-- After the morning dynasty, three quarters of the hour --

In the garden outside the palace Yangxin Palace, the Great Zhou Tianzi and Liang Qiugong were playing chess on a stone table, and from the side, Yin Gong watched with a smile on his face.

Suddenly, Yin Gong touched his beard, smiled and said, "Unexpected, huh?" -- Xie Xiaozi, who committed the crime of dereliction of duty yesterday, is safe and sound, but His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the Eighth Prince were sent by His Majesty to the Zongren Mansion to face the wall and think about it...... This ending is incredible! ”

Hearing this, the Son of Heaven Li Ji glanced at Yin Gong, and said with a smile, "Otherwise, what do you think I should do?" ――Didn't Xuanwen see that this tiger clearly wanted to protect his grandson-in-law? ”

Yin Gong smiled and said nothing, and at this time, Liang Qiu Gong put a chess piece into the chessboard and said lightly, "The old minister thinks that it is just a childish fool!" ”

"Nonsense?" Yin Gong smiled, stroked his beard and said, "Few...... The old man's good grandson has suffered a big loss! ”

"Good grandson? The spooky girl? Liang Qiu Gong pursed his lips when he heard this, and said disdainfully, "If others want to say that they are suffering, I believe it, that girl in your family?" Hey! As he spoke, he paused, raised his head and frowned, and said, "Old man Xuanwen, otherwise, let's be private, my grandson-in-law will share half of your ......."

Yin Gong was stunned, and he didn't react for a while, and Li Ji, the son of heaven over there, said angrily, "Come on, in front of me, do you two old guys still plan to admit that you two are married?" ”

Glancing at Liang Qiugong, Yin Gong smiled slightly, then let out a long breath, the smile on his face slowly put away, and asked in a condensed voice, "What does Your Majesty think about this matter?" ”

Falling a son broke the vitality of the big dragon on the chessboard of Liangqiu Gong, the son of heaven Li Ji laughed at himself and said, "What is the matter that Xuanwen refers to?" - It was the second child who caused the assassins to murder the eighth child. Or did he say in front of all the courtiers that so-and-so was his person? - Or did the eighth see through the second child's scheme, and the ambassador had a bitter plan, so he sent another group of assassins to get rid of the second and third henchmen? Speaking of this, he raised his head and glanced at Liang Qiu Gong and Yin Gong.

See here. Yin Gong exhaled slightly, frowned and said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is in a big mess this time, and he actually exposed himself to form a party and run a private business in front of the public......

"Hmm." Stroking the chess pieces in his hand, Li Ji, the son of heaven, said lightly, "Although the second child is not as talented as the eighth child, he has always done things cleanly and will never fall into the hands of others, it seems that the second child should not know about last night's incident!" Otherwise. Never so angry that you lose your cool! ”

When Gong Yin heard this, there was a smile in his eyes, and he said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince exposed himself in front of the public. Did Your Majesty protect His Royal Highness the Crown Prince in turn? ”

"Cover-up? Scold! Shaking his head with a smile, Li Ji said lightly, "The prince has never done anything wrong, why should I protect him?" -- Forming a party for personal gain. Since ancient times, it has been repeatedly banned, how can it be said that it can be banned? This kind of thing. Originally, it was just a matter of looking at people and things through a piece of window paper, and if it was not pierced, nothing would be anything, and if it was pierced, it would be the crime of deceiving the king and plotting rebellion...... What is the danger of adding to the sin? -- Whoever doesn't like it to the eye just has to pierce this layer of window paper! ――Looking at the DPRK and China, how many of them are clean? Even you two old guys aren't clean, let alone the others? Occasionally, one or two pretentious and high-minded people could not gain a firm foothold in the DPRK and China, and either resigned or were demoted, and ended up depressed...... Ah, if you don't form a party for personal gain, you can't gain a foothold in the DPRK and China at all, this kind of thing, you and I old guys knew it decades ago! ”

Yin Gong and Liang Qiu Gong glanced at each other, smiled bitterly and shook their heads.

"As for the crown prince, he just did what he should do as a prince and as a prince, what is wrong? On the other hand, if this son thinks that he is in the position of the crown prince, he can sit back and enjoy the throne with peace of mind, like such a mediocre talent, what is the use of me keeping him?! ”

"Including His Royal Highness the Crown Prince secretly instructing the assassins to assassinate the Eighth Prince?" Yin Gong asked tentatively.

