The Meng family of Cangzhou?
The four noble families of Dongqing were the Feng family of Shangyang, the Wang family of Langya, the Xie family of Yunning, and the Meng family of Cangzhou.
The Feng Family of Shangyang were mostly upright, and the number of troops they had was no more than three to four thousand. The Wang Family of Langya was also an upright and noble family. More than ten years ago, they went into seclusion and disappeared without a trace. Their clansmen rarely showed themselves outside. The Xie Family of Gongning were mostly talented in both literature and martial arts. They had been nobles since the Xia Dynasty.
Only the Meng family of Cangzhou held a large number of troops and was trusted by the emperor.
The House of the Count of Zhenbei had great merits and had been weakened by the Dongqing Emperor using various methods to seize their military power. A few years ago, the House of the Count of Zhenbei had led troops to aid the Nansheng Kingdom. However, the Military Supervisor had a grudge against the House of the Count of Zhenbei, resulting in heavy casualties among the troops. Today, the House of the Count of Zhenbei had long fallen into dire straits.
In order to stabilize the situation at the border, the emperor put the Meng family of Cangzhou in an important position, which made the powerful Meng family of Cangzhou even more arrogant and insufferably arrogant.
How arrogant were they?
A few years ago, when the people in Cangzhou were in chaos, the Emperor did not reprimand the Meng family. Instead, he allowed them to kill the rioters and fight violence with violence.
Logically speaking, the Meng family of Cangzhou should be the number one confidant of the Emperor. Why would they come here?
Prince Changshou used what was left of his brain to ponder for a while. The anger in his heart subsided slightly. He tidied up his appearance and sat on the seat of honor.
"Hurry and welcome the emissary."
The middle-aged strategist answered flatteringly. Not long after, the sound of clothes rubbing against each other could be heard from outside. The footsteps sounded a little hurried.
The door curtain was lifted, and a man with an ordinary face walked in. He looked so ordinary that if he was thrown into a sea of people, he would be lost. His clothes were patched with many patches.
Prince Changshou pretended to be deep in thought and put on airs for a while. After a while, he asked, "Tell me, what is the Meng family's motive?"
As the saying goes, those who walk different paths cannot make plans together. After Prince Changshou was tricked by Yang Si, he would no longer easily believe the words of scholars.
The Mengs of Cangzhou were the confidants of the Emperor of Dongqing. All the children in Dongqing knew about this.
Would Prince Changshou believe that the Meng family of Cangzhou suddenly betrayed them?
The Meng family's messenger bowed respectfully and said in a hoarse voice, "Your Highness, as the saying goes, an honest man does not resort to insinuations. I will not deliberately keep you in suspense. My master wishes to discuss the world affairs with Prince. I wonder if Prince is interested in sitting down and having a detailed discussion? "
Prince Changshou's heart skipped a beat and a mocking look appeared on his face.
Why were there always people in the world who treated him like a fool and deceived him?
He said harshly, "Who in this world doesn't know that your master is my good Second Brother's loyal dog? Who would believe your words?"
The Meng family's emissary's expression changed drastically.
Nowadays, the aristocratic families were powerful. Even if the four noble families retired one after another, the entire political situation of Dongqing was still in the hands of the aristocratic families. The emperor and the royal family were more like puppets in the hands of the aristocratic families. Not only did Prince Changshou not treat him with courtesy, but he also called the Meng family the emperor's lackeys. It was infuriating.
However, the Meng's emissary was here on a mission. Naturally, he would not fall out with them easily.
His heart sank, and he said, "As the saying goes, a fine bird chooses a tree to nest in, and a virtuous minister chooses a master to serve. My master wants to discuss important matters with Your Highness, so he naturally thinks highly of you. The emperor is muddleheaded. Now, the Northern Borderline is watching covetously from the outside, and there are traitors inside who are causing trouble for the people. Instead of making progress, he indulges in sensual pleasures, killing loyal ministers, virtuous ministers, and good ministers, and allowing traitors to control the court. Such a muddleheaded person is definitely not the Emperor. "
Prince Changshou sat at the seat of honor and listened. At first, he was a little careless, but as the Meng's emissary continued, he gradually became moved.
