Chapter 278 It All Depends on Whether Queen Lin Wants to Protect Prince Long
The old tutor grabbed the letter and took out the opened envelope first.
There are five letters in total, three from Dongyue and two from Rongdi. They are all from people who have been dealing with Da Zhao for many years, and the difference in their writing is not too big. In order to intercept intelligence, Da Zhao officials also have to learn the writing of both sides.
After just a quick glance, they were all horrified.
This is about a fierce battle on the border seven years ago.
At that time, it had been two years since the last fierce battle with Dongyue. The border had been calm since then. The emperor had already planned to reduce the military forces and recalled Prince Long to the capital to discuss the matter.
Unexpectedly, Dongyue allied with Rongdi and launched a sudden attack. The border areas had no time to react and were caught off guard, with tens of thousands of casualties. The two sides united and continued to attack.
Prince Long, who was almost reaching Shengjing, immediately disobeyed the order and returned, leading only a few thousand soldiers and generals who fought day and night to stop the advance of the two sides when they joined forces to attack the fifth city.
Although the front line had been in disarray at that time, the arrival of Prince Long boosted the morale of the army, and even the common people joined in. In the end, they defeated the enemy with fewer troops and drove both sides out of the border.
Prince Long's name became known throughout the Great Zhao for his reputation of disobeying the imperial order for the people, driving out the enemy, and defeating the enemy with a smaller force. From then on, in the eyes of the people of Great Zhao, Prince Long was a god-like general and the patron saint of the Great Zhao. The emperor did not punish Prince Long for disobeying the imperial order, but instead rewarded him. Prince Long and the entire Tang family rose to new heights.
Amidst the joy, everyone forgot that although the joint forces of Dongyue and Rongdi were driven out, they captured four cities in a row, burned, killed and looted, causing huge losses to the Zhao Dynasty. Rongdi survived two winters by robbing food and prisoners, while Dongyue used a large number of prisoners as labor for development. However, the Zhao Dynasty was seriously injured as a result, and the emperor's condition worsened at that time.
By the time the two sides had negotiated for two years and finally returned the prisoners, only two thousand of the tens of thousands of people returned alive. They were all emaciated and sick, and soon died.
From then on, no one mentioned this matter again, and it was completely overshadowed by the rapid rise of Prince Long's Mansion.
But now, after reading the contents of these letters and combining them with everything that happened back then, I finally know the truth.
Things like disobeying the imperial order for the people, driving out the enemy, and defeating the enemy with a smaller force were all deals that had been agreed upon long ago, and were mutually beneficial. The only thing that happened was that the country suffered huge losses, and tens of thousands of civilians and soldiers became stepping stones.
And some time ago, the Yanzhou army was trapped in Weicheng, which was just a repetition of the same trick.
It was just that Yun Ji led his troops to hold on and delayed the enemy, while Su Rui asked for help in time and General Tang sent troops immediately, which prevented greater losses.
But fundamentally, Prince Long wanted to sell out his country for personal gain once again.
Such an action angered all the officials present.
Even though there were political disagreements, party disputes, and even selfish motives, they would not harm the Great Zhao, nor would they send tens of thousands of civilians and soldiers to be slaughtered by the enemy.
Even the civil officials were so angry that their necks were thick, and the military generals leading the troops rushed forward to attack Prince Long.
Prince Long's military officers immediately surrounded him to stop him, and in a chaotic commotion, they cried out for justice: "A young boy found a letter from who knows where and accused Prince Long of selling out his country for personal gain? This is childish! Besides, where does the letter say it was addressed to Prince Long? How can we prove that this letter is not a forgery?"
"I got this letter from the secret cabinet in my grandfather's study. It was spoken by my mother, Princess Changning, after she went crazy. I found that the letter contained important information and I didn't know who to tell, so I went to my great-uncle, General Tang." The wolf cub's voice was childish and sounded particularly serious.
Most children don't lie, and even if they do, they won't lie so cleverly.
But Prince Long did not refute.
The old tutor didn't want to hear any more nonsense, so he handed the unopened letter in his hand to several old ministers around him.
"The Queen has arrived."
As soon as a hole was torn open, the eunuchs' singing and shouting were heard outside the door.
Everyone turned around and bowed to greet Queen Lin.
Not only Queen Lin came, but also Eunuch Fu, the chief eunuch beside the Emperor.
The two had clearly rushed all the way here; their foreheads were covered in fine beads of sweat, and their breathing was uneven. However, Empress Lin did not rest. She hurried up to the phoenix throne, which was lower than the dragon throne, and asked, "The eunuch reported that General Tang is accusing Prince Long of treason. Is this true?"
"Your Majesty, this is absolutely true. I have letters to prove it. Prince Long's adopted son Tang Cheng also found letters in the secret cabinet." General Tang stood up and reported.
"Bring it here quickly." Queen Lin ordered anxiously.
Eunuch Fu immediately stepped down from the platform, took the letter papers passed around from the officials, and presented them to Queen Lin.
After reading letter after letter, Empress Lin's expression grew increasingly grim. She looked at Prince Long in disbelief and asked, "Prince Long, how do you explain this?"
"Your Majesty, I am innocent." After a moment's silence, Prince Long suddenly shouted at Empress Lin. "Your Majesty, I have been loyal to you and patriotic, and have killed countless enemies for over twenty years. I dare not claim any merit, but I have a clear conscience. I would never betray my country or take the lives of my soldiers lightly. I hope Your Majesty will understand."
Queen Lin did not believe it, but shook the letter in her hand and asked, "Where is this letter?"
"I don't know where this letter came from. I have a deep blood feud with Dongyue, so how could we ever correspond? The same goes for Rongdi. This kid said he got the letter from the secret compartment in my study, but there aren't any secret compartments in my study. He said it was my daughter who went mad a few days ago who told him the letter, but my daughter is already insane, so how can I believe what she would say? They are simply colluding to frame me. I suspect my daughter's sudden madness is also related to them."
"I'm not lying, Empress, I didn't say anything. It was Mother who told me how to open the secret cabinet. That's how I was able to open it. I found the letter inside." The wolf cub shouted anxiously. Seeing that Empress Lin didn't seem to trust him, he pointed to the unopened envelope in the old minister's hand and shouted, "There's more, there's more here. There must be evidence to prove it."
When these words were spoken, many people secretly thought that it was not good.
But before General Tang could speak, Empress Lin spoke first, "Since that's the case, someone, accompany Princess Changning's adopted son to Prince Long's mansion to check if there really is a secret chamber. Also, bring the unopened letters for my personal inspection."
Once these words were spoken, there was no turning back.
Prince Long is of the Second Prince's lineage, and Queen Lin is the Second Prince's mother. Given the current situation, she will naturally consider the Second Prince and may not handle the matter impartially.
The people sent out followed the wolf cub. Whether there is a secret cabinet depends on whether Queen Lin wants to protect Prince Long. The same goes for the unopened letter.
Queen Lin looked at it and said it was insufficient evidence. Who could question it?
Therefore, when Eunuch Fu came to collect the letter just now, several old ministers tacitly hid the letter in their hands behind their backs.
But now that it has been revealed and Queen Lin has spoken again, she naturally can no longer hide it.
He could only look at Yun Ji and General Tang to see if they had any other tricks up their sleeves.
Only then did they realize that Yun Ji was missing!
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