Plan to cut off the nine states

(Please collect and recommend)

Lou Jian was stunned for a long time and asked: "Did the assassin confess?"

Shao Junqian nodded gently twice, "The evidence is conclusive, but Huangfujie is leading troops outside, so the palace does not want to reveal the news too early to avoid alerting the enemy."

Lou Gang raised his hand to wipe his forehead and murmured: "I thought it was Guangling... Well, what does Your Majesty want our father and son to do? A hundred thousand troops are now camped outside the city and can leave at any time. Within three months , we will be able to capture Huangfu Kai alive and deliver him to His Majesty."

Shao Junqian shook her head, "Once a war breaks out, life will inevitably be ruined. What crime did the soldiers of Jizhou have to be punished by the heavenly soldiers? What the palace means is to hold the troops still. Huangfu Jie and others have been ordered to go to Jizhou to recruit Huangfu to return to the capital."

"Isn't this letting the tiger return to the mountain?"

"Let the tiger return to the mountain first. If Huangfu and his son obey the order and return to the capital, it would be best. A few strong men can capture it. If he refuses to return, it will be natural for the court to raise troops to attack him."

"Then...what can our Lou family do? If Huangfu Kai returns to Beijing obediently."

"The general must be stationed in Luoyang and an army of 100,000 must be on standby at any time. Only then can Huangfu Kai return to Beijing in compliance with the order and avoid a military disaster."

Lou Jian suddenly realized it and felt a lot more relaxed. "It's too simple. The general is originally the commander-in-chief of the army. He will stay in the capital for a while and then go to Qinzhou later."

"It's not simple." Shao Junqian sighed softly, "Nowadays, there are rumors outside, claiming that His Majesty is suspicious of the Lou family, but this is completely nonsense. The Lou family is a natural relative of the emperor. Your Majesty grew up in the Lou family, and has a strong military reputation. As kings and ministers, we are actually brothers. The general is the most famous general in the world, and the imperial court is relying on him to quell rebellions in various places. Your Majesty wants to show his heart to the Lou family. How can you doubt the general? "

"That's what I mean!" Lou Liang's voice choked with sobs, and he almost cried again, "Your Majesty and I...we are really brothers and sisters..."

"Because of this friendship, His Majesty is usually rude to the hard-line soldiers."

"I'm sorry? That's just a joke between brothers. Can I take it seriously? Will I be dissatisfied? I will be disappointed if Your Majesty is too formal."

Shao Junqian laughed and said, "Okay, now that I have heard what the Chinese Army has said, I can go back and give His Majesty a satisfactory answer. Why has the Seventeenth Young Master never spoken? Your Majesty values ​​your opinion very much and has told me to bring it back with you word for word." ”

Lou Chi glanced at Lou Ji but didn't speak immediately.

Lou Jian said: "There are no outsiders. You can say whatever you want. Our Lou family never hides anything private in front of His Majesty."

Having said that, the look Lou Jian gave reminded Lou Chu to think carefully before speaking.

Lou Chu had already thought about it, "The Lou family never hides anything secret in front of His Majesty, but this Minister Shao..."

"How many years have I grown? Master Seventeen, if you like, you can call me 'Mr. Shao'."

"Does Mr. Shao have any handwriting or something like that?"

Lou said forcefully: "Mr. Shao, don't be angry. This younger brother of mine has been staying at home and has no understanding of things outside, let alone the situation in the palace." Turning to Lou Chu, he said: "Mr. Shao is your Majesty's most trusted person." People who have no need for handwriting or will..."

Shao Junqian smiled and said: "Seventeenth Young Master's suspicion is reasonable, but I really don't have a handwritten edict. The fewer people who know about this matter, the better. Once an edict is issued, even a piece of paper may be leaked. Hard Chinese Army Knowing how chaotic the palace is, those servants who seem to be honest might get the benefit of the Huangfu family and spy on what is going on in the palace for them."

Lou Jian nodded repeatedly, "Yes, that's it."

Lou Chu cupped his hands and said: "I'm afraid we two brothers are not qualified to agree casually. We must explain this matter to the general and let him make his decision."

"General, there must be no problem." Lou Jian emphasized the word "sure", almost to the point of gritting his teeth.

Shao Junqian nodded, stood up and said: "The general can go home to rest tomorrow. You two can discuss it with him. I will come to visit the day after tomorrow."

"We must discuss how to deal with Huangfu and his son. After all, they may still rebel in Bingzhou." Lou Jian was resolute. For him, any hesitation was disloyal to the emperor.

Shao Junqian said goodbye, and the two brothers walked to the gate. Seeing the guests boarding the car and walking away, the smile on Lou Jian's face disappeared. He turned to Lou Chu and said angrily: "How dare you question Shao Junqian to her face? Even if you don't understand the favors in the palace, you will be Just ask me, why did you say it right then?”

"You agreed so readily, Your Majesty will doubt the Lou family even more."

Lou Jian looked at the foundation of the building with an incredulous expression, "You guy, I just praised you a few times, but you don't know how high the sky is. Don't play any tricks on your majesty. Your majesty can see it all. With your little ability, It’s a joke in His Majesty’s eyes.”

"That's what Third Brother taught you." Lou Chu didn't want to argue. He only confirmed one thing. He was different from Lou Jiandao.

Lou Jian wanted to continue talking, but the Shen brothers happened to be riding horses from a distance. Lou Jian immediately put on a warm smile and said loudly: "I knew you would come when I was in the house, so I went out specially to greet you."

Shen Cong and Shen Dan dismounted, exchanged greetings with each other, and then went into the house together. The food and wine were prepared, and they were extremely sumptuous, enough for twenty or thirty people to enjoy. Lou Jian still thought it was not enough, so he called the cook in to scold him and asked him to go over it again. Going through the house, "Today is no different than usual. This is a wedding banquet for the rest of your life. Bring the best wine and the best food."

