Plan to cut off the nine states

(Please collect and recommend)

When Zhang Shiduan came back, he bowed formally without asking any more questions. Lou Chu stood up and returned the salute. Zhou Lu also stood up and bowed accordingly, with a smile on his face and a sense of relief in his heart.

Zhang Shiduan said: "We are a distinguished guest, but I have not treated you well. If there is any conflict in your words, Mr. Wanwanglou, Haihan, please go to the other room to talk about it, drink fine wine together, and discuss the pros and cons."

As the eldest son of Prince Guangling, Zhang Shiduan called himself "I'm here" to a commoner with no official title or title, which was considered very polite and even meant to be polite to a virtuous corporal.

Now that I'm here, I can't just leave. The building's foundation cupped his hands and said, "The guests are welcome."

Zhou Lu smiled and said, "Let's all have a good drink and we will be friends from now on."

Zhang Shiduan said to Zhou Lu: "I won't keep Mr. Zhou, and I won't send you far away."

"Ah...I..." Zhou Lu was really afraid of this young prince. He blushed and left sternly, "There's no need to see him off. I know the way. The coachman is waiting for me outside."

With Zhou Lu here, he didn't know how long he would have to drink, so Lou Chu didn't speak for him.

Zhang Shiduan personally led the way and took the guests to another Zen room. It was a long room with low couches on both sides. It could accommodate dozens of people practicing Zen at the same time. No one was using it at the moment. Several tables were already placed on the two couches. Drinking and eating, facing each other across the aisle.

The two of them invited each other to take a seat. The floor turned to look at a screen erected in the middle of the Zen room. The screen divided the Zen room into two. One side was bright with candlelight, and the other side was dim. I don't know what the purpose was.

Two servants stood by the couch to pour wine, and two servants stood guard at the door, ready to add wine and serve food.

The two drank a few drinks politely and tasted the dishes. The wine was good, but the dishes were bland. They were all vegetarian dishes, but they didn't have a special taste.

Seeing that the sky was getting darker and darker, Zhang Sheduan ordered several servants to step back and said: "Master Lou, please forgive me for disappointing my mood, but there is one more thing I must ask."

Lou Chu felt that having questions and answers was much more interesting than a table of food and wine, so he didn't find it a spoiler at all, "Please tell me."

"When you wrote 'Utilize the People for the Time', did you really want to criticize the current ills, or did you... stumble upon this topic by chance? To be honest, this topic is not new. If it were not placed in the current context, it would have nothing new at all."

Lou Chu smiled and said: "Is this important? It's just a piece of writing. There are only a few readers, so it means it's critical, but it doesn't hit the target."

"Is the 'target' the emperor?" Zhang Shoutuan also smiled, "I really have this idea. I want to compile the article and ask your Majesty to read it personally."

"Your Majesty, you are trying to kill me."

"Have you also heard about Yu Shi Luo?"

Lou Chu nodded. He not only heard about it, but also witnessed it with his own eyes at the scene.

Zhang Shiduan sighed softly, "Yushi Luo died unjustly, but no wonder, Your Majesty. It was all those sycophants who caused trouble and used Your Majesty's sword to kill their own enemies?"

"Nie Chen?"

"There is no need to hide it. It is already known to the whole world that His Majesty has three sycophants. Mr. Lou must have heard of it: one is Shao Junqian, the assistant minister of Huangmen. With some literary talent, he often writes imperial edicts for His Majesty. He loves nothing more than causing trouble. , what Mr. Lou thinks is "urgent" is actually more than half of this person's idea; one is the Sima Huangfu on the left side of the palace. This person is the worst. He often lures His Majesty to indulge in lust and sows the friendship between the monarch and his ministers. The death of Luo Yushi, he The one who contributed the most; there is another one..."

Zhang Shiduan shut up and Lou Chu said: "We have even found fault with today, who else can't say anything?"

"The last one is Mr. Lou's elder brother. The general of the Chinese army, Mr. Lou, is a good supporter. He is famous for being a weakling and falling in love with the wind. When your majesty makes mistakes, it's okay if he doesn't remonstrate. Instead, he shyly caters to you. Your Majesty has made more mistakes.”

