The Penal Department Prison.
"Isn't this Mr. Yi? I heard that something happened in Mr. Yi's house. I don't know what happened..." The Prison Director of the Ministry of Punishment recognized Yi Xiaodao. At present, the celebrity around His Majesty has been promoted from a white body to a fifth-grade official. Who knows? ?
"Ah, hello, sir, I have an old friend who is in this prison. I would like to meet him. I wonder if it would be convenient for you, sir."
Yi Xiaodao didn't bother to exchange pleasantries, and more importantly, he didn't know the other person at all, so he simply addressed him as "Sir" and it was always good to get straight to the point.
"Master Yi has something to do, so it is of course convenient. I just don't know who Master Yi saw? I sent someone to point it out for your convenience." The Prison Secretary of the Ministry of Punishment is kind-hearted. Last time, His Majesty the Emperor was halfway through the prison because of the bad smell. The smell rushed out, but he still remembered it.
Seeing that the other person was so talkative, Yi Xiaodao quickly told him his name: "This person's name is Hu Lishan. He has an evil martial art and is good at driving away rats. Do you have any impressions?"
Unexpectedly, as soon as Yi Xiaodao reported his name, the Prison Superintendent of the Ministry of Punishment suddenly realized: "Ah, Hu Lishan, I know this person. But he was taken away by His Majesty some time ago and has never been released."
"Taken it away? Your Majesty took it away?" Yi Xiaodao was quite surprised. He nodded quickly, thanked the Prison Director of the Ministry of Punishment, and rushed to the palace.
…
"Your Majesty, Yi Xiaodao is asking for an audience."
"Oh? He's awake? Can he still come to the palace? His body is really strong." Zhao Yizhi was thinking about Donglu and did not let his consciousness go out. He was very interested when he heard that Yi Xiaodao was coming.
"Let him come in." Zhao Yizhi responded casually.
Yi Xiaodao entered the palace. This was his first time entering the palace. He was sent to Jiangnan by Zhao Yizhi before, but was sent away in his own small courtyard. Later, he was granted the title of Privy Councilor and an edict was sent to the palace, but he was not able to enter the palace at all. Now that he has entered the palace in a grand manner, everyone who comes and goes from the palace calls him Master Yi respectfully, which makes Yi Xiaodao very useful.
Yi Xiaodao saw a young eunuch who was alone and was on his way with his head lowered. He walked over and stopped him and said, "Hey, brother... No, eldest sister... um, father-in-law, may I ask..."
The little eunuch was stopped by Yi Xiaodao and looked up at him blankly.
"Forget it, I guess you don't know either. Where is His Majesty?" Yi Xiaodao wanted to ask if he had heard of Hu Lishan, but when he saw the cowardly look of the little eunuch, he suppressed the question and asked about Zhao Yi Where is the attachment.
The little eunuch took two steps back: "Who are you? What do you ask His Majesty for?"
Yi Xiaodao glared at him: "Of course I have something important to do when I come to the palace to see the emperor. Why don't you tell me? If it delays the matter, how many heads do you have to throw away? Then I will ask Your Majesty to castrate you again!"
The little eunuch was so frightened that he sat down on the ground and quickly pointed to the imperial study room and said: "Over there...the imperial study room is..."
Yi Xiaodao nodded with satisfaction: "You know the truth."
Zhao Yizhi was sitting in the royal study, laughing so much that when Yi Xiaodao came, he was laughing so hard that he couldn't stand up and coughed on the dragon chair.
In the palace, Chen Congwei, Wang Zhenliang and others all recognized Yi Xiaodao and did not stop him. Yi Xiaodao entered the imperial study directly. Seeing that Zhao Yizhi was coughing and out of breath, he quickly stepped forward and knelt down and said: "Your Majesty, please join me. I hope your majesty will take care of the dragon body."
Zhao Yizhi calmed down and then looked at Yi Xiaodao, still unable to help but smile and said: "Get up, what do you think you are doing to scare a little eunuch?"
