The guests at the banquet left one after another, but Ding Yunzhi sat motionless. He picked up the teacup and tasted it carefully, he was waiting, waiting for Ouyang Xuan and Gui Yihu's invitation.

"Ding Gongzi, my lord is invited. ”

"And sure enough, it came. Ding Yunzhi smiled, gave a casual salute to the subordinate, and followed the subordinate to the backyard.

Along the way, he was very complacent, and the development of things was still under control, from Ouyang Xuan, Gui Yihu, to Hu Dan, and those arrogant and stupid families, all in his calculations.

But there were still two people beyond his calculations, one was Shi Yuanji, and the other was the Emperor of Heavenly Destiny. He didn't know that Shi Yuanji's strength was unfathomable, and he didn't know that the little emperor who was still a minor was so thoughtful. But even so, he was confident that he could play with everyone's applause.

"This is it, please come in. ”

"Thank you. Ding Yunzhi maintained his dignity, walked into the room, and saw Ouyang Xuan and Gui Yihu at a glance.

Ouyang Xuan no longer maintained the kindness and generosity he had at the banquet just now, and became a little serious and gloomy. And Gui Yihu sat there, put down his calm disguise, and showed his meanness and gloom without hesitation.

"Ding Gongzi, please take a seat. Ouyang Xuan pointed with his hand, and after Ding Yunzhi gave a salute, he sat down peacefully.

"After all, the eldest princess of Evian is a woman, and it is inconvenient for her to come, and the old man understands it very well. Ouyang Xuanpi didn't smile, and said kindly: "After you go back, say hello to her on my behalf, just say that the old man's granddaughter is now the queen's honor, and this is all the kindness of the eldest princess." ”

"As for Ding Gongzi, I have been fighting for the position of liehou for you, but unfortunately Hu Dan has been obstructing it all along. You also know that this Shangshu Province is about to become his Hu Dan alone, and the old man has no way. But we can find a way to make you a doctor of Guanglu, then we can get His Majesty's summons, and then things can be slowed down. ”

Ding Yunzhi heard the assurance, until Ouyang Xuan and Gui Yihu asked him, and then said: "Let the two adults bother, what's the use of going to the juniors, but it doesn't hurt to say it." ”

Ouyang Xuan's smirk was even more presumptuous: "Ding Gongzi just said that His Majesty already has a group of reliable cronies, and this group of cronies is particularly good at inquiring about news, I don't know if there is evidence." ”

"Nope. Ding Yunzhi told the truth.

Gui Yihu was a little angry, and asked impatiently: "No? These are just your guesses? That is to say, what Dugu Xin said may also be true." ”

"That's right. Ding Yunzhi smiled and nodded, but he immediately changed his words. "However, our Ding family has been a salt official for six generations, and we have always adhered to a principle: think about good things in bad ways, and think worse in bad things. It is indeed possible that the envoys of the Goulong Kingdom will take the initiative to meet and negotiate with His Majesty, but I am a member of the Ding family, so I will consider it in a worse direction. ”

"In any case, even if the goblin envoy of the Goulong Kingdom took the initiative to meet with His Majesty, how can His Majesty convince them that the agreement between the two sides will be fulfilled? Is it Hu Dan's full support, or is it my current national strength? Your Majesty is just sixteen years old, and the Lord Shaoguo is suspicious, I am afraid that none of this can be a guarantee. ”

"Hu Dan's son Hu Fashun is a Zhonglang general, Hu Dan's students also hold important positions in various places, and Hu Dan himself is also in charge of the Yulin Army. It is impossible for His Majesty to rest assured of him, and it is even more impossible for the envoys of Goulong to believe that His Majesty is an emperor who has real power to fulfill his promises. Then there is only one possibility, and that is that His Majesty has shown some of his strength, enough to deter discontent at a critical time. ”

Ouyang Xuan was unmoved on the surface, but he had to admire this Ding Yunzhi in his heart. He pondered for a moment and asked, "Your Majesty doesn't seem to be the kind of person who is skilled in magic, and he doesn't have a magic weapon to keep around, so it's not the strength of his own body, but the ......."

Ding Yunzhi looked at the two old men in front of him who were led by his nose by his train of thought, and he was very proud in his heart. He continued: "That's right, a force that can be used against rebellion. I think Prime Minister Hu Cheng knew about the existence of this organization, but as for whether he helped His Majesty set it up, it is unknown. ”

"Then who is the rebel in the eyes of His Majesty?" Gui Yihu clenched the sword in his hand and asked cautiously.

