After returning from the Dog Temple, Zhu Yunwen first went to the Zhengxin Hall to rest for a while, change his clothes, and then hold a state banquet. The same is true for civil and military officials, who can not wear the grand crown clothes of the Taimiao worship to participate in the palace banquet, but most of them did not return to the house, because the two edicts were issued at the same time, the officials have already prepared clothes, returned from the Taimiao, and went to their own cars to change into their own cars before entering the palace and left.

It was during this time that He Tianyang returned to his car and told Xia Xun the news of the great victory in Huichang that he heard in the palace. Xia Xun did not know the news of the defeat of the army at this time, there was no telephone telegraph in this era, and it was unrealistic to keep in touch with the front line through the area controlled by the imperial court and keep abreast of the changes in the battle situation.

Xia Xun was also taken aback when he heard the news, he inquired carefully for a long time, and after understanding all the news that He Tianyang heard in the court, he frowned and groaned. He Tianyang said worriedly: "My lord, in this case, let's plot against Li Jinglong, should we postpone it?" We have to wait for us to win a big battle, otherwise, I'm afraid Li Jinglong will not give in. ”

Xia Xun thought for a long time and asked: "Today, the officials above the fifth grade in Beijing worship the Taimiao and enter the palace to participate in the celebration banquet, can there be Li Jinglong?" ”

He Tianyang said: "That's natural, how many princes are left in the Ming Dynasty?" Of course, this is Bao Yu's own. ”

Xia Xun nodded and said, "Calm down, everything is ......, still according to the original plan!" ”

He Tianyang said worriedly: "My lord......." ”

Xia Xun smiled slightly and said, "It's okay, do as I tell you!" ”

The grand celebration banquet did not disperse until evening, and after the palace gate was opened, the ministers came out one after another. Li Jinglong was the last to go, and the ministers talked a lot as they went, but they were still happy to talk about the battle ahead, and he had to slow down. Standing in the crowd, no one will talk to him, and from time to time he will hear the ridicule of others, why bother.

If you lose on the battlefield, there are brothers in Pao Ze who are desperately trying to pull you along, and if you lose in the officialdom, you can only be completely isolated and abandoned.

Although the battlefield is cruel, there is still warmth and blood, officialdom is more cold-blooded and cruel than the battlefield, and there is only deceit and naked conflict of interests.

When Li Jinglong walked out of the palace gate slowly, the palace gate quietly closed behind him, he looked up at the gloomy sky, with a gloomy face, and walked towards his car. In the palm of his hand, he was holding a paper ball tightly, which was quietly pressed under his cup and plate when someone was in the palace, and there was only one sentence on it: "Your Excellency's car, the old man is waiting for you!" ”

During the banquet, he only left his seat once when he toasted the emperor, and when he returned, a note appeared, and he was very curious about who was waiting for him in the car, and even more curious, how the news could be passed to him in the palace.

"Sir!"

As soon as he saw Li Jinglong coming back, the groom hurriedly put down the pedal, and the guards who were basking in the sun under the wall also hurriedly turned over and came one after another. No matter how frustrated he is in the court, no matter how much ridicule he receives between the government and the opposition, only these people cannot change their attitude towards him, because these people rely on him for food.

Li Jinglong stepped into the car, and when his finger touched the car door, he paused slightly, is there really anyone inside, or is it a joke made by others with himself? If so, who would he be, and would he also be an official who attended today's celebration feast?

He glanced at the groom standing under the car, and the groom was looking at him a little blankly because of his hesitation, looking at his expression, the groom did not look like an insider. Li Jinglong smiled, and a grotesque thought suddenly arose in his heart: "Inside, it won't be a charming fox girl, right?" A fox girl with great powers, a frustrated scholar ....... ”

The cramped and nervous look on Li Jinglong's face disappeared, people and birds are dying in the sky, and they have not died for thousands of years, and they have all fallen into this step of the field where everyone shouts and beats, what else is there to be afraid of?

He pulled the car door and got inside.......

The carriage rolled and went, gradually slowing down.

Li Jinglong lifted the curtains, saw the familiar street scene, and knew that he was about to arrive at his mansion, so he ordered: "Don't rush back to the house, go around."

The groom was stunned and asked, "Master, where are you going?" ”

"Feel free!"

Li Jinglong lowered the curtain and looked at Xia Xun who was sitting on the side.

He had imagined countless people, and even wondered if Huang Zicheng, who had fallen into the well, had regained his mind to win him over, but he never expected that it would be Xia Xun who was sitting in the car, a person he had never thought of.

Maybe as long as he shouts at this time, Xia Xun will be bloodied on the spot, or even capture him alive and give it to the emperor. But Li Jinglong didn't do this, Xia Xun dispelled his thoughts with just one sentence.

