The Bad Guys: Playing the Fake Li Xingyun at the Beginning

This sentence was so heart-piercing that he was so frightened that his legs trembled and he fell to his knees. "Your Majesty, I was careless for a moment. I beg Your Majesty to forgive me."

Su Ming paced back and forth, and no one among the ministers in the hall pleaded for him. Most of the people under Li Siyuan's command were military generals. Among the civil officials, Ren Huan and An Zhonghui were the leaders, in charge of the Three Departments and the Privy Council. The power of the Secretariat had long been hollowed out in this era.

Hence, the current situation.

Su Ming sighed and did not punish him. "Forget it, it's not your fault. Since the Secretariat is short of manpower, I will assign a few people to you. Prince Xue Li Cunli is efficient, experienced and mature, so let him be your deputy. You can also select some people from the six ministries to supplement them."

The Secretariat is in charge of receiving memorials from the emperor, discussing memorials, drafting imperial edicts, and imperial seals. The functions of this department are very important, so Su Ming will restore its status to deal with Li Siyuan.

coming!

Li Siyuan was shocked, knowing that the emperor's true intentions were revealed and he was starting to divide and win over his men. However, he had been prepared for this kind of trick.

He looked up at Su Ming, as if to say, you can't succeed!

The ministers in the court looked at each other in confusion at this moment, wondering why the emperor wanted to promote Li Siyuan's people. In their opinion, this divisive strategy seemed too crude.

Li Siyuan was willing to go with the flow and place an undercover agent next to Su Ming. The court officials naturally did not dare to object, so the matter was quickly settled.

However, Su Ming wanted to do more than that when he went to court today. "Prince Jin, I heard that there are frequent wars between the Khitan and the Tang Dynasty?"

Although he didn't know what he was up to, Li Siyuan still answered honestly, "Your Majesty, the Khitans have taken control of many tribes on the grasslands, often harassing border towns and plundering the people. In the future, they will surely be a major concern for the court."

Su Ming knew that Li Siyuan was trying to trick him and wanted him to deal with the Khitan, but he had already made plans and it was impossible for him to fall into the trap. "In this case, I intend to send an envoy to the Khitan to establish diplomatic relations with them. What do you think, Prince Jin?"

A diplomatic mission to Khitan? What is this guy thinking?

Li Siyuan was confused again. The relationship between Khitan and the imperial court had always been very bad. Starting from Li Cunxu, Khitan often crossed the border and robbed the people. Therefore, the imperial court deployed heavy troops in the border towns to prevent them.

When you go on a diplomatic mission to Khitan, are you sure they won't kill the people you send?

Humph, if you want to do it, I won’t let you!

Li Siyuan immediately expressed his opposition without hesitation, "Your Majesty, I think that the Khitan people on the grasslands fear danger rather than virtue. They have always acted rudely and without scruples. We only need to be on guard against them. Establishing diplomatic relations with them will not help. Please think twice."

Then, Ren Yuan, the Third Secretary, also spoke up, "Your Majesty, the grassland tribes have wolfish ambitions and are eyeing the Central Plains. I think we should be on guard against them. Establishing diplomatic relations with them is like courting disaster."

An Zhonghui also objected, "Your Majesty, the grasslands are the descendants of the Hu people. Hundreds of years ago, the Five Barbarians invaded China. Please think twice."

Many ministers stood up and said in unison, "Your Majesty, please think twice!"

In an instant, two-thirds of the people in the court stood up to oppose, including all the military generals!

Su Ming looked at the scene in front of him and sneered in his heart. He didn't expect that just a test would bring out so many people. These people were Li Siyuan's forces in the court, and they were also the reason why he dared to face Su Ming directly.

If you want to deal with Li Siyuan, you have to deal with them first!

So, Su Ming returned to the dragon throne and sat down, looking at the ministers coldly. After a while, he said in a deep voice, "I have made up my mind about this matter. No need to persuade me anymore!" The cold voice was loud and clear, hiding anger.

Sensing Su Ming's anger, Li Siyuan raised the corner of his mouth and retreated to his original position. From now on, they would charge into battle and he would only need to watch the show from behind and clean up the mess when necessary.

"Your Majesty, please think twice. The Khitans cannot be our friends. We can only be our enemies!"

Among the ministers, the Minister of Rites Kong Xianwen shouted the loudest, "We are the orthodox Chinese, how can we associate with barbarians? Your Majesty, please do not raise a tiger to cause trouble!"

However, Su Ming was determined to make this move and forcibly used his power as the emperor. He glared at the ministers and said in a cold voice, "Are you trying to force me to abdicate?"

