Li Jiangyao and Tanli rode side by side, riding fast in the deep night, without saying a word all the way. After running for a full hour, the Xuanjia Army's camp finally appeared in front of the two of them.
When the war horses were about to approach the camp gate, the sentries on guard noticed them. They raised their hands and shouted from a distance, asking loudly who they were and why they were there.
Tanli grabbed the reins, and after the horse stopped, he replied loudly: "I am the Turkic envoy. I went hunting during the day and now I have returned to camp."
The officer on duty climbed up to the watchtower and recognized that it was indeed the Turkic prince. He hurriedly ordered his subordinates to move away their horses and opened the door to let Tanli in.
Tanli took advantage of the Xuanjia Army being busy, turned to Li Jiangyao and smiled: "Baron, I can tell you now. The mastermind behind the plot against your teacher, General He Jingming, was none other than Lao Jianhua. He planned it all. Throughout the entire ambush operation, it was his apprentice, Di Xian, who led the troops to execute the order."
A cold light flashed in Li Jiangyao's eyes: "Are you sure?"
"Confirmed." Tanli and Li Jiangyao looked at each other with solemn expressions: "Although General He is also an enemy of our Turkic Empire, he is an opponent worthy of respect. What we hope is that on the battlefield Really defeat him instead of using despicable means like assassination to murder him. Lao Jianhua once wrote two letters to inform my father Khan of the ambush plan and subsequent implementation results. After I return, I can steal the letters and send them to I'll send you to Western Xinjiang, and you'll know when the time comes."
"Your Highness, why are you willing to tell the truth?" Li Jiangyao looked at Stanley: "In any case, isn't Lao Jianhua your ally now? Your Highness can make up a murderer at will to prevaricate and deceive me."
Tanli smiled: "Didn't I say that? We Turks also think that Lao Jianhua is very shameful when he treats He Jingming like that. And in my personal opinion, this guy is more dangerous than Xie Guang. If you If you can get rid of him with your own hands, you can not only avenge your teacher, but also do us a favor, right?"
Li Jiangyao nodded slightly: "Okay, if you can give me the evidence, Li will definitely remember the prince's favor."
"Then it's a deal!" Tanli said with a smile: "But...should I have someone deliver the letter to Metasequoia City? Or should I deliver it to your secret base in the Yarumqi Mountains?"
Hearing him suddenly mention "Yalumqi Mountain", Li Jiangyao couldn't help being surprised: "How do you know?"
Tanli smiled happily and said: "Haha, since we have already talked about it, and the Baron brother and I are very close to each other, then I might as well give you another piece of information. In fact, my father Khan has always In the end, we have never relaxed our attention to you, but things have to be prioritized. Therefore, we on the Turkic side are fully aware of all your every move. A few days ago, we launched a campaign against your army in Metasequoia and Yarumqi Mountains. Deployment, my father Khan specially sent an order to the Yakut legion staying in Western Xinjiang, asking them to secretly deploy troops and generals to prepare for encirclement and annihilation."
Li Jiangyao never expected that Ashina Zhijin would not relax his attention on Metasequoia at all while he was marching to the Holy Tang Dynasty and the battle was fierce. What puzzled him even more was Stanley's performance.
Taking the initiative to reveal the Turkic military situation to him was simply unbelievable.
Li Jiangyao couldn't help but asked dubiously: "This matter concerns the interests of the Turks, why do you..."
Tanli was always smiling, but there was an imperceptible chill in his smile: "It's very simple, the Yakut Army of the Yelun Clan is under the command of my eldest brother, and the elders of the Yelun Clan are... I have always supported my eldest brother in inheriting the throne. You should understand what I say, right?"
Li Jiangyao suddenly realized: "I see. Do you want me to deal with the Yakut Army to weaken the prince's strength?"
"I didn't say that," Tanley waved his hands leisurely: "The reason why I disclosed the military information just now was entirely because I was coerced by you, the Baron, and I did it in order to save my life. As for what you are going to do next. I can't do it, but I can't control it. However, I hope that our personal friendship will never be affected by national disputes. I really admire the Baron and want to make friends with you."
