Beijing, Xicheng.
People often say that a cunning rabbit has three burrows, let alone humans? The Zhou Mansion, which has been in the capital for six hundred years, is no exception. This in Xicheng is another annex of the Zhou Mansion. On weekdays, the door is closed, and occasionally one or two servants come to clean it. If Zhou Ziru hadn't been severely attacked this time, and Zhou Ziru had to move here, no one would know that this is the Zhou Mansion's residence.
Of course, even if Zhou Ziru stayed here, not many people knew about it. In addition to several ministers from the Department of Renovation and Construction of the DPRK, there was also Zhao Yizhi standing outside this courtyard.
"This house has been idle for so long, and the palace has never sent anyone to check it out?" Zhao Yizhi turned to Wang Zhenliang and asked.
"I heard that I sent people to investigate, but in the end nothing happened. The old slave was not easy to ask questions and didn't know much about it." Wang Zhenliang said frankly. After all, as the head of the internal affairs, he should not interfere in the affairs of the government, which is a good rule of law. Zhao Yi is the only one who is very stubborn. If he has something to do, he will chat with him about government affairs.
Someone had already informed the house, and the doorman opened the door and waited timidly aside: "Your Majesty, the master of the house is injured and cannot go out to greet him. I hope your Majesty will forgive me."
"It's okay!" Zhao Yizhi said lightly and led everyone into the mansion.
As soon as they entered the mansion, Chen Congwei quickly dispersed and guarded everywhere. Zhao Yizhi led Qian Ning and Wang Zhenliang to Zhou Ziru's room under the guidance of the servants.
Arriving at the door, Wang Zhenliang and Qian Ning waited outside the door consciously. Zhao Yizhi pushed the door open and walked in: "How are you doing, Prime Minister Zhou?"
"Cough cough cough cough..." Zhao Yizhi responded with a violent cough.
"Your Majesty, Zhou Ziru, knock..." Zhou Ziru struggled to get up, but Zhao Yizhi stepped forward and held him down: "Don't get up in a hurry, just lie down."
Zhou Ziru slowly lay down and wiped his mouth intentionally or unintentionally, but Zhao Yizhi, who had sharp eyes, still saw a little bloodshot at the corner of his mouth and said nothing.
Zhou Ziru asked: "Why is Your Majesty free to come to my humble residence today?"
Zhao Yizhi walked to the cabinet door, opened the cabinet door, and took out Zhou Ziru's chessboard: "I have nothing to do, I just wanted to play a few games with you."
Zhou Ziru watched Zhao Yizhi accurately find the place where his chessboard was stored, and smiled: "Your Majesty's magical power is unique throughout the ages, and he can predict the future."
Zhao Yizhi paused slightly. He was used to staying in the palace. On weekdays, only Wang Zhenliang had contact with him. His prophet Wang Zhenliang was not surprised at all. But now that he was out of the palace, how could he forget this?
I only knew about Zhong Zhou Ziru’s chessboard in Zhou Mansion before, but this is my first time in Zhou Mansion’s other courtyard...
Seeing Zhao Yizhi stop, Zhou Ziru lowered his eyes: "It doesn't matter, Your Majesty. There are already many capable people and strangers in Daqi. Just like Yi Xiaodao, who made fire in his palm and came up with all kinds of tricks, he became the Duke of Wuding. .It’s a good thing to be capable…”
Zhao Yizhi saw that Zhou Ziru was not going to ask further questions, so he walked to the table, moved the table and chairs to Zhou Ziru's bed, and helped Zhou Ziru sit on the bed.
"You seem dissatisfied with Yi Xiaodao?" Zhao Yi picked up a black stone and pressed it on the chessboard first.
Zhou Ziru hugged the chess jar and said, "Everything in this world must be done by people in this world, and what people in this world pay attention to is a benefit. Once you get the benefit in front of you, you have to think about the next step. Everyone is like this. Our ancestors fought in the north and south, and fought bloody battles. He just won the world, and now he has been granted the title of Duke Wuding, what else can your Majesty grant him in the future?"
