Li Qianning, who was following Mrs. Lin, glanced at Fang Zilan quietly, pursed her lips, and said nothing. As for Mu Chuji, who was beside her, his eyes seemed to be fixed on her, and he didn't pay attention to anyone else at all.
Fang Zilan, who was ignored, turned around and left, minding her own business and went to the back garden to hide in peace. Anyway, they are all unrelated people. Even if it causes a huge commotion, what can we do?
With this thought in mind, she climbed up on the roof and sat on it, boredly wondering - when will it clear up today?
"Since you have heard a little bit, you might as well tell me." Li Shengxuan remained calm, and Zhuge Yu also kept his composure, "What does your Majesty want to hear?"
Li Shengxuan sighed softly and said: "When I overcame everyone's opinions and allowed Fang Zilan to be the minister, I did not want to cause trouble for myself."
Zhuge Yu raised his head and said with stern eyes: "Zhuge Yu thinks that His Majesty is just looking for trouble."
"Looking for trouble?" Li Shengxuan snorted coldly. Zhuge Yu's way of speaking to the point was exactly the same as his grandfather's.
But since Zhuge Yu took the initiative, he didn't have to beat around the bush anymore, he simply said it openly, "Have you found out about that trouble?"
"Not yet." Zhuge Yu's words were concise and concise, but he knew very well that this was not the answer Li Shengxuan wanted.
As expected, Li Shengxuan, who was sitting on the high seat, frowned slightly and said in a deep voice: "Not yet? Can you persuade the Fang family and Ouyang family to propose marriage to the Shangguan family, and let the Wang family and Zhong Yao in the north give face to such a big move? The people behind her, You haven't found it yet?"
"I'm afraid your Majesty may have misunderstood." Zhuge Yu said calmly: "The things your Majesty said were all done by her alone."
Li Shengxuan chuckled softly, "Zhuge Yu, are you kidding me? How can a woman with no foundation have such great abilities?"
"It is true that it has no foundation, but it is also true that it is good at using people's hearts." Zhuge Yu took a deep breath, "I have personally seen the letters she wrote to the Fang family and the Ouyang family. The two families really can't refuse. The guardian of the Wang family in the north Internally, getting married is beneficial and harmless to them, and there is absolutely no reason not to give face. Zhong Yao was born in a commoner family, and his ability to become the governor of Yanzhou depends entirely on his heart. She is a person who guards the border and does not need to have much love for her family and country. You can win people's hearts just by talking."
"From what you put it, Fang Zilan is really a character." There was a hint of imperceptible sarcasm in Li Shengxuan's tone.
Zhuge Yu could certainly hear it, and wrote lightly: "The character dare not say, but she has been in the north for more than a month, and there is indeed nothing unusual about her."
"Then now that she is deploying troops privately and wants to protect an old man from the previous dynasty, how should she explain it?" Li Shengxuan said, tapping his fingers on the table, "I want to hear your opinion."
Zhuge Yu thought for a while and said: "Fang Zilan has justified her private deployment of troops and put the blame on Qi Yuming. According to my guess, she did this because there were too many people in the north watching her, and she did not dare to make any mistakes. She could only find a scapegoat for fear of losing her fortune and life. Second, she took the initiative to show weakness. Even a small soldier could privately mobilize troops, but as the commander-in-chief of the Northern Territory, she could not. She pretended to be pitiful because she wanted His Majesty to control the Northern Territory. Return the military power to her."
"Your Majesty must have noticed that she also wrote a letter to severely punish Qi Yuming. She said she was punishing him severely, but in fact it was for protection."
"There are three reasons. First, if she petitions for mercy like Huangfulin, Zhong Yao and others, His Majesty will think that they are forming a clique for personal gain, and will kill Qi Yuming. But if she sings the opposite, it will make His Majesty suspicious and leave Qi Yuming has a way out."
"Secondly, although Qi Yuming is an old member of the previous dynasty, in terms of understanding of the northern border, apart from the Shangguan family, there is no one better than her. This person staying here will be of great use to her."
"Thirdly, if Qi Yuming is lucky enough to escape this time, His Majesty's attitude towards the old Shangguan family will be clear at a glance. The old Shangguan family thinks that Your Majesty will let her go, so he will blatantly provoke her. By then, she will have the opportunity to eradicate the old Shangguan family. excuse."
"Fang Zilan is so confident that I will definitely let Qi Yuming go?" Li Shengxuan's expression was dark and unclear. Zhuge Yu shook his head, "I don't think so, but if your Majesty severely punishes Qi Yuming, it won't hurt her."
"If I punish Qi Yuming severely, it will tell the world that I am on her side. This is enough for her to gain a foothold in the north." Li Shengxuan sighed secretly, "What's more, she is good at using people's hearts. I am determined that I cannot kill Qi Yuming."
"Your Majesty really cannot kill Qi Yuming." Zhuge Yu lowered his head. He had just reason and evidence, but he didn't say a word.
But Zhuge Yu knew that those words could not be hidden from the emperor who had grown up on the battlefield in front of him. He could not hide it or say it out loud. He could only listen to Li Shengxuan's voice, every word clear.
"No matter who is dispatching the troops, it is for the sake of peace in the north. I will not be able to chill the hearts of the soldiers in the four realms if the foreign emperor's orders are not accepted."
All the high-sounding reasons are nothing compared to this sentence that can't chill people's hearts.
Those who win people's hearts win the world; those who occupy high positions govern the world but do not care about people's hearts.
No matter how sophisticated the layout and planning is, or how many painstaking mechanisms are worked out, in the end, in front of the human heart, it is just dust under the stairs, not worth mentioning.
People's hearts are unpredictable. Maybe their assertions about Fang Zilan's ulterior motives are true. Maybe Fang Zilan's thoughts are not as complicated as they guessed.
But no matter what, Fang Zilan's goal was achieved.
"I have no choice in this round." Li Shengxuan's expression flashed with a trace of despair.
Zhuge Yu nodded and said: "Everything in the world is like a new chess game. The future is long, so your Majesty does not need to be obsessed with this game."
"I'm not obsessed with this game, but Fang Zilan..." Li Shengxuan paused, "I can't believe it."
"Whether your Majesty trusts you or not has always been a matter of trust." Zhuge Yu's lips curled up slightly, "When it comes to guarding the border and guarding the border, Fang Zilan is worthy of your trust."
Is it right for the matter but not the person? Li Shengxuan took a deep look at Zhuge Yu, who was standing upright below, and suddenly had mixed feelings.
Since he came to the throne, he has become more suspicious than before. He thought that being suspicious as an emperor is inevitable, but the government affairs he has handled in the past few months have reminded him that he should not be suspicious of people he uses but not others.
The repeated tug of doubt and trust made him feel embarrassed and tired. Naturally, the civil and military officials in the court saw this, but Zhuge Yu was the only one who dared to tell him that he was right about the situation and not the person.
"Do you really think Fang Zilan is trustworthy?" Li Shengxuan asked involuntarily, even himself feeling suspicious.
Zhuge Yu raised his head with a respectful and solemn expression, "The word of faith belongs to Your Majesty and not to Zhuge Yu. If you continue to make decisions, you will be subject to chaos. I hope Your Majesty will make a decision early and don't hesitate to move forward."