Glancing at Yin Gong, Li Ji stretched out his hand and dropped a son on the chessboard, and said lightly, "In the royal family, there has always been a lot of flesh and blood cannibalism, and I was able to sit on the country, didn't I also step on the bones of all the royal brothers and brothers?" - If the prince can succeed in assassinating the eighth child, it is his ability! It proves that I didn't look away, and he is indeed better than the eighth...... Being ruthless is also a talent! ”

"But as a result, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was escorted into the Zongren Mansion by His Majesty......"

"That's because he's so stupid in the hall today!" Holding a chess piece in his hand, Li Ji frowned and said in a deep voice, "Didn't you do a good job before?" Even I didn't know that Lao Ba had returned to Jijing, but he knew about it, and took the lead and sent assassins to assassinate him, although he didn't succeed, but he never fell behind...... Subsequently, overnight, he was able to unite the third, sixth, and seventh children who were not compatible with him before, and even planned to win over the grandson-in-law of the tiger in front of me, Xie An's kid, the second child who had always been narrow-minded, was able to do this, which was really unexpected by me! - But what is that? exposed his shortcomings, and in public, he actually claimed that so-and-so was his person, isn't it just the death of a Yu He? Isn't it just the loss of control of the Goshidai? Why is it so stupid to be carried away by anger! - It's ridiculous that at first I thought that this son had made great progress...... A body blow! ”

Seeing Li Ji's angry face, Duke Yin and Duke Liang Qiu glanced at each other, and said with a wry smile, "No wonder His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is so angry, Yu Shitai has always admired His Royal Highness Li Xian, the eighth prince, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince finally placed this confidant in He, but now he accidentally broke it, and he was angry in his heart, but he lost his calm, but it is reasonable...... Of course, it may also be that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince deliberately pretended to do so! ”

"He? Dick? Doing a bitter trick? Hey! Li Ji shook his head with a smile, and said with a sneer, "It doesn't hurt if other people give it up, then Yu He, he is absolutely reluctant, if he really wants to frame the eighth child, he will not hesitate to sacrifice Yu He to carry out this poisonous plan, then it doesn't hurt for me to give up the throne to him!" - It won't be the second child, he doesn't have the courage to do so! ”

"What does Your Majesty mean, is it the Eighth Prince?" Liang Qiugong raised his head and asked.

Li Ji thought for a while when he heard this, shook his head slowly, and said in a condensed voice, "It's true that Lao Ba is very smart, but he has been timid and afraid of things since he was a child, and he lacks the courage to achieve great things...... I'm still saying the same thing, if the old man had the courage to secretly send another group of assassins to assassinate those people. I will pass on the throne to him! - It won't be the eighth child, he doesn't have the guts! ”

When Duke Yin heard this, he glanced at Liang Qiugong, his eyes showed a little doubt, and he said strangely, "According to what Your Majesty said, he is neither the prince nor the eighth prince, so who is it?" ”

"That's what I'm trying to do!" The piece falls on the chessboard. Li Ji frowned and said, "Among those sons of mine, there may be a seemingly inconspicuous hero......" Saying this, he stood up and paced back and forth with his hands behind his back for a few steps. muttered, "The second child is more than ruthless, but not courageous; When the third child endures for a long time, he lacks sharpness; The fourth is in northern Xinjiang, and he is brave and resourceful, so this matter should have nothing to do with him; The fifth child has been sheltered by the second child since he was a child, and his talent is not obvious; The old six are mediocre. The old seven have no plan; The old eight have both virtue and ability, and lack of courage; Little Nine ......"

"......" I don't know why, Liang Qiugong and Yingong flashed a strange color in their eyes when they heard this, and they paid attention to Li Ji's expression.

"Anyway. Last night's incident should have been done by my sons, so I don't know which one it is...... The assassins who assassinated Yuhe's courtiers had clean hands and feet, and no trace was left behind. I'm afraid it's not easy to track it down! ”

"Your Majesty wants to investigate this matter?" Yin Gong asked with a chuckle.

"Naturally!" Glancing at Yin Gong. Li Ji frowned and said, "I am the father of a country, and I should be responsible for my subjects!" ”

"Doesn't Your Majesty really appreciate the design of His Royal Highness the Prince? In case it is traced......"

Li Ji snorted coldly when he heard this, and said lightly, "If it is really traced, it can only be said that this son is not hot enough, but he is a person who has not achieved enough things and has more than one failure, and he is more than innocent!" - How can I pass on my country to such a fool who doesn't even know how to destroy the evidence after committing a crime?! ”

"That'...... Who does Your Majesty intend to pursue this case? Yin Gong asked tentatively, and at the same time, Liang Qiu Gong also raised his head and looked at Li Ji, the Son of Heaven.

