Jiang Bairen raised his eyelids and looked at the skinny fingers that were tapping lightly on the table. He couldn't help but be amazed. It seemed that Queen Zhenxian was really a powerful person. She had been dead for more than 30 years, but her influence on Zhong Zhiheng was still so huge. Otherwise, Zhong Zhiheng would not have aged so quickly in just a few months after learning the truth. Jiang Bairen looked at the emerald green jade ring on his thumb, and felt that the hand was becoming more and more withered.
"Your Majesty, just as you expected, the moment you ordered the execution of Ma Zhiming, the Imperial Guards camp fell into chaos," Jiang Bairen bowed and said, "Before Ma Zhiming was there, the Imperial Guards were like a solid block, with no cracks to be found. Now that Ma Zhiming is gone, the Imperial Guards have become like a headless fly."
"It's good to be a headless fly. A headless fly will definitely find a new master. When the time comes, once the new master is determined, how can it still remember the old master?" Zhong Zhiheng said indifferently, turning the ring on his hand and sighing softly, "The Imperial Guard has been passed down for a hundred years, and loyalty is the most important. But once this loyalty is used in the wrong place, it will be very dangerous."
"Yes, I think so too. As a minister, the first responsibility is to be loyal to the emperor. If you still recognize another master, then it is not a pity to die," Jiang Bairen said in a deep voice. While sizing up Zhong Zhiheng's face, he added, "If I hadn't accidentally intercepted the secret letter sent by Ma Zhiming to Mobei last month, I'm afraid the Imperial Guards would still be deceiving His Majesty."
"Yes, fortunately you found it," Zhong Zhiheng nodded, paused, looked at Jiang Bairen, squinted his eyes and asked, "Bairen, tell me, how long has Ma Zhiming been colluding with the King of Pingxi? Is it one year, three years, or has Ma Zhiming always been a pawn placed by the King of Pingxi next to me?"
"This... I am still investigating. Ma Zhiming has always been cautious, so although I have been investigating for more than a month, I still haven't figured out when Ma Zhiming joined the Pingxi King's sect," Jiang Bairen looked embarrassed, and bowed and clasped his fists to apologize to Zhong Zhiheng, "I am incompetent, please forgive me, Your Majesty."
"This is not your fault. If Ma Zhiming didn't have some skills, he wouldn't have been the commander of the Imperial Guards for more than 20 years. What's more, this involves the King of Pingxi, so he must be more cautious," Zhong Zhiheng said calmly. "Everyone says that the 20-year case was a tragic case against the King of Pingxi, and some people even think it was an unjust case. But looking at the current situation, how could the 20-year case be unjust? I only regret that I didn't kill all the Imperial Guards back then, and let them cause trouble in the court for so many years."
Jiang Bairen said cautiously, "Although I haven't found out the facts about the dealings between the Imperial Guards and the King of Pingxi, I can conclude that the King of Pingxi controls the Imperial Guards through Ma Zhiming. Now that Ma Zhiming has died, I'm afraid it won't be long before the news of Ma Zhiming's death reaches the King of Pingxi's ears. I'm worried that the King of Pingxi will make unusual moves by then."
"No," Zhong Zhiheng waved his hand decisively, "Haven't I handed the Imperial Guards over to Prince An? This is a pleasant surprise for Prince Pingxi," Zhong Zhiheng couldn't help but sneered, "Prince Pingxi didn't even bother to go back to the capital, so why did he hold on to the Imperial Guards? What's more, he already has 300,000 troops, what's the use of a mere Imperial Guards? He was just thinking about keeping them for Siyao's son. Now, although Ma Zhiming died, the Imperial Guards unexpectedly fell into the hands of Siyao's son. I'm afraid he would wake up laughing in his dreams, so how could he make any unusual moves?"
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