The cold wind howled.
Facing Li Zhaoyuan's gaze, Xu Yuan said in a deep voice:
"Your Highness, we did not do this."
Li Zhaoyuan frowned and showed a hint of thought:
"Didn't you do this?"
As he spoke, a smile of "I understand" appeared on the corner of his lips:
"The Prime Minister's Mansion serves the country and the people, so naturally it will not do such a thing of destroying the city wall. I guess it was the work of some rebellious officials and traitors."
No matter what the purpose is, blowing up ordnance before the war without breaking the skin is a big scapegoat, and whoever takes the blame will die.
If the Prime Minister's Mansion betrays him, he will have to pay the price.
Therefore, there is a high probability that this matter will be turned into an unjust case.
Xu Yuan looked at Li Zhaoyuan's expression that was half-smiling but not smiling, and the corners of his eyes twitched uncontrollably.
If it's broken, it seems like he's going to take the blame.
If the sect's warehouse is bombed, whoever is the first beneficiary will be the biggest suspect. It couldn't be simpler.
But now there are two biggest beneficiaries, the barbarians and the Great Yan court.
A kind of sick win-win, winning against the Northern Sect twice.
And between the two, can the barbarians place spies into Beifeng City?
The answer is no.
The races are all different, and the barbarians covered in black spikes have to be beaten into a sieve before they get even ten miles away.
In other words, the only people behind this matter were the Great Yan Court, that is, the royal family and the Prime Minister's Mansion.
Li Zhaoyuan knew that if he didn't do anything, then the Prime Minister's Mansion would be the only one left.
And here comes the crux of the problem,
As the actual person in charge of the Prime Minister's Office in the north, Xu Yuan now also wants to know who did this?
Indeed, he does want to explode, and has even made arrangements, but the time for the Black Scale Guards to take action is not tonight at all, and it is not on such a large scale as tonight.
There was a moment of silence,
Xu Yuan turned his eyes to look at the fire in the distance that was gradually being controlled, and repeated again:
"Your Highness, we really didn't do this."
Li Zhaoyuan smiled and said nothing.
Xu Yuan took a deep breath, then smiled and whispered:
"It seems that His Highness does not believe my words."
While talking, Xu Yuan took out a file from the Sumeru Ring and handed it to Li Zhaoyuan:
"In that case, Your Highness, you might as well take a look at this file. It was given to me by Lou Ji before she left the city."
He needed to explain this.
Only with a clear explanation can Li Zhaoyuan and Li Qingyan realize that there is a third-party force obstructing the city.
Li Zhaoyuan raised his eyebrows, reached out to take it, and said with interest:
"Mr. Lou has such a clever plan to bring peace to the world. Even if he leaves the city, he can still leave so many tips and tricks for Third Young Master You."
This funny joke is obviously suspicious of something.
But Xu Yuan didn't care about this.
Being a dandy does not mean having no brains. It would be strange if you grew up in a place like Xiangguo Mansion, where no white people come and go.
And now that he can practice, he has indeed reached the age where he should take over the family affairs.
In this regard, all the aristocratic families in the world basically follow the same template.
The third prince Li Yunqing was able to confirm his identity entirely because of a series of previous coincidences.
Therefore, Xu Yuan replied nonchalantly:
"Of course I need to know something before I dare to stay in Beifeng City."
Li Zhaoyuan smiled, said no more, and looked down at the file in his hand.
The wind and snow at the top of the attic were still there, and there was no words for a moment. The fire in the distance was also under control while the two were talking over a cup of tea.
And as you browse,
Li Zhaoyuan's brows wrinkled little by little.
Xu Yuan said softly at this time:
"Your Highness, although the sect is bad, it is not stupid. Before the troops move, food and grass go first. We understand this kind of thing, and they naturally understand it too."
Li Zhaoyuan moved his gaze from the file and looked at Xu Yuan with a solemn look:
"So, it's really not you tonight?"
The dossier is a plan that Xu Yuan submitted to Lou Ji before.
Codenamed Long Night, a plan to blow up the sect’s inventory.
The reason for formulating the plan was almost the same as what Li Zhaoyuan had said before, but it had not been implemented yet because the sect was very defensive and they did not have enough time to prepare.
There was a touch of helplessness in Xu Yuan's narrow eyes:
"Your Highness, the sect's warehouses have always been their focus. Exploring the inventory and destroying it are completely different. The Black Scale Guard is not a wishing machine. Make a wish and it will cash it out for you.
"We need time, it takes time to make a decision, it takes time to distribute it to the grassroots, and it also takes time to prepare and implement."
Speaking of this, Xu Yuan spread his hands:
"The Northern Sect is divided into factions. There are seven large warehouses and thirteen small ones. Even if our prime minister wanted to do this, it would be too late."
