Chapter 391: Next

Chunmingmen Street is bustling with activity.

Because the fireworks were set off in Xingqing Palace a few days ago, this is one of the best places to watch fireworks, and recently there has been a lot of talk in the wine shop about the gorgeous scene of the night of the Tianchang Festival.

Regular customers have seen more about this matter, and they can take it out to boast and brag.

"How did I not see clearly? That 'Thousand Purples and Thousands of Reds' just exploded on my head, and then something hit me on the head, guess what? I grabbed it and picked it up. ”

It was a golden Kaiyuan Tongbao, and the customers were very greedy when they saw it, and they surrounded the regular customers with envy to ask for more details, and the business of the wine store was better and more prosperous.

Kaiyuan Tongbao is actually not a year money, but began to be cast when Gaozu founded the country, taking the meaning of the emperor's long-term rule. Today's saints like to sprinkle money in the calyx floor every festival, in the past, only officials above the fifth grade had the qualifications to go to the banquet to grab money, but this time it was brought outside the palace wall by fireworks.

Calyx floor is different from the deep palace of the past dynasties, outside the wall is the street and alley of the market, the saint watches fireworks in the calyx building, and the common people can also see his figure from afar, so it is said that it is to have fun with the people, inheriting the people-friendly idea of Emperor Taizong's "carrying the boat and overturning the boat".

In August, the calyx floor is usually blooming, and it is a thousand autumns to enjoy it together.

In this atmosphere, two young men abandoned their horses to their retinue, and under the guidance of the orchid, they entered the Kang's shop and asked for a private room upstairs. The individual visitors in the lobby couldn't help but look sideways, and they were impressed by the fact that these two young people were the same length and jade, and their aura was extraordinary.

As they walked down the hallway on the second floor, they occasionally heard someone talking loudly in the other private rooms.

"I don't believe it, how can the country be easily shaken?! If this news is true, I will be a spit pot for you. ”

"I don't believe ...... either"

Li Qi turned his head to take a look, through the curtain, he couldn't see who was speaking, he must be a member of the Guozijian. Young people always think that there should be certain principles in the world, but in fact, those who are in power can always trample on their knowledge as they please.

More than ten years have passed since the Sanshu case, and people have begun to think that the saint will follow the rules again, and "the country should not be moved lightly".

"Drinking?" Xue Bai sat down, ordered two plates of dishes, and asked, "A small pot of green plum wine?" ”

"You don't drink well, and you like to learn Zhang Luo to drink." Li Qi punned on a pun and said, "Isn't it self-sufficient? ”

"Drinking is about sincerity." Xue Bai said: "Although I drink lightly, it is my sincerity to take the risk of getting drunk to drink with you." ”

"State affairs can't only be sincere." Li Qi sighed with emotion.

The reason why he wanted to talk to Xue Bai was to test it. He wanted to know what reason Xue Bai calculated his grandfather, whether it was because of the revenge of the arrow back then, because of political speculation, or because of other hidden circumstances.

When the wine was served, he poured himself three glasses in a row, drank them all, turned the cup over, signaled that he had drunk it, and deliberately glanced at Xue Bai defiantly, and said: "Although King Qing is long, but his appearance is damaged, he can be mediocre, how can he be a prince?" It's like the amount of alcohol you drink. ”

Xue Bai's attitude was a little unexpected.

He held the wine glass and didn't drink, and muttered: "King Qing is my last resort. ”

"Oh?"

"I have an enmity with your grandfather, plus the matter of concubines, if he ascends the throne, he will definitely kill me." Xue Bai asked, "Concubine, do you know who it is?" ”

"yes, I know."

"Then putting aside the high-sounding things just now, I have a good personal reason for dealing with your grandfather, can you understand?"

"If you marry Yuesu, these things will be solved."

Xue Bai shook his head and said, "It's too late to say these things now, I don't believe Li Heng, but I may be able to believe you?" ”

"Believe me what?" Li Qi was surprised, and he didn't understand what Xue Bai meant.

