In the fifth year of Taihe, September Bingchen, not correct.

Chengdu Mansion, Jiedu Envoy Mansion.

Li Zhi and Xue Yuanxiang were enjoying the flowers in the back garden of their embassy at this time, and the autumn season was in autumn, and the climate of Chengdu Mansion was humid, which was the season when orchids were in full bloom.

Although this was the first time Li Zhi had officially met Xue Yuanxian, he was quite surprised that Xue Yuansheng could talk eloquently in front of him, not only could he clearly say his name and character without introduction, but Xue Yuansheng did not have the slightest official pretense, how comfortable he sounded when he spoke, so that Li Zhi couldn't help but feel quite close to this person.

Li Zhi raised his hand and complimented: "Li Zhi has heard of the name of Xue Gong, the assassin of Hanzhou, since he was a year old. Although Xichuan withered due to the entry of the Southern Zhao, but under the governance of Xue Gong, Hanzhou had abundant finances and taxes every year, and lived and worked in peace and contentment, which is really gratifying and congratulatory! ”

"Envoy Li, don't compliment the reward. Who doesn't know? Zong Zhengqing's children and grandchildren are all outstanding people. Now Xichuan is getting better......" Xue Yuanxian couldn't help but smile and made a forked hand movement on his right side to show respect: "...... Jing'an Xianggong (referring to Li Zongmin) must be hesitant to carry it, and the envoy will enter Beijing as an official just around the corner, and the yuan reward will have to rely on the envoy at that time. ”

Li Zhi himself was embarrassed to say this, firstly, because Xue Yuanxian was too good at praising people, and he was always on the point, and secondly, Xue Yuanxian's words were quite informative, Li Zhi never thought that the Hanzhou assassin in front of him not only seemed to know that Li Zhi's father Li Zongran and the prime minister of the dynasty Li Zongmin were brothers, but even Li Zhi's grandfather Li Liguan knew clearly about the matter of Sanpin Zong Zhengqing, and Li Zhi had never made a public announcement in Xichuan.

"That's right, Yuan Xian has not been in Chengdu Mansion for a long time, what is new in Jincheng for more than a year?"

"Hehe, that's a lot...... Li Zhi didn't finish speaking, and then remembered the kinship of Xue Yuansheng that had been rumored in the market, and added: "Oops, but just remembered that a few days ago, the peacock of the Shuai Mansion died. ”

Xue Yuanxiang raised his eyebrows and said, "What the envoy said is...... The peacock raised by Wang Wei Linggong of Nankang County when he was appointed as the envoy of the Xichuan Festival? ”

"Exactly, when South Vietnam offered peacocks, Xue Tao Xue Xiaoshu was in his youth, and he suggested opening a pond in the East Garden of Shuaifu to set up a cage to live in, but I didn't expect to die this year after raising it for so many years."

"Tsk," Xue Yuanxiang sighed, and said worriedly: "Yuan Zhi Yuan Weizhi has just passed away this year, this peacock is dead again, and the talented girl is sixty-three years old this year, I'm afraid I'm going to be sad." ”

"Hey, yes," Li Zhi nodded in agreement, "A few months ago, Wei Zhi passed away, and Xue Cainu lived alone in the Yinshi Building of Biji Fang, this time I heard that the peacock died, and the talented girl disappeared all day." ”

The two of them just said a word, and with a moment of work, they walked and chatted around the huge back garden of the embassy's mansion, and then the two walked back to the study side by side. The two talked happily, and Li Zhi was rarely in a good mood, so he invited them to dinner.

"If Xue Gong doesn't dislike it, why don't you eat some food with Zhi in the house later?"

Xue Yuansheng did not shirk and accepted it gladly.

The study is located on the west side of the embassy's office, and Li Zhi likes to manage the study called "Xixiang Zhai". Xue Yuanxiang looked around, the study room was elegantly decorated, simple and generous, wooden doors, wooden tables and chairs, smooth lines, all carved with orchids and bamboo, the color of the wood looked like Lingnan fir wood, presumably even if it was transported from Lingnan Road to Chengdu Mansion by water, it was also expensive. On the white wall facing the porch of the study, there is a pair of ink treasures, on which the words "Jingwei Heaven and Earth" are written, which are carefully framed.

