Li Rong pondered and said nothing.

Xiao Wen is Xiao Su's son. Li Ming summoned Xiao Wen into the palace at this time. After Xiao Wen left the palace, someone left Huajing. It is very likely that Li Ming contacted Xiao Su through an unconventional channel.

Under what circumstances would an emperor use this most confidential and least error-prone channel to contact a border general, avoiding all the spies?

Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan both knew it very well.

This was not the first time they had experienced a mutiny.

Whether it was the dethronement of Li Chuan, the aristocratic families' attempt to purge the emperor and dethrone Li Ming, or the aristocratic families' subsequent attempts at palace coups and rebellion, in the thirty years of political turmoil, this was not something that made them panic.

But this was a big deal after all, so both of them remained silent.

Shangguan Ya saw that the atmosphere was low, so she knew what to do. She bowed and turned to walk out.

When only Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan were left in the room, Pei Wenxuan finally spoke: "We need to make a decision soon."

"Are you so anxious?" Li Rong asked softly. She thought, "What does the emperor think?"

In the previous life, Li Ming's attack on Li Chuan did not seem to be so early.

Li Rong thought this was a bit absurd and couldn't help but curl her lips: "Could it be that my father is really so angry for his beloved that he has to save Concubine Rou?"

"I heard that His Majesty's condition has become more serious now."

Li Rong paused, Pei Wenxuan sat opposite Li Rong and said slowly: "Your Majesty wants to stabilize the position of Prince Su as soon as possible, which is understandable."

After all, since the Shangguan family conducted their own internal investigation, their power in the court has been greatly reduced. Now the aristocratic family and Li Rong have just formed an alliance. From the perspective of court power, Li Rong and the aristocratic family now have the upper hand, but if they want to launch a mutiny, that may not be the case.

Li Ming had Xiao Su's army in the northwest and his own Li family's direct army that he had managed for many years. Together, they had a total of more than 100,000 troops. He was not afraid of facing any of the aristocratic families alone.

What he was afraid of was that after the noble families gathered together, they would integrate a new army represented by Li Chuan.

But now the noble families are in chaos. After the establishment of the Inspection Office, although they seem to be united in punishing Concubine Rou, in fact, they have already had different intentions.

If Li Chuan did not have enough troops at his disposal, Li Ming would have enough advantages to launch a mutiny at this time.

"Your Majesty has nearly 100,000 troops, Xiao Su has 50,000, the capital has 10,000, and the scattered troops in various places in Huajing add up to 40,000." Pei Wenxuan said, taking out a map from under the table, spreading it on the table, raising his hand to point at the northwest corner of the map, and then drawing all the way to Huajing. "If Your Majesty starts to mobilize troops from the northwest now, it will take at least a month for Xiao Su to prepare and march here, even if he gallops without sleep."

"But the northwest is far from Huajing, and there are the Su and Xie families in between." Li Rong thought, "If they put up a bit of resistance, I'm afraid it will take more than two months."

"But will they?" Pei Wenxuan asked back. Li Rong paused and looked up at Pei Wenxuan. Pei Wenxuan reminded her seriously, "It's not just you and me who know the future."

If Su Rongqing had returned long ago, he would not have just sat there and waited for death.

Although the Xie family has remained silent since Xie Lanqing was exiled, they must have long since left Li Chuan. The Su and Xie families are in the middle of the northwest, so if Xiao Su crosses the border, the worst result may be that he will bring the armies of the Su and Xie families to Huajing.

"Su Rongqing..."

Li Rong tapped the table lightly and couldn't help but read out Su Rongqing's name. Pei Wenxuan listened to her mumbling, raised his hand to drink tea, and asked nonchalantly: "Why, do you miss me?"

"Isn't it?" Li Rong sighed, "I still underestimated him. He must have planned Xie Lanqing's exile long ago."

Looking back now, Xie Lanqing was the Minister of Justice at the time, and he was targeting her in every way. At first, she thought it was just because of the conflict of interests between the Inspection Department and the Justice Department, but now she thinks that Su Rongqing might have done something behind the scenes.

Su Rongqing had forced her to abandon Xie Lanqing long ago, thus cutting off the relationship between Xie and Li Chuan, unless Li Chuan really decided not to have her as his eldest sister.

