Return of the Swallow

Li Qitian acts cautiously, and naturally he will not listen to or trust anyone easily. But the timing in the excerpt was too coincidental. Even though Li Qitian didn't want to believe that the Lu family would sell out his official position, he still had doubts in his heart.

Others don't know, but Lu Tingzhong traveled to the south under the guise of inspecting the people's sentiments, but in fact he was monitoring Pang Xiao. In private, Li Qitian also arranged other things for him to do.

If Lu Tingzhong became an imperial envoy after buying an official position, it would be terrible if you think about it carefully.

Li Qitian was filled with depression, and with a stroke of his pen, he dismissed the official's proposal.

Unexpectedly, this discount was rejected once and was accepted again not long ago.

Li Qitian dismissed it again, and the officials continued to complain. They made three excuses about this matter.

Li Qitian's face turned dark at this time, and he made a vicious note about the Lu family in his heart.

What a Lu Heng, how dare you play with me!

After the Qingming Festival, Pang Xiao's health finally improved day by day. After returning to Beijing to recuperate for more than a month, Prince Zhongshun finally attended the court meeting.

When Li Qitian saw Pang Xiao going to court and standing among the civil servants, he felt a little angry in his heart. He suppressed his anger and said a few symbolic words of concern.

The rumors outside that he "treats heroes harshly" have just subsided, and Li Qitian really doesn't want to cause trouble again. Therefore, Pang Xiao's position after returning to Beijing really needs to be carefully considered.

Li Qitian listened absently to the discussion of the ministers, and before he could think of where to place Pang Xiao, Duke Chang Guo stood up again.

"Your Majesty, I would like to visit Prince Zhongshun..."

The content of Chang Guogong's impeachment of Pang Xiao is a cliché. During this period, there was an impeachment every few days. Every time, Li Qitian only said "to be investigated".

However, today, Duke Chang Guo and the officials seemed to have made an appointment, and they not only talked about the contents of the previous participation in a rapid-fire manner. Someone even said loudly:

"Prince Zhongshun seems to be a loyal minister, but in fact he is a coward, disrespectful to the Holy One, and also deliberately creates rumors among the people to slander the Holy One. He really deserves to be punished!"

"Prince Zhongshun was ordered to guard the south. During this period, there was no chaos in the south. He just completed his duties. He dared to claim credit, and even incited people to show credit for himself. This was nothing more than deliberately forcing the Holy One to make arrangements for him. Higher official position.”

"This man has done everything he can to get an official career! He has made no achievements in court affairs, and his character is really despicable and despicable. How can such a person be worthy of staying in the capital? He must be allowed to reflect hard before he can be used. "

As soon as these words came out, there was a silence in the palace.

Many people's eyes were focused on Pang Xiao.

In the past, Pang Xiao said he was ill and refused to go to court, so he had no choice but to let them go if he wanted to play any music. Now that Pang Xiao is present, those who agree with Pang Xiao are anxious in their hearts, thinking about how Pang Xiao will defend themselves. These ministers who support Pang Xiao know that Pang Xiao is not a soft persimmon that can be flattened and rounded by others. After being framed, they naturally want to speak out. . They can finally vent their anger.

But who would have expected that Pang Xiao actually kept silent and bowed his head submissively, as if admitting guilt.

This surprised everyone, including Li Qitian.

It also made the officials even more excited, and they all came up with ideas on how to punish Pang Xiao.

Duke Chang Guo seemed to have been given a shot of chicken blood, and he spoke as if he had pushed down a cart of walnuts without even breathing.

"I second the proposal. I believe that what Prince Zhongshun did is really not worthy of the word 'loyalty' and betrays the grace of the Holy One. It is better to let Prince Zhongshun reflect on it. Now that the world is settled,

Huichuan County should also start construction. There is a lack of prime minister supervision here. I think Prince Zhongshun is qualified for this job. Let Prince Zhongshun supervise the construction of the imperial mausoleum to forgive his sins and give him time to reflect on his sins. "

The officials' eyes lit up and they all agreed.

The ministers who supported Pang Xiao secretly cursed Duke Chang Guo. This old man was really vicious. All the imperial envoys who had supervised the construction of the Prime Minister's Imperial Tomb had a bad end. Duke Chang pushed Pang Xiao to his death!

Some people couldn't help it and stood up to refute.

"Prince Zhongshun is a meritorious official and has outstanding talents. He will be used highly by the Holy Emperor. If Prince Zhongshun is responsible for building the imperial mausoleum, wouldn't it be killing a chicken with a sledgehammer?"

The officials were naturally dissatisfied when they heard this.

The scene became chaotic and the ministers quarreled. Only Pang Xiao, the person involved, has remained quiet.

Li Qitian's mind was spinning at this time.

In fact, he really had a headache about participating in Pang Xiao. It was all because he was thinking of seeing a joke at the beginning, and then he allowed Duke Chang to lead others to mess around. He didn't stop it the first time, and later he didn't clear up Pang Xiao's name. There will be no chance to exonerate Pang Xiao in the future, not to mention that Li Qitian is still feeling awkward.

Li Qitian has been worried about Pang Xiao's appointment. His original intention was not to give him another chance to take power, but the public opinion outside was huge. If he was not given the position, it would be confirmed that he treated loyal ministers harshly.

In such a dilemma, Duke Chang Guo proposed that Pang Xiao be the imperial envoy to supervise the construction of the imperial mausoleum, which made Li Qitian's eyes light up.

