The men in black have withdrawn from the West Gobi, but have not yet returned to Loulan and are still stationed in Yongzhou.
Qin Wubing was still leading the army.
"General, this is an official letter from Dao Sect Tiangang Hall." A man in black, dressed in military attaché uniform, strode into the Chinese army's tent and handed an official document to Qin Wubing's hand.
Qin Wubing felt a little guilty for no reason: "Tiangang Hall...couldn't they be here to investigate? It shouldn't be. They know that we are not responsible for this matter. In the final analysis, it is still due to their own internal fighting. By the way, which department is it? No Will he be the new leader, right?"
The general hesitated and said, "It's the Eighth Division."
"Eighth Division?" Qin Wubing was startled.
"It is the original Ninth Division Yaoguang Division, which was integrated with the original Seventh Division of Shangguan Master to become the Eighth Division. The current deputy hall leader is Zhang Yuelu, the disciple of Master Cihang." The general explained.
Qin Wubing nodded and looked at the official letter in his hand.
There are not many words, so you can read it quickly.
Qin Wubing frowned: "There is no one named Wei Wugui among my soldiers, but this name is very familiar. I seem to have heard it somewhere."
The general reminded: "General, the man who saved the county lord."
Qin Wubing was busy with military affairs, and it was impossible to keep an insignificant person in mind. After the general reminded him, he immediately remembered: "It's him, I gave him a sign."
Then Qin Wubing flicked the official letter in his hand with his fingers, and was a little confused: "Listen to the meaning behind Zhang Yuelu's words, this kid used the sign I gave him to cheat? He even alerted the Taoist Tiangang Hall."
The general said with a wry smile: "This person had forced his way through the border back then. He was a very daring person and even killed one of our soldiers. It's just that we were wrong first and had the face of the county leader, so we didn't care about it."
Qin Wubing walked back and forth with the official letter: "What did Zhang Yuelu ask him for? Is he going to write an article for us? The key is what he committed. There is not a single word in the official letter."
Because Zhang Yuelu was just guessing and suspecting without any real evidence, and because the imperial court and the Taoist sect were separated by a layer and needed to leave some room, Tian Baobao never stated anything about Wan Xiuwu in the official letter.
At this time, there was also a white-haired old man in the big tent. This man had a good status. He was the mastermind of two generations of Jiangling County kings. His name was Sikong Song, and he came from a Confucian family. Before the generals came in, Qin Wubing was playing chess with Sikong Song.
Sikong Song, who had been silent all this time, said: "If it's an ordinary matter, that's all. But if it's a major matter involving internal fighting within the Taoist sect, at this sensitive and critical moment, we must not get involved, or even have the slightest connection. have."
Qin Wubing stopped and said, "Sir, you are right. Shangguan Jing's matter has already involved us. We can't get involved any deeper, otherwise there will be no way to escape."
The two looked at each other, speechless for a moment.
After a while, Sikong Song slowly said: "Taoism teaches inaction, at least in the explicit sense, so there is no way to live without a king for a day. The position of Grand Master has been vacant for ten years, and the three deputy Grand Masters have It is not impossible for the real person to take turns to be the head of the family. However, after all, the three deputy head masters, the big master, are already old, and their promotion period is approaching, so judging from this situation, the election of the big head master is imminent, and it will be early.
It's been a few years since then. The three candidates are Master Donghua, Master Cihang, and Master Qingwei. Zhang Yuelu is a close descendant of Master Cihang. She came to us at this time. I am afraid that the so-called Wei Wugui is just a pretext, and the drunkard's intention is not to drink. "
Qin Wubing said thoughtfully, "Sir, please explain more clearly."
Sikong Song lowered his voice: "Your Majesty has met Master Qingwei. It goes without saying that he intends to interfere in the internal affairs of the Taoist sect. However, the government and the public are not monolithic. Many elders do not dare to oppose openly and secretly hold The objections are, on the surface, against the Li family. In the final analysis, the current His Majesty has quite a legacy of the Taoist sect’s five generations of great masters. It is only because the Taoist sect is by his side that he has restrained himself slightly. If he holds both the Taoist sect and the imperial court in the palm of his hand, let alone We little people, even the cabinet elders, can only kneel down and kowtow. That is the real dictatorship of the leadership, and the cabinet is just a fake. This is what the cabinet elders don't want to see."
Qin Wubing said along the way: "Furthermore, the Li family is deeply involved with the royal family, and several pavilion elders have good relations with Zhengyiyi and Quanzhen Tao. It can even be said that they have interests and interests, advancing and retreating together."
"That's right." Sikong Song said softly, "Now it seems that His Majesty's intervention in the internal affairs of the Taoist sect has four consequences."
"The first outcome is that Your Majesty successfully takes over the Taoist sect, and as the Grand Master and Emperor, there is no second day in the sky, and no two saints in the country. This is undoubtedly the result that Your Majesty hopes to see the most, but it is also the most difficult."
"The second outcome is that Your Majesty supports the Li family to ascend the throne, and both parties join forces to comprehensively suppress other forces. The Qin and Li families jointly rule the world, just like Xuansheng and Gaozu did in the past. But because it is the Li family who has requests from Your Majesty, they still have to use His Majesty took the lead, and after the Li family came to the throne, a pattern was formed in which the Taoist sect was subordinate to the imperial court. A hundred years later, the world would praise His Majesty for subduing the Taoist sect. On the other hand, the emperors of the previous dynasty were controlled by the Confucian sect, like puppets, falling into the water. The number of dead people is countless and cannot be compared.”
