Chapter 447: Die with Close Eyes
The flickering candlelight was as red as blood, illuminating the overturned wine couch at the night banquet, the broken zither, the broken drum... everything in darkness and chaos.
At first glance, it looked like there were corpses lying all over the ground.
Outside the Yong'an Palace, the dull footsteps of the imperial guards came and went, like thunder rolling through the night.
The moonlight made the fully armed figures appear tall and cold, and their projections on the window lattices looked like a group of silent and solemn ghost soldiers.
Inside the Yong'an Palace, civil and military officials were talking in low voices, unable to conceal the shock and worry on their faces.
They simply couldn't accept what had just happened. King Xi Yan asked to marry Yun Chen, and Nan Lijun actually wanted to agree?
It even provoked Huo Gannian to kill someone on the spot and send the monarch of another country to the west?
Immediately afterwards, several meritorious generals such as Yun Chen, who were admired by the people and respected by all officials just a moment ago, rebelled and pointed the swords used to kill the enemy at the imperial guards and the emperor.
Such a huge change is unprecedented in history.
Apart from dying to apologize, Ping Tianxia was shocked and Xi Yan was angry, no one could think of any way to help Huo Gannian justify himself and escape from the predicament.
Tonight seems destined to give rise to many hatreds and separations.
At the same time, in stark contrast to the worried civil and military officials, Nan Lijun was hurriedly changing his clothes in the side hall.
She was in a state of extreme excitement, and her beautiful face was even distorted with excitement.
"Great! I was originally planning to go to great lengths to fabricate reasons to impeach Huo Gannian! But now look! Huo Gannian has gone crazy and arrogant! He actually killed King Xiyan in public! He dug his own grave! Then let's proceed as planned! How do you think?"
After Nan Lijun finished speaking, Yan Shijiu beside him remained silent.
He stood in the shadows where the candlelight couldn't reach, leaning against a palace wall, his legs crossed. He looked relaxed and happy, but his heart was like a turbulent ocean, and he was thinking rapidly:
No, that was not his original plan.
King Xi Yan was destined to die. This old guy, who had cooperated for many years, had all his usefulness squeezed out.
In order to not fulfill his promise to hand over Dongyan, King Xiyan must die!
Asking King Xiyan to provoke Huo Gannian was because he knew that with Huo Gannian's personality, he would definitely provoke King Xiyan, making the situation ugly and difficult to handle.
By then, when the news of Huo Gannian's disrespect to the king of a friendly country in order to protect Yun Chen spread throughout the world, Yan Shijiu would have someone kill King Xiyan without anyone knowing and put the blame on Huo Gannian.
Thinking of this, Yan Shijiu glanced at the figure deeper in the shadows—
Korean watch.
Unlike the timid and cowardly look he had at the banquet, Han Biao was no longer skinny, hunchbacked, greasy and unruly.
He stood straight, his face gloomy but smiling, and he looked very cunning. He bowed to Yan Shijiu with satisfaction, saying "thank you", and then quietly retreated.
This prince, who is the most unpopular in Xiyan, is about to go back and take advantage of the chaos to fight for the new king of Xiyan with the support of Jiao Zuotai and the Black Scale Cavalry.
He was sent to the Kingdom of Nan as a hostage, and within two years, he successfully established the image of a dissolute, vulgar and stupid person, causing everyone to let down their guard.
But after so many years of cooperation with King Xiyan, Yan Shijiu had already smelled the same scent from Han Biao as himself.
A kind of creature that appears harmless on the surface, but is actually as cold as a poisonous snake. It curls up in a dark corner, making the most shameful but powerful plans.
Therefore, Yan Shijiu decided to kick out King Xiyan and support Han Biao to take the throne.
After all, the King of Xiyan gave him 200,000 Black Scale Cavalry in exchange for the entire Dongyan.
Han Biao's appetite was much smaller. He just wanted to kill all his brothers in Xiyan and become the new king.
Yan Shijiu is familiar with this matter.
This deal is obviously more cost-effective.
Therefore, according to Yan Shijiu's original plan, after King Xiyan obtained Yun Chen, Han Biao would kill King Xiyan without anyone knowing on his way back to Xiyan.
In this way, Yun Chen can escape the marriage, Han Biao can take the position, and the crime of assassination can be pushed onto Huo Gannian.
What a great way to kill three birds with one stone!
As the saying goes, if you want to accuse someone of a crime, you can always find a pretext. With the dirty water of "killing King Xiyan", they can justifiably start the process of investigating, impeaching, stripping and suppressing Huo Gannian.
When everyone knew that Huo Gannian was arrogant and became dissatisfied with him, and when the interests of the aristocratic class in the capital were affected by the new policy and became resentful, all the officials in the court rebelled under the pressure of government affairs.
That would be the best time to strip Huo Gannian of his power and drive him into a desperate situation!
However, Yan Shijiu never dreamed that the false accusation that he had originally intended to pin on Huo Gannian would now come true on his own initiative.
This greatly advanced Yan Shijiu's plan, and even caught him off guard.
Nan Lijun, that stupid woman, was overwhelmed by such a great opportunity, but Yan Shijiu would not.
He felt something was wrong.
Huo Gannian was indeed arrogant after his return from Gong Sheng, but he shouldn't have been so arrogant. Could it be that he really loved Yun Chen too much? Was he angry that Nan Lijun wanted Yun Chen to marry again?
Moreover, right now, the people are strongly supporting Huo Gannian, and the civil and military officials and nobles in the capital are also respecting him. It is not a good time to impeach Huo Gannian.
