The fifth year of Yongping, June 1.

Midsummer had arrived. Just after the hour of Mao, the sky was already turning pale, and pedestrians began to appear on the streets of the capital.

""Dong! Dong! Dong!"

The dull drumbeats spread from the Meridian Gate Tower, and all the streets near the Forbidden City could hear them clearly.

Ningrong Street, which was close at hand, was second only to Wangfu Street. The deafening drumbeats were heard first, shocking everyone.

The Jia family members who were sleeping were awakened one by one, sweating profusely, as if they had experienced a nightmare.

"The Meridian Gate drum sounded?"

In Rongqing Hall, Jia's mother sat up suddenly from her bed, with a look of fear on her wrinkled old face.

According to the system of the Grand View, the Meridian Gate drum would only be sounded at the annual spring court meeting. In the nearly 100 years since the founding of the country, the only time the Meridian Gate drum sounded in violation of the rules was during the Yuancong battle. On that day, Liaodong, Datong, and Xuanfu were in danger, and all the men in Ning and Rongfu went to the battle together. In the end

, no one survived. This was undoubtedly the most terrifying memory in Jia's mother's heart, and it once again came to her mind.

""Woo woo!"

At this moment, a melodious horn sound came from the East Courtyard of Ningguo Mansion and spread to Ningrong Street.

"What's going on?"

Jia Zhen, Jia She and the others were all shocked.

The Jia family's doormen and servants were all panicked, and none of them had any idea what was going on.

""Open the door!"

With a loud shout, the servants of Ningguo Mansion belatedly opened the vermilion door.

Longxiong Guards had already led a group of Wuzhumuqin horses to the gate of the mansion and were waiting quietly.

"Tap tap.

Wearing a python robe and a jade belt, with his black hair tied up with a purple gold crown, Jia Xuan put his left hand on the hilt of the Chixiao sword at his waist and strode out of the East Courtyard.

""General!"

The twenty Dragon Guards stationed in the East Palace in the past were wearing armor and holding sharp weapons, looking at him solemnly.

""Yes."

Jia Xuan nodded slightly, without saying anything more, took the reins, and jumped up.

In an instant, a dark lightning-like figure rushed out and headed straight for the Forbidden City.

""Da da da! Da da da!"

Twenty Longxiang guards followed closely behind, forming a battle formation, galloping past with the sound of horses' hooves in an orderly manner.

The murderous aura emanating from them made the pedestrians around them retreat, and the elite who had fought in hundreds of battles were no more than this.

In front of the Forbidden City, the civil and military officials had not yet arrived, but there were already a group of nobles wearing their noble robes, standing in the morning, waiting eagerly. Leading them were the Marquis of Zhenguo Niu Jizong, the Earl of Liguo Liu Fang, the Earl of Xiuguo Hou Xiaokang, as well as the founding nobles such as Chen Ruiwen, the Man of Qi, and Jiang Zining, the Master of Pingyuan.

As early as last night after receiving the news from Jia Xuan, these people had already made arrangements. They got up early in the morning, got ready, and arrived at the palace the moment the drums sounded.

"Duke Qin!"

When everyone saw Jia Xuan appear in their sight, they were all a little excited.

"Uncle Niu."

Jia Xuan turned over and dismounted, handed the reins to the Longxiang Guards behind him, and faced the gazes of all the nobles of the founding lineage, and said in a deep voice:"This time"

"The battle in the northwest is far more dangerous than in Liaodong. We have to deal with more than just the 150,000 cavalrymen of the Chahar tribe."

"I hope each of you has thought it through."

‘"Shua!!!"

All the nobles present had serious faces and stood up straight.

Before coming, the nobles present had been tossing and turning all night, and until now, they were actually not sure of their own thoughts. In the Liaodong battle, the 180,000 soldiers of the 12th Regiment Camp and the 50,000 soldiers of the Beijing Camp were almost completely lost. The current 100,000 Beijing Camp and 100,000 Elite Camp are mostly recruited from Northern Zhili, and only the cavalry comes from the former Liaodong Town and Ji Town.

This means that there are very few troops that can be mobilized, and at least 100,000 people must be left in the capital to guard in case of emergency.

Then, the danger of this northwest battle is much higher than the Liaodong battle.

"Don't worry, nephew"

"The founding lineage is willing to go through fire and water, and will not hesitate to do so!"

As the leader, Niu Jizong took the lead in expressing his position

"We are willing to follow Duke Qin to pacify the northwest!"

The many nobles present responded in unison.

""Where is Uncle Qiu?"

Jia Xuan then asked

"Duke Qin!"

A strong middle-aged man in purple official uniform with a tiger patch on his chest stood out with a gleaming look in his eyes.

