Zhou Zhong swallowed his saliva, squeezed out a smile, and said, "Brother Yang is still thoughtful, then according to what you said, our Zhou family will be fine if we take the initiative to confess this matter to the emperor?" ”

Yang Xuan sighed: "This little brother can't guarantee that the new emperor is a round person on the outside and on the inside, and he is not as humble as the outside world saw when he was the prince, and he will not show mercy to those who betray him or those who hinder him, this should be clear to Ling Zun, otherwise he would not be so worried." ”

Zhou Zhong'an was deflated all of a sudden, his arm hung down weakly, and his voice was full of frustration: "Is it just like this to confess to the new emperor, put the life of the whole clan in his hands, and gamble on his magnanimity?" ”

Yang Xuan felt an inspiration and said: "As far as Yang knows, when General Zhou was in the Southern Dynasty, he was also framed for rebellion, and later it was Xiao Maha who used the life of the whole clan as a guarantee to assert that General Zhou would not rebel, and Empress Chen also called him to ride into Beijing alone in order to test his loyalty. ”

As a result, General Zhou Lao really handed over the military power of more than 100,000 troops and the land of the four states south of the Yangtze River, entered Beijing and faced the saint on horseback, and survived the turmoil safely. It can be seen that the king sometimes needs this kind of behavior of his courtiers to prove his loyalty, with the last experience, why are the two Zhou brothers so disgusted with the mention of the following? ”

Zhou Zhongan hurriedly said: "Brother Yang doesn't know, last time General Xiao not only vouched for his father, but also secretly passed the news to his father, saying that his father had aroused the emperor's suspicion and asked him to take the initiative to show his loyalty as soon as possible." Can Marshal Yang vouch for his father in front of the new emperor this time? ”

Yang Xuan didn't expect that there would be such an inside story last time, so he couldn't help but be slightly stunned, and muttered, "I see." ”

Zhou Zhongyin raised his head. Zhengse said: "Our Zhou family doesn't dare to expect the Duke of Yue Guo to be like the old General Xiao back then. Risking the sins of the whole clan to stand up for his father. In fact, Brother Yang and Yue Guogong are willing to plan for our Zhou family, and they are already grateful. It's just that after thinking about it, this kind of direct confession is too dangerous, what more secure way is there for Brother Yang? ”

Yang Xuangan smiled slightly, he had expected this kind of reaction from the two of them, and said, "Please listen to the little brother finish speaking." The younger brother wanted to ask a question first: the messenger must not know the contents of the letter, did he? ”

Zhou Zhongyin pondered for a moment and said, "I'm afraid it's hard to say." That person is a close confidant of General Xiao, named Chen Zhishen, who used to be his retinue knight, when General Xiao led seven horsemen to fight the Northern Zhou Army in Xuzhou, he was one of the seven people who beheaded the general and captured the flag. ”

Yang Xuangan nodded: "Yes, this person can indeed be regarded as Xiao Maha's confidant, loyal." Do you think he will know the contents of the letter and betray Ling Zun? ”

Zhou Zhongyin sighed: "This person is extremely loyal to Xiao Maha. Maybe Xiao Maha also told him about the letter, in case he knew the contents of the letter. And the father didn't try his best to help him protect Xiao Shilian as Xiao Maha begged, then this person might be angry and really confess his father. ”

Yang Xuangan gasped: "In this way, we can't bet that he doesn't know the content of the letter, and casually tells the new emperor what was written in the first letter?" ”

Zhou Zhong said hatefully: "That's right, this is also the trickiest place, my father actually rejected Xiao Maha for the first time, and cut off his robe and let this Chen Zhishen take it back, but at that time, Nian didn't detain this person in his friendship for many years." The father thought that it was wrong, and he didn't dare to confess to the new emperor, and he didn't expect that this Xiao Maha actually sent this person to the army camp again, and directly asked the father to protect his son. ”

Zhou Zhong'an interjected: "Brother Yang, this Xiao Maha is afraid that he came prepared this time, and he may have put away his father's reply letter last time, if his father does not follow his words, he will report his father for the crime of colluding with traitors, in fact, Chen Zhishen has tactfully revealed this meaning last time." ”

Yang Xuangan suddenly laughed: "Then in this case, it is useless for you to kill people and kill people, then Xiao Maha must also have a back hand, if you really do this, not to mention what the new emperor will think, I am afraid that Xiao Maha will first hand over the evidence of the so-called collaborator of General Zhou to the new emperor." ”

