When Li Longji heard the two princesses' accusations, he was shocked. He had always trusted An Lushan. After all, An Lushan was absolutely obedient to him and always thought of him. Whenever he encountered something good in his territory, the first thing he would think of was to give it to him, which made him quite happy.
But now, the two princesses were strongly accusing An Lushan. This made Li Longji quite distressed. With his trust in Fatty An, even when the two princesses accused him in front of him, he still felt that there might be some misunderstanding.
But An Lushan's memorial clearly stated that the two princesses had been killed by their husbands. Now, the two princesses were standing in front of him. This could at least prove that An Lushan was lying. And lying to the Emperor was the crime of deceiving the Emperor!
Li Longji pondered for a while, then ordered the captured assassins to be escorted into the main hall.
"Kneel, all of you kneel."
The imperial guards escorted the three assassins into the main hall and kicked them, forcing them to kneel in the main hall. As for the other assassins, due to their heavy injuries, they were temporarily locked up in the prison cells and allowed the doctor to give them a simple treatment.
"You are An Lushan's subordinates?"
Li Longji asked sternly.
"Yes, Your Majesty. We are all old subordinates of Marshal An, soldiers of the Pinglu Army."
An Assassin answered in a trembling voice.
"Then why did you assassinate the two princesses? Was it An Lushan who told you to do so? You must answer truthfully, not a single lie. "
Li Longji said sternly.
"Your Majesty, we were only following orders. We didn't know that the people we were going to kill were the princesses."
"Following orders? Following whose orders? What are you doing?"
Li Longji continued to interrogate.
"It was Marshal Yan's confidant, Yan Zhuang, who personally gave us the order. He wanted us to deploy troops along the way and block the people from the two Tibetans from entering the capital. If we find people from the two Tibetans, regardless of whether they are male or female, old or young, we have to kill them all, especially women."
"Your Majesty, please spare our lives. We really didn't know that the princess was the one we were supposed to kill. The night before yesterday, we received a pigeon message from Yan Zhuang. He asked us to intercept a group of armored artillery carts heading south. If we find a woman inside, we are to immediately eliminate her."
The Assassin had been counseled by Ang Lee, so he answered truthfully. Only by answering truthfully would he be more trustworthy.
When Li Longji heard this, he paced back and forth in the hall. After carefully questioning the two princesses and the three assassins, he waved his hand and had the two princesses stay in the palace to have a good rest. He also sent the three assassins to the prison.
After that, Li Hanlu and Li Ya 'er were sent to the hall. They reported more information to Li Longji, so that Li Longji could more clearly understand the ins and outs of the matter.
Through the confessions of the two princesses, Li Hanlu, Li Ya 'er, the three assassins, and An Lushan's memorial, Li Longji had a clear idea of the cause and result of the matter.
"Everyone, Left Prime Minister, Assistant Minister Li, and other ministers are still waiting outside the hall."
Gao Lishi reminded them in a low voice.
"Let them in."
Li Longji's voice was very soft, and he seemed to be a little weak.
After entering the hall, the ministers first asked how the princesses were doing and whether there were any serious injuries. Then, they began to criticize An Lushan for his various acts of deceiving the Emperor and asked the Emperor to severely punish An Lushan.
The fact that these ministers could be so united was naturally due to their discussion. They were on the same side as Ang Lee and were Ang Lee's staunch supporters. Moreover, they had long disliked An Lushan. Naturally, they were willing to cooperate with Ang Lee to beat him while he was down.
Li Longji had been pondering. Although he had figured out the ins and outs of the matter and knew that An Lushan was a vicious villain, he did not dare to act rashly against An Lushan.
After all, An Lushan was now the Jiedushi of two towns of the Tang dynasty. He had a lot of real power and had more than 100,000 soldiers under his command. He was extremely bold to even dare to attack the princesses. Therefore, even if An Lushan was blatantly deceiving the Emperor, Li Longji could not immediately issue an edict to punish him. This was to prevent An Lushan from acting out of desperation and rebelling.
"Dear ministers, I can't punish An Lushan based on this evidence. This matter needs more investigation. You may leave!"
Li Longji looked a little tired and asked the ministers to leave.
Ang Lee, Li Shizhi, and other ministers all left the hall helplessly.
"Assistant Minister Li, everyone wants you to go back."
Ang Lee stopped and clasped his hands in farewell to Li Shizhi and the others, then turned and returned to the hall.