Yi Xiaodao didn't expect that what he had just done would be known to Zhao Yizhi so quickly. He scratched his head and got up: "I didn't scare him either. It is indeed very important..."
"Then you have to castrate him again. Come on, come on, go to the cleansing room and learn for a few months, then go and castrate him again and show me." Zhao Yizhi said jokingly.
Yi Xiaodao also knew that Zhao Yizhi was joking, so he could only laugh along.
"Do you want to ask about the old man?" Zhao Yizhi finished teasing, took a sip of tea, and directly revealed Yi Xiaodao's purpose.
Yi Xiaodao admitted honestly: "Yes...and no."
"Huh?" Zhao Yizhi put down the teacup and asked, "Then why did you come to the palace? Don't tell me that He Yue'er is still lying at home and you have to rush to work?"
"Work? What is work?"
"That's not important. Just tell me what you are here for." Zhao Yizhi became even more curious.
Yi Xiaodao replied: "I just want to know who that old man is... If Your Majesty doesn't know, I would like to ask where my sworn brother Hu Lishan is..."
"Is this the 'yes and no' you mean?" Zhao Yizhi rolled his eyes at Yi Xiaodao and said, "That old man, I do know something about the situation, but... it won't help if you know."
"Your Majesty, please speak clearly."
Yi Xiaodao looked at Zhao Yizhi firmly.
Zhao Yizhi and Yi Xiaodao looked at each other for a while, and then said, "Do you know the current situation in Donglu?"
"Wei Chen doesn't know."
"The king of Donglu was attacked by the common people a while ago, and there was no one alive in the whole palace... Now the whole Donglu is in chaos, and the county officials in various cities and counties have made themselves kings and do not respect the court. In addition, the powerful martial arts are fighting endlessly, and the robbers are fierce. Bandits are a disaster, and the people are suffering unspeakably." Zhao Yizhi explained the situation in Donglu.
Yi Xiaodao didn't say anything. He didn't know if Zhao Yizhi had finished speaking.
Seeing that Yi Xiaodao was silent, Zhao Yizhi asked after a while: "Have you guessed the old man's identity?"
"How dare you, humble minister, that old man is the head of a certain martial arts sect?"
Zhao Yizhi nodded: "Absolutely, they are the grandmasters and elders of Wanyan Sect. In fact, this matter is my fault. They came for me, and they happened to catch up with your wedding, causing you to suffer this unreasonable disaster."
Yi Xiaodao said quickly: "Your Majesty can come to attend Xiaodao's wedding. Xiaodao is honored. But Xiaodao is puzzled. Their sect is far away in Donglu. How could they come to assassinate Your Majesty?"
Zhao Yizhi waved his hand: "This matter has nothing to do with you. It is an old matter between the imperial family and the Donglu Wanyan Sect."
"Xiao Dao is willing to share your worries for Your Majesty!"
Zhao Yizhi was silent for a moment and asked: "Yi Xiaodao, if you were the emperor, what do you think is more important, the country, the country, and the people of Li?"
This time Yi Xiaodao was silent for a moment and said bluntly: "It's the same weight."
Zhao Yizhi smiled and said: "Yes, they weigh the same, but it's a pity that I can only choose one of the two..."
Yi Xiaodao lifted up his sleeves and knelt down: "Your Majesty, I am worried that I will humiliate you and die. Your Majesty's words that day have now been fulfilled. Xiaodao is grateful to your Majesty for your kindness. If your Majesty has any concerns, you may feel free to speak up. Xiaodao Even if I die, I will never be able to repay His Majesty’s kindness!”
Zhao Yi stared at Yi Xiaodao and said nothing. Yi Xiaodao was made uncomfortable by the sight, and after a while he smiled and said: "Of course, it would be better if he could not die. Yue'er... is still waiting for me."
"Hahahaha, how can it be so easy to die? Get up, sit down, and I will tell you, you can help me share my worries!" Zhao Yizhi laughed loudly.
Outside the window, the sun has unknowingly set over the Xijiang River. On the mighty Yangtze River, there are only a few fishermen and ferry boatmen left, rowing desperately to the two banks, preparing to return home.
