Chapter 171: War Reignites

After receiving the order, Heidao and Baixiu immediately went to Shangjing Mansion, but they did not find the Japanese attendant described by the emperor.

Bai Xiu simply disguised herself as a maid and sneaked into the residence of the Japanese envoy.

There are more than 40 courtyards in front and back of Shangjing Mansion, each of which is independent, with main rooms, side rooms and back rooms. The courtyards are beautifully designed and the rooms are elegantly decorated, no worse than the courtyards of princes and nobles.

There are paths connecting the courtyards. These mansions were first built by the Wu Dynasty for foreign envoys to stay in. During the Tiansheng Emperor period, the Central Plains was at its peak, and more countries came to pay homage. They rebuilt these courtyards and have been used ever since.

Bai Xiu walked quietly along the path. There was a nameplate hanging on each door, and one of them was where the Japanese prince lived.

Seeing that no one was around, she lifted up her skirt and jumped onto the roof. She was as light as a cat, not even stepping on the snowflakes on the tiles.

He walked to the roof of the bedroom, lifted a few tiles and saw that there was no one in the room, so he crawled in through the gap.

The bedroom is simply furnished with a bunk bed, a wardrobe and a set of tables and chairs.

The cupboard was empty, Matsumoto Tsuru's things were not put in. He probably didn't plan to live here permanently, and the bedding on the bed was neatly folded.

She felt under the pillow and found nothing hidden. She felt along the edge of the bed and suddenly found a bulge.

Bai Xiu lifted the mattress and saw that there was a palm-sized wooden box underneath. Just as she was about to open it, she heard rustling footsteps outside.

Without thinking too much, she put the wooden box in her arms, jumped up from the windowsill, climbed up the beam and swung back to the roof.

After a while, the door opened and a servant came in, cleaned the room and left.

Bai Xiu breathed a sigh of relief, took out the small wooden box from her arms and opened it to take a look. There were only a few copper needles in it. Why would this bird prince hide the needles under the bed?

Walking out of the mansion, Heidao was already waiting anxiously: "If you don't come out, I will rush in to find you!"

Bai Xiu glanced at him and said, "Are you so worried about me?"

Heidao blushed, "Bullshit, I'm afraid you'll be beaten to death!"

"You can't spit out ivory from a dog's mouth."

"Have you found any clues?"

Bai Xiu shook his head: "Found a box of needles in the bird's room."

"What kind of box? Show me."

Bai Xiu took out the wooden box and threw it to Hei Dao: "Be careful, I don't know if those needles are poisonous."

Heidao opened the box and found four copper needles inside. He picked up one and sniffed it: "Smell this, it smells familiar."

Bai Xiu came closer and smelled it, his face turned pale instantly: "Put it back quickly!"

She had smelled this smell on a dead person many years ago, and it might be highly poisonous.

Heidao was so scared that his hands shook and he almost dropped the wooden box. He quickly returned the box to Bai Xiu, and the two of them hurried towards Xuanyi Tower.

Just as he arrived at the entrance of Xuanyi Building, he happened to run into Chu Jing who had just returned from Dali Temple. Bai Xiu handed him the wooden box and said, "Bingyangzi, take a quick look at what kind of poison is on the needle in this box!"

Chu Jing took the box, looked at it, and suddenly laughed.

Bai Xiu asked in confusion: "What's wrong?"

"What a coincidence. A hollow needle with blood in the tube. It can be basically concluded that this is the murder weapon that killed the prince of the Jin Kingdom. Where did you find it?"

Heidao and Baixiu said in unison: "The residence of the Japanese envoy!"

Chu Jing returned the box to Bai Xiu, "Then the Japanese prince might be the murderer who killed Yeluta."

The two men immediately went into the palace to report with the murder weapon. Song Yuzhu held the wooden box and fell into deep thought. If Matsumoto Tsuru was the murderer of Yeluta, who did he intend to send the letter to?