Li Zhaoyuan frowned even more tightly, seeming to realize the cause and effect.
It has only been seven or eight hours since the barbarians appeared in the south of Beifeng City. It is almost impossible for even the Black Scale Guards to cause such large-scale damage in such a short period of time.
"Then Third Young Master, who do you think did this?"
When Xu Yuan heard this question, he rolled his eyes: "You ask me, who should I ask?"
After all,
Xu Yuan turned around and jumped off the top of the attic to leave.
Li Zhaoyuan saw this and asked:
"Third Young Master, where are you going?"
Xu Yuan paused, looked back, and said matter-of-factly:
"I'm tired, go back to your room and sleep."
Li Zhaoyuan was slightly startled:
"With this situation, how can the Third Young Master sleep?"
Xu Yuan nuzzled his lips towards Li Zhaoyuan and grinned:
"Of course I can sleep. If the sky falls, there will be a tall man to hold it up, so I'd better leave these things to the statecraft talents like you, His Highness, Second Highness."
After that, he jumped up and disappeared into the night.
Zhou Chen on the side bowed and left.
Watching the two figures disappear,
Li Zhaoyuan lowered his eyes and glanced at the file in his hand, and was about to put it away quietly, but unexpectedly, the file spontaneously ignited.
Seeing this scene, Li Zhaoyuan breathed out a breath, scattered the ashes and disappeared in the same place.
Several people jumped to the ground from high altitude,
Because of the cold wind, Xu Yuan ran the Blood Yuan Xin Destruction Technique for several rounds and wrapped his jacket much tighter before he felt that his body was much warmer.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Zhou Chen, a middle-aged man with unshaven beard, following him.
When Xu Yuan saw this, he paused and asked:
"Mr. Zhou, if you don't go down and rest, why are you following me?"
Zhou Chen chuckled when he heard this:
"Third Young Master, I'm afraid there will be chaos tonight. Zhou will guard the door for you to keep you safe."
Xu Yuan was speechless and nodded without refusing.
Walking on the way back to the hospital,
Zhou Chen suddenly asked mysteriously:
"Third Young Master, who do you think did what happened tonight?"
Xu Yuan replied directly without thinking:
"It should be those sects."
"Zongs? Those in the north and south?" Zhou Chen touched his chin.
Xu Yuan glanced at the south and chuckled:
"It's not the royal family, it's not us, it can't be the Northern Sect's own bombing, right?"
Zhou Chen showed a hint of surprise, a look of solemn respect on his face, and respectfully cupped his fists and raised his hands:
"Third Young Master sees things thoroughly."
Xu Yuan's mouth twitched and he waved his hand:
"Okay, planning such a large-scale sabotage operation cannot be done overnight. According to the efficiency of our Black Scale Guards, the planning time to carry out such a large-scale sabotage mission without leaving any traces is at least In units of months. And based on the situation a few months ago, if the Beifeng Warehouse was destroyed, the imperial court would be forced to withdraw its troops, which is what those sects would like to see."
Zhou Chen hesitated when he heard this and said:
"Monthly? But what is your current plan?"
Xu Yuan smiled slightly:
"It doesn't matter whether the Beifeng City has any handle or not. If this war can be won, it can be explained by the urgency to follow the right. If it cannot be won, everything will not matter, because the Northern Sect will no longer exist. .”
Three hundred thousand elites were buried in the snowy fields, and the northern sect was basically an empty shell.
A dead person cannot ask for an explanation.
Zhou Chen grinned, bowed his hands again, and said solemnly:
"I didn't know it at first sight, but the third young master is really a great talent."
"."Xu Yuan.
After a moment of pause, Zhou Chen suddenly said coldly:
"Third Young Master, there is something Zhou said that I don't know whether to say or not."
Xu Yuan glanced at him:
“Speak when it’s time to speak, and don’t speak when it’s not appropriate.”
After coughing lightly, Zhou Chen still said tentatively:
"Sir, given the current situation, if it was really the sects in the south who did it, they would destroy us and the royal family's warehouses as well."
Xu Yuan chuckled lightly and said:
"Just destroying the warehouses of the Northern Sect can still put this label on us. If they destroy everything, then it will be their fault."
Zhou Chen was quiet for a moment and asked:
"Target, is it useful?"
Xu Yuan smiled and said:
"Of course it is useful"
Before he finished speaking, Xu Yuan's voice stopped abruptly.
The incident happened suddenly and he had not yet thought about it deeply.
Are targets useful?
Of course it works.
Due to the privilege of not paying taxes, the sects of the world formed an intricate whole of interests.
Now that this group of interests has directly sold the Northern Sect for the benefit of most people, the court has a lot of room to maneuver here, and at least it can create a wedge.
But now when he thought deeply, Xu Yuan suddenly realized that there seemed to be no way to separate.
