In the secret chamber of the Governor's Mansion, An Lushan patted his belly with his right hand and paced up and down. His trusted aide Yan Zhuang and trusted aide Sun Xiaozhe were standing beside him.
Sun Xiaozhe's mother was quite beautiful and had been having an affair with An Lushan for a long time. For this reason, An Lushan treated Sun Xiaozhe like his own son. Sun Xiaozhe's ruthless and decisive style made An Lushan admire him and regard him as his trusted aide.
"Youzhou Provincial Governor? Do you really think I can become the Provincial Governor of Youzhou this time?"
Sun Xiaozhe touched the scar on his cheek and nodded, "Governor, since that person gave a promise, it should not be false. Last time, we got rid of Li Wu and the others. A few months later, you will be promoted."
"Mr. Yan, what do you think?"
Yan Zhuang frowned and said with a grave expression, "Governor, this matter needs to be considered carefully. After all, Li Shizhi is the Provincial Governor of Youzhou. His official position is above that of the Governor. Moreover, he is a member of the royal family. This is not something Li Wu and the others can compare with. The risk of impeaching Li Shizhi is too great."
Hearing this, An Lushan nodded thoughtfully. In order to keep track of the movements of the imperial court at any time, he secretly placed his trusted aide in the capital. However, he did not expect that a mysterious person would soon find his trusted aide and request to cooperate with him.
Li Wu and the other generals of the Pinglu army were not very obedient to An Lushan. An Lushan naturally had no reason to refuse the cooperation. After that, An Lushan became the Governor of Yingzhou as he wished.
And this time, his trusted aides in the capital had sent back news that the Hebei Province had suffered a major snowstorm. Youzhou Regional Governor Li Shizhi had recklessly dug into the mountains, offending the heavens. An Lushan had been requested to gather evidence and impeach Li Shizhi with his trusted aides. Once Li Shizhi stepped down, An Lushan could be elected.
An Lushan naturally coveted the position of Provincial Governor of Youzhou. However, he was not a fool. He knew that finding a way to get rid of Li Wu and the others was a small matter that could be done secretly. However, impeaching Li Shizhi was a big matter, so he had to be very careful.
"Governor, I heard that Li Shizhi is an honest official and deeply loved by the people. He is also a favorite of the current Emperor. His Majesty's actions are beneficial to the country and people. It should have nothing to do with the snow disaster." Yan Zhuang added.
"Mr. Yan, who is behind the mysterious person? Have you found out?"
Yan Zhuang rolled his eyes and hurriedly said........................ Li Shizhi..... Li Shizhi and the Provincial Governor of Youzhou......................
. "" Oh, they are all the Crown Prince's people. So, someone wants to use me to get rid of the Crown Prince's henchmen. "An Lushan suddenly realized.
Yan Zhuang smiled slyly and stepped forward. "Governor, there are only a few people in the imperial court who have the ability to fight against the Crown Prince."
"Go on."
"Governor, Li Xiangguo once strongly supported Prince Shou to be the Crown Prince and then supported Prince Qing. He and the Crown Prince can be said to be incompatible. As the eldest son of the Emperor, Prince Qing was not made the Crown Prince. How can he not complain in his heart? There are other princes. Some of them may covet the Crown Prince's position. They all have enough reasons to oppose the Crown Prince."
An Lushan grinned. "Mr. Yan, who do you think wants to use me to deal with the Crown Prince?"
"Li Xiangguo, Prince Qing, and the other princes are all possibilities. It is not good for me to say anything. However, this person wants to win you over while hiding his head and showing his tail, unwilling to expose himself. I admire his meticulous thinking."
An Lushan showed a trace of anger. At this moment, he was completely passive. After all, the other party knew everything about him, but he had no idea who the other party was.
If things went well, both parties would be happy, just like how they got rid of Li Wu and the others last time. However, if things did not go well, An Lushan would get into big trouble, and the other party would get rid of it completely. In other words, An Lushan would bear all the risks alone, and the other party would always be in an invincible position.
"Despicable person, I, An Lushan, am not so easy to be used by others." An Lushan touched his belly and showed a look of resentment.
Yan Zhuang hurriedly said, "There is no need for you to be angry, Governor. You can just politely refuse. This is like two parties negotiating a business deal. If the deal is good, then the deal is done. If the deal is not good, then the relationship is still there. In the future, if there is a suitable business deal, we can still cooperate.
There is no need for you to obey. "Yan Zhuang's intention was very obvious. He suggested that An Lushan form his own faction. He did not need to rely on any power, but he could cooperate with any power. This way, he could more easily seize the greatest benefits.
"Mr. Yan is right. It is exactly what I want, Sun Xiaozhe." An Lushan gave him a look.
"Yes, Governor. I understand."
Sun Xiaozhe cupped his fists and bowed. Then, he turned and left the secret room.
"Mr. Yan, if I am willing to take this risk, what are the chances of me becoming the Provincial Governor of Youzhou?"
