"As the prince said, although the court seems to be calm on the surface, there is already an undercurrent surging underneath. Once the queen passes away, not only the prince, but also King Jing and King Duan, who no longer have any scruples, will act even more harshly. There is no scruple. There is also the King of Song, and Concubine De, who is standing behind him and is currently in charge of matters in the Sixth Palace."
"What's more, there is the King of Shu who is hiding aside and keeping an eye on him. Even you can't see through it. Although the target is all pointed at the prince, the fire at the city gate may not affect Chiyu. In this battle to seize the inheritance, as long as you are there It would be difficult for the capital not to be involved. Just like this assassination, there may not be someone else who can kill two birds with one stone, or use a borrowed knife to kill someone."
"Your Majesty, if you have one more person to discuss with you, your thinking will be more open. With more guards around you, your safety will be more certain. If these people are really hired, Your Majesty, it would be better to let them play their role as soon as possible. The current strength of our Prince's Palace is too weak, even if we have one more strength." Facing Huang Qiong's hesitation, Jia Quan said anxiously.
Facing Jia Quan's advice, Huang Qiong pondered for a while, but still said firmly: "It's better to wait until the wife's matter is settled before we talk about anything else. Now I really don't have the mood and energy. As for what the gentleman said, I still understand the truth. Don’t worry, sir, I will fight for anyone with talent. But there are some things that I still have to consider more."
"However, before I decide to meet them, sir, you can have more contact with them and get a good feel for their character. It is estimated that the capital will be in chaos for a while. Sir, tell them not to go out for a while. Whatever is missing, as long as it’s not too much, sir, I’ll just arrange for someone to help buy it."
"Sir, you are the one who makes the final decision on all these matters in the government. There is no need to ask for instructions. As long as you think it is right, just go ahead and do it. Again, if you can't trust me, who else can I trust? Besides, Long Sir, you should also pay more attention to the drought situation in Shaanxi and right."
"In the past few days, although I, the king, got some money and food from the mouths of those clans to meet the urgent needs, but I always felt that those people would not hand over the promised money and food honestly. Now that the Beginning of Autumn is approaching, I have this in my heart There is always a feeling of being unsteady. Shaanxi Road is fine, but Longyou is a crowded place with Han people. If something goes wrong, it will be chaos."
After Huang Qiong's instructions, Jia Quan could only smile bitterly and said: "Your Majesty, you also know the thoughts of officials in this world. If half of what they report to the court is true, it is worthy of what the court sends. Salary. I am afraid that except for the emperor who has secret information, it will be difficult for the court to get real news until the real autumn harvest. "
"However, Quan is somewhat familiar with this matter. According to a friend of Quan's in the Ministry of Household Affairs, the Hanzhong area on Shaanxi Road is better. The drought is mainly concentrated in northern Shaanxi and Qinchuan. The Ningxia Prefecture on the right side of Longxi and the Longdong area are , The land is now so bare that there is no need to wait until autumn, the harvest is a foregone conclusion. But the key now is that the Guanzhong Plain has also been severely affected by the disaster."
"In the past, no matter how big a natural disaster occurred in Shaanxi and Longyou Road, as long as the Guanzhong Plain, the main grain producing area in the northwest, was not affected, it would not be a real disaster. The grain transferred from Guanzhong alone could satisfy most of the disaster relief areas. It’s necessary. If we need to adjust grains in other places, we don’t need to adjust much.”
"But this year's disaster in Qinchuan, which is 800 miles away, not only prevents the transfer of food from outside, but also requires a large amount of relief from the court. If there is no snow in winter, I am afraid next year's harvest will also be in danger. In addition, northern Shaanxi, Longyou It is a foregone conclusion that 70% of the land in Longdong and Ningxia will not be harvested. The pressure on the imperial court this time is not ordinary. It may be difficult for Hanzhong alone to support it."
"The Second Road has always been a place where the people have strong customs. If the imperial court fails to provide disaster relief in time, Quan is also worried that there will be trouble in the northwest. Especially in Longyou and northern Shaanxi, and to the north are the various departments of the Northern Liaoning Army Department. Yan'an Prefecture was affected by the disaster, and the mountains and rivers outside the Great Wall In the connected Beiliao, the situation there is not optimistic either."
"Those nomadic tribes have always had the tradition of going south to plunder to save themselves when they are in trouble. In previous years, when there were no disasters, we would not be afraid of how many cavalrymen from Bei Liao went south. But this year is different from previous years. If the northwest of Da Qi falls into Due to civil strife, I’m afraid it will be difficult for the imperial court to concentrate on dealing with the Northern Liao cavalry heading south.”
"Besides, Your Majesty, don't forget that there is a feud between the imperial court in the northwest. Quan once talked with Song Zhihuan, and he once mentioned to Quan that although the party items are currently divided into various parts by the imperial court, they have thrived for decades and are now The strength has been slightly restored. Now among the Dangxiang tribe in Ningxia Prefecture, another leader who can be called a hero has appeared."
"This person has great ambitions and never forgets to restore the glory of the Dangxiang people in the northwest. He has been rectifying the Dangxiang tribes in Ningxia Prefecture through marriage. After more than ten years of hard work, a considerable force has been formed in Ningxia Prefecture. . Almost all the Dangxiang departments in Ningxia Prefecture are following this person.
