The portrait of the meritorious hero can be said to be a very distinctive symbol of the Tang Dynasty, to be able to paint the portrait and enjoy the incense offering of the emperors of the Tang Dynasty in the past dynasties, it is the supreme glory for the courtiers, in contrast, the promotion and knighthood are not as noble as the portrait of the meritorious hero. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

Li Su suggested to Li Shimin to set up portraits of heroes to be offered in the pavilion, but originally it was just to see Li Shimin reminiscing about the past heroes, and he couldn't bear to mention it casually. But he didn't expect this casual mention to be adopted by Li Shimin, and then set off a huge wave in the circle of meritorious elites in Chang'an City.

For those heroes who followed Li Shimin to fight the country, the significance of the portrait of the hero is too important, once a person reaches a certain height that can no longer rise, the things he pursues gradually change, Li Shimin is already the title of the emperor, in addition to the day soaring to the immortal class, the status in the world can no longer be promoted, so what he pursues is no longer the throne, but the reputation in the history books and the eternal stability of the Tang Dynasty.

It can be said that unless they have the courage to rebel and step on Li Shimin to replace themselves as emperors, their status has almost reached the top of the people's ministers, and there is no way to rise, so what they pursue is the same as Li Shimin's, in addition to the prosperity of the family gate, they also want to leave a strong mark in the history, the so-called "geese have left a voice, people have left a name".

Although everyone wants to leave a name in history, but they didn't think of how to leave a name for a while, at this time Li Su's portrait of a hero undoubtedly opened the door to a new world for the monarchs and ministers.

Li Su's unintentional actions were naturally good news for the monarchs and ministers of Chang'an City, but Li Su did not expect that Hou Junji would be excluded from the portrait of heroes by Li Shimin.

As we all know, Hou Junji was one of the first to follow Li Shimin's founding generals, when Li Shimin was still the king of Qin, Hou Junji was a general under Li Shimin's command, and even Li Shimin launched the Xuanwu Gate Change, Hou Junji was also the first to enter the Xuanwu Gate, and the hidden prince Li Jiancheng's generals fought fiercely, and went all out to ensure Li Shimin's victory, not to mention the great achievements of Hou Junji for the Tang Dynasty during the Wude Zhenguan period, it can be said that if Hou Junji's qualifications and military exploits, there is no problem with the portrait of the meritorious hero.

It's a pity that Hou Junji did something wrong, although he stopped at the last moment, but after all, he left an indelible stain on his life.

Rebellion is rebellion, even if the precipice is reined in at the critical moment, it is impossible to praise him as a meritorious hero, Li Shimin sparing his life is already an extrajudicial grace, and it is inevitable that his status will plummet, and it is expected that he will fall to the edge of the power center from then on, as for such a glorious thing as the portrait of a meritorious hero, it is impossible for anyone to take Hou Junji's turn when it is their turn.

Therefore, Li Su was surprised for a moment after hearing that Hou Junji could not be on the portrait of a meritorious hero, and then his face returned to normal.

Hou Junji's life can be said to be saved by Li Su, and Li Su saved him twice, the first time was Hou Junji's indiscriminate killing and looting after the Gaochang level, and then after being accused, he was degraded by Li Shimin for thousands of miles, Li Su admonished in front of Li Shimin to protect it, which made Hou Junji return to Chang'an, the second time was on the eve of Li Chengqian's rebellion, Li Su personally visited Hou Junji, and tried to persuade Hou Junji to rein in the precipice, and pulled back the situation that the arrow had left the string, which was why Hou Junji temporarily defected on the night of the rebellion, kneeling in front of the Taiji Palace and pleading guilty, In the end, his life was saved.

Once or twice, the grace of saving lives is as great as the sky, after Li Chengqian's rebellion, Hou Junji was removed from the knighthood and degraded to Qiongnan, and has left Chang'an for a year, although Hou Junji has never thanked Li Su, but Li Su knows that his life-saving grace has been deeply rooted in Hou Junji's bones, even if Li Su suddenly decides to create the Li family's anti-self-establishment as the king one day, just a letter, Hou Junji will not hesitate to kill the official and set up the flag, and run thousands of miles.