There is also a question about the source of the poison. Chu Jing said that the poison was produced in the south. How did Matsumoto Tsuru get it? Is there any connection with the Nanzhao Kingdom?

"Your Majesty, are you going to send someone to capture Matsumoto Tsuru?"

Song Yuzhu shook her head: "Be patient, Bai Xiu, were you discovered when you took the box?"

“Never seen.”

"Replace the copper needle inside and put it back quietly."

"yes!"

Although hollow copper needles were rare in the palace, there were quite a few of them used in experiments in the Medical Research Department, so they sent someone to get a few and cut them into the same size and put them back in the box, making them almost indistinguishable from the real thing.

Heidao and Baixiu went to the mansion again and put the box back, but this time it was not so smooth because there was someone in Matsumoto Tsuru's yard.

Bai Xiu hid on the roof and listened carefully to the conversation inside. The guest was an envoy from the Nanzhao Kingdom, and the content of their conversation sounded quite ordinary.

Matsumoto Tsuru said: "I have longed for Nanzhao for a long time. I heard that it is like spring all year round, the grass and trees are lush, and the land is fertile. It is really a good place."

The Nanzhao envoy said in not-so-fluent Chinese: "You are right. Nanzhao is indeed a good place. Your Highness He can go visit us when you are free. Our king will definitely welcome you."

"That's for sure. I wonder how the King of Nanzhao is preparing?"

Matsumoto Tsuru took a sip from the teacup, with a hint of disdain in his eyes. It was a wild place, full of miasma, and full of poisonous snakes and insects. Even Da Qi looked down on it, so how could he look down on it? He just made a few casual compliments, and the other party was not ashamed.

"Your Highness, please don't worry about that. When the matter is completed, Goguryeo will be divided among you."

The envoys from Nanzhao did not have much respect for him. Fuso was just a tiny country, but it had a big appetite and was even thinking of destroying Daqi to get a piece of the pie.

Matsumoto Tsuru's expression changed. "Didn't we agree that Dongzhou would be the boundary and all the land in the north would be divided among us?"

The Nanzhao envoy said slowly: "There is a saying in the Central Plains that one cannot chew too much. Even if you are given such a large piece of land, Fusang may not be able to keep it with its strength."

Matsumoto Tsuru suppressed his anger, forced an ugly smile and said, "Your Excellency is right."

The two chatted for a while, each with their own ulterior motives, and then the Nanzhao envoy got up and left.

Matsumoto Tsuru instantly took off the mask on his face, drew the sword at his waist, and chopped at the tree next to him.

"These despicable villains, I will kill them sooner or later and turn them into human pigs!" After venting his anger, he threw away the sword, took off his cloak and returned to the bedroom.

The first thing Matsumoto Tsuru did when he came in was to turn over the mattress to check whether the poison needle hidden under the bed was still there.

These poison needles were brought by the envoys from Nanzhao. After the banquet ended that day, Matsumoto Tsuru deliberately walked at the back and let the servants bump into the eunuchs in the palace, spilling the soup on Yeluta's body.

As he expected, Yeluta was furious, and Matsumoto Tsuru took this opportunity to stab him with a poison needle without anyone noticing.

The original plan was that Yeluta's death in the palace would cause a greater disturbance, but unfortunately the dose of poison on the needle was too small, so he died on the way.

But it is not a big problem. The news will reach the Jin Kingdom in a few days. By then, the Khan of the Jin Kingdom will definitely gather a large army and march south. The Nanzhao Kingdom will also attack Daqi at the same time. Perhaps he can reap the benefits.

Matsumoto Tsuru put the poison needle back under the bed and prepared to rest.

Outside, Bai Xiu quietly jumped off the roof and brought this shocking secret into the palace.

*

On New Year’s Eve, the Zheng family was sitting around the table eating breakfast.

The gatekeeper rushed in and said, "General, there is a message from the palace asking you to come to the palace immediately."

Zheng Da'an put down his chopsticks. Why did the emperor suddenly summon him into the palace during the New Year?

