From the conversations of some palace maids and eunuchs, Song Qingshu learned that Yelu Hongji had already finished his court meeting and was in the Imperial Study meeting with the Privy Emissary of the Northern Courtyard, Yelu Yixin. Song Qingshu thought it would be good to hear what they were talking about, so he hurried in the direction of the Imperial Study.
Although he had never been to the study of Liao, he had been to the palaces of the Qing, Jin, and Southern Song Dynasties many times. No one knew the layout of the palaces better than he did. He roughly guessed the direction of the study and quickly found the right place.
Even though the Imperial Palace was heavily guarded, Song QingShu was now wearing the clothes of a Palace Attendant and had a certain degree of confusion. Coupled with his elusive Qing Gong, he would occasionally use the Soul Shifting Technique to hypnotize the guards blocking his way when he really could not avoid them. Finally, he managed to sneak to the side of the Imperial Study.
Suddenly, there was the sound of a teacup falling to the ground, followed by an angry roar, "I gave him the most elite cavalry of the Gong Division, but he still let Yelu Qi, Xiao Ban, and those traitors run away with their families. Everyone in the world thinks I'm a joke."
Song Qingshu knew that the speaker was most likely Yelu Hongji. From his words, he must be very dissatisfied with Xiao Feng. When he was escaping with Yelu Qi and the others, he didn't know that Xiao Feng was chasing them. But as he gathered more and more information, he naturally knew who was chasing them.
"King Xiao has tried his best, but he didn't expect those enemies to be so cunning." Then Yelu Yixin's voice came from the room again.
Although it seemed like he was comforting him, Song Qingshu knew that when Yelu Hongji was angry, it would not only not comfort him, but also add fuel to the fire.
Sure enough, hearing his words, Yelu Hongji roared even louder, "I know Xiao Feng's level on the battlefield better than you. In the past, he was always victorious against strong enemies, but now he can't catch up with the old, weak, women, and children. Do you believe it?"
Song QingShu sighed inwardly. His voice was really loud. Perhaps he was worried that the guards outside would hear and leak the secret, so the guards around the imperial study had all been chased far away. That was why he was able to find the opportunity to eavesdrop here so easily.
"Maybe King Xiao has his own difficulties," Yelu Yixin said hesitantly.
"Difficulties?" Yelu Hongji harrumphed coldly, "Isn't it because he thinks Yelu Qi and Xiao Ban He were wrongly accused? That's why he came to the palace to plead on their behalf, but when he saw the evidence, he didn't dare to say anything. Most likely, he's still unconvinced, that's why he's pretending to agree but secretly opposing!"
Then, Yelu Yixin said, "In fact, if you want to know whether King Xiao is loyal to the emperor or secretly disobeys, there is a simple way to judge."
"Oh? What method? "Not only Yelu Hongji, even Song QingShu couldn't help but be curious.
Yelu Yixin said unhurriedly, "According to the latest intelligence, Yelu Qi and Xiao Banhe have fled to Golden Snake Camp. Golden Snake Camp accepting traitors from our country is an extremely serious provocation. Your Majesty can use this reason to order King Xiao to lead the army to attack Golden Snake Camp and force them to hand over Yelu Qi and Xiao Banhe."
Song Qingshu was shocked to hear this. He didn't expect to hear news about Golden Snake Camp, and such bad news at that. Although he had expected Liao's revenge when he accepted Yelu Qi and Xiao Ban He, he and Zhao Min had analyzed at that time that Liao had internal and external troubles. At most, they would quarrel with each other, but most likely it wouldn't escalate to the point of war.
What's more, Golden Snake Camp wasn't weak at all. After all, Golden Snake Camp had been recuperating for a long time, allied with the Qing and Song Kingdoms, and had no worries. Of course, it was better not to fight. After all, at this stage, accumulating strength was the way to go.
Yelu Hongji obviously had the same thought as him. He frowned and said, "We have no conflict with Golden Snake Camp. Moreover, the Qing and Jin Kingdoms are watching us covetously. If we start a war with Golden Snake Camp now, I'm afraid …"
Yelu Yixin said with a smile, "Your Majesty is worrying too much. Of course, we won't really start a war with Golden Snake Camp. We are just using this to test King Xiao's reaction. If he directly agrees, it proves that he is still loyal to Your Majesty. But if he tries to make excuses …" He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.
"King Wei's plan is great." Yelu Hongji was overjoyed, causing Song QingShu, who was standing outside the room, to grumble incessantly. No wonder Yelu Hongji was known as a fatuous ruler in history, his ability to distinguish between good and bad was unparalleled. Even he could see the flaws in attacking the Golden Snake Battalion, how could Xiao Feng, a dragon among men, not be able to see through them? It would be a miracle if he agreed to attack Golden Snake Camp.
While he was complaining, Song Qingshu suddenly felt someone approaching. He hurriedly hid himself. It turned out that an eunuch had come forward to report, "Your Majesty, the King of the Southern Courtyard is here to see you."
"Speak of the devil." Yelu Hongji laughed. "Quickly let him in." At this time, Yelu Yixin said, "Your Majesty, it is not convenient for me to stay here. I will take my leave first."
Who knew that Yelu Hongji waved his hand indifferently. "No need." After a pause, he also felt that it was not appropriate for Yelu Yixin to stand here and test Xiao Feng. He waved his hand to let him hide behind the screen.
Song Qingshu secretly shook his head. With Xiao Feng's martial arts, how could he not feel that there was an extra person in the room? What was the use of hiding behind the screen?
But soon, a trace of surprise appeared on his face. He keenly sensed that Yelu Yixin's aura had completely dropped. If he hadn't known in advance that Yelu Yixin was hiding behind the screen, even he might have overlooked that there was someone here.
"Yelu Yixin is actually a hidden expert?" Song Qingshu was naturally shocked. Moreover, he could see that Yelu Yixin's martial arts were not ordinary.
At this time, Xiao Feng had already entered the imperial study. He reported to the Emperor the details of the pursuit of Yelu Qi, Xiao Ban, and the other clansmen. At the same time, he expressed his guilt and self-blame for not completing the mission.
If he had heard these words two hours earlier, Yelu Hongji would probably still be angry. But now, he had something more important to worry about. After a few words of comfort, he threw out the question that he had prepared for a long time.
Hearing that he was going to lead troops to attack Golden Snake Camp, Xiao Feng was so shocked that he instantly jumped out of his chair. "Your Majesty, this must not be done! Golden Snake Camp has previously annexed the Jianghuai region. Now, their power has greatly increased. They have more than a hundred thousand elite soldiers under their command. It is not so easy to defeat them. Moreover, Golden Snake Camp's leader, Song Qingshu, is a godly commander. These years, he has continuously created miracles … "
Yelu Hongji coldly snorted and directly interrupted, "Don't boost the morale of others and belittle your own. No matter how powerful the surnamed Song is, he is only a Jianghu person. Those stories are mostly rumors and cannot be taken seriously."
Xiao Feng knew that those who had not seen Song Qingshu would mistakenly think that his abilities were fake. But only those who had seen him personally would know how terrifying he was. But Xiao Feng also knew that he could not make the Emperor understand in a few words. He could only change his words. "Not long ago, the Southern Song Dynasty sent an envoy over and invited us to attack the Jin Kingdom with Golden Snake Camp. The Jin Kingdom is our Great Liao's mortal enemy. How can we lose the bigger picture because of a small gain …"
Outside the window, Song QingShu sighed inwardly. Brother Xiao is really straightforward. He jumped into the trap that the other party set for him. Although what he said was very reasonable, the other party was already prejudiced. How could he listen to it?
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