This is the friendship between men and men, not pushing the cup for a lamp, not swearing an alliance, even if there has been no news for many years, when it is time to work hard for each other, a fluttering sentence can be self-cutting a good head, with the righteousness of all friends.

Slowly touching his chin, Li Su began to hesitate.

Although it is reasonable not to be able to go to the portrait of the hero, but the friendship between Hou Junji and Li Su is different, and he is also the person who has saved him twice at great risk, this time Hou Junji was excluded from the portrait of the hero, and Li Su is still a little uncomfortable in his heart.

So Li Su is hesitating, should he die again, so that Hou Junji can show his face on the portrait of the hero?

The thought was fleeting, and Li Su smiled bitterly, he knew that this was very unrealistic. It is an indisputable fact that Hou Junji was involved in Li Chengqian's conspiracy against him, and it is already a blessing for Li Shimin to spare his life.

When he came back to his senses, he saw Wang Zhi's small eyes staring at him tightly, and his eyes were full of inquiry.

Li Su frowned: "It's dangerous for you to look at me like this, because my handsome appearance will make you fall in love with me, but I'm not good at being a man, especially if you look so obscene......"

Wang Zhi smiled dryly and said: "I don't have that hobby, in fact, I just want to ask, why don't you plan to fight for Hou Junji this time, after all, you saved him once or twice, this time Hou Junji can't get a portrait of a hero, I thought you would at least help him fight for it......"

Li Su said lightly: "I saved Hou Junji just at the right time, I did it casually, when I and your brother were trapped in Xizhou, about to die in the country, it was Hou Junji who led the troops to rescue, although it was at the behest of His Majesty, but it was a fact that I was saved, so I redoubled my retribution, as for not being able to get the portrait of a meritorious hero, it was Hou Junji's own business, it has nothing to do with me, he did something wrong, it is a blessing to be able to save his life, and I have no obligation to help him fight for other fame and fortune outside the body." ”

Wang Zhi was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Understood, then, I will remove some of the arrangements made in advance......

Li Su was stunned at this time: "What arrangements did you make in advance?" ”

Wang Zhi smiled and said: "You saved Hou Junji's life twice, I thought you had a good relationship with him, this time he couldn't get on the portrait of a hero, I thought you might do your best to help, so I didn't wait for your order, I started to arrange the ...... in advance"

Li Su frowned: "You spread rumors in Chang'an City to build momentum for Hou Junji?" This method is very dangerous, and it is easy not to use it until your life is at stake, and it is easy to set yourself on fire. ”

Wang Zhi smiled and said, "Am I a person who does not know what is important? I haven't done this kind of thing for many years, and if I know that there is a force under my nose that he can't control, you and I won't be able to cut off a hundred heads. ”

"Then you just said that you made the arrangement in advance, what is the arrangement?"

Wang Zhi smiled, leaned over and lowered his voice: "I have installed some people in the mansions of more than a dozen founding veterans, after all, Hou Junji is also in the army, I secretly ordered yesterday to let those people find out what private discussions the old generals have about Hou Junji's ability to paint portraits of meritorious heroes, after all, Hou Junji's qualifications are here, and even he can't be on the portraits of meritorious heroes, and the old generals must have some ......."

Before he finished speaking, Li Su's eyes widened, he gasped, and said in a lost voice: "You planted eyeliner in the mansion of the founding veterans?" ”

Wang Zhi opened his innocent eyes and said, "That's right." ”

Li Su's voice trembled a little: "When did it happen?" How many people have you installed? What positions do they hold in the veteran's mansion? How many powerful families in Chang'an City have been infiltrated by you? ”

The barrage of questions smashed Wang Zhi's head in a daze, and he hurriedly said: "Don't worry, ask one by one, you ask so many at once, which one should I answer first......"

