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

In troubled times, you may be an opponent one second and an enemy the next.

Unfortunately, he underestimated Li Keyong. Zhu Wen killed Emperor Zhaozong, which directly led to Li Keyong's death-defying fight with Zhu Wen, and he was even shot in one eye on the battlefield.

That is, after Li Maozhen disappeared, the empress took control of Qi as a woman. Although she stabilized the situation, the generals under her had no confidence in her at all. This led to Qi officials and soldiers constantly surrendering to the enemy, Qi's territory shrank rapidly, and the situation turned from prosperity to decline.

This cannot be blamed on the empress's lack of ability. Even if Wu Zetian was in her place, it would be the same. This is a fact that cannot be reversed by political maneuvers.

Today, the State of Qi has surrendered to the imperial court, but at least it has retained the title and territory of the King of Qi, which is a blessing in disguise.

Hearing the familiar words from the prefect's mouth, Li Maozhen couldn't help but sneer, "Oh, Li Xingyun? The orphan of the Tang Dynasty? The Longquan treasure?"

How could someone as smart as him not guess that this was Yuan Tiangang's setup?

A Longquan treasure can attract ambitious people in the world, and he hides in the dark to control the situation and disturb the world. It can be said that he can make clouds and rain with a flip of his hand.

Such abilities and means can only be achieved in troubled times.

If it were before the fall of the Tang Dynasty, Yuan Tiangang would never have been able to do such a thing.

No emperor dared to let him do it, and no emperor would believe an old monster who had lived for more than two hundred years. Emperors were suspicious, and without the emperor's permission, he would be powerless even if he wanted to.

The fall of the Tang Dynasty also released the monster Yuan Tiangang, didn’t it?

The rituals and music are in disarray, the central government that was above his head is no longer there, he controls the bad guys and the hidden wealth of the Tang Dynasty. He has been planning for decades before he has the momentum he has today.

This is also the reason why Yuan Tiangang worked hard but failed to revive the Tang Dynasty. Because the situation collapsed, he had to abide by the rules, otherwise the local vassal states would first deal with the imperial court.

Forget about using bad people to carry out assassinations. That's impossible. The death of one or several military governors would surely make everyone feel insecure and unite to target the imperial court. They have no evidence to prove that it was the imperial court that did it.

But some things in the world do not require evidence. The imperial court was the biggest beneficiary when those military governors died.

Although Yuan Tiangang is invincible in the world, he is ultimately bound by the court and must act within the court rules, otherwise the situation will collapse even worse.

Of course, it is more likely that Yuan Tiangang would do this and continue to cause unrest in the area, leaving the people leaderless, and in the end the alien race would gain an advantage for nothing.

It was Emperor Zhaozong's reckless actions that destroyed the last bit of the court's foundation. He was also bullied by Li Maozhen. In the end, he simply gave up and worked with Yuan Tiangang to formulate a plan to revive the Tang Dynasty.

This is a more reasonable explanation that is more in line with realistic logic.

Chapter 165 The Chaos of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

"The Khitans are sending their princesses to the Central Plains for marriage? The imperial court has already negotiated with them? The emperor is about to get married?"

Then, Li Maozhen learned more about the emperor from the prefect, from the time he ascended the throne to the time he sent envoys to Khitan, to the time when Prince Liuqi came to the court and rebuilt the Secretariat to check and balance Li Siyuan, and then to the time when he reopened the imperial examinations to select talents.

In each of these events, Li Maozhen saw a young emperor who was capable of making decisions and had good political skills. He used the power of others to his advantage, formed alliances and made allies, and his various methods were truly dazzling. Many things could only be appreciated after the fact.

After a long while, Li Maozhen let out a long breath and thought to himself, "Yuan Tiangang really chose a good emperor. If His Majesty Zhaozong had such a method, how could the Tang Dynasty escape and survive."

You must know that in this chaotic world where rituals and music are in disarray, the imperial court represents orthodoxy. Once it is destroyed, it means that it will be irreversible, orthodoxy will no longer exist, and the people's hearts will be completely lost.

A dynasty that lasted for hundreds of years was enough to leave a mark in the hearts of the people. The people's hearts were useful and useless. If he, Li Maozhen, had not been sent to the local area in the name of the court, he would never have been able to get to where he is today.

Li Cunxu restored his country under the banner of the Tang Dynasty in order to revive himself, win the hearts of the people, and continue the orthodoxy of the previous dynasty. As for the current emperor, it is even simpler.

He is a genuine descendant of the Li Tang Dynasty, his family tree can be checked and everyone knows him. With Yuan Tiangang's endorsement, it is only natural for him to restore the Tang Dynasty.

However, it is still unknown how many forces in the world will buy into Li Tang's restoration.

After all, the orthodox imperial court had collapsed decades ago, and the military governors who ruled the local areas at that time had also been replaced. Without the imperial court, the constraints on their heads were gone too.

Without any restraint, all kinds of disloyalty will surely arise. Being a local emperor behind closed doors is considered good enough. What is even more frightening is that these people have the ambition to dominate the world.

