It was getting late, and the two of them were not sleepy.

The Dean also felt sorry for his student, and although he had little interest in the talisman, he knew what the young man meant to his student when the talisman was about to be lost.

Lost doesn't mean it should be eliminated.

The talisman is extremely ingenious, even beyond the level of ordinary cultivators, even if they don't want to admit it, but this is something that all cultivators know well.

The courtyard was eerily quiet, except for the ticking of rain falling to the ground through the eaves, but Juan had not yet left.

The dean pointed to the piece of rice paper on the table and asked, "Tell me, how much are these words worth?"

Ju An replied solemnly and seriously: "This painting is worth a thousand gold, thank you teacher for breaking the fee." ”

The corners of the dean's mouth were a little bitter, and he found a pot of water to pour into his mouth, and said, "It's really expensive to be a teacher, but I don't care about giving it to you." ”

......

Ju An bowed respectfully and said, "The student thanked the teacher. ”

The dean waved his hand heroically, signaling that he didn't need to be polite, turned around and inadvertently touched his sleeve, what about the money and bills hidden there?

Ju An carefully put it away and thanked the teacher again for the gift. Saying goodbye and about to leave, the dean stopped and asked, "Ju'an, do you still want to go?"

Ju An turned around and said, "Yes, teacher, the student still wants to go and see." ”

The dean smiled and said, "If you want to go and see it, then go and see it." You don't want to learn from Xiao Jiu, remember not to force everything. The words written on it are very good, the gentleman lives in peace, you should understand what it means to be a teacher. ”

Ju An held the rice paper with both hands, and replied respectfully after a solemn salute: "Thank you for the teacher's education, and the students are taught." ”

Ju'an held the umbrella and left, and the hand holding the rice paper along the way couldn't help but tremble slightly.

The Dean sat in the first seat, smiling and shaking his head as his students departed.

He had never seen when his student would look like this, and he couldn't help but say to himself, "This kid. Let you learn Xiaojiu for a while, and don't let you learn for a while, it's hard for you. ”

The Dean lay down on his bed and began to sleep, and the last light in the Spirit Academy went out.

Some people sleep peacefully, some people don't.

In the main hall of the North Palace, an old man with gray hair but an unusually straight back stood quietly at the bottom of the steps, his back like a proud pine and cypress.

This person is the imperial historian Cui Ren, who stood there at this time and looked quite calm on the surface, but in his heart he was very confused and nervous.

Today, the envoy of the State of Qi has come to the capital, but His Majesty the Emperor summoned himself to discuss this matter in the middle of the night, which is really unreasonable.

The matter of welcoming the envoy to negotiate should have been the duty of the Great Honglu, and even if he was stubborn, he would not be able to pull it on the head of the imperial historian, but the fact now is that His Majesty the Emperor did summon himself for this matter.

His Majesty the Emperor raised his hand and rubbed his drooping eyelids casually, and said, "What does Lord Cui think about the Qi Kingdom sending an envoy here?"

Cui Ren pondered it carefully before calmly replied: "Back to Your Majesty's words, Qi and Chu are about to fight, and the Qi State must have sent an envoy to ask for help. ”

His Majesty the Emperor kept nodding up and down, and after a long time, he stopped his movements and said, "Then with the meaning of Lord Cui, do I want to send troops in Dachang?" After finishing speaking, he looked at the historian with thick dark circles on the side, pointed to the historical record of the plan, and continued: "Remember." ”

The historian was half sleepy, hurriedly got up and saluted, and then sat down again, pricking up his ears to listen to the conversation between the two.

Cui Ren lowered his head slightly and licked his lips, and a layer of cold sweat was already on his back.

The dignified Imperial Doctor, ranked one of the three dukes, is one of the few who can rank above him in this city, and he is a real high authority.

But His Majesty the Emperor in front of him could make him so nervous with a single sentence and an action.

It can be seen that this late-night summoning is no longer as simple as discussing state affairs, and he has become more and more aware of the purpose of His Majesty the Emperor to summon him to the palace.

Cui Ren thought carefully, and then replied cautiously: "If you go back to Your Majesty, the minister thinks that you should not send troops." ”

Supporting the Qi State was of no benefit to the courtiers, because it was impossible for the Chu State to be destroyed, and the support was only to ensure that the Qi State could suffer less battle losses.

Even if Dachang sends reinforcements, it will not be possible for the whole country to support, but as long as the troops are sent, no matter how much, they will have to bear a huge amount of money and material resources.

And the spoils of war are nothing more than land, resources. These are absolutely impossible for the Chu State, which means that a permanent army is needed to guard against the counterattack of the Chu State at any time.