Xue Yuansheng asked curiously, "Who made this ink treasure?" ”

"Xue Gong didn't know, this was given to Uncle Liu by Hedong Jiedu, and later Uncle gave it to Li because of something." Li Zhi said quite complacently: "There is a story to this ink treasure. ”

"Liu Gongquan, the younger brother of Liu Gongxuan, the calligraphy of the two brothers has long been famous all over the world. Liu Gongquan's calligraphy is of course better, but after three dynasties, he has always been only a bachelor. Last year, his brother Gongxuan went to the northern capital to serve as the envoy of Taiyuan Yin and Hedong Jiedu, so he wrote a letter to his uncle, saying that he wanted to let Gongquan have an idle position, so he sent this ink treasure by the way. ”

"Hmm......" Xue Yuansheng stared thoughtfully at Mobao for a long time. Suddenly changed the topic and asked, "Is Envoy Li busy with official business today?" ”

"What? Xue Gong wouldn't want to drink two cups with a certain pair later? Li Zhi said with a smile: "There happens to be a jar of good Jian Nanchun in a certain house, do you want to try it?" ”

"Since the envoy has invited this, then Yuan Xian is also respectful and obedient," Xue Yuansheng just finished saying this, but the smile on his face immediately put away, looked at Li Zhi with a serious expression, and said slowly: "But Yuan Xian just asked this, but he wanted to confirm with Li Zhi, is there nothing to do in Chengdu today?" ”

"Hehe, what is something and what is nothing?" Li Zhi still had a smile on his face, but he was slightly aware that the atmosphere in the room had changed slightly.

Xue Yuansheng slowly sat down in the guest position with the wooden table, straightened the neckline of the scarlet official robe, and said with a smile: "Fang Cai Yuansheng went to the Shuai Mansion and found that there were several carriage soft sedan cars parked in front of the mansion, most of which were not allowed to ride above the fifth grade, and I am afraid that the high-ranking officials of the entire Chengdu Mansion are inside." However, it is obvious that Li Zhizhi is not among them, so Yuan Xian wants to ask, why is this? ”

Li Zhi became vigilant, he had heard before that the Xue family in Hedong and the Li family in Zhao County had been friends for a long time, and Li Deyu, who came from the ancestral house of the Li family in Zhao County, was afraid that he was very likely to have known Xue Yuansheng for a long time. If this is the case, then Xue Yuansheng, who seems to be kind in front of him, is very likely to be a member of the Li Party, and that is an absolute political enemy.

Just as Li Zhi was about to make a perfunctory call, a person suddenly appeared on the porch of the atrium of the study. Li Zhi looked back and found that it was his henchman Li Asi, who was over fifty years old, with two freshly brewed Emei bamboo leaf green tea on the tray in his hand.

Li Assi steadily put the two cups of tea in front of the two, and then seemed to touch Li Zhi's shoulder with his elbow as if intentionally or unintentionally. Li Zhi quietly raised his eyes, saw Ah Si's eyes, and immediately understood, so he bowed slightly and asked Xue Yuan if he could miss him for a while. Xue Yuanxiang also gestured playfully, "Please."

Li Zhi hurriedly walked out of the study and gently closed the door page. Only then did Li Zhi notice that at the gate of the courtyard, there was a seven-foot-tall military general, who looked like a northwesterner, was wearing a green mountain armor, and the beard on his chin was quite eye-catching.

Li Zhi recalled that this seemed to be Duan Ling, a lieutenant of Weiyuan Military Academy, who had been greedy for money and food for soldiers on the eve of Nanzhao's entry into the Kou, and later completely defected to Li Zhi in order to protect himself, thus exempting himself from accountability.

Duan Ling leaned over and arched his hand, leaned over and whispered: "That Victorian secret pile, the identity has been confirmed......

"Who is it?"

“…… It's the staff of the Shuaifu, who seems to be called ...... Zhang Yijun. ”

"That cloth shirt with no official character, but Li Deyu is a staff member?" Li Zhi squinted his eyes, as if he was recalling something, and whispered, "Is he at the Shuai Mansion now?" ”

"Duan has already knocked people out."

"Huh?" Li Zhi and Li Assi were shocked in unison.

