"You two, come here!"
In an open space to the north of Wuzi Camp of the Xuanjia Army, more than ten people were tied to cross wooden posts with ropes. Two sergeants held long guns and stood upright in the middle to guard the prisoners. At this time, a sergeant came towards this side. , and greeted those two people.
Seeing the extraordinary momentum of the soldier, the two men couldn't help but look at each other, then stepped forward, clasped their fists and said, "What do you think, brother?"
The sergeant said calmly: "I am General Qiu's personal guard. A new batch of ordnance has arrived in the army today and has been sent to Camp Y. General Qiu has asked you two to go and help carry it!"
The two guards looked hesitant, and one of them, the taller one, said, "But Li Shenjun ordered me and I to guard the prisoners here and not leave! Should this brother go find someone else?"
The sergeant frowned and reprimanded: "How presumptuous! Is General Qiu or Li Shenjun the leader in the Xuanjia Army? The soldiers of each battalion are training at the moment. Who else can we look for if I don't look for you? Besides, they How can a person run away with his hands and feet tied up? And it won't take long to move the ordnance. After you leave, I will help you guard the prisoners. If anything goes wrong, just look for me, my name is Tian Cheng!"
Seeing that what this man said was serious, and that Qiu Xinggong's power in the Xuanjia Army should not be underestimated, the two guards hesitated for a moment, then cupped their hands and said, "Okay! The two of us brothers will go to carry the ordnance right away. We have Brother Laotian!"
Tian Cheng waved his hand and said, "Go with peace of mind!"
The two then left.
At this moment, a man suddenly walked out from the side of a tent not far away. Tian Cheng quickly greeted him and saluted: "General!"
The person coming is none other than Qiu Xinggong!
"Well! Please step back first! I will ask Zhang Kangnian a few words!"
Qiu Xinggong nodded lightly and gave instructions softly.
"Here!"
Tian Cheng turned around and left to "look out" for Qiu Xinggong!
Zhang Kangnian and others have been tied here since they were arrested last night. From last night to now, they have not had a sip of water or a grain of rice. In addition, the ropes have prevented their blood from flowing smoothly in the body. Circulation, at this moment, they have almost fallen into a drowsy state!
It was only early in the morning, and the sun was not very strong. When the sun was almost over their heads at noon, they were afraid that they would faint due to the heat and lack of water!
In fact, this is almost a common practice in the military. Generally, people who are about to be executed will go through such a process before execution. This is not to abuse the prisoner, but to help the prisoner!
Yes, you heard it right! This is helping the prisoner!
Death row prisoners in Dali Temple or in the cells of the Ministry of Punishment are entertained with good wine and good food before execution. Good food is not important, but good wine is important. After drinking, the prisoner will be beheaded under the paralysis of alcohol. , the prisoner's pain will be alleviated a lot, and the prisoner will naturally have less resentment after death (of course, these are feudal superstitions, but who made the ancients believe this stuff? In ancient times, prisoners on death row were usually executed at three quarters of noon) , also because this time at 3:00 noon is the time when the yang energy is the strongest in the day)!
Death row prisoners could be given alcohol in government cells, but in the Tang Dynasty, especially in the early Tang Dynasty, military management was extremely strict. Drinking was prohibited in the army, and offenders would be killed without mercy. Therefore, for sergeants in the army who were sentenced to death, there would definitely be no alcohol. They drank it, so what should they do? It's basically like what Zhang Kangnian is doing now. They are left to dry in the sun, without food or water. They are made to enter a drowsy state before beheading. When the time comes to behead, they won't be so painful. !
"Keep your head up!"
At this time, Qiu Xinggong walked up to Zhang Kangnian and shouted in a low voice.
Due to the distance between the prisoners and the fact that they had not slept all night and had no water, Zhang Kangnian, Bai Shanhai and others were half asleep and half awake at this moment. Qiu Xinggong deliberately lowered his voice. He didn't want his conversation with Zhang Kangnian to be heard by other prisoners!
Zhang Kangnian, who was in a daze, was shocked when he heard Qiu Xinggong's voice. He quickly raised his head, opened his eyes, looked at Qiu Xinggong and said: "General, save me! General, save me! I don't want to die... Uh-huh." !”
But this guy's voice was a bit loud, so Qiu Xinggong quickly covered his mouth.
"Keep your voice down!"
Qiu Xinggong glanced around and saw that the other prisoners were still lowering their heads and motionless. He then removed his hand from Zhang Kangnian's mouth and asked in a low voice: "I will ask you, has Li Zexuan done anything to you?" Torture to extract confessions?"
Zhang Kangnian lowered his voice and replied: "Back to the general, Li Canjun did not torture us and extract confessions. We have been tied up here since we were arrested last night. Neither Li Canjun nor the general have been here!"
Hearing this, Qiu Xinggong felt a little relieved, and he asked again: "What happened last night? Didn't you say that your plan was foolproof? How could you be caught by Li Zexuan and General Duan?"
