"Xiangyu has met Tanhua Lang and wishes you congratulations. I wish you a crown, robe and jade belt, and be blessed with honor and favor in the future..."
"Okay, okay, stop flattering me, I can't even hold it in my ears!" Li Dan said jokingly, and then looked up and down:
"So, you are Xiangyu, Tao Niang's good sister? You put on the perfume for him and opened the back door, right?"
"Xiangyu knows that he is guilty, please Tanhua Lang to punish him as appropriate."
"Huh, you still punish as appropriate?" Li Dan smiled and shook his head: "If I send you to the Winged Dragon Guard, you won't complain, right?"
"I have no grievances, but I have an unkind request. I want Li Tanhua to help me go to Datian to listen."
"There is such a good thing in the world. You come to give me medicine, and I have to help you a lot?" Li Dan's face darkened: "I am just a test result, how can you believe that I can pass it on to the emperor?
Just because I can take the exam again in the Golden Palace in the future, or the emperor can give you a few words of encouragement in person, I will sacrifice my fame to speak for you? "
"What a great hero. He can lead thousands of people to fight in and out of tens of thousands of rebels. He can face tens of thousands of lake bandits and single-handedly keep the stability of eastern Jiangxi. He can assist the government and army in retaking Fuzhou, even the emperor and The carriage in which the Queen Mother rides was made by you;
A coal stove has allowed thousands of households to solve the problem of burning firewood in winter. I heard that there is still a kind of wheeled boat running in the Yangtze River and Poyang Lake, which can move in the water as fast as flying. I dare to ask Li Sanlang, since ancient times, how can there be a Tanhualang like you? "
"Hey, it seems that you have put some effort into studying me?" Li Dan rubbed his hands: "Okay, then you have learned a lot about me secretly, but you have not revealed your own situation. Tell me the truth, it's not fair!
The premise of any transaction is fairness and justice. If you don't want a fair transaction, then let it go. Where is the door, please do it! "After he finished speaking, he looked at the other party playfully, pretending not to care.
Xiangyu hesitated for a moment and finally began to tell her family's experience. When Li Dan saw her opening her mouth, he pointed out a chair for her to sit on, and then he stepped forward and sat across from her.
"I understand. In other words, your family actually fled to the grassland with the previous royal family in a hurry, but they didn't expect to go further and further. So where are your great-grandfather and grandfather buried?" Li Dan asked.
"Do you know about sky burials?" Xiangyu asked with a frown.
"Of course I know." Li Dan nodded: "From the perspective of the Egu and Tubo people, this is natural. If they are straight women, they may even have to be cremated. But both of them are Han people. If they don't behave as barbarians outside, I'm afraid It’s also difficult to gain a foothold.”
"That's right!" Xiangyu nodded quickly: "My father wrote in a letter saying that now the Central Plains costumes are completely gone on the grasslands, and all have returned to Egu customs.
Shamanism and Yellow Religion became the state religion again, while Taoism, Christianity, and Islam were banned in Kerge. I heard that more than 80% of the people there have started wearing robes and carrying ox-horn bows again. "
"Which Khan does your family follow?"
Hearing Li Dan ask this, Xiangyu's eyes looked a little different. She has also seen some guests entertaining foreign caravans, and she always hears them asking the Egu people: "Which Khan are you from?" or "Who do you listen to?"
Li Dan's question clearly showed that he knew something about the Egu tribe and was not as arrogant and ignorant as those people. "My family is home to thousands of households on the left wing of Ker's army and Han army." She replied with a smile.
It is estimated that Tao Niang has already told Li Dan everything she knows, so it would be better to be more straightforward and stop fussing, and tell the truth directly, leaving the rest to Changshengtian!
"Is there someone specifically responsible for managing you here? You shouldn't be the only one who came to the Central Plains, right?" Li Dan then asked.
"I don't know much about the other concubines. I only know that there are four or five people who interact with me. There is a Semu businessman, who always brings the instructions of the Great Khan to me.
