Today's visitors are completely different from those who visited Gaolinghou Mansion before.
The Marquis of Gaoling is a minister and the Sixth Prince is the king, so when the Marquis of Gaoling heard that the Sixth Prince was visiting, he had to go and greet him.
The father-in-law is the father of the queen, and the queen is the legitimate mother of all the princes and princesses. The father-in-law is the legitimate grandfather of the sixth prince in terms of etiquette and law, and he has the emperor's special favor, so of course there is no need to go out like Gaolinghou today to greet him.
In fact, after Ying Zheng entered the door, he also kept his attitude very low. Before the other party could react, he bowed first and said, "You are rude and came to the door presumptuously. I am really ashamed. Please forgive me, the abbot."
Zhongshu Ling Li Yan quietly handed a handful of melon seeds to Duke Xu Guogong who was sitting next to him. The eldest son of Duke Xu was the consort appointed by the emperor for Princess Changhua: "Why don't the Sixth Prince call me grandpa? Is this a show of authority?"
Xu Guogong glanced at him and said nothing, nor did he take the melon seeds.
Li Yan couldn't help but curl his lips: "It's really boring."
At this time, a hand stretched out from the side, grabbed a handful from his palm, and then gave the answer with a smile: "It's not a show of force, he just has this temper."
Li Yan was startled, and he turned around and saw Prime Minister Yun Danfengqing with a teasing expression on his face: "Brother Li doesn't know something. The Sixth Prince doesn't care about His Majesty." Don’t call me Father, just call me ‘Your Majesty’.”
Li Yan said "Oh" with a slightly complicated expression, and then said with a smile: "I see."
While several people were talking back and forth, Ying Zheng had already started to exchange friendly greetings with the father-in-law. One said, "Oh, I'm so sorry." The other said, "It doesn't matter. I'm a guest." Those who didn't know better thought he was the sixth prince. He is the direct grandson of the father-in-law.
The two of them politely declined and took their seats one after another. They talked a few words about state affairs and family affairs. Gradually, other people gradually joined in their conversation.
The atmosphere gradually became heated, and the topics that should have been sharp were wrapped in a gentle disguise, and seemed to become softer.
"Your Highness, it's not that I want to stir up trouble at the abbot's birthday banquet. It's just that your retainer, the one called Gongsun Yi, is really too deceptive..."
Finally, someone said it half-jokingly, half-sincerely: "Your Majesty has never treated the nobles so harshly, but he wishes he could skin and cramp us, divide and eat us, and the coercion and inducement are so despicable. If you continue to condone this matter, it will be your highness’ reputation that will be damaged.”
It was as if this was the first time Ying Zheng heard about this matter, and he looked surprised: "Is there such a thing?"
He frowned again and placed the wine cup in his hand heavily on the table: "This Gongsun Yi is so bold!"
But it was Zhongshu who ordered Li Yan to defend him: "Listening to both sides will lead to enlightenment, and listening to one side will lead to darkness. Your Highness should also listen to Mr. Gongsun's defense before he can make judgments. I heard that this person hates evil as much as he hates it. , a group of lawless people were eliminated, and the dandies in the city were frightened by them, and even the public security in the capital was improved..."
The nobleman who had previously fired at Gongsun Yi looked unhappy and glared at Zhongshu Ling Li Yan, who seemed unaware and smiled as before.
To ordinary people, these old nobles are naturally giants, but to the prime minister of a country and the person who stands at the top of the court, what is so great about them?
There were hundreds of old aristocrats and dozens of clans in the Great Zhou Dynasty, but there were only six prime ministers!
Not to mention that the prime ministers were all promoted by the emperor, and they were inherently on the same side as the emperor. Regardless of their relationship with the sixth prince and Gongsun Yi, how could they not give them a platform at this time and instead help the old nobles? Aren't you unable to distinguish between high eyebrows and low eyes?
For a moment, people in the banquet had different opinions and undercurrents surged.
However, Ying Zheng seemed not to notice. He still looked modest. He stood up and raised his glass and said: "Today is the birthday of the abbot, why bother talking about these unpleasant topics? We only talk about romance and not about government affairs."
