Regarding the emperor being poisoned and in danger, Tian Mu, the leader of the Nilin Division, and Ouyang Lin, who had just been promoted to the Qianniu Guards of the Forbidden Army, had completely different reactions.
Tian Mu's thinking is basically similar to Queen Cheng Wen's.
His first thought was not to find out the ins and outs of the case, to find out why Xin Zhongshu wanted to assassinate the emperor, and who was behind it. Tian Mu's first feeling was that his opportunity had come.
The so-called opportunity is, of course, to eliminate dissidents and achieve success.
Ouyang Lin is different from him.
Li Bing was poisoned and injured, which made Ouyang Lin blame himself very much. When Li Bing was still the crown prince of Dongdu, he had been kind to him to save his life. Now that Li Bing was the emperor, he was kind to him. So no matter what, Ouyang Lin didn't want to see Li Bing get hurt.
As a Tiger and Leopard Cavalry member of the Forbidden Army, since he failed to protect the emperor, he must find out the mastermind behind the scenes and get rid of those terrible enemies that pose a threat to the emperor.
Because of this, Ouyang Lin did not fully accept the list provided by Queen Cheng Wen. Instead, he agreed on the surface, but secretly launched an independent investigation.
Tian Mu had always had a problem with him. Seeing that Ouyang Lin decided to take matters into his own hands, of course he was happy to have one less nagging person next to him, so no matter what the Imperial Army Tiger and Leopard Cavalry did, he only led the Bei Ya Ni Lin Division and grabbed the ministers designated by the Queen. , a combination of Luo Zhi trap, crazy attack.
In just four or five days, more than twenty court officials were implicated and convicted. They were all brought to the Nilin Division and tortured.
These people involved in the case were completely unjust. Many of them did not even know Xin Zhongshu. Just because they were named by the Queen, the Nilin Division tried every means to forcefully connect them with clues. They even imagined the context of the case out of thin air and went directly to them. Put a shit basin on your head.
For example, Xu Zhao, a doctor from Taixue, was targeted by the Nilin Division just because he was Li Xiuming's classmate. He was caught in the act of treating his old mother at the beginning of the year. Xin Zhongshu secretly plotted to assassinate the emperor.
There is also secretary Lang Dou Xuhan, who is the kind of unlucky guy who doesn't know Xin Zhongshu at all, but still gets involved. Ni Linsi insisted that Dou Xuhan once praised a work of Xin Zhongshu at the Imperial Capital Poetry Conference and even wrote a poem to match it. He was obviously passing on some kind of code and plotting to rebel.
By the way, Dou Xuhan's cousin-in-law is the Cheng family's old enemy, Duke Chen Ziling.
Although the Nilin Division acted quickly and arrested a large number of officials within a few days, this was just the beginning. Most of the people involved were petty officials from the fifth rank or below. As Bei Ya's arrests become more and more widespread, and more and more confessions are made after being beaten, many important figures in the court are also in danger.
Regarding this absurd situation, the courtiers were very depressed and helpless.
There is only one reason for this: there is no phase in the court.
The political sequence of the Shengtang Dynasty originally had very clear and stable rules. Generally speaking, the governance of the empire is jointly carried out by the emperor, the royal family and ministers. When an emperor encounters an unexpected situation, such as illness, injury, emotional breakdown, etc. that prevents him from managing the government normally, the royal family and ministers will follow the rules of the court and take over the government according to their respective positions.
The so-called royal family mainly refers to the princes and princes with real power; while the so-called ministers refer to those important ministers from the second rank and above, including Taishi, Taifu, Shangzhuguo, Shangshuling, Zhongshuling, Shizhong, Shangshuyou Pushe, the governor and other important military and political officials.
Among them, the prime ministers of Shengtang played a leading role.
Shangshu Ling is the prime minister, Zhongshu Ling is also the prime minister, Shi Zhong and Shangshu Zuo Pu She are also prime ministers. As the heads of hundreds of officials, these people were equivalent to the ballast stones of the imperial ship.
However, it is a pity that the current Shengtang does not have a prime minister.
At the bloody wedding between Murong Xue and Li Xi, the prime ministers of the dynasty were brutally killed by Ashina. They were almost extinct. In the end, only one left, the left servant of the minister, shot Wei Zixuan. And this guy later died because of his The identity of the rebel agent was revealed and he was captured by Ouyang Lin.
After that, the emperor Li Bing failed to promote new officials to supplement his positions for unknown reasons, resulting in the posts of Shangshu Ling, Zhongshu Ling, Shangshu Zuopu She and others remaining vacant.
This special situation could barely function as long as the emperor could manage the government normally. However, Li Bing was suddenly bedridden, and the civil and military forces of the entire dynasty suddenly became leaderless.
Without the prime ministers or the Prince of the East Palace, the Holy Tang court should listen to whom at this time?
Of course, you can only listen to those who are qualified to speak on behalf of the emperor. In other words, listen to Queen Cheng Wen.
To put it mildly, the Shengtang court, without its backbone, was like a plate of loose sand, being rounded and flattened by the queen at will, without any temper at all.
Of course, the courtiers are not completely incapable of counterattack.