Duan Ling, who didn't take a closer look at the changes in Li Zhi and the housekeeper's expressions, thought that he had made a great achievement, and at this moment he was quite proud of his little tricks, "Duan Moufang pretended to be Yang Zong, bluffed the Wuwei Army at Xuanhe Gate, and bought off the guards of the Fangmen early, absolutely foolproof, and will not be detected by the Shuai Mansion......"

Li Zhi's face darkened, and Ah Si saw that his family master's anger was accumulating, so he hurriedly pulled Duan Ling with a shocked face and asked, "No, how did I give you orders?" Why did you pull people to Alang's mansion without permission? ”

"Huh? You're not asking someone to send someone to ...... Do you want to 'take care of' the dark stake? Duan Ling was a little confused by this sudden questioning, and involuntarily swallowed.

"That's for you to send someone to Xuanhemen, write down the appearance, and know who it is, not for you to arrest it! You are robbing the secret pile, and you are telling the truth! Butler Ah Si's eyes widened, first glanced at Li Zhi's gloomy expression, and was afraid that Xue Yuanxian in the room would hear it, so he lowered his voice and said, "Silence!" Now that Xue Yuansheng is still inside, this matter must not be leaked. Hurry up and send people into Tooth City. ”

"Forehead ......" Duan Ling raised his eyes and looked at Li Zhi, still not realizing the catastrophe he had caused, and tried to remedy it: "Duan's intuition...... It's definitely a disaster for this Zhang Yijun to keep, or let's keep doing it and ...... this dark pile," Duan Ling said this, and gestured twice with his finger on his neck.

"Are you crazy?!" Li Zhi's anger finally exploded, the beard on his chin was windless, and he raised his hand according to Duan Ling's left face is a fierce palm, glared at his eyes and scolded angrily: "Killing the dark pile, Tang Lu is a capital crime!" No mercy! What kind of stupid trick are you? ”

Li Zhi was angry, Duan Ling, the captain of Weiyuan Military Academy, was so frightened that his forehead was full of sweat, and he didn't dare to cover his face when it hurts, so he immediately knelt down and kowtowed again and again to apologize.

"Don't get out of here!" Li Ace pointed at the courtyard gate with his finger, and after Duan Ling kowtowed a few more times to apologize, he fled with a crawl.

After Duan Ling left, Li Zhi was able to calm down a little and think carefully, but the more he thought about it, the more angry he became. If you really use the people from the embassy to send Zhang Yijun out, it is simply three hundred taels of silver here, so it will definitely not work. However, at the moment, this Zhang Yijun is a hot potato, and the longer he stays in Li Zhifu, the greater the possibility of an accident. If the Shuai Mansion has not seen the return of the dark pile for a long time, he will find that there is a change; Or suspect that Li Zhi robbed the secret pile, so he will not send troops to surrender, and if he does not send troops into Victoria, Li Zhi's situation will be extremely bad, not to mention, the confession of impeachment of Li Deyu in Li Zhi's hand will become a piece of waste paper.

We must think of a way to send Zhang Yijun out and not let the Shuai Mansion suspect that Li Zhi had robbed the secret pile.

"You're really a non-human!" Li Zhi gritted his teeth and complained.

Li Asi lowered his head again and again to admit his mistake, he really didn't expect Duan Ling to be so stupid. Therefore, half a day ago, he was already secretly thinking about countermeasures, in order to make up for his mistakes, so he spoke: "Ah Lang...... The matter has come to this, and it just so happens that Xue Tingshi is also there, so it is better to plan it, and before the dark pile wakes up, Ah Si will go and smoke some incense for him again, so that he can sleep for another hour. You can win over Xue Gong by the way, if Xue Gong can stand on your side, you can hand over the hidden stake to him, hide it in the wooden chariot, and bring it out of Wenshu Fang, a foreign state assassin history, no one will suspect it. By the way, let the 'Bird City' go to cancel the entry and exit records of the door, so naturally it has nothing to do with you......"

Li Zhi pondered for a moment, nodded and said, "This plan is very good, it can be described as killing two birds with one stone, but if Xue Yuansheng does not cooperate, then what should it be?" ”

"If you don't cooperate...... You can instruct the 'Crane City' to put the charges of robbing the hidden pile and transgressing the rules on that Yang Zong's head. The marching Sima Li Huaishen and Yang Zong have been at odds for a long time, and they must want to take advantage of this opportunity to eradicate them, so that you can watch the fire from the other side and reap the benefits of the fisherman......"