"This subordinate doesn't know! Last night, Ding Dali and others were about to be persuaded by their subordinates, but Li Canjun and the general suddenly walked out of the firewood pile outside the kitchen. They seemed to have been hiding before their subordinates arrived. In the pyre, so what my subordinates said to Ding Dali and the others naturally fell into the ears of the general!"
Speaking of this, Zhang Kangnian actually hasn't figured it out until now. There is inevitably some doubt in his tone.
"Idiot! In this case, Li Zexuan and General Duan probably knew your action plan in advance, so they ambush you in the kitchen in advance!"
After hearing what Zhang Kangnian said, Qiu Xinggong couldn't help but curse. Finally, he quickly asked: "Then what words did you say that you shouldn't have said in the conversation with Ding Dali last night?"
These words that shouldn’t be said naturally refer to exposing his identity!
Zhang Kangnian quickly shook his head and said: "General, don't worry, I will never reveal any information about you, because I know that the general will definitely save me!"
After hearing this, Qiu Xinggong was completely relieved. He stood up straight, with his hands behind his back, and said calmly: "Kang Nian, the general has made up his mind, and has already entered the palace to report the crimes you have committed to the emperor. , I’m afraid I can’t save you this time! But don’t worry, I will take good care of your wife, children, and children at home, so that they will have no worries about food and clothing throughout their lives!”
Although he had been prepared in his heart, Zhang Kangnian couldn't help but feel despair when he heard what Qiu Xinggong said. After a while, he collected his emotions and said to Qiu Xinggong: "Thank you, General! My whole family, please leave it to the General." You!"
"Well! Go with peace of mind!"
Qiu Xinggong patted Zhang Kangnian's shoulder, then turned around and walked away.
…………………………………………
When Duan Zhixuan arrived at the palace, he was told by the eunuch that Li Er was still attending the morning court, so he was taken into the side hall to wait.
What happened in the Xuanjia Army camp last night was, after all, a "family matter" belonging to the Xuanjia Army. As the saying goes, family scandals should not be made public. Duan Zhixuan did not want to talk about what happened last night in front of all the civil and military officials!
After waiting for about two quarters of an hour, a chamberlain came in and said to Duan Zhixuan: "General Duan, the morning session has ended. His Majesty summons you to see you at the Ganlu Hall!"
"Okay! Thank you, father-in-law!"
Duan Zhixuan said politely.
"General Duan, you're welcome, please come with us!"
The chamberlain bowed and made a gesture of invitation, then turned around and led the way. After a while, Duan Zhixuan arrived at Ganlu Hall.
"Old minister, see your Majesty!"
Duan Zhixuan bowed to Li Er and said.
"No gift!"
Li Er waved his hand, and then took a sip of tea. After all, he had just left the morning court and didn't even have time to take a sip of water. After the tea was in his stomach, Li Er asked curiously: "Why did Duan Aiqing want to see me in such a hurry today?" Why?"
Seeing that Zhao Song was the only one in the palace besides Li Er, Duan Zhixuan stopped hiding and said bluntly: "Reporting to your Majesty, in the Xuanjia Army last night, Zhang Kangnian, the captain of the Bing Battalion, led his men to incite the soldiers to mutiny. Fortunately, the old minister If you discover it in time, it won't cause a big disaster!"
"What? Someone incited the soldiers to mutiny?"
Hearing this, Old Li immediately lost his composure. You must know that the Xuanjia Army was his "ace" army. Back then, the Xuanjia Army followed him in the north and south and made great contributions. It can be said that when Li Yuan was able to sweep the world, he The Xuanjia Army under Li Ershou definitely played a vital role! That's why a few months ago, Li Er spent huge sums of money (although most of the money came from Li Zexuan) to expand the Xuanjia Army. It was precisely because he had great expectations for the Xuanjia Army. Now that Duan Zhixuan heard from Duan Zhixuan that someone in the Xuanjia Army actually wanted to stage a mutiny, how could he endure this?
"Where is this Kangnian now? Does he have other accomplices?"
Li Er's face was as dark as the bottom of a pot. If Zhang Kangnian succeeds in inciting the soldiers to mutiny, the Xuanjia Army will become a joke to the world, and all his previous efforts to expand the Xuanjia Army will be in vain, because the expansion of the Xuanjia Army will be in vain. The purpose of the Xuanjia Army is to conquer the Turks. Once there is a mutiny and civil strife in the Xuanjia Army, it will greatly affect the training progress. How will a newly expanded and under-trained Xuanjia Army serve as the imperial court in two months? The "vanguard" in the war against the Turks?
Therefore, at this moment, Li Er really wanted to eat alive the culprit who incited the soldiers to mutiny!
"Back to Your Majesty, last night Zhang Kangnian plotted a mutiny. The old minister and Li Shenjun captured him. Now Zhang Kangnian and a total of eleven of his party members have been captured by the old minister, and the old minister has ordered that they be captured in Xuanjia at three o'clock today. Kill him at the military headquarters gate!"