"What if." Xue Bai first affirmed a premise, leaned forward, and said in a low voice: "If I assist you on the throne one day, will you kill me?" ”

Li Qi never expected to hear such a sentence, in his opinion, now Xue Bai has assisted Li Cong to ascend to the crown prince and has become the number one hero. The next thing to do is to concentrate on assisting Li Cong to accumulate strength.

He was so shocked that he couldn't turn his mind around for a while, so he laughed at himself and asked, "Are you kidding?" ”

"No, I thought about it for a long time, King Qing's talent is insufficient, and the adopted sons under his knees are also submissive, and none of them are talented. The saint is here, he can be a prince in peace, but if something is wrong, can he control the situation? ”

"I can't." Li Qi said, "Don't say that in the future, even if the saint is still there now, King Qing may not be convinced." ”

"But what if you're on his side?"

Li Qi immediately sneered: "How can I be on his side? ”

Xue Bai asked rhetorically, "Can't you?" Think again. ”

Li Qi lowered his head, took a sip of wine, thought about this proposal, and unexpectedly found that in fact, he and Li Cong really needed each other.

Li Cong was only made the crown prince at this age, and he had no time to establish authority and accumulate strength, and he urgently needed the support of more clans and officials; And his grandfather was deposed, his brother was implicated in a big case, and he was in a precarious situation.

As far as the immediate situation is concerned, Li Cong's four adopted sons are not talents, and if he is assisted by "Little Li Sanlang", he can make up for the shortcomings of both parties; In the long run, when the two sides run out of use of each other, it is very likely that they will turn their faces and even draw their swords against each other, but by then, the time and place will be in the hands of his younger side.

Thinking about it like this, Li Qi could understand why Xue Bai said that he could assist him.

And the premise of all this is that he has to accept the current situation, Li Heng has lost his position, he must let go of resentment, let go of all personal emotions, and make the next decision with the most calm and rational attitude.

"Huh."

Li Qi took a sip of wine, shook his head with a smile, and said, "You people who are immersed in power and magic. ”

Xue Bai said: "Unacceptable? ”

"I'm not used to betraying my grandfather so quickly." Li Qi said, "I'm afraid that the edict he abolished is not hot in his hand, and you want me to turn my head and recognize others as my father?" ”

"The most worthless thing in the power field is human nature, and we can only survive in the current court if we learn to abandon etiquette, righteousness and shame and become monster-like politicians."

Li Qi didn't answer, he was still weighing.

Xue Bai waited patiently, because it was very worthwhile to cooperate with Li Qi at present, he was the only emperor and grandson who cared about the safety of the saint in the Tianchang Festival, and he was favored by the saint, he was also the biggest pillar of the East Palace, and he had a good relationship with the generals of the East Palace.

"Nope." Li Qi finally shook his head.

"Would you rather return to the throne to the blood of the abolished prince than let go of face?"

"I don't care that much about the throne." Li Qi said, "Really." ”

Xue Bai stared at him deeply, judging whether he wanted to bargain or not, and then said, "Let's eat the vegetables first." ”

Li Qi took two bites of food, realizing that the rhythm of the conversation had been controlled by Xue Bai, and many of the questions he originally wanted to test had not yet been opened at this time.

And the suspicion that Xue Bai may be Li Ying's son has also diluted, if this matter is true, how can Xue Bai be so ruthless to Li Cong and his four brothers?

"The current situation is that you ordered two dishes for King Qing, and as soon as they were served, you planned to eat them alone." Li Qi said.

Xue Baiwan said, "Aren't I sharing it with you?" ”

"Why me?"

