(PS: It's the end of the month, ask for the last monthly pass in August.) ）

Full of curiosity, he went up to the mountainside of Nule Peak, tossed for a long time, and went down to the foot of Nule Peak with hope, Wang Jing, the guard of the Nule Peak camp, stopped Lu Fatzi, Liu Xuanchu and Wang Shirong. Looking at the happy smiles on the faces of the three of them, Wang Jing couldn't help but ask curiously, "Mr. Liu, Mr. Wang, Brother Lu, what were you doing on the mountain just now?" Why did we just hear a loud bang at the bottom of the mountain, what happened on the mountain? ”

"It's nothing, let's experiment with a new gunpowder and prepare it for the prince to make firecrackers and fireworks during the Chinese New Year." Lu Fatzi explained vaguely, and said: "Second Brother Wang, you must explain it like this to the following, let them not spread the word blindly, the road up the mountain must be blocked, and outsiders must not be allowed to go up the mountain, and the craftsmen must not be allowed to go out at will, and what they want is directly provided by the army." ”

"Of course, the prince has given a strict order, and the second brother doesn't dare to joke with his head." Wang nodded and said: "Just like just now, the prince sent an urgent messenger from Kunming, saying that he wanted to meet you immediately, because I didn't expect that you would happen to be on the Nule Peak Mountain, and he didn't bring the warrant for the prince to allow him to go up the mountain, so I didn't dare to let him in, but just asked him to wait outside the camp for a while." ”

"The prince sent an emergency messenger? Want to see us right away? Lu Fatzi, Liu Xuanchu and Wang Shirong were all in the same place, and after glancing at each other, they all vaguely guessed that something must have happened, otherwise Wu Sangui would not have hurriedly sent someone from Kunming to come here. Thinking of this, Lu Fatzi and the others hurriedly said together: "Quick, lead us to the messenger of the prince." ”

Hurriedly came to the gate of the Nule Peak camp to take a look, and what surprised Liu Xuanchu, Wang Shirong and others even more was that the messenger turned out to be the grandson of Fang Yizao, the Shangshu of the Chongzhen Dynasty Rite Department, and the son of Fang Guangchen, Wu Sangui's henchman - Fang Xueshi! Wu Sangui or Fang Guangchen sent such a person to act as a messenger, and there was no doubt that something big would happen. Liu Xuanchu and the others stepped forward to ask, and sure enough, it was really the earth-shattering news in the capital - Wu Liuyi, the sworn enemy of the Ao Party and one of the most important figures of the Ma Party, died of a violent illness!

"Is the cause of death confirmed?" Hearing the news, Lu Fatzi, Liu Xuanchu and Wang Shirong didn't even blink their eyelids, and asked in unison: "Is it really a sudden violent illness and death?" Or was it slaughtered? Fake the illusion of dying of a violent illness?! ”

"We don't know the specific situation yet, but my father thinks that Wu Junmen may have the biggest surname when he died in the hands of Ao Xiangye." Fang Xueshi replied honestly, unwrapped the package on his back, and said, "My father asked me to copy all the information I collected and bring it to you for reference." In addition, the prince asked Mr. Mao Yao and Mr. Liangchen to go back to Kunming as soon as possible, and said that if you can spare time, Lord Lu, you can also go back to Kunming to help the prince analyze the situation in the capital and formulate countermeasures. ”

"Okay, it's getting late now, let's clean up tonight and go back to Kunming tomorrow." Liu Xuanchu nodded, then turned to Lu Fatzi and said: "Yifeng, you also pack up, and prepare to secretly go to Kunming with us, you are good at analyzing intelligence, and you will definitely be able to give full play to your strengths when the time comes." ”

"The students obeyed." Fat Lu nodded, and said: "Since Brother Xueshi has brought all the information he has collected, then I will return to Qujing and analyze it overnight, and try to get a clue before arriving in Kunming." ”

Accompanied Liu Xuanchu and others to hurriedly return to Qujing, Lu Fatzi explained that Xiao Erlang and others prepared luggage, dry food and horses, and couldn't even take care of a bite of food, and together with Liu Xuanchu and Wang Shirong, they plunged into all kinds of information collected by Pingxi Wangfu about Wu Liuyi's violent death, carefully studied and looked for various useful clues, and analyzed the meaning. But it's a pity that because this case involves a lot of things, Xiao Mazi and Ao Bai have intentionally or unintentionally joined forces to block the news, so even if Yang Qilong, the intelligence head of Pingxi Wangfu in the capital, gets the guidance of Lu Fatzi, there is still not much useful information collected, most of the content is trivial, and Lu Fatzi has studied and studied, and there are still not many accurate situations that can really be found.