Duan Zhixuan bowed.
"Okay! It's time to kill! Duan Aiqing did a good job!"
Hearing this, Li Er stood up and said loudly: "When the national war is underway, these people are so ignorant and want to cause chaos within the Xuanjia Army. They should be damned! But why did Zhang Kangnian incite the soldiers to mutiny for no reason? He Is there someone else behind it? Duan Aiqing, have you found out the reason?"
As he said that, Li Er suddenly realized something was wrong and asked.
There is no love without reason in this world, and there is no hatred without reason. Zhang Kangnian suddenly jumped out, and there must be a reason for everything. This is the intuition of an emperor, and it is also the intuition of a person who rose to power from a palace coup!
"Back to Your Majesty, Zhang Kangnian insisted that this was all planned by him alone, and there was no one else instigating it! As for why he incited the soldiers to mutiny, the veteran believed that he should be targeting Li Canjun, or Li Canjun's new training code. It’s coming!”
Duan Zhixuan thought for a while and replied.
"Oh? Does this matter have anything to do with Li Zexuan?"
Hearing this, Li Er was immediately confused. After all, he had not received any relevant information about this matter before, so he said to Duan Zhixuan: "Duan Aiqing, please tell me the cause and effect of this matter in detail!"
"Old minister, I obey the order!"
Duan Zhixuan hesitated for a moment and then began to speak: "Last night, when I was about to go to bed, I had already fallen asleep, but Li Canjun suddenly asked to see me outside my tent, saying that he had something very urgent..."
In fact, when Duan Zhixuan entered the palace this time, he just wanted to briefly tell Li Er what happened to the Xuanjia Army last night and asked Li Er to let Li Zexuan officially concurrently serve as the captain of the B-zi battalion. Duan Zhixuan had no intention of detailing the rest of the details with Li Er. Said, because based on the conversation between Zhang Kangnian and Ding Dali and others last night, Li Erhui could easily think that this matter was related to Qiu Xinggong. It was not that he wanted to protect Qiu Xinggong with death, but that the Xuanjia Army now had no captain. , if something happens to Qiu Xinggong again, the Xuanjia Army will be completely in chaos!
After all, Qiu Xinggong has been in the Xuanjia Army for many years, and there are many generals who support him in the Xuanjia Army. It is very inappropriate to move Qiu Xinggong at this time!
But now that Li Er clearly told him to tell him the details of last night, he had to tell everything about last night!
In the entire Tang Dynasty, Duan Zhixuan was definitely one of the people who was absolutely loyal to Li Er, otherwise Li Er would not have let him take charge of the Xuanjia Army for so many years! Therefore, Duan Zhixuan absolutely obeyed Li Er's orders and would not hide anything!
"...Zhang Kangnian was executed, and Bingzi Camp must be left without a leader, so the veteran made his own decision and asked Li Canjun to temporarily take over the post of captain of Bingzi Camp. When Your Majesty has a more suitable candidate, Li Canjun will retire from the position of captain. !”
It took more than a quarter of an hour for Duan Zhixuan to tell everything exactly what he saw and heard last night, as well as what he heard from Li Zexuan.
After hearing this, Li Er frowned and was speechless, because from Duan Zhixuan's narrative, there was another person hidden in it, and that was Qiu Xinggong! Because when Zhang Kangnian persuaded Ding Dali to rebel, he repeatedly mentioned that Qiu Xinggong would intercede for them if the incident happened! From this point of view, this matter must have something to do with Qiu Xinggong!
After a while, Li Er said: "Duan Aiqing, you have done a good job in this matter! Li Shenjun has both political integrity and talent. He has only been in the Xuanjia Army for a few days, but he has organized the training and management of the officers in the battalion, and let him serve as the commander of the C-shaped battalion. It is very appropriate for him to be a school captain. Later I will have someone draw up a decree to formally appoint him as the school captain of Bingzi Camp!"
Duan Zhixuan cupped his hands and said, "Old minister, I would like to thank Your Majesty for Li Shenjun!"
"Um!"
Li Er nodded, and after pondering for a moment, his eyes flashed, and he said calmly: "After you return to the camp, pass on my decree. Zhang Kangnian and others conspired to mutiny. The crime cannot be punished. However, General Qiu Xinggong of the Xuanjia Army did not control his subordinates strictly. , if he is guilty of negligence, let him receive thirty sticks as a punishment!"
Even though there is no evidence that Qiu Xinggong was involved, so what? Who does Li Er want to punish? Does he need evidence? Thirty military sticks should be his warning to Qiu Xinggong!
"This... I obey the order!"
Duan Zhixuan was stunned when he heard this, and after he came to his senses, he quickly cupped his hands.
"Okay, back off!"
Li Er waved his hand and said.
"Old minister, please retire!"
……………………………………………………