Grabbing Wang Zhi's clothes, Li Su slammed him in front of him, gritted his teeth and said coldly: "I'll ask other questions slowly, you answer me the most important question first...... When did I let you expand your power and bury your eyes in the mansion of the powerful? Do you know how serious this is, bastard? ”

Wang Zhi was stunned and said: "When you asked me to go to Chang'an City to make friends and secretly cultivate wings, wasn't that what it was?" I still remember what you said at the beginning, our power has developed to the end, not only the people in the market, but also the meritorious magnates, and even what is going on in the Taiji Palace, we can be the first to know the news, and if we do this, we can protect ourselves in Chang'an City, and now I am almost at this step, and now even in the Taiji Palace, I have secretly bought more than ten stewards and eunuchs, and I have gone out of the palace on time every month to deliver news to me, and even I have arranged eyeliner in several other states and cities in the Guannei, why have you changed your mind now? ”

Li Su was stunned, and looked at Wang Zhi fixedly, but his heart was like a stormy wave, churning endlessly.

It's only been a few years, Wang Zhi has actually done this, and since the Jinyang Rebellion, Li Su was worried that Li Shimin had doubts about the secret forces he had cultivated, so he very decisively faded out of contact with this force, he knew very well that this force was a very taboo for the emperor, and after seeing the ability of the old eunuch Chang Tu around Li Shimin, Li Su became more and more jealous, and even suspected that Li Shimin had already known about the existence of this force, but for some reason he didn't do anything to himself and this force.

Alienating this force is the way to protect oneself, and the original intention of cultivating it was also for self-preservation, it is undeniable that this force did help me a lot, the battle with the crown prince, the battle with the king of Wei, including the plan to let the Gao family dissolve the marriage contract with Dongyang, etc., these are all related to the secret planning and assistance of this force.

But Li Su knows very well that this is a double-edged sword, which can kill the enemy and hurt himself, especially under the nose of the Tang Dynasty.

At the beginning, after Li Su returned to Chang'an from Jinyang, he told Wang Zhi not to develop and grow again, otherwise he would risk his life, but he didn't expect Wang Zhi to quietly expand his power to such a point, and buried his eyeliner in the mansion of the powerful and Taiji Palace......

To be honest, this posture of making death is very novel and creative, Li Su has not seen it for many years, and what is even worse is that the theoretical leader of this force of death is himself, that is to say, if Li Shimin decides to do it one day, the first person to chop is himself.

Thinking of this, Li Su's hands and feet suddenly became cold, and his heart sank to the bottom.

Seeing that Li Su was in a daze, Wang Zhi cautiously pushed him: "Li Su, what's wrong with you?" Am I doing something wrong? ”

Li Su came back to his senses, looked at Wang Zhi's innocent and empty ugly face, sighed faintly, and then arched his hand at him, and said, "I have a sentence of 'other mother', I don't know whether to say it or not......

Wang Zhi: "............"

Li Su said with an ugly face: "Did I tell you at the beginning that the forces under your command can no longer grow, just maintain the status quo, rein in your edge, and act in a low-key manner?" ”

Wang Zhi lowered his head and said, "You said it." ”

Li Su said coldly: "But you don't seem to listen to me, but instead develop it bigger and stronger, and even the palace and the mansion of the powerful have been installed by you, can I ask, what do you think?" ”

Wang Zhi was silent for a long time, and said in a low voice: "Li Su, how have you come to this day step by step in Chang'an City over the years, my brother and I have silently watched in our eyes, others see you lazy, but my brother and I know that you have great ability and great wisdom, and you deliberately restrain your edge because you are clumsy and for self-preservation, but you have come cautiously over the years, and when your life is at stake several times, look at the people around you, how many can really help you?" My brother and I can spare our lives for you, but we are humble after all, even if we risk our lives, we can help you is limited, it can be said that the power that is really in your hands, except for the force that was cultivated back then, there is almost nothing else, in fact, the force in our hands has indeed helped you over the years, I don't understand, why you don't even want to hold the only thing that belongs to you completely, but deliberately suppress its growth? ”

