Xia Hou's expression was very cold, like the snow that could be seen outside of Tuyang City until late spring. His lips were as thin as iron, and his voice was naturally calm and domineering.
The Prince's revelation of Ning Que's possible identity did not make the general vigilant, because he had absolute confidence in this matter.
Li Peiyan was probably infected by his expression at this time. He thought that in the absence of evidence, it was impossible for anyone to reverse the verdict of the Xuanwei General's treason case. His brother did not do anything back then, and he would not do anything now.
As for whether Ning Que would deal with Xia Hou like how he dealt with the dead in the file, it was not something that the two bigwigs in the study would worry about, because he did not have the ability to do so.
Although Ning Que was now a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy and had a special status as Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, Mr. Thirteen was after all Mr. Thirteen, not Mr. First or Mr. Second. Even Mr. First and Mr. Second did not have the confidence to defeat General Xia Hou, let alone Ning Que.
Li Peiyan said calmly, "The imperial court and Old General Xu Shi have investigated Ning Que's background, and I have naturally done the same. Looking at his past these years, Ning Que is a cold and ruthless person, but he is smart and knows his limits. He is very good at forbearance, and he would never act rashly when he is not sure. Under the circumstances that the Academy has reached an agreement with you, he will definitely continue to forbearance because he is not powerful enough."
He patted Xia Hou's shoulder and comforted him, "As long as the real Supermundane people in the Academy do not take action, who in Chang 'an can do anything to you?"
Xia Hou looked at the candle on the table and slightly frowned. He said, "The West-Hill has looked for me."
Li Peiyan's expression became slightly serious. He looked at his eyes and said slowly, "You must understand that the imperial court has found a rare opportunity to seize the" Ming "Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane. The Academy is willing to allow you to leave safely. This opportunity is fleeting, and it is not wise for you to hesitate at this time."
Xia Hou was silent for a long time. Then, he said in a low voice, "Everyone in the world understands this. However, there are many people who are absolutely unwilling to see me leave Chang 'an City like this."
Li Peiyan thought of the news he had just received. He could not help but raise his eyebrows slowly. After a sigh, he said, "You are right. People from Qinghe County have also come. Those old things seem to have smelled something and want to stir up trouble. At a time like this, we should bear with it for a few days."
"No one in the imperial court, including His Majesty, likes the people from Qinghe County."
Xia Hou said, "If necessary, before I leave, I can kill a few more people for the imperial court. Of course, that is with His Majesty's permission."
Li Peiyan thought of his royal brother, who was completely different from the emperors in the history books. A bitter smile appeared on his face. "The law is before us. How could His Majesty easily make such an exception?"
Xia Hou said, "Then let those fellows from Qinghe County live for a few more days. However, if they still try to stir up Her Majesty's mood, don't blame me for disregarding the law of the Tang Empire and being ruthless."
Li Peiyan said, "Of course. If those fellows still do not understand the relationship between His Majesty and Her Majesty, they are courting death."
Xia Hou said, "Then I will leave first."
Li Peiyan said, "Since the two young masters returned to the capital last year, they have been locked up in the General's Mansion and did not interact with the court officials. I know this must be your intention. However, since you are back now, why do you still lock up the children so uncomfortably? Accompany me to the House of Red Sleeves to watch the song and dance. Let them come too."
Xia Hou said, "I still have things to do tomorrow. I will come and drink with Your Highness after I finish them."
Li Peiyan's expression changed slightly. He thought, "You have already entered the palace today. What else do you have to do in Chang 'an City? You know very well that the two young masters Xiahou locked themselves in the General's Mansion. Before His Majesty's decree comes down, you should remain silent. What is there tomorrow that you are not afraid of breaking the taboo? "
Xia Hou walked to the door of the study and stopped. He said, "I will invite Ning Que to drink tomorrow."
Li Peiyan was slightly shocked. He looked at him and said, "What are you going to do? Don't forget his identity. Although he can't do anything to you, if you harm him, will the Academy still remain silent? "
Xia Hou said, "I dare to drink with him. I dare to invite him, but I want to see if he dares to come."
…
…
Because of the fight for the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane in the Wilderness, General Xia Hou had offended the Academy, which made His Majesty even angrier. However, this person had tens of thousands of cavalry under his command. He had opened up new territories for the Tang Empire. He was powerful and had meritorious military service. It was very troublesome for the imperial court to deal with him.
After Mr. First of the Academy personally went to Tuyang City to talk with Xia Hou, General Xia Hou accepted the proposal to retire without hesitation with an extremely strong will.
This was the ending that the Tang Empire most wanted to see. Whether it was the palace, the military or the court officials, they were all extremely satisfied. That was why they gave Xia Hou the highest honor and treatment.
However, there was never anyone or anything in the world that could satisfy everyone. Under the glory of Haotian, there was still the Devil's Doctrine. Before the mountains of the Academy, there were still people who were not very respectful to the Headmaster.
Naturally, Xia Hou could not do this.
Ning Que was not satisfied with this ending, and neither was the West-Hill. The emperor and the people of the Yan Kingdom, who had been bullied by Xia Hou's cavalry for decades and had been silently waiting for the Tang Empire to fall out with each other and for Xia Hou to become a miserable cooked dog, were also not satisfied. Even in the Tang Empire, some big powers were extremely disappointed.
That power was the families of Qinghe County that His Highness had mentioned.