"Then it depends on who Your Majesty is going to deal with?" Ding Yunzhi said with deep meaning. "In the past, the emperor set the questions, and the Ministry of Rites organized the entrance exam. Now His Majesty has asked the Ministry of Rites to write the questions by himself, and after the review, he will take the test again, and he will go to the site to inspect by himself, so the question is, who will Your Majesty deal with?"

Ouyang Xuan suddenly realized, took a deep breath and frowned and thought quietly. And Gui Yihu couldn't hold his breath, and said loudly in disbelief: "Impossible, the Eight Pillars National Clan has deep roots and big leaves, can it be easily moved? Besides, they haven't made any mistakes, why would Your Majesty move them?"

"I don't know. Faced with Gui Yihu's aggressive questioning, Ding Yunzhi replied with a smile. "However, it is only at the moment that you should deal with His Majesty's inspection. Don't let that person named Shi Yuanji appear next to His Majesty, otherwise the family who applied for the economics examination would say that those who applied for the law department, such as Dugu Xin, might have to lose adults. ”

Gui Yihu said disapprehantly: "Don't worry, the family doesn't need to take the exam at all, they are not in the same yard as those mud-legged people." When the time comes, we will let His Majesty inspect Duguxin's courtyard. ”

How could this Gui Yihu be so confident, he really felt that he could control everything?

"That's because I'm overthinking. Ding Yunzhi said with a smile. "But I think it's better to cut the grass and eradicate the roots, so as not to have too many dreams at night. It's a pity that Qian Youmian hasn't come back in Haitang Town yet, otherwise I would have done it myself. ”

Ouyang Xuan eased up from his thoughts and said calmly: "There is no need for this, no matter how strong Shi Yuanji is, he is only a small character. Even if the descendants of the Eight Pillars Kingdom lose face, it is just a trivial matter, and there is no need for this. ”

"Gui Yushi, what do you think?" Ding Yunzhi saw that Ouyang Xuan was unmoved, and turned his head to ask Gui Yihu.

Hu Dan is incompatible with you, Ouyang Xuan ignores you, the Eight Pillars National Clan is the best backer you can take now, you always have to vote for it, Ding Yunzhi looked at Gui Yihu with a smile on his face, and said firmly in his heart.

Feeling Ding Yunzhi's attitude, Gui Yihu immediately said: "General Ouyang, you can't say that, this Shi Yuanji actually made trouble in front of the yamen of the Ministry of Rites, and his heart can be punished." I think I can disqualify him so as not to mess up the discipline in the examination room. ”

"The fish talismans have been sent out, and he hasn't broken any laws, what clear reason do you have to disqualify him?" Ouyang Xuan said sharply. "Gui Yihu, I didn't say you, you and Hu Dan are the same year, why can't he calm down? The situation in the imperial court is changing rapidly, can't you calm down and take a look?"

"Bet too early, aren't you afraid of losing money?" Ouyang said.

After Ouyang Xuan's scolding and Ding Yunzhi's expectation, Gui Yihu finally made up his mind, and he understood the choice he should make.

Gui Yihu regained his previous unfathomable appearance, and said with a smile: "What General Ouyang said is that I was reckless. That Shi Yuanji is just a trivial matter, and I should still rearrange the position of the examination room to welcome the holy driver. ”

Ouyang Xuan said in a deep voice: "It's good that you know, okay, the old man is tired, let's disperse." ”

......

"Young Master Ding, I wonder what Princess Evian thinks of His Majesty's abnormal behavior?" Outside the Ouyang Mansion, Gui Yihu and Ding Yunzhi stood in one place in tacit understanding, and there was no one around.

Gui Yihu, Gui Yihu, do you still have a choice?" Ding Yunzhi said. "The eldest princess said, this younger brother of his, it's really incomprehensible. It's like a little tiger, and I don't know when, I'll show my fangs. ”

Gui Yihu was clever, and he shuddered when he thought of the performance of the Emperor of Heavenly Destiny when he reported on his work in the previous dynasty. Thinking back to the timing of Hu Dan's killing of the cat, he couldn't help but be shocked. Isn't it in the best interest of Hu Dan for those shadows lurking around him to continue lurking? Why did Hu Dan do it at this time, why did His Majesty suddenly have a negative attitude towards him, and is there a relationship between the two?

Could it be that this little emperor really had a cronies who inquired for him as Ding Yunzhi said? When Gui Yihu thought of this, his heart became more and more frightened.

"I have to be careful, I have to win allies. Ouyang Xuan is really unreliable, and if he wants to win the eldest princess, he must move closer to the Eight Pillars Kingdom. At the same time, you must not leave Hu Dan with a handle to attack me, and you must be careful of the little emperor in the Taiji Palace. Gui Yi Tiger Heart said.