Li Su shook his head and sighed: "Because you have never lived in the temple, so I don't know the sinister inside, the power we hold in our hands looks strong, but in fact it is like a castle in the sky, as long as the person in power says a light word, it will fall to the ground, and it will also lead to us being punished, dead and dead, Wang Zhi, you will develop it stronger, in the eyes of the authorities, it is still fragile after all, I can't risk the lives of your brothers and my own family, because it is not very necessary to exist now, Getting out early is the way to save yourself......"

Wang looked directly at Li Su's eyes, and said solemnly: "Li Su, it was indeed fragile at first, but it has gradually become stronger, and now almost all the powerful mansions in Chang'an City have our eyeliner, although the status of these eyeliners in the mansion is not high, most of them are miscellaneous servants, maids, cooks, and a little higher are only housekeepers, doormen, etc., but over time, the status of the person I inserted in will be higher and higher, and the position will become more and more important, and one day, it can determine the left and right of a certain conspiracy, an event or even a certain national policy, And this power has always been in my hands, or more precisely, in your hands. ”

Li Su was slightly moved.

I have to say that Wang Zhi can develop this force to this point, which shows that he is indeed a very capable person, this fact is far beyond Li Su's expectations, in his impression of Wang Zhi, first of all, he can fully trust the little brother, is a lifelong friendship, secondly, Wang Zhi's ability in the past is not outstanding, in terms of force, he is not as good as his brother Wang Zhu, in terms of resourcefulness, he is not as far away as Li Su, his only advantage is that he knows how to be flexible, sociable, and a little smart, Therefore, when Li Su decided to develop a force that belonged completely to himself, due to the lack of trusted people around him, he had to entrust this matter to Wang Zhi.

Over the years, Wang Zhi has done a good job, although it is useless but there is no fault, Li Su silently observed for two years, and finally let Wang Zhi toss it, in recent years, he has rarely asked Wang Zhi what kind of scale his power has developed, but he really didn't expect Wang Zhi to give him such a big surprise, no, frightened.

"Wang Zhi, you think too simply......" Li Su sighed long, he didn't blame Wang Zhi, Li Su couldn't bear to criticize the people closest to him, not to mention that Wang Zhi's original intention was completely for him Li Su.

"When today's Zi Fei is faint, I suspect that he has known about this force in our hands for a long time, and has not been hidden, maybe because we have not done too much, or maybe he is waiting for it to grow and develop, like raising a pig, and then take it over when it is fat, and take it for his own use, you have worked hard for all these years, and in the end it is inevitable to make wedding dresses for others, not to mention, even your life is difficult to protect, which is why I asked you to maintain the status quo and restrain your edge......"

Wang Zhi was shocked, looking at Li Su's helpless and wry expression, Wang Zhi suddenly realized that he seemed to have really done something wrong.

Li Su continued to smile bitterly: "Wang Zhi, although you are not a member of the court, but you have experienced strong winds and waves over the years, you should know very well that the power in our hands will never last long if there is no court as the foundation, and you should also know that it has committed the taboo of the emperor, and there are only two kinds of fate in the future, one is to be completely erased from this world by the emperor, and the other is to be picked by the emperor, just replace a few people in charge, this force can be reasonably and legally accepted for the emperor's own use, no matter what the end, You and I will be the culprit, and you will be killed all over the house, now do you understand the stakes? ”

Wang Zhi was stunned for a long time and said, "Are you sure Your Majesty already knows about the existence of this force?" ”

Li Su sighed: "I'm not sure, but I have intuition, maybe you don't believe in intuition, but I believe that when today's son is wise and sharp all his life, I believe that he will not be unaware, and sometimes I even feel that my words and deeds have fallen into his eyes, including the power in our hands." ”

