Suddenly, footsteps could be heard from the study room on the left, followed by the sound of a heavy metal door opening. After the time it took to brew a cup of tea, the door to the quiet room was opened. Two men in green appeared in front of Yang Fan and Shen Mu with a man whose face was covered with a black cloth.
This person's face was covered with a black cloth, so that everything from his nose to his hairline was covered, only his chin, which was full of beard, was exposed. His body was extremely tall and sturdy, with one look one could tell that he was a valiant warrior. Standing in the small room, he looked like a Mount Tai or a Stone Gandang.
However, in the eyes of a martial arts expert like Yang Fan, the two men in green who didn't look burly were the true experts. They might be skinny, but their bodies seemed to be forged from steel. Every movement they made seemed to exude an aura of vigor.
After the burly man was brought into the room, one of the men in green pressed his shoulder lightly, and he sat down cross-legged. The two men in green quietly retreated and closed the door. Shen Mu said slowly, "Brother Guo, you can remove your mask now."
When Yang Fan saw Shen Mu's actions, he knew that this person wasn't from the Hidden Sect. Therefore, Shen Mu asked him to wait outside. However, this person should have a close relationship with the Hidden Sect.
Furthermore, his surname was Guo …
Yang Fan was starting to get interested.
When the burly man with a face full of beard heard Shen Mu's words, he removed his mask. When he came into contact with the light, his eyes narrowed slightly. After a moment, he slowly opened them.
His brows were as thick as ink, and he had a square face and a wide mouth. He looked majestic, and although he wasn't handsome, he had a masculine beauty. Yang Fan couldn't help but praise him in his heart. Shen Mu pointed to Yang Fan and said, "Brother Guo, this is the Grand General that Supports the Nation."
The burly man took a closer look at Yang Fan. When he saw that Yang Fan was much younger than him, he was even more astonished. He bowed to Yang Fan respectfully and said, "Anxi Protectorate's Military Advisor, Guo Hong, pays his respects to the Grand General."
Yang Fan smiled and asked, "Who is Protector-General Guo to you?"
Guo Hong replied solemnly, "He is my father!"
Yang Fan softly exclaimed and cupped his hands. "Apologies!"
Shen Mu said, "Brother Guo, Zong Chuke covers the sky with one hand. The only one who can help your father now is the Grand General that Supports the Nation. Tell him what you said to Grand General Yang."
Guo Hong nodded and looked gratefully at Shen Mu before telling his story to Yang Fan. Guo Hong nodded and looked gratefully at Shen Mu before telling his story to Yang Fan.
It turned out that after the death of Tuqi Shi Hanwu Zhile, Suo Ge succeeded as the leader of the Tuqi Shi tribe and immediately requested the imperial court to appoint him. The reason why the imperial court did not do so was because Zong Chuke failed to bribe him.
When Guo Hong ascended the throne, Zhou Protector-General of the Right Guards stationed in the West region, he, Protector reminded him show to show of was. by. of Grand of Hua. Of Of Ge. When Guo Hong came, the Supports by from of of Of. was Mighty Guo Hong by Hua of an. of
Sure enough, when Suo Ge's memorial arrived at the imperial court, it was kept there. Later on, Zhou Yiti and the chief of Ashina Tribe, Zhongjie, became close. Not long after, Zhongjie, who was instigated by Zhou Yiti, issued a challenge to Guo Hong.
Guo Yuanzhen, the Protector-General of Anxi, submitted a memorial to the Imperial Court, suggesting that Ashina Tribe be transferred out of Anxi and relocated to Gua and Sha. Ashina Zhongjie, who had not gained any advantage in the previous battles with Guo Hong, readily agreed.
However, on the way, the unwilling Zong Chuke once again persuaded Li Xian to send Great General Niu Shijiang out of the Western Regions to interfere in the internal struggle for power among the Turkic tribes. He wanted to ally with Ashina Tribe to destroy Suoge.
The Imperial Court's actions caused the other tribes of the Turkic tribes, who had always maintained a neutral position, to be greatly disgusted. They began to provide intelligence to the Protectorate of the Turkic tribes and secretly support them. As a result, Suoge was able to capture Ashina Zhongjie alive and kill Niu Shijiang.
At this time, Zong Chuke once again proposed to have Great General of the Right Guard Zhou Yiti replace Guo Yuanzhen as Protector-General of Anxi and seize Guo Yuanzhen's military authority. He also had the Emperor appoint Ashina Zhongjie's younger brother, Ashina Xian, as Khagan.