But Li Chuan couldn't do that.

The discord between Xie and Li Chuan would not be a big deal on ordinary days, but today it has become a crucial issue.

If Xiao Su could march straight into Huajing without any hindrance, then no matter where she drew her troops from, she would not be able to arrive earlier than Xiao Su.

Once Xiao Su's army arrived in Beijing, Li Chuan would have no chance of survival.

Li Chuan died, and the aristocratic family lost its leader. Unless they elected another leader to rebel, they would be in disarray. Given the temperament of the aristocratic family, they would probably retreat to protect themselves. At this time, Li Ming would use both kindness and force to take the opportunity to eliminate the Shangguan family, and no one would dare to say anything.

Li Rong closed her eyes gently, raised her hand and pinched her Jingming acupoint: "First, let Zhao Chongjiu immediately send a message to the northwest, and let Qin Lin keep an eye on Xiao Su. Once Xiao Su's troops go to Huajing..."

Li Rong hesitated for a moment, feeling a little uneasy.

It was indeed too early for them to resort to military action at this time, and Qin Lin's direct action to intercept Xiao Su's army would be an act of treason no matter what.

"Then we have to stop it."

Pei Wenxuan saw her hesitation and said decisively: "Your Highness, it's time to use Lu Feibai. Call him back to the capital."

"What are you going back to Beijing for?"

Li Rong frowned, and Pei Wenxuan raised his hand and tapped the map: "Return to your ancestors."

Li Rong reacted immediately. Even though Feibai was guilty and had personally confessed to Xie Lanqing, he was still Xie Lanqing's son. Once the legitimate son of the Xie family was gone, he would have the opportunity to inherit the Xie family.

In the past, even if all of Xie Lanqing's sons died, it would not be the turn of the illegitimate son, Lu Feibai. But now Lu Feibai has military power.

With military power and the identity of Xie Lanqing's son, it would be a piece of cake for Lu Feibai to inherit the Xie family.

"Although the Xie family has conflicts with His Highness, the issue of taxation concerns the entire family, and the Xie family cannot be a stone wall. Now that Lu Feibai has military power, as long as Xie Chunhe, the head of the Xie family, dies, it will only take Lu Feibai a little effort to become the new head of the Xie family."

"So the first thing we have to do is kill Xie Chunhe."

After hearing this, Li Rong raised her eyes and looked at Pei Wenxuan: "Why not just kill Li Cheng directly?"

Once Li Cheng dies, if Li Ming kills Li Chuan again, the Li family will really fall into the hands of others.

"Before Li Cheng was killed, Father was afraid that he could have another son, so he took the opportunity to kill Chuan'er. But now, he probably doesn't have the ability or time to have another son."

Li Rong said calmly, "If I take action, he probably won't spare me. But since he has already made plans to ask Xiao Su to come from the northwest, it's clear that he doesn't plan to spare me and Chuan'er. There's no need for Li Cheng to stay."

"If Your Highness intends to do so," Pei Wenxuan said softly, "it's not a bad idea."

"Kill Li Cheng and Xie Chunhe," Pei Wenxuan's hands gently spun on the map, "If Su Rongqing still doesn't want Chuan'er to ascend the throne, then there is only one way, which is rebellion. Su Minzhi will not agree."

"In this case," Pei Wenxuan calmed down, "even if Xiao Su goes to the capital, he will no longer be of any use. But in this case, the only risk is," Pei Wenxuan raised his eyes and looked at Li Rong, "His Majesty may kill you and the Queen to vent his anger."

Li Rong remained silent. Pei Wenxuan looked at her and said, "If we only attack Xie Chunhe, His Majesty may not realize our true intention. His goal is the Crown Prince. He will not attack you just to make trouble or for Xie Chunhe. If we attack Li Cheng, it will be a permanent solution, but Your Highness," Pei Wenxuan said softly, "The Crown Prince will be Your Majesty's only heir. In order to minimize the influence of the Shangguan family on the Crown Prince, he will definitely take some extraordinary measures. Whether it is for personal vengeance or for the future of the Crown Prince, His Majesty will kill you and the Queen at all costs. Do you want to do this for the Crown Prince?" Pei Wenxuan said seriously, "Please think about it carefully."

