang Shi's expression, smiled slightly, and said lightly.
"You don't have to answer these questions, but if you want to go to the palace to see the Holy Mother, you'd better think about how to answer these questions first!"
