Soon, Liu Mai slipped back. The light of the surrounding torches shone on his face, making him dare not raise his head to look directly at Huan Xuan's murderous face. He could only hear the emperor's angry voice: "Liu Mai, Who is the person who came to meet you tonight? Where is he now?"
Liu Mai said quickly: "This is Zhou Anmu. This man was originally Liu Yi's personal follower in the Beifu Army. Now he is the master of the second building of the Feixiong Army in the Jiangbei Camp. I, I did not agree to conspire with him, he, he Just left.”
Tao Yuanming laughed: "Since Prefect Liu is loyal to Your Majesty wholeheartedly, why didn't you detain this person at that time?"
Liu Mai suddenly softened to the ground. He knew that this time he was completely screwed. He only heard Huan Xuan's angry voice echoing in his ears: "Ah ha, I remembered, this guy was telling fortunes with copper coins just now, right? , How can he be loyal to me? He is clearly opportunistic and calculating which side may win."
Tao Yuanming smiled and said: "He made it clear just now that it was God's will for him to take the lead a dozen times in a row. I'm afraid that one of these dozen times will make him rebel, and he will already follow Zhou Anmu to assassinate His Majesty. Bar."
Huan Xuan roared: "Come here, push this traitor out, chop it up, and hang his head as the first traitor to be punished in this major treason case!"
Liu Mai's cries and wailings became smaller and smaller as he was dragged away. Finally, he was accompanied by a scream, and there was no more. Huan Xuan looked at Tao Yuanming and breathed a sigh of relief: "Mr. Tao, you He is so discerning that even Jing Zu didn’t think of this level. Now that Zhou Anmu has left, he will definitely inform the rebels everywhere, what should we do?”
Tao Yuanming said calmly: "Your Majesty, if this Zhou Anmu is really what Liu Mai said, he will probably leave the capital directly and go back to Guangling and Jingkou."
Huan Xuan frowned: "How can you see it? Didn't he notify the comrades in Jiankang City?"
Tao Yuanming shook his head: "If I were this Zhou Anmu, Liu Mai would have killed him directly if he had not followed the uprising. But this Zhou Anmu is Liu Yi's subordinate. With this brother's relationship, he would not dare to do this. He couldn't force Liu Mai to start a rebellion, so he left immediately. The matter was urgent and there was a risk of the conspiracy being leaked. In order to protect the mastermind, he had to abandon his accomplices in Jiankang City. Regardless of whether Liu Mai leaked the secret, His Majesty's energy would be focused on On the way to cracking down on the rebels in Jiankang City, after all, this is the capital and the foundation."
Huan Xuan gritted his teeth and said, "What if their leader, such as Liu Yu, is in Jiankang? Wouldn't that mean he could directly capture the thief and capture the king?"
Tao Yuanming's eyes flashed coldly: "If Liu Yu came to Jiankang in person, then it would be him who came to Liu Mai, not Zhou Anmu. And if Liu Mai didn't follow him at that time, Liu Yu would definitely kill him directly. To kill him, such a big thing requires decisiveness, without any hesitation, let alone the possibility of leaking secrets. Zhou Anmu is a small role and does not dare to kill Liu Mai without permission, but Liu Yu is the leader and is not afraid of Liu Yi's censure afterwards. . Therefore, Liu Yu will never personally be in Jiankang. This way, at most, there will only be suspicious soldiers. It is best if he can succeed by chance. If not, he can also delay time."
Huan Xuan nodded: "What you said makes sense. So, did Zhou Anmu go back to report the news to Liu Yu and Liu Yi?"
Tao Yuanming gritted his teeth: "It must be like this. Liu Yu is in Jingkou, and Liu Yi is in Jiangbei Camp in Guangling. According to Liu Mai, Zhou Anmu has been walking for more than two hours, and he may have arrived at Jingkou by now. It's too late to capture Liu Yu again. The two generals Huan Xiu and Huan Hong are probably in danger. What Your Majesty should do is to control Liyang as soon as possible. Zhou Anmu must not have the ability to clone himself. Liyang on the west side of the Yangtze River , as long as it is under control, your Majesty will at least have a safe retreat."
Hu Fan said sternly on the side: "Tao Yuanming, what are you talking about? There is no way to retreat? I have 100,000 elite soldiers, but I will send a few rebels? Your Majesty, as long as you give the order, the general is willing to lead the troops as the vanguard. Defeat these two rebels!"
Huan Xuan gritted his teeth: "General Hu is commendable for his loyalty and bravery, but now I want to hear what Tao Canjun has to say. Let's put Zhou Anmu's matter aside for now. Tell me, there is one more thing I didn't expect. What is it?"
Tao Yuanming said sternly: "The rebels will definitely raise their troops in the name of restoring the old emperor of the Jin Dynasty, King Anyang. As long as your majesty takes good care of this flag, the rebels will not be able to take advantage of it. Once everyone finds out that they don’t have King Anyang in their hands, I’m afraid they will disperse soon.”
Huan Xuan fell into deep thought, while Bian Fanzhi on the side said coldly: "In view of Tao's participation in the army, Anyang King Sima Dezong's brothers, wives, concubines, sons, oh, forget it, he has no children, he and everyone like him Son, what kind of management is better?"
Tao Yuanming smiled slightly: "Anyway, we can't stay in the capital. There are rebels in the city. If there's a battle at the front, and they kidnap King Anyang later, it will be troublesome. And there is no peace in Liyang, so it's best to send him to Jiangzhou , because Jingzhou is currently suppressing the rebellion, only Jiangzhou is relatively safe now."
Bian Fanzhi nodded and whispered in Huan Xuan's ear: "What he said makes sense. Your Majesty can test this person again. If he volunteers to take the initiative to monitor Sima Dezong, he will be killed immediately. He will send someone else to carry out the task. If he does not take the opportunity to follow Sima Dezong, it means that he is still loyal to His Majesty and can be retained in the future."
Huan Xuan's brows widened, he looked at Tao Yuanming and said, "What Tao Shenjun said is absolutely true. It's just that this place is thousands of miles away from the governor of Guo in Jiangzhou. Now there are rebel parties everywhere, and I have to send troops to quell the rebellion again. It is impossible to send a large army to escort him. Who do you think would be more suitable to escort King Anyang?"
Tao Yuanming smiled slightly: "The rebels haven't launched yet, and the rebels have not risen in droves from all over the country. At this time, the road to Jiangzhou is still safe. There is no need to send a large army to escort. Your Majesty only needs to send one or two trustworthy generals with a few With one hundred sergeants, we can set off overnight.”
Huan Xuan softly said "Oh": "Don't you want Mr. Tao to personally escort you? This plan was proposed by you, and it is most appropriate for you to execute it."
Tao Yuanming laughed: "Your Majesty, as your subordinate, I am grateful to you for knowing me. At this time, what I want to do is to follow you here to send troops to quell the bandits in Beifu, to advise you, and to serve as the king's vanguard. How can you escort a mere district?" If I want to do this, what difference does it make to a deserter who runs away from the battle? Although Tao is a scholar, he only hopes that your majesty will give me a pair of leather armor and a spear, so that I can be a soldier for the sake of peace. You go out to fight!”