First of all, Wu Liuyi, the unlucky bastard, was hung up around the time of Shen Shi on the afternoon of October 19 in the seventh year of Kang Mazi, and the cause of death was announced to be a heart attack (heart disease) - but Lu Fatzi knew very well that at least the curare poison wood venom abundant in Yunnan and Hainan could poison people to death with the illusion of heart paralysis and death, and this poison was infected through blood, and the wound would have obvious signs of redness and swelling, which was very easy to identify.

But it's a pity that the autopsy results of the unlucky guy Wu Liuyi were tightly sealed, and neither Wu Yingxiong nor Yang Qilong could confirm whether there was such a wound on his corpse, so Lu Fatzi naturally couldn't judge whether Wu Liuyi died of arrow poisoning.

Second, in the first six days before Wu Liuyi's death, Kong Sizhen, who was demoted to a third-class guard for his crimes, was decided by Xiao Mazi to stay in the capital temporarily and serve in the Internal Affairs Office.

And if Wu Liuyi really died of murder, the murderer played a very beautiful and clever time difference, taking advantage of the slight chaos of the change of leadership of the spy organization under the command of Xiao Mazi, and killed the Mazi Party by surprise, minimizing the possibility of leaking the news.

Third, after the tragic death of the unlucky man Wu Liuyi, his deputy Mu Lima blocked the scene of the murder in less than a pillar of incense, not only providing clues to destruction and an opportunity for the possible murderer to escape, but also taking the opportunity to take over the defense of Jiumen as the deputy commander, forcing Xiao Mazi not to act rashly and sit back and watch the rampant Jiucheng by the Aobai party.

Fourth, the day after Wu Liuyi's death, Ao Bai went to the imperial court, under the pretext that the defense of Jiumen was of great importance and could not be left uncommanded, and asked Xiao Mazi to formally appoint Mu Lima as the governor of Jiumen to take charge of the defense of the capital.

Subsequently, although Xiao Mazi cleverly chose to deal with it vaguely, under the pretext that the matter was big and needed to be carefully considered, the appointment was temporarily shelved with a delaying tactic, but the military power of the Nine Gates was still actually in the hands of Mulima. What is certain is that on the way south of these news, the Ao Party and the Ma Party in the capital must have launched countless open and secret battles around the issue of the candidate for the commander of the Nine Gates.

In addition, Lu Fatzi also discovered a very inconspicuous but very important situation, that is, on the first day before the death of the unlucky Wu Liuyi, Ao Bai invited many officials to have a banquet at home to celebrate under the pretext of giving birth to a young son under the pretext of a concubine, and sent his henchman Ban Bushan to forcibly invite Su Butu, the commander of the Xishan Ruijian Battalion, to be present. And the Xishan Ruijian Camp is close to the capital, and its important surname is second only to the Jiumen City Defense Camp and the Fengtai Camp, so Lu Fatzi judged that this was likely to be a very clever move to attack the West - use this to attract most of the attention of the Mazi Party spy organization, and take the opportunity to attack the unlucky Wu Liu, so as to succeed in one fell swoop!

"If Wu Liuyi really died in the hands of Old Man Ao, then this Old Man Ao is more powerful than I imagined, and he will be able to attack the West and the West." Fat Lu smiled a little and said in his heart: "It seems that the story I told him has worked, even if Old Man Ao doesn't want to usurp the throne, he is trying to protect himself." Killing Wu Liuyi, who was in charge of the defense of the Nine Gates City, was equivalent to cutting off one of Xiao Mazi's arms, and Xiao Mazi had a nose and cried. ”

"Yifeng, what do you think?" After reading all kinds of information carefully, and after being silent for a while, Liu Xuanchu asked his protégé Lu Fatzi: "Do you think, will this Wu Liuyi die in the hands of Aobai?" ”

"It can't be completely ruled out that Wu Liuyi really died of a sudden illness, but at least eighty percent of it may be Ao Bai's hand!" Fat Lu replied categorically.

