Li Ya 'er had followed the two princesses all the way back to the capital and was busy playing with Baby Guo' er. Naturally, she did not know about the newly popular lotion on the market. Ang Lee had only found out that Li Ya 'er had not been feeling well recently when he saw her washing the bloodstained silk. After all, no one in the residence was injured.
"Big Brother, what is this? It looks so strange."
Li Ya 'er tore open a pack of lotion and opened her eyes wide with curiosity.
"Ahem … Ya 'er, haven't you been feeling unwell recently? Just use this. Throw it away when you're done. "
Ang Lee did not know how to explain, so he could only say this in a reserved manner.
"Feeling unwell?"
Li Ya 'er was stunned for a moment. She suddenly blushed and said shyly, "Big Brother is so annoying. You actually gave me this kind of thing. Aren't you ashamed?"
Ang Lee smiled awkwardly and briefly explained the function and use of the lotion. Li Ya 'er's face immediately turned even redder.
"Big Brother, I'll go out for a while."
Li Ya 'er felt too embarrassed. She took the large pack of lotion that Ang Lee had given her and ran back to her room.
Ang Lee knew that Li Ya 'er would definitely try it out as soon as she returned to her room. He smiled, left the residence, and went to the R&D Center. No matter what happened in the imperial court, the R&D Center's R&D work could not be stopped for a moment. It had to be continuously developed and improved so that the Tang Empire could develop faster and better.
In Youzhou, Yan Zhuang became a little anxious. A team he had deployed on the north bank of Luokou had suddenly sent back terrible news. The surprise attack had failed, and there were heavy casualties. Many people had also been captured alive.
This was a very serious problem for him. It meant that his carefully designed plan was very likely to be leaked. Once the plan was leaked, Yan Zhuang knew better than anyone how serious the consequences would be.
What worried Yan Zhuang the most was that the two princesses of the Tang Empire had not been found yet. Once the two princesses returned to the capital alive, his master An Lushan's memorial would become a memorial that deceived the emperor.
Yan Zhuang had always wondered whether the branch of the Iron Armored Artillery Brigade that went south had found and brought back the princess. This made him very worried.
Of course, he could only bear these worries by himself. This was because he had promised An Lushan that he would find the two princesses' bodies so that An Lushan could make a new contribution. Since things were not clear, he naturally did not dare to voice his doubts and worries, lest An Lushan become angry and dissatisfied with him.
In addition, he was a good person to be loyal to the emperor......................... An was a cunning and talented and was a good person....................................... An Lushan....
. If An Lushan was about to fall, he would never be blindly loyal to An Lushan. Instead, he would choose to protect himself, even if he had to kill An Lushan. Yan Zhuang was the representative of a man who knew how to adapt to the circumstances...
The main force of Guo Xiang's Iron-Armored Artillery Brigade kept moving northward. After a few days, they arrived at the territory of Youzhou Province. They prepared to stop for large-scale training and maneuver so that the major officials of Hebei Province could see the current national strength and the latest military products of Tang Empire.
As the Jiedushi of Fanyang and Pinglu Towns, An Lushan was naturally the first to be invited. Shi Siming, Yan Zhuang, and the others all followed to visit.
For them, who had stayed far away from the capital for a long time, naturally, they had never seen armored artillery vehicles. They came to visit to broaden their horizons.
"Greetings, Commander An Lushan."
Guo Xiang's position was far lower than An Lushan's. Naturally, he had to salute An Lushan.
"Hahahaha! Colonel Guo, this is an armored artillery vehicle, right? How majestic! Can I go in and have a look? "
An Lushan laughed arrogantly.
"Of course you can. His Majesty said that officials above the seventh-grade of the Tang Empire can enter the armored artillery vehicle and have a look inside. They can also ride it and experience it. Commander An Lushan, please come in."
Of course, Guo Xiang would not refuse An Lushan. After seeing such a big thing, no one could imitate it. Only the R&D Center in Chang 'an City of the Tang Empire had the ability to make such a huge and advanced weapon.
The reason why ordinary people were not allowed to enter and have a look inside was that there were too many of them. If every one of them entered the armored artillery vehicle to have a look, it would be a mess.