Wang Zhi was silent for a long time, and suddenly smiled: "Li Su, there is one thing you can't be mistaken, this force is mine, not 'our', listen well, it belongs to me alone, and has nothing to do with you, you are a county prince of Qinfeng, your eyes are above the top, it is when the spring breeze is proud, how can you be disdainful of a group of scoundrels and rangers in the market, specializing in those who listen to the corners of the wall and gossip?" No one will believe it. ”

Li Su was stunned for a moment, and soon he understood the meaning of Wang Zhi's words, and his heart couldn't help but be moved, and he pushed his head hard, and scolded with a smile: "We are grasshoppers on a rope, if Your Majesty wants to do it, the first person to kill must be me, do you think that if you say something that has nothing to do with me, Your Majesty really believes it?" Are you really stupid or are you stupid when Your Majesty is stupid? Also, am I, Li Su, the kind of person who needs a friend to help me carry the black pot? ”

Wang Zhi also knew that he was really covering his ears and stealing the bell when he said this, no matter what, it was impossible for this force to be separated from Li Su, thinking that he hadn't listened to Li Su's words in the past two years, and developed his power to such a strong point, until today, he knew that he had made a big disaster, and he couldn't help but look depressed and desperate.

"I ...... I'm going to disband it! Before Your Majesty did anything to you, let's take the initiative to erase it, Your Majesty should always rest assured, right? Wang Zhi suddenly said fiercely.

Li Su said lightly: "Disbanding it now, will only force Your Majesty to do it in advance, in my estimation, Your Majesty probably wants to take it for his own use, so he has been holding on to it, do you remember the first time we used this force to spread rumors about the prince in Chang'an City, and in order to dissolve the marriage contract between the Gao family and Princess Dongyang, in Chang'an City, the people made waves, killed people in front of the East Palace, etc., these things seem to be arranged impermeable, in fact, if you trace it carefully, you can still find clues, but it is strange." , often the government closes the case in a so-so way when it is halfway through the investigation, and no longer continues to investigate......"

Wang Zhi was shocked: "You mean ......"

Li Su nodded with a calm face: "That's right, I guess Your Majesty actually knew it for a long time, and he didn't continue to investigate because he was interested in this force, but he felt that it was too weak and not worth doing, so he simply waited for us to develop and grow, he also wanted to see how far we could grow, what role it would play in Chang'an City after it grown, and finally assess whether it was worth taking into his pocket......

Wang Zhi was really panicked at the moment: "Your Majesty is so powerful?" In this way, aren't we the chickens to be slaughtered in his cage? When did he want to slaughter it, which one did he want to slaughter, and he took it out and cut it down? ”

Li Su glanced at him and snorted, "Otherwise? Do you think that you are a wild dog that can wave as much as you want? Wang Zhi, you underestimate the heroes of the world too much. ”

Thinking of the inexplicable words that Li Shimin said to him when he was the county prince of Ganlu Palace, Li Su became more and more sure that Li Shimin must know something, and those words were not said casually, but clearly meant something.

Sighing heavily, Li Su said: "It's too late to disband it now, I believe that Your Majesty has set your sights on it, and is more and more interested in it, what the emperor fancies, if anyone dares to erase it, it will only force Your Majesty to do something to us in advance, and ......"

Li Su paused, lowered his voice and said slowly: "Also, are you sure that this force is really still in our hands now?" Are you sure that your henchmen and cronies have not been bribed, that Your Majesty has not inserted eyeliner? The praying mantis catches the cicada, the yellow finch is behind, you can install eyeliner on the mansion of the powerful, why can't Your Majesty install eyeliner on your territory? ”

Wang Zhi's face was pale, cold sweat slipped down his forehead one by one, and his lips spurted a few times, wanting to say something but not knowing what to say.

Li Su patted him on the shoulder and sighed: "Young man, you are still too tender......