Chapter 261 Our Lord
"Your Highness has sent us all the way back to the capital. Do you want us to surround the capital and kill Ni Kun?"
Walking into the study, Nan Lijun staggered in shock when Huo Gan said this before she even sat down on the chair.
"If I could kill him, I would have done it long ago. My father left him 80,000 Beijing troops, and all the generals in the army are Ni Kun's direct confidants. If I touch Ni Kun first, the Beijing troops will definitely rebel."
After Nan Lijun finished speaking, he saw Huo Gannian's face was cold, with a hint of sarcasm on the corner of his mouth. He knew that what he had just said was not a question at all, but a teasing full of gunpowder.
She frowned, her tone already somewhat unhappy:
"Huo Gannian, you're mad at me for calling you all back to the capital for the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, forcing you to put the war on hold and travel so hard, aren't you?"
That's why you lost face for me in front of all the officials when you were rewarding the generals just now, right?
Nan Lijun did not ask the second question.
Huo Gannian said coldly, "I just asked Your Highness if you wanted to kill Ni Kun in order to purge the palace and seize power. If that's the reason, we're willing to go through so much trouble."
If not, then you really treat war as a child's play, and value power over national safety.
Huo Gannian didn't say this out loud.
Nan Lijun and Huo Gannian looked at each other straight, and seemed to have guessed what the other party had not said.
The atmosphere in the study was extremely depressing.
Finally, Nan Lijun's expression changed again and again, and he spoke first:
"Please take a seat."
Nan Lijun secretly calmed herself down. She knew that she didn't have much power to rely on now. If she wanted to ascend the throne as soon as possible, she had to have the support of the Huo Gang. Now was not the time to offend Huo Gannian.
She forced herself to put on a stiff smile that could be described as "ugly," and her tone became even softer.
"I know you find this ridiculous, but you should know that all the East Palace orders are now officially issued by me. I work tirelessly, day and night, to handle government affairs, always doing everything for the people, even cutting palace expenses to fund military expenses! But in reality, before all the East Palace orders are issued, Ni Kun's approval is required before the final seal is affixed!
The pro-Jade faction in the court has been completely wiped out, but Ni Kun is incredibly resourceful. In just over a year, he's managed to recapture the Cheng Cheng faction! Whenever I propose something, if Ni Kun and his followers agree, it's fine. If they don't, they'll use every possible means to force me to retract my decision, even threatening me with death! Tell me, does this Nan Kingdom belong to me, Lord Nan Li, or to Ni Kun?!
As he spoke, Nan Lijun became more and more excited, his voice was sharp and even had a hint of crying, which calmed Huo Gannian's anger a lot.
"So, Your Highness ordered us to return to the capital. What did you want? Like today's palace banquet, inviting all the officials but excluding Prime Minister Ni Kun as a humiliation?"
At today's Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet, Nan Lijun was the only one not to invite Ni Kun. Although this method was childish, it was also a slap in the face.
Nan Lijun didn't want to care about Huo Gannian's sarcasm again. She said solemnly:
"Why do you think the military pay hasn't reached you yet? Why are the new policies so slow to implement? Is fighting the war the only thing that matters, and is the chaos and division within the court harmless to the country and the people? And now that we're at war on three fronts, someone must be involved! Ni Kun must be involved! Only he has such connections and skills!"
Huo Gannian remained silent.
Nan Lijun continued, "I summoned you back to the capital this time to plan and forcibly take over the 80,000 Beijing troops. The five of you have extensive combat experience, and I believe you can accomplish this!"
Huo Gannian asked, "'Forcibly take over'? How do you mean 'forcibly'?"
Nan Lijun said, "First, assassinate Ni Kun's trusted generals! Then, the five of you will take charge of the Beijing army. If they refuse to obey, you will lead the palace guards to suppress them! Finally, kill Ni Kun!"
"There are only two armies in Kyoto: the Imperial Army and the Imperial Guard. The Imperial Army is responsible for guarding Kyoto, while the Imperial Guard is responsible for protecting the Imperial Palace and the Emperor. The Imperial Guard only has 20,000 soldiers. How can they fight against 80,000?"
"You have the ability to defeat the enemy with fewer troops. I think you can do it! Or you can use a trick to transfer the Beijing troops away from Kyoto first, so that you have a chance to attack Ni Kun. How do you think?"
Huo Gannian was stunned for a long moment, not knowing whether to say that Nanli Juntian was naive, or to scold her for wanting to seize power and actually wanting to start a war in Kyoto City?
They ignored the external invasion and war! They also didn't consider the dire situation that the people of Kyoto would be in!
