Li Linfu relied on framing virtuous ministers to climb to the position of Prime Minister step by step. He was very worried that his position as Prime Minister would be threatened. For this reason, he often framed ministers who were important to the Emperor in order to eliminate this threat.
Ang Lee was young, but he had already been valued by Li Longji. In the future, he would definitely be put in an important position. This posed a potential threat to Li Linfu's position as Prime Minister. Naturally, Li Linfu would not take it lightly.
However, Li Linfu was a smart man. He knew under what circumstances he could frame someone, under what circumstances he could assassinate a minister, and under what circumstances he could not do these things.
In Li Linfu's mind, Li Longji was a shrewd and arrogant Emperor. No matter what tricks he played, he could not escape from Li Longji's hands. Therefore, his tricks must be in line with Li Longji's wishes. If he went against Li Longji's wishes, not only would his framing not succeed, but it would also bring disaster to himself. After all, Li Longji was the ruler of a country and the wise lord who pioneered the prosperity of the Tang dynasty. He could not be deceived by a few words of framing.
At that time, Li Linfu framed Zhang Jiuling because he guessed that Li Longji was extremely dissatisfied with Zhang Jiuling's support of the Crown Prince. He framed the former Crown Prince, Guang Wang, and King E because Li Longji did not trust his son at that time and was afraid that his son would usurp the throne.
But now, Ang Lee was about to escort Prince Guichang back to Dongnu Province under Li Longji's orders and deal with the crisis in Dongnu Province. If he made trouble for Ang Lee at this time and caused Ang Lee's mission to fail, the interests of the Tang Empire would inevitably suffer a huge loss. If Li Longji knew about it, he would lose his position as Prime Minister.
Although Li Linfu had many subordinates who worked for him, no one could guarantee that there were no spies of Li Longji among them. Therefore, Li Linfu naturally would not take this risk.
"Zhonglin, I know that you are loyal, but you can't say such things. The situation in Dongnu Province is related to the rise and fall of the Tang dynasty and Tufan. As the Prime Minister of the Tang dynasty, how can I ignore the interests of the Tang dynasty for my personal interests?"
Li Linfu glared at Li Zhonglin and put on a posture of worry for the Tang dynasty.
Li Zhonglin was stunned and asked, "Prime Minister, are you going to wait and see?"
With his signature smile, Li Linfu glanced at Zhonglin and said, "Zhonglin, go to the Spiritual State and ask Li An to come here. . "
"Ah Lang, why is that?"
Li Zhonglin's brows furrowed.
"Don't ask so many questions. go."
Li Linfu glared at Li Zhonglin and asked him to go and get Ang Lee.
After Li Zhonglin ran out of the study, Li Linfu continued to stroke his beard and fell into deep thought.
###
In the guest room of the Lingzhou Palace, Ang Lee and Li Feiyu were discussing the details of escorting Prince Guichang back to Dongnu Province. Li Feiyu stood next to them and interjected from time to time.
"Big Brother, someone is looking for you."
Li Kunxiong strode into the room.
"Who's looking for me?"
"Big Brother, that person claims to be called Li Zhonglin. He said that he's the butler of the Prime Minister's residence. I don't know if that's true or not."
When Ang Lee heard this, he looked at Li Feiyu and said, "Zhonglin is the butler of the Prime Minister's residence? Could he be Li Linfu's butler?"
"I'm fine. We'll know once we go out."
Ang Lee nodded and led his three brothers out of the door.
"You're looking for me."
Li Zhonglin smiled and said respectfully, "Captain Li, I'm the butler of the Prime Minister's residence. The Prime Minister wants to see Captain Li and asked me to come and invite you."
"Oh, the Prime Minister wants to see me."
Ang Lee was slightly surprised and unconsciously frowned. Li Longji had just met him not long ago. Why did Li Linfu want to see him? What was he trying to do?
To be honest, Ang Lee didn't have a good impression of Li Linfu. The books of the future all described Li Linfu as a treacherous and evil person. Therefore, when he heard that Li Linfu wanted to see him, Ang Lee immediately felt that there was a conspiracy. < >
"Captain Li, the Prime Minister is waiting in the study of the residence. Please do me the honor."
Ang Lee and his three brothers looked at each other and nodded, "Okay, wait a moment. After Ang Lee makes some preparations, I'll go with you to the Prime Minister's residence."
After returning to the guest room, Ang Lee changed into some decent clothes and tidied up his hair.
"Big Brother, everyone says that Li Xiangguo is an extremely dangerous person. This time, he invited you for no reason. I'm afraid he doesn't have good intentions."
"That's right, Big Brother. Li Xiangguo is the most jealous. You've been put in an important position by His Majesty. I'm sure Li Xiangguo is very dissatisfied. I'm afraid this is a trap."
"It's fine. Why don't the three of us go with you? If anything happens, we can take care of each other."
Ang Lee gently shook his head and looked at the three of them, "No need. If Li Linfu wants to plot against me, even if you go, you won't be able to do anything. Don't worry, Li Xiangguo is a smart person. He won't do anything to me at this time."
After he finished speaking, he strode out of the gate. Under Li Zhonglin's lead, he rode towards Li Linfu's residence.
Li Feishouyu, Kun Xiong, and Fei Yu were worried about Ang Lee going alone. After Ang Lee left, they quietly followed behind him.
