Chapter 66 Bao Si (XIV) Return to Defense
Just as they had arranged to reclaim the land, Tai Shi Bo hurried over.
The old minister was wearing gray court robes and his hair was a little messy. It was obvious that he had rushed here immediately after receiving the news.
As soon as he entered the palace, he spoke anxiously, "Madam Si, King You of Zhou has ordered the allocation of 50,000 shells for the beacon fire ceremony, and has also stated that 'anyone who dares to interfere will be punished for defying his order!' Yesterday, Duke Yin was fined three months' salary by King You for his dissent. Now everyone inside and outside the palace is in a state of panic. We must formulate a plan quickly. Otherwise, if the beacon fire is lit in two weeks, the princes will lose their trust, and the Western Zhou Dynasty will be in real danger!"
"Tai Shi Bo, please sit down and have a cup of tea and let's talk." Lin Jiaojiao poured Tai Shi Bo a cup of hot tea and handed it to him. "I have a preliminary plan. Please take a look and see if it's feasible."
She took out a freshly made piece of paper from the table, on which were written with a brush the detailed "steps to force the emperor to abdicate": "Step 1, let the Marquis of Shen take back General Li's land within three days and strive for his neutrality.
The second step is for you to contact the envoys of various vassal states, and ask them to "stop by" Mount Li on the day of the celebration under the pretext of "discussing border defense." In reality, this is to put pressure on King You of Zhou.
The third step is to wait for Yijiu to return. At the Lishan ceremony, we will first have the veteran ministers make their case. If King You of Zhou refuses to listen, we will then have the envoys of the princes express their opinions. Finally, Yijiu will present evidence that King You of Zhou favored Guo Shifu and embezzled taxes. Together with the imperial guards and the private soldiers of Marquis Shen, we will force King You of Zhou to abdicate and allow Yijiu to succeed him.
Tai Shi Bo took the paper and examined it carefully, his fingers gently stroking the smooth surface, his eyes full of admiration: "This is a brilliant idea! This new paper is indeed very useful. It is a hundred times lighter than bamboo slips and writes smoothly."
He raised his head and looked at Lin Jiaojiao, his eyes full of admiration. "Madam Si is not only wise, but also able to create such a wonderful thing. It is a blessing for the Western Zhou Dynasty! I will contact the envoys of the princes and ensure that they can arrive at Mount Li on time that day. In addition, I will send a fast message to the crown prince, asking him to return as soon as possible to inform him of our plan."
After seeing Taishi Bo off, Ling's voice suddenly rang out, somewhat hurriedly: "A secret envoy from the Marquis of Shen has arrived, saying that the Marquis of Shen agrees to cooperate, but with two conditions: first, after successfully forcing the emperor to abdicate, he will retain the military power of the Jiang clan in the State of Shen, allowing the State of Shen to manage its own border affairs; second, his son, Shen Bo, will serve as deputy commander of the Imperial Guards, assisting General Li in managing them."
"We can agree to his request." Lin Jiaojiao said without hesitation, "As long as we can force King You of Zhou to abdicate and preserve the Western Zhou Dynasty, appropriate concessions are necessary. But we must clearly tell Lord Shen that after becoming deputy commander, Shen Bo must not appoint his cronies or interfere in government affairs. Otherwise, we will join forces with the veteran ministers to impeach him and abolish his position. In addition, Shen's military power must be supervised by the royal family, and an arms inventory must be submitted to the royal palace every year to prevent him from secretly expanding his forces."
Ling immediately put the conditions into words and passed them to Shen Hou's secret envoy.
Half an hour later, the emissary returned with a reply: "Marquis Shen agreed to Madam's terms and said he would personally oversee the recapture of the land within three days to ensure that General Li received the land deed as soon as possible."
For the next ten days, although Haojing appeared calm on the surface, undercurrents were actually surging.
On the third day, the Marquis of Shen's men recaptured General Li's land. After Manager Zhang was arrested, he quickly provided evidence of Guo Shifu's corruption.
On the morning of the fourth day, the land deed and evidence were delivered to General Li's mansion. Although General Li did not make a clear statement, on the fifth day, he replaced the guards on the west side of the palace with his own confidants on the grounds of "rectifying military discipline" and no longer strictly enforced King You of Zhou's order to "strictly investigate opponents."
Taishi Bo contacted the envoys of seven vassal states. The major powers such as Qi, Lu, Jin, and Qin all promised to rush to Mount Li on the day of the celebration and bring a small number of followers with them. The reason was to "protect the safety of the envoys", but in fact it was to help force the emperor to abdicate.
On the tenth day, Yijiu also sent a message saying that he had arranged border defense, asked his deputy general to stay behind, and he himself would take 3,000 elite soldiers and rush back to Haojing day and night, and would arrive in five days.
Five days before the Mount Li Festival, King You of Zhou suddenly summoned Lin Jiaojiao to the main palace, his tone clearly urging her: "My beloved, how are the preparations for the celebration going? Are the formal attire and ritual vessels ready? I have asked Li Dequan to inform the princes, saying, 'In honor of Lady Bo Si's smile, a special beacon-fire celebration will be held.' The princes will surely come in curiosity, so my beloved concubine, please perform well and let them see how beautiful I am!"
As he spoke, he asked the eunuch to bring out a golden jade robe, inlaid with countless jewels, dazzling and dazzling. "This is the ceremonial dress I specially made for you. My beloved, try it on, and you will surely outshine all the other beauties!"
Lin Jiaojiao felt nervous when she looked at the overly luxurious jade dress with gold threads. King You of Zhou was afraid that she was not eye-catching enough, so he deliberately let her show off in front of the princes to make it easier to blame her in the future.
Her face remained calm. She walked forward and gently stroked the jade garment, smiling and saying, "The dress Your Majesty has gifted is truly exquisite. I thank Your Majesty very much. However, preparations for the celebration are nearing completion, and the ritual vessels will take another two days to complete. Lord Yin said that the ritual vessels must be engraved with the inscription 'Peace and Prosperity for the Country and the People' to ensure that they conform to Zhou rituals, without the slightest error."
Also, I heard yesterday that Crown Prince Yijiu will be returning to Haojing soon. He has just pacified the border and made great contributions. Why not wait for the Crown Prince to return and have him go to Mount Li with us? This will allow the princes to see the Crown Prince's style and show that our Western Zhou Dynasty has a successor. Wouldn't that be better?"
King You of Zhou was stunned for a moment, obviously not expecting her to mention Yijiu. He then waved his hand, his tone a little impatient: "No need to wait for him! I am the Emperor of Zhou, and I will lead the celebration! The prince has just returned to Haojing, and he should stay in the palace to handle government affairs. How can he have time to go to Mount Li? My beloved concubine just needs to prepare well, and then smile in front of the princes, letting them know how beautiful my beloved concubine is, which is more important than anything else!" As he spoke, a trace of vigilance flashed in his eyes. He obviously noticed that Lin Jiaojiao was delaying, but because of her status as a "favored concubine", he did not get angry on the spot.
Lin Jiaojiao gritted her teeth secretly, but responded with a smile: "I obey your order. I will make good preparations and will not let the king down."
As they left the main palace, Ling's voice was tinged with worry. "Based on King You's heart rate and micro-expressions, he's beginning to suspect you're stalling. I'm afraid he won't wait for Yijiu's return and might hold the celebration within three days. We need to expedite preparations and have Yijiu return early to provide support. At the same time, notify Lord Shen and the senior officials to be ready."
"I'll immediately send Ah Jing to deliver a message to Yijiu, telling him to rush back to Haojing day and night, even if he only brings half his troops." Lin Jiaojiao hurried back to Qiongtai Palace and wrote an urgent letter. Her handwriting was more hurried than usual, but still neat. "Also, notify Lord Shen to have his private soldiers stationed at the farms near Mount Li in advance, disguised as tenants, and ready to act at any time. Have Taishibo contact the envoys of the princes and have them set out early, ensuring they reach Mount Li within three days."
Two days later, late at night, Yijiu finally rushed back to Haojing and quietly arrived at the Eastern Palace.
He was covered in dust, and his armor was stained with mud, obviously he had been traveling day and night without stopping.
After receiving the news, Lin Jiaojiao immediately took Ajing and rushed to the East Palace under the cover of night. In order not to attract attention, she changed into a dark gray cloth skirt and only wore a wooden hairpin on her head, like an ordinary palace maid.
In the side hall of the Eastern Palace, Yijiu was deploying his troops according to a map. Seeing Lin Jiaojiao enter, he quickly stood up and said in a hoarse voice, "Madam Si, thank you for your hard work. I have brought 1,500 elite soldiers with me. The remaining troops will be stationed in the Western Camp outside Haojing and are ready to move at any time."
"Great!" Lin Jiaojiao breathed a sigh of relief. "King You of Zhou may hold the celebration early. We need to reach Mount Li within three days and deploy troops in advance to ensure the safety of the princes' envoys and veteran ministers. Furthermore, Marquis Shen's men will meet us near the Mount Li Palace. The commander of the imperial guards has promised to remain neutral and will not stop us."
Yijiu nodded and immediately began to deploy his troops. When Lin Jiaojiao returned to Qiongtai Palace, it was already late at night.
Ling's pale blue figure hovered beside her, his voice filled with relief. "Everything is ready, just waiting for the day of the celebration. Jiaojiao, we're only one step away from success."
Lin Jiaojiao looked at the light and shadow, and touched it lightly with her fingertips: "Yes, from entering the palace until now, we have experienced so much, and we are finally going to see the result. When Yijiu succeeds to the throne, we will return to Weishui and watch the locust flowers bloom, okay?"
The light and shadow swayed slightly, as if nodding, and the electronic voice was gentle: "Okay, I will wait for that day with you."
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