"What's possible?" Wang Shirong snorted coldly, and said even more categorically: "In my opinion, Wu Liuyi definitely died in the hands of Aobai!" Otherwise, how quickly would Mulimana react and take the Nine Gates of Military Power before everyone? ”

"Mr. Liangchen, you still can't be too arbitrary." Fat Lu shook his head and said seriously: "I'm not excusing Aobai, it's just that I can't rule out any possibility until seeing is believing." This is especially true on the battlefield, where every possibility must be taken into account and prepared for every possible response. ”

"Stop fighting." Liu Xuanchu was afraid that the relationship between Lu Fatzi and Wang Shirong would deteriorate again, so he quickly changed the topic and said: "Whether Wu Liuyi really died of a violent illness or worshiped the old man's hands, the impact of this incident will inevitably be very significant. Do you think that after this incident, the situation in the capital will develop in that direction? ”

"Ao Bai has the advantage, and the next step is likely to follow Yi Yin Huoguang and do the things of Zhou Gong." Wang Shirong replied.

"Aobai has an advantage for the time being, and the downfall has been delayed, so he can live for a year or two longer." Lu Fatzi replied: "But it is not excluded that the emperor will take risks and take risks to fight to the death!" ”

"You're underestimating Aobai, aren't you?" Wang Shirong asked Fat Lu suspiciously: "He made such a big move to get rid of Wu Liuyi, just to live for an extra year or two?" ”

"Mr. Liangchen doesn't know much about Aobai, if he really wants to usurp the throne, he should have done it when our Emperor Mazi was in power at the beginning of last year, so will he wait until now?" Lu Fatzi shook his head and said solemnly: "If you start it at the beginning of last year, when Sonny and Suke Saha had just died, Kubilong would be cowardly and incompetent, our Mazi Emperor's wings have not yet been full, and the Ao Bai family is dominant, not to mention that it is not difficult to follow Yi Yin Huoguang, or to imitate Li Yuan and Cao Pi." But he didn't do it, and watched the emperor get married and pro-government, which is enough to prove that he is still bound by the courtesy of the monarch and ministers, and he still has feelings for the Aixin Jueluo family. ”

"Then why did he attack Wu Liu again?" Wang Shirong asked unconvinced: "Controlling the defense of the capital, isn't this a sign that you want to do great things?" ”

"This is self-preservation, and at the same time a warning to the emperor." Fat Lu continued to shake his head and said, "Warn the emperor not to act rashly and declare his strength to the emperor." ”

"You're so arbitrary?" Wang Shirong sneered, "Did you say just now that you can't rule out any possibility until seeing is believing?" Are you sure that Ao Bai will definitely not follow Yi Yin Huoguang? ”

"Well, even if you don't rule it out." Lu Fatzi was too lazy to raise the bar with Wang Shirong, and said with a wry smile: "But Ao Bai controls the defense of the Nine Gates and does not immediately attack Emperor Mazi, is this correct?" Even if Ao Bai still has to buy time to completely control the Jiumen army, install cronies and exclude dissidents, it is not something that can be done in a day or two, and of course our Mazi Emperor will not be stupid and not move, there will still be a long time in the capital that will not stop, and we still have a little time to react, these are always right, right? ”

"That's pretty much it." Wang Shirong snorted coldly again. Liu Xuanchu asked again: "Yifeng, then the Mazi Emperor you said took risks and fought to the death, how old is the possible surname?" ”

"It's hard to say for sure." Fat Lu frowned and said: "Originally, with the young surname of Emperor Mazi, it is very likely that he will take risks in anger. But his grandmother, the Empress Dowager, is not a fuel-efficient lamp, and it is not her style to take risks, unless Emperor Mazi hides it from her, she will definitely do her best to stop it, let Emperor Mazi temporarily endure it, Taoguang and obscurity, and find another opportunity to clean up the worship. ”

"And our Mazi Emperor also has a huge advantage that he is young, his age will only get older, his energy will become more and more vigorous, and his surname will become more and more mature, but Ao Bai will only get older and older, his energy will become weaker and weaker, and his surname will only become more and more stable and conservative, so the longer the time drags on, the more beneficial it will be to our Mazi Emperor."

"The pros and cons have all been said to you, doesn't it mean that you haven't said it?" Wang Shirong continued to sneeringly raise the bar.