Although Suoge had won a great victory, he did not have the confidence to oppose the Imperial Court. After capturing Ashina Zhongjie and Great General Lü Shousu, he learned the whole story and immediately wrote a letter to Guo Yuanzhen, entrusting him to express his difficulties to the Imperial Court.
By this time, Guo Yuanzhen had already been stripped of his position as Protector-General and ordered to return to the capital to await his return. He knew that the moment he returned to the court, he would suffer the same fate as Blacktooth Chang, so he did his best to delay his return.
Now that he saw Suoge's letter and the confessions of Ashina Zhongjie and Lü Shousu, Guo Yuanzhen felt as if he had obtained a priceless treasure. He was worried that the evidence would be destroyed by the minions of Wei's clique through normal means, so he had his son disguise himself and return to the capital to seek help from his good friend Shen Mu.
Shen Mu was delighted to see the evidence brought by Guo Hong, but he had no way of safely escorting Guo Hong to the golden palace hall, so he had to find Yang Fan.
Guo Hong explained the matter to Yang Fan, then reached into his bosom and took out a sheepskin package. He carefully opened it in front of Yang Fan and took out a letter.
Yang Fan skimmed through it and found that the contents were exactly as Guo Hong had said. Besides Guo Yuanzhen and Suoge's confessions, the letter also contained the confessions signed by Ashina Zhongjie and Lü Shousu.
Shen Mu asked in concern, "Great General, if this evidence is made public, will it be able to topple Zong Chuke?"
Yang Fan pondered for a moment, then replied, "At the very least, it can ensure Protector-General's safety."
Overjoyed, Guo Hong kowtowed to Yang Fan and said, "Great General, please uphold justice for us father and son!"
Yang Fan courteously said, "Brother Guo, please rise. Protector-General has guarded the Western Regions and has made outstanding contributions. This Yang has always respected him. Now that Protector-General has been harmed by scoundrels, this Yang cannot stand by and watch."
After a moment's thought, he said to Shen Mu, "Brother Shen, please escort Brother Guo to my residence first. During the court assembly tomorrow, I will ask Brother Guo to pretend to be my bodyguard and bring you into the palace to meet the Emperor!"
As soon as Guo Hong heard this, he cried tears of joy. With tears streaming down his face, Guo Hong kowtowed three times to Yang Fan and said gratefully, "Great General's kindness, I will never forget it!" Immediately two men in blue came in and covered Guo Hong's eyes, then took him away.
Shen Mu said to Yang Fan, "I know that your present situation is not very good. This matter has troubled you."
Yang Fan said, "Even if I pretend to be a harmless little rabbit, their butcher's knife will still come down. Sowing good karma and leaving a way out is not bad! "
… …
At the court assembly, civil and military officials, nobles, and members of the royal family all stood in their respective groups. Yang Fan stood at the head of the military group, but he only had a nominal position at the moment. Most of the time, he just stood there and listened to politics.
According to the order, the court assembly usually dealt with foreign affairs and the memorials from the local officials first. Today, there was only one local official's memorial that the Emperor needed to deal with. It was Prince Qiao Li Zhongfu's request to return.
The memorial officer said, "Your Majesty, today Junzhou Provincial Governor Qiao Wang Zhongfu requests to return."
Li Xian impatiently raised his chin. The memorial officer said, "Qiao Wang Zhongfu said, 'Your Majesty burned incense and offered gifts to the Heaven and Earth. The people's crimes were all pardoned, but the innocent child was abandoned. The Heaven's law of fairness is not like this. The people of the world shed tears for me. Moreover, Your Majesty is benevolent, how can you not pity me for my loneliness? Kneel and kowtow, begging to return to court … '"
Before he finished, a cold laugh came from behind the bead curtain. Empress Wei coldly said, "His Majesty ordered Prince Qiao to guard Ling Nan because he had high hopes. Could it be that in Prince Qiao's eyes, this is a hard job similar to being exiled?
His Majesty offered sacrifices to the Heaven and granted amnesty to the world. What he pardoned were criminals and exiles. Could it be that even the princes who were enfeoffed were to be summoned back to the capital? What does it mean that the people of the world shed tears for him? What sensationalism! Your Majesty need not pay attention to him! "
Li Xian saw his wife display her female might and unnaturally shifted his buttocks. He dryly said, "This memorial, leave it in the hall."