To a certain extent, these two positions, Tongzhongshu Menxiasanpin and Tongzhongshumenxiapingzhangshi, also have status similar to that of prime minister. However, they are all officials of the third rank, and the scope of their jurisdiction is relatively narrow. Therefore, their appeal and influence in the court are far less than those of the prime ministers.
However, if Tong Zhongshu's third rank and Tong Zhongshu's Ping Zhangshi dare to take the huge risk of confronting the inner court, stand up to command the civil and military officials, and temporarily take over the power to govern the country when the emperor cannot manage the government normally, then Bei The Yamensi Linsi cannot be as arrogant as it is now, arresting whoever it wants and punishing whomever it wants.
Even more powerful, they can directly ignore the Queen's obstruction, enter the palace to see the emperor, and accept Li Bing's holy will face to face.
And Li Xiuming is planning to do this now.
Of course, for his idea to become a reality, one condition must be met: the ministers are willing to buy his account, accept and support him to represent the officials, and ask the emperor for the power to govern on his behalf.
Once Li Bing nods and agrees to authorize, then Li Xiuming can immediately become the de facto prime minister, responsible for convening qualified royal family members and ministers to discuss national affairs and make joint decisions.
Accordingly, Li Bing will no longer manage politics for the time being, and will no longer issue imperial edicts to the outside world. He will not officially announce his return to imperial power until his dragon body recovers.
It is not difficult to see from this that the conditions required by Li Xiuming will become very difficult to achieve because it touches the interests of Queen Cheng Wen and poses a threat to political opponents in the DPRK and China.
At the very least, officials from the queen's family and traditional noble families must be fiercely opposed.
In the past few days, Li Xiuming has been racing against time, secretly meeting with various factions in the DPRK and China to persuade them to support him. He believed that as long as he could win the approval of most courtiers, he would have the opportunity to challenge the inner court and end the farce in front of him as soon as possible, which made everyone feel in danger.
Unfortunately, his actions were still a step too slow. In this life-and-death speed competition, Cheng Wen, who had the upper hand, finally seized the opportunity. Several arrested officials related to Li Xiuming failed to hold on. He was tortured and tortured, and he confessed against his will that he also participated in the conspiracy to assassinate the emperor.
Before Li Xiuming could connect all the civil and military officials, the Bei Ya Ni Lin Division came to the door.
Facing the imperial edict stamped with a jade seal and ordering his arrest, Li Xiuming shouted angrily: "This is a coup! It's a naked coup! I want to see the emperor! I want to see the emperor!"
The wolf-like Ni Linsi didn't care if he protested, he directly stepped forward and tied up Li Xiuming, dragged him back to Beiya, and tortured him like the others before.
The news of the arrest of Tong Zhongshu's disciple Ping Zhangshi immediately frightened those civil and military officials who held a neutral stance. Everyone has already understood at this time: This posture may really change.
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"Princess, there are more Imperial Guards on the street than yesterday," the housekeeper said solemnly: "I heard from the boys that several neighborhoods in the city are now completely sealed off, as if they are arresting people."
Li Xi looked calm and asked calmly: "Have you heard about Mr. Li's situation?"
The housekeeper frowned and sighed: "Oh, there is no news. Mrs. Li was crying at home, and the whole house was in chaos. The Beiya Nilin Department has been so crowded these days that they can hardly accommodate it, but they are still keeping secrets. It’s ventilated. No one knows what’s going on inside.”
He paused for a moment and then said: "Yesterday, the Hejian Palace sent someone to deliver a message. Prince Li Maoxun said that the consort has been fighting the rebellion in the south and must have missed the princess. Therefore, he suggested that you go to the south of the Yangtze River to visit Commander Murong. , to relieve the couple’s pain of missing each other, I hope the princess will leave as soon as possible.”
Hearing this, Li Xi smiled sweetly: "The prince is interested. He is trying to persuade me to run away quickly."
The old housekeeper shook his head: "Whether it's a visit or an escape, princess, you'd better leave the imperial capital first. They've gone crazy, even Mr. Li dares to arrest him, what else can't be done? Only the Prince Consort's army can protect you right now. .”
"What a joke! How can I, the royal family of the Li family, be afraid of that bitch of the Cheng family?" Li Xi smiled coldly and said, "I will stay in the Prince Consort's Mansion. If the Nilin Division has the guts, then come and arrest me." !”
The butler advised: "Princess, why bother getting angry with those villains? As the saying goes, a good man never suffers immediate losses. Since the inner court is strong, it is not a wise move for us to avoid their sharp edges for the time being."
"This palace is not just a battle of wills," Li Xi said in a deep voice with a cold light flashing in his eyes: "Now that the emperor is controlled by Cheng Wen, the civil and military people in the court are panicking. If there are new changes in the court at this time, Shengtang will fall into disaster again. I insist on staying here to observe the situation and look for opportunities, hoping to help those loyal ministers at the critical moment."
The old housekeeper nodded in understanding: "Since the princess is concerned about state affairs, I won't give advice or help. If you have anything to do, please ask the princess for instructions. My old bones can still withstand the torment."
Li Xi thought for a moment and said in a deep voice: "I want you to go to Jiangnan to report the news in person."
The housekeeper was slightly startled: "Are you looking for help from the consort?"
"No, there is nothing Murong Xue can do about this situation." Li Xi said solemnly: "Go find the Suppressing Army! Go find the Protector!"
