Gao Jizhi's vision turned black and he was about to fall down. Fortunately, Tongpao Chen had quick eyesight and quick hands, and hurriedly stepped forward to support him. Several clerks also came to help him, calming his breath, and he regained consciousness after a while.
Gao Jizhi opened his eyes in confusion, looked at everyone, then touched his forehead, and then sighed heavily: "My head is a little hot, I'm afraid it's because of the wind and cold. I felt dizzy just now, and again I can't stand up to this severe wind any longer. I'll go alone, Minister Chen, and I have to rest for a few days. I'm waiting for your good news."
"Master Gao is willing to entrust me with such a big thing. I am so kind as a mountain and I can't repay you for it!" Tongpao Chen bowed twice with tears in his eyes, stood up and said "Take care!" twice, and then walked out of the door. . Gao Jizhi looked at his leaving back and just let out a few sad, bitter smiles without saying anything else.
Chen Tongpao held the letter in his arms, met Lan Yuan, the attendant, and explained the whole story, then followed him into the side hall to meet the prince.
The prince was very happy after reading the letter. He clapped his knees and said, "Since Wan Heshun has given his heart to his father, Liu Thief will not dare to make trouble again. We can finally sit back and relax!"
Chen Tongpao said: "We, the loyal people, have been looking forward to the Liu Party's destruction day and night. Now it's time to eliminate them in one fell swoop. I ask the prince to make a plan!"
The prince hesitated slightly and his eyes darted to both sides. Lan Yuan saw this in his heart and hurriedly admonished: "Your Highness, Wan Heshun is not a kind person. The reason why he expresses this loyalty to you is just to get rid of him without any effort." Liu Dang. If His Highness is lucky enough to survive, he will be greatly disappointed. Without this banner, victory or defeat is not certain!"
The prince began to loosen his mind after being persuaded by these two people, so he suppressed his timidity and asked slowly: "But stability should be the first priority in everything. You should know how Rong Qing died before."
"Today is no better than in the past," Lan Yuan was more interested than Chen Tongpao, and his voice was sonorous and powerful, "They have become meat on the chopping board! The only issue that needs to be solved urgently is the issue of military power. According to my analysis, The Liu Party still controls the military power of some provinces, as well as the troops stationed around the capital, and what is left to us are only two ministers, Cun Zhao and Tai Su, and a wavering Shi Xiu Shen."
Tongpao Chen nodded with satisfaction, and then continued: "Shi Xiushen's hesitation is justified. He has Lu Jishan around him to spread power, and he will not act easily. But he cannot be classified as an enemy because of this. , this person is of great use, and we should find a way to win him over; and the troops outside the palace cannot be ignored. They have followed Liu Zhennian for many years and are loyal to the gang. In case of rebellion, they will also It’s not something we can bear. To neutralize the threat of this group of people, we must focus on the court.”
"Do you still need to watch the court?" Lan Yuan flicked his sleeves disdainfully, "Most of the civil servants have turned to us. Su Zongshan also surrendered. No one obeys the government orders of the traitor party!"
Chen Tongpao seemed to know everything clearly, and smiled meaningfully: "Lan Shidu is too confident. The Yushitai is the mouthpiece of the country, and it is still controlled by Guifu today. Not only is his speech blocked, but all officials Things are done under his nose, and it is difficult to act. In a few months, it will be the election period for provincial ministers, and we must fight for this position. When Gui Fu, the temporary manager, leaves, the Zhongshu Province will be completely controlled by us. With this power in hand, the replacement of Yushitai is a matter of official documents. Only after these things are completed can we turn to deal with the army and cut them off or withdraw them. Liu Zhennian will really sit back and wait for death. "
After hearing this, Lan Yuan was secretly disgusted that his steps were too long-winded, but after all, the other party was Tongpao Chen who was experienced in the world, so he reluctantly believed these words: "You are right, but we can't wait for a few months. . During this period, there is always something to do.”
"Don't worry, there are many things to do, and they need to be divided into two parts: on the one hand, we should send people to see the two royal relatives with letters to make early preparations; on the other hand, we should ask Su Zongshan to come forward and call on everyone to discuss the candidates for the provincial ministers. To prevent disagreements and fights with each other.”
Lan Yuan thought so, and then turned around and knelt down to admonish the prince. The prince had no idea, so he waved his hand and said, "I won't care. It's all up to you."
People from the East Palace took advantage of the fact that it was still early and hurriedly brought the book into the Forbidden Army camp. They handed it over to Taisu and Cunzhao respectively, and told them, "The prince has conspired with everyone. Please prepare your armament quickly, keep an eye on your ears and eyes, and don't be negligent." ". Although Taisu kept these words in mind, he knew that he was too old and too dim to deal with it, so he took advantage of the excuse of changing shifts and set off to talk to Cunzhao. Cun Zhao did not intend to obey them one by one, he had another opinion: "Our soldiers have been incited by Niu Yuan once, which caused a storm in the city. It shows that they are not very loyal, and they are all chaotic and evil people. If you secretly repair your armor, , being reported by one or two soldiers, wouldn't it ruin an eternal event? I don't think you can hide in the dark, you need to be in the open."
"How can it be in the open?" Tai Su heard the wind blowing past the paper window, and suddenly broke out in a cold sweat and looked both ways.
"I can use the power of the chamberlain. They are in the same prison as me. If I can use one or two..." As he said, he suddenly lowered his voice, said a few words in Tai Su's ear, and scratched the table. A few words immediately made the latter let out a long sigh of relief.
After Gao Jizhi suffered from the cold, he had to go back to his mansion to rest. He ate a bowl of medicinal soup and fell asleep that night. At dawn the next day, his condition still did not improve. He heard about the situation of the officials from his confidants and learned that the prince had ordered Su Zongshan to select provincial ministers. This matter actually hit his heart, he spat out a mouthful of blood, looked up to the sky and cursed: "Tongpao Chen, you bastard! You know that I have great ambitions, but you took advantage of my illness to encourage them to clarify this matter! Well, they are all going to compete for this position, but I, a dying person, won’t have a share!”
After saying that, he held the bed board with one hand and swept the head of the bed with the other hand, throwing the vase and other objects to the ground and smashing them to pieces. The family members were used to seeing him calm and had never seen him act so out of character. They all thought he was talking nonsense and hurriedly took the medicine to feed him.
Gao Jizhi was so crazy that he stood up without taking any medicine or talking, knocking over tables and chairs everywhere. He kept having fits and was pushed back to the bed by his slaves. But after all this suffering, his body deteriorated and he could never recover. He was still talking about court matters and fame and fortune. Unfortunately, no one in the family understood these words. He always looked like a humble gentleman, either studying or chanting Buddha's name and doing good deeds.
After surviving like this for two or three days, he fell ill while talking nonsense and died at home.