"Alright, Mr. Liangchen, there is no need for this." Liu Xuanchu smiled bitterly to dissuade him, and said solemnly: "But Yifeng's words have given us a wake-up call, like Aobai, our prince will only get older and older, his energy will become less and less, and his surname will only become more and more stable and conservative." Therefore, whether it is you and me, or Mr. Liangchen, if you want to have no regrets in this life, you have to hurry up, otherwise, not to mention whether we can see that day, even whether we can save our heads will also be a big problem. ”

Wang Shirong and Lu Fatzi were silent together, knowing that the road they embarked on was a road with no room for return, either they succeeded, or their heads landed, and if they didn't succeed, they could only become benevolent. Liu Xuanchu saw that his words moved Wang Shirong, so he said again: "Mr. Liangchen, don't be in a hurry to raise the bar with Yifeng first, wait until he finishes, if you think there is something wrong, it's not too late to refute." Yifeng, in your opinion, Wu Liuyi's matter, is it a good thing or a bad thing for our Pingxi Palace? ”

"Of course it's a good thing, and no matter what the consequences are, for our Pingxi Palace, we can only take advantage of it, and there is no loss." Lu Fatzi replied quickly, and said in a heartfelt manner: "Because this incident obviously represents that the contradiction between Ao Bai and Emperor Mazi has expanded and sharpened, after this incident, the contradiction between the two will only develop sharply and widely, and will not be eased or resolved." And no matter which side they are, they will never dare to provoke the prince at this time, and will only take measures to encircle and appease, at least let the prince choose a neutral position, and will never force the prince to the side of the opponent. ”

"I think so too." Liu Xuanchu nodded, then turned to Wang Shirong and asked, "Mr. Liangchen, do you think Yifeng is right?" ”

Wang Shirong still put on a stand and didn't speak, and only nodded slightly after a while, and said: "Ao Bai side, it is more likely that he will go all out to join forces with the prince." On the side of Emperor Mazi, as long as the prince is allowed to stand in his position. ”

"Mr. Liangchen's words are incisive and to the point." Liu Xuanchu nodded, put on a high hat for Wang Shirong, and suddenly said: "But I am a little strange, Wu Liuyi's death is beneficial to the prince, you can see it, Mr. Liangchen, you can also see it, Mr. Yanxian (Fang Guangchen) and Hu Guozhu in Kunming can see that it is not difficult to see this, even our prince who likes to be indecisive is very likely to know it in his heart and secretly rejoice." ”

Speaking of this, Liu Xuanchu paused, lowered his voice and said, "But in such a profitable situation, why is the prince in a hurry to summon Mr. Liangchen and the old man back to Kunming?" Do you want Yifeng to take time to go to Kunming? What is the purpose of the prince's this? ”

In a word, Lu Fatzi also suddenly discovered that with Wu Sangui's submissive, indecisive and cowardly surname, in this situation where it is clear that it is profitable to stand and watch, it is too unreasonable to suddenly convene a few think tanks to discuss and discuss? Thinking of this, Fat Lu's eyes lit up, and he blurted out: "Could it be that the prince ......?" ”

"Could it be that the prince has come to his senses?" Wang Shirong's thinking was no less fast than that of Lu Fatzi, his eyes also lit up, and he hurriedly said: "Could it be that the prince finally saw the favorable situation for him at the moment, and planned to make a move?" Let Emperor Mazi and Old Man Ao bite the dog more fiercely and crazily? Maximize the interests of our Pingxi Palace? ”

"Quite possibly." Liu Xuanchu nodded solemnly, and whispered: "Let's say a disrespectful word behind our backs, before we persuaded the prince and Ao Bai to join forces, the prince was actually a little moved, but he was too short-sighted, I was afraid that this was a trap set by Ao Bai and Emperor Mazi, and I was even more afraid that Ao Bai would turn around and sell him in front of Emperor Mazi, so I didn't dare to agree!" Although we were all anxious, we had no choice but to watch the prince toss and miss the opportunity! ”

"But now, Emperor Mazi's henchman Wu Liuyi died suddenly and tragically, and Aobai's younger brother Mulima took the opportunity to take the throne and mastered the most important and sensitive Jiumen army, which directly threatened Emperor Mazi's head, and the contradictions between the two sides have almost become public! In this case, no matter how indecisive our prince is, no matter how short-sighted he is, I am afraid that he can see the huge opportunities and huge benefits contained in this, right? ”

"The teacher has a point." Lu Fatzi echoed: "In this case, I can't see the opportunity coming, and I won't take advantage of it, unless he is a mentally handicapped child born of a close relative's marriage!" ”

Wang Shirong still had a stinky face, and after a long time, Wang Shirong twisted his head and said coldly: "Fang Guangchen sent his son Fang Xueshi to Qujing as a messenger, and also brought us all kinds of information collected, maybe it was to tell us, he also saw that the opportunity was coming, and hoped that we would take the same position as him and persuade the prince to make a move, and the benefits that should be reaped must be sufficient!" Also, the prince is in such a hurry to recall us, it is very likely that he wants to ask our opinion, should we interfere? Or should I interfere or not? ”

