"Is there any way that I can not only lose my trust in the world, but also be justified as a king?"

Faced with Wu Chaoyue's problem of not wanting the horses to run and the horses not to eat grass, resourceful people such as Zhao Liewen and Yan Jingming couldn't help but smile bitterly at each other, and then Zhao Liewen said: "Weiting, you still spare us, the chaotic party in the capital is not a fool, so can you be crowned king in the name of the orthodoxy of today's son, and so that you can continue to send troops to fight against them in the name of righteousness?" Is there such a good thing in the world? ”

"Bao Jun made it very clear to Mr. Wenjie that only by completing the peace talks and armistice can he be officially canonized. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 info" Yan Jingming also said with a wry smile: "Bao Jun said to this point, it is clear that the Queen Mother of the Two Palaces has explained in advance, and asked him not to make any concessions on this issue, no matter what method we think, Bao Jun probably will not dare to disobey the decree of the Two Palaces, right?" ”

Wu Chaoyue thought about it carefully and found that the only advantage that the Manchu court now has over itself is the orthodoxy established for more than 200 years, and canonizing himself as a king with a different surname is also the most weighty last political card in the hands of the Manchu court.

Therefore, under the condition that he could not use treacherous means to deceive the prince, Wu Chaoyue quickly dispelled this idea, yawned and said: "Then forget it, anyway, whether to be crowned king or not is a matter of reputation now, and when our Northern Expedition breaks through the capital and rescues Emperor Qixiang, then whether to crown me as the king with a different surname is not a matter of the emperor's words?" ”

Zhao Liewen and Yan Jingming nodded in agreement, but they were somewhat disappointed like Wu Chaoyue, bound by thousands of years of traditional etiquette and religion, and under the advantage of orthodoxy and righteousness in the Manchu court, Wu Chaoyue could not officially be crowned a prince for a day, and he could not set up a hundred lawsuits and subordinates in name to formally improve the political system. And even if he breaks through the capital and captures Qixiang in the future, Wu Chaoyue wants to call the king the infamy he bears will definitely be greater than if he is officially canonized now - people in the world are not fools, can you know what kind of name Wu Chaoyue was awarded the title of prince after controlling Qixiang?

However, Dai Wenjie, who was inferior to Zhao Liewen and Yan Jingming in the decision-making level of the Wu army, did not give up, and suggested to Wu Chaoyue: "Weiting, can you use long hair to make some trouble?" Now the chaotic party is looking forward to us attacking Changmao with all our might, and Changmao is definitely looking forward to us going all out to crusade against the chaotic party in the capital, can we try to use this to put pressure on the chaotic party in the capital and force the chaotic party in the capital to immediately crown you as king? ”

Wu Chaoyue was a little tempted, but after careful consideration, Wu Chaoyue shook his head and said: "I don't have a good grasp, the chaotic party in the capital will not be easily fooled." Moreover, if we want to use the long hair to put pressure on the rebel party in the capital, we must first arrange signs of a large-scale attack on the rebel party in the capital, and after the rebel army enters a state of strict alert, we will not be able to achieve the effect of surprise if we suddenly make a move, and the price paid by the Northern Expedition will definitely be greater, and the gains will outweigh the losses for our overall interests. ”

The suggestion was not adopted by Wu Chaoyue, and Dai Wenjie, who had been secretly holding back his strength to compete with Zhao Liewen and Yan Jingming, was of course a little disappointed, but Dai Wenjie did not intend to give up, and said: "Weiting, how about the messenger who is responsible for negotiating with Baojun continue to hand it over to me?" I'll talk to Bao Jun on your behalf and see if I can think of anything else? ”

"Okay." Wu Chaoyue agreed, and then advised: "Remember, we must create an illusion for Baojun, so that he thinks that we are not only ready to attack Changmao, but also plan to use the peace talks to reap more benefits from the chaotic party in the capital." ”

Dai Wenjie agreed, but he was a little worried in his heart, and said secretly: "I want to create the illusion that we are ready to attack Changmao for Baojun, and I want to trick him into persuading the rebellious party in the capital to give you the title of king before we send troops to the Northern Expedition, the two purposes contradict each other, what should I do if this messenger asks me?" ”