These words were filled with anger and murderous intent. The court officials seemed to smell the scent of blood and fell to their knees, saying, "I dare not!"

Su Ming pointed at them, the tassels on his head rustling, "Don't dare? I think you dare very much! I just want to send an envoy to Khitan to make friends with them."

"You are saying that after we send out the envoys, they will attack us immediately and destroy our Tang Dynasty. So what if they have evil ambitions? Are the hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers raised by the imperial court in the border towns vegetarians?"

"They are strong, so we are weak? When did you become so spineless that you only know how to boost others' ambitions and destroy your own prestige! Since the imperial court cannot defeat them now, why not submit a letter to them and establish an alliance with them!"

The questions and roars left the ministers speechless.

Chapter 43: The drama in the court, the empress's worries

His sharp eyes swept over the ministers like a knife. Finally, he said slowly, "I want to send an envoy to Khitan. Is there anyone who objects?"

At this time, how dare the ministers offend him? They all kept silent and protected themselves.

After watching such a big show, Li Siyuan naturally would not add fuel to the fire. He still understood the principle of knowing when to stop. It would be bad if he pushed the emperor to the limit.

This was the first time that Su Ming got so angry in the court since he ascended the throne. Of course, he was not so impulsive in reality. It was half acting and half he was really venting his dissatisfaction with Li Siyuan.

There was silence in the court, and no one objected.

Su Ming seemed tired of scolding, and asked the court officials, "Since no one objects, the mission to Khitan is settled. Which minister is willing to go to Khitan as an envoy, submit a letter of credence, and make peace with them?"

Still silent, no one spoke, and no one was willing to go on a diplomatic mission to Khitan.

Su Ming appeared to be filled with rage, but in fact he was smiling broadly in his heart. If Li Siyuan really let his men interfere and send an envoy to Khitan, it would be a failure for him. After all, he had no one under his command, and Li Siyuan could easily send someone to take away the initiative. If the mission failed, his prestige would be greatly damaged.

"Okay, since none of you are willing to go as an envoy to Khitan, I won't force you. There will always be someone willing to go!" After saying that, he left angrily.

Once Su Ming left, the court meeting could not continue and had to end in displeasure.

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After returning to the harem, Su Ming asked Xuan Jingtian to find Zhang Zifan.

Seeing Zhang Zifan, Su Ming took his hand and said seriously, "Brother Zhang, I have a task for you. You must complete it for me!"

Zhang Zifan thought he was going to trick him, so he asked cautiously, "What do you want me to do? Let me make it clear first, I'll do my best, but I may not be able to do it well."

Su Ming let go of his hand and patted his shoulder, "Don't worry, you can definitely handle this. No one else can do it except you."

Zhang Zifan was puzzled. How could he not know that he was so important? But in other words, he had been guarding the gate of the Imperial City for almost a month and could do nothing. It was too boring.

"Brother Li, just tell me what you want to say."

"Brother Zhang, I want to send you to Khitan to present the letter of credence so that the two sides can form an alliance and exchange what they have."

Hearing this, Zhang Zifan's mouth twitched, "What? You want me to go on a diplomatic mission to Khitan? Are you sure?"

Su Ming put his arm around his shoulders and pretended to be very intimate and said, "Brother Zhang, Qing Guo Qing Cheng is a Khitan princess. With them here, are you still afraid that the mission cannot be completed?"

"Besides, we rescued Yelu Abaoji on the snowy mountain. He is now the leader of the Khitan people. With this relationship, this alliance will be foolproof."

"Besides, you've been in the Central Plains for so long, don't you want to see the scenery of the grassland?"

Zhang Zifan pondered for a moment, looked at his face, and asked seriously, "Brother Li, is this mission important to you?"

Su Ming let go of his shoulder, his face became heavy, and he sighed, "The court is full of Li Siyuan's people. I can't do anything I want to do. This mission to Khitan is to break this dilemma."

"The Khitans often go south to plunder, but they are only trying to steal food, ironware, tea and other necessities of life. As long as the court opens up trade with them, we can trade with each other. In this way, we can get the war horses, cattle, sheep and furs of the grasslands, and they can get daily necessities without having to rob and plunder."

"In this way, the northern border will be stable, and the people there will be able to live a peaceful life."

After that, both of them fell into silence. After a while, Zhang Zifan took the initiative to speak, "Okay, since this matter is so important to you, then I will agree to you, but you have to promise me one thing."

"what's up?"

"Protect Lin Xuan for me and don't let her get hurt!" Zhang Zifan looked at Su Ming with a serious expression.

Su Ming did not hesitate and agreed directly, "Lin Xuan is my junior sister. No matter what, I will not let anyone hurt her. Don't worry!"