"Your Majesty, do you think your Majesty... can be persuaded?"

"Of course, your majesty is a god and a warrior like no other in the world. As Mr. Lou said, everything your majesty did was not useless or abused, but just a little too hasty. This is not a big problem. Moreover, your majesty follows the good and follows the rules. As long as what he says makes sense, he will obey it."

The emperor in Zhang Sheduan's eyes was completely different from Lou Chi and most other people.

"Your Majesty is not convinced by my article." Lou Chu said.

"Haha, of course one article alone is not enough, but you have provided an idea. If you think about it carefully and get the right person to submit a letter, it will definitely happen."

Lou Chu always thought that his and Ma Wei's assassination plan was fanciful, but he didn't expect that he had an even more bizarre idea. He stared at the young man opposite for a while, "Is the 'suitable person' the prince?"

"Well, I would like to, but His Majesty doesn't take me seriously. He always thinks that I am still a child. If I submit a letter, Your Majesty will first not believe that it is my handiwork, and secondly, he will not take it seriously. Nothing can be hidden from Your Majesty. Really, nothing can be done. Not even Mr. Lou, you are not even a bachelor..."

"And I am imprisoned."

"Imprisonment?" Zhang Shoutuan was unfamiliar with this word.

"My biological mother was originally from the Wu Kingdom. The late emperor set a rule that scholars from the Five Kingdoms were imprisoned for life and were not allowed to be officials. Some people were imprisoned for three generations. I am among these people."

Zhang Shiduan let out a long sigh, "Sitting with my mother, I have never heard of such a thing."

"The Wu people must have made the late emperor angry, so they were punished like this."

Zhang Shiduan nodded, "The Wu people always want to rebel, but they have not been honest so far. When the late Emperor was here, they had planned assassinations many times. The laws of nature have shown that they did not succeed. It is a pity that a talented person like Mr. Lou was implicated."

Speaking of "assassination", Lou Chu's heartbeat quickened slightly, and he smiled but said nothing, but he was sure of one thing, Zhang Shiduan knew nothing about his father, Prince Guangling's conspiracy, and was loyal to the emperor.

"You are the son of a great general, and there is always a way to solve the problem of imprisonment. If I can find a suitable person, Mr. Lou, are you willing to help and write another article?"

Lou Chu thought for a moment, not wanting to give the other party illusions, so he said: "I don't think my article is so capable of persuading Your Majesty to change his ways."

"I can find someone to polish your article to make it more convincing."

Lou Chu still shook his head, Zhang Shiduan didn't understand what he meant, and was still a little anxious. He got off the table, put on his shoes and stood up, saying: "Although Mr. Lou was imprisoned, he is still a citizen of Tiancheng. How can you know and not say it..."

There was a slight cough in the room, and Zhang Shiduan smiled and changed his words: "I am not good at talking, let someone else convince you."

Lou Chu turned his head and looked, and was surprised to find that there were several more people behind the screen at some point. The shadows were vague, and although they were not clear, they could be seen to be women.

Lou Chu also left his seat and bowed, saying, "I don't know that the prince has a female relative here, Lou..."

"A man with great ambitions, is he afraid of a few women?" a crisp voice said.

Lou Chu was embarrassed and said, "I am not afraid of men or women, but I am afraid of what people say. Even the prince and you should pay attention to it."

Laughter rang out from both inside and outside the screen. Another woman said, "We are not afraid of what people say, but what people say is afraid of us."

Zhang Shiduan said sideways, "Let me introduce you. This is the son of the general, Mr. Lou Chu. The first one here is your majesty's sister, the Princess of Luoyang."

Lou Chu was surprised. The emperor valued the princess very much. Soon after he ascended the throne, he changed her title to "Luoyang". According to rumors outside, the princess was quite involved in politics. Ma Wei's "hens crowing at dawn" refers to this kind of thing.

"Commoner Lou Chu, hello to the princess." The aisle was narrow, and Zhang Shiduan was standing next to him. Lou Chu simply didn't kneel, but bowed.