"Are you trying to persuade me?" Li Rong asked directly after listening to Pei Wenxuan's analysis.

Pei Wenxuan chuckled: "How can I persuade you?"

He slowly raised his head, his eyes full of tolerance: "I'm just accompanying you."

While Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan were talking, Hua Le held the token given to him by Concubine Rou in his hand, suppressed his trembling, and hurried back to the Xiao family.

She kept comforting herself.

She couldn't panic, she couldn't get confused at this moment.

She had to keep calm and not let anyone see her joke and think that she was weak and could be bullied because Concubine Rou was gone.

When Hua Le arrived at the Xiao Mansion, she calmed down. She held tightly the token given to her by Concubine Rou and got off the carriage.

After many years of business operation, the Xiao family only promoted two uncles to be useful.

One is my eldest uncle Xiao Su who is in the Northwest, and the other is my third uncle Xiao Ming who is in the Yulin Army.

Hua Le entered the room and almost collapsed when she saw Xiao Ming, but she forced herself to bow with red eyes, "Third Uncle."

"Don't panic," Xiao Ming raised his hand and let someone help Hua Le sit down. He took the teacup and frowned as he asked, "Did your mother leave you any message?"

"Yes."

Hua Le nodded quickly. She took out the token in her hand and handed it to Xiao Ming. She wiped her tears and said anxiously, "My mother told me to give this token to me and let me kill Li Chuan. It would be better if I could kill Li Rong."

"Kill the prince?!"

Xiao Ming was shocked. Hua Le nodded. She was afraid that Xiao Ming would not dare to do so, so she added: "Uncle, now mother can no longer be saved. Our only way out is to kill Li Chuan as soon as possible. In this way, Cheng'er will be the only heir left. Father is no longer alive. Once he dies, Cheng'er can ascend the throne. Then you will be His Majesty's uncle and I will be the eldest princess. Look at how prosperous the Shangguan family is now. Isn't it because they are the mother's family of father?"

Xiao Ming remained silent. Hua Le became anxious. She hurriedly said, "Uncle, this is the only way to save mother and brother. When Li Chuan ascends the throne, will you let us go for him and Li Rong? Shangguan has disliked us for a long time. Are you going to just sit there and wait for death? You..."

"Hua Le." Xiao Ming interrupted her and said slowly, "This matter is too big. Let me think about it. You go back first."

"Uncle?" Hua Le looked at Xiao Ming in shock, "Are you just going to watch my mother die like this?"

"Even if we kill Li Chuan, we can't save your mother." Xiao Ming sighed, "It's not that your uncle won't help you, I'm just thinking of a foolproof plan. You go back and rest first, I'll think about it. It's just that time is too tight," Xiao Ming murmured, "I don't know if we can wait until this year's winter hunt, this is a good opportunity."

Hua Le's eyes lit up when he heard this.

Xiao Ming glanced at Hua Le and asked someone to escort Hua Le out.

After Hua Le left, the butler came to Xiao Ming, poured tea for him, and whispered, "You said the same thing, Your Majesty. You asked His Royal Highness Hua Le to assassinate the Crown Prince. Isn't this just a joke? If the Crown Prince was so easy to assassinate, would you have waited until today?"

"It's hard to assassinate a person, not because there are no opportunities, but because people create opportunities. It's just that people are afraid of the price."

Xiao Ming gently touched the edge of the teacup with his hand: "My sister has come this far, she is not stupid, do you think she really hopes that Hua Le will assassinate Li Chuan?"

Xiao Ming sneered, "She is looking for a scapegoat for someone with ulterior motives. There are many people who want Li Chuan dead now. As long as Hua Le is willing to be the scapegoat after the incident, everyone is willing to help her."

"Then..." The butler frowned, "Madam, are you planning to not protect His Highness Hua Le?"

"Using a daughter to exchange for a son's throne," Xiao Ming picked up the teacup, "In the eyes of the queen, it is not a loss. When His Royal Highness Prince Su ascends the throne in the future, it will be a kind of comfort to posthumously confer the title of His Royal Highness Hua Le. There is no good person in this family. Look at Hua Le, she keeps talking about the eldest princess. How much do you think she cares about her mother?"

Xiao Ming's eyes were filled with sarcasm: "A daughter wants her mother to die in exchange for the position of the eldest princess, and a mother wants to use her own daughter's death to exchange for her own position as the queen mother. It's very interesting."

"So, Master, you're just going to watch like this?"

The housekeeper hesitated, "After all, your Majesty and Xiao will rise together and fall together."

"Of course not just watching. Hurry up and send someone to pass the news to His Majesty in the palace. Tell him that Hua Le is emotional and wants to assassinate Li Chuan. Oh, remember," Xiao Ming instructed, holding the tea bowl, "Only His Majesty can know this. Don't let the eunuchs around him hear it. Who knows what kind of monsters and demons are around him?"

"yes."

The butler responded respectfully.

The news of Hua Le's assassination of Li Chuan reached Li Ming's ears that night.

Li Ming thought about it alone in the hall for half the night, and when he went to court the next day, Li Ming set the date for the winter hunt.

Winter hunting is a custom in Daxia. Although it is called winter hunting, it is actually the time for internal military exercises and competitions in Huajing every year.

There are six armies in Huajing: the Emperor's Yulin Army, the Crown Prince's Yulin Guard, and the remaining four armies guarding the four city gates.

The four army commanders were from the Shangguan clan, the Su clan, the Pei clan, and Li Ming's direct descendant, Prince Ning.

Every winter hunting, these six armies would conduct drills in the forest to prevent the troops from slacking off.

When Li Rong heard Li Ming set the date for the winter hunting, she made a plan in her mind. After the court session, Pei Wenxuan walked to Li Rong's side, and they walked side by side, looking ahead.

"The winter hunt is scheduled for ten days from now. Has your Highness made up his mind?"

"How long will it take for Lu Feibai to come back?"

"He can get there in three days if he rides fast."

"Prepare to kill Xie Chunhe first."

"It's a small matter."

Pei Wenxuan chuckled: "I will arrange the winter hunting."

Li Rong responded, and the two walked out of the palace together. Pei Wenxuan bowed respectfully: "Your Highness, I will go back first."

Li Rong nodded, and Pei Wenxuan couldn't help but look at her a little longer. Seeing that Li Rong didn't keep him, he still felt a little regretful.

In his current relationship with Li Rong, to the outside world it is Li Rong who is pestering him. Although Li Ming may have some doubts about him after the incident with Concubine Rou, he still has to save face. Maybe Li Ming is not that smart?

So if Li Rong didn't want him to stay, he couldn't stay either. So after paying his respects, he pretended to be indifferent and returned to his carriage.

Just as he got on the carriage and sat down, he turned around and saw Li Rong jumping on the carriage.

Pei Wenxuan was slightly stunned. Li Rong sat down next to him, raised her eyebrows and smiled: "Why, I can't sit here?"

Pei Wenxuan came back to his senses. He suppressed his smile and patted his legs: "Come, sit here."

Li Rong twisted her waist and sat on Pei Wenxuan's thighs. She raised her hand to hook him and said to the outside, "Let's go. I will see Master Pei off."

Pei Wenxuan sat upright, but Li Rong seemed to have lost her nerve. The driver did not dare to look inside and only said hesitantly, "Sir?"

"Let's go." Pei Wenxuan's voice came from the carriage, a little cold, "Listen to your Highness."

The driver thought Pei Wenxuan was helpless, looked at him with some pity, and drove the carriage towards Pei's house.

The carriage creaked and Pei Wenxuan put his arm around Li Rong's waist and said softly, "I thought His Highness had gone back home."

"You are my sweetheart," Li Rong leaned on Pei Wenxuan's chest, "How can I bear to leave you?"

Pei Wenxuan smiled but said nothing, listening to Li Rong's nonsense. After Li Rong leaned against him for a while, Pei Wenxuan asked, "Your Highness, have you made up your mind?"

"Pei Wenxuan."

Li Rong whispered, "If I kill Li Cheng, and my father really wants to kill me, there will be a mutiny in Huajing. Chuan'er has 5,000 Yulin Guards, I have 1,000 people from the Inspection Office, and Shangguan and you have 4,000 people, a total of no more than 10,000. But my father has more than 10,000 Yulin Army alone. If Su Rongqing and Prince Ning join forces, do you think Chuan'er will be willing to protect me and fight with my father?"