"You're sincere." Xue Bai said: "We are opponents in the struggle for power between the DPRK and China, but we all hope that the Tang Dynasty will be well, and in the face of adversity, we should join hands." At present, the situation is collapsing day by day, with Yang Guozhong's flattery and holy intentions inside, and An Lushan's wolf ambition outside, you, as the emperor's grandson, should take some responsibility. ”

Li Qi sneered: "So, you deal with my grandfather? ”

The topic came back to him, but this time, Xue Bai had a different answer.

"After easy storage, we can stabilize An Lushan. Over the years, Li Linfu and his family have repeatedly failed to deal with the East Palace, and they have accumulated too much fear, do you know how much of a consequence this fear will have? ”

"Li Linfu's family? Where is it now? ”

"Everywhere." Xue Bai said: "Do you think that as soon as Li Linfu dies, his henchmen will be wiped out?" You see many people clamoring to crush him to ashes, thinking that they are all his enemies, wrong, Yang Guozhong, Chen Xilie, Miao Jinqing, Li Daodi, Song Yao, and An Lushan, which one is not a person who has formed a deep festival with the East Palace under Li Linfu's door? ”

"The traitorous minister is the one who loves to obey the holy will and suppress the national prince." Li Qi said, over the years, he has seen with his own eyes how these mad dogs are desperate to pounce on his grandfather.

As he spoke, he sighed: "There are not many loyal ministers. ”

"In order to please the saint, An Lushan once bluntly said, 'I don't know what the prince is', he is afraid that your grandfather will succeed to the throne, and he will inevitably raise troops at that time." Xue Bai said: "Now, your grandfather has been deposed, so we can apply a soft policy to him, after all, An Qingzong is married to the adopted daughter of King Qing." ”

Li Qi looked deep and said, "Then what? ”

"This is a palliative but not a cure, and it can only delay the crisis. Fortunately, you and I are young, and the more we go forward, the more powerful we will become, and we can work together to resolve Datang's internal and external troubles. ”

Li Qi finally became interested, put down the chopsticks in his hand, and asked, "How to resolve it?" ”

Xue Bai said: "Yang Guozhong wants to suppress An Lushan, so he has to get the support of the four towns of Hexi, Hedong, Longyou, and Shuofang. As long as King Jianning is willing to express his support for the new prince, some generals who originally wanted to the East Palace will naturally stand on King Qing's side. ”

Li Qi raised his hand, didn't listen to these vain, and asked directly: "Can I look at a festival from afar?" ”

"I will tell Your Highness that I will fight for you."

"Who is your 'Highness'?"

Xue Bai smiled and said, "Agreed?" ”

At this point, Li Qi was almost moved, but he asked: "Even if I promise to ignore the past suspicions today, do you really believe that I will not kill you in the future?" It's important to see if you and I can work together. ”

He had already thought about it, if he ascended the throne one day, it would be difficult not to kill Xue Bai, this matter was very unavoidable, he thought that Xue Bai should understand. In this way, it is inevitable to doubt Xue Bai's sincerity.

"We'll be trusted allies for each other for at least a long time, and that's enough." Xue Bai said: "We are still young, and the time is still long, and you may not be able to kill me by then." ”

"Good guts." Li Qi raised his glass.

The matter was settled, and Xue Bai also raised his wine glass and touched him.

"You see, as long as there is sincerity, one glass of wine is enough."

~~

A few Jin Wuwei in robes entered the Kangjia store and looked around, looking for Li Qi.

Now it is the critical season of Yichu, and Li Heng's family has to be taken care of, such as Li Jiao who was involved in Li Qiwu's case, and is still in the Eagle Dog Fang. Only Li Qi was worried about the safety of the saint, and no one stared after leaving the palace.

But the family commander over there of Baisun Yuan saw that he hadn't gone back for a long time, and he couldn't help but worry that he had gone to do something inappropriate, so he hurriedly reported to the palace and sent someone to find him.

"Is King Jianning here?!"

"The villain doesn't know." The little guy in the store replied, and when he saw that Jin Wuwei took out a portrait, he was stunned, and hurriedly led them to the private room on the second floor.