Taking the wine bottle from Yu Zhenzi, who was serving the banquet on one side, he poured himself a glass of wine, then walked up to the abbot of the state to pour wine for him, then raised his glass to pay tribute to the abbot of the state: "Young man came here unexpectedly today. , to apologize to you."
Even though the father-in-law was well-informed, for a moment, he was a little unsure of the young prince's identity.
Is he a timid person?
of course not!
If you are really a timid person, how could you dare to go straight into the Gaolinghou Mansion with only a few personal followers, enjoy a banquet after killing people, and then leave after reaching an agreement with the Gaolinghou Crown Prince?
If they were truly cowardly, how could they dare to use an unknown scholar from another country to purge the old aristocracy and accumulate resentment in a way that could be called crazy?
But when he came to visit today, he was so gentle and polite...
The abbot was surprised and uneasy, but he didn't show it on his face. He raised his head and drank the wine in the cup. He smiled openly and said, "Let it go by now. Your Highness, there is no need to mention it again!"
Ying Zheng also smiled and took a few steps forward to pour wine for the nobleman who had previously criticized Gongsun Yi: "My retainer acted arrogantly and offended you all. Today I will offer you a glass of wine to apologize on his behalf."
Seeing a male lion lowering its head, no one would want to take the opportunity to ride on it, but would feel creepy.
Who knows what kind of attack he is planning?
Everyone hurriedly stood up and returned the courtesy, not even daring to say a word.
Ying Zheng paid tribute to several prime ministers one after another, and finally turned around and came to the eldest son of the emperor.
"Brother, please?"
"Sixth brother, you're so polite!" The eldest son of the emperor raised his glass with a fake smile and drank it all in one gulp.
Ying Zheng stood next to him and paid homage. He was extremely handsome and graceful.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the entourage who was approaching and nodded slightly to him. Then he knew that everything was in order, so he said openly and aboveboard to the abbot Tongguo: "I want to be so shameless as to ask for permission to borrow a hall of my host's house to invite a few distinguished guests." I'm talking, but I don't know if the king can fulfill his wish?"
The abbot's expression changed slightly, but he smiled kindly and said, "Why not?"
Immediately he clapped his hands and summoned his cronies over, and ordered: "Clean up the south side hall and set up a lily of the valley table. I hope there will be..."
He looked at Ying Zheng searchingly.
Ying Zheng nodded to him and then began to order: "Eldest brother, the abbot of the country, the Marquis of Guangping, the Marquis of Wuyang, the Marquis of Ancheng..."
It took nine clicks in succession before he stopped.
The eldest son of the emperor saw that he had taken away everyone's attention when he first arrived here, and he felt unhappy. Now he listened to him arrange his own affairs, and he was even more unhappy: "Who do you think you are - —”
Ying Zheng opened his thin lips and said slowly: "Brother, I have a will."
The eldest son of the emperor changed his color slightly and then fell silent.
The abbot also heard those five lowered words, and his face became even more gloomy.
The prime ministers on one side had subtle looks in their eyes.
Needless to say about the eldest son of the emperor, the other eight people are all well-known figures among the old aristocracy.
Jiang Maoyan joked with Tang Yikang in a low voice: "It can't be that His Highness the Sixth Prince set up an ambush in the side hall and wants to kill them all in one fell swoop, right?"
Tang Yikang said helplessly: "Don't talk nonsense."
Zhongshu Ling Li Yan was also thoughtful.
There was a banquet in the husband's house today, and a side hall was quickly closed. In the blink of an eye, Ying Zheng invited people over politely.
As soon as these top nobles left, the main hall seemed to become lonely. Everyone pricked up their ears silently, trying to stretch their way to the south, and then stretch again.
The Queen hurried over with several of her cronies, and saw a number of empty seats in the main hall. Taking a closer look, the people who were not here, except for the old father and the eldest son, were all the leaders of the old aristocratic group. .
Could it be that the Sixth Prince dared to do this? !
