The news that Kunpeng's fleet defeated the main force of Bao Yuchunshui's army at Jingkou quickly spread back to the imperial capital.
Suddenly, the government and the public were delighted, and the whole city was jubilant.
The balance of war is completely tilted, and the final victory is not far away!
Li Bing danced for joy and praised the Zhenjiang Army as the pillar of the country to everyone he met. He even praised Gong Chengze, saying that it was definitely a wise move for him to hand over 600 warships to the Zhenjiang Army.
Gong Chengze was inexplicably praised by the emperor, and Gong Chengze couldn't help but feel happy. He quickly went to find Tian Mu, intending to take him with him to the newly opened top brothel "Cuiwei Pavilion" in the imperial capital to celebrate.
Unexpectedly, Tian Mu, who always loved going to such places, refused.
"Brother, it's not that I don't want to go, it's just that I can't get away." Tian Mu explained apologetically: "The Emperor will have a big move in the past two days, and I have to sit in Nilin Division."
Gong Chengze wanted to ask what the big move was, but he didn't even have time to have a drink, but when the words came to his lips, he swallowed them back. Beiya Nilinsi is the private soldier of Emperor Shengtang, and what he does is always a secret. Unless he is full and strong, he should never ask more questions.
"Okay, since Brother Tian is busy with official duties, I won't bother you. Let's go another day. I'll ask the boss to leave Miss Shiqi for you, hahaha. Say goodbye!"
After Gong Chengze left, Tian Mu couldn't help but sigh, secretly blaming himself for his miserable life.
Idiots like Gong Chengze, who are the only ones left with great achievements, can accomplish great feats in a daze, but as the first close minister of the Emperor Shengtang, he is not even as good as a small personal guard.
Now, in order to win back the emperor's favor, he had to secretly make painstaking arrangements and prepare to compete with all parties. It was really pitiful and tragic.
According to the reports from their subordinates, both the Hubao Cavalry and the Prince Consort are currently secretly accumulating strength. Hubaoqi specially deployed two hundred more experts and gave them to Ouyang Lin to command, which obviously got the emperor's approval. The Prince Consort's Mansion also secretly activated the lurking personnel of the Zhenjiang Army Intelligence Department in the imperial capital, and there were more than thirty of them. Elite spies entered the house and were on standby.
However, the actions of these two groups also made Tian Mu puzzled:
Ouyang Lin's various arrangements at this time basically revolved around the Wannian County Government Prison, which showed that he probably wanted to set up a trap here to lure some important targets into taking the bait. So, who is he planning to catch?
Wei Zixuan's spy accomplice? Lao Jianhua's spy?
At the same time, Princess Li Xi of Fenyang should be in charge of the overall situation at the Prince Consort's Mansion. This royal noblewoman is very special and has a close relationship with Li Jiangyao and the Intelligence Department of the Zhenjiang Army. Who will be her target?
Rui Ji? Or some other more important person?
Tian Mu thought for a long time and decided that it would be better to bury some nails in advance, so he used the Nilin Division's strong connections in the imperial capital to arrange for eight Nilin spies to sneak into the prison under various names. Among them, two spies served as jailers, and the other six people, four men and two women, were detained in various areas according to different crimes.
After arranging these matters, Tian Mu met with Cheng Dong, the Duke of Zhenguo, in private and reported the current situation to him.
Cheng Dong was originally unwilling to get involved in this matter. Because there are not only Ouyang Lin who is supported by the emperor, but also the seventh princess and the prince-in-law of Li Jiangyao, and the rebel traitor Lao Jianhua is also implicated. To say that the situation is chaotic and complicated is an understatement. It is simply a mystery. The cannibalistic abyss.
No matter who is involved, there is a possibility that they will never recover.
However, he couldn't stand his sister Cheng Wen's repeated urging, and finally had no choice but to agree.
Cheng Wen has been very strong recently. Not only did the queen's status become increasingly stable, and the harem was gradually dominated by her, but many traditional noble families in the court also saw the situation clearly and began to move closer to her, quickly forming a new political force.
Under the manipulation of these people, Emperor Li Bing had recently nodded and agreed to allow Zhenguo Gong Chengdong to join the government and participate in politics, and planned to confer the post of Wailang, a member of the Ministry of Punishment.
At this critical moment, Cheng Dong could not disobey the queen's ideas, so he reluctantly took on the responsibility of liaison and helped Cheng Wen control Tian Mu's actions remotely.
After listening to Tian Mu's words, Cheng Dong hummed casually: "Your judgment is purely mediocre. Who is Ouyang Lin going to catch, or who has already been caught? What can you do? Do you want to snatch it from the opponent's hand?" "
Tian Mu was stunned for a moment and said awkwardly: "My lord, you can't say that. Whether Ouyang Lin or Li Xi, they must be planning something secretly now, not to mention what these plans are, but for the court situation For me, it is definitely not a trivial matter. What the official meant is that we hide and observe in secret. If there is some conflict between the Hubao Cavalry and the Prince Consort's Mansion, then we will sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, and wait until the end to come out to take advantage of the queen. Isn’t it great for you and me?”
"How can you be sure that the Prince Consort's target is the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry?" Cheng Dong was a little displeased: "The conflict between the two families is nonsense no matter how you look at it. Unless, like Wei Zixuan, the Prince Consort's Mansion is Lao Jian Hua's spy. Lao Tian, do you think Murong Xue is the traitor? Or is Princess Fenyang the traitor?"