The situation was really expected by Dai Wen, he gave priority to Wu Chaoyue's order, and deliberately said in front of Bao Jun and Jing Shou and others that Wu Jun might take advantage of the fire to rob the Taiping army, although Bao Jun did not fully believe it, but he was also very determined, and he refused to give in to the early negotiations, and promised to first seal Wu Chaoyue as the king with a different surname in exchange for a formal peace negotiation, and was very careful not to mention that Jing Shou did not mention that he actually had the two palaces in his hands to make Wu Chaoyue the king, and patiently just waited for the Wu army to start a full-scale war against the Taiping army. Then take advantage of Wu Chaoyue's inevitable choice of not wanting to go to war on two fronts to fight for the interests of the Manchu court.

Of course, during the negotiations with Bao Jun, Dai Wenjie also tried to verbally threaten, claiming that there were still calls for a priority crusade against the Manchu court within the Wu army, but this implicit threat was completely ruined by the Wu army's own propaganda system - in order to confuse the Manchu court and the Qing soldiers, the newspapers and public opinion in the areas controlled by the Wu army had hyped up the resumption of war with the Taiping army, so much so that even the villagers in the countryside believed that Wu Chaoyue was ready to attack the Taiping army. At the same time, Wu Chaoyue himself refused to receive the envoy sent by Yang Xiuqing, and put on a posture of being ready to do it at any time, so of course Baojun would not take Dai Wenjie's fluttering words and threats to heart, and he would not make concessions easily.

Under the inconsistency, Dai Wenjie certainly did not have any way to not only complete the tasks assigned by Wu Chaoyue, but also establish great achievements for Wu Chaoyue to consolidate his position. But fortunately, Dai Wenjie is just worried in his heart, but he is not tired of dealing with Bao Jun, because Bao Jun has an advantage that he is very good at telling jokes about the mountains, and no matter how he talks with Dai Wenjie at the negotiation table, he is still humorous and funny in his words, and he can often amuse Dai Wenjie, the negotiation opponent, and the surrounding people.

No, on the day of the approaching lunar month, when Dai Wenjie tried again to persuade Bao Jun to accept the negotiation conditions he proposed for Wu Chaoyue, during which Bao Jun needed to leave temporarily because of internal urgency, he habitually made another joke between accusing and said: "Mr. Wenjie forgives his sins and goes out for a while, but not to scatter treasures, but to go out to Gong." ”

Hearing this, the Manchu guards brought by Jing Shou and Bao Jun from the capital laughed loudly, but Dai Wenjie was confused and asked suspiciously, "What do you mean?" ”

"Mr. Wenjie, it's like this, this is an allusion between Lord Bao and Prince Gong." Jing Shou kindly explained: "When the emperor was the emperor, there was a delay in the early dynasty for a period of time, and hundreds of officials gathered in the court room to wait, and Lord Bao left the court room to relieve his hands, and Prince Gong jokingly asked him where to scatter treasure in front of everyone? Lord Bao replied in public that it was not a treasure, but a compliment, which immediately amused the colleagues present and became a very famous joke in the Forbidden City. ”

Dai Wenjie suddenly realized, smiled at Bao Jun's sensitive response, and asked casually: "How did Prince Gong react?" Don't be angry when you're being teased like this in front of so many people."

"Laughing it off, of course." Jing Shou also said casually: "Prince Gong and Lord Bao have always been good friends, and they can even enter and leave each other's back houses at will, so can they be angry about such a trivial matter as telling a joke?" ”

Dai Wenjie sighed, and didn't take this matter to heart, just patiently waited for Bao Jun to come back from Gong Sabao to continue the negotiation, but in the end, he still got nothing, so he could only return in a huff.

It was also a coincidence that after Dai Wenjie returned to his home disappointed, he just in time for Wu Chaoyue to send someone to invite him to meet, and Dai Wenjie also said that it was a big deal, and he rushed directly to Wu Chaoyue's Marshal Mansion without even changing his clothes. As a result, when I arrived at the scene, I learned that it was Wu Xiaoping who brought some rare seafood from the inland to Wu Chaoyue from the foreign merchant ship in Hong Kong, and Wu Chaoyue asked the cook at home to make a table of seafood banquet in order to win the hearts of the people, and invited Zhao Liewen, Yan Jingming, Dai Wenjie, Huang Sheng, Qian Wei, Wang Fu and Zhang Dejian and other absolute henchmen to enjoy it together.