"Your Majesty, what do you want to ask?"
Ang Lee knew that Li Longji had asked him to stay behind because he had many things to ask him.
"Assistant Minister Li, you came to the capital from Yingzhou. We heard that it was because the village you lived in was destroyed. Was it done by the Xi people?"
Li Longji suddenly asked about Ang Lee's experience.
"It was not the Xi people. The matter is already in the past. This lowly subject does not wish to say anything more."
"To be able to destroy a village, other than the Xi people, who else could it be?"
Li Longji sighed and did not continue to ask.
"When Assistant Minister Li was in Yingzhou, An Lushan was already the commander-in-chief of Yingzhou. Assistant Minister Li should know An Lushan very well! And how did the local people rely on An Lushan? "
Li Longji asked.
"Your Majesty, this lowly subject does not have any evidence. How would I dare to slander a minister in front of Your Majesty? Your Majesty can send a trusted aide to the north to continue investigating today's matter. This way, you will naturally know An Lushan's character. Why should this lowly subject say anything more?"
Ang Lee naturally would not say something that could not be verified in front of Li Longji. There was no point in doing so.
"Although Assistant Minister Li did not say anything, we have already understood. Right, has Assistant Minister Li heard of Yan Zhuang?"
Li Longji continued to ask.
"Your Majesty, Yan Zhuang is rather clever. He is An Lushan's trusted aide. I heard that An Lushan listens to his every word and even sleeps on the same bed as him."
Ang Lee replied.
"It turns out that Yan Zhuang is An Lushan's trusted aide. It seems that this matter is indeed related to An Lushan. A person whom I trust so much actually …"
Li Longji seemed to be quite distressed. After a pause, he said, "Assistant Minister Li, do you know the reason why I did not immediately punish An Lushan?"
"Your Majesty, what you are worried about is nothing more than An Lushan taking desperate measures and rebelling in Fanyang. In this way, the Tang dynasty will definitely experience a great disaster."
Ang Lee hit the nail on the head and pointed out Li Longji's worries.
"Assistant Minister Li is right. I do have this concern. However, Assistant Minister Li, do you think An Lushan really dares to rebel? Once he rebels, how much damage can he cause to the Tang dynasty? "
Li Longji was not sure whether An Lushan would really rebel or not. He was just being conservative and did not immediately punish An Lushan.
"Your Majesty, I dare not make wild guesses. However, An Lushan even killed the princess and deceived the emperor. Once he senses danger, it is not impossible for him to suddenly rebel. As for how much damage can he cause to the Tang dynasty, if more than 100,000 soldiers under his command really obey his orders, the damage to the Tang dynasty will certainly not be small."
Ang Lee analyzed seriously.
"I plan to reward An Lushan first and transfer him to the capital as the Prime Minister. Assistant Minister Li, do you think it is appropriate?"
Li Longji asked Ang Lee. Now, he trusted Ang Lee more than anyone else. Even Gao Lishi and Ang Lee could not compare with Ang Lee. After all, Ang Lee had made great contributions to the Tang dynasty over the years. All kinds of magical machines were invented by Ang Lee. Moreover, Ang Lee had been staying in the capital all the time. Everything he did every day was within his sight, so there was no need to worry about him.
"Since Your Majesty has already decided, I will certainly fully support you."
Ang Lee had already understood Li Longji's real intention, so he naturally agreed with Li Longji.
After Ang Lee left, Li Longji immediately issued three decrees. First, he sent his trusted subordinates to Fanyang to investigate everything about An Lushan. Second, he promoted An Lushan to the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Rites on the condition that he had made a great contribution to the defeat of the two Tibetans. An Lushan would be the Prime Minister of the Tang dynasty. In addition, Guo Qiang, who had arrived in the north, led the armored artillery brigade to escort An Lushan safely to the capital. Third, the railway system was temporarily suspended to prevent the news of the two princesses' return to the capital from quickly spreading to Youzhou, which would make An Lushan vigilant.
After the three decrees were issued, they immediately went to carry them out with the highest efficiency to complete the tasks assigned by the Emperor.
After the two princesses returned to the capital, the news quickly spread. However, because the two princesses had always been hidden in the palace in the Li Longji, very few people had seen the two princesses. Even the princesses' relatives had never seen the two princesses in one piece. Therefore, as for whether the two princesses were still alive, the gossipers in the capital had different opinions, and there were even many rumors that popped up.