Hearing this, Li Ji turned his head, looked at Liang Qiugong with a smile, and said, "Bo Xuan, I heard yesterday that Xuanwen's son asked you to ask the master of the Fushang to ask for guilt...... It's a shame that I missed such a wonderful scene! ”

As soon as these words came out, Liang Qiu Gong and Yin Gong were extremely embarrassed, especially Liang Qiu Gong, after glancing at Yin Gong's expression, he said in a sneer, "Last night, the granddaughter of the old minister had severely disciplined the little rabbit cub, implemented the family law, and punished the boy in the ancestral hall in the backyard of the house, and knelt in front of the ancestral seat of my Liangqiu family for two hours......

"Oh?" Li Ji, the Son of Heaven, raised his eyebrows when he heard this, and said with a smile, "It seems that the rumors are true, Xie Xiaozi is afraid of guilt...... Fear of guilt is also a kind of talent! At least that's what I think! - With that girl from your house watching, that kid won't do anything too out of the ordinary! ”

What kind of characters are Duke Yin and Duke Liangqiu, when he heard the words, he was stunned, but even if he understood the meaning of the words of Li Ji, the son of heaven.

"Your Majesty means ......"

"Ask Xie An to temporarily take the post of Shangshu of the Criminal Department, and I will allow him to transfer the functions and powers of the Weiwei Temple, the Great Prison Temple, and the Eastern Army, and then call the Guanglu Temple, the Minister of the Guard, the Commander of the Northern Army Guard, Wen Qin, the Imperial Historian of the Imperial Guard, and the Imperial Historian Meng Rang, and the three governments will investigate this matter! - Tell that kid to find out about this matter for me! ”

Are the three forces working together to investigate this matter?

Glancing at Duke Yin, Liang Qiugong arched his hand and said, "Your Majesty, if things go behind the scenes......

Before Liang Qiugong's words were finished, he saw Li Ji, the Son of Heaven, wave his hand violently, and said in a deep voice, "Give the Son of Heaven the Sword!" ”

Rao is an old man like Yingong and Liangqiugong, who has experienced all kinds of ups and downs, and he was shocked when he heard this.

Bestow the sword of the Son of Heaven......

This......

Thinking of the key inside, Liang Qiugong arched his hand and said urgently, "Your Majesty, Xie An's kid is still young,

I'm afraid it will be difficult to take on such a heavy responsibility, in case something goes wrong...... Your Majesty? ”

Li Ji waved his hand and said melancholy, "Bo Xuan, Xuanwen, you two have known me for nearly thirty years, and you can be said to know the roots. I am eager to find a person from among my sons who can continue my Great Zhou Li family, this person can be a ruthless person, or a person who spreads benevolence and righteousness, as long as this son can continue my Great Zhou Li family's country, not let thousands of miles of mountains and rivers be destroyed in his hands, not to the people complaining, not to the world everywhere wolf smoke ......" Speaking of this, Li Ji patted Liang Qiugong on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Bo Xuan, you and Xuanwen are my right-hand men, all these years. I have treated Xuanwen's son many times, but I owe a little to your Liangqiu family, don't blame me, you also know that the only seedling of your Liangqiu family is a daughter, I really don't want to be too supportive, and now, since that girl has found a husband, it is the best! -- This time. Don't say it's favorable! ”

As if he understood the meaning of Li Ji, the son of heaven, Liang Qiugong's eyes showed a little moved, and he shook his head and said, "Your Majesty treats you so kindly, the old minister is really ashamed to be a ......."

"This kind of polite remark. Don't say anything more," waving his hand, Li Ji sighed lightly and said, "Both of you are older than me, but I think about it, in the end, most of the time I will go first, I don't want to." In the future, as soon as I let go, the two of you will be ruined...... Don't forget about the Xigong Mansion, if any of my sons succeed to the throne and want to deal with you, the name of the Liangqiu family in the Donggong Mansion. But it can't stop anything...... Rather than complaining about me again when we meet in the underworld in the future, it is better to go back to the house and teach your grandson-in-law what it means to [sell at a price]. Million...... Don't be in the wrong place! ”

Liang Qiu Gong frowned slightly when he heard this, until now. Few people know that at first, the Duke of Xiguo, one of the four towns of Jijing, was not Han Hong, but the surname of Gongsun, but when the Son of Heaven Li Ji led 60,000 elites to conquer the Southern Tang Dynasty, Han Hong donated a huge amount of property to the imperial court, which solved the urgent need of the imperial court at that time, and was valued by the Son of Heaven Li Ji.

Some people may ask, what about the previous Xiguo Gong?