Then, he continued, "You will be the lead on this mission, and Qing Guo Qing Cheng will go back with you. I will also find a few good fighters from the Xuanming Sect to protect you. That will be enough."

"Without the intervention of the imperial officials, you can do whatever you want."

Afterwards, the two discussed some details and decided on the matter. Zhang Zifan would go to persuade Qingguo Qingcheng. This mission mainly depended on their reputation, so they had to go with him.

Su Ming went to find Lu Linxuan. She was Zhang Zifan's wife, so he had to let her know about this matter.

Lu Linxuan had also heard about what happened in the morning court. She knew that Su Ming had a hard time, so she had no objection to his arrangements. With Qingguo Qingcheng following her, what did she have to worry about?

The court meeting went on as normal the next day. Su Ming did not bring up the matter of the envoy, and the court officials tacitly did not ask. However, a new face appeared in the court, Li Cunli.

After the court session that day, Li Siyuan went to find Li Cunli. According to rumors, the two of them had a big fight, and everyone in Prince Xue's mansion heard it.

Li Cunli stood among the ministers in his official robe. From the beginning of the court session to the end of the court session, he never looked at Li Siyuan, as if there was an invisible barrier between them.

Seeing this scene, Su Ming naturally revealed a playful smile. Zhou Yu beat Huang Gai, one was willing to fight and the other was willing to be beaten, what else could he say.

Since he wants to play, just play with him.

Soon, Li Cun Yi selected twenty best men from the Xuanming Sect to escort Zhang Zifan to Khitan, and after Zhang Zifan's repeated requests, the two beautiful sisters agreed to go back to Khitan with him.

Things are gradually developing in a positive direction.

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Fengxiang Prefecture.

Inside Huanyinfang, the empress looked at the note in her hand, her brows full of worry. Everything was as she expected. Li Xingyun could not move an inch in the court and could not do anything.

According to Xuan Jingtian's observation, Li Xingyun's ascension to the throne seemed to have some unspeakable secrets, and Ji Ruxue's disappearance seemed to be related to the Bad Commander.

After making some connections, the empress quickly came to the conclusion that the Bad Commander used Ji Ruxue to threaten Li Xingyun and force him to become emperor.

In the hall, the empress sighed softly, "Alas, I never thought that you would end up like this. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have done it in the first place."

In her opinion, if Li Xingyun had ascended the throne in Bianliang after the death of Zhu Wen and his son, the current situation would not have happened. With no one in the court and no soldiers under his command, this situation almost restricted him to death.

Luoyang and Fengxiang Prefecture are thousands of miles apart. Even if she wanted to help, she was helpless. She could only instruct Xuan Jingtian and the others to serve the emperor well and not let him be ambushed by Li Siyuan.

The empress held the letter in her hand and could only pray silently, hoping that you were well.

Chapter 44 Chi Meng Arrives in Luoyang

Outside the city of Luoyang, a playful and cute girl with fair skin, long purple-red hair and a silver headdress was standing at the city gate, looking at the tall city gate. Her purple-red eyes were full of fatigue, and the red dot between her lower lips made her look more exotic. She wore a silver necklace and two gourds tied around her waist. Both her clothes and appearance seemed out of tune with the surrounding environment.

This girl was Chi Meng. After she parted ways with the Corpse Ancestor Hou Qing, she left Chengdu and came to Luoyang. She was exhausted all the way and finally arrived after hurrying all the way.

Standing in front of the tall city gate, she couldn't help but feel very insignificant. Chi Meng yawned and muttered with her pink little mouth, "After a month of traveling, we finally arrived in Luoyang. I'm so tired."

Passing through the city gate is a bustling street market where merchants from all over the world gather. A wide variety of goods are displayed on the shops and stalls. Chi Meng lingers there and is almost dazzled by the sight.

Unfortunately, she had almost used up all her money on the journey, so she could only look at the things in the shops and sigh in despair.

"Do you think Li Xingyun is capable? I didn't expect that he would go on a diplomatic mission to Khitan just after becoming emperor."

"Not only that, I heard that he even had an argument with the King of Jin over this matter, and many officials in the court thought that this would not work."

"Yeah, yeah, I heard that too."

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Li Xingyun, became the emperor?

Chi Meng was stunned when she heard the news from the common people on the roadside. Although she knew little about the Central Plains, she still knew what the emperor represented.

I didn’t expect that the little brother was so powerful that he became the emperor.

Afterwards, she asked passers-by for directions where she could find Li Xingyun. Eventually, she learned from them that Li Xingyun lived in the imperial city. Chi Meng then went to the imperial city, where she was stopped by the soldiers guarding the gate.