"Even if he himself doesn't have any ideas, now that he has hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses under his command, can those people still have no ideas?"
Zhao Yizhi was silent for a long time and then said: "The world has not yet been settled. Let's talk about this later."
Zhou Ziru nodded: "Wu Dinggong is now at the height of his power, so naturally he cannot be dealt with easily, but...how will your Majesty deal with him in the future?"
Zhao Yizhi stared into Zhou Ziru's eyes: "Loyal Lord Li Dingxing led 50,000 Nanhuai old soldiers, and wanted to conquer the Northern Yi, just to avenge Yi Xiaoling. Yi Xiaodao would definitely not sit idly by and ignore such a big event... Besides, , he also advocated conquering the Northern Yi first..."
Zhou Ziru took over the conversation: "Daqi and Beiyi have been in a stalemate for more than six hundred years, and no one can do anything to the other. Although Yi Xiaodao now has hundreds of thousands of troops, against Beiyi, it is like a fly shaking a tree. In this matter, Yi Xiaodao He must not have known it beforehand, otherwise, Li Dingxing would have been prevented from doing this."
"It's not that he doesn't have capable men. A little reminder will make him realize that the Northern Yi cannot be conquered lightly. At least with the three northern kings standing in the way, it will be even more difficult. Next, he will definitely try his best to stop them. Li Dingxing marched to the north."
"Compared with Beiyi, I am more worried about Xigui. King Xigui has always been very respectful to the court. Now that he has been exposed, will he allow the court to raise troops to investigate the crime? If I were King Xigui, I would definitely strike preemptively!"
While the two were talking, unknowingly, most of the black and white stones on the chessboard had been moved, each occupying half of the country. There was a stalemate in the center of the chessboard. It was Zhao Yizhi's turn to move. Now he could only move to the two wings. There is a chance of winning.
The white stones on the left are sparse, and there are not many black stones, and they are not connected to the main force in the middle, which is particularly promising. There are mostly white stones on the right side, and only one or two layers of black stones. Fortunately, there is still room at the back, and the black stones are continuously "supplied with air", so they are not defeated.
Seeing Zhao Yi Zhi's indecision, Zhou Ziru pointed at the chessboard and said: "There is only a thin layer left on the right side. Although there is a rear that can provide a steady stream of air, there are few pieces after all. If it is broken and the rear is empty, the white pieces can go straight to the yellow dragon. There is chaos on the left side. It seems that there is still something to be done, but the location is remote and it is difficult to affect the overall situation. Your Majesty, is it not difficult to make a decision?"
The sunspot in Zhao Yi's hand slowly fell. Zhou Ziru seemed to be careless, but his eyes kept staring at the sunspot to see where it landed.
"Danglang"
The black piece in Zhao Yi's hand fell into the chess pot, making a crisp sound. Zhou Ziru was stunned.
"Hahahaha, I forgot to play chess while we were chatting. Prime Minister Zhou has taken so many pieces from me. Now it's hard for a clever woman to make a meal without rice. No matter how promising the left side is, what can I do if I don't have a son?" Zhao Yizhi revealed to Zhou Ziru As expected, there were only a few black stones left in the chess jar.
Zhou Ziru looked at himself again and saw that he had eaten dozens of Zhao Yizhi's pellets without realizing it, but he didn't notice at all.
The outcome has already been decided!
Zhao Yizhi removed the chess table: "Xiang Zhou is very good at chess, and I am no match for him. Maybe everything in this world is just like this game of chess. It has been decided a long time ago. No matter how we struggle, the result will be the same."
Zhou Ziru lowered his eyes: "It seems that Your Majesty has made a decision in his heart."
Zhao Yizhi stood up: "No, I came today because I have no idea in my heart, so I want to ask you, Prime Minister Zhou, to come up with an idea. Just when I was playing chess, I suddenly figured it out. How can we not be chess pieces on this chessboard? No one is at the mercy of people or forces, but who is in charge of his own life?"