Very simply, the previous Duke of Xiguo was in the wrong position when Li Ji was fighting for the throne, so when Li Ji became the emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he settled the accounts after the autumn and beheaded him on the charge that the four towns of Jijing were not allowed to interfere in the affairs of the prince.

How else to say it, what about a son of heaven and a courtier?

In a word, since it is [Jijing Four Towns], you must not interfere in the dispute between the emperor and the heir, you have to intervene in it, and if you want to be a minister of the dragon, it is not impossible, but you must remember that if you accidentally stand in the wrong position, the previous Xiguo Gong is a lesson from the past.

Come to think of it, Li Ji, the son of heaven, not only intends to promote Xie An, but also reminds Liang Qiu Gong, asking him to warn Xie An, don't think that you are in a high position, and you can be unscrupulous with the Liang Qiu family as the backing behind you, after all, Xie An and Liang Qiu dance are the future of the Liang Qiu family.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Liang Qiugong bowed deeply to Li Ji, the Son of Heaven.

Li Ji smiled slightly, holding the hands of Liang Qiu Gong and Yin Gong with both hands, and the three of them walked towards the Heart Cultivation Palace, saying as they walked, "Life is too short, the two of you assisted me to ascend the throne as the emperor are still vivid, I don't want to blink an eye, more than 30 years have passed, I became the emperor, twice against the Southern Tang Dynasty, and finally won a big victory, and was able to expand half of my Great Zhou Dynasty, which is not a ...... for this."

"Your Majesty has worked hard to surpass the previous emperors!"

"Heh, what happened after my death, let's leave it to future generations to evaluate, my only regret is that I can't form a family with the two of you, how good it would be, the tiger's granddaughter is married to the fourth child, and the ghost girl in the Xuanwen Mansion is married to the eighth ......" Speaking of this, Li Ji sighed, shook his head and said, "I don't know where a Xie An came out of nowhere, and he took the two daughters-in-law from ...... before and after"

Liang Qiugong and Yingong glanced at each other, and their expressions were a little embarrassed.

"But that's fine, at least you two don't have to get involved in the battle for succession, and you don't have to turn against my unsuccessful sons...... We all know how dangerous it is to seize the heir, and it is impossible to prevent it! Speaking of this, Li Ji turned his head to look at Yin Gong, and said with a smile, "Then again, that ghost girl in your family is willing to be small?" ”

"Ahem," Yingong was full of embarrassment, pretended to cough a few times, and said with a wry smile, "Children and grandchildren have their own children and grandchildren, this matter, the old minister doesn't plan to interfere, Xiangyu's girl seems to like that Xie boy very much, but now, it's just that the old minister's fool is alone for this matter, it's just that, let them make trouble!" - As for Xiangyu's girl, Lao Chen doesn't think she will suffer, whether it is now or in the future, ......"

Liang Qiu Gong frowned when he heard this, and said unhappily, "Xuanwen, I can't pretend that I didn't hear what you said!" - Tell me clearly, what do you mean by that? Don't know if you're coming? ”

"It's not a market to buy vegetables, where did you come and come? - As His Majesty just said, each according to his ability! ”

"You! - How can this be true? ”

Seeing Liang Qiugong blowing his beard and glaring at Yin Gong angrily, Li Ji couldn't help laughing.

An hour later, Xie An, who had been temporarily relieved of his position as the Shaoqing of the Great Prison Temple because of his dereliction of duty last night, greeted the holy decree outside the gate of the mansion with Liang Qiuwu, Yi Yi and the family members of the Donggong Mansion of Yigan Mansion.

How did Xie An know about the discussion between Li Ji, the Son of Heaven, and Liang Qiugong and Yingong an hour ago, and when he saw that there was a holy decree arriving inexplicably, he was uneasy in his heart, not to mention the great eunuch who came to announce the decree. One of the little eunuchs was still holding a sword in a narrow yellow sword bag, and he didn't know what it was, thinking that the Son of Heaven was going to give him death.

Just when Xie An was nervous, he saw the great eunuch spread out the holy decree and read the holy decree sharply, "The edict of the Son of Heaven said: Xie An, the former Shaoqing of the Great Prison Temple, temporarily took the post of the secretary of the Criminal Department, gave the sword of the Son of Heaven, and gathered with the three lieutenants of Weiwei Temple, Great Prison Temple, and Guanglu Temple. As well as the Imperial Historical Observatory and the Eastern Army, they joined forces to track down the assassin who assassinated a courtier last night, hoping to atone for his sins, and not to live up to the emperor's grace, admire! - Mr. Xie. Take it! ”

Temporary...... Temporarily acting as the secretary of the Criminal Department?

