A few days after the start of winter, the Thousand Machines Camp's secret guards brought back the latest news from Beiliang.
Upon receiving the news, Jin Jiande, who was in charge of the Thousand Machine Battalion, hurriedly went to the palace. Just now, he sent back to the Empress the news that Qin Ze had cleared out the court of corrupt officials.
At this moment, Jin Fengluan's eyes were as cold as ice, and endless killing intent burst forth.
Her fair hands were now clenched tightly, her sharp nails digging into her palms as if they were about to pierce her skin.
"In less than a month, he... he actually wiped out all the Hu horses! He... he actually did it!!"
"How on earth did they manage to do that?!" Jin Fengluan roared.
Jin Jiande lowered his head and said in a deep voice, "I don't know."
As soon as she finished speaking, Jin Fengluan threw a memorial from the table at Jin Jiande's face, and he did not dodge it.
With a "snap".
The memorial struck Jin Jiande hard across the face, leaving a red mark on his handsome features.
"You know nothing about this and that! What use are you to me!"
"How many barbarian cavalrymen are there on the Beiku Grassland? At least several hundred thousand! Oh? There must be some!"
"How could he have killed so many Hu cavalrymen? He had a million-strong army."
Or were the ghosts of the Crimson Flame Army here, helping him kill so many barbarian cavalrymen?
Jin Jiande took a deep breath and said, "No, as it stands, he only has a few hundred thousand troops at present."
"Perhaps even more, hundreds of thousands may have died fighting the Hu horses on the Beiku grasslands."
Jin Fengluan laughed in fury. "Possible? Possible again?!"
"He went to Beiliang with eight hundred personal guards. The bandits didn't kill him, Huanglong and the Hu cavalry didn't kill him, and hundreds of thousands of Hu cavalry soldiers didn't kill him either. Now he even has an army of over ten thousand and is coming to the capital to purge the court of corrupt officials. Haha."
Hearing this somewhat manic laughter, Jin Jiande's face grew even more grim, and he said coldly:
"Your Majesty! Huang Tianhu is a fool who has failed in his duties. It is understandable that the 50,000 Panlong Army died on the grasslands. However, Qin Ze used this as an excuse to plot against the emperor, talking about 'purging the court of corrupt officials.' He is utterly shameless!"
"Your Majesty! Leave it to me! Killing him is as easy as turning my hand!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Jin Fengluan frowned and gritted her teeth, saying:
"Qin Ze wiped out all the Hu horses on the Beiku Grassland and made an unparalleled contribution. How can we touch him now? If we kill him, wouldn't it let the whole world know that I have openly killed a meritorious official?"
"He has won the hearts of the people of Beiliang by doing these things. If we rashly kill him, won't the people of Beiliang rebel? What will others think?"
"Hmph! That idiot Huang Long has failed to accomplish a single task assigned to him; he's utterly useless!"
"Now that Qin Ze is using the pretext of killing him to enter the capital, it seems he must have plenty of resources. You say he only has a few hundred thousand troops? That's absolutely impossible!"
"If he only had a few hundred thousand troops, how dare he come to the capital to purge the court of corrupt officials? Hmph, behind him..."
Jin Fengluan narrowed her eyes, her gaze filled with a cold glint.
Jin Jiande frowned: "Your Majesty, according to the intelligence gathered by the Thousand Machine Battalion, he does indeed only have a few hundred thousand troops. Could it be that he intends to incite a peasant uprising along the way to the capital?"
Jin Fengluan stroked her chin, and after a long silence, she said in a deep voice:
"We absolutely cannot let him come to the capital. Once he leaves Beiliang, he'll be able to make a big fuss about it!"
"Things will get complicated then..."
At this point, Jin Fengluan sneered and said, "Qin Ze is pushing Huang Long to be the target of everyone's criticism, trying to use his name to come to the capital. How can we let him have his way?"
"This Huanglong is the one I wanted to kill!"
"Isn't he trying to purge the court of corrupt officials? Perfect! I don't need to go through all that trouble; I'll just kill Huanglong directly!"
"Kill Huanglong, and let's see what pretext he has for 'purging the court of corrupt officials.' If he still insists on going to the capital, then that's open rebellion!"
"His name is not legitimate, his words lack authority, and he has no popular support. Let's see how he manages to rebel!"
Jin Jiande nodded and said, "Your Majesty's insight is brilliant!"
"The news from Beiliang was sent over by the Thousand Machine Battalion at top speed. Huang Long is unaware of the news from there yet. It will probably take a few more days for it to reach the capital. So, in these few days... should we make our move against Huang Long?"
Jin Fengluan nodded slightly and said in a cold voice:
"Excellent! Send troops to surround the general's mansion and execute Huang Long's entire family."
Jin Jiande's face was grim as he respectfully said, "Your Majesty, we have already planted spies among Huanglong's sons. We must act simultaneously."
“Excellent! This is a perfect excuse. If we’re going to kill, we must kill them all, leave no one alive!” Jin Fengluan said without hesitation.
"Yes, Your Majesty. However, this incident happened suddenly. Sending the execution order to kill his sons will probably take some time, especially since Huang Tianwei is in the East China Sea, which is far from the capital. It will take quite a while to send the execution order there."
Jin Fengluan sneered: "It doesn't matter. Anyway, he doesn't know that there are spies planted around him. Once the kill order is delivered, we will take action immediately. He can't escape."
At this point, Jin Fengluan shook her head and sighed, "The Hu Ma were wiped out, but Qin Ze harbored rebellious intentions, and Xijing... also fell into chaos."
Why has this year been so unlucky?
Upon hearing this, Jin Jiande looked up and saw that Jin Fengluan's delicate face was full of worry. This made him bite his lip, clench his fists, and then he said in a deep voice:
"Your Majesty need not worry, Your Majesty will certainly share your burdens!"
"Killing Qin Ze is not difficult; I can do it!"
Jin Fengluan raised an eyebrow. "How do you plan to kill him? This isn't a good time to act."
Jin Jiande said in a deep voice:
"Your Majesty, soon the whole world will know that Huang Long intends to kill Qin Ze in the Beiku Grassland. Huang Long and Qin Ze are sworn enemies. Why not take this opportunity to turn the tables and kill him with a borrowed knife?"
"Huang Long's property should be confiscated, and those who deserve to be killed should be killed. I will then have the Thousand Machine Battalion impersonate Huang Long's henchmen to assassinate Qin Ze. Afterwards, we can just say that they are avenging Huang Long."
"They are all elite assassins, highly skilled in martial arts and proficient in various assassination techniques. They are perfect for dealing with Qin Ze!"
After she finished speaking, Jin Fengluan's eyes flickered.
"Hmm...not bad, that's a good idea. Use Huanglong's henchmen to kill Qin Ze. If we succeed, we'll kill two birds with one stone."
"Jiande, your plan is brilliant!"
Upon hearing Jin Fengluan's praise, Jin Jiande pursed his lips slightly, his gaze towards her growing increasingly intense.
“It is my duty to share Your Majesty’s burdens,” Jin Jiande said respectfully.
At this moment, Jin Fengluan said, "There is still the matter of Xijing that is difficult to resolve."
"As you know, the news came yesterday: the Tu Yuan Kingdom has sent troops to the border of Xijing. Their envoy delivered a final letter, demanding that Xijing declare itself independent, or else they would send troops directly into Xijing to help it declare independence."
“If we agree to let Xijing become independent, they will withdraw their troops and stop interfering in Xijing’s affairs.”
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