When I opened the door, I saw an extraordinary young man standing by the window, looking at the street scene of Chang'an, with a deep look in his eyes, worried about the country and the people.

"King Jianning, please go back to Baisun Courtyard with the villain."

"This effect, I recognize the wrong person, I am not the king of Jianning, but Xue Bai, a scholar from Zhongshushe."

persuaded Li Qi to support Li Cong, this matter is above board, Xue Bai is not worried about others knowing, he responded generously, raised his hand and said: "King Jianning has left." ”

"Yes, farewell."

That Jin Wuwei turned around and left, muttering to others: "Didn't you say that he was born as a cheap slave? looks more magnificent than the emperor's grandson. ”

"If you admit your mistake, you admit your mistake, what to make up?"

"Really ......"

Du Wulang, who passed by them, entered the Kangjia store, looked up, and went upstairs with a "bang", and when he pushed the door, there were only some leftovers of cold dishes on the table.

Du Wulang was very sorry and said, "Why don't you order fish belly?" ”

"Yes, I don't eat raw."

"I'll eat it." Du Wulang said: "I haven't eaten yet, so I came here on purpose." ”

"Why are you late?"

"It's too late, I said that I would come at three o'clock in the afternoon, I was not a little late, you don't know the hard work of being a father for the first time. How, can you convince King Jianning? ”

"Hmm."

"You see, if you hadn't convinced him, he would have been there when I came, and I would have been able to persuade him, how can I say that I was late?"

"Count on your ability to speak." Xue Bai said: "But I didn't lie to you, let you pass the word to him, it's really for his good." Now you believe it? ”

Du Wulang shook his head and said, "If you don't believe it, how will he decide, can you guess?" ”

"I guessed it, let's go."

Du Wulang didn't leave immediately, but looked at Xue Bai carefully for a while, and suddenly said, "Why do I think you are a little different now." ”

"What's the difference?"

"I can't say it, it looks like you've been promoted again, but you haven't been promoted either."

"Up." Xue Bai said: "What is promoted is not an official position, it is power." ”

"I gave birth to a little girl......"

The two went out of the Qingmen Wine Store, but they first turned back to the Du Mansion in Shengpingfang.

It stands to reason that Xue Bai was detained in the palace for a few days, and when he came out, he should go home as soon as possible, and he should not go to someone else's house after eating and drinking outside. But he has something to discuss with Du Cheng and Du Yan's sisters, and Yan Yan has long been used to him being arrested at every turn, so it doesn't hurt to wait a little longer.

Entering the familiar mansion, the servants cast concerned eyes, and still regarded Xue Bai as the Langjun of the Du family.

"Can you count it as coming, I'll go to the main hall to see the girl's baby in a while, but you can bring Lilly?"

Lu Fengniang was still chattering, because she was familiar with Xue Bai, and jokingly begged for gifts.

Du Cheng and Du Yan stood behind her, with smiles on their faces, wordlessly celebrating with Xue Bai the progress they had finally made.

Du Youlin didn't know what progress was made this time, with a worried look on his face, he interrupted Lu Fengniang's chatter, and reminded with a sigh: "You, as a fireworks envoy, how can you not care?" As a result, chaos ensued. ”

He was also present when the elephant ran out that night, and was so frightened that he froze. Fortunately, he was in the back position, and he would not trample Chen Xilie to death first to kill him. In short, in his opinion, Xue Bai was negligent and guilty this time.

"What my uncle taught me is that I've been a little buoyant lately, and I should reflect on it." Xue Bai responded to Du Youlin's unreasonable blame as a nephew or son-in-law.

So, the Du sisters smiled again, feeling the joy of knowing the secret.

finally waited for Xue Bai to accept Du Youlin's teachings, see Du Wulang's youngest daughter, and eat a family banquet. They just found an opportunity to get together and talk in secret.

"Li Cong wants to see you." Du Yan said, "He sent the news through our secret line, which is very safe." ”

"Nope."