"There is no other possibility than this explanation!" Liu Xuanchu slapped the table, tried his best to lower his voice but said excitedly: "With the surname of the prince, this will definitely be looking ahead and backwards, hesitating, wanting to meddle and taking advantage of the upper body for fear of getting into trouble, wanting to be a bitch but afraid that he will not be able to set up an archway!" That's why he couldn't make up his mind for a long time, and Fang Guangchen couldn't move him, so he sent his son to be this messenger, hinting that the matter is big, and the opportunity is coming, and he wants us to join forces with him to persuade the prince to participate, and get enough of the benefits! ”

"What should Hu Guozhu mean?" Wang Shirong said worriedly: "He is the eldest son-in-law of the prince, and he is the most trusted by the prince, if he opposes it, we will join forces, but I am afraid that we may not be able to convince the prince!" ”

"Hu Guozhu? Hum! Liu Xuanchu snorted coldly and said: "He, like the prince, also likes to look forward and be timid, which will make him more hesitant than the prince, both wanting to take advantage and fearing that it will cause a big disaster, and he can't make up his mind." But it doesn't matter, this person never suffers, as long as we tell him how much he will lose if he doesn't take advantage of this, he can't help but be unmoved. ”

"It makes sense, after returning to Kunming, the first person we have to visit is not the prince, but Hu Guozhu." Wang Shirong nodded and said in a deep voice: "But when the time comes, should we persuade the prince to stand on which side?" Worship? Or our Mazi Emperor? ”

"Do you still need to ask? Aobai, of course! Liu Xuanchu and Lu Fatzi replied in unison.

"Ao Bai may not necessarily win, right?" Wang Shirong asked suspiciously.

"Can Ao Bai win our?" Liu Xuanchu was concise and said with a smile: "As long as the prince stands on the side of Aobai, we must win." ”

"Mr. Liangchen, please think about it carefully." Lu Fatzi was more wordy, and patiently explained: "If the prince is on the side of Aobai, if Aobai wins, then no matter whether he does anything to abolish the establishment or directly seek to usurp the throne, controlling the government is not justified, and the world will inevitably return to chaos. And if Ao Bai loses, will our Mazi Emperor spare the prince? Our prince is a person who is easy to grabs a holy decree and apologizes for his sins? At that time, wouldn't it be easy for us to encourage the prince to do that kind of thing? ”

Wang Shirong groaned, and it was rare to agree with Lu Fatzi's opinion for a while, and said: "It is reasonable, persuading the prince and Ao Bai to join forces can be set as our first purpose of returning to Kunming this time." ”

"Wait, isn't that right?" Speaking of which, Wang Shirong suddenly came back to his senses and asked, "Lord Lu, isn't it right?" Last time you went back to Kunming to get married, Ao Bai sent a secret envoy to ask for an alliance with the prince, but you were opposed, and urged the prince to continue to wait and see, and Ao Bai and the snake? ”

"That's right, I was about to ask you about it." Liu Xuanchu also challenged the students, and asked with a smile: "Yifeng, the last time you explained to me that you opposed the prince directly signing an alliance with Aobai, you didn't say that. I remember you said at the time that you were afraid that after Ao Bai or Emperor Mazi won, he would take gentle measures to appease the prince, causing our prince to continue to get by and lose his ambition. ”

"The teacher forgives the sins, and Mr. Liangchen also asks for forgiveness." Fat Lu was a little embarrassed, and said with a slightly red face: "Last time in Kunming, I actually wanted to persuade the prince to conclude an alliance with Aobai, but I saw the indecision of the prince and didn't dare to make up my mind to form an alliance with Aobai, so I made up that kind of nonsense to do what he liked, please the prince, and deceive the prince's trust." Later, Mr. Liangchen, you scolded me for being a rat, and the student was afraid that the teacher would be angry with you, so he no longer cared for the student, so he was stiff again, forced words, and voted for the teacher's favor, and made up later nonsense to please the teacher, and the student was guilty, and asked the teacher and Mr. Liangchen to punish him. ”

"Mr. Maoya, what kind of person are you as a student?" Wang Shirong was furious, turned to Liu Xuanchu and asked, "When you see people talking about people, you talk about ghosts, are you a glass marble coated with oil?" ”

"Isn't it just a glass marble coated with oil? Or oiled fat loaches! Liu Xuanchu didn't laugh angrily, and said: "But it doesn't matter, since Yifeng's nonsense can deceive you and me, I still believe it, not to mention our prince?" With his help in returning to Kunming this time, our hope of success has greatly increased. ”

(To be continued)