Although Lao Shangshu had long felt that some of the things that had happened recently were very strange, and even guessed some terrible possibilities, Qi Ning guessed that Xiao Shaozong used the recommendation of the military department to let Lu Xiaochao control the Tiger God Camp, and then control the entire capital, which still made Lao Shangshu break out in a cold sweat on his back.

If this is the case, the situation has reached an extremely serious point.

"Xiao Shaozong controls the capital, what does he want?" Although Lao Shangshu had already guessed Xiao Shaozong's purpose, he still couldn't help but ask this question.

Qi Ning's eyes were deep and his expression was cold: "Naturally, it is to usurp the throne." ”

"Is he really trying to usurp the throne?" Lao Shangshu's expression turned cold, and he sneered: "I'm afraid that he may not be able to get his wish, just by controlling the capital, he really thinks that he can turn things upside down?" The emperor was ordered by the first emperor to succeed to the throne, and he was the orthodox emperor of my Great Chu, Xiao Shaozong usurped the throne, and the people's hearts were difficult to recover, and someone would inevitably enter the king of Beijing. ”

Qi Ning said: "Since Xiao Shaozong has spent his time and planned for many years, he will naturally not let himself be in a predicament. Wei Yi groaned, and then said: "Lao Shangshu, when Emperor Taizu died that year, the King of Huainan was still in infancy, and the south was not peaceful at that time, and Emperor Taizu passed the throne to Emperor Taizong for the great cause of Chu, but it is rumored that Emperor Taizong had promised Emperor Taizu that he wanted to pass the throne to Xiao Zhang, King of Huainan, but I don't know if this thing is true or false?" ”

Lao Shangshu said: "Such rumors never appeared at the beginning, in fact, they only began to circulate in the year of Emperor Taizong's death. However, the old man never believed such unfounded rumors from beginning to end. If Emperor Taizong really had such a promise back then, there would have been witnesses on the side to testify, and there must have been records in the secret documents in the palace, but there was no such record, and Emperor Taizong had never said to anyone that he would pass the throne to King Huainan. He sneered and said: "After Emperor Taizong succeeded to the throne, he naturally wanted to reuse his descendants, including your Jinyi Qi family, but because of this, many of Emperor Taizu's subordinates were dissatisfied, and they naturally hoped that King Huainan would really be able to inherit the throne one day, which would be of great benefit to them. ”

"Although they are made out of nothing, these rumors still make many people believe that they are true." Qi Ning said: "Some people even think that King Huainan is the real legitimate heir. ”

Lao Shangshu said: "What you say is not false. After the first emperor succeeded to the throne, Sima Lan secretly played the first emperor to kill a group of demagogic people, but fortunately, the first emperor was generous and did not kill because of this, but always treated the king of Huainan well. ”

"If it is really a killing spree, I am afraid that those who are skeptical will really believe such rumors." Qi Ning sighed.

Lao Shangshu bowed his head and said, "Exactly." The first emperor was benevolent and did not get angry because of this, and those gossips gradually disappeared later. As for if there are rumors that the old marquis of Shantai once made an excerpt to the first emperor and mentioned Emperor Taizong's promise, it is also nonsense. The Golden Dao Tai is the most powerful one among Emperor Taizu's subordinates, so someone with other intentions brought the Tai family out, in fact, this is simply impossible to happen. It is rumored that Emperor Taizu has made a promise, but there is no evidence at all, and there is no such record in the palace. Wouldn't that be self-defeating? ”

Qi Ning knew that what Lao Shangshu said was true.

The old marquis of Shantai is the survival of the golden knife lineage, in the absence of evidence, it is impossible to fold the son to the first emperor for the king of Huainan, even if there is evidence, the old marquis may not act rashly, after all, the golden knife marquis is the real minister with military power among the old ministers of Emperor Taizu, he does not move, if such a minister with military power is born to support the heart of the king of Huainan, the first emperor is no matter how merciful it is, it is impossible to let the golden knife Taitai family survive.

When he first heard this rumor, he felt that the possibility was very small, and when Lao Shangshu said this today, he was sure that it was really just a rumor.

"I came to see Lao Shangshu today because of this." Qi Ning said: "Lao Shangshu is in charge of the Ministry of Rites, and the heart of the world's sons is naturally the best understanding of Lao Shangshu." After thinking for a while, he said: "The younger generation dares to ask, have these gossips ever had an impact on the literati of the world?" ”

Lao Shangshu's expression suddenly became serious, he raised his hand to stroke his beard, pondered for a moment, and finally said: "Eleven years ago, there was an incident, but ...... Not many people know. ”

"Please teach Lao Shangshu!"