Pei Wenxuan said nothing, he raised his hand and stroked Li Rong's back.

"If he's not willing to fight for me, I'll die."

Li Rong raised her head and looked at Pei Wenxuan: "I will die for the throne of a prince like Concubine Rou."

"Your Highness does not trust His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Pei Wenxuan said for sure. He thought for a moment and said in a steady voice, "If Your Highness wants to kill Li Cheng, the Pei family has two thousand troops in the city, and one thousand of their own troops. I have my own people all over Huajing. If the prince abandons Your Highness, I will escort Your Highness out of the city. Your Highness will flee all the way to Qingzhou. You will have troops stationed there. At that time, Huajing will be the first priority to seize the throne, and no one will investigate your whereabouts. If the prince wins, you will come back. If the prince loses, you will abandon Qingzhou and go to Japan to save your life."

Li Rong didn't say anything. Pei Wenxuan paused while stroking her back. After a moment, he couldn't help but laugh: "You don't believe me either."

"Pei Wenxuan," Li Rong's voice was a little hoarse, and she snuggled in Pei Wenxuan's arms, "I'm sorry."

Pei Wenxuan took a deep breath, then raised his hands and hugged Li Rong tightly.

"It's not your fault. It's just that this world didn't teach you to trust a person. It doesn't matter," Pei Wenxuan kissed her, "If you are afraid, just kill Xie Chunhe first. After Lu Feibai took control of the Xie family, the Xie family stopped Xiao Su from entering the capital, and Qin Lin chased Xiao Su from behind. You and Shangguan's army joined forces to enter Huajing, and we just need to follow the plan."

“The cost is too high.”

Li Rong closed her eyes: "Besides, if Su Rongqing and my father join forces, if anything goes wrong in the northwest, we will be finished."

"We have to kill Li Cheng."

Li Rong said calmly, "But as soon as I close my eyes, I will think of my previous life."

"In my last life, I met Chuan'er for the last time. He asked me to play chess. He didn't tell me anything about me, nor did he ask me about my health. He just said that he had recently found a magic pill that could make people immortal. He asked me about Li Chu and how Li Ping was doing."

"He sees nothing but chess pieces."

Li Rong closed her eyes in a daze: "Wenxuan, although I love my son and mother very much, they are my family. But deep down, I have always been very scared."

Li Rong looked calm, but Pei Wenxuan saw from her calmness the pain deep in her heart that she had hidden for many years and dared not speak of, deceiving herself and others, causing her whole body to tremble slightly.

"They don't love me that much, and I don't love them that much."

"My mother will let me die for Chuan'er."

"Everything I did for Chuan'er was for him and for myself."

"And Chuan'er..."

Li Rong was confused for a moment: "If it was him from his previous life who came back, after I killed Li Cheng."

"He'll kill me."

He traded his sister and mother for overall stability, for an agreement with his father, for the throne, and for absolute control over the world.

If Li Chuan from the previous life was standing here.

Li Rong felt a chill in her heart.

He would let her die.

When this thought came to her mind, Li Rong felt cold all over.

Pei Wenxuan stared at Li Rong quietly. Li Rong forced a smile and said, "I'm sorry for letting you see such an ugly thing."

If a family is not a family, a country cannot be a country.

Everyone in this palace seems to have become an alienated evil beast, trapped in this arena.

"Your Highness," Pei Wenxuan held Li Rong's hand, "give it a try."

Li Rong looked up blankly at Pei Wenxuan: "What you are afraid of is being let down. But if you don't give everyone a chance to prove themselves, then you will never know that there is someone in this world who can give you trust."

"Try it once." Pei Wenxuan looked at her with pity in his eyes, "I promise, you will be fine."

He didn't know what choice Li Chuan would make.

But as long as he is alive.

Using his body as a bridge and his bones as wheels, he would send her out of Huajing safely.

"We have lived a lifetime, Rongrong," Pei Wenxuan held her in his arms, "I don't want you to live your life in despair like in your last life."