The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period was very chaotic, and many people do not have a clear concept of this era.

The collapse of the imperial court led to the growth of disloyalty in the various local governments and internal strife. They had no choice but to treat military men well and pay large sums of money to win them over, which led to an extremely tragic consequence.

The soldiers under him became difficult to serve. Although they were brave and good at fighting, they were also arrogant and difficult to tame.

There's no other way. The bosses still rely on them to work hard, and they have to serve them well.

The reason why the guards were unruly, usurped power, rebelled, and acted lawless was entirely caused by the Jiedushi themselves, who made them ambitious. They relied on the guards and favored them in every way. For example, Li Keyong's personal army of 10,000 people were all from the border areas. They violated discipline at every turn, which made people suffer.

In this world, there is no future in farming, and there is even less of a future in studying. When people at the bottom of society get used to using the knife in their hands to fight for a rich and prosperous future, there is no going back.

Hands that were used to killing could no longer continue farming. The long military career not only made them waste their farming skills, but also broadened their horizons and ambitions.

Farming, planting fields for birds!

After working hard all year round, they still don't even get to eat the food they grow. They might as well join the army. Just imagine how terrible it would be when the lower-class farmers are no longer willing to be trapped on the land and instead take up swords and guns.

Since the fall of the Tang Dynasty, the status of the lower-class soldiers has greatly risen. They have become arrogant and powerful generals. Sometimes, even their superiors dare not to mess with them, let alone withhold their pay.

Do you dare to cut back a bit?

If you dare to withhold money, I will chop you into pieces. And it's not just one person who will be chopped off, but a group of people. Soldiers these days are really spoiled. Even if you are a military governor, a general, or a high-ranking official in the court, if you cannot satisfy their interests, you will still be chop off.

After beheading, they nominate another person to be their leader. Yes, you read that right. Nowadays, the soldiers at the bottom of society have started to elect people.

No one is willing to submit to anyone, so they elect people from within and take turns to be the boss.

The most typical of them are the Wei Bo soldiers. They are brave and good at fighting, and can make clouds and rain with a wave of their hands, becoming the source of chaos.

It was common for them to depose and appoint military governors and provincial governors. Even someone as strong as Li Cunxu could not control those guards, and they eventually became the source of chaos, and Yuan Tiangang found an opportunity to kill him.

But there really was no other way. Just like the legacy of the aristocratic families when the Tang Dynasty was founded, the same was true of the guards. They were the cornerstone of the rule of the Jiedushi such as Li Cunxu. To get rid of them would be tantamount to destroying one's own military power.

In this day and age, if you give up your martial arts, isn't that seeking death?

After all, it was because the local governors were too complacent. Under this internal conflict, the lower-level soldiers became fearless.

To put it another way, it is similar to modern companies producing the same product and selling it. The market is so big, if you eat it, I will be gone. They not only have to buy things, but also have to win over the hearts of the people at the bottom.

What to do if your salary is too low? Change jobs!

It's not just one person who changes jobs, but a group of people who change jobs. In order to keep their employees, what can the bosses do? They can only increase wages.

This is a bit like the battle between Meituan and Ele.me back then. They gave huge discounts to users and promised various profits to merchants. As a result, they have now taken over the market and are harvesting merchants and users, reaping the benefits on both sides.

This is what Zhao Kuangyin did later. He first relied on the power of his subordinates to wear the yellow robe, and then took away their military power and used civil officials to check and balance them. From then on, the soldiers could not raise their heads in front of the civil officials and had to be inferior to them.

Of course, it was chaotic, but during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, the Central Plains was truly full of martial virtue, even though Shi Jingtang gave up the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun and became a puppet emperor.

The Central Plains regime was weakened for decades after becoming a vassal of the Khitan. After the Khitan leader Yelu Deguang went south, he only dared to run away after reaping the wealth of the Central Plains, because he had no confidence in ruling the Central Plains.

In that era, even if Genghis Khan came, he would not be able to conquer the Central Plains, because at that time, the Han people's blood had not yet been castrated.

That's the bloodiness that has been nurtured since the Five Barbarians Invasion era. When the people in the Central Plains became barbaric, the barbarians had no chance at all. The grasslands were not even good enough to look at.

So, this leads to a problem. The Khitan army is strong, but the military governors in various places are not pushovers. If you can't offer enough benefits to win them over, why would these military governors submit to you, a foreigner?

In the end, even a powerful people like the Khitans had no choice but to return to the grassland. However, before he could get back to the grassland, Yelu Deguang died suddenly.

Back to the topic, as an emperor, if Su Ming wants to truly unify the world, he must resort to force, but he has always been very restrained. In addition to being wary of the power of the Jiedushi, he also does not want to get involved with them at this juncture.

It would be really funny if one day someone crowned him as the emperor. Since establishing an army cannot guarantee its loyalty, he would rather not establish one.

What's the point of spending money and food to support a bunch of masters?