He was Qiu Liang, the current head of Jingtian Marquis's Mansion and the commander of the Five Cities Military Department. He was one of the few eighth-rank warriors in the country.

"Yulin General Ma Hu took advantage of his position to gain merit, his crime is unforgivable"

"The Northwest War is imminent, and someone must take over his command of the Yulin Frontier Army."

"Uncle Qiu, once you leave, the Five Cities Military Commander will be someone else.

Seeing the tense atmosphere, Jia Xuan joked.

"The prisoner is raised in a bag and only cares about the commander of the Five City Army"

"We are men who act like spoiled brats, so of course we have to fight the Mongolian Tartars with real swords and guns."

"Please rest assured, Duke Qin, we will definitely be able to suppress the Yulin border troops."

Qiu Liang patted his chest and promised

"Hahahaha!"

This remark caused all the nobles present to burst into laughter.

""Okay, enter the palace!"

Jia Xuan nodded with satisfaction and strode into the palace.

Behind him followed a group of founding nobles, dozens of people.

As the drums at the Meridian Gate sounded, officials appeared in front of the Forbidden City gate one after another, passed through the gates and entered the palace. Everyone looked hurried, knowing that the country was in danger and dared not be negligent in the slightest............

Qianqing Palace, Yangxin Hall.

It was still dark, and candles were lit all around, making the figure of Emperor Yongping look even more ferocious.

""Bang!!!"

A loud noise spread throughout the Yangxin Palace. Emperor Yongping slammed the table heavily, completely ignoring the pain in his palm, and roared:"The Ma family in the northwest is really an amazing military family."

"What do they think of the country and me? Are they just fools who can be fooled at will?"

"Ma Hu, a third-rank military officer of the imperial court and the general of Yulin Town, went to kill the Tartars? He killed them, but he killed some useless herdsmen."

"What a great skill!"

From the beginning to the end, the core of this matter is not how many Mongols Ma Hu killed, but that he killed those Mongols and triggered the Chahar tribe to invade southwards, just when the country was at its weakest.

"Your Majesty"

"Our undercover agent in the northwest sent a letter via carrier pigeon, saying that there is a hidden story behind this matter."

"If only the Chahar tribe went south, they could suppress Yulin Town at most, but now Ningxia Town and Gansu Town are facing threats from the Junggar and Khoshut tribes at the same time, and Xining Prefecture has not even heard any news."

Su Peisheng, the head of the Qianqing Palace, lowered his head and said

"You mean there are other people involved, right?"

Emperor Yongping's eyes were full of sinisterness, and his voice suddenly became extremely low, revealing a biting cold.

Of the four kings, eight dukes and twelve marquises who founded the country, only the Xiping County Prince's Mansion and the Nan'an County Prince's Mansion were in charge of the military power.

The former was stationed in Xining Prefecture, facing the Hehuang Valley, and the latter was stationed in Hedong Prefecture, controlling Cangshan Mountain and Erhai Lake.

Over the years, the two county princes' mansions have run Xining Prefecture and Hedong Prefecture like buckets.

By trading with barbarians in Qinghai, Yunnan and other places, they have accumulated an unknown amount of wealth.

The military strength of the two border states has never been known to outsiders, and there are at least 200,000.

As long as Xining Prefecture is still there, how could the Khoshut tribe in Qinghai and Tibet be able to march to Gansu Town? Unless Xining Prefecture and the Khoshut tribe reached some kind of consensus

"Your Majesty is wise"

"The Blood Dropper has discovered traces of the Guard Camp's activities in Xining Prefecture."

Looking up slightly, Su Peisheng's face was also very solemn. As soon as the words fell,

Emperor Yongping laughed in anger:"Good, good job"

"The Fourteenth Master really hates me to the core. He is willing to instigate unrest in the northwest to pull me down from the lofty throne."

"He really lives up to the name of Prince Yizhong"

"Your Majesty."

Wu Sidao, who was in the corner, slid his wheelchair with both hands and slowly appeared in the Yangxin Palace.

"Master Wu."

Seeing Wu Sidao, Emperor Yongping suppressed his anger and temporarily maintained a calm appearance.

"Prince Yizhong's deliberate plan is definitely not just in the northwest"

"Previously, Ping'an Prefecture and Northwest China had traded with each other, and even the Jia family was involved."

"Jia She and his sons of Rongguo Mansion have too close contacts with the governor of Ping'an Prefecture. The 6,000 Ujumchin horses of Longxiang Guard were almost all smuggled from Ping'an Prefecture. This matter is extremely important and must not be ignored."

What?"

Upon hearing this, Emperor Yongping said sinisterly:"The Jia family is involved in this. What do they want to do?"

"Is it possible that being Duke of Qin and General Tiance is not enough, and he must be made a king?"

"His Majesty"

"This matter should have nothing to do with Duke Qin"

"At present, only Duke Qin can solve the problem of the northwest border."