In the palace, Zhao Yizhi and Yi Xiaodao, the emperor and his ministers, had been chatting for a whole day without knowing it.
"Then the current dilemma of the court is that the money and food from the treasury can only support the army and horses to conquer one place. If you go to Donglu, you can't go to Chuxiang, and if you go to Chuxiang, you can't go to Donglu?"
"Yes, the people of Donglu are now in dire straits and are in urgent need of rescue. However, Chu Xiang is ambitious and dormant, making it difficult to deal with both ends. Yi Xiaodao, it is all your credit for the imperial court to recover Nanhuai. In your opinion, , Where should the imperial court use its troops now?" Zhao Yizhi asked.
Yi Xiaodao took a deep breath and suddenly remembered the three members of the family who were caught in the flood on their house during the flood in Wancheng. He remembered that the people were massacred by soldiers and horses led by General Kong Bao on the top of Wancheng. The group of old people who invited Yicheng and Xianglianer to drink Lanqiaoyue...
Zhao Yizhi didn't push him, and quietly waited for Yi Xiaodao's reply.
"The imperial court should send troops to Chu and Xiang."
Yi Xiaodao gave his own answer.
"Oh? What's the reason?" Zhao Yizhi looked calm and asked the reason.
"Donglu is already in disarray, so there is nothing to worry about. All we need to do is guard the border, but Chu and Xiang are the most serious concern. Nanhuai King Li Yaoyang was extremely brave and led 90,000 elite troops to attack Chu and Xiang. In the end, he hated his foreign country. If your Majesty doesn't If you try too early, it will lead to disaster later." Yi Xiaodao expressed his opinion.
Zhao Yizhi considered Yi Xiaodao's suggestion, nodded slowly and said: "It makes some sense, let me think about it again..."
Yi Xiaodao saw that it was getting late outside and stood up and said, "I have one more thing to ask of Your Majesty. I heard that Your Majesty took Hu Lishan of the Beast Taming Sect out of the Criminal Department. Xiaodao wants to see him..."
"Yes, Manager Wang, take Mr. Yi to Hu Lishan."
Wang Zhenliang responded outside the door. Yi Xiaodao thanked Zhao Yizhi and went out to follow Wang Zhenliang.
Not long after Yi Xiaodao left the imperial study, Zhou Ziru rushed over again.
"Your Majesty, that boy from Wanyan Sect couldn't bear the torture and committed suicide by biting his tongue..." Zhou Ziru brought a little bad news.
Zhao Yizhi raised his head and looked at Zhou Ziru, frowning: "It's time for the Twelve Heavenly Guards to reorganize themselves. What do the Haixing Guards do for food! Forget it, just bury them..."
"Then your Majesty... have you considered whether Chu Xiang or Donglu should be first?" Zhou Ziru is most concerned about this issue now. Among the eight kings in the world, Nanhuai has been counted on Yi Xiaodao's head, and he is dignified and elegant. Now that Xiang has made no achievements, he can't help but feel a little anxious.
In fact, what Zhou Ziru didn't know was that thanks to Huang Bai, he applied a layer of eye medicine to the old Nanhuai King, and the old Nanhuai King allowed this layer of eye medicine to be passed down from generation to generation, from Li Yaoyang to Li Dingxing. Furthermore, if he had not led his troops to intercept the Nanhuai Army and gave Li Dingxing the final psychological blow, Li Dingxing would not have withdrawn the feudal vassal so decisively.
Only God can tell who is right and who is wrong, who has merit and fault in world affairs.
Zhao Yizhi asked back: "Isn't this what you, the great Qi Wenxiang, should worry about? Why don't you tell me what you think?"
Zhou Ziru took a deep breath and said: "Chu Xiang should go first. Donglu is just a people of one place, so he has no choice. If Chu Xiang takes advantage of the imperial court's eastward expedition and seizes the opportunity to invade and disrupt the world, the consequences will be disastrous."
"Allow me to think again..."
Zhao Yizhi walked out of the royal study and looked at the stars in the sky...