There was another snickering from behind the screen. The princess said, "Although I am a woman, I am much older than you. With my guardianship, Mr. Lou will not be afraid of what others say, right?"

"I am terrified. If I knew the princess was here, I would never dare to come to your door."

"This person is a bit pedantic and a bit timid. I don't think he is the person we are looking for." The princess said bluntly, only lowering her voice slightly.

Lou Chu was eager to be driven away.

There was a whisper behind the screen. Zhang Shiduan paused the introduction and whispered, "Mr. Lou, there is no need to be polite. The people behind the screen are all the emperor's relatives. His Majesty will listen to everything they say."

Lou Chu was considering whether to make his attitude clear and oppose women's involvement in government affairs. The princess behind the screen said, "Fifth brother, you leave first."

"Huh?" Zhang Shiduan was puzzled.

"Let's all leave. Your Seventh Sister wants to talk to Master Lou alone."

"Fifth Brother", "Seventh Sister", Lou Chu was completely confused about the rankings among these royal relatives.

Zhang Shiduan smiled and said, "Seventh Sister will definitely succeed. Master Lou, I don't need to pass on the message this time. Let's see who can convince whom."

Lou Chu suddenly realized that this "Seventh Sister" was the person Zhang Shiduan had frequently consulted before. He couldn't help but feel a little curious. He didn't say anything more and stayed where he was.

The figure behind the screen disappeared, and Zhang Shiduan also left the room. Lou Chu stood still, suddenly remembering that no one had introduced them yet, and he didn't know how to address the other party.

The candlelight behind the screen was dim, and there was no figure at first. When she approached, a very faint shadow appeared.

"Seventeenth Brother, long time no see."

Lou Chu was stunned. Very few people called him "Seventeenth Brother", even brothers in the family did not use this title, not to mention that the other party was a royal female he didn't know.

"I dare not, your Excellency is..." Lou Chu really did not know how to start, so he could only call him "Your Excellency".

The other side laughed, "My surname is Zhang, and the late emperor gave me the title of 'Princess Huanyan'. Do you remember it, Brother Seventeen?"

"Forgive me for my poor eyesight..." Lou Chu still could not remember. Since the other party was a princess, she must be a princess, but he did not even see her, so he could not be called "poor eyesight".

"No wonder, my Seventeenth Brother and I were still young at that time. Thirteen years ago, I followed my mother to Beijing. The new house was not complete in many ways, so I stayed at my aunt's house temporarily. When I visited the garden, I met several brothers several times."

Lou Chu finally had an impression. The Lan family was prominent. In addition to the Empress Dowager and the wife of the general, there was also a Princess of Xiangdong. When the princess came to Beijing, she lived in the general's mansion for several months.

The image of a little girl appeared in front of Lou Chu, and he blurted out: "Are you a barbarian girl?"

"Do my brothers call me that? It must be because I came from the south and love to climb trees and catch insects."

Lou Chu hurriedly said: "I called you that when I was a child. It turns out that... you are now the 'Princess Huanyan'."

"The late emperor always smiled at me and gave me this name. Speaking of business, Brother Seventeen's 'Using the People in Time' really hits the nail on the head."

When they were young, they only met and didn't have much dealings. Lou Chu didn't have a close relationship with Princess Huanyan, so he bowed and said: "It's just empty talk. Your Majesty has his own ideas and will never be changed by an article."

"Of course, an article alone won't do. What if you add what you saw and heard with your own eyes and ears?"

"I don't understand what the princess means."

"Your Majesty is not always right, but there is one thing I think your Majesty said is very right: a person who only finds evidence from a pile of old papers and usually interacts with either high-ranking officials or noble relatives, but claims to have a clear understanding of the situation in the world and shamelessly speaks for the people, isn't it ridiculous? Mr. Lou has a trick of 'seeing the big picture from the small details', why not learn another trick of 'seeing is believing'?"

Lou Chu was surprised to find that the princess' words made sense, and he was actually about to be convinced.