In the past few years, no one had paid attention to it. It seemed that it had been forgotten after being left here. It was not until last year that news began to be brought to my concubine. Xiangyu sat down on the chair pointed to her by Li Dan:
"Fortunately, my father and brother didn't forget me. They somehow found out that I was here, so they found a martial artist who was guarding the camel team and asked him and his apprentice to quietly bring a message to me. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't even be with my mother. I don’t even know the news of his death…!”
Li Dan patiently acted as an obedient ear and listened to her talk about her affairs for two cups of tea before she was basically finished.
In the end, Xiangyu felt a little embarrassed and laughed at herself: "Look, I've been talking about these nonsense things for too long, and I didn't have to dirty the ears of Xinke Tanhualang."
"It doesn't matter. As long as what you tell is the truth, it's worth my time to listen. I'm most afraid of the kind of lie that not only delays other people's efforts but is also made up, then I will be wronged!" Li Dan said with a smile.
"Immortal God, everything I said is true!"
"Really?" Li Dan looked at her carefully: "But you have put so much effort into Tao Niang, it's impossible just to let her get close to me, and then give you a chance to 'tell the truth', right?" After that, he leaned forward:
"It's such a big deal of trouble. What do you want to tell me? Do you want me to help you fight for the treatment of a prince, or do you want me to convince you not to canonize Qi Mier, but instead canonize him to avoid a war between the two parties?"
"It seems that Tanhua Lang is not only interested in the exam, but you are also paying attention to the rumors in the market, right?" Xiangyu said in surprise.
"Even if I don't want to pay attention, the Winged Dragon Guard's ears are very sharp!" Li Dan sneered.
"But this case has nothing to do with me."
"Oh?" Li Dan tapped his fingers on the countertop: "Logically speaking, even if this is a rumor, it must have been spread by the Egu people, because this is only beneficial to Ye Bihan!"
"Whoever benefits from it will be the most suspicious. It's not wrong to think so. However, this matter has nothing to do with Ye Bihan." Xiangyu said:
"The order given to us by the Great Khan is to understand as much as possible the deployment and mobilization of the Southern Dynasty's troops, and at the same time understand the actions of the ministries in the southern steppe and the content of the news reported to the imperial court by the Ministry of War's Staff Division.
You see, the Great Khan didn't care at all about the title of Laushizi Khan or the honor of the prince. "
"That's because when he sent the order, he didn't know yet that His Majesty was about to bestow Qimi'er. He only cared about whether the road going south was smooth and whether the Celestial Empire would take advantage of the turmoil in the grassland to send troops to catch him off guard. At the same time, he was wary of the Monan ministries and the court. Team up to deal with him.
Even at that time, he didn't know that Qimier had already led his team to set off and arrived in Shangjing so quickly. "Li Dan noticed a flash of look in Xiangyu's eyes. "How about it, am I right? "he asks.
"It's true that you are a Tanhualang who has led soldiers. He is much better than those gentlemen who only know a few things!" Xiangyu gently held her palms and smiled charmingly: "If not, I would recommend you to the Great Khan. , maybe he will reward you to his concubine as soon as he is happy?"
"Pull him down!" Li Dan was not angry. He waved his hand and said disdainfully: "You can't even look down on that guy, so why are you recommending him to me?"
"What San Lang said... How did you know that I was unfaithful to the Khan?" Xiangyu was shocked and confused. She didn't know which sentence she said wrong, and she was confused. From the look and tone of the other party, she felt that Li Dan didn't seem to be trying to deceive her out of thin air.
"You said it yourself, and you must pay attention to the trends in the southern part of the grassland and the imperial court. But what about you? What are you thinking about, what do you want to do, and what purpose do you want to achieve? Aren't the two contradictory?" Li Dan smiled half-heartedly. .
"I..." Xiangyu bit her lip, her heart pounding. After a moment, she felt relieved and sipped her tea with a sneer: "Why should I be loyal to him?