Chapter 166 The Empress's Concerns

"Unfortunately, no matter how powerful the means are, they cannot change the fact that the court is weak and the emperor is still immature." Li Maozhen shook his head with a hint of sarcasm in his eyes.

As a military governor, he naturally believes that strength is the most important thing and the strong are respected. To put it bluntly, he doesn't even submit to your father, Li Xingyun, let alone you, a mere young emperor.

Emperor? How many divisions do you have?

If it weren't for Yuan Tiangang, who didn't take the emperor seriously at all, who would be willing to submit to the court in this era? Without an army, it would be useless to say anything.

After getting the information he wanted, he took back the insect, pressed the prefect's sleeping point, cleaned up all the traces he had left, and disappeared into the night.

That night, no one knew that Li Maozhen had been here.

After resting in Chengdu for three days, Li Maozhen left Shu and traveled along the waterway to the Central Plains. The familiar yet unfamiliar scenes along the way made him feel that things had changed and people had changed.

Sixteen years ago, he also left Qi State along this road, and now, he is back.

Li Maozhen did not show up rashly, but went to Qi State first. Today, Qi State is one of the most powerful military governors in the Central Plains, but it is far inferior to its peak and its military strength is much inferior.

Although the Qi State ruled by the empress had no ambition to make progress, it was able to protect itself in these chaotic times. The Qi State did not have many soldiers and horses, but the people under its rule lived a relatively stable life. Compared with the wars and turmoil elsewhere where one could not be sure of one's fate, Fengxiang Prefecture and other places had good weather and a rare peace.

Looking at the familiar Prince Qi's Mansion, the unfamiliar officials and generals, a trace of loneliness flashed in Li Maozhen's eyes. The old men who followed him in the past are no longer around.

In the present Qi State, there may be many people who know him, but there are very few who are willing to serve him as their master, because those who were loyal to him have either died, fled, or grown old. The officials in power in the Qi State today are either those sent by Li Cunxu at the beginning, or the confidants promoted by the empress herself.

On the street, vendors and peddlers were walking in an orderly manner. Although people's faces looked pale, at least there was no numbness in their eyes, but rather a glow of life.

The empress was not as warmongering as other Jiedushi. She did not need too many soldiers, and it was enough to protect the country and the people. Moreover, the soldiers under her command were all selected from the native land of Qi State. They had a sense of hometown and would not plunder and do evil.

In the turbulent times, the State of Qi could only protect itself. Thanks to the foundation laid by Li Maozhen, when Li Cunxu swept across the Central Plains, the empress also submitted to the court and surrendered.

Seeing that she understood the situation, Li Cunxu did not do anything to Qi State. He could not do that. If he wanted to forcibly sweep all places and take control of the military power, he would lose all his teeth in Qi State alone.

Therefore, the Tang Dynasty he established was only a nominal submission of the military governors. The military, financial, and personnel powers were not all under the control of the court. The only area that Li Cunxu could control was Hedong.

Seeing this scene, Li Maozhen's eyes were filled with both relief and distress, because he found that the current Qi State seemed to no longer need him, and he seemed to be a redundant person here.

No matter how powerful the empress's disguise skills are, she cannot make up to look like Li Maozhen, and she cannot replace him.

Back then, she was just a noble lady raised in seclusion, innocent and naive. No matter how hard she tried to hide it, she could not hide it from Li Maozhen's men.

In the world today, everyone who is interested knows that King Qi has disappeared without a trace. The current King Qi is just a woman. Everyone knows this, but no one has broken the window paper.

Because everyone who should know already knows it, and it's useless to say it. If you want to use this to slander the empress, you're dreaming. Sixteen years of hard work is enough to make up for the gap caused by gender.

……

Luoyang, Imperial Palace.

Su Ming handed a secret letter to the empress and motioned for her to read the contents.

As expected, the empress read the secret letter at a glance, her beautiful eyes widened with disbelief, "My brother showed up? How is this possible?"

Su Ming was not surprised at her behavior. Anyone would be surprised if a person disappeared for sixteen years without any news and suddenly appeared now.

"Regardless of whether this Li Maozhen is real or not, he first appeared in Shu and finally disappeared in Shanzhou. I guess he must have gone to Qi State now."

This news shocked the empress so much that she still hadn't recovered from the shock and subconsciously asked, "What is he doing in Qi?"

"Of course he is going back to visit his old nest. He is the real King Qi." Su Ming shrugged, not surprised at all.

In Li Maozhen's eyes, great ambitions and hegemony are what he pursues all his life. Otherwise, the first thing he would do when he returned to the Central Plains would not be to go back to Qi, but to come to Luoyang to visit his own sister.

"Will he come to Luoyang?" The empress gathered her thoughts. Although this sentence was a question, it contained affirmation.

Su Ming smiled gently and reached out his hand to lift the black hair beside her ear. "As long as he still has ambition, he will definitely come to Luoyang. Moreover, you are here, why wouldn't he come?"

Now, the relationship between him and the empress suddenly became complicated. Before, he and the empress were both partners and lovers.