But it is even more impossible for the Dachang Dynasty to send troops thousands of miles away to defend those acquired lands, and the rebellion of the princes and kings has always been due to this.

His Majesty the Emperor nodded again and said an irrelevant question, "Big Brother said the same thing. ”

Then he patted his head again, for fear that the other party would not know who the eldest brother in his mouth was, and added: "It's the eldest prince, the eldest prince who has been the prince for more than 20 years, and the eldest prince that Lord Cui is loyal to, Spring and Autumn." ”

Imperial Doctor Cui Ren hurriedly saluted and said: "Your Majesty has misunderstood, the ministers are all serving the country, and there is nothing to do." ”

His Majesty the Emperor waved his hand casually and asked, "None of them are fools, they all know whether these nice words are true or false." I wonder if Lord Cui's beloved son has ever returned to the capital?"

Cui Ren shook his head, thought of the wording and replied: "By Your Majesty's grace, the dog went out to practice, and he has not returned to the capital. ”

His Majesty the Emperor walked up to the drowsy historian who was writing with a pen, kicked him to the ground, then picked up the case file recorded on it and threw it on the ground at will, stepped on it twice, and then walked down the steps and said softly: "Although Lord Yushi is old, his waist is still so straight. ”

Cui Ren smiled bitterly: "Your Majesty said that you are laughing. ”

"May I ask Master Cui what is the duty of this Imperial Doctor?" the emperor once again uttered an irrelevant question.

But Cui Ren didn't dare to answer casually, so he hurriedly bowed his head and saluted: "Back to Your Majesty's words, the Imperial Doctor will assist the Prime Minister and draft an edict on behalf of Your Majesty to be responsible for supervising the hundred officials." ”

The emperor shook his head, "I know that the prime minister is capable, and my lord's assistance to the prime minister will only make him feel uncomfortable." The emperor first raised one hand, then stretched out two fingers and pointed at his eyes, and replied seriously: "As for drafting the edict and supervising the hundred officials, it is also a trivial matter. ”

Cui Ren naturally knew what His Majesty the Emperor meant, so he knelt down on his knees and bowed and said, "The minister understands, and when the minister returns home, he will submit the paperwork, requesting his resignation and returning to his old age. ”

His Majesty the Emperor hurriedly helped the other party up with both hands, and exclaimed, "Why is Lord Cui like this? ”

After helping the other party up, a sinister smile appeared at the corner of the emperor's mouth, and he leaned into his ear and whispered: "What I want to say is that there is another item in the responsibility of the imperial doctor, and that is to fill the phase. ”

Cui Ren was shocked, and hurriedly knelt down and saluted, "The minister has no such intention, and I hope that Your Majesty will see it!"

The emperor sighed, helped the other party up again, sat down on the steps and yawned: "None of the people who can enter this palace are fools, Lord Cui should understand my situation, and should understand what I mean, let's take care of all kinds of chores in this palace today." ”

Cui Ren bowed his head and saluted: "Your Majesty has worked hard for the country. ”

The Emperor waved his hand, "Cheng is like a hard stone to me, the kind in a pit. You can't bite him, but you can move it, but you have to get something unclean on your hands. The Emperor rubbed his hands together and spoke.

Cui Ren was very embarrassed when he heard this, and hesitated and said again and again: "Your Majesty is serious. ”

His Majesty the Emperor sat on the steps casually, looked back at the more than 20 years and looked outside the hall and sighed: "The battle for the throne has always been in the battle for the prince, no matter how brilliant the initial battle is, as long as someone sits in that position, the dust has settled. There is no one in the prince... I can't compete with him. But the first emperor left me with the position of emperor, but it also made me see that the battle for the throne is not only in the battle for the prince, but even a prince who has been ousted from power can make me restrain my hands and feet everywhere. ”

These words from the mouth of His Majesty the Emperor are no longer for people and courtiers to participate in, discuss or even listen to. So Cui Ren just bowed his head and pretended not to hear, and only bowed slightly to show politeness when the other party finished speaking.

The emperor looked at the other party's equally restrained appearance and seemed to feel similar to himself, and couldn't help laughing and said: "The big and small affairs in this country are first reviewed by your imperial history platform, and then passed by the prime minister, and finally what is passed to me is just some blind-eyed things, and more are managed by the eldest prince." You should know what it means to be an emperor who doesn't know the politics of the country and the body of the country. ”

The minister was terrified. ”

The Emperor slowly stood up on the steps behind him, and shouted: "I will tell you what this means! This means that I will be a faint king, incompetent! I will be condemned by the world, future generations, and all generations!"