Tian Mu was slightly startled: "Well... they don't look alike."
Cheng Dong said depressedly: "That's it. All your judgments now are based on the hostile angle between the Hubao Cavalry and the Prince Consort's Mansion. Maybe things are just the opposite of what you think. Ouyang Lin plans to use Rui Ji To deal with the rebels, Murong Xue and Li Xi also plan to deal with the rebels. In the end, if the two of them join forces and act together, what will you do? What will you gain? "
Tian Mu smiled when he heard this and said: "My lord, you don't know this. The official guessed that Ouyang Lin's current target is probably not as simple as the rebels. Think about it, Wei Zixuan, as Lao Jianhua, is in the court The biggest spy has been completely destroyed now, so why does Ouyang Lin bother so much and continue to waste time on those small fish and shrimps?"
Cheng Dong put down the honeydew melon in his hand and asked curiously: "You mean, Ouyang Lin has begun to change his target and is preparing to deal with the Prince Consort's Mansion?"
"To be precise, he is not going to deal with the Prince Consort's Mansion, but to deal with Li Jiangyao and the Zhenjiang Army!" Tian Mu sneered: "The Duke must not forget that in fact, Xiaguan, like Ouyang Lin, is working for the emperor. , we will attack whoever the emperor regards as a threat. It's just that Ouyang Lin is being favored now, so he rushes to the front. But from another perspective, I also understand his thoughts best. "
Tian Mu paused and continued: "The Zhenjiang Army just won another great victory. Even Bao Yuchun's navy fleet was killed by them. The next step is for all the major armies to cross the river. The days of the southern rebels The end is just around the corner. From now on, who will become the emperor's biggest threat? Needless to say?"
Cheng Dong thought about it seriously: "Old Tian, what you said makes some sense. Ouyang Lin overthrew Wei Zixuan and captured Rui Ji. It is said that the rebels' spy network in the imperial capital has been severely damaged, so there is really no need to use any more tricks. Hmm... It seems that his target should be someone else. In this way, blind guessing is not good for the operation, and even worse for the Queen. You should try to figure out the real purpose of the tiger and leopard riding in Wannian County as soon as possible, and then Only then can we formulate countermeasures.”
"I'll listen to the Duke," Tian Mu agreed: "It's easy to deal with the Hubao Cavalry, but I'm afraid it will be more troublesome at the Prince Consort's Mansion. It's hard to find out who their target is."
Cheng Dong thought for a moment and said in a deep voice: "You said before that Rui Ji was Murong Xue's woman, and now she seems to have bitten Li Jiangyao, right?"
Tian Mu nodded: "Yes, there are informants from Nilinsi in the Hubao Cavalry. They sent news that Rui Ji confessed to Ouyang Lin that Li Jiangyao was secretly joining forces with Lao Jianhua to prepare to harm the court. Of course, this This statement is so absurd that even the emperor doesn’t believe it.”
Cheng Dong said in a deep voice: "I guess the target of the Prince Consort's Mansion is Rui Ji. Whether it's because she framed the Chief Protector of the Suppressing Xinjiang Army, or because he wants to get more news about the rebels from her, Murong Xue, Li Xi and the others They all have reasons to get Rui Ji in their hands."
Tian Mu smiled sadly and said: "The Duke is wise. Now you should understand why the official said that they might have a conflict, right?"
Cheng Dong also became interested at this time: "If it can really trigger a conflict between them, it will be a good opportunity. At least, it can make the emperor focus all his attention on this matter and ignore us. Lao Tian, are you ready? How?"
Tian Mu leaned closer and said mysteriously: "I have two ideas. One is to sit still and wait for the Hubao Cavalry and the Consort's Mansion to cause trouble first; the other is to wait until the two sides are fighting fiercely, and the subordinate's rebellion The Division will launch a large-scale campaign to control them all. At that time, no matter Rui Ji or any other big shot in the Intelligence Department of the Zhenjiang Army, we will kill them all!"
Cheng Dong nodded slightly when he heard the words: "Okay, let's do it like this. Lao Tian, if this thing can be done, I will ask the empress to give you a big reward, and you will be promoted to a higher position!"
Tian Mu was immediately overjoyed and quickly expressed that he would go all out.
The two were having a lively chat when suddenly, under the guidance of the steward of the Duke's Mansion, a spy from the Bei Ya Ni Lin Division hurried to the living room.
Tian Mu couldn't help being stunned when he saw this, knowing that something big must have happened, and quickly asked: "What's wrong?"
The spy subconsciously glanced at Cheng Dong who was sitting next to him, then bent down to Tian Mu's ear and lowered his voice: "Sir, one of our brothers has been attacked."
Tian Mu asked curiously: "When did it happen? Which brother was attacked? Where was he attacked? Who did it?"
Facing this series of questions, the spy frowned, and then answered carefully: "I just received the news. A few days ago, Erqi received a secret report saying that a group of guys with suspicious identities were on their way to the imperial capital. I'm afraid there is something wrong. The conspiracy is dangerous. They sent three brothers to Lantian to pursue it, but they didn’t expect...just yesterday, all three of them were killed."