Although it was a bit of a misunderstanding, Dai Wenjie, who was so valued by Wu Chaoyue and was transferred to Wu Chaoyue by the old fox, was of course very pleased, and hurriedly thanked Wu Chaoyue again and again, and sat down at the next head of Zhao Liewen and Yan Jingming to eat together.

During the conversation, Wu Chaoyue of course also negotiated with Dai Wenjie and Bao Jun, and learned that Bao Jun did not make any concessions on the issue of the prince, Wu Chaoyue did not care, and comforted Dai Wenjie and said: "Mr. Wenjie, you really don't need to be reluctant, I also know that your mission is not easy to do, and there are some inconsistencies." But that's okay, as long as you can convince Bao Jun that we're ready to take action on Longhair, you can let the rest go. ”

Dai Wenjie's sullen promise, Zhao Liewen, who had always been entrenched in Wu Chaoyue's position as the chief of the shogunate and did not give way, came to attack Dai Wenjie again, and pointed: "Mr. Wenjie, while arranging the illusion for the comfort pavilion, you must also make Baojun feel that we haven't attacked Changmao yet, and we are waiting for the time to come." Otherwise, Bao Jun and the leader of the chaotic party behind him may be suspicious. ”

Dai Wenjie, the former secretary general of the Yamen of the Governor of Huguang, agreed again, and remembered the suggestion of Zhao Liewen, who was only the secretary general of the Yamen of the Hubei Governor, quite depressed, but at this time, Dai Wenjie also felt a little anxious, and had to confess: "Comfort pavilion, everyone, I'm sorry, it's convenient to go out." ”

"Mr. Wenjie, hurry up, it's time to eat." Yan Jingming, who used to be inferior to Zhao Liewen, said with a smile: "Don't be like last time, suddenly come up with any wonderful sentences in it, you think about it for most of the day, and when you come out, you have a smell on your body." ”

Everyone laughed, but Dai Wenjie, who is good at calligraphy, painting and poetry, smiled bitterly and said: "Mr. Danchu rest assured, it's not to scatter treasures, but to drain water." ”

Everyone laughed again, and Wang Fu, who was once just a small whistle commander, also praised: "Or is Mr. Wenjie cultured, Sabao?" I learned a new word from Mr. Wenjie, and when I encountered it again when I was drinking and eating in the future, I finally had an elegant word. ”

"Don't thank me, thank that Baojun, he taught me." Dai Wenjie said with a wry smile.

"Bao Jun taught you to spread treasures?" Yan Jingming asked with some surprise: "Can he be so self-deprecating?" ”

was asked, but Dai Wenjie could only roughly talk about what happened during the negotiation with Baojun today, but Yan Jingming was as strange as Dai Wenjie at that time, and asked: "What is the identity of King Gong?" In front of the Manchu Dynasty's civil and military, Baojun dared to ridicule him like this? ”

"I heard Jing Shou say that Bao Jun and Prince Gong are lifelong friends, and they can even enter and leave each other's back houses at will, so they never mind joking with each other." Devon replied casually.

Before the words fell, Dai Wenjie found that Yan Jingming's face suddenly changed a little, and he subconsciously turned his head to look at Wu Chaoyue and Zhao Liewen, and when Dai Wenjie went to see Wu Chaoyue and Zhao Liewen with Yan Jingming, he saw that this pair of unscrupulous partners who had colluded together since Shanghai were all eyelids blinking, but they didn't say a word.

The banquet ended in laughter, and after the banquet was dismissed, Huang Sheng, Guo Songtao, Qian Wei, Wang Fu and Xu Lai and others went home separately, and Dai Wenjie also wanted to say goodbye but was retained by Wu Chaoyue. At the end, Wu Chaoyue called Dai Wenjie, Zhao Liewen, Yan Jingming and others into his study, and asked Dai Wenjie directly: "Mr. Wenjie, just now you said that Baojun and Prince Gong had a relationship, is the matter true or false?" ”

"I also listened to Jing Shou's introduction, I don't know if it's true or not." Dai Wenjie replied truthfully, and said: "But it shouldn't be false when I think about it, because at that time, not only Jing Shou laughed, but even the imperial guards brought by Bao Jun from the capital all laughed, which is enough to prove that there is an allusion between Bao Jun and Prince Gong." ”

"God help me!"

