It was already dawn, and Lu Zuo felt much better after a night's rest. Before dawn, he and his wife An Jingruo rode horses to inspect the city. Yin Ji also followed the master early.
They rode past the inn where they stayed when they went to Beijing to take the exam a few years ago. They couldn't help but stop. Looking at the ruins and closed doors in front of them, Lu Zuo felt a little sad. What appeared in front of his eyes were all the memories of when he and his brother first came to the capital. appearance.
The three of them got off their horses. Yin Ji tied the horses to the hitching post in front of the door and followed them to the inn door.
Yin Ji walked in front, the door was closed, and the plaque above his head was tilted. The four gilt characters "Gaosheng Inn" were still brand new. Lu Zuo nodded indicatively, and Yin Ji stepped forward and knocked on the door gently. After knocking twice, no one answered the door, but a man appeared from behind and called Lu Zuo. When the three of them turned to look, they turned out to be Qin Fu and Lu Xiuyuan.
Qin Fu said anxiously: "My dear nephew, why are you still wandering around here when you have made us so miserable? Come back to the palace with us to host the court meeting."
"A court meeting?" Lu Zuo and An Jingruo looked at each other, surprised.
Lu Xiuyuan said: "You don't know yet? Last night Liu Xingyuan asked people to spread the word, asking the former officials to go to court today."
"How could I not know?" Lu Zuo asked.
"We don't know either. I asked other brothers. It seems that Liu Xingyuan only informed the old ministers of the former dynasty and did not discuss it with us at all." Lu Xiuyuan also had some dissatisfaction in his tone.
After hearing this, Lu Zuo felt a little dissatisfied. It seemed that Liu Xingyuan's ambition was far greater than he thought.
When Lu Zuo was about to leave, the door of the inn opened. The person who opened the door was the clerk from a few years ago. The clerk was also diligent. Seeing that the visitor was well-dressed, he thought of inviting in, "Please invite some guests in..."
Lu Zuo waved his hand, indicating that it was not necessary.
The waiter said: "Knock on the door early in the morning, come in and have a cup of tea!"
"No need, we have urgent matters."
"What's the hurry," the clerk continued, "His Royal Highness Prince Ning is back in Beijing now, and he's very kind to us. There's nothing to be anxious about..."
After Lu Zuo heard this, he stepped back again. He turned around, looked at the man suspiciously, and asked, "How do you say this?"
The waiter said: "Look at this street. Yesterday it was a mess with no people around. This morning, it is neat and tidy, as if there has never been a war. I heard last night that the prince killed the false emperor. , now that he is here, we people can have a good life."
Qin Fu couldn't help but interrupt: "He is nothing. Without us, he is nothing. We still don't know who will sit on the throne!"
When the waiter saw this man's ferocious face and threatening words, he unconsciously took a step back and said, "You will be beheaded if you say such things."
"Why," Qin Fu said with his head held high, "let him try it!"
The waiter saw that they were very impressive, so he stared at Lu Zuo and looked him up and down, wondering, as if he had seen him somewhere before, but he couldn't tell, "Have we seen this guest officer before?"
Qin Fu pulled Lu Zuo over and said, "Come on, don't talk nonsense to him!"
Outside the Xuanzheng Hall, more officials were waiting one after another. Everyone distanced themselves from each other and waited quietly. Some people occasionally whispered, but they did not dare to say more. It was already broad daylight, but no one came to call for court. After everyone waited for a while, a man walked up the Danqi of Xuanzheng Palace. He was in bright armor and mighty. It was Meng Silang. Seeing that he was still in the spring breeze, everyone guessed that there would be no surrender in today's court meeting. It is true to blame the old minister.
Meng Silang walked up to the ministers. He didn't say much, just cupped his fists and said, "Comrades, you have worked hard, please come into the palace."
Everyone looked at each other, and Du Zongting was even more at a loss. When King Ning died, Du Zongting, Zhao Shanqian and others contributed a lot. Zhao Shanqian was dead, and he didn't know what the outcome would be. They all said that they would not anger the old minister, so what about his situation? It was different, and there was Lu Zuo who also had a grudge against him. Thinking of this, he suddenly regretted not running away.
At this time, Meng Silang seemed to see Du Zongting hiding in the corner shivering, so he stepped forward to comfort him: "Master Du, don't worry, our Lord Ning is generous and righteous and will not care about it. You are all talents that His Highness relies on now, so how was it before? How about now!"
One of the officials with a gray beard asked: "Does General Meng really mean what he said?"
Meng Silang spread his hands and said, "Look, isn't Xiaguan fine now? Moreover, what he said just now was all said by Prince Ning himself. Xiaguan is just here to convey a message. Everyone, please..."
Overnight, all the officials who had been trembling with fear during the civil war in the Xuanzheng Hall became old ministers of the previous dynasty, and it was inevitable that they would feel uneasy. Everyone stood in step, looking around with their peripheral vision, silently counting how many people had escaped and how many people had encountered military disasters. Immediately afterwards, everyone's eyes began to look for Liu Xingyuan and Lu Zuo, but no one was seen. Even the thieves from Fengji Mountain were not seen. So who will preside over today's court meeting? Everyone is worried...
"Cough..." Suddenly there was a slight cough from behind the hall.
The minister below was startled. When he looked up, he saw a man with bright armor slowly walking out from behind the screen in the middle of the main hall. That man was Liu Xingyuan. People who had seen Liu Xingyuan before could not help but see him. Compared with last year, both of them were different. Silver hair has grown on his temples, his facial features have become more angular, his eyes have become sharper, and his thick beard has turned purple in the light.
The ministers standing under the Grand Highness looked at each other. They now had some idea of the struggle for the throne, but they had to continue to look at how ambitious Liu Xingyuan was.
"His Royal Highness Prince Ning, Chitose..." The ministers were still a little cautious now, they only bowed and saluted, and did not kneel down to shout.
Liu Xingyuan looked flattered, and hurriedly motioned with his hands for everyone not to salute like this, but did not say so directly. Then he slowly walked down the steps and came to the courtiers. He once again signaled that everyone did not need to be polite, and said: "You colleagues must have heard that, Everyone is still continuing to perform their duties according to the old system. Now that the disobedient ones have been eliminated, everyone can rest assured. I promise that I will never settle old scores with you."
Everyone felt relieved when they saw Prince Ning swearing in public, so they all said in unison: "His Royal Highness Prince Ning is wise..."
Liu Xing was secretly happy when he saw the situation, and then changed the topic: "But now the leader of the rebel army is Marshal Lu, and everything will be decided by him."
In an instant, the expressions of the ministers changed.
Liu Xing was far-sighted, raised the corner of his mouth slightly, and continued: "Marshal Lu has worked hard and achieved great results. This time he led... um... the brothers from Fengji Mountain, all the way to the capital without losing a fight. Now it is difficult to attack the city, and he has old illnesses, so I had a rest yesterday, and I didn't bother to invite him here today. When his body... um... gets better, let's see how he arranges it..." Liu Xingyuan said while observing everyone's expressions.
When everyone heard what King Ning said, they were shocked and frightened.