Xue Bai decisively refused, he didn't need Li Cong to do anything, he just needed this emperor's eldest son to be there and become his name.

Du Yan asked, "You persuaded Li Qi, don't you need to take them to meet?" ”

Xue Bai asked rhetorically, "What did you do?" Conclude a covenant? As long as Li Cong openly supports Li Cong as the prince, Li Longji will be satisfied with Li Qi's attitude, and Li Cong can only accept the rest. ”

This is the situation, Li Cong really has no choice, he is nothing more than at the mercy, which is why he was able to be selected by Li Longji. In the past, out of consideration for the image of the king of the Tang Dynasty, Li Cong's appearance could not be a prince, but now his inferiority complex has become his biggest advantage.

"Okay, let's send someone to answer him, and let him be patient." Du Cheng is the most prudent character, supports Xue Bai's opinion, and says: "The matter of Yi Chu, I am afraid that it will cause an uproar in the court, and it is not appropriate to act rashly at the moment." ”

"But be sure to tell him...... Enlist An Lushan's support. ”

This may be another advantage that Li Cong can become the prince this time, and the lord of Rongyi is his adopted daughter who married An Qingzong.

Xue Bai hoped that An Lushan would temporarily slow down his plans to rebel, at least until Li Cong ascended the throne and An Qingzong became a concubine. If there is such a period of relative peace, he can win the support of various military towns and complete the accumulation of strength.

Du Yan smiled slightly and said, "Don't worry, even if we don't say it, how can he forget his in-laws, maybe the more we ignore him, the closer he will be to An Lushan." ”

"An Lushan is not easy to fool, I am afraid that he only looks at the actual benefits, and he will inevitably want to be the envoy of Li Congti and Hedong Festival."

"Is there a way to deal with it?"

Xue Bai pondered and asked, "Jiwen is still in prison, right?" I wondered if I could subdue him and let him go back to Fan Yang to be a fine work for me. ”

Du Cheng frowned, thinking of the situation when she was caught in Jingzhao Mansion Prison back then, she was a little displeased, but she was more concerned about Xue Bai's affairs, so she didn't say anything, but said, "We'll send someone to inquire." ”

"I know that my mother hates this person, so she puts the big thing first?" Xue Bai comforted softly.

Du Yan was much more straightforward, and said, "Kill it in the future." ”

The three of them were planning their next move, which was nothing more than using the names of Li Cong and Li Qi to win more support, and at the same time to delay An Lushan's army.

Looking back, since the Du Youlin case, they don't know how many times they have had such secret discussions, from the initial crisis to the beginning of the initial progress.

At the end, Du Yan reached out and gently stroked Xue Bai's cheek, and said softly: "When I see you today, I always feel a little different?" ”

"Gorou said the same thing."

"What does he know?"

Although the room was not heard by others, Du Yan still attached it to Xue Bai's ear and said softly: "I see that you have the state of a hidden dragon now." ”

"What you lost, we might be able to get it back?"

"I don't care."

Du Yan shook her head, she didn't care at all about losing the position of Prince Liangdi in the past, she was able to realize the conspiracy to depose the prince, this was her own strength.

She lazily buried her head on Xue Bai's shoulder, sniffed his breath, kissed his neck gently, and gently rubbed his throat with the tip of her nose...... She is now obsessed with him as a person, and it has nothing to do with his identity.

Whether Xue Bai can become the crown prince or the emperor, it can't make her more excited, she is already very excited because she will succeed with him.

The tip of her hair gently swept over Xue Bai's neck, and he also breathed heavily.

At this point, they can move on to the next step.

……

Chang'an City is in turmoil because of Yi Chu, but it has nothing to do with Xue Bai.

He returned to the hut where he lay when he first came to Datang, thinking that he had changed some things, although he didn't know whether the result was good or bad, but fortunately, someone was always with him after all.

(End of chapter)

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