Wu Chaoyue's clapping and cheering made Dai Wenjie confused, and Dai Wenjie couldn't help but ask in surprise: "Comfort Ting, what heaven will help you?" ”

"Mr. Wenjie, don't you understand?" Zhao Liewen smiled and said: "Since Baojun and Prince Gong have been friends for a lifetime, won't we have the opportunity to continue to attack the chaotic party in the capital?" ”

"And the black pot of the breakdown of the negotiations is still the back of Baojun and the chaotic party in the capital." Yan Jingming also smiled and said: "We don't fight the long-haired people to do the chaos in the capital, and the people of the world will only say that we have done the right thing and let us become famous." ”

Looking at Wu Chaoyue even more confused, and then at Zhao Liewen and Yan Jingming, Dai Wenjie still didn't understand, and asked suspiciously: "Weiting, Huifu, Danchu, what do you mean by this?" Why can't I understand? ”

"Mr. Wenjie, I said how smart you are and confused for a while? Why can't you twist this corner? ”

Wu Chaoyue complained, and then explained: "Why did the chaotic party in the capital ask for peace talks? You and I both know the reason, it is to delay the military strategy to stabilize us temporarily! Why do I keep rejecting the demands of the rebellious parties in Beijing for peace talks? You also know the reason, it is because I have always admitted that I am a courtier of the Qing Dynasty, and I also admit that the emperor in the capital is our emperor, and the empress dowager of the two palaces asked for peace talks with his reputation, if I refuse, I will fall behind in terms of morality, so even if I know that it is a plan, I have to fall into the plan. ”

If we reject the peace talks proposed by the capital, not only will we be morally disadvantaged, but the people of the world will also be dissatisfied with us."

Zhao Liewen also said: "Especially when Changmao has been in internal chaos, it is reasonable that we should make peace with the chaotic party in the capital and unanimously destroy Changmao first." If we don't do this, the people of the world will accuse us of being rebellious, and we will become more and more convinced of our name as a traitor, if we want to let go of our long hair and not fight, and first fight the chaotic party in the capital that has the advantage of central orthodoxy, we must have a justifiable excuse for going to war, and give an explanation to the people of the world! ”

"The fateful friendship between Bao Jun and Prince Gong is the best explanation for us to the people of the world!"

Yan Jingming even more eyebrows fluttered, and said: "With this relationship as a premise, we will specifically target this point, so that Bao Jun will not dare to make any concessions at the negotiation table for the sake of Gong Wangye, and even force Bao Jun to take the initiative to give up peace talks!" Then we will take the opportunity to launch a large-scale Northern Expedition, which will not only be famous and justifiable, but also make the people of the world who are eager to end this troubled era hate the chaotic party in the capital to the bone! ”

"Even within the army of the chaotic party, there will be centrifugation up and down, the soldiers will have no fighting spirit, and their combat strength will be greatly reduced! Because it wasn't us who forced them to fight this time, it was the chaotic party in the capital! “

"Mr. Wenjie, do you understand?" Wu Chaoyue couldn't help but add, "Although the strategic initiative is in our hands now, if we don't fight the long-haired party that is in civil strife now, and first fight the chaotic party in the capital that takes the initiative to seek peace, we will have no way to explain to outsiders, and we will not be able to explain to our own people!" But if we can make a fuss about the relationship between Bao Jun and Prince Gong and force Bao Jun to take the initiative to give up the negotiations, then the people of the world will not ask us to explain, but will only want to give an explanation to the whole world! ”

Looking at the smiling Wu Chaoyue, Zhao Liewen, and Yan Jingming dumbfounded, such a thought suddenly appeared in Dai Wenjie's heart, "No wonder Yu Zhong still believed that the surname Wu was a loyal minister of the Qing Dynasty until he closed his eyes, and it was no wonder that the surname Zhao and the surname Yan have always been able to ride on my neck to show off their might, it turns out that the real reason is here." ”