Xia Xun sat upright, smiled and only said one sentence: "In this little fish, a father is not worth it in the eyes of the emperor." If Grandpa Guo needs a friend right now, then I am Grandpa Guo's best friend! ”

Because of this sentence, Li Jinglong sat down in his seat peacefully.

Li Jinglong put down the car officer, smiled faintly at Xia Xun and said, "Li Jinglong is just a waste, what is His Royal Highness King Yan looking for me?" ”

Xia Xun smiled and said: "In the battle of Zhengcunba, the first of the Guogong was defeated by the proud soldiers, and the second was defeated by the sky; In the battle of Baigou River, if it weren't for the handsome flag of the Duke of Guogong being blown by the wind, His Royal Highness would have been folded in the hands of the Duke of Guo. The imperial court only judges heroes by success or failure, but His Royal Highness King Yan will not, His Royal Highness has fought against Guogong on the battlefield, and he naturally knows the most about Guogong's skills.

His Royal Highness admires the skills of the Duke of the Kingdom, His Royal Highness once said to me: , Jiujiang Tiger Father and Tiger Son, what is lacking is just the experience of the battle array" before and after, if it were not for the limited battlefield experience of the Duke of Guo, the timing was not good enough, and His Royal Highness was blessed by God, first the severe cold, and then the wind, all of which were beneficial to my Yan army, and my Yan army was defeated. ”

Li Jinglong, who was ridiculed for being incompetent, stupid, and wasteful, and scolded on the street, heard Xia Xun "relay the fair words of Yanwang Zhu Di." His nose was sore, and his tears almost didn't fall, he didn't want Xia Xun to see his embarrassment, so he quickly turned his head and endured it for a long time before he sneered: "Is God blessed?" So why did His Highness defeat this time, and even Zhang Yu, the number one general under his command, was killed. ”

Xia Xun asked rhetorically: "Does Guogong think that Sheng Yong is stronger than you?" ”

Of course not! Wen is not the first, Wu is the second, who is willing to admit that others are better than himself, especially a person whose family background, qualifications, and status are far inferior to his own, especially a conceited and proud person like Li Jinglong, but he can't say it.

Xia Xun didn't wait for him to admit it, and continued: "Your Highness's failure this time is also because of the arrogance! In the eyes of His Royal Highness, Guogong is the son of General Li Fuzhong, the god of war of my Ming Dynasty, with a strategic mind, countless calculations, and 600,000 soldiers under his command. ”

Xia Xun sighed. angry, and said regretfully: "Sheng Yong's victory is not his good fight, it is really... Guogong you...... Fulfill him! ”

Li Jinglong thought so.

Li Jinglong, who was already familiar with the details of the great victory ahead, heard that as soon as Zhu Difu fought, he personally led the army to attack Sheng Yong's left flank, and after a few blows, he went back to the head-on duel, and when he was lured into the big array by Sheng Yong's deception, he knew that Zhu Di was defeated by a light enemy.

Let Li Jinglong dispatch troops to deal with the rapidly changing battlefield situation, he is indeed a little mediocre, but if you talk about the mastery of military theory, let him sit and talk, he is much stronger than most people.

Zhu Di's similar tactics were used against him in the battle of Baigou River, if it wasn't for the handsome flag broken that time, Zhu Di would have broken in his hands, this time Zhu Di repeated his old tricks, wouldn't he be afraid of making the same mistakes again? The only explanation is that Zhu Di didn't take Sheng Yong seriously at all, and his defeat was indeed due to arrogance and underestimation of the enemy.

And all this, isn't it exactly what he Li Jinglong paved for Sheng Yong? As a result, Sheng Yong, who was lucky to win, was boasted of being invincible and invincible, while he, Li Jinglong, became an incompetent waste that others ridiculed and ridiculed even more.

Jealousy and disobedience, like a poisonous snake, gnawed at his heart fiercely, Li Jinglong clenched his teeth, and it took a while to calm his mood, and said coldly: "Anyway, King Yan is indeed defeated, this defeat is indeed defeated, even Zhang Yu was killed on the battlefield, the vitality of the Yan army was greatly damaged, and the morale of the soldiers and horses in my court was greatly boosted, he called you here, what do you want to do?" Do you want me Li Jinglong to take refuge in him, the general of the defeated army? ”

Xia Xun said: "Your Highness is indeed defeated this time. But victory and defeat are a common thing in soldiers, do you dare to assert that Sheng Yong, who won by luck, will be invincible from now on? His Royal Highness King Yan has no chance to turn over? ”

Of course, Li Jinglong didn't believe it, and he didn't want to believe it.

He was defeated by the hands of Zhu Di, the king of Yan, to get to this step, but in his heart, he didn't hate Zhu Di, he hated Huang Zicheng, Fang Xiaoru, and Qi Tai who fell into the well for him, and he hated the defeat of Zhu Di's arrogant soldiers by the conditions paved by his failure, but he fell into a more embarrassing situation, and Sheng Yong, who was ridiculed by the world.