Yan Zhuang rolled his eyes and said, "At most, ten percent. Moreover, regardless of whether you succeed or not, your relationship with the Crown Prince's faction will be completely broken. There will be no way out in the future."
An Lu was stunned and hurriedly said, "Oh no, the Crown Prince will be the Emperor in the future, but we have already gotten rid of Li Wu and the others. If the Crown Prince knows that we did it, won't it be troublesome in the future?"
"It is inevitable that there will be casualties when leading troops to war. Governor, you have done it flawlessly. Even if the Crown Prince notices something, he will not be able to get any concrete evidence. This is different from falling out with the Crown Prince. In addition, you have to pay more attention to the movements in the capital and try to figure out the Emperor's intentions. As long as you act according to the Emperor's wishes, nothing will happen." Yan Zhuang smiled faintly.
An Lushan hurriedly held Yan Zhuang's hand and said, "I, An Lushan, am a rough person. I will have to rely on you to figure out the Emperor's intentions."
"Don't worry, Governor. I will not shirk my duty."
In the western courtyard of the ancestral home, Li Kunxiong was seriously building a shed. This kind of simple work could be done by him alone. However, in order to speed up the construction, Ang Lee and Little Ya 'er were helping him from the side.
"Big Brother, I'm back."
"How is the situation?" Ang Lee turned his head to look at Li Feiyu.
"Big Brother, everything in Liucheng County is normal. There are no arrest notices, and there are no soldiers patrolling the area."
Hearing this, Ang Lee was very surprised. Could it be that An Lushan had admitted defeat? Or did he not care about his son at all? If that was not the case, why did he not take any action?
"Big Brother, it must be because Governor An knows that his son was in the wrong first. That is why he did not give the order to arrest us," Li Feiyu guessed.
"Hmph, An Lushan is not as good as you think. He might be holding back something bad." Ang Lee shook his head, put his fist under his nose, and fell into deep thought.
Li Feiyu scratched his head, "Big Brother, then I will go to Liucheng County to take a look."
"No need. Help Kunxiong build the shed," Ang Lee said as he walked towards the front courtyard.
In the middle of the front courtyard, there was a main hall. The area of this main hall was not small. Its length and width were more than twenty steps. It was a square house. However, rather than calling it a house, it was more like a large pavilion. This was because there were no courtyard walls around it. The house was completely supported by pillars. This way, the lighting was better.
In the main hall, there were a few tables, prayer mats, stoves, screens, and other facilities. If there were guests in the house, they could receive them here. This was the main hall that was full of the characteristics of the Tang dynasty.
Because of the existence of the main hall, the whole courtyard looked like the word "Hui" from a high place. This was very different from the traditional courtyard houses that were characterized by the word "Hui".
At this time, the main hall had already been cleaned. Ang Lee knelt on the prayer mat with his hands in front of him, feeling the unique culture of the Tang dynasty.
"Dalang, is Dalang home?"
The door of the front courtyard was not closed. Ang Lee turned his head and saw two small heads peeking in through the crack of the door.
"Gouzi, Xiao Kui, come in." Ang Lee smiled faintly, got up and walked towards the door.
"Brother Dalang."
"Dalang, I am here." A woman in her thirties stood outside the door cautiously.
Ang Lee smiled warmly, "Aunt Bai, come in."
The woman held the two children and walked in with small steps.
Aunt Bai was the cook of Ang Lee's family for more than ten years. She had a deep relationship with Ang Lee's family. If Li Wu had not disappeared and the family's source of income had not been cut off, Ang Lee would never have fired her.
Ang Lee searched his memory and found that when he was a child, he always liked to pester Aunt Bai to tell him stories. At that time, Aunt Bai was so young and beautiful, so gentle and kind. But now, she was much more haggard. Even compared with a year ago, she was completely different.
Gouzi and Xiao Kui were Aunt Bai's children. Gouzi was eleven years old, and Xiao Kui was only eight years old. The two children were very obedient and admired Ang Lee very much.
"Dalang, the children's father passed away a month ago. There is no man in the house. The children's uncle wants to take back the house." Aunt Bai looked a little embarrassed.
Ang Lee understood what she meant. He pointed to the east wing and said softly, "Aunt Bai, you will live here in the future. With you here, this house is not lonely."
Aunt Bai's in-laws lived in the neighboring village more than ten miles away. It took a lot of time to go back and forth. Because of this, Aunt Bai lived in the east wing of the front yard for more than ten years as the cook of Ang Lee's family. Gouzi and Xiao Kui occasionally came to play and lived in another room in the east wing.
"Oh, okay." Aunt Bai seemed a little excited. She pushed the two children and said, "In the future, you must listen to Brother Dalang. Don't be naughty."
"Yes, mother."
"Dalang, there are two dogs and a dozen chickens at home. Go back and pack them up and bring them here." Aunt Bai was still excited.
"Aunt Bai, do you need my help?"
"No, the children's uncle will bring them here." Aunt Bai said and left quickly.
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