What Liu Ru said is also reasonable, Hou Fangyu was convicted for his words, and the crime was not as good as his family, and the clan extermination was indeed too much. The real clan has wiped out Hou Fangyu, who was convicted for his words, who will dare to speak out in the future?

Fang was originally angry, but Liu Ru persuaded him like this, he had dispelled the idea of destroying the Hou family, and changed his words and instructed Hu Qi to say, "The matter of the destruction of the clan is suspended, but the Hou Fangyu, as well as the old and young of the Hou family, are all arrested and sent to prison." Remember, don't be beaten into confessions, as long as he confesses honestly, the sin is only him, and the disaster will not be for his family. If I still have to resist to the end, without his confession, I can also behead his entire family in the name of the Donglin Party's chaotic government. ”

Liu Ru was secretly relieved to see that he had finally dispelled the idea of destroying the Hou family. After all, she is Qin Huai Bayan's eldest sister, and Li Xiangjun also had a relationship with her, if the Hou family is destroyed, Li Xiangjun must not look good.

Liu Ru asked tentatively, "Brother Fang, expounding the strategy of the western expedition is just a statement of political opinions.

Hou Fangyu is a friend of Mao Gongzi, Jinyi Wei is arrested, do you need to tell Mao Gongzi?! ”

Fang Yuan saw that he moved out of Mao Bijiang to talk about things, and shouted angrily, "I was about to settle accounts with Mao Bijiang, and his restoration society should also be rectified!" ”

Liu Ru saw that Fang Yuan was angry, so he had to keep silent, and for the time being, he could only save the lives of the Hou family. As for whether he will sit down with other literati, he can only persuade Fang Yuan when his anger is gone.

Fang Yuan repeatedly explained to Liu Ruis that this case must be kept strictly confidential before it is closed, and none of her sisters of Qin Huai Bayan can be revealed. Liu Ru is also a woman who knows how to measure, it is a matter of military and political affairs, where will she use sisterhood, and she agreed repeatedly.

Fang Yuan left the Hedong Courtyard, but his heart was full of thoughts and thoughts.

This time, it was far more than the public opinion that instigated the Western Expedition, and even the cabinet and the Xuanjia Army did not raise objections. If any of the high-ranking officials of the cabinet and the Xuanjia Army are bribed by the imperial court, the problem will be serious, and the secrets directly related to the core may be leaked at any time.

Fang Yuan's main task at the moment is no longer to go west, but to clean up the traitors!

Among the cabinet members, Fang Yuan's first exclusion was of course his good brother Jing Jie, if Jing Jie had an accident, then the Xuanjia Army would have already been out of control.

The second person to be excluded is the first assistant Wang Bingjian. Wang Bingjian was the first state officials to come forward to support Fang Yuan's cabinet plan. If Fang Yuan falls, other people in the cabinet, such as Xi Benzhen, may be able to get away with the crime because they are deeply rooted in Jiangnan, and Wang Bingjian, an official whose ancestral home is Shaanxi, and is the first assistant, will not be able to get away with it. He did not have a reason to surrender to the imperial court, and it can also be ruled out.

Among the remaining three members of the cabinet, Xi Benzhen, Mao Bijiang, and Gao Hongtu, the biggest suspicion is obviously that he has a very good personal relationship with Hou Fangyu, and he is also the leader of the Restoration Society.

Fang Yuan carefully recalled the situation of the previous military conference, and Mao Bijiang was the second person after Wang Bingjian to stand up in favor of the Western Expedition, and his suspicion was indeed very big. What's more, many of the literati involved in the case this time are also reinstated from the society, and they are reasonable, and they are guilty of dereliction of duty.

There is also a suspicious candidate, that is, Gao Hongtu, who was already dissatisfied with the other party's original regime.

But Gao Hongtu was originally a soy sauce player in the cabinet, and it was Fang Yuan who arranged to balance the relationship with Zhu Cihuan. He has no say in the cabinet, and the imperial court in the capital will not buy him if it wants to. But it is possible to send people and Gao Hong to plot behind the scenes, and add fuel to the fire.

As for Xi Benzhen, Fang Yuan couldn't see that he had the motive and deeds to join the imperial court for the time being.

Is the real traitor taking the liberty of the frontier?!

Fang Yuan sat in the carriage, pondered for a long time, and finally spoke, "Old Hu, arrest Hou Fangyu's matter and let his family go for the time being." In the name of Qian Qianyi's invitation, Hou Fangyu was deceived into going to the Imperial Prison for secret interrogation, and not a word could be leaked. ”

He repeatedly changed his decree, one time he wanted the clan to destroy the Hou Fangyu and the Hou family's entire mansion, and the other time he only arrested the Hou family for questioning, and for a while he didn't even take the Hou family's family members, and only secretly arrested the Hou Fangyu.