Wu Sidao, who was in a wheelchair, heard the words of Emperor Yongping and couldn't help but speak more seriously, warning:"The more critical the situation, the more you must remain calm............"

"Those traitors don't want to make your Majesty lose his temper so that they can get acquainted with him............"

"The founding lineage has already stood with Your Majesty, and now is the time for Prince Yizhong to take desperate measures."

"Your Majesty, just wait and see, everything will come to a conclusion."

You are kidding!

How can the Jia family and Jia Xuan be lumped together? If that were the case, then Jia Xuan could just wave his hand and the palace would be broken into in an instant. Why would there be so much trouble?

Jia Xuan was deeply in the care of the retired emperor. If he rebelled, no one in the world would tolerate him.

"call..."

Emperor Yongping let out a long breath, and his mood calmed down a lot. He said solemnly:"I understand what Master Wu said."

"But now there is a big threat in the northwest. If Xining Prefecture really rebels, what should we do?"

"Even in Shenjing, are there any available manpower now?"

"If the Thirteenth Prince had not been injured, he would not be in this situation today."

Among the princes of the retired emperor, the Thirteenth Prince Zhongshun and the Fourteenth Prince Yizhong were the most courageous.

They had entered the realm of ninth-rank warriors early on, and were proficient in military books and strategies, and led troops to fight.

Unfortunately, the battle for the throne was difficult, and the two fought each other, and both were seriously injured, far less than before.

"His Majesty"

"I think the 100,000 elite troops cannot go out to fight, but must stay in the capital to prevent the Ping'an border troops from making any moves."

"As long as the emperor does not have any attachment to Prince Li Zhong, the elite camp and the nobles will follow your Majesty's lead."

Wu Sidao spoke again.

Hearing this, a trace of haze flashed across Emperor Yongping's eyes.

Over the years, the one he could not figure out the most was the emperor, and he was always worried.

Who can guarantee that the emperor will definitely like him, who can guarantee that the emperor will not take off his crown with an imperial decree casually.

No emperor can pin his hopes on others, so the so-called loneliness is like this.

"The Blood Dropper must have warned Prince Yi Zhong not to allow any of the Fourteenth Master's party officials to interfere in the capital."

"Moreover, those who go to the northwest must not be from the Yuan Cong lineage.

"The only suitable candidate is the founding lineage headed by Duke Qin. Let's see how they solve the northwest border troubles and Xining Prefecture."

Wu Sidao said meaningfully.

Prince Yi Zhong is an extremely dangerous person. He has always suspected that Prince Yi Zhong has restored the strength of a ninth-rank warrior, but there is no evidence.

Once Prince Yi Zhong appears on the border, the threat to Emperor Yongping will be greatly increased.

If Prince Yi Zhong's party members link Ping'an Prefecture, Xining Prefecture and the three border towns of Gansu, Ningxia and Yulin in the northwest, it would be a bit scary.

As for the Yuan Cong lineage, they already have 100,000 elite camps in their hands. They finally suppressed them with the help of the Liaodong Camp. Naturally, they cannot let them recover their strength, which is equivalent to adding shackles to Emperor Yongping.

"Jia Jing is still donating to his fourteenth brother"

"Can I trust Jia Xuan?"

Emperor Yongping, with a fearful look on his face, was skeptical about this proposal.

At the beginning, the prince's think tank was Jia Jing, who not only plotted against the eighth prince, but also plotted against him, leaving him no chance to rise.

Over the years, Emperor Yongping has been pressing Jia Jing step by step, and finally drove him out of the capital.

But even so, Jia Jing still hooked up with Prince Yi Zhong's mansion and sent 50,000 taels of silver every year. How could the Jia family make him trust him?

"His Majesty"

"Jia Xuan is different from Jia Jing. He is Duke of Qin and General Tiance."

"Furthermore, Jia Jing's choice might be a trick. Who knows what the relationship between him and Prince Yi Zhong is?"

Speaking of this, Wu Sidao's voice became particularly heavy.

Sometimes, the friend of your enemy may not be your friend, and the enemy of your enemy may not be your enemy. Interests are the eternal foundation.

"Master Wu"

"I understand what you mean. I will give the opportunity to the founding lineage and see if they can seize it."

"Su Peisheng, immediately order the Blood Droppers to increase their attention to Prince Yi Zhong's mansion and never allow the Fourteenth Prince to leave my sight."

Emperor Yongping ordered in a deep voice

"Yes."

Su Peisheng, the head of the Qianqing Palace, hurried down to make arrangements.

"Your Majesty, the court officials have all arrived!"

A young eunuch hurried in to report.

"Good!"

Emperor Yongping nodded, then sat on the imperial chariot and headed towards the Golden Throne Hall.

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