"Although the current vitality is far less than that of the Dingnan Army back then, it is still very different from the time when Taizong and Gaozong were scattered and allowed to be slaughtered by the imperial court. Although the current strength is still very weak compared to the imperial court, in time it will definitely It will become a serious problem for the imperial court. If the northwest really falls into turmoil, there is a high possibility that this person will take advantage of the chaos to rebel."
After Jia Quan finished speaking, Huang Qiong's face couldn't help but darken. Although I have made so much money and food, the problem is that one rat droppings can spoil the whole pot of soup. What's more, at this time, it's not just a mouse, but a group of mice watching eagerly.
I tried my best to persuade him, but my stubborn emperor couldn't listen to him at all. If something really happened, how much would it cost to calm it down? The history of the last dynasty of the Han people that I was familiar with in my previous life, wasn't it because of three parts natural disasters and seven parts seven disasters that finally caused the collapse of China's land?
Thinking of this, Huang Qiong sighed and said: "I am worried about this, so I hope that you can use all your connections to closely monitor the disaster relief situation on the second route. You cannot skimp on this aspect, and you must be generous when you should spend money. We You can’t just let the horse run without giving it fodder.”
"And we can't always rely on King Yong. It's time to have our own sources of information. Although these people are not of high rank, they are still well-informed. In this regard, sir, you should be more generous with your actions. They have class and virtue. For those who have both talent and talent, sir, please pull out a list, and I will think of a way to push those who should be pushed up."
"Others, we can only do our best. The storm is about to come, and we still can't escape when it comes. But we can't just turn a blind eye like this, everything will be found out. , we don’t know anything yet. We were caught off guard and could only respond passively.”
"As for the assassination of my king, the old man will not openly engage in war. I have been the king for many years, and I still take face matters very seriously. If this matter is known to the whole world, where will his face go? Let him go? And how he investigates in private is beyond our control. Sir, you still have to know something in your heart."
Facts have proved that although Huang Qiong's prediction is not 100% correct, his judgment of the emperor's character is still roughly accurate. Although the emperor took advantage of this incident to launch a war in the court. The power that the kings had worked so hard to build was completely shattered. But regarding the assassination of Huang Qiong, on the surface, the thunder is loud and the rain is light.
After ordering each department to conduct a strict investigation, nothing more happened. He made it clear that he didn't want to make this matter a big deal. If the emperor behaves like this, the people below will naturally understand the holy meaning. On the surface, this shocking case seems to be unsolved. But in private, the emperor paid great attention to it.
All his own troops were infiltrated, something that had never happened to him in the more than ten years he had been king. Just as Huang Qiong said, this time the knife fell on his son, but it may not happen next time. Especially now, when the eyes of several sons involved in the battle for the right to inherit the throne are already red, the emperor does not dare to act as if nothing is wrong.
From ancient times to the present, princes have become obsessed with killing each other, and the emperor's desire to have a good death has always been an extravagant matter, but there are countless precedents. Whether the prince wanted to be Li Jiancheng or not was one thing, but the emperor obviously didn't want to be Tang Gaozu. So although on the surface the thunder was loud and the raindrops were light, in private the emperor's investigation was extremely harsh.
At least after Huang Qiong was assassinated, the prince was directly confined in the palace and was not allowed to return to the East Palace until more than ten days later. Almost all the people and horses from the North and South Zhenfu Division in Beijing were dispatched to closely monitor the surrounding areas of the princes' mansions. The movements of all the kings in Beijing, including the King of Shu who rushed back from Chengdu to take care of his illness, were strictly restricted and monitored, and they were not allowed to leave the house even half a step.
For these descendants, this kind of surveillance and control is not a pleasant experience. What's more, this time the old man took advantage of the situation and ruined the situation they had worked so hard to manage in the court. These princes all suffered heavy losses from the connections they had painstakingly built up, from demotions to demotions, and dismissals from posts.
Seeing that the large sum of money spent before was almost all gone. Although he didn't dare to say anything on the surface, in his heart he cursed the person who caused the trouble. Although they were secretly happy that Huang Qiong was assassinated and almost lost his life. There are also many people who even hope that Huang Qiong will die from his serious injury and directly drive the crane westward.
But after he suffered the Wuwu disaster, his mentality changed extremely quickly. The previous gloating turned into scolding in an instant. There are even some people who are very suspicious, thinking of the scene where the emperor and Huang Qiong jointly performed in the Wende Palace. I think Huang Qiong's assassination was planned by the old man to clean up the court, and he teamed up with that damn guy to do it.
After all, no one had ever seen Huang Qiong’s assassination. How badly was the injury done? Was it really like the legendary fatal injury, or was it nothing serious and no one saw it? Falling off the horse while riding out and scratching your skin is also called assassination. It is not unknown for some of these princes to do it.
And Chen Yao's death was not something worth mentioning in their eyes. She was just a concubine who was born as an ordinary palace maid, and she was not a royal concubine born into a noble family. It was normal for her to be used as a chess piece when needed. If the palace is not carried out that year, how many or a dozen palace ladies will die in vain?
Among the maids who were carried out, there were not just one or two former confidant maids who had violated the master's taboo. Therefore, there are very few people who, after comparing their feelings, think that this is a buckle made by the emperor and Huang Qiong, father and son. Chen Yao's death was just a scene in their hearts.