After Ah Si's words were finished, Li Zhi's thoughts gradually became clear, and he patted Ah Si's back with some appreciation.

In the final analysis, if you can win over Xue Yuanxian, then everything will be easy to do, not only will you not have to deal with this hot potato, but there may also be unexpected gains. At that time, it will only be necessary to return to the plot, and Jiedu will send troops into Victoria, Li Zhi's confession will be handed over, and the rest will be handed over to Niu Xianggong and Uncle to do, which is enough.

The net has been woven, and the rest is waiting for you to enter the urn.

"The tea is going to be cold, so make two more lights."

The key is, how to win over Xue Yuanxian? Thinking like this, Li Zhi walked into the study with a smile and saw Xue Yuansheng holding a copy of "Sou Shen Ji" casually flipping through at the moment.

"It's rude and rude, let Xue Gong wait for a long time, and then he made two teas, but he didn't use the newly ground tea, and he was told by Zhi, and he came later."

"It doesn't matter." Xue Yuanxian closed the book and inadvertently picked the corners of his mouth.

"Oh, didn't Duke Xue just ask what happened in this Chengdu Mansion today?" Li Zhi took the initiative to bring up the topic that had just been interrupted, "Xue Gong doesn't know?" Today, the officials of Chengdu Prefecture have spread all over the world, and the deputy envoy of Tubo and Victoria is planning to lead the people to surrender to our Tang Dynasty today. ”

"Oh?" Xue Yuansheng had actually heard about it a long time ago, but he still pretended to be surprised and said, "There is such a thing? ”

"Yes, I really hope that Li Jiedu can send troops into the city as soon as possible, so as not to have too many dreams at night, what does Xue Gong think?"

Li Zhi glanced at Xue Yuansheng, but found that Xue Yuansheng was not only not happy, but looked melancholy and worried, which surprised Li Zhi.

"Tut-tut......" Xue Yuanxian shook his head slightly.

"Xue Gong, ...... this?"

"Oh, it's okay, Yuan Xian is just lamenting, this Tang Dynasty ...... It's hard to be peaceful. ”

This simple sentence, if it comes out of Xue Yuanxian's mouth, it seems that it needs to be carefully pondered. Li Zhi secretly observed Xue Yuansheng's expression, and didn't notice any pretense, so he asked tentatively: "Hehe, Xue Gong is afraid that he is too worried." Victoria Recovery...... How is it not peaceful? ”

"I, Tang Dynasty, have an alliance with Tubo Changqing, and the alliance will continue forever. Not only will this matter restart the war, but it will also be related to ......" Xue Yuansheng paused, glanced at Li Zhi, and said meaningfully: "...... It's even more at odds with the Ming Gong in Beijing. ”

"I don't know what Xue Gong called Ming Gong ......"

"Good and indisputable, big concerns about the quiet people." Xue Yuan rewarded him word by word.

Li Zhi felt a little confused, so he didn't fight for peace, and he was worried about Jingmin. Stability is the hometown of Niu Sidian, the prime minister of the dynasty. Is this Xue Yuansheng Li Deyu's person, or is he the same bull party as himself?

Li Zhi simply stopped playing dumb riddles and asked straightforwardly: "Xue Gong...... is also a strange person? ”

Xue Yuansheng knew that Qizhang Xianggong referred to the prime minister Niu Sidian, because Niu Sihuang's ancestor Niu Hong had been named Qizhang Gong in the former Sui Dynasty, so the court and the court were all called by this.

Xue Yuansheng laughed when he heard this, and said bluntly: "Actually, it's not just Qizhang Xianggong, there is another person in Beijing, and Yuan Xian is also very familiar. ”

Without waiting for Li Zhi to open his mouth to ask questions, Xue Yuanxian looked at Li Zhi's face and stroked with his index finger on the wooden table.

Li Zhi couldn't take his eyes off it, although it was in his own mansion, he only felt that the atmosphere was a little subtle now. The white-faced scholar-like Xue Yuanxian in front of him seemed to be far from being as simple as Li Zhi had imagined before.

After Xue Yuanxiang finished gesturing on the table, Li Zhi couldn't help but jump his eyelids.

"Divine Army?!"