Xia Xun smiled, like a devil who bewitched others to sell their souls, and said in a tempting and incendiary tone: "His Royal Highness King Yan still has a chance to turn over, and what about you, the emperor, the emperor will not give you this opportunity, Fang Xiaoru and Huang Zicheng will not give you this opportunity, what they give you is only the wall falling down and everyone pushing it, only falling into the well." But His Royal Highness King Yan is willing to give you a chance to turn over, Guogong, you...... Do you want to? ”

Xia Xun's conditions were not unmoved by him. Li Jinglong is like a person who is about to drown, even if someone throws just a straw, he wants to hold on tightly; It's like a traveler who is lost in the desert, even if he knows that someone else has given him just a glass of wine, he wants to pour it down first to moisten the fire-breathing throat.

Because Li Jinglong is burdened with not only the humiliation of others, but also heavy pressure, pressure from his family and interest groups subordinate to him. He has his own faction, his own connections, and his vassal forces, and his frustration is not just his own business, but his family, his entire power group, both glory and loss.

If he continues to sink like this, the all-round blows suffered by the Li family from the court and the people will make the Li family decline day by day, and eventually become an ordinary wealthy family of the lower class, and even the status of an ordinary wealthy family will be difficult to protect. This kind of political status that is not up or down may be destroyed at any time under the power of the court, and it may fall apart at any time.

Li Jinglong was like a standard gambler with red eyes who had lost his eyes, glared at Xia Xun fiercely and said, "So, His Royal Highness King Yan, what do you want me to do?" I'm Li Jinglong like this now, uh... What else can be done? ”

As soon as the words came out, he himself was startled, was that hoarse and sad voice really coming out of his mouth?

Xia Xun said leisurely: "Guogong really thinks that you are already a rat crossing the street in the court, and everyone shouts and beats you?" Do you really think that the Manchu Dynasty has abandoned the country and is open? ”

"Isn't it?"

"Of course not!"

Xia Xun enlightened him earnestly and seductively: "Fang Xiaoru and Huang Zicheng, a professor of Hanzhong Fuxue, a gentleman of Guozijian, Wen can't be Anbang, and Wu can't set the country, do you really think that two people like them can cover the sky with one hand after getting the holy favor?" Can the Manchu Dynasty father Wu Mo not be convinced? Big joke! Together with Jing Qing, Lian Zining, Zhuo Jing and others who were the main fighters of the Cutting Domain, although they had the same political views, were they convinced of their actions and abilities, and their climb to such a high position?

There are also Ru Chang, Yu Xin, Gao Wei, and other lords and faction officials who oppose the cutting of the domain, and even a large number of anti-war generals in the army...... But they're all potential allies of yours..."

Li Jinglong's eyes gradually lit up, he turned out to be like a bat, the birds regarded him as a beast, and the beasts regarded him as a bird, and as a result, he became the object of ridicule and ridicule on both sides, but between these two factions, it is the opposing faction that has real irreconcilable contradictions. If he is willing to stand up clearly and does not need to take the initiative to recruit, these people will naturally stand under his banner, and he Li Jinglong has the right to speak in the court, will he still be a clown who is ridiculed?

By taking advantage of this opportunity, he can not only maintain and strengthen his power, but also ...... can also fight Fang Xiaoru and Huang Zicheng, he will never forget the humiliation, sadness and despair when he was cruelly treated as an outcast by these cold-blooded politicians and asked him to die hoarsely, as long as he has the opportunity, he must take revenge.

Li Jinglong felt that his throat was a little dry, and he swallowed with difficulty. Spit on: "King Yan, you want me to ...... Shall I take refuge in him? ”

"Of course not!"

Xia Xun said solemnly: "Guogong is the emperor's courtier, and His Royal Highness King Yan is also the emperor's courtier. is also the emperor's courtier, how can His Royal Highness recruit the prince for his own use? It's just that as soon as the war starts, it is the people who suffer after all, which only makes the place erosive and uneasy in the world.

His Royal Highness hopes that the prince can stand up and lead the ministers, and finally achieve the punishment of the traitor, negotiate peace between the two sides, and solve the problem by the means of the father. ”

Xia Xun smiled and added another note to his words: "Of course, in order to help the Duke of the Kingdom achieve this goal, His Highness will try his best to cooperate on the battlefield, the more His Highness wins, the more difficult the life of Fang Huang and his ilk will be, and the more weight the Duke will speak in the court." Therefore, in order to gain more support for the proposition of the national government, and to achieve the ultimate goal of peacefully settling disputes, I would like to ...... Guogong didn't mind revealing some news to His Royal Highness, so that Sheng Yong would suffer a small loss, and all the remuneration was for the court! ”