After Xinwei left, he strolled over to Jiang Jingzhan with a half-smile. "No grudges or enmities? Young Master Jiang's memory is really bad. Has he forgotten Huguo Temple? Has he forgotten about kidnapping the maid from Prince Yong's mansion?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." He turned his head away, refusing to admit it.
Xiao Guozi had come prepared, throwing the evidence Liu Ren'an had found in his face. "That day at Huguo Temple, you sent people to monitor the princess. Later, you kidnapped a maid from the Yongwang Mansion. The evidence is conclusive. I have not wronged you. Young Master Jiang, I cannot control how you fight in the Ningguo Marquis's Mansion, but if you want to use our princess, then you will only have one way out: death!"
Jiang Jingzhan looked ashen-faced when he saw the evidence on the ground. "Eunuch Guo, I was wrong, I know I was wrong. Please forgive me. I will give you anything you want, really, as long as you let me go. Princess Jun... Princess Jun has been well all along. You have protected her so well that I have never had a chance to..."
Xiao Guozi sneered, "The Ningguo Marquis's mansion has long since fallen into decline. What can you give me? What don't I have in the Yongwang Mansion?" As he spoke, his hand gripped Jiang Jingzhan's throat, the force increasing. "Not having the chance to return the princess is your incompetence, but you shouldn't have harbored such evil intentions!"
Xiao Guozi's skills made dealing with Jiang Jingzhan as easy as crushing an ant; soon, corpses appeared in the streets and alleys.
When Marquis Ningguo learned that Jiang Jing had died in battle on the street, he said nothing, only sent a letter to Jiang Qian, and then shut himself in his room.
Jiang Jing died in battle. The young master of the Marquis of Huainan was so frightened that he dared not stay in the capital. He left the city overnight and did not dare to return to the capital until he was old and gray. He died outside.
One major event after another occurred in the capital, causing widespread panic. Although the war had not yet reached the capital, the people of the capital kept their doors tightly shut, fearing that something bad might happen to them.
Inside the palace, everyone seemed to have gone into hiding. Yi De did not move, Ning Fei also watched, and De Fei even stayed in her own palace. Even the eldest prince did not come out to move around.
With no one taking action in the palace, naturally no one in the court dared to do anything either. Originally, Prince Hui and the Guan family wanted to do something to Wei Tingsi, but their abilities were inferior to Xie Yun and others. Before they could even take action, they were discovered, so there was no need to worry about them at all.
Everyone is waiting for Wei Tingsi to pacify the world so that he can divide the power. This is what Zhao Shu needs. With the war still ongoing, it is best for the court to maintain a superficial peace. Everyone chooses to remain silent. Jiang Jingzhan and the Wei family mother and daughter did not die in vain. Guan Yurong and Liuli did not go to the nunnery for nothing. The rest depends on when the Crown Prince returns. Only when he returns can the real show begin.
At this time, Wei Tingsi had pacified the other vassal kings except for Prince Jing. If a map were laid out on the table, dividing the country into east, west, south, and north, there would be no vassal kings in Jiangnan, the floods would be eliminated, and Yide would go north. Jiangnan would be considered stable.
In other places, such as Chongzhou, the Prince of Han was the only one who posed a threat. The Weitingsi subordinates severely reprimanded Lu and forced him to surrender. Those of similar strength to the Prince of Han, upon learning that the Prince of Shu had been escorted to the capital but the Empress Dowager had not killed him as a warning to others, did not put up a stubborn resistance and all obediently surrendered.
The only one who could rival Wei Tingsi was Prince Jing. Although there was no evidence that he colluded with the Xiongnu, he had a strong army and a large number of men under his command, which was far beyond the strength of a prince. Even if he was a peerless genius, could the small Xiliang region raise a million soldiers? Absolutely not.
Wang Jiyang analyzed, "If the Xiongnu borrowed 300,000 troops, he himself had 500,000, and then annexed the King of Chu's 200,000, it was not impossible to have a million strong army. In addition, he had been raising horses in Zhuzhou and other places for many years, and his strong army and horses were not to be underestimated. He also had the fire lance."
“The King of Chu and the King of Shu are enemies, so it’s possible that he’s secretly maintaining an army of 200,000,” Wei Tingsi said. He paused, then asked, “Is there any news about Liu Ren’an?”
"Reporting to the Marshal, there is still no news. The situation in Xiliang is extremely dire. Many people who are not under the jurisdiction of the Jing King have been driven away, and the checks within the Jing King's territory are very strict, making it difficult for our people to enter," Zhang Chang replied.
Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent. After a moment, Wei Tingsi said, "No matter what, we must get in touch with Liu Ren'an. It's time to use this pawn."
"Don't worry, we've sent several groups in. One of them will succeed. Even if they can't get the message out, finding Lord Liu shouldn't be a problem." This time it was Wang Jiyang who spoke up.
In fact, he guessed correctly. The guards of the Weiting Division found Liu Ren'an, but the territory of Xiliang was heavily guarded and the checks were very strict. Moreover, King Jing was no ordinary person and could not be easily deceived. After Liu Ren'an arrived in Xiliang, although he tried his best to govern the land, King Jing did not see his talent through appearances and did not earnestly request Liu Ren'an to join his camp. After he became emperor, all the officials of Xiliang went to pay homage, but Liu Ren'an and a few loyalists did not go. The next day, he was wanted by the entire Xiliang government.
Fortunately, he always remembered Zhao Shu's words that he must be a good official. Although he had not been in office for long, he had made some friends. After the incident, some friends took him in, so he was not left homeless.
Wei Tingsi's personal guards were also extremely capable; they could find him even when he was hiding in a friend's house.
From the moment he saw the soldiers of the Weiting Division, he was extremely grateful that he had not accepted bribes, had not bullied men and women, and had not rebelled with Prince Jing.
"Young man, it's easy for the marshal to know the general situation in Xiliang. I've been in Xiliang these past few days and know a little bit about it. But how do you plan to take it out?"
The guard clasped his hands in a salute and said, "Please help me, Lord Liu."
"Let me think about it." Liu Ren'an was at his wit's end and began to consider which of his friends were capable of helping him.
However, his official rank was low, so Prince Jing didn't take him seriously. But even if Prince Jing didn't take him seriously, his henchmen wouldn't let go of any opportunity to make a name for themselves. This person was hard to find.
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