Liu Zhang, who returned to the Hou General's Mansion, suppressed his longing for his wife, immediately called for Tai Shici and Zhao Yun, and immediately held a small meeting with Xun You and Dian Wei who were in the manor.
"Gongda, when you enter the palace this time, Your Majesty is looking for me..."
Liu Zhang told Xun You everything from his chance encounter with Zhang Rang when he entered the palace, to his various conversations with Liu Hong, to his chance encounter with He Jin and others when he left the palace.
In fact, Jia Xu was the one who had the best grasp of these court affairs, as well as the deceit and calculation between people. However, Jia Xu was far away in Hanzhong at the moment, and Liu Zhang could only discuss it with Xun You.
Xun You was good at military strategy and was not good at these intrigues, but this was only compared to someone of Jia Xu's level. If compared with Liu Zhang, he is naturally too strong to be compared!
Liu Zhang naturally knew this very well. Xun You did not see it as thoroughly as Jia Xu, but he saw it much more profoundly than he himself.
"Master, why do I think Zhang Rang is waiting for you at the palace gate on purpose?"
"Waiting for me on purpose?"
Liu Zhang was a little surprised. The definition of chance encounter had already solidified in his mind.
"What's the point of Zhang Rang doing this?"
Xun You stroked his beard lightly and thought about the logic.
Perhaps the difference between Jia Xu and Xun You lies in this. Jia Xu can often tell it with great certainty, but Xun You needs repeated deliberation.
After a while, Xun You finally got his thoughts straight.
"My lord, think about it carefully, what did Zhang Rang say to my lord?"
Liu Zhang narrowed his eyes slightly and began to recall the whole process again.
What did you say? It was nothing more than greeting him for returning to Luoyang so soon, telling about the expansion of his relatives' power in recent years, and finally revealing Liu Hong's condition.
No matter how he thought about it, Liu Zhang didn't think there was anything strange. It was nothing more than Zhang Rang complaining to Liu Zhang and talking too much about Liu Hong's situation.
"Gongda, are you thinking too much?"
Xun You shook his head firmly. Now that Jia Xu is not here, Xun You knows that every word he says must be cautious! Once Liu Zhang is misled, the group headed by Liu Zhang will definitely suffer disaster.
"My lord, the distance from Hanzhong to Luoyang is fixed, and there has been no war recently. Therefore, your Majesty must know how long it will take from the eunuch's departure from Luoyang to the time when the lord returns to Luoyang."
"Judging from Zhang Rang's reaction, both Zhang Rang and His Majesty must be surprised by the Lord's sudden arrival in Luoyang. Because our marching speed must have far exceeded their expectations."
Liu Zhang nodded, there is no doubt about this, because the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict left a few days early, and Liu Zhang caught up from behind and returned to Luoyang faster than they did!
"But what does this mean?"
"It shows that the lord will never violate your majesty's will! It means that the lord's loyalty to your majesty has not changed at all!"
Xun You directly brought up the central point, which made Liu Zhang stand up as if he was enlightened.
"Your Majesty is testing whether I will be as obedient as before!"
Seeing Liu Zhang's shocked expression, Xun You nodded again.
"That's right! First, I'm testing the lord's attitude, then using the latest situation in Luoyang to test the lord's reaction, and finally using His Majesty's illness to test the lord's thoughts!"
Liu Zhang sat down a little decadently, a feeling of exhaustion welling up in his heart.
After receiving the imperial edict, he rushed to the capital Luoyang without stopping. What greeted him was such a profound temptation!
"Fortunately, fortunately I was cautious..."
In fact, Liu Zhang wanted to say that it was a good thing he acted, pretending to be nervous about Liu Hong's condition in a low profile!
"God bless my lord, so that my lord can survive this disaster safely!"
Liu Zhang didn't have much intention to accept Xun You's congratulations. Instead, he looked up to the sky and sighed.
"Hey, they say that a cunning rabbit dies and is cooked by lackeys, and a flying bird hides its good bow! Even before we have done anything, we are always under suspicion by His Majesty!"
Everyone in the room fell into silence, which was really chilling!
"Hmph! It's better to have a good time in Hanzhong. When you come to Luoyang, you will have to suffer from this dog emperor's arrogance!"
Dian Wei slammed the table, venting his dissatisfaction. If anyone in Liu Zhang's team hates Liu Hong the most, it is none other than Dian Wei.
Liu Zhang surprisingly did not rebuke Dian Wei, and even more surprising, Xun You did not refute him!
"Well, this kind of life won't last long. His Majesty's body is already very weak. I estimate that it will be at the beginning of next year at the most!"
Liu Zhang's words completely shocked everyone, including Xun You, who had been hinted at by Liu Zhang.
Liu Zhang only gave Xun You a rough idea before. Xun You thought it would last another one to two years, but he didn't expect it to be so fast.
"My lord, are you sure? It's already September!"
Liu Zhang was too sure. In this era, suffering from diabetes is a matter of life and death, not to mention Liu Hong's physical fitness.
"I'll give you an answer, no later than February next year."
Now Liu Zhang no longer had to hide it, and directly revealed his accurate prediction of Liu Hong's life and death.
"No wonder His Majesty formed the Xiyuan Army to fight against He Jin. It seems that he is determined to abolish the elders and establish the younger ones!"
Xun You became more and more disappointed with Liu Hong. His eldest son Liu Bian was gentle, generous, and had no fault. However, he was about to be deposed just because Liu Hong didn't like him! No consideration was given to the consequences of deposing Liu Bian.
Can Queen He give up? Can the general sit back and watch Liu Xie succeed to the throne? Don’t the aristocratic families want an emperor like Liu Bian?
Liu Hong is equivalent to using his own power to make the entire world an enemy!
"Lord, let's start now to gain enough power in Luoyang. The bigger the power, the better, so that we can deal with future turmoil!"
Xun You had foreseen that the moment Liu Hong died would be the beginning of Luoyang's turmoil.
"That's right! The opportunity is coming soon! His Majesty is about to restart the military exercises. This time we and He Jin will definitely win the contest with a crushing victory!"
Liu Zhang turned his attention to Zhao Yun and Tai Shici. These two people would be his support during this military exercise.
Zhao Yun and Tai Shici stood up at the same time, their eyes reflecting extremely strong confidence. Taishi Ci even made a promise to Liu Zhang.
"Lord, don't worry, Wu Feng Battalion will definitely make no mistakes! This military exercise must let the world know the name of our Wu Feng Battalion!"
Wu Feng Camp has been training for two years, and various military formations have been practiced for a long time, especially the use of the Chexuan Formation, which is even more perfect!
Under the command of Tai Shici, the entire Wu Feng camp was united as one, and was fully capable of executing orders and prohibitions!
Taishi Ci has unparalleled confidence in Wu Fengying. Let alone fight against the useless He Jin, even if he is asked to fight against the Xianbei Wuhuan cavalry now, Taishi Ci will never frown!
"Haha, of course I trust Ziyi. How can a waste like He Jin have elite soldiers? But this time I have only one request. I want a big victory, a complete victory, a crushing victory. Victory, more importantly a complete victory!”
Liu Zhang must take this opportunity to reawaken the reputation people had for him a few years ago.
After three years of silence, many people may have forgotten him as the god of death on the battlefield, this Yellow Turban Slayer, the undefeated general who destroyed Xiliang!