Madam Zheng asked with some concern: "But what happened in the army?"

"I don't know. You guys eat first. I'll go to the palace."

As soon as he left, no one else could eat. The daughters-in-law took their children back to the side courtyard, and the two sons accompanied Mrs. Zheng to wait for news.

Zheng Da'an mounted his horse and rushed towards the palace. Before he reached the palace gate, he saw seven or eight carriages and four or five sedan chairs rushing over. It seemed that the emperor had summoned more than just him.

"Whoa." Zheng Da'an got off the horse, tied it to the railing outside the hall, and saw Du Chong not far away.

"Why did the emperor suddenly ask us to enter the palace?"

Du Chong shook his head: "How would I know? The dumplings had just been put into the pot and I hadn't had time to eat them when he was called over."

Zheng Da'an was about to say something, and just as he was about to say something insulting at him, the palace gate opened, and the two of them hurriedly followed the official in front of them and walked in.

A group of people came to the Zhenghe Palace. There had been no court session for a few days, so there was no fire in the hall. It was as cold as an ice cellar, and everyone was freezing with runny noses.

Soon Song Yuzhu came in wearing a cloak and said, "I suddenly called everyone into the palace today because I have something very important to tell you."

When everyone heard this, they immediately perked up and looked at the emperor.

"The Jin prince Yeluta was poisoned the night before yesterday."

"What?!"

"How could this happen?"

"Will the Jin Kingdom use this as an excuse to cause trouble?"

A single stone caused a thousand ripples. The officials below had different expressions, especially the old ministers of the previous dynasty, whose fear of the Jin Kingdom was engraved in their bones.

Some people have already started to panic, "What should we do? How could he die in the capital out of nowhere?"

The Minister of Personnel said: "Your Majesty! This matter is of great importance. If it is not handled properly, the Jin Kingdom will use this as an excuse to attack our Daqi in the south!"

Zheng Daan interrupted him, "If you want to fight, then fight. Are we afraid of him?"

Du Chong agreed: "That's right! If they dare to come, we will beat them until they have no chance to return!"

The generals waved their fists. They train soldiers for a thousand days and use them for a moment. They train hard every day not just to show off!

Now we have a musket unit in the army, and every soldier is an expert at hitting the target. Coupled with the enhanced power of the artillery, if the Jin people dare to come, we will beat them without any chance of return!

Song Yuzhu said: "Of course I am not afraid, but there is another thing. The murderer who poisoned Yeluta is related to Wa and Nanzhao!"

Qin Fengtu suddenly realized: "What a good trick! They deliberately provoked the conflict between Jin and Daqi. Once the two countries go to war, Nanzhao and Wa will probably take the opportunity to invade Daqi!"

Xu Bing stroked his beard and continued, "At the same time, Daqi was attacked from all sides by going to war with many countries."

This is also what Song Yuzhu is worried about. War is nothing more than a battle of national strength and manpower. Once the battle line is dragged on for a long time, it is easy for trouble to arise in the country.

Since ancient times, the change of dynasties has always been inseparable from war. If a country is mired in war for a long time, the lives of the people will certainly plummet, and the turmoil in the court will not be far from the destruction of the country.

Therefore, the best outcome is a quick victory, and the worst outcome is being dragged down by the two countries.

An official asked: "Can we tell the Jin Kingdom the cause of Yeluta's death and let them fight against Nanzhao?"

Someone nearby immediately retorted, "What a joke! Not to mention whether the Jin Kingdom would believe it, even if the Jin Kingdom wanted to attack Nanzhao, how could the two countries fight when they are tens of thousands of miles apart?"

The old man Lin Haiqiong spoke again: "Your Majesty, I have a way that may be able to stop the Jin Kingdom from moving south."

Song Yuzhu asked impatiently: "What method?"

"Send Princess Changle to marry the prince of Jin, and Jin will definitely not start a war."

(End of this chapter)