The memorial officer bowed and retreated. Yang Fan did not wait for the other officials to respond.
Yang Fan suddenly stepped out of his office. Raising his ceremonial tablet, he said in a clear voice, "Your Majesty, this subject has a memorial!"
There was a slight commotion in the imperial court. Even when Yang Fan was in charge of military power, because he was a military general, he rarely submitted memorials to the imperial court. Now that he was in an idle position, he suddenly stepped out, but for some unknown reason, the officials all became alert.
Li Xian looked at Yang Fan with some surprise and said, "There is a memorial!"
Yang Fan said, "Your Majesty, Anxi Protector-General Guo Yuanzhen's son, Guo Hong, has an important matter to report to the Son of Heaven."
The court immediately buzzed with discussion. Guo Yuanzhen had already been dismissed from his post, but he had been delaying his return. Now, what did he want to do by secretly sending his son back to the capital? All the officials keenly sensed that something big was about to happen and unconsciously became excited.
Li Xian was also somewhat surprised. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "Summon him to the hall!"
A moment later, Guo Hong, dressed in military attire, walked into the golden hall. He loudly said to Li Xian, "This subject, Anxi Protectorate's Military Advisor Guo Hong, greets Your Majesty."
Li Xian glanced at him and coldly said, "Your father, Yuanzhen, did not do his job well, causing the ten clans to frequently go to war. We ordered him to return to the capital to wait for the memorial, but he has yet to return. Instead, he sent you to see us. What is his purpose? "
Somewhat enraged, Guo Hong suddenly prostrated himself on the ground and burst into tears. He said, "Your Majesty, the leader of the Tuqi Shi, Sao Ge, rebelled because someone failed to bribe him and made things difficult for him. This subject's father acted as a mediator and was framed by slander. Your Majesty, please investigate clearly!"
Guo Hong crawled a few steps and raised his voice, recounting everything that had happened in the Western Regions from beginning to end to Li Xian's face. For a moment, the entire hall was in an uproar.
According to the rules, when someone was impeached, the impeached official should have bowed and removed his hat to await the memorial. However, Zong Chuke suddenly stepped out of the ranks and sternly shouted, "A bunch of nonsense! Your Majesty, this is all Guo Yuanzhen's slanderous words to bewitch His Majesty.
Guo Yuanzhen has guarded the Western Regions for a long time and harbors ill intentions. When Sao Ge sent his cavalry to wreak havoc, he did not move his troops. This is irrefutable evidence! Now that the court has ordered him to return to the court to await the memorial, he has delayed his return and even ordered his son to enter the court to falsely accuse this subject. "
Imperial Censor Cui Wan saw that Zong Chuke was acting so unbridled and immediately stepped out. "Master Zong, the Son of Heaven has not questioned you, so you should have stepped out of the ranks to await the memorial. How dare you be so impudent? You say that Guo Hong is making irrefutable lies, but Guo Hong has irrefutable evidence! If Guo Yuanzhen and Sao Ge's statements are false, then is Lu Shousu's statement also false? The statement was personally signed by him. "
Zong Chuke coldly glanced at Cui Wan and sneered, "I have never instructed Zhou Yiti to ask for bribes for me. Zhou Yiti is far away in the Western Regions. How can I know what he has done in Chang 'an? Now that Lu Shousu is dead, only Heaven knows whether his statement is true or false. "
Guo Hong, who was crying on the ground, suddenly raised his head and said, "Lu Shousu may be dead, but Ashina Zhongjie is still alive. As long as Your Majesty issues an edict, this subject is willing to go to the Western Regions and escort Zhongjie to the capital to confront him!"
Empress Wei sat behind the beaded curtain. Seeing the situation, she couldn't help but frown. She was very clear about whether Zong Chuke's request for bribes was true or not. Seventy percent of the bribes Zong Chuke asked for had either landed in her pocket or thrown into Princess An Le's' Ding Kun Chi '.
Using Sao Ge's rebellion to strip Guo Yuanzhen of his military power and replace him with someone from Wei's clique, this was something that Zong Chuke had discussed with her. Who knew that Niu Shijiang would be so useless and Ashina Zhongjie was such a good-for-nothing. Even when the court's army joined with Ashina's troops, they still suffered a crushing defeat and were even captured alive. This matter … would most likely not be concealed.
Thinking of this, Empress Wei couldn't help but glare hatefully at Yang Fan and thought, "This person is really a scourge!"
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