Although the queen had already guessed, she was also horrified - Marquis Gaoling was just a middle-ranking marquis after all, but if he killed all these people today, the emperor might not be able to save him!
The moment Jiang Maoyan saw the queen, he knew something was serious, and immediately stood up and left the table to see the ceremony.
The queen had no intention of chatting with her, and immediately said straight to the point: "Where are the father-in-law and the eldest son of the emperor? Where are the sixth princes?!"
Jiang Maoyan looked at the panic and uneasiness in her expression, and raised his finger in the direction of the guide hall.
The queen didn't care what to say anymore and left in a hurry.
Jiang Maoyan followed without saying a word.
Zhongshu ordered Li Yan to turn his eyes and follow closely.
The other prime ministers naturally followed.
…
Ying Zheng said "I have a will" and successfully led everyone to the south hall.
However, when he arrived at the place, he unexpectedly occupied the main seat that should have belonged to the abbot, as if all his previous humility and courtesy had been wiped out.
The eldest son of the emperor felt dissatisfied. After thinking about it, this guy came with a holy intention. He would probably announce the decree later, so let's let him occupy the main seat.
Who would have thought that after Ying Zheng sat down at the head, he just said "just wait for a moment", then stopped paying attention to others and started drinking by himself!
The eldest son of the emperor was naturally angry and wanted to get angry. He also felt that if he dared to do this today, he must have someone to rely on. After some hesitation, he turned to look at his grandfather, who had always been scheming.
The abbot could feel that the Sixth Prince must be planning something today, but he couldn't guess what he was planning. With the words "there is a will", for a moment, he did not dare to act rashly.
But when the rest of the people saw that the host, the abbot, remained silent and took advantage of the power of the Sixth Prince, how could they be willing to take the lead?
Any one of the nine people sitting at the guest table stamping his feet could cause an earthquake in Zhou Kingdom. However, at this moment, they were all like frightened quails, looking at each other in fear and confusion.
Until the queen led someone to open the door of the south hall and met the eyes of Ying Zheng who was sitting upright.
Their eyes briefly collided, and the queen quickly looked away.
There was an overly sharp determination in the young prince's eyes, which forced her to dodge.
She almost saw the wine cup placed in front of everyone at a glance: "Tang'er!"
The queen grabbed her son's sleeve and shouted: "Did you eat the food he gave you, or drink the wine he gave you?!"
The eldest son of the emperor was still too dumb to react, but the others were not stupid - the wine they had just drank was brought by the sixth prince!
Almost as soon as the queen finished speaking, the abbot quickly gave the answer: "We all drank the wine brought by His Highness Sixth Prince, but what's wrong?"
The queen did not answer her father, but panted and looked eagerly at the young man sitting on the throne.
She asked almost eagerly: "Have you ever..."
Ying Zheng asked her calmly: "I don't quite understand what your Majesty means."
Everyone's eyes glanced at these two people suspiciously.
The queen realized what he wanted to do.
His heart skipped a beat briefly, then returned to normal with a wry smile.
She asked him clearly and clearly: "I bribed an alchemist, placed him next to you, ordered him to gain your trust, and finally mixed poison into the elixir you want to take. Now what I want to know Yes, did you mix poison into the wine you brought here today?"
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's expressions changed. The most frustrated ones could not help but suddenly stood up and knocked over the table in front of them.
The eldest son of the emperor's head was numb: "The wine brought by Lao Liu... is poisonous... the poison comes from the queen mother..."
Ying Zheng answered the question inappropriately: "Although in these years, the empress has shown us, mother and son, nothing but mercy and occasional aid, and Changhua even spoke harshly to my mother, but in general, you have treated us so well." There is still some meager kindness between mother and son."
The Queen was slightly distracted when she heard this: "You..."
Ying Zheng raised his hand to stop what she couldn't say. He then held the wine cup with one hand and drank the wine in the cup: "That's all."
The queen is a smart person, the father-in-law is a smart person, and most of the marquises in the hall are smart people.
They understood the truth that the Sixth Prince had not said.
There is no poison in the wine.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
