Chapter 191 Best Friends
Li Yanchang walked out of Xuanhui Hall angrily and met the commander-in-chief Jiang An at the door.
Jiang An nodded and saluted, "Greetings, Your Majesty."
Li Yanchang glanced at him and said, "Well, thank you for your hard work, Commander."
The two did not exchange much. After they walked away, Li Yanchang said, "I think the Defu incident was just Li Zhaonian crying thief, taking the opportunity to get rid of Defu."
The attendant who accompanied him said, "It doesn't matter if Defu is missing. At least Lord Jiang is still ours."
Li Yanchang said, "It's raining in the south, so the march is slow."
"We can catch up," said the attendant.
Li Zhaonian stood at the entrance of Xuanhui Hall, looking in the direction where Li Yanchang left. "He thought I wanted to fight for it, but he didn't know that I was pushed to this position by others."
"Your Highness, please go and rest." The guard advised, "Your Majesty, all the people around you have been replaced, you should be able to rest assured."
Li Zhaonian said, "Please make a bed for me in the palace. I will still rest here. I have to protect my father. This forbidden palace is full of monsters that eat people without leaving any bones. They are all covered in human skin. Who can see clearly?"
The cell was rearranged and a clean cotton mattress was installed.
Although the cell was not very ventilated, the three-foot-thick wall blocked the scorching sun outside, so it was quite cool inside.
The jailer brought some books, but Chen Yu had no interest in reading them. She lay on the bed, thinking about this and that.
"Ayu."
Shen Yu was stunned for a moment, raised her head, and asked in surprise: "Pei Chunli?"
Pei Chunli has lost a lot of weight in recent days. His face used to be a little chubby, but now that he has lost weight, his face has clear edges and corners, and he looks more manly.
Chen Yu didn't go over, but sat on the edge of the bed and asked, "What are you doing here?"
Pei Chunli had a complicated expression on his face. He stared at Chen Yu blankly for a moment and murmured, "We've known each other for so long, and I didn't know you were a woman."
Shen Yu didn't respond, Pei Chunli asked again: "Do you hate me very much?"
"No, it has nothing to do with you." Shen Yu said.
Pei Chunli's tears fell. He knocked his forehead against the prison door and said, "I... I have no friends anymore. My father has harmed so many people. I am not qualified to be your friend."
Shen Yu took a deep breath, "That was the business of the previous generation. I won't blame you for not participating in it."
"Then do you still consider me a friend?"
Pei Chunli period
He looked at Chen Yu expectantly, and during her long silence, the spark in his eyes gradually died out.
"I know." He said, "You can't get over this, and neither can I. If I were in your position, I would probably want to kill the other person's entire family. You've already shown mercy to me."
He sniffed, grabbed the railing, and slowly knelt down, “I’m kneeling for my father. I’m too embarrassed to see General Shen, so please take it for him.”
Pei Chunli bowed deeply, his forehead touching the ground, once, twice, three times.
A few tears dripped onto the ground, leaving patches of dirt on it.
Shen Yu choked, "Pei Chunli..."
"Can you call me Anan?" Pei Chunli's forehead was already red, and he said, "No one can call me Anan anymore."
Chen Yu's throat was sour, and she stood up and walked over, "Anan, we carry the blood feud of our fathers. I don't blame you, but when I see you, I will think of your father and the mountains of corpses and seas of blood at Yanliang Pass. This hurdle may fade slowly with time, or it may never be overcome."
Chen Yu paused, "But no matter what, you were my best friend when I was seventeen."
Pei Chunli clenched his teeth, he couldn't hold back his tears, and his words were intermittent, "You are my most precious friend in this life."
The friendship, one ended at the age of seventeen, the other will continue throughout life, and they finally parted ways here.
"I don't regret meeting you." Chen Yu had tears in her eyes.
Pei Chunli smiled, but tears were falling down.
He nodded, "I don't regret meeting you."
Not regretting meeting each other is the greatest affirmation of this friendship.
No matter what happens in the future, the happy times we had drinking and chatting together will eventually become a corner of each other's memory, and that is enough.
…
After a dull sky for half a day, raindrops as big as beans finally fell at sunset.
The horse's hooves galloped into the palace, splashing water everywhere.
Half an hour later, the lights in the side hall of Xuanhui Palace were on, and the chief minister of the cabinet, Jiang Yuanqing, entered the palace in response to the imperial edict.
Li Zhaonian respected Jiang Yuanqing very much and personally welcomed him into the side hall.
"I'm bothering you to come to the palace in the middle of the night because I have something important to discuss with you."
Jiang Yuanqing strictly abided by the etiquette between the monarch and his subjects, and extended his hand to invite Li Zhaonian to go first, "Your Highness, there is no need to be so polite, but is His Majesty awake?"
Li Zhao
Nian said solemnly: "We just received an urgent report that King Beilin is critically ill."
"What?!" Jiang Yuanqing was shocked: "Is the news true?"
Li Zhaonian said, "It is true. I believe that the Prince of Beilin has also received the news and will come to the palace at dawn tomorrow. That is why I summoned the elders to discuss this matter so late at night."
The maid served the tea and left.
Jiang Yuanqing sat down and thought seriously, "The King of Beilin is critically ill. This means he wants the Crown Prince to return to Beilin."
"My father has not yet woken up." Li Zhaonian said, "I am thinking that there is a bond between father and son, and between ruler and subject. The Beilin King is critically ill. If the Beilin Crown Prince asks to return to his fiefdom, then I will fulfill my loyalty to the ruler and subject."
"No!" Jiang Yuanqing shouted, "I have discussed this matter with Your Majesty. Although Beilin had no intention of rebelling before, we have to be on guard. Moreover, Your Majesty is still unconscious and the King of Beilin is sick at this critical moment. This is really unusual."
Li Zhaonian said, "You are worrying too much. The urgent report was sent from Beilin half a month ago. At that time, my father had not yet fallen into a coma. The King of Beilin is not a prophet, so it must be just a coincidence."
Jiang Yuanqing still shook his head, "Listen to my advice, Your Highness, don't be too kind."
Li Zhaonian heard the hidden meaning in these words. Jiang Yuanqing had already said it quite tactfully. To put it bluntly, he was a good guy.
His foundation was unstable, so how could he win over these loyal old ministers in political affairs? Continuing to insist on his own opinion would only result in a stalemate.
"Your words make sense." Li Zhaonian took a step back, "But there is one more thing."
"Your Highness, please speak."
Li Zhaonian said, "I think you must know that someone poisoned my father's medicine yesterday. I have beaten Defu to death. He said something before he died."
"Father has long known that Chen Yu is a girl, and it was Father who deliberately kept her by his side, so the crime of deceiving the emperor cannot be established."
Jiang Yuanqing also respected Shen Zhongan very much, nodded slightly and said: "The Dali Temple will not torture her, and she will be released from prison after His Majesty wakes up and verifies the facts."
"I have other ideas." Li Zhaonian said earnestly, "There is already a Defu in the palace, and there is no guarantee that there won't be a second one. Now the imperial guards are led by Jiang An alone, and I am worried..."
Li Zhaonian didn't finish his words, leaving Jiang Yuanqing to figure out the rest on his own.
"Your Highness wants to release Chen Yu to check and balance Jiang An?" Jiang Yuanqing asked.
①. From "Mencius - Teng Wengong I"
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