After that, he spit out the poisonous pill and whipped his horse: "Baron, the green mountains will not change and the green water will flow forever. See you in the future!"
Li Jiangyao came back to his senses, looked at Tanli's back, and suddenly raised his right arm. What he was holding in his hands at this moment was the mechanism of the poison-quenching sleeve arrows. The sharp arrow has been aimed at the vital part of Tanli's vest. With just a slight pull of the trigger, Tanli's life can be taken away in the blink of an eye.
However, Li Jiangyao did not kill the opponent after all.
Looking at the Turkic prince who was gradually going away, he slowly lowered his arm: Wouldn't it be better to leave such an insidious guy to the Turks themselves to have a headache?
However, at the time, Li Jiangyao failed to realize how bad his single thought would have a negative impact on the national destiny of the entire Turkic Empire.
If time could go back and people in the future could look back at today's historical starting point, then everyone would definitely say: If Li Jiangyao outside the Xuanjia Army camp could kill Tanli without hesitation, I'm afraid even Ah Shi Na sweated profusely and expressed deep respect for him. Princess Hesijia would even be so grateful for this that she would marry Li Jiangyao. Even Yun Qianxue would not raise any objection to this.
It's a pity that there is no "if" in history, let alone going back to give people the opportunity to change it.
Stanley just walked away without any danger.
At some point in the future, he will come back again and give unexpected people an unexpected blow.
Li Jiangyao turned the horse's head and returned the same way. As he walked, he sighed with emotion. Tanley's performance just now was indeed commendable: in the hands of the enemy, surrounded by powerful enemies, this guy still had the courage to talk and talk, and in such a short period of time, he found a way to save his life. , successfully exchanged his own peace with three pieces of irresistible secret information.
Now that I think about it carefully, it is obvious that the order in which Stanley told the three secrets was carefully considered.
Firstly, Lao Jianhua’s allegiance was to the Shengtang royal family, and secondly, the identity of Prince Li Bing was not orthodox. The two pieces of news came out one after the other, which immediately shocked everyone present and put everyone in an inexplicable and suspicious state of mind. , it is difficult to remain wary of him.
In the end, Tanli used Li Jiangyao's fate - the murder of He Jingming, as the ultimate talisman to safely return to the safe zone.
Even the information about the Turks he revealed at the end was probably scheming. It was precisely because this guy was determined to deal with the eldest prince that Li Jiangyao had the idea to let Tanli go back so that he could go back and cause trouble for the Turks. Is Tanley really that powerful, and he calculated that he might still kill him at the last moment, so he deliberately put on a treacherous and infighting look to make Li Jiangyao relent?
"If that's true, that would be amazing!" Li Jiangyao couldn't help but sigh to himself: No wonder Hesijia said before leaving Metasequoia that the person she feared the most was her second brother, Prince Tanli.
-
Imperial capital, royal palace.
All the civil and military officials left the Tai Chi Hall one after another and returned to their respective offices under the moonlight, seizing the time to implement the plan they had just agreed upon in front of the emperor.
The imperial court’s emergency evacuation plan.
Emperor Li Chengwu was sitting behind the dragon table, looking calmly at Nilin Chief Shi Shenlie, who was left behind on purpose.
Shen Lie was silent for a while, and finally couldn't help but said: "Your Majesty, it is a wise move to move the capital to avoid disaster. I completely agree with this decision. However, all the government offices have evacuated, but you insist on staying in the imperial capital. This What’s the point?”
Compared with half a year ago, Li Chengwu's face was obviously much older. He smiled and waved his hand: "Shen Qing, don't worry. Just now all the officials begged me to move away to avoid trouble. It's not like you didn't see it. Liu Shiming that This old guy, who is so old, actually threatened me with death to change his mind. You are all doing it for my own good, I know..."
Shen Lie held up his hands and said: "Your Majesty is a body of ten thousand gold, and is the foundation of our Holy Tang Kingdom and State. At present, we are facing a formidable enemy. We should arrange for the Imperial Guard to escort us and leave the imperial capital as soon as possible!"