Looking at the outside of the hall, he relaxed his tone and continued: "I came to tell you what this means, which means that I won't be able to sit in this position for long. ”

Cui Ren remembered another incident that happened in the city, and saluted back: "Your Majesty is too worried, a few days ago, the dean was also abused by many people for modifying the admission test time of the Spirit Academy, and now that the scolding has retired, the matter has subsided." ”

His Majesty the Emperor thought carefully, as if he was thinking about when Lord Dean had been scolded like this, and couldn't help but smile, shook his head slightly and didn't say anything more.

How many intrigues are there in one college?

No matter how much students and teachers insult each other outside the gate of the hospital, as long as they pass the admission test and enter the courtyard, it is mutual respect.

And his position is a place where he can be crushed and fall into the abyss if he is not careful. Even so, it is inevitable that descendants and historians will leave a mark in the annals of history.

Now he could tear it up at will, kick the sleepy historian aside, but only when he was in power.

Imperial Doctor Cui Ren didn't reply, but just listened to His Majesty the Emperor's obvious wooing.

His Majesty the Emperor continued: "I wonder what Lord Cui can get by following the eldest prince?"

Cui Ren said in fear: "The ministers are just doing their best for the country, and they don't dare to ask for anything." ”

His Majesty the Emperor nodded slightly, patted the other party's shoulder and said softly: "When it comes to the position of you and the prime minister, the things we promised in our mouths have no temptation at all, and when the money is not spent, it is all dung." What Lord Cui cares about is this life. ”

"The ministers have done their best for the country, and they have long put their lives on the line. ”

The emperor shook his head and said with a smile: "How shrewd you are in your life, if the new monarch succeeds to the throne and kills the courtiers, it will definitely doom me to no longer be able to sit in this position." But he's different, he can easily pinch every one of you, including the prime minister. The most terrifying thing is that even if he does this, any discerning Tingwei Mansion will only find a substitute ghost who has nothing to do with him, I can't find his head, and even if I find his head, it will only usher in pieces of pleading. ”

The emperor pointed to the outside of the hall, as if he was a little happy and said with a smile: "Lord Cui, look at it, when I stand here, I can see the residents of the city lining up to throw some vegetable leaves and eggs here." Then he pointed to the table in front of the dragon chair and said, "There, there will be a large pile of chapters and documents, and if you turn a page at will, you will ask the gentleman to be clear, open and gracious." I don't want to be gracious, I just want to kill him. ”

The Emperor sat down on the steps again and said softly, "Even if he commits a great crime, everyone will think that I am framing him. ”

Cui Ren replied: "Your Majesty is too worried, this will never happen." ”

The emperor lay on the steps and shook his head gently, raised his hand and put it on his eyelids casually, and said softly: "Honglu Temple is loyal to me, if Lord Cui has time, he can go and see how far the discussion of aiding Qi has got." I'm tired. ”

Cui Ren bowed and retired.

The emperor's hand on his eyelids slowly opened a slit, his eyes stared at Cui Ren who had gone away with a hint of a smile, and suddenly said loudly: "Come on! At this time tomorrow, invite the Prime Minister to the palace to discuss matters!"

A eunuch's characteristic voice came, "Yes, Your Majesty." ”

After some conversation, Cui Ren's feet were already unstable, and when he heard this, his heart was even more uplifted, and it was difficult to ensure that he was more stable.

When he walked outside the hall, he sat down on the steps, ignoring the cold rain that hit him, and in fact he was already sweating all over his body when the emperor said what he had just said.

The rain of the summer night makes people wake up, and when I sit on the steps and look up at the sky, I can't see clearly, only a glimmer of light from the temple overhead.

Just think about it, why did the eldest prince never feel that His Majesty the Emperor was so unfathomable when he was the crown prince in the past?

I thought that Emperor Zulong was just old and mediocre thinking about the chaos in the world, but I didn't expect that the thoughts of these two emperors were not something that ordinary people like him could understand.

Although he chatted with him for a long time, although his intention to win over was extremely obvious, he never understood whether he wanted to win him over or not.

Such people are more than horrors.

Just when Cui Ren was deep in thought, he suddenly found that the rain in the air had stopped, and he looked up and saw a black umbrella covering the only piece of light above his head.

Cui Ren was shocked again, and hurriedly got up, but he couldn't stand steadily.

The emperor hurriedly stepped forward to support him, patted the other party's wet shoulder, and said, "Lord Cui, remember to take care of your body." ”

Handing the umbrella to the other party, he staggered barefoot like a drunken man and walked towards the palace, shouting: "The prosperity of the country and the happiness of the people, the prime minister should be the first to take credit!"

Cui Ren saluted, then took the black umbrella handed to him and went down the steps and stepped into the rain.

The meaning of that is quite obvious, the prime minister is the prime minister after all, and the imperial history is the imperial history after all.