After all, Xiangyu is the innocent daughter of an official. He sent me to this hellish place of forced smiles. Do I have to be grateful to him? How unreasonable! "
After waiting, she saw that Li Dan was still smiling and not speaking. She was heartbroken and knelt down towards Li Dan: "Sinner, I beg Li Jueye and Tanhua Lang to lend a hand and help me wait for the Han soldiers who are living in the north to escape." Good luck!" After saying that, he kowtowed heavily.
Li Dan thought for a while and said softly: "Young lady, you don't have to be like this, you have already understood your intention, be careful not to reveal your appearance." After saying this, Xiangyu stopped. Li Danxu helped him:
"Girl, please sit down and speak slowly. Unless you have been convicted, no one need to kneel before me. No matter you are an Egu or a Han, I will treat you equally.
Now, please tell me exactly what you want to say to me, without beating around the bush, otherwise I won't be sure whether I should help you. "
The way he talks and acts is very different from others. If it were someone else, he would either act sympathetically, be generous with everything, or make sarcastic remarks, but in short, he would never poke the heart of people's hearts so directly.
This made Xiangyu a little afraid, feeling that the other party was putting a lot of pressure on her, but she had forgotten the fact that this person was actually a few years younger than herself.
Watching Mao Zaidi leading Xiangyu out of the small courtyard where the flower hall is to visit Tao Niang with his hands behind his back, Li Dan narrowed his eyes slightly and secretly searched for clues in Cai Xiangyu's words.
Wu Mao and Shen Jie silently came out from behind and stood not far behind him, listening to him ask: "Has someone arranged to go out?"
Shenjie crossed his arms and replied: "A group of five people have been arranged to follow, and another group of people rented houses on Qingxi Road and Jiuxianqiao respectively. In this way, all three sides of Yuyin Pavilion are under surveillance."
Li Dan turned around: "Brother Maocai, you heard what I just said. Tell me what you think."
Wu Mao nodded, cupped his hands and said, "I'll start by throwing some light on it. This Xiangyu claimed to be a descendant of a Han official, but was thrown into the Red Mansion by Ye Bihan when he was a child, and lurked in the capital for many years in the name of learning skills. I can't believe this statement!"
It is even possible that it is not just Kerr who does this, but other ministries may have this phenomenon to some extent, but they must also pose the greatest threat and hostility to our country, so the chess pieces he lays out are extremely threatening.
If Xiangyu can turn to us, this is an excellent opportunity to counterattack!
But currently we don’t know and don’t know how many such secret chess games there are in the capital, and it seems that Xiangyu’s knowledge is limited. I don’t think it’s time to report someone for arrest, and the evidence is far from enough.
For those like Xiangyu who harbor hatred towards Ye first and hope to get help and pardon from the imperial court so that his father and brother can eventually return to the heavenly dynasty, I would like to suggest that you observe and use him. If he is willing to make a difference, it may have an unexpected effect. "
"Yes, I agree." Li Dan nodded and looked at Shen Jie: "But we must be on guard against others. Her actions must be under our surveillance! Not only are there arrangements on the outside, but we must also try to place chess pieces in the Yuyin Pavilion. .
He will also make arrangements, and so can we, and we should not be rude when we come and go! Right?
The mission of the Security Section (the original Intelligence Section) is to keep an eye on the outside to see who is interacting with them, to find all the branches, and to monitor her own behavior.
The other one is to continue to dig deeper into these secret games set up by the Egu people. Regardless of which Khan sent them, or whether he has malicious intentions, record them all in the book, including the Ula tribe.
In particular, these people with various religions and low-level careers are the easiest targets to be attracted and exploited! "
After he finished speaking, he sighed: "I thought the capital was prosperous, but it turned out to be full of thorns. How long have we encountered this kind of thing? Do you think it is more dangerous than Yu Qian?"
He smiled bitterly, and then said: "Let's make an agreement with the transferred brothers. Secret combat is more cruel and dangerous than fighting on the battlefield. Those who don't want to come must not force it!"
"Don't worry, Sanlang. Our brothers have been exhausted since they haven't fought for a while. When they heard that they wanted someone here, they all rushed to come. There are no cowards!" Shen Jie said firmly.