Before the food was served, Lou Chu was full, and the Shen brothers didn't have much appetite. The three of them drank slowly and watched Lou Chu gorge himself, eating half the table of dishes by himself.

"Eaters, God. Why don't you eat? Isn't the cook good at it?"

Shen Dan smiled and said: "How many people in the world have the stomach of Lou Zhongjun? It's not that we don't want to eat, we really can't eat it."

"Haha, you guys are not lucky."

After the food and wine were removed and the tea was served, Lou Jian and Shen Cong became more familiar with each other and recalled the panic of being detained in the imperial city. The other two couldn't get in the conversation.

While Lou Jian and Shen Cong were sighing, Shen Dan said: "The two brothers were having a good time talking. I drank too much and am a little dizzy. Can I take a rest at Zhongjun's house?"

"This kid is too drunk. I have plenty of room at home, so you can rest as you please." Lou Jian called the servant in charge and ordered him to take Mr. Shen to rest.

Lou Chu also stood up and left. Lou Gang waved his hand and continued chatting with Shen Cong.

After leaving the living room, Shen Dan cupped his hands and said, "Seventeenth Young Master, if you don't have anything important to do, why not sit down together? We've just met each other, and we haven't talked enough yet."

"Just don't disturb Fifth Brother's rest."

"Haha, I don't want to listen to the two of them talking useless nonsense. It's not that I'm really tired."

Lou Ji's mansion is not as large as the General's Mansion, but the decoration is more gorgeous. Lou Ji has learned this before, and is no longer surprised this time.

Lou Chu thought they were going to chat for a long time, but as soon as the servant left, Shen Dan said, "Has Shao Junqian been here?"

Lou Chu nodded, it was this person he wanted to talk about.

"He went to my house in the morning and asked us brothers to go to Bingzhou as soon as possible and call my father back to the capital to take over the imperial army in place of Duke Cao Shenxi of Xiao Guo."

"His message to the Lou family is to find an opportunity to get rid of the Huangfu family."

The two were silent for a long time, both thinking about the hidden meaning.

Lou Chu spoke first, "Your Majesty...are you trying to win the trust of everyone and trick everyone into returning to the capital?"

"It seems so. What is the purpose of this move? Could it be... Could it be..." Shen Dan didn't dare to say any more.

Lou Chi didn't say anything either, but the two of them had the same idea.

"If the six families are eliminated, the world will be in chaos. Who will your Majesty replace the important ministers of each family?" Shen Dan was confused.

"It may not be that all six families are eliminated, but one or two may remain."

"Hey, it's definitely not the Shen family. My father supported King Guangling's claim to the throne back then. Although it was kept secret at the time, your Majesty will definitely hear about it after he succeeds to the throne." Shen Dan paused, "It can't be the Lou family, let alone anything else. , just the fact that the general holds military power is enough to cause death. "

Lou Chu nodded and suddenly understood that this was not two sympathizers discussing important matters together, but the fifth son of the Shen family carefully wooing a potentially useful target.

Lou Chu was slower to react to this kind of thing, because he had never enjoyed this kind of treatment. Only Ma Wei had done something similar, but it was his friend for many years, and it had been brewing for a long time, so it was not out of the ordinary.

"What do you think, Young Master Seventeen?" Shen Dan asked.

"I am young and ignorant. When encountering such a thing, I am already panicking. I still need to listen to Brother Shen's instructions."

Shen Dan smiled and said: "Seventeenth brother still has doubts about me. When it comes to the safety of our own family, it is right to be cautious. Okay, let me say it first: after I arrive in Bingzhou, I will definitely urge my father not to return to Beijing, no matter what the emperor promises Don't believe anything. I will send people to Jizhou and Jingzhou to persuade Huangfu Kai and Xiyun to stand still. If I can, I will go there myself. Duke Xiao is in the capital, and Marquis Guo Wu is in Qinzhou to quell the rebellion. It’s okay not to advise, lest the news comes out. As for the general, in my humble opinion, the best strategy is to lead the troops to the west as soon as possible and stay away from Luoyang.”

"Your Majesty will not agree."

"That proves even more that His Majesty has murderous intentions." Shen Dan held the two hands on the floor and said with emotion: "The Emperor's insidiousness and decisiveness are far beyond ordinary people. He has tolerated the heroes of the court until now. He must be uprooted at the same time. We must be on guard. Alas, our two brothers are too timid. They take your majesty's slightest show of kindness seriously and dare not have the slightest suspicion. The survival of our family depends on you and me. The general must take extraordinary measures. Only by doing something can we turn the crisis into safety.”

Lou Chu could no longer pretend to be confused and said with his hands: "Both my family and myself, I will try my best to persuade the general to leave the capital, but he is so soft-spoken that I can't guarantee that he will succeed."

Shen Dan was overjoyed and said, "The general's actions and my father's immobility are enough to make the emperor think twice. The seventeenth brother is thinking about the whole family. The general is not a mediocre person. He will definitely understand the interests and dangers and make it happen as soon as he says it. I will send I communicate with my seventeenth brother all the time, and I don’t want to state anything clearly in my letters. How about I just write, ‘The game is not yet completed, do you have any plans?’”

"Very good, why don't we actually play chess."

Shen Dan also had this idea after seeing the chessboard and chess pieces on the table. He immediately agreed, played chess with Lou Chuzhi, and asked the servant to bring tea, without mentioning the word emperor again.

Lou Chu's chess skills were average and he could barely hold on. He was still pondering over and over in his mind the emperor's intention - to follow the name and fulfill the duty. He could not see the emperor's "real" clearly now, and he could not even tell what the emperor's "name" was.