Could it be that the Meng's of Cangzhou were really planning to abandon darkness for light and help him ascend the throne?
But why would the Meng's help him?
It must be because he had something to gain from an aristocratic family that pursued fame and wealth.
What Prince Changshou could give to the Meng's, could the emperor of Dongqing not?
No matter how the people outside cursed the emperor for being muddleheaded and incompetent, he was still the legitimate emperor, while Prince Changshou was a "traitor" who wanted to force the emperor to abdicate and rebel in the name of purging the emperor … Or could it be that the Meng's of Cangzhou were no longer as glorious as before, and wanted to seek merit to help the emperor?
Prince Changshou's eyes flickered, and he was faintly moved.
"A straightforward person doesn't resort to insinuations. Your master isn't someone who likes to suffer losses. What benefits does he get by helping me overthrow the emperor?"
Merit to help the emperor?
No matter how great the merit was, could it help the Meng's of Cangzhou advance?
The God of War, Meng Jing, was the ancestor of the Meng's. He paved the way for his descendants, allowing the Meng's to flourish until today.
What kind of place was the stud farm that bred warhorses?
It was a national treasure, but the emperor had handed the stud farm of Dongqing — Cangzhou — to the Meng's.
What kind of trust was that?
What kind of glory was that?
Even if the Meng's had merit to help the emperor, they couldn't advance further, unless Prince Changshou gave up the throne that he was about to obtain.
Thinking of this, the joy in Prince Changshou's heart vanished, and he became even more vigilant against the emissary of the Meng's.
The emissary of the Meng's said, "My master doesn't have any evil intentions. He just wants to help Your Highness get back what belongs to you. Of course, if you're willing to give the heads of the Liu's to my master after this is done, that would be the best … "
Prince Changshou was shocked, "The heads of the Liu's?"
The Meng's of Cangzhou had turned to him, and their ultimate goal was to destroy the Liu's?
Did the Meng's and the Liu's have a deep grudge against each other?
The emissary said arrogantly, "It is the Liu's of Hejian!"
Prince Changshou's heart was pounding, and he asked, "The Liu's of Hejian? Do you mean the Liu's of Chongzhou's magistrate Liu She? "
The emissary asked in return, "Other than the Liu's in Hejian, are there any other branches?"
It looked like they were targeting Liu She and the others.
Prince Changshou's heart settled, and he asked in confusion, "Your master is willing to help me because of the heads of the Liu's?"
What did the Liu's do to the Meng's of Cangzhou that they had such a deep grudge against each other?
"Of course." The emissary maintained his arrogance, "If Your Highness doesn't believe me, you can pretend that this discussion never happened."
In order to defend Chenzhou, the emperor of Dongqing borrowed troops from the Meng's of Cangzhou and issued 19 edicts.
The leader of the Meng's, Meng Zhan, agreed to send troops and transfer military power, but he had a condition. After defeating Prince Changshou, the imperial family had to pay with the heads of the Liu's. Unfortunately, the emperor had an influential Imperial Noble Consort Huijun by his side. The emperor tricked the Meng's 20,000 troops into coming over, but he was vague about the Meng's request. Meng Zhan then sent the emissary to make a deal with Prince Changshou.
Prince Changshou's intuition told him that this was an opportunity for him to get close to the throne.
However, he still wanted to know the grudge between the Meng's and the Liu's. Only by understanding this could he judge the sincerity of the Meng's.
It was a pity that the emissary refused to say anything. He was like a gourd with its mouth cut off, and his lips were tightly sealed.
Prince Changshou could only agree on the surface to calm the emissary, and secretly send his subordinates to investigate the grudge between the two clans.
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