"It's better to do what Sanlang said. What he said makes sense, and secret warfare is no better than open warfare. We have to live like civilians, which is actually not easy." After Wu Mao finished speaking, he changed the topic:
"As for what Xiangyu mentioned about asking for pardon for her father and brother and even all the Han soldiers who are willing to return, what is Sanlang's plan? We can't agree or not agree to this. The power still lies with the emperor and the court."
"Can't I really introduce her to His Majesty? I'm not Gao Qiu, and she's not Li Shishi." Li Dan shook his head:
"We still need to confirm whether her intention is genuine. I asked her to help us establish a dialogue channel with Kergo, because if this can be done, it means that she is sincere.
Of course, since the matter is serious, I will secretly seek the emperor's consent. "Li Dan looked at the two of them:
"It would be great if both the left and right wings of the Han army can return smoothly! But I think some people are willing and some are not. I'm afraid it won't be that easy to achieve, so I have to work hard to achieve it."
"And Sanlang, if this rumor was not spread by the Egu people, who could it be?" Wu Mao frowned: "The emperor specially sent someone to ask about this matter, which shows that he is very concerned about it, and maybe even very angry!"
"Hmph, I'm going to put His Majesty on the fire!" Shenjie sneered: "It's already on the rack, and I can't even think about getting it off!"
"I also want to know who is so vicious?" Li Dan frowned: "Does it mean that the emperor has a deep hatred for him, and he has to do this to make him feel happy?"
Cai Xiangyu also said that she had asked senior officials to advise His Majesty, hoping that by canonizing Qimeier and Ye at the same time, a situation of two heroes competing for hegemony would be established.
She believed that in this way, the Han army could and would be mobilized to participate in the war, giving them the opportunity to fight back on the battlefield and abandon the dark side. I dismissed her, that was shortsighted.
Looking at the overall situation, the grassland cannot be chaotic, at least not for now!
The rebellion in the south had just subsided and its vitality was damaged, so the court was unprepared. The grain from the Yangtze River cannot be transported smoothly, and the military grain from the Nine Borders cannot arrive on time. It is good to be able to defend, let alone attack?
Of course, I didn’t go into details in detail. I just said that Qimeier has not completed the integration of various tribes in Monan and is unable to fight against Kerge. If I really want to provoke him, he will pour all his strength into the south and Ula can’t stop him, so there is no need to fight more. . "
"I think you're right!" Wu Mao nodded: "I think he just wants to squeeze the ministries and find ways to avoid disasters and reduce losses. If he doesn't do this, others won't support him!
But it would be different if two prince-level khans were established. They would definitely agitate the people to disobey Ula, and then suppress them with all their strength. Ula was defeated. This time next year, he will be the well-deserved Khan on the grassland! "
"But if you set up a khan now, won't he start a war?" Shen Jie asked.
"Not for the time being, because he has to help his people survive the disaster before he has the prestige to lead them to resist Ula. But if the court also appoints him as Prince Khan, it will be equivalent to helping him build up his power and pushing the disaster to Qimeier. On the head.
Doing so would not only disappoint Ulla, but also make the Kerrs more arrogant, which would do no good to control the stable situation on the grassland!
Since it is a matter of no benefit and is only beneficial to Kelge, who he must represent, then why does the court do it? Isn't this a completely loss-making business? "
Li Dan paused at this point: "Maocai will prepare a gift for me. Tomorrow I will go to Qimeer Khan's royal tent to fulfill the agreement I made with his eldest son. I really want to get to know this father and son, so I want to get closer and take a closer look at them. What's the quality?
Let’s see if they have the guts to contend with Kerge’s ambition and his army’s deep penetration into Monan? "
After saying that, he suddenly rubbed his hands happily: "By the way, Mr. Zeng has given me the word 'Zedong' as a gift. From now on, we will still call me Sanlang in private. In formal and public situations, it is better to call me Zedong. Please Everyone!"
