"Marquis Yong 'an, since His Majesty has given you the power to mobilize all forces to investigate the case, Marquis Yong' an, you don't need to be afraid of the slightest thing. Once you find out that the officials of King Xi's faction have been in contact with Du E, you can send troops to ambush them around their residences. Tomorrow, when the Dragon Sect attacks the city, if they make any strange movements, you can take them all down! Once the Dragon Sect is destroyed, His Majesty will naturally be free to punish those officials! "
In the Supreme Court, Liu Dewei stood up and looked sternly at Li Zexuan.
In fact, he said this with a certain degree of selfishness. In his view, if Li Zexuan directly went to see Li Er and made the matter clear, Li Er would definitely 'be forced' to carry out a major investigation. However, even if the officials of Li Jiancheng's faction were found to have been in contact with Du E, there was no direct evidence to prove that they had agreed to Du E's request. With insufficient evidence and the fact that most of those officials had not done anything to betray the court, Li Er would most likely pardon them again in order to show his image as a benevolent ruler!
But among those pardoned officials, there were bound to be many fish that had escaped the net. Although Li Er had pardoned them, they were a ticking time bomb for the Great Tang. They did not have time to rebel against the court during the Dragon Sect's uprising, so if someone were to use Li Jiancheng's banner to rebel next time, who knew if those officials would be swayed again?
Thus, rather than burying a hidden danger in the future, it was better to settle the matter now. When those officials of King Xi's faction really did comply with Du E's request to work for the Dragon Sect, he could directly come forward and catch them red-handed. This way, Li Er would have no reason to forgive those officials, and the Great Tang would have fewer hidden dangers in the future. Moreover, this move could ensure that the political situation of the Great Tang Imperial Court could quickly stabilize!
It could be said to be killing many birds with one stone!
Li Zexuan was not stupid. After thinking for a while, he could more or less guess at Liu Dewei's' good intentions'. This method was indeed an extremely good one for the Great Tang Imperial Court, but for Li Zexuan, it was not so good!
Because this meant that he would become the butcher's knife that Li Er waved at the officials of Li Jiancheng's faction! He would offend many people because of this!
"Marquis Yong 'an, you've said it yourself just now. Those who are paid by the Emperor should share the Emperor's burdens. Being indecisive will only lead to chaos. If the matter of King Xi is not completely resolved, there will be endless trouble in the future. Furthermore, more innocent people will die because of this in the future!"
How could Liu Dewei not see the hesitation in Li Zexuan's heart? Therefore, he added.
After pondering for a long time, Li Zexuan finally nodded and said, "Okay! Then let's do as Minister Liu says! But this marquis's actions are not for His Divine Majesty's sake, but for the Great Tang, so that the common people of the Great Tang will no longer die from internal strife. As descendants of the Yellow Emperor, we should unite against the outside world. When the Great Tang dominates the world, we will look back and realize how childish and laughable today's internal strife was! "
Without waiting for Liu Dewei's response, Li Zexuan turned around and left.
"The Great Tang dominates the world … Haha, I hope I can see this day in my lifetime!"
In the hall, Liu Dewei looked at Li Zexuan's back and sighed.
…
After leaving the Supreme Court, Li Zexuan went straight out of the Imperial Palace and went to Duke Wei's Mansion.
Although he had Li Er's imperial edict and gold medallion, which allowed him to mobilize any troop in the capital, he had to inform Li Jing, the Minister of War and a military expert.
After all, he was far less familiar with the Twelve Guards of the Capital than Li Jing!
When he arrived at the Li Mansion, it was fortunate that the Red Buddha Lady was not there. Otherwise, he would be scolded again. Because a few days ago, the Bearded Guest was almost killed by Wu Jie in order to protect Yanhuang College. Given the relationship between the Red Buddha Lady and the Bearded Guest, she would definitely scold Li Zexuan when she saw him.
Under Li Dejian's lead, Li Zexuan quickly met with Li Jing.
Several hours ago, Li Jing was still participating in a meeting at the Sweet Dew Hall, so he naturally knew about the secret letter that Li Junxian had sent to Li Zexuan. Thus, Li Zexuan only told Li Jing about Liu Dewei's conjecture and his intention to mobilize troops. After hearing the general situation, Li Jing couldn't help but frown. He looked at Li Zexuan with a serious expression and said, "Little Xuan, this matter involves King Xi and is no small matter. Have you really thought it through?"
These words didn't make any sense, but Li Jing was very sure that Li Zexuan could understand them!
"I've thought it through! There are some things that have to be done, or else the hidden dangers will continue to exist, and the future of the Great Tang will be uncertain! When the hidden dangers erupt again, many people will die because of it! "
Li Zexuan also looked at Li Jing with a serious expression.
"Good!"
Li Jing looked at Li Zexuan with a complicated expression, both praise and worry. This was because he wasn't sure how Li Zexuan's decision would affect Li Zexuan in the future. After a few moments of silence, he said, "This old man will write you an order to mobilize troops. In truth, in terms of concealment and concealment, the soldiers of the Right Guard are the best. Right now, Zhijie isn't in Chang 'an, so take this old man's order and go to the Right Guard camp to mobilize troops. No one will dare to make things difficult for you!"
(Cheng Yaojin was the Great General of the Right Guard.)