Hu Qi was very curious, and said hesitantly, "Regent, who are you?" ”

Fang Yuan smiled and said, "Old Hu, I'm using Hou Fangyu as bait to catch the traitors in the cabinet!" Then he ordered all the cabinet members to come to the palace to hold a military and political meeting in ten days. ”

For ten days, Fang Yuan spent most of his time in the peach garden, drinking and having fun with Zhu Yihai. First, he was testing whether Zhu Yihai also participated in this joint operation; the second was to reject his idea of asking for Chen Yuanyuan; The third is to wait and observe the actions of the others after Hou Fangyu's mysterious disappearance.

According to Fang Yuan's secret observation, Zhu Yihai was indeed just looking for fun in the peach garden these days, and almost all of the guards and servants he accompanied stayed in the peach garden. Occasionally going out, Jin Yiwei followed him, and he didn't see anyone contacting others, but honestly bought it and went back to Peach Garden.

Judging by Fang Yuan, Zhu Yihai should also be kept in the dark, and the purpose of his trip to Suzhou Mansion is the same as previously estimated, that is, to incite Fang Yuan to accept the conditions of the imperial court, and he and other vassal kings can also take the opportunity to request that the feudal king's fief be turned into a vassal town.

Zhu Yihai's idea of asking for Chen Yuanyuan was rejected, and the delicious food in his mouth was gone, so he was very disappointed, and put forward a proposal to buy Chen Yuanyuan for 10,000 gold.

Chen Yuanyuan, Fang Yuan would never let him go, he didn't want to entangle with this sperm-insect-like prince anymore, and he didn't want to offend him plainly, so he asked him to ask Chen Yuanyuan directly what he thought. If Chen Yuanyuan himself was willing to go to Shandong with him, Fang Yuan would release him. He just wanted to borrow Chen Yuanyuan's mouth to reject Zhu Yihai.

Ten days later, a cabinet meeting was held at the palace.

Fang Yuan informed the cabinet that Li Yan had already taken precautions and failed to attack Yichang and Yiling, and asked everyone again what they thought about whether they would continue to fight with Li Zicheng next.

On this topic, the one who has the most right to speak is obviously Jing Jing, who is the commander of the Xuanjia Army and the secretary of the military department. But Fang Yuan had already secretly informed Jing Jie, telling him not to come out to speak with rhythm, he wanted to observe the truest thoughts of the cabinet members. So before the meeting, Jing Jie went to the backyard of the palace to meet the princess under the pretext that the princess had something to do.

Since Jing Jie was not there, Wang Bingjian, who was the first assistant to the cabinet, stood up again and said, "Regent, the soldiers, horses, and grains have already been prepared, and countless amounts of money and food have been consumed. The officers and men of the three armies have long been ready to go, grinding their fists, how can they say that they will not fight if they don't fight?! ”

Fang Yuan looked at Mao Bijiang, who was the most suspicious, and asked, "Young Master Mao, what do you think?!" ”

Mao Bijiang also stood up and said bluntly, "I seconded Wang Ge Lao's suggestion, and now everyone in Jiangnan is united, waiting for the good news of the westward expedition." If you return without success at this time, and postpone without fighting, isn't it ridiculous and generous?! Regent, the three armies have been delayed for half a month and have not yet set out, so they should send troops immediately! ”

Fang Yuan stared at him and asked rhetorically, "Young Master Mao thinks that if Li Zicheng returns to the main force in this battle, and the two armies start a war with real swords and guns, what are the chances of our army winning?!" ”

Mao Bijiang said loudly, "Whether it is victory or defeat, it is clear at first sight on the battlefield, I don't know about the military, and I dare not speculate." But since the regent wants to dominate the world, Li Zicheng's main force is a hard bone that must be gnawed. Hide, you can't hide! ”

Fang Yuan pondered for a while, then looked at Gao Hongtu and asked, "Gao Shangshu, what do you think?" ”

Gao Hongtu hesitated for a moment, but still said, "I seconded Wang Ge Lao's suggestion. ”

Fang Yuan's gaze finally fell on Xi Benzhen's body, and he smiled and said, "Master Xi, why haven't you spoken?" Is there a different idea?! ”

Xi Benzhen was stunned, came out and said, "I think, since the thieves have been prepared, we should still act cautiously, think of a foolproof strategy, and then send troops." ”

Fang Yuan continued to ask, "130,000 troops, 300,000 people, the daily use is not small!" If it is delayed any longer, can the treasury and granary of the household department hold on? ”

Xi Benzhen replied, "As long as the regent clarifies whether the strategy of the westward expedition is implemented and specifies a specific date for the expedition, the treasury and granary of the household department can still hold on to it. ”

Fang Yuan sighed lightly, and his eyes swept over the cabinet again. After a simple temptation, the candidate for the traitor, he has already undergone a preliminary screening in his heart.

Fang Yuan's gaze surveyed over everyone, closed his eyes slightly, and said slowly, "Elder Wang Ge, Mao Gongzi, you two go down to drink tea and wait first, I have something to say to the head of the Xi family and Gao Shangshu!" ”