Li Chengwu stretched out his hand to take the bird's nest presented by the chamberlain, and smiled nonchalantly: "More than twenty years ago, the emperor's brother passed away, the King of Jin rebelled, and the brothers started to fight against each other. Our Holy Tang Dynasty was turned upside down overnight. At that time, I was still a free prince. I never gave the slightest thought to the throne, but because I was closest to the emperor by blood, I was elected by the clan and court officials to take over the position. Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, I have been working for more than 20 years!"
"Your Majesty is a wise king for thousands of years." Shen Lie didn't know why Li Chengwu mentioned this matter, so he could only follow the topic and said: "Under your rule, the Holy Tang Dynasty was harmonious and all industries were prosperous. It was a prosperous age. This is the prosperity of the empire and the What a blessing to the people!”
Li Chengwu chuckled: "That's nonsense! You flatter me regardless of the occasion or the situation? Now this country is in trouble both internally and externally. Even the imperial capital cannot be saved at any time. How about a thousand-year-old emperor? Are you just cursing me in a roundabout way?"
Shen Lie was so frightened that he quickly lowered his head: "I don't dare, I made a mistake."
"Okay, don't be so nervous," Li Chengwu took a bite of the bird's nest and said, "I'm joking with you. Shen Qing, you are my confidant, and there are some things I can only say to you."
Shen Lie stood up straight and said with a serious face: "I am so scared that I can be recognized by your majesty. I am listening to your majesty's holy teachings."
Li Chengwu nodded: "I know what kind of emperor I am. Although I am not a wise emperor, I am not a cruel and surly emperor. Different from the emperor's efforts to govern, I believe in the way of Huang Lao. , everything is governed by inaction. I originally hoped that relying on Nian Jinsong, Xu Lie and a group of veterans to protect the country and the peace of the people, and finally handing it over to Bing'er smoothly, it would be considered a complete merit. But it didn't happen. Come to think of it, the tree wants to be quiet but the wind doesn't stop, alas...don't tell me, it's all my fault!"
Shen Lie hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, you must not think like this. Whether it is internal troubles or external troubles, there are those treacherous people who covet the Holy Tang Dynasty in all dynasties..."
Li Chengwu interrupted him: "But I am the only one who allows the traitor to succeed."
"Your Majesty, it is too early to say success." Shen Lie solemnly said: "Whether it is the Turks or Xie Guang, they are just proud for a moment. As long as Your Majesty is safe, when King Qin's troops from all over the country arrive one after another, they can completely sweep them away. The internal and external enemies and invaders must restore peace to our country."
"Because of what you said, I can't leave the imperial capital." Li Chengwu's tone seemed very firm: "I can be a king who does nothing, but I can never be an emperor who runs away. Only when I am here can the imperial capital be called the imperial capital. , can we become the souls of the soldiers and civilians of Shengtang. If I coexist with the imperial capital, then Shengtang will be able to drive out the enemy invaders; if we die together with the imperial capital, then Shengtang will be able to rebuild the country! Do you understand this truth?"
"I...understand."
Li Chengwu seemed to not be able to see the tears in Shen Lie's eyes, and said happily: "I know you are a sensible person. What Shengtang needs me to do is to inspire the bravery of the dynasty. Otherwise, it will not be enough to fight against history." The most powerful enemy. So how to inspire yourself? There is only one thing, that is to defend the imperial capital! If the emperor of the Holy Tang Dynasty defends the capital, the morale of the army will be boosted and the morale will be like a rainbow; if he cannot defend it, I will die for the country, and the whole country will. Vengeful soldiers! By then, the enemy will have nothing to fear!"
He paused for a moment and said softly: "This can be regarded as my last contribution to future generations."
Of course Shen Lie understood Li Chengwu's thoughts. He shook his head in pain, then nodded and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, since your holy will has been made, please allow Shen Lie to accompany the emperor and fight the national disaster together!"
Li Chengwu looked at Shen Lie quietly: "No."