After saying this, he picked up the brush on the table and prepared to write an order. Li Zexuan very 'perceptively' stepped forward to help Li Jing grind the ink. As he did so, he said gratefully, "Many thanks, Uncle Li!"
Li Jing nodded slightly and didn't say anything. Soon, an order for the transfer of troops was written. Li Jing took out his personal seal and stamped it heavily on the order, then passed it to Li Zexuan and said, "This is the order for the transfer of troops. Little Xuan, take it well!"
"Okay!"
Li Zexuan quickly took it with both hands.
He had planned to leave, but Li Jing said, "Little Xuan, let this old man recall for a moment, and then I'll give you a list of the officials who were close to King Xi. Later, you can screen them according to the list!"
Hearing this, Li Zexuan's face immediately revealed a trace of surprise. He quickly cupped his hands and said, "Then I'll have to trouble Uncle Li!"
In fact, he had been worried about how to get a list of the King Xi's faction. Although he came from the modern era and had read some history books and had an excellent memory, he didn't have the ability to list all the officials who were close to Li Jiancheng. However, Li Jing was different. Li Jing had experienced the open and secret struggle between the King of Qin and Crown Prince Li Jiancheng. Regarding who was around Li Jiancheng, Li Jing was definitely one of the people who had the most right to speak!
"It's fine!"
Li Jing shook his head, then closed his eyes and began to meditate.
Li Zexuan didn't disturb him, but stood quietly at the side. When he was bored, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a book on Li Jing's desk. There were three big words on the cover — "Yin Talisman Machine". Li Zexuan couldn't help but be moved. He thought to himself that it turned out that Li Jing had already begun to organize his military and war experience into the art of war at this time. It was a pity that the original work couldn't be passed down. Future generations could only see the big picture from the "General Classic" and the "Art of War" in the "Taiping Imperial Library". It was really a pity!
"When Li Jing's art of war is finished, I must borrow a copy of it and store it in the library of Yanhuang College for future students to study. Otherwise, wouldn't it be a pity if such a good art of war was lost?"
Li Zexuan secretly made up his mind.
According to historical records, Li Jing's art of war was written in seven books: "Yin Talisman Machine", "Secret Art of War", "General Essentials of War", "Notes of Duke Wei", "Mirror of Six Armies", "New Book of War", and "Archery". However, these books weren't complete as early as the middle and late Tang Dynasty. In the 21st century, most of them were lost. The Qing Dynasty scholar Wang Zongqi compiled the "Li Weigong Art of War" based on Du You's "General Classic", Du Mu's "Commentary on Sun Tzu", and the Song Dynasty's "Taiping Imperial Library" and "General Essentials of War". It became the only complete reference for modern scholars to study Li Jing's art of war!
While Li Zexuan was deep in thought, Li Jing had already started writing. The names of Li Jiancheng's faction were written on the paper one by one. Li Zexuan's eyesight was extremely good. When he looked over, he was shocked to see the words written on it: "Wei Zheng, Wang Gui, Wei Ting, Xue Wanche, Feng Li …"
Among these names, there was no lack of big shots in the imperial court. For example, Wei Zheng and Wang Gui were not only important by Li Jiancheng's side, they were also important existences in the current imperial court! At this moment, Li Zexuan suddenly felt a little scared in his heart.
Every time Li Jing wrote a name, Li Zexuan's heart would beat fiercely. After an unknown period of time, Li Jing finally put away the brush. When the ink on the paper was almost dry, he picked it up with a solemn expression and handed it to Li Zexuan.
"Little Xuan, these are almost all the officials in King Xi's faction who still hold positions in the imperial court! However, you need to weigh the pros and cons. Although some of them served King Xi back then, they have been conscientious and loyal ever since His Majesty ascended the throne. They are only loyal to the monarch and do not care who is the monarch. As long as the monarch treats the people well, they will serve him loyally! I have selected a few such officials for you. I believe that they will not betray His Majesty because of the bewitchment of the Dragon Sect! "
Li Zexuan knew that Li Jing was helping him to "clear the mine" and let him not offend people as much as possible under the premise of doing things well. He couldn't help but feel warm in his heart. He nodded and said, "Thank you very much, Uncle Li. I will know what to do!"
Li Jing pondered for a moment and said, "Little Xuan, later use the telegraph to ask Shu Bao and Zhi Jie where the army is going. See if they can rush back to Chang 'an before tomorrow. If they can, we will definitely win the battle to defend the city tomorrow easily!"
"Uncle Qin and Uncle Cheng?"
Hearing this, Li Zexuan's eyes lit up. He said excitedly, "That's right! How could Little Nephew forget about this? Uncle Qin and the rest led ten thousand elite light cavalry. After I left yesterday, they have already returned to the imperial court. They should not be far from Chang 'an now, right? If they can arrive before tomorrow and set up an ambush in advance, we can attack from both inside and outside and defeat the Dragon Sect's army in one fell swoop! "
Li Jing smiled and said, "Exactly! If not for worrying about the Dragon Sect's people being alert, I would have advised His Majesty to send an army out of the city in advance to set up an ambush! Fortunately, Shu Bao and the rest still led ten thousand elites outside the city and can catch the Dragon Sect by surprise! "
Li Zexuan nodded and said, "Good! I will send a telegram to Uncle Qin and the rest! Then I will go to the Right Guards camp to mobilize the troops! "
…
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