###
In the study of the Prime Minister's residence, Li Linfu maintained a contemplative posture. He was almost motionless. He was waiting for Ang Lee's arrival.
The reason why Li Linfu wanted to see Ang Lee was to better understand Ang Lee. At the same time, he wanted to test Ang Lee's political ideals. < >
"Alang, Captain Li is here."
Li Linfu was slightly taken aback. He immediately stood up and said, "Open the gate to welcome him. Hurry up and open the gate to welcome him."
"Yes, Alang."
Outside of Li Linfu's residence, Ang Lee raised his head and looked at the gilded plaque above his head. The corners of his mouth moved slightly. This was Li Linfu's residence. Naturally, it was not comparable to the entrance of an ordinary residence. Just the plaque alone was worth a lot of money. The stone beast in front of the door was made of the best stone. The halberd holder was also inlaid with copper.
Click click click.
Following the ear-piercing sound of the door turning, the door of the Prime Minister's residence slowly opened.
From this ear-piercing sound, Ang Lee could tell that the door of the Prime Minister's residence had not been opened for a long time. Today, it was actually opened for a young boy like him. This made him feel extremely surprised.
What made him even more surprised was that the moment the door of the Prime Minister's residence opened, a kind old man with a radiant smile slowly walked in. He waved at Ang Lee.
"Captain Li, please come in."
Li Linfu personally welcomed Ang Lee. Moreover, his attitude was extremely warm.
Ang Lee was surprised. He quickly stepped into the Prime Minister's residence. He respectfully bowed and pretended to be grateful: "Ang Lee is only a small character. How could I trouble Prime Minister to personally welcome me? Prime Minister's action is too much for Ang Lee."
Li Linfu smiled very sweetly. He squinted his small eyes and warmly said: "Captain Li's position may be low, but you are a rare young hero of the Tang dynasty. This Prime Minister does not respect Captain Li's position, but I respect Captain Li's talent. In the battle of An Bian City, Captain Li defeated the five thousand elite soldiers of the Fan army with three hundred soldiers. You killed the Fan army's general Li Tianlong. This greatly defeated the arrogance of the Fan army. Sun Bin and Yue Yi of the ancient times were nothing more than this. Come, please come in."
Being praised by Li Linfu, Ang Lee's heart felt very comfortable. However, he still had some understanding of Li Linfu. Therefore, his heart was always vigilant.
In the main hall of the Prime Minister's residence, Ang Lee and Li Linfu sat as the host and guest. Li Zhonglin stood beside them and served them. Several beautiful maidservants served delicious pastries and hot tea.
Ang Lee was a little nervous. He looked sideways at Li Linfu and cupped his hands: "Prime Minister, please forgive me. A few days ago on the street, Ang Lee did not know that the person in the sedan was Prime Minister. I have offended you."
Li Linfu smiled wholeheartedly as he waved his hand and said, "This is a small matter that isn't worth mentioning. However, there aren't many people who dare look me in the eye. This is sufficient to show that Li Xiaowei isn't an ordinary person."
Ang Lee also smiled apologetically. After a pause, he said: "Prime Minister, in half a month, Ang Lee will escort Prince Guichang to Dongnu Province. I wonder if Prime Minister has any advice for me."
"Captain Li is a young hero. You are both intelligent and brave. You are certainly qualified for the task of escorting. There is no need for this Prime Minister to say more."
Li Linfu's smile was still sweet. A light flashed in his eyes.
"Prime Minister, you praise me too much. Ang Lee does not deserve such praise."
After exchanging a few words with Li Linfu, Ang Lee was able to feel Li Linfu's power. This person's nickname of being a hypocrite was not baseless. At the very least, in Ang Lee's opinion, every word Li Linfu said was so pleasing to the ear. It made people unconsciously have a good impression of him and let down their guard.
Li Linfu narrowed his eyes as he sized up Li An from head to toe. It was as if he wanted to see through Li An. This caused Li An to feel extremely uncomfortable, and he even felt a chill run down his spine.
"Captain Li is a young hero. You are both intelligent and brave. You have received His Majesty's favor. Your future is immeasurable. Oh, that's right, His Highness the Crown Prince must also care about Captain Li. In that case, there is no need to talk about Captain Li's future. Haha!"
Li Linfu's attitude became even more amiable. He looked at Ang Lee as if he was looking at his own son. His eyes were full of praise and concern.
However, Ang Lee was also a very shrewd person. He knew that Li Linfu was testing his attitude toward the Crown Prince. He smiled faintly and said modestly, "Prime Minister, you flatter me. Ang Lee was lucky enough to make a small contribution to the Tang dynasty. I actually received His Majesty's appreciation. I am quite nervous. In this life, I can only pledge my loyalty to His Majesty to repay His Majesty's appreciation. However, His Highness the Crown Prince does not seem to care about Ang Lee."
Li Linfu pretended to be puzzled. He frowned and said, "Captain Li is a young hero. He is a rare talent in the Tang dynasty. How can His Highness the Crown Prince not appreciate him?"
"Ang Lee took advantage of the favorable time and place and luckily made a small contribution. There is nothing outstanding about him. It is natural that His Highness the Crown Prince does not value him. However, Ang Lee only needs to be loyal to His Majesty. There is no need for His Highness the Crown Prince to value him."
"Then Captain Li has not thought about the future."
A strange look flashed in Li Linfu's eyes.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