An Lushan and his subordinates entered the five armored artillery vehicles to have a look. They all saw the advanced breeches and reliable recoil devices inside the armored artillery vehicles. They all exclaimed that the armored artillery vehicle's strength was far stronger than that of their Fanyang Artillery Brigade.
"Hahaha! It's really a good thing! This iron lump will be invincible on the battlefield. I really don't know when our Fanyang Artillery Brigade will be equipped with such a powerful weapon. "
An Lushan did not conceal his desire for the armored artillery vehicle at all.
"Commander An Lushan, don't worry. More armored artillery vehicles are being built in the capital city. In the future, they may be equipped in all the towns."
Guo Xiang replied with a smile.
"What's this? Why is there no artillery?"
An Lushan entered the armored command vehicle curiously and praised it with satisfaction. Of course, he was also very envious. After all, these things were very good, but he could not have them. Of course, this feeling was very uncomfortable.
"Commander An Lushan, why don't you take a ride around the city and experience the feeling?"
Guo Qiang suggested generously.
"Haha! Okay, Yan Zhuang, Shi Siming, let's get in. "
An Lushan did not refuse. In his territory, he had nothing to be afraid of.
Several armored command vehicles carried An Lushan and the officials of Fanyang Artillery Brigade around Youzhou City and stopped at the original place.
"Commander An Lushan, how do you feel?"
"Good, this armored vehicle is really great. I really want one. In this way, I won't have to worry about assassins when I go out. Haha!"
An Lushan appeared very sincere and did not hide it at all.
After exchanging some pleasantries, the emissary sent by the Imperial Court arrived in Youzhou and immediately announced the Emperor's decree. An Lushan was promoted to Assistant Minister of the Bureau of Rites and was given the title of Pingzhangshi under the Secretariat. An Lushan's original position as Jiedushi of the two towns was unchanged, but Shi Siming was given the title of deputy to temporarily take An Lushan's place in managing Fanyang and Pinglu.
Moreover, An Lushan was requested to go to the capital city as soon as possible and be escorted by the armored artillery vehicle brigade trained in the north.
An Lushan was naturally pleasantly surprised when he heard of the imperial court's reward. He thought that the emperor was commending him for his meritorious service in defeating the two Tibetans. But after careful thought, he was somewhat distressed. After all, he was very suited to be a regional official far away from the imperial palace. If he really went to the capital to be the Prime Minister, with his ability, he simply could not continue to perform meritorious service for the emperor, nor could he collect all kinds of rare beasts to offer to the emperor. In this way, it was only a matter of time before he fell out of favor.
"Congratulations to Commander An Lushan for ascending to the position of Prime Minister. This humble one has also received an imperial edict to escort Commander An Lushan safely to the capital."
Guo Xiang very generously handed the imperial edict he had received to An Lushan. The content was Li Longji's decree, ordering him to safely escort An Lushan back to the capital.
An Lushan looked at the imperial edict and did not doubt the emperor at all. But he did not want to go to the capital to take up a post, and he could not openly defy the edict.
"The handover is rather complicated. I need to take care of it first. I can only depart tomorrow at the very least."
An Lushan could only use a delaying tactic to temporarily stabilize Guo Xiang. Then, he would go back to discuss with his subordinates and advisors, listen to their opinions, and then make a plan.
Of course, Guo Xiang could not tie up An Lushan and bring him to the capital. He could only agree to let An Lushan stay for one more day and set up camp outside the city. He had the soldiers inspect the carriages and prepare to escort An Lushan back to the capital the next day.
Guo Xiang naturally knew what was going on with the emperor's sudden promotion and transfer of An Lushan to the capital, but he pretended to know nothing. He also very sincerely congratulated An Lushan on his promotion to completely stabilize this annoying fellow.
After An Lushan returned to the city, he immediately gathered his trusted generals and advisors, preparing to discuss with them the matter of going to the capital to take up the post of Prime Minister. Shi Siming, Yan Zhuang, and the other core advisors were all present.
Ever since he learned that the emperor had issued an edict to transfer An Lushan to the capital, Yan Zhuang's expression had been somewhat ugly. He already had a very bad premonition. This was a kind of intuition, but Yan Zhuang's intuition was often very reliable. He felt that it was very abnormal for the emperor to suddenly let An Lushan, a Hu, into the capital as Prime Minister. The reason for this abnormal situation was very likely because the emperor knew something. After combining all the recent events and reasonable speculation, Yan Zhuang came to a conclusion that terrified him.