"The old man received a letter that year, and it was submitted by a scholar in Xunyang." Lao Shangshu said: "This person is quite famous, and he found someone to send a letter over, and in the letter, it was said that the king of Huainan was the eldest son of Emperor Taizu, and according to the etiquette system, Emperor Taizong should make the king of Huainan the crown prince, otherwise it would be a usurpation of the throne, and he wanted the old man to lead the world's scholars to ask the emperor to change the prince's ......!" The voice was lowered: "Although the old man didn't pay attention to it, since this person dared to send such a letter, it can be seen that there are indeed many scholars who think that King Huainan has the qualifications to inherit the throne." ”

Qi Ning bowed his head and said: "There may not be too many such people, but if the scholars have such thoughts, Xiao Shaozong can take advantage of them." His brows furrowed, and he said, "I'm only worried about one thing now!" ”

Lao Shangshu immediately understood, and said in a low voice: "Do you think Xiao Shaozong will let ...... The emperor issued an edict of abdication? ”

"Exactly." Qi Ning said: "The emperor is under his control, if he forces the emperor to issue an edict of abdication, or even let the emperor pass on him, then it will be in accordance with the law, and no one will question that his throne is not right." ”

"The emperor is in his youth, and even if he issues an edict of abdication, he needs a reason." Lao Shangshu said: "If the abdication edict is issued at such a young age, people all over the world will feel that there is something strange in it. ”

Qi Ning immediately said: "Have you forgotten that Lao Shangshu has been saying that the emperor is unwell recently, and Lao Shangshu has just said that the emperor's voice that appeared at the court meeting is wrong, and many people think that it is because of the dragon's body that causes .....!" His eyes were sharp and his expression was solemn: "I'm afraid this was deliberately arranged by Xiao Shaozong, so that the Manchu Dynasty civil and military forces can confirm that the emperor is not in good health.....!" ”

Lao Shangshu was shocked and said: "When the time comes, it can be said that the emperor is in poor health and can't manage the government, so .....!" ”

"There will even be news of the emperor's violent death." Qi Ning sighed: "Since everyone knows that the emperor is sick, but they don't know what disease he is suffering from, if the emperor suddenly dies, then Xiao Shaozong has already done enough work in advance, and he only needs to control a few imperial doctors to explain it to the people of the world." ”

It has entered summer, and the temperature at night is not low, but Lao Shangshu can't help but tighten his clothes.

There was a dead silence in the study, and after a while, Lao Shangshu finally said: "We can only say that we can speculate on all this, and there is no evidence." ”

"That's the toughest problem right now." Qi Ning frowned and said: "If there is conclusive evidence for what I said, I can naturally unite the ministers of the court, but without evidence, it is impossible for the ministers of the court to unite, even if they have doubts in their hearts, they dare not make any moves." Yulin Camp, Tiger God Camp and Shenhou Mansion are all under Xiao Shaozong's control, he can also borrow the emperor's name and issue orders at will, not to mention that no one dares to stand up at this time, even if there is such a person, what can he use to expose Xiao Shaozong? ”

Lao Shangshu frowned and said: "If he really forces the emperor to issue an edict of abdication, or even usurps the throne, then even the Qinhuai army can only obey his will." It seemed that he was anxious, coughing, Qi Ning hurriedly got up and patted Lao Shangshu on the back, and after Lao Shangshu eased up, he smiled bitterly: "Protector, what can you do if the old man believes all this?" The old man had no military power in his hands, and there was no evidence of Xiao Shaozong's usurpation, so he couldn't do anything at all. He turned his head to look at Qi Ning beside him, and said softly: "Since Xiao Shaozong has accused you of treason, you are also dangerous and abnormal in Beijing now, I am afraid that there are eyeliners everywhere in this capital, but if you find your traces, you will not be able to escape at all." ”

"Since I'm back, I haven't thought about escaping." Qi Ning's expression was cold: "There are three things that must be done now. ”

"Three things?"

"First of all, we must figure out the emperor's situation." Qi Ning said: "As long as the emperor is still alive and he comes forward to expose Xiao Shaozong's conspiracy, then the conspiracy that Xiao Shaozong has painstakingly planned will be exposed." ”

"Could it be...... The emperor has been killed? Lao Shangshu's body shook, and his pupils contracted.

Qi Ning shook his head and said, "The emperor's safety is uncertain at the moment, ...... it is uncertain!" After thinking for a while, he continued: "Secondly, we must find out Xiao Shaozong's current situation, in addition to the power he has in his hands now, whether there are other hidden powers. ”

Lao Shangshu said: "The power in his hands alone is no longer something you can handle." With the strength that the Jinyi Qi family relied on, the Qinhuai Legion was now on the front line, and the Black Scale Battalion had also been dismantled, and the Tiger God Battalion of Xue Lingfeng had now become Lu Xiaochao's soldiers and horses. Looking at Qi Ning's eyes: "These three soldiers and horses are all related to the Qi family, or they can be used for you, but now you can't transfer a single soldier." Taking a step back, even if you can mobilize these troops and horses, how can you easily transfer troops before you are sure that the emperor is indeed controlled by Xiao Shaozong? As for the Black Knife Battalion, Xuanwu Battalion, or even local officers and soldiers outside the city, it is impossible for you to use them. ”

Qi Ning smiled bitterly: "What Lao Shangshu said is extremely true, I don't have any hole cards to compete with Xiao Shaozong now, to put it mildly, the current situation between me and Xiao Shaozong is like eggs and stones, if you fight hard, you can only end up in pieces!" ”