Xie An originally thought that if he was not reduced to a commoner this time, even if he was the emperor's grace, but he didn't want to be inexplicable, the Son of Heaven Li Ji actually asked him to temporarily take up the post of secretary of the Criminal Department, and hunted down and killed the assassins who assassinated more than ten ministers of the court and the central government yesterday, which really surprised him.

"Ann, still not taking the holy decree?" Liang Qiuwu reminded Xie An in a low voice.

"Huh? Oooh! Xie An woke up like a dream. Respectfully accepted the holy decree and said in a loud voice, "Minister Xie An, thank Your Majesty for your grace." Hooray, hooray, hooray! ”

Seeing this, the big eunuch took the Son of Heaven Sword in the hand of the little eunuch behind him, held it in both hands and handed it to Xie An, and said softly. "Lord Xie, this is the Sword of the Son of Heaven. See this sword, such as His Majesty in person! -- Your Majesty has ordered, during the investigation of the case by Lord Xie, if anyone disobeys the law, or disobeys the order, or resists arrest and resists, there will be no mercy! - Master Xie, take the sword! ”

Handing the holy decree in his hand to Liang Qiuwu, Xie An took the sword of the Son of Heaven with both hands, and at the signal of the great eunuch, he drew out the sword body to check the authenticity.

But to be honest, it seems that such a valuable thing has never been seen even by Liang Qiu Wu, let alone Xie An, who just nodded as if he didn't understand.

Seeing this, the great eunuch arched his hand and said with a smile, "Congratulations to Lord Xie, congratulations to Lord Xie!" - Lord Xie, this time is a blessing in disguise! - Oh, the slave should be called [Acting Criminal Department Shangshu] Xie Da is the only one! ”

At this time, Xie An was looking at the Son of Heaven Sword in his hand in amazement, and did not react, but fortunately, Liang Qiu Wujiu had been an official in the court for a long time, and he was cautious and experienced in doing things, hugging his fists, and said for Xie An, "Thank you father-in-law for his good words!" ――This time, the three fathers-in-law have worked hard...... Yiyi, take three letters of silver! ”

The big eunuch smiled when he heard this, and said again and again, "The general is polite, how dare this slave be a ......?"

"It should be, it should be!"

After a short time, Yi Yi took three envelopes of silver, one large and two small, the big one was naturally for the great eunuch who announced the decree, and roughly estimated that there were at least one or two hundred taels, and as for the small one, it was estimated that there were dozens of taels, one for the two little eunuchs, and the other for the accompanying palace guards.

Pinched the large envelope of silver in his hand, the big eunuch smiled even more, and after saying a word of congratulations, he led the two little eunuchs with happy faces and the guards back to the palace to resume their lives, leaving only Liang Qiuwu, Yi Yi and the servants of the Donggong Mansion, as well as Xie An, who had not yet come back to his senses with the sword of the Son of Heaven.

Seeing this, Liang Qiuwu shook her head helplessly, handed the holy decree to Yiyi, told her to keep it properly when she returned home, and then walked over to help Xie An.

"Dance ......"

"What?"

"Your Majesty, entrust me to temporarily act as the secretary of the Criminal Department? I'm a scholar of the Criminal Department? ”

"It's the position of the Acting Scholar...... Yes, yes, Shang Shu, Xie Shangshu...... Xie Shangshu, can you go back to the house with the concubine to discuss this matter again? ――Everyone on the street is watching, and they are not afraid of other people's jokes! ”

"Oh......" Glancing at the people watching in the distance on the street, Xie An reacted, returned to the main mansion hall with Liang Qiuwu, sat on a chair and looked at the sword of the Son of Heaven in his hand, and said with a strange expression, "This is too strange, right?" ”

"What?"

"You are also in the early dynasty today, the crown prince Li Wei and the eighth prince Li Xian, just because of a quarrel, they were escorted to the Zongren Mansion to face the wall and think about it, but it was I who was derelict last night, and just after I was suspended from the post of Shaoqing of the Great Prison Temple, I became the secretary of the Acting Criminal Department......"

Sitting down on the chair beside Xie An, Liang Qiuwu frowned and said, "I am also very puzzled by this matter, but now is not the time to think about this, Your Majesty has entrusted you to investigate the case of assassinating more than ten ministers of the DPRK and China last night, and this matter is very important...... Who do you think it is? ”

Stroking the Son of Heaven Sword in his hand, Xie An pondered for a moment and slowly shook his head.

"No clue! ――Maybe it's the crown prince Li Wei, maybe it's the eighth prince Li Xian, maybe it's ...... And a third party! ”