Zhou Zhongan was slightly stunned, turned his head to Zhou Zhongyin and said: "Big brother, look, Brother Yang also means this, or what my father said is right, this kind of lack of virtue must not be done." ”

A dissatisfied look flashed on Zhou Zhongyin's face, as if he was quite annoyed by being swept away by his younger brother in public, he scolded Zhou Zhongan loudly: "What do you know, it is about the lives of the whole clan, how can you be kind to a woman?" ”

Yang Xuangan's heart moved when he heard this, and he hurriedly interjected: "Is this method of killing the messenger to kill the mouth of General Zhou, or Brother Zhou, your own?" ”

The corners of Zhou Zhongyin's mouth suddenly showed a cruel smile, his appearance has always been heroic and martial, but now his face looks gloomy and terrifying, and even has a bit of Wang Shichong's feeling, which makes Yang Xuan feel extremely uncomfortable.

I only heard Zhou Zhongyin say: "My father is old, and he always says that Xiao Maha has the grace of life to my Zhou family back then, and he must not take revenge, so he just detained Chen Zhishen, publicized this letter to the generals, and asked me to ask General Yang for help, in fact, he wanted Marshal Yang to help him say a few good words in front of the emperor, and he also wanted to take the initiative to confess to the emperor." ”

"Hmph, if I kill that Chen Zhishen directly because of my temperament, so that if I don't do anything, and there is no witness, then Xiao Maha will not be able to testify against us, who would believe the words of a traitor? Brother Yang, did you say? ”

Yang Xuangan was extremely disgusted with this Zhou Zhongyin in his heart, he couldn't imagine that under the appearance of this person's cool Xiao Nai's father, his heart was so filthy, he was not angry in his heart, and he no longer showed mercy under his mouth, and said coldly: "Brother Zhou's point of view, Xuangan may not agree." ”

Zhou Zhongyin was slightly stunned, as if he didn't expect Yang Xuangan to refute his face so bluntly, his face suddenly turned red, and his voice revealed a little sorrow, and said: "I would like to hear Brother Yang's high opinion!" ”

Yang Xuangan poured a bowl of wine unhurriedly and took a sip, the fragrant Fenjiu in his mouth made his thoughts active. He straightened out his thoughts. said: "You must know that the new emperor wants to kill people and exterminate the clan." You don't need any evidence, as long as he thinks you're unfaithful, even if you don't have evidence, you can make evidence, does Brother Zhou dare to risk his family's life? ”

Zhou Zhongyin was dumbfounded, his mouth opened wide and he couldn't speak, but his body was trembling slightly, and he didn't know whether he was scared or angry.

Yang Xuan ignored Zhou Zhongyin and turned to Zhou Zhongan. smiled: "What is Brother Zhong'an's opinion?" ”

Zhou Zhong'an didn't speak just now, lowered his head and thought about it, after he heard Yang Xuangan's words, he raised his head and said in a deep voice: "Zhong An also thinks that his father's words are reasonable, people can't stand without trust, if they really rely on unsightly means to protect themselves, even if they keep peace for a while, they will eventually suffer retribution." It's just that Zhong An also felt that it seemed inappropriate to confess to the emperor unreservedly like this. After all, the emperor can't be regarded as a very open-minded person. ”

Yang Xuangan smiled slightly: "You two were too anxious just now, and the younger brother only said half of what he said." The other half hasn't said it yet. This confession is only one thing, on the other hand, you also need to find a way to intercede with the emperor and ask him to spare Xiao Shilian's life. ”

Zhou Zhongyin was shocked, almost jumped up from his seat, and blurted out a series of words: "How can this be? The crime of fornicating with Xiao Maha is big enough, and he has to help him intercede to save his son's life, isn't this clearly looking for death? ”

Yang Xuangan shook his head: "Brother Zhongyin only knows one thing, but he doesn't know the other!" Xuan Gan thinks that this is the only way to save your family. ”

Zhou Zhongyin snorted heavily: "Zhongyin listens to Brother Yang's high arguments!" ”

Yang Xuangan said: "Since ancient times, the most taboo thing for a monarch is the disloyalty of his subordinates, especially the current emperor, relying on a series of means, he finally stood out from the five brothers and won the throne that did not belong to him, which is extremely sensitive to this, which is also the source of your Zhou family's fear." ”