"Prime Minister Zhou is worried that King Xigui will take advantage of the situation to rise up. He is worried about Yi Xiaodao's hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses, and is worried that the three northern kings will not be able to withstand the cavalry of Beiyi. I am actually also worried... Let's look at the current situation. I will act accordingly. Quan, ha." Zhao Yizhi smiled casually.
Zhou Ziru coughed hard a few times: "Ahem, cough, cough, heaven's heart is unpredictable... If your majesty really trusts Yi Xiaodao, I have nothing more to say. I just hope that your majesty will not forget the principle that if you indulge the enemy once, you will suffer eternal troubles. Don't I forgot that Ge Cifeng was let go..."
Zhao Yizhi's smile slowly faded: "...well, I know."
After leaving the room, Wang Zhenliang and Qian Ning looked at Zhao Yizhi, and saw that his brows did not relax, but frowned more tightly, and no one dared to ask questions.
It wasn't until Zhao Yizhi got on the sedan that Wang Zhenliang asked carefully: "Your Majesty, are you going back to the palace?"
Zhao Yizhi waved his hand: "No, go to Duke Wuding's mansion."
…
Sichuan and Shu, Jincheng.
It snowed heavily, which is extremely rare for Sichuan and Sichuan. People took to the streets one after another to watch this rare snow.
"People say that auspicious snow heralds a good harvest. I look at the scenery and think about the past..." Peng Qingyun, the king of Sichuan, stroked his beard and stood alone in the backyard of the palace, looking at the dancing snowflakes, and gradually fell into a trance.
The servants and maids on the left and right were suppressing laughter. The prince, who was usually full of foul language, now imitated the literati and became arty. I don’t know where I copied these two lines of crappy poetry from…
I don't know if Peng Qingyun noticed the movement around him. Maybe he didn't, maybe he did and didn't care.
"Dad, are you looking for me?" Peng Baby, the only daughter of the King of Sichuan, returned home and came to the backyard.
Peng Qingyun looked at his precious daughter, dragged her into the house, and waved his hands to repel the servants: "How is the situation in the Tang Sect?"
Peng Baby sighed and said: "After the death of the old lady, the whole Tang Sect seemed to be in a state of depression, and many outer disciples left. Senior Brother Tang, on the other hand, is practicing martial arts more diligently than before. Don't worry, Dad, given time, Senior Brother Tang will We will definitely be able to revive the Tang Sect!"
Peng Qingyun muttered: "It seems that the decline of the Tang Sect is a foregone conclusion. Tang Yunhe's diligent martial arts training cannot revive him. From now on, you should have less contact with the people of the Tang Sect, especially that Tang Yunhe! Dad has already sent people to the capital. Now, ask your Majesty to marry you and ask your Majesty to find you a powerful husband in the capital, so that we in Sichuan and Shu will have someone to rely on in the future!"
Peng Baby's eyes widened, a little unbelievable: "You sent someone to the capital to propose marriage to His Majesty?"
"Not to Your Majesty! I asked Your Majesty to give it to you in the capital..."
"Peng Qingyun! Do you still have my daughter in your eyes?" Peng Baby roared. This roar frightened the servants outside the door, and they all ran away. They were not afraid of the King of Sichuan and Shu. I am really afraid of this young lady.
Peng Qingyun was also startled. After he recovered, he blew his beard and said angrily: "Do you still think of me as a father? No matter how big or small, you are the one who called Peng Qingyun!" As he said that, he raised his hand and was about to move towards me. Peng Baobao slapped it on his face. However, halfway through the stroke, he stopped abruptly and slowly let it go.
"Fight! You should fight! As the king of Sichuan and Shu, you have been cowardly all your life, and you don't dare to fight your own daughter. Mom is so angry at your cowardly look! Just send someone, and Do you want to see if I will agree to it then? It's okay, anyway, the King of Sichuan and Shu will be embarrassed for more than a day or two, and you don't care!" Peng Baby wanted to say some harsh words, but looking at her father's face, she couldn't think of anything. Not wanting to say anything, he left without looking back.
Only Peng Qingyun, the king of Sichuan and Shu, stood alone and stood silently for a long time...