"The third result is that although neither His Majesty nor the Li family can seize the title of Grand Master, the status quo is maintained, which makes the three pillars of the Taoist sect stand in the middle, and the court mediates. Although the court cannot completely control the Taoist sect, all forces in the Taoist sect are seeking help from the court. , putting the imperial court in a relatively aloof position. However, it is not easy to find a balance. It was fine when His Majesty was alive. The next few generations of emperors, who were born in deep palaces and were better at women's hands, may not have such means. Can they It’s difficult to maintain this situation.”
"The fourth result is the worst result. Stealing the chicken will end up losing the rice. Your Majesty will be completely defeated. Instead, the Taoist sect will be integrated into one place, and a powerful leader will be elected to counterattack the imperial court in an all-round way."
Qin Wubing asked: "What does this have to do with this matter?"
Sikong Song said softly: "The noble faction has always been headed by the Prince of Jiangling. The old Prince rarely handles political affairs now, but the general has already become an official. Although he has never been in the cabinet to worship the prime minister, he should not be underestimated. In the eyes of others, the general's every move They all represent the trend of the Xungui faction."
"I have always known Zhang Yuelu of the Taoist sect. He was born in the Zhang family of the Zhengyi Taoist family, and was favored by the Earth Master. Furthermore, when coupled with the visit of the Quanzhen Taoist master to Yunjin Mountain, it can be seen that the Zhengyi Taoism and the Quanzhen Taoism are no longer an alliance but rather an alliance. In this way First of all, Zhang Yuelu is a very key figure. If Quanzhen Taoism and Zhengyi reach a compromise on the selection of the Grand Master in the future, it is impossible to say that there will be more
landed on her body. On the one hand, she is a descendant of the Zhang family, on the other hand, she is not a direct line of the Zhang family, but a branch, but she was personally promoted by the Earth Master. This is the kindness of knowing and encountering, which is equivalent to reinvention. In this way, Quanzhen Taoism and Zhengyi Taoism will regard her as one of their own. If the day comes that they will fight against Taiping Taoism at all costs, and let her come out to be a puppet master, there will not be too fierce opposition from both sides. . "
"As for the little man who saved the county lord, the general has seen it with his own eyes. He is just a martial artist in the Yuxu stage. It doesn't matter. Even if he is really a demon in a secret society, what can he do? Even if the ancient immortal comes, it will not affect the overall situation. , so he really doesn’t mean anything. At this moment, Zhang Yuelu actually asked the general about such a trivial matter. Doesn’t the general feel strange? "
"It's strange, of course it's strange." Qin Wubing's eyes became dark, "Then how should we reply to Zhang Yuelu? If we say that the sign in Wei Wugui's hand was given by us, it is equivalent to being caught by Zhang Yuelu. Very passive. Are you going to fight to the death?"
"No." Sikong Song said decisively, "The sign sent by the general is genuine. When it was sent and to whom it was sent, there are clear records. If this person falls into the hands of the Taoist sect, the sign will be If we don't know, we will fall into passivity and be irrefutable. Maybe we will get grudges with Zhang Yuelu because of this, which is not a wise move. More importantly, this move is likely to cause misjudgment by the people behind Zhang Yuelu. I think we intend to stand on His Majesty's side. It's not that we can't stand on His Majesty's side, but we don't have to stand on His Majesty's side. It's not yet time to stand down."
Qin Wubing looked at Sikong Song and asked, "In your opinion, sir, what should we do?"
Sikong Song stroked his beard and said: "There is a customary word 'drag' in official circles. Big things can be turned into trivial matters, and small things can be put off until they can't be settled. We might as well use the word 'drag' this time. Without giving a clear answer first, just He said that he needs to verify it, and wait until the matter becomes clear, at least until he understands Zhang Yuelu’s true intention, and then decide how to reply to her.”
Sikong Song paused for a moment: "There is also what happened at Beichen Hall last time. They used the secret association to make a fuss about us and let us die. Although it was not our original intention, it also indirectly offended Zhengyi Yiyi. We cannot bear the blame. , might as well use it as an excuse to let them fight on their own. Tiangang Hall and Beichen Hall are in a lawsuit, and we can get rid of ourselves and tie up the end of this matter."
Qin Wubing smiled and said, "Good advice, sir."
Qin Wubing looked at the general again and ordered: "Reply to Zhang Yuelu." Qin Wubing, Deputy Protector of the Western Prefecture, sent a letter to Zhang Yuelu, deputy director of the Yaoguang Department of Tiangang Hall: March 12th, 42nd year of Jiushi I am writing to inform you that our army is not a local army, but there are thousands of guest troops. It still takes time to investigate whether there is Wei Wugui. The specific results of the investigation will be informed in a separate letter. Also, Jiuzhi Forty-Two In the first month of that year, Beichen Hall once claimed that among the thousands of Xizhou guest troops who entered Yongzhou this time, there were core figures of the secret society Qingpinghui lurking among them with evil intentions. Afterwards, our department conducted an investigation and found no members of the secret society. Beichen Hall How did we obtain such incredible information? Is what Tiangang Hall asked today related to the information from Beichen Hall? Deputy Hall Master Zhang Yuelu should have given him some advice. Qin Wubing."
