The apse of the Xuanzheng Hall has been arranged as the temporary dormitory of Emperor Qinglong. When he was tired of reviewing the recital, or didn't want to go to the harem, he rested here. The older he gets, the less he likes to walk more.

"You want to see me?"

Emperor Qinglong was perched high on the dragon chair, and the candle flame cast a shadow on his face, making it impossible to see the expression on his face.

"Yes, the son asked to see his father, and came here for the case of the military commander who caused his wife to be taken captive. ”

"What do you have to do with her being kidnapped? Could it be that you ordered someone to kidnap her and come to act in front of me?!" Emperor Qinglong was furious, his voice went from low to high, and finally he shouted angrily.

King Qi hurriedly knelt on the ground and said, "Please calm your father's anger, your son will never do such a stupid thing to cut off his wings." ”

"Speak. Emperor Qinglong's voice couldn't hear joy or anger.

"Father's grace. King Qi said: "Before going to Jiangnan Province, the military commander came to me and entrusted his wife to me. ”

He said he had a gut feeling that danger was coming, but he didn't know where it was going to come from. Therefore, it is only possible to make detailed arrangements before leaving. ”

"Is there such a thing?" Emperor Qinglong's words were not for King Qi, but for the shadow thunder hidden in the darkness.

The existence of the shadow guard is well known to the government and the opposition. Even if it was later changed to a small cavalry guard and acted in front of people, many people speculated in their hearts that the shadow guard still existed.

It's just that the duties on the surface are replaced by the Xiao Cavalry Guard, and the Shadow Guard really becomes the shadow of the emperor, which only exists in the dark.

But speculation is speculation, as long as the shadow guard does not reappear in people's field of vision, the courtiers and nobles can only be regarded as if they do not exist.

King Qi lay on the ground, in this warm palace, his back dripping with cold sweat.

In front of himself, his father let the shadow guard show up in a grand manner, and there are only two possibilities:

First, he completely believed in himself and intended to hand over the throne to himself, so he no longer concealed it;

Second, the father suspected that the crown prince also doubted himself. Once it is verified that he has concealed something in this matter, then what Zhan Shifu and what allies, all of which come from the power established with the acquiescence of his father, will pass away quietly.

The power of heaven is unpredictable.

Monarchs and ministers, fathers and sons. He and Emperor Qinglong, first the monarch and the minister, then the father and son.

Fortunately, what I said was what happened in real life, and there was no deception.

King Qi secretly rejoiced at this time, and couldn't help but be grateful to Fang Xiaoyu who gave him ideas. "Follow your heart" to face your father, instead of guessing, deceiving, and perhaps unexpected gains.

In the darkness, only the rustling of pages could be heard.

"Your Majesty, on October 21, the military commander went to the palace of the king of Qi and left the palace an hour later. The voice of shadow thunder came from behind the layers of curtains, and in this large hall, it seemed a little empty.

Emperor Qinglong nodded imperceptibly, although he couldn't see his expression clearly. However, King Qi could feel that the atmosphere was relaxed. He should have initially gained the trust of his father.

"Well, what did you do?"

"Father, the sons sent the personal guards of the Zhan Mansion, formed two teams, and patrolled outside the Zhongguo Mansion. Zhong Guogong did not know about this. ”

Emperor Qinglong didn't speak, and King Qi continued: "Yesterday, the Duchess of Zhongguo went to the Dabei Temple to practice the meeting and took away half of the people in the house. In order to prevent Xiao Xiao, Erchen added another team of personal guards. ”

After all, the Duke of Zhongguo is a foreign minister, and it is rare for him to be able to protect it so wholeheartedly. In this peaceful and prosperous era, he sent guards to be stationed in the Zhongguo Mansion. Doing so would lead to unwarranted speculation and strife.

Emperor Qinglong nodded, he didn't count himself as a betrayal of Wu Zhengxiang's entrustment. The other party set up a serial scheme, even if the King of Qi sent personal guards to protect Xu Wanzhen, it could not stop her determination to rescue her younger brother.

"Okay, get up and speak. Then what are your plans for coming to see me?"

"Father, even if the wife of the military commander can't trace it for a while, the other party has a plan. As long as there is a picture, it will show the horse's feet. The son begged his father to issue a secret decree to investigate the matter strictly. As long as the mastermind behind the scenes is found, her safety will naturally be decided. ”

After hearing these words, Emperor Qinglong already believed in King Qi in his heart.

From this point of view, this matter must have little to do with King Qi. Wu Zhengxiang's vision of people is very accurate, since he specially entrusted the King of Qi, it is naturally impossible for the King of Qi to guard and steal.

Since he is not the king of Qi, he will only be the crown prince.

Emperor Qinglong's eyes flashed with deep disgust. As the saying goes, the higher the expectations, the greater the disappointment. How much he loved the prince at the beginning, how disgusted he is now.

Behind the rebellion of King Qianyang, there is a faint shadow of the crown prince and the abolished princess, which he does not know. It was he who made the shadow guard stop the investigation.

He understood the hatred of the mother and son for him, so he gave them one more chance.

But then, the prince repeatedly challenged his bottom line. Buying and selling officials, competing with the people for profit, which of these things will be done by the prince of the country?

For Weiwei's sake, he tolerated it again and again. always told himself that this was because the prince was too insecure, so he couldn't wait to get something in his hands.

When he ascends to the throne, when all this belongs to him, he will naturally not do such a stupid thing to destroy the Great Wall. The prince's almost strict self-discipline and bad femininity made Emperor Qinglong believe that after he succeeded to the throne, he should be a Ming monarch.

In particular, with the assistance of Jing Huan in the past two years, the prince's actions have been much calmer. His views on the government are also becoming more and more mature.

Just when he was quite relieved and felt that the prince was a manufacturable material, he disappointed him again.

First of all, even though his merchants were acting recklessly in Jinyang County, and then holding the wives of important ministers hostage, the intention behind this is really thought-provoking.

"It's almost dawn, and you will rest in the palace for the night. I have left the early dynasty, and I will summon you to talk again. ”

King Qi was overjoyed, kowtowed to the ground and said, "The son thanks his father for his grace." ”

Emperor Qinglong looked at his son lying on the ground lightly, thinking in his heart, forget it, it might as well be him.

As long as the Cao family is willing to dismiss the military power, it will become an ordinary state government. Without the trouble of relatives, King Qi is more suitable for this dragon chair than the crown prince.

Next, the Gaomang Dynasty needs a king who keeps the success.

……

The third day of the Great Compassion Temple puja, the second day after Xu Wanzhen disappeared.

The Zhongguo Mansion, which has no master, looks empty and helpless in the bleak autumn wind.

Inside Zhiyuan's residence, Mama Zheng and Wen Mulan sat opposite each other.

Suddenly, Wen Mulan got up and knelt down and said, "Mama, I didn't protect the young lady well, please punish Mama." ”

Mama Zheng hurriedly helped her up, and Wen Yan was relieved: "You and I both know the temper of the young lady. Once she decides, no one can change it. In that situation, you had already done well enough to protect Young Master Yu. ”

Wen Mulan shook her head and said, "If I can deal with the gang on the boat, the young lady will not be taken captive." ”

At this moment, a voice came from outside the door: "Yi Zhi has arrived!"