He had enough reason to believe that the armored artillery and brigades that had suddenly come south a few days ago were to escort the princess back to the capital. Now, it was very likely that the princess had already arrived in the capital.
Yan Zhuang did not dare to tell An Lushan about his speculations, because the attack on the two Tibetans had been his idea, and the contents of the memorial had also been his idea. There was also the matter of capturing the two princesses. Yan Zhuang was certain that if he told An Lushan about his speculations, he would incur An Lushan's wrath, and he might even kill him in his rage.
Yan Zhuang, who was on tenterhooks, began to quickly think of countermeasures to get through the danger before him.
An Lushan's other aides and subordinates did not have Yan Zhuang's worries at all. Many of them did not understand the specific situation. They just congratulated An Lushan on his promotion and felt that there was nothing wrong with An Lushan entering the capital to be the Prime Minister. In this way, he could take care of them better. After all, it was better to have someone in the court to do things.
As for going to the capital to be the Prime Minister, most of his subordinates expressed their support and congratulations. However, An Lushan himself was ten thousand times unwilling. Seeing that all his subordinates supported him and no one thought of an excuse for him to decline, he was very dissatisfied.
Moreover, An Lushan was able to survive in the officialdom of the Tang dynasty for so many years. He always had a very bad premonition. He always felt that it was strange that the Emperor did not let him lead the army but let him enter the capital to be the Prime Minister. After reading Guo Yu's imperial edict, he temporarily had no doubts about the Emperor. However, after thinking about it calmly, he still felt that there was something wrong.
"There hasn't been any news from the capital for many days. Did something happen? Dalang has always been very punctual. It's impossible that he hasn't sent someone back for so long."
An Lushan's face was full of suspicion. He found an abnormal situation.
Of course, this was because the railway from Chang 'an to Luoyang had stopped running. It was extremely inconvenient for people to go back and forth. Therefore, they could not return on time.
"That's right! Big Brother has always been punctual. There hasn't been any news from the day before yesterday or today. Even if nothing big happened in the capital, he should have reported that he is safe! "
An Qingxu also felt that something was wrong and echoed.
"Marshal, you can't read a lot. You can be a marshal, but if you become the Prime Minister, you will have to read all day long. How can that be? Why don't you give up the Prime Minister position and let someone else be the Prime Minister? "
One of his trusted subordinates said rudely.
The more Yan Zhuang thought about it, the more he felt that there was a flaw in his plan. An Lushan might have already been suspected by the Emperor. Once the news of the two princesses came back from the capital, even if An Lushan did not kill him, he would not let him off easily. At the very least, there would be no future for him to follow An Lushan. After all, he had caused too much trouble for his master.
"Marshal, His Majesty's imperial edict cannot be disobeyed. If you really feel that you are not suitable to be the Prime Minister, you can explain to His Majesty in person. As long as His Majesty thinks it is reasonable, he will definitely let you return to guard Fanyang."
Yan Zhuang made up his mind and decided to persuade An Lushan to go to the capital. Once the Emperor questioned him, he could completely shirk all responsibility and put all the blame on An Lushan. Thus, he could protect himself. He could even rely on his glib tongue to win the Emperor's trust and become the Emperor's favorite official.
"Mr. Yan is right. His Majesty's imperial edict has been issued. Guo Xu is waiting outside the city. If we don't go to the capital, we will be disobeying the edict."
"Marshal, you should make this trip! At most, you can just tell the Emperor and come back. "
A few of his subordinates had been brainwashed by Yan Zhuang and tried to persuade him.
An Lushan had been hesitant to begin with. Hearing Yan Zhuang's words, he could only agree to go to the capital and have his subordinates prepare. Even though Guo Xu had a large number of armored carriages under his command and could guarantee his safety, he still trusted his own subordinates more. He was very worried about leaving his safety in Guo Xu's hands.
An Lushan had been to the capital once before. This time, he still had to bring a thousand elite guards to ensure his safety.
After a night of preparation, An Lushan sat in his armored carriage and headed toward the capital under the protection of a thousand elite guards. Guo Xu's group was split into two. The main force led the way at the front and maintained a distance of thirty li from An Lushan. Only a few armored command carriages followed close behind An Lushan to ensure his safety in the event of danger.
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