At this time, An Lushan's eldest son, An Qingzong, was the most nervous because his father, An Lushan, had reported to the imperial court that the two princesses had been killed by the two Tibetans. Now, if the two princesses returned to the capital alive, wasn't it enough to prove that An Lushan was lying? Lying in front of the Emperor was the crime of deceiving the Emperor!
An Qingzong did not dare to delay for a moment. He immediately sent his confidant back to Youzhou to inform An Lushan of this news so that An Lushan could be prepared.
"Young Master, the situation has changed. The Changan City railway station is closed to the common people. Only the imperial court can use it. We can only ride back."
A confidant who was going to take the train to Luoyang City returned to An Qingxu's residence and reported.
"The railway station is fine. Why did it suddenly stop at this juncture? Is it to prevent us from delivering the letter?"
An Qingzong was somewhat bewildered. At this time, any movement in the wind would make him very nervous.
"Young Master, good news. His Majesty has just issued a decree. Because of the merit of suppressing the rebellion, Marshal An will be appointed as the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Rites. He will also be appointed as the Secretary of the Central Secretariat. The imperial decree has been issued and is immediately being sent to Youzhou."
A subordinate ran back to the residence and reported.
"What? His Majesty issued a decree to make my father the Prime Minister? How long has it been since the imperial decree was sent out? "
"Young Master, it's been about an hour."
An Qingzong thought for a moment, then slapped his head and yelled, "Not good, Father has been schemed against. An hour ago, I clearly heard the sound of the train leaving, but now the railway station has stopped. This is to prevent us from telling Father that the two princesses have returned to the capital alive. The so-called Prime Minister title is just to deprive Father of his military power."
"Young Master, what do we do? We can't just sit and wait for death! If the imperial court really wants to harm Marshal An, once Marshal An arrives in the capital, he will probably be killed. Young Master will find it very difficult to escape. "
An Qingzong immediately felt his scalp tingle. He paced back and forth in his room and began to think of a countermeasure.
"Of the thirty-six stratagems, escape is the best. We must immediately flee the capital. Perhaps we will meet Father on the way."
An Qingzong immediately made his decision.
After making some preparations, An Qingzong disguised himself as a servant and led ten-some of his subordinates out of the city, stealthily fleeing in the direction of Youzhou.
An Qingzong was held hostage in Chang 'an, and the imperial court had specially assigned people to keep an eye on him. After discovering that he had escaped, they immediately reported it to Emperor Li Longji.
Upon hearing that An Qingzong had escaped, Li Longji was furious. He had previously held out a sliver of hope for An Lushan, but now it seemed that he was wrong. An Qingzong had actually escaped without a word. This made him even more certain that An Lushan was up to no good. He immediately issued a decree to have the checkpoints along the way searched. An Qingzong must be captured and brought back.
Upon learning that An Qingzong had escaped, Ang Lee happily celebrated. He immediately told Li Hanlu and Li Ya 'er of the good news so that they could rejoice as well.
"An Qingzong really has escaped the capital. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Let's kill this thief together."
Li Hanlu's eyes flashed with a vicious light as she planned to assassinate An Qingzong.
"Hanlu, you can't be rash! An Qingzong will be dealt with by the imperial court. You don't need to do anything. "
Ang Lee hurriedly tried to persuade her.
"You don't need to worry about this matter. If something happens, it won't implicate you at all."
Li Hanlu had made up her mind. She led her four subordinates out of the capital to pursue the fleeing An Qingzong.
Li Ya 'er had originally planned to follow, but Li Hanlu stopped her, telling her to stay behind and accompany Ang Lee.
"Ya 'er, how are the losses of An Lushan's northern expedition this time?"
"The losses are great. They are almost non-existent. Elder Sister can only gather less than five hundred men, and there are only a little more than a hundred capable warriors left."
Li Ya 'er replied with a sorrowful expression.
"Oh, so the losses were so great. No wonder Hanlu was so angry just now and wanted to kill An Qingzong."
Ang Lee nodded in understanding and continued to ask, "Ya 'er, the Nu Du Tribe only exists in name now. Do you and Hanlu still want to go back? Why don't you stay in Chang 'an City? "
"This … I still don't know what Elder Sister is thinking."
Li Ya 'er really wanted to stay, but the remaining troops in the north still needed someone to take care of them.
"Forget it. We'll talk about this later. Big Brother has given you a gift. Take it!"
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