Zhou Zhong said hatefully: "This is natural, if the emperor is replaced, how can we use this." ”

Yang Xuangan continued: "That's it, the emperor hates the disloyalty of his courtiers, but this loyalty has always been inseparable from righteousness, if your Zhou family really relies on betraying Xiao Maha to show loyalty, the emperor may not be happy, but will feel that your Zhou family is a villain who will take revenge and betray his friends, if you can betray Xiao Maha today, maybe you can betray and betray the emperor tomorrow." ”

Zhou Zhongan nodded again and again when he heard this, and Zhou Zhongyin said unconvinced: "I'm afraid that it may not be, even the first emperor, after destroying Chen, also sealed the official position of an officer under the former father of the Sui army who took the initiative to lead the way to attack Chen." Because this person took the initiative to lead the way, and in the end, when he was rewarded for his merits, his official position was still above his father, could it be that the emperor also liked this kind of disloyal villain? What is Brother Yang's explanation for this?! ”

Yang Xuangan laughed: "At that time, the Chen Dynasty was at the beginning of its demise, in order to stabilize the hearts of the uneasy people of the Southern Dynasty, it was necessary to set an example of Yang Xiang who took the initiative to surrender to the Great Sui, and let the people of Jiangnan see that if they cooperated with the Great Sui, they could naturally increase their official ranks, but if they were dissatisfied and continued to oppose the Great Sui, then Gao Zhi and Xiao Shiluo would be the end." ”

"So at that time, like General Zhou, the famous generals of the Southern Dynasty who passively surrendered after Chen's death, were also inferior to Yang Xiang at the beginning. But at this time and at that time, so many years have passed, General Zhou has been promoted from Shangyitong to general, and this time the counterinsurgency is even more in the position of deputy marshal, where is that Yang Xiang now? Did you become a pillar country? ”

Zhou Zhongan slapped his thigh and said, "Ah, I was still unconvinced about this matter, but after listening to Brother Yang's explanation, I understood." Hmph, back then, Han Baohu had humiliated his father in public for this matter, if he was still alive now, hearing Brother Yang's words, I am afraid he would be angry again, haha. ”

Yang Xuangan waved his hand and said, "Any king likes loyal ministers and righteous people, even if they are important ministers of enemy countries!" If you surrender today without a fight, tomorrow you will encounter a powerful foreign enemy, and you can surrender again without a fight, and no one will dare to use such subordinates, and it will set a bad example for the people of the whole country. ”

"Now that the Great Sui has destroyed Chen for many years, the people of the Southern Dynasties have become accustomed to being the people of the Great Sui, and as the emperor, they naturally want to persuade the people to be loyal to the Great Sui, instead of always being ready to betray the country."

Zhou Zhongyin had been silent just now, and when he heard this, he suddenly said: "But Xiao Maha is not a country, he is just a rebel general who followed Yang Liang to rebel, and what Brother Yang just said seems to have nothing to do with this matter." Could it be that if my father colludes with the rebel general, will the emperor be happy when he sees it? I'm afraid that the first emperor didn't have this amount of elegance. ”

Yang Xuangan smiled slightly: "This is exactly what Xuangan wants to say." General Zhou did not take the initiative to write a letter to Xiao Maha, and he did not do anything to harm the interests of the Great Sui. Disloyalty to the imperial court. He did not reveal any information about the movements of the imperial court and the army to Xiao Maha's subordinates. Right. ”

Zhou Zhongyin nodded: "This is nature. My father cut off his robe with him. ”

Yang Xuan said: "That's it, Xiao Maha took the initiative to find General Zhou, this is something that General Zhou can't control, but he refused his temptation in person, and being a minister is enough to show his loyalty." ”

"As for not taking it down on the spot to make a contribution to the imperial court, on the one hand, it was out of gratitude to Xiao Maha for saving him when he was in Nanchen before, because it was this Chen Zhishen who was the messenger at that time to report the news, so it is reasonable that this person should not be detained."

"On the other hand. Old General Zhou can also say that let Chen Zhishen repay Xiao Maha, hoping that Xiao Mahe can understand what he means, and anyway as soon as possible, don't follow Yang Liang to the dark. As for why he didn't report to the court afterwards, it was because Xiao Maha had not responded, and General Zhou was afraid that the leakage of this matter would have an adverse impact on Xiao Maha's actions anyway, so he concealed it. ”

Zhou Zhongan nodded with satisfaction: "It's still Brother Yang who thinks thoughtfully, as soon as you say this, you are a person who has the intention to make a fuss about this matter, but I am afraid that there is nothing to say." ”

Yang Xuan was surprised: "There are still people who want to go against General Zhou?" ”

Zhou Zhongyin laughed dryly. said: "Now, there is no need to hide it from Brother Yang." When my father was the right guard of the East Palace, he was somehow hated by that Yuwenshu, and he was looking for trouble with his father for three days. ”

"And then that Yu Zhongwen, together with Yu Wenshu, sneered at his father all day long, and even we as juniors couldn't look at it. Later, it was my father who knew the general situation, and took the initiative to resign from this position, and released him as a state assassin, so that Yu Zhongwen became the right guard as he wished, and they were willing to give up. ”

Yang Xuangan suddenly realized: "I see! This is not surprising, that Yuwen said that his family background is not too high, but Yu Zhongwen is the grandson of Yu Jin of the Eight Pillars of the Western Wei Dynasty, and his family is noble, and the two have always complemented each other's advantages and worked hand in hand. General Zhou Lao came from the Southern Dynasty, and they naturally felt that their own seat had been robbed, and it would be strange if they were kind to Ling Zun again. ”

The suspicion on Zhou Zhongyin's face suddenly dissipated cleanly, and said, "So that's what happened!" My brother has been staying in his hometown in Jiujiang a few years ago, and after returning to Daxing, my father didn't talk much about officialdom with me, and today I can figure out these things. ”

Yang Xuangan nodded: "However, since Yuwenshu and Yu Zhongwen have teamed up to exclude Ling Zun from Beijing, naturally there will be no resentment, and it seems that there is no need to make a fuss about this matter." ”

Zhou Zhongan drank a bowl of wine, and his mouth seemed to be about to erupt fire: "Brother Yang doesn't know, we, the people of the Southern Dynasty, have always been discriminated against in the imperial court, not only Yuwen Shu and Yu Zhongwen, but even He Ruobi and Han Baohu don't look at us seriously at all, if these Sui Dynasty generals find a chance to step on their father, they will never show mercy." ”

Yang Xuangan was silent, he knew that he was a person who was higher than himself, and he was stammering with people who were higher than him, and he was trying his best to step on those who were not as good as himself, and that He Ruobi and Han Baohu were now a young death, and a leisure at home, they would not have a good impression of Zhou Luohu, the general of the Southern Dynasty who was a general, but would only be envious, jealous and hateful, if they really caught this opportunity, maybe they would really kill the killer.

Zhou Zhongyin and Zhou Zhongan saw that Yang Xuangan didn't speak, although they were anxious, they didn't dare to speak, and after glancing at each other, they started to drink.

After thinking about it, Yang Xuan said: "The more this is the case, the more you have to do what I say, because it is their business to slander people who have a grudge against Ling Zun or who don't like him, but whether you listen or not depends on the emperor's actions, this matter can't be hidden now, you can't control other people's mouths, but you can find a way to influence the emperor's heart." ”

Zhou Zhongyin and Zhou Zhongan asked in unison, "How does it affect?" ”

Yang Xuangan smiled: "It's still the same method just now, showing the image of loyalty in front of the emperor, General Zhou didn't betray the court and betray the emperor, and letting go of the messenger was just out of the righteousness of a friend, which can be explained to the emperor." ”

"Because Xiao Maha saved Ling Zun once, this time it can be regarded as a retribution, and if this kind of Yang Liang has failed, these subordinates who followed him to rebel are all regarded as water dogs, and everyone shouts and beats, if General Zhou can do the opposite, and clearly plead with the emperor for Xiao Maha's son, I think the emperor will only regard this as a righteous act, and will not see it as disloyalty to him."

Zhou Zhongyin was a little suspicious, his expression was full of disbelief, and he asked in a low voice, "Can this really work?" ”

Yang Xuangan nodded: "The little brother doesn't dare to guarantee the ticket, he will definitely be able to do it, there is nothing in the world that can be carried out completely according to his own ideas, but the little brother thinks about it, this is the best way, it is much more reliable than the idea of revenge and assassination of the messenger." ”

Zhou Zhongyin's face was slightly red, and he said: "Brother, I am also anxious for a while, the disaster of destroying the door is in front of me, so I will panic and choose a stupid way, or Brother Yang is a bystander, you don't have to laugh at me anymore." (To be continued......)