Qinghe County was located in the southeast of the Tang Empire. It was rich and prosperous. Since ancient times, no one knew how many bigwigs had been cultivated there. Among them, the Cui, Chen and Song families were the leaders. They were known as the Seven Families of Qinghe County.
The Seven Families of Qinghe County were, in fact, seven aristocratic families. They had a long history, even before the founding of the Tang Empire. Even the Great Divine Priests of the West-Hill Divine Palace were from these seven aristocratic families.
A thousand years ago, the Tang Empire was founded with its cavalry. Its soldiers swept across the world. The West-Hill Divine Palace secretly ordered all countries to join forces to resist, but they could not stop the birth and rise of this superpower. However, under such circumstances, Qinghe County, which was still in the southeast of the Tang Empire, was still under the strong protection of the seven aristocratic families. It faced the pressure of Chang 'an calmly and maintained political and economic independence.
This situation lasted for more than a decade.
The Tang Empire's cavalry went north to the grassland and defeated the Desolate Man tribes that made the people of the Central Plains tremble. They even successfully forced the Desolate Man to leave the grassland and move to the cold region in the far north. The prestige of Chang 'an rose to an unprecedented and rare level in history. The hearts of the people gradually moved to the west.
It was only then that the Seven Families of Qinghe County finally decided to surrender.
When the Tang Empire was founded, there were many things to do. There were many annexed counties that needed to be digested, and the people needed to recuperate. The Seven Families of Qinghe County were too famous in the world. Therefore, the Taizu, who once used the power of the whole country to kill Qian Li and destroy a tribe in the grassland because a small village was massacred, took a rare conciliatory policy towards Qinghe County. He made this a national policy and recorded it in his posthumous edict.
In the early years of the Tang Empire, the Academy in the south of Chang 'an had just been built. There were very few students and the imperial court chose officials through the imperial examinations. Compared to the many counties that had just learned to read and write, the culturally prosperous Qinghe County could naturally benefit the most from the imperial examinations.
In those years, the clansmen and students from Qinghe County entered Chang 'an through the imperial examinations. Nearly half of the candidates came from Qinghe County. The officials in the imperial court of Chang' an and the important positions in the temples were all controlled by the Seven Families of Qinghe County.
Because of the national policy established in the posthumous edict of the Taizu Emperor, the Tang Imperial Family treated Qinghe County with great respect. They often arranged marriages and even had three generations of Empresses from the Seven Families of Qinghe County.
Sometimes, there were sages who were worried and said that if this went on, it would be hard to tell whether the Tang Empire was the Tang Empire of the Li Family or the Tang Empire of the Qinghe County.
It turned out that the Tang Empire, which conquered the world by waving a podao on horseback, could not be conquered just because of the rule of law. The successive emperors in the early years of the Tang Empire all followed the style of their ancestors. They ruled while sitting on the dragon throne, but they firmly held the powerful military power in their sleeves.
Nearly 900 years ago, in the fourth year of Conghua, the Tang Emperor was only 14 years old. Under the pressure of his mother and the court officials, he kept quiet for four years and studied for four years.
Just two years before he took over the government, the young emperor did not hesitate to reach out his thin hand from his sleeves when his mother, who was surnamed Song from Qinghe County, tried to violate the posthumous edict of the late Emperor and let his uncle, the Grand Secretary Song, who was also the Prime Minister, take over the military power.
That hand held the military power, and the military power was a cold and merciless knife.
That night, a light cavalry came out of the imperial city and went straight to the mansion of the Grand Secretary Song in the Northern City. Blood flowed like a river in the mansion, and it was a tragic sight. The next day, countless officials cried blood and kowtowed to the imperial court, accusing the emperor of being cruel and heartless.
The young emperor sat on the dragon throne and calmly, or rather indifferently, listened to the news that came from the palace gate. Then, he waved his hand tiredly. The waving did not mean that he was backing down, because the young emperor did not issue an edict of his own crimes, but directly used the cane.
That day, outside the palace, 148 officials of the imperial court were beaten to death by the cane. Their blood stained their official robes and the green ground, which seemed to be even darker than the palace walls.
That night, the young emperor came to the Academy in the southern suburbs of Chang 'an under the protection of the bodyguards and the Yulin Royal Guards.
No one knew what he said to someone in the Academy that night, but the next day, with a decree, the Empress Dowager, who thought that she was more ambitious than the previous Empresses of Qinghe County, was imprisoned in the Cold Palace. Since then, no one had seen her.
In the following period of time, officials from Qinghe County in various counties and states of the Tang Empire either submitted petitions to beg for forgiveness and loyalty, or were arrested by the secret guards and brought back to the capital to be imprisoned. For a time, countless heads fell to the ground, and a gloomy cloud floated over the entire empire. People were panicking.
The turmoil in the imperial court and political affairs naturally caused serious damage to the power of the Tang Empire. However, the young emperor was like the ancestors of the Li family. At this moment, he showed a strong will that did not care about the world being destroyed. He did not hesitate to continue purging anyone who dared to oppose him.
After this incident, the essence that Qinghe County had accumulated for decades was completely destroyed, and the power of the seven families was seriously damaged. More importantly, the proud and confident aristocratic families finally understood a principle.
No matter how brilliant their surnames were, no matter how long the history of their families, as long as they dared to cross that line, they were still just little white rabbits under the butcher's knife in the eyes of the Li royal family.
…
…
(There is one more chapter today. In addition, if I do not say that there is more in the future, then … there is really no more.) (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian.Com to vote for me. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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