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Chapter 651: Hu Weiyong's Conspiracy

When the capital was moved, and before a conclusion was reached, a series of appointment letters were issued from the three provinces and six ministries, which was shocking. It was nothing that King Deng Fu of Chu was involved in the army. After all, the prince was not the first. King Deng Han of Jin and King Deng Yu of Wei were also in charge of the elite troops of the guards. On the contrary, King Deng Zun of Qi was in charge of Guanzhong, which made people think a lot.

Although Chang'an City has not been defeated yet, everyone knows that breaking the city is just a matter of time. How could a mere Chang'an City without reinforcements be able to stop the 600,000 Deng army?

The prince is in charge of the rule of the country. Deng Sheng had five princes and three joined the army. Before, the only one who could participate in government affairs was the crown prince Deng Hao. Now there is another king of Qi Deng Zun. Once Deng Zun is in charge of Guanzhong, who knows whether Deng Sheng will hand over all the military power of Guanzhong to Deng Zun? So some people wonder if Deng Sheng was worried that Prince Deng Hao would be full of wings and would threaten his position and support Deng Zun to compete with Deng Hao? He even wanted to replace Deng Hao with Deng Zun.

The east of Wancheng City, Wuling County Duke's Mansion, this is the residence of the Shangshu Ling Hu Weiyong. After a day of government affairs, Hu Weiyong invited his confidant and the new Minister of Works Liu Jian.

"Prince, why did Your Majesty suddenly let the King of Qi take charge of Guanzhong? Is this something that has never happened before?" Liu Jian asked Hu Weiyong in the study.

Hu Weiyong smiled and said, "Your Majesty has a far-sighted vision. How can you and I see through it? But this may also be an opportunity for you and me."

"Opportunity? What opportunity?" Liu Jian asked in confusion.

"All civil and military officials in the court know that the original minister and the prince are incompatible. If the prince ascends the throne in the future, the original minister may not have any good ending. Since that is the case, why don't we take this opportunity to move closer to the King of Qi and help the King of Qi expand its power." Hu Weiyong said in a low voice.

But Hu Weiyong's words shocked Liu Jian very much and said, "Prince, are you saying that we should support King Qi to ascend to the throne?"

"What's wrong? The King of Qi is also Your Majesty's parent-child. Why can't the King of Qi sit in this great country?" Hu Weiyong smiled and said.

"But King Qi is not the eldest son!" Liu Jian said.

Hu Weiyong shook his head and said, "Your Majesty was not the eldest son back then. Although the King of Qi was ranked fourth among the princes, he was also the legitimate son of the queen. He was a compatriot with the prince. In terms of status, he was a little stronger than His Majesty back then. Why can't he covet the throne?"

Liu Jian thought for a while and said, "Although that's the case, the prince has lived in the Eastern Palace for more than ten years, has a stable foundation, and is also well-versed in all literary and military strategies. The court's civil and military praises and convincing people, and has a full wing. How can the King of Qi compete with the prince?"

Liu Jian’s worries are not unreasonable. Deng Hao became the prince of Deