Chapter 33
Lin Nanjie stretched his neck and waited for an incense stick of time, and the King of Beichang finally arrived!
Amid the rolling dust, a general who was over fifty years old led a group of soldiers and horses to gallop over. The horses were strong and fierce. The soldiers on the horses looked dusty but had the determination and courage of being experienced in the battlefield. The leader, the Prince of Beichang, was wearing armor and had a weathered face. His eyes were alert and steady, and his expression was solemn. Only when he saw the land of the capital did he show some nostalgia.
At the end of the team, there were two carriages carrying the family of the Prince of Beichang. Shen Liuzheng was the cousin of the Prince of Beichang. When the Prince of Beichang went to the border to quell the war, Shen Liuzheng followed him.
Now it's time to return to Beijing.
Lin Nanqi's eyes fell on the carriages, guessing which one she was sitting in.
The Prince of Beichang reined in his horse and stopped in front of the city gate. Then he led his men to dismount and kneel on one knee. His resounding voice echoed through the city gate: "I pay my respects to the Emperor. Long live the Emperor!"
The voice of the soldier behind him resounded through the sky: "Long live the emperor!"
Li Chengqian's eyes were slightly moist, and he personally stepped forward to help Prince Beichang up: "My Lord, I am sorry for the trouble."
The call of "Your Majesty" almost made the Prince of Beichang cry. The eight-foot-tall burly man choked up and said, "Your Majesty, I haven't seen you for three years. Daqi has become stronger."
"After three years at the border, I have seen the situation in Daqi getting better and better. I, your humble servant, made the right bet!"
When the civil and military officials saw this scene, their eyes were red.
Da Qi...it's not easy!
When the new emperor was about to ascend the throne, the court was in chaos, the previous emperor had emptied the treasury, and the Tatars in the north took advantage of the situation to invade. In the midst of internal and external troubles, it was the Prince of Beichang, who was already over 50 years old, who acted decisively and defended the border to the death, which brought peace and tranquility to Daqi. Prince of Beichang was also the only prince of a different surname in Daqi.
Now when he returns to pay homage to the emperor, many of his old acquaintances are in tears.
The Prince of Beichang burst into tears: "Wuwuwu, your Majesty... Wuwuwu, I am so moved!"
Lin Nanjie stared in amazement at the tears streaming down the face of Prince Beichang. He never expected that a general who had been fighting outside for years could be so emotional.
At this moment, a woman in a red dress stepped out of the carriage, slowly walked up to Prince Beichang, held his arm, and comforted him softly:
"Uncle, returning to the court to see the emperor is a great joy, uncle, please don't be too sad."
Prince Beichang nodded, raised his hand to wipe away the tears on his face, and looked at the emperor embarrassedly: "I am sorry to have embarrassed you and my colleagues."
Li Chenghuan didn't look at him, but stared straight at the woman in red.
Shen Liuzheng noticed Li Chenghuan's gaze, but instead of avoiding it, she faced it calmly.
She hasn't seen Li Chenghuan for three years.
Shen Liuzheng was dressed in a fiery red dress and had an extremely beautiful face. She had the elegance of a lady from a noble family, as well as the charm of the frontier. Many people were stunned by her.
Prince Beichang took out a handkerchief and wiped his face, while the ministers behind Li Chenghuan were muttering to themselves.
"Did you see that? I heard that the Emperor and Miss Shen are somewhat interested in each other, and he has been waiting for the beauty for the past three years."
"No wonder the harem is empty."
"So you already knew it. No wonder you didn't join in every time I advised the emperor to have more children."
"Hey, who told you to be so blind?"
Lin Nanjie's eyes lit up: [Wow! We finally meet after three years!]
[Look at the look in the dog emperor's eyes, they are as inseparable as glue and lacquer! ]
Shen Liuzheng took a lotus step and took a step forward: "Your Majesty, have you been here for a long time?"
Before he could finish his words, Li Chenghuan took a step back subconsciously.
Shen Liuzheng's words got stuck in his throat: "..."
Shen Liuzheng looked puzzled: "Your Majesty?"
Li Chengqian cleared his throat and said, "Just stand there and talk."
The moment Shen Liuzheng opened her mouth, he subconsciously recalled the dream he had last night. He was looking at Shen Liuzheng's face just now, fearing that she would suddenly lift up her skirt to reveal a pair of black hairy legs that would be difficult to tell whether it was a man or a woman.
I guess I was too deeply affected by what happened to Concubine Yi, and I always feel scared and terrified.
Moreover, he had sworn an oath in front of the statue of Taizu last night to downplay the relationship between men and women.
Li Chengqian said sternly, "You have been living at the border with the King of Beichang for the past three years. You have worked hard."
Shen Liuzheng was a little surprised, but quickly adjusted his expression: "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Lin Nanjie, who was about to watch the show, said: [???]
[Just like that???]
[Are you serious about taking a half step back? ]
Li Chenghuan couldn't help but roll his eyes in his heart, which was ungentlemanly.
On the way back, Li Chenghuan presented a sedan chair to the King of Beichang, and the king and his ministers had a very pleasant conversation. Behind them followed a large group of civil and military officials. The common people crowded around to watch, and when they heard that the King of Beichang had returned, they cheered for joy.
It was the first time that Lin Nanjie saw such a grand scene and he couldn't help but be moved. It seemed that the people's cheers for King Beichang were sincere.
Lin Nanqi couldn't help but sigh: [But someone is about to impeach Prince Beichang for collaborating with the enemy.]
[They also produced evidence that was nailed to the board and demanded immediate execution.]
Li Chengqian, who was chatting and laughing with the Prince of Beichang, paused and subconsciously looked at Lin Nanjie.
Prince Beichang: "Your Majesty?"
Li Chenghuan retracted his gaze and continued to talk and laugh: "Prince, please continue."
Lin Nanjie didn't notice the pause in their conversation and continued in his mind:
[But the King of Beichang has too many enemies. He is in the open, while the enemies are in the dark. It's a very tricky situation!]
[There is a way to crack it, but it takes time and requires the cooperation of the ruler and his subjects.]
[Ah, how can I tell the dog emperor? ]
Back at the Hall of Supreme Harmony, all the ministers returned to their seats. Yao Pei took off his sword, entered the hall alone, and knelt majestically: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you! Long live the emperor!"
Lin Nanjie stood in the corridor, listening to the movements inside.
The voice of Prince Beichang was as loud as a bell, so passionate that all the ministers were moved and knelt down in unison. The loud voice echoed in the sky above the Hall of Supreme Harmony for a long time.
Li Chengqian looked at the ministers deeply and raised his hands: "All of you, please stand up!"
Prince Beichang stood up and reported: "Your Majesty, I have been guarding the north for three years and have repelled more than 20 Tatar attacks. This time, I defeated the Tatar army and captured four Tatar princes."
The ministers became restless.
Daqi had suffered from the Tatars for a long time! Daqi's northern border stretched endlessly, and the north of the border was inhabited by nomadic peoples. They often invaded Daqi's border in the autumn and winter when supplies were scarce, causing great distress to the people.
This time, not only did they inflict heavy damage to the Tatars, but they also captured four Tatar princes, who could be used as hostages to threaten the Tatars. This was truly a cause for celebration.
Li Chengqian was beaming with joy: "I am very pleased and will be greatly rewarded!"
At this time, Wang Zhongcheng of the Censorate suddenly stood up and said in a cold voice: "I think it is not too late to discuss the matter after the reward and favor are granted. The Prince of Beichang has guarded the border for three years, which is not as simple as repelling the Tatars."
Lin Nanjie perked up: [Wow! Finally here! I didn't expect it would be Wang Zhongcheng who spoke first.]
As soon as Wang Zhongcheng said this, all the ministers fell silent, and no one dared to wade into this muddy water.
Yao Pei snorted coldly: "Master Wang, what do you mean? I am just a warrior, I don't understand your roundabout words, so just speak directly!"
Wang Zhongcheng said calmly: "Since half a year ago, I have received letters from various parties, saying that you, the King of Beichang, have withheld food and fodder, raised troops and taken advantage of others, and are colluding with the Tatars!"
As soon as these words were spoken, all the ministers' eyes fell on Yao Pei.
Collaboration is a serious crime.
Yao Pei frowned and glared, his fierce eyes were raised, he put his hands on his waist and shouted at Wang Wenhe: "Bullshit!!!"
The word "shit" is heavy and sarcastic.
Lin Nanqi was stunned.
The person crying at the city gate and the one cursing now... are they the same person?
It was the first time that Wang Wenhe was scolded by someone, and the scolding was so dirty that he was stunned in the court.
After Wang Wenhe realized what was happening, his face instantly turned red, and his lips trembled with anger: "You, you, you old reckless man! You speak nonsense! You are defiling the court!"
Yao Pei was so angry that he almost laughed: "You old man, you slandering me with empty words doesn't that mean you are defiling the court? Or have you never heard of the word bullshit? What a joke!"
Wang Wenhe's face turned red and almost purple, and he pointed at Yao Pei angrily: "Old man, don't take advantage of your victory to get ahead of yourself!"
"Hey, you also know that I won the battle? If you have the ability, why don't you go guard the border?"
The other court officials all stepped aside to avoid being hurt by these two men.
Lin Nanjie listened with great interest: [I didn't expect the ministers to be so confrontational. They really don't give me face!]
[Oh, speaking of which, the Prince of Beichang and Wang Zhongcheng are sworn enemies. The Prince of Beichang is the representative of the military officers, and Lord Wang is the representative of the civil officials. Whenever they meet, they always quarrel with each other, and Lord Wang is always the one who gets mad at the Prince of Beichang.]
Wang Zhongcheng turned away angrily, ignoring the Prince of Beichang, and said to Li Chengqian: "I have solid evidence in my hand to prove that what I said is true. The Prince of Beichang is indeed suspected of colluding with the enemy."
Yao Pei said unhappily: "I want to see what you can come up with."
Wang Zhongcheng said in a firm tone: "I have in my hand the letters between the King of Beichang and the second prince of Tatar. The date of the war is clearly written on it, and it even states who will leave the station and where the weakness is!"
"What's worse, every batch of military rations sent by the Ministry of Revenue was lost, and according to border intelligence, military rations appeared on the black market where Tatars and Han people traded, with Tatars selling and Han people buying."
"After a round trip, the military supplies were exchanged for silver to pass through the border."
"The first and second princes of Tatar were fighting for the throne. They colluded with the Prince of Beichang to help the second prince eliminate his political enemies and gave him silver to expand his military equipment."
"When the second Tatar prince ascends the throne, won't it be when our Daqi border is lost?"
As soon as Wang Zhongcheng finished speaking, all the ministers were shocked.
Even Yao Pei was so shocked that he was speechless for a long time: "I don't have any correspondence!"
Wang Zhongcheng took the letter out of his arms and threw it down like snowflakes: "Look for yourself!"
Yao Pei picked up a piece of letter and looked at the signature. It turned out to be his own handwriting. His eyes went dark.
Wang Zhongcheng said again: "Your Majesty, I think that the Prince of Beichang should be put in the prison of the Ministry of Justice for trial immediately, and someone else should be selected to guard the border. We must not let the Tatars take advantage of the opportunity."
Li Chengqian took the letter in shock, his eyes darkened, and his voice became hoarse: "Just as Wang Zhongcheng said, arrest the Prince of Beichang and put him in prison."
The imperial guards quickly tied up Yao Pei.
Lin Nanjie's eyes dimmed, and he was anxious: [No! He can't be locked up in the Ministry of Justice! ]
Li Chengqian paused, and before the imperial guards took the man away, he suddenly said, "Wait, let's put him in prison."
Wang Wenhe and Yao Pei's expressions changed.
The Ministry of Justice had its own officials in charge of interrogation, while the imperial prisons were mostly subject to severe torture by the Imperial Guards.
Wang Wenhe hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, it would be more convenient for the Ministry of Justice to handle this case."
Li Chengqian's eyes turned cold: "I have made up my mind, no need to say more."
Lin Nanqi breathed a sigh of relief. He stood in the corridor, watching Yao Pei come out tied up, and watched him leave.
On second thought, Yao Pei is Shen Liuzheng's uncle, she will not sit idly by. For her sake, the emperor should be more lenient and not execute her immediately.