Huo Gannian supported his knees with his hands, lowered his head deeply, and seemed to be a little discouraged. After a long time, he spoke in a low voice:
"The Black Scale Cavalry has been driven back to the border by the Lion Might Army, and the training of one hundred thousand warhorses has been completed. Everything is ready, awaiting only the final battle to annihilate them. If we win, the Black Scale Cavalry will be gone forever, and the southeast will be free from external threats. Yet, His Highness urgently recalled me at this moment, shelving the war and giving the Black Scale Cavalry a chance to breathe. It was all for the sake of—just to eliminate Ni Kun and his followers...
Your Highness, have you ever considered that the main force of the Black Armor Army is currently fighting against Luojiang in the north, the central forces are suppressing the rebellion, and the 300,000-strong Lion Power Army is engaged in a bitter battle in the southeast. Aside from the border troops stationed in the west, which cannot be mobilized, the entire Nan Kingdom is left with only 20,000 Imperial Guards and 80,000 Imperial Guards. If Ni Kun truly harbored evil ambitions and intended to rebel, he could have already acted while we were trapped in the three-sided conflict.
Huo Gannian raised his head again and looked at Nan Lijun with complicated eyes:
"He had over a year, over four hundred days and nights, to act. He had eighty thousand soldiers and horses to level the palace, but he didn't. Your Highness, is Ni Kun the treacherous one, or are you disregarding the late emperor's will and eager to take the throne?"
As soon as these words were spoken, Nan Lijun slammed the table in anger, which just proved that Huo Gannian had hit the nail on the head.
According to the late emperor's will, Ni Kun will assist in the administration for ten years!
Ten years!
How many people's expressions had Nan Lijun seen in her life? Why would she bow her head to a civil official for ten years?
Nan Lijun glared at Huo Gannian, "No need to say so much! Solve the internal troubles first! Then deal with the external troubles! Huo Gannian! You must get rid of Ni Kun first! What? You keep making excuses! Do you also want to stand on Ni Kun's side?!"
As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Nan Lijun immediately regretted it.
But bad words cannot be taken back, and this sentence was like a bucket of cold water, pouring chill down Huo Gannian's heart.
Huo Gannian finally understood why the court was so divided and chaotic.
He finally understood why, in such a simple situation between her and Ni Kun, no one could help Nan Lijun analyze it as thoroughly as he did.
Because these court officials all saw clearly that as long as they did not follow Nanli Jun's wishes and dared to tell the truth, the only fate waiting for them was to be "falsely accused of treason" and die.
Huo Gannian had never felt so tired before, he didn't even know where to start.
The Yu family was indeed plotting treason, but the Xuandu Palace Incident had already proved that the late emperor had already had the Yu family under his control. He was just using Ni Kun to lure out the corrupt officials and then eliminate them in one fell swoop.
Ni Kun. Huo Gannian didn't have much contact with him, but he always felt that a person who could be trusted by both the late emperor and the late empress and entrusted with important tasks would not be so unbearable.
Perhaps, everything is just due to Nan Lijun's desire for power.
Perhaps, the 80,000 Beijing troops were not used to restrain Nan Lijun, but the late emperor knew his beloved daughter too well and knew that she would definitely kill Ni Kun, so he used them to help Ni Kun protect herself.
Or perhaps, the late emperor’s dying wish of “the Eastern Palace will govern the country for ten years, and Ni Kun will assist in the administration” was not about dividing power, but about entrusting the orphan to someone else.
The late emperor believed that with Ni Kun as his Imperial Tutor, ten years would be enough for Nan Lijun to grow from an ambitious and arrogant canary into a true dragon and phoenix capable of protecting the Nan Kingdom...
If this is really the case, then Ni Kun isn't some treacherous minister abusing his power, but someone whose loyalty was misplaced, yet he still risked his life to teach Nan Lijun how to be a loyal minister to the quasi-emperor...
Then, Ni Kun's current confidants, the close clique within the court, those so-called "flatterers" whom Nan Lijun wanted to get rid of as soon as possible, were actually all loyal and good people...
Is Nan Lijun really deceived, or does she actually know the truth in her heart?
But she doesn't allow anyone to override her fragile authority, so it's not uncommon for her to accuse loyal people of being treacherous...
Huo Gannian took a deep breath and didn't dare to think any further.
He looked up at Nan Lijun. She was regretting what she had just said, but she was stubborn and refused to bow her head and admit her fault to Huo Gannian.
She was wearing a gorgeous dress that was almost like a dragon robe, and her hair was covered with gold, jade and pearl hairpins. She had such a stunning appearance, but her face showed a greedy look that showed that she couldn't wait to trample everyone under her feet, but was unable to bear the heavy responsibility.
For the first time, Huo Gannian felt sorry for himself.
He suddenly didn't understand what kind of monarch he was serving by devoting all the strength of the Huo Gang and risking his life to killing the enemy on the battlefield?
This is not our Lord.
These words came out of his heart for the first time.
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