It can keep Pang Xiao away from the center of power, and you can catch him at any time for his mistakes. It can also prevent him from causing trouble in front of his eyes. Talk about it and build the imperial tomb for him. This is only arranged by him because he has special trust in Pang Xiao. It is also an honor for Pang Xiao, it is simply killing two birds with one stone.

Thinking of this, Pang Xiao felt a stone drop in his heart. His fingers tapped the armrests of the dragon chair happily.

The ministers below were still noisy and cheerful. Li Qitian looked at them as if they were watching a monkey show.

When he caught sight of Lu Heng from the corner of his eye, Li Qitian immediately had a new idea in his mind.

If he dares to treat him like a monkey and buy official posts to influence the court's employment, Lu Heng should teach him a lesson.

"Hmm." Li Qitian coughed lightly.

The loyal ministers were stunned for a moment when they heard the sound, and then they all stopped talking, and the court room immediately returned to silence.

Li Qitian said: "Zhixi."

"Your Majesty." Pang Xiao saluted.

"The construction work in Huichuan County has been suspended for a long time. I really need a trustworthy person to be the supervisor of the imperial envoy. I will leave this job to you."

All the ministers in the court were silent for a moment.

The generals who had just argued with the officials who impeached Pang Xiao were indignant, and some wanted to stand up and say something to Pang Xiao.

Unexpectedly, Pang Xiao bowed first and responded respectfully and fearfully without any objection: "I obey the order. Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness."

Li Qitian smiled, nodded, and said, "Uncle Zhongyi."

Lu Heng was lowering his head and thinking about Li Qitian's actions today. When he was suddenly called, he was stunned for a moment. He quickly stood up and saluted, "I'm here."

"I attach great importance to the project in Huichuan County. Since Prince Zhongshun is supervising the project, the position of county magistrate will be handed over to you. You and Prince Zhongshun are both my humerus ministers. I believe that you two will be able to cooperate fully and work together. Get this done.”

Lu Heng was beyond shocked.

It has been more than ten years since the Lumen family secretly funded Li Qitian's rebellion, and it has been eight years since the founding of the Zhou Dynasty. The Lumen family has always been on one side, and he has gradually gained Li Qitian's trust.

Lu Heng was confident that among the nobles of the court, there was no one who could achieve the Sacred Heart better than him.

But who could have imagined that the Holy Emperor would suddenly ask him to be a small magistrate of Huichuan County, doing such a thankless task as repairing the imperial mausoleum?

You must know that countless people have died in succession in the position of Huichuan County Magistrate.

Lu Heng felt anxious and unconvinced.

But out of the corner of his eye, he saw Pang Xiao, such a domineering figure, but now he was as obedient as a cat, and he agreed without any objection to be the Prime Minister Supervisor of Nao Shizi's construction of the imperial mausoleum, which clearly shows that the current situation is serious.

He knew that the Holy Emperor had always been afraid of Pang Xiao.

But if Pang Xiao is obedient like that, but he stands up to refute, no matter what the Holy One's considerations are for issuing this decree, he will only make the Holy One even more dissatisfied.

Thoughts went back and forth, but Lu Heng finally knelt down and saluted, "I thank you for your grace. I will do my best to share your worries with you."

"Yeah." Li Qitian responded in a long tone.

Because of the obedience of these two people, Li Qitian was in a good mood, and he was also a little afraid that his appointment today would be talked about behind his back, so Li Qitian added, "Zhixi is not well now, and he is not in a hurry to take up the post. You can support me." Okay, it’s not too late to set off. The matter of the imperial mausoleum will be left to the two beloved ministers in the future, and you two can discuss and set off."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I obey your order." Pang Xiao responded with a neat salute.

Li Qitian expressed his sympathy to Lu Heng again, "Uncle Zhongyi is newlywed, so you should take office with your family."

"Yes, I thank you for your grace."

After Li Qitian completed this matter, his mood became better and better. He was still smiling even when he returned to the imperial study after the court.

Not to mention how Pang Xiao and Lu Heng arranged their departure when they returned home respectively.

The news that Prince Zhongshun and Uncle Zhongyi were about to set off to build the imperial mausoleum spread throughout the government and the public in the blink of an eye.

The common people are talking about it. After all, they are far away from the struggle for power and do not know much about the affairs of the court.

But those people rolling around in the court saw this matter in their eyes.

Several generals in the Huben army who admired Pang Xiao got the news, and everyone was full of indignation.

"I didn't expect that the prince fought so many battles for the Holy Father through life and death, and in the end he ended up building the imperial mausoleum."

"Grandma! What kind of official is he who is building the imperial mausoleum? Ah? Isn't this a knife to poke an ant?"

"The most important thing is that few of the officials who built the imperial mausoleum ended up well. They are trying to punish the prince to death!"

…

Everyone was indignant, but some of the more inspiring ones stayed awake and persuaded the angry people around them, "Okay, okay, everyone, stop making noise, spread the word and let others listen, for fear of causing trouble to the prince. The prince is loyal to the Holy One, so of course He accepted the order cheerfully, if we say this, if someone with a heart listens to it, and instead accuses the prince of being dissatisfied with the Holy One, then wouldn’t the prince be even more unjust?"

"That being said, Your Majesty is too..."

"You still say that! You still haven't shut up!"

Several people reminded each other, fearing that disaster would come out of their mouths, but even the one who kept his sense and calmed others was still angry in his heart.

Since ancient times, cunning rabbits have been cooked by lackeys. How long has it been since the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty? It's too fast to unload the mill and kill the donkey!

Acting like this, how many people dare to serve the person above wholeheartedly?

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