But who can resist taking a bite of the fat meat in their mouth?
Now that King Xiyan is dead, Huo Gannian and others have all been detained in the Heavenly Prison. If he doesn't continue to promote Yan Shijiu's great cause, will he let them go?
Yan Shijiu wanted to be happy, but he couldn't.
He felt a dull, tingling discomfort all over his body, inside and out.
It feels like...
It was as if Huo Gannian had already seen through all his conspiracies and was rushing to help him.
It was like two people fighting each other, Huo Gannian kept giving him moves and deliberately exposing his fatal flaws.
After thinking for a moment, Yan Shijiu decided that it would be best to take it slow and steady, so he advised Nan Lijun:
"The better the situation, the more we must hold steady and avoid falling into traps. Huo Gannian is not an ordinary person and will not fall so easily. We must be careful in our response and proceed step by step in a cautious manner."
Nan Lijun snorted disdainfully, obviously not listening to what he said, shaking his head and saying proudly:
"Don't think too much! Huo Gannian is already in my hands. If I tell him to live, he will live. If I tell him to die, he will die. Why bother with all that planning? I'll just kill him now. Isn't that a permanent solution?"
Yan Shijiu's expression became increasingly ugly, and he cursed in his heart.
There is a saying among the people: I am not afraid of god-like opponents, but I am afraid of teammates who are stupid!
If killing Huo Gannian would be enough, then why would Yan Shijiu go through so much trouble to plan for so many years?
If he just kills Nan Lijun, regardless of the gossips and forces in the world, he can sit on the throne of the Nan Kingdom and unify the world?
What a waste!
Yan Shijiu was already a little confused, and seeing Nan Lijun's boastful and hopeless behavior, he felt even more annoyed, but he still suppressed all his anger and said patiently:
"Good Ah Li, be obedient. Later, in front of all the civil and military officials, you must first ask Huo Gannian why he killed King Xiyan. I must know the reason."
He didn't believe it just for Yun Chen.
He felt that in some ways, he and Huo Gannian were the same kind of people.
The saying "a man will risk his life for a beautiful woman" is nothing more than an excuse for men to fight for power.
After all, from ancient times to the present, it has always been easiest to put the blame on women.
Nan Lijun rolled his eyes and wanted to say, "Why ask? It's all for Yun Chen!" But seeing Yan Shijiu's serious face, he had to suppress his excitement and nodded in agreement.
…
…
Half an hour later, in the Yong'an Inner Hall, civil and military officials stood solemnly, with hundreds of imperial guards standing guard.
Nan Lijun came out in a dragon robe. Yan Shijiu did not follow him, but hid in a shadowy corner to make sure he could hear everyone talking in the hall.
Huo Gannian, the "chief of the rebels", was escorted into the palace by a dozen imperial guards.
His hands and feet were shackled with heavy shackles, but he still couldn't hide his imposing aura, and stood calmly in the center of the hall.
Looking at Huo Gannian's still arrogant look, Nan Lijun sneered secretly and signaled the newly appointed Wu Yanguan to question him. She took out a handkerchief and began to cry fake tears, looking heartbroken as if she had been let down by Huo Gannian.
Wu Yanguan stepped forward and was about to speak, but Huo Gannian spoke first and took the initiative to confess:
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I was forced to kill the King of Xiyan today. Two years ago, I told you that the Black Scale Cavalry came from Xiyan. If you don't believe me, that's fine. We fought hard for four years and won the battle. However, the Black Scale Cavalry has only disappeared temporarily; they haven't been completely annihilated. They still have nearly 50,000 men and should not be underestimated."
I have reason to believe that Jiao Zuotai has led all the remaining Black Scale Cavalry to hide in the territory of Xiyan. Once the emperor abandons General Yun Chen and marries the King of Xiyan, the Black Scale Cavalry will make a comeback.
By then, the Tiger Army will have lost its leader and its morale will be low, while the enemy will hold Yun Chen as a hostage. If I act rashly, I will surely be defeated! I do not want to be caught in that dilemma, and I am even more afraid that the Emperor and the Nan Kingdom will be in danger again. I have no choice but to take action like this."
After these words were spoken, all the officials were in an uproar, and everyone was talking about it, saying, "So that's it."
Most people believed Huo Gannian's perfect explanation and agreed with his seemingly "reckless" behavior today.
In the shadow corner, Yan Shijiu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
So Huo Gannian killed King Xiyan for this reason? That's very convincing.
All the "wrong" feelings in his heart disappeared, and Yan Shijiu even felt great respect for Huo Gannian.
He had just ordered Jiao Zuotai to lead the Black Scale Cavalry to Xiyan to stand by, and Huo Gannian found out about it right after. However, his subsequent speculation was biased, which led him to misjudge the situation and kill the King of Xiyan.
But even if it was a misjudgment, his decisiveness in killing was truly unmatched by ordinary people.
Looking at Huo Gannian's calm expression, Yan Shijiu was even more reluctant to see him die.
He must subdue such a powerful person and have him conquer the world with him in the future.
Unfortunately, Nan Lijun couldn't see these clearly. She wiped her tears and questioned Huo Gannian:
"What evidence do you have for what you say? I don't believe it!"
Upon seeing this, Wu Yanguan immediately shouted, "Your Majesty is wise!" and then angrily scolded Huo Gannian:
"You secretly brought a dagger into the palace. If that's not rebellion, what is it? What you just said was just a sophistry! Today, I will settle the score and make sure you die in peace!"
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