In other words, the effect of alienation is not great.
The Imperial Court of Dayan wants to collect the Immortal Tax, but the sect is unwilling to pay it. This is the lowest and most direct contradiction.
If this point cannot be solved, even if the Northern Sect is cheated, they will only come back to take revenge in other places instead of cooperating with the court.
Put yourself in someone else's shoes,
Judging from the intelligence from the sect, if all the warehouses in Beifeng City are blown up, coupled with the current blizzard disaster, Beifeng City will definitely be lost, and the 700,000 elites will also be destroyed.
Next, the three northern continents will face the barbarian troops. The elites of the sect are completely exhausted and unable to resist. No matter how powerful your Xu Yinhe and Li Yaoxuan are, you have to deal with the barbarians first.
If Li Yaoxuan dies, the situation will inevitably change dramatically.
Will the next emperor of the Dayan Dynasty have the same attitude as Li Yaoxuan?
The sects of the world will not threaten the status of the Li family's surname, but the Xu Gonggong in the Prime Minister's Mansion.
Thoughts come to this,
Xu Yuan's Danfeng eyes, filled with blood flames, had a hint of solemnity.
Why don't these people attack my court warehouse?
Is it because you can't plant spies?
The answer seems to be only this.
Tonight's incident made Xu Yuan's judgment of the situation begin to blur.
In the silence, the wind and snow were swaying, the roar of the sky in Nancheng was still there, and the bright pattern lights were still emitting a misty light on both sides of the stone road.
I don't know how long he stood there, but Xu Yuan suddenly glanced at the meeting hall.
Seeing this, Zhou Chen sent a message and asked:
"What did Third Young Master think of?"
Xu Yuan frowned and took a few breaths in thought before spitting out a name.
Li Zhaoyuan.
Zhou Chen was stunned for a moment when he heard the second prince's name:
"Third Young Master, what do you mean?"
Xu Yuan exhaled, but his tone was a little uncertain:
"Maybe the second prince did this."
Zhou Chen sounded puzzled:
"Second Prince? Your Highness should not have this kind of energy in his hands."
Xu Yuan continued to move forward, glanced at Zhou Chen, and said through a message:
"It's true that he doesn't have it on hand, but didn't I just say that the southern sect does have it."
Zhou Chen hissed and asked cautiously:
"Third Young Master, do you mean that His Highness is having an affair with the sect? Why?"
"To seize the direct descendant."
Xu Yuan sighed and looked in the direction of the Imperial Capital: "Mr. Zhou, do you know how big the gap is between His Highness the Crown Prince and the Second Prince?"
"Ahem, Third Young Master, this matter is about Zhou."
Zhou Chen coughed lightly. His laid-back personality made him subconsciously want to avoid this topic.
This thing is too dangerous.
His first- and third-grade Grandmaster could die at any time without a burial place if he plunged into it.
But in the middle of his words, he paused, gritted his teeth, and changed the subject:
"Zhou really doesn't know, but it is said in the world that the second prince's temperament is similar to that of the Holy One. The Holy One thinks that the current situation may change for the Crown Prince, right?"
With his current cultivation resources, he may only be able to reach the third level in this life.
Wealth is sought in danger, and this is the opportunity to become the confidant of the Third Young Master.
Seeing that Zhou Chen did not refuse, Xu Yuan smiled slightly and said:
"The gap between him and the prince has almost reached the point where the Holy Emperor cannot control him."
"The Holy One can't control it?" Zhou Chen licked his lips.
Xu Yuan smiled slightly:
"The Holy One has delegated too much power to the prince. The prince has been established as the crown prince for nearly thirty years. It is impossible for these princelings to switch to the second prince after so many years. The secondary prime minister, the commander of the imperial army, and the royal chamber of commerce are all important officials of the court. , Unless the current saint is so cruel that he directly kills the prince."
The companionship of nearly thirty years has become a strong bond of life and death.
Even if Li Yaoxuan seems to be supporting Li Zhaoyuan to ascend to power, the people under the prince will not agree at all.
Once Li Zhaoyuan ascends the throne, these positions will inevitably be gradually replaced by his cronies, in other words, they will be liquidated.
Therefore, Li Yaoxuan now has no time to support Li Zhaoyuan.
After a pause, Xu Yuan laughed softly:
"Of course, it is possible if Li Zhaoyuan is willing to cooperate with our Prime Minister's Office, but if he chooses this way, without any foundation, he will most likely become a puppet, and our Prime Minister's Office will gradually unify the royal family's forces."
"Mr. Zhou, do you think someone like Li Zhaoyuan would be willing to become a puppet emperor?"
Silence.
After a long while, Zhou Chen suddenly whispered:
"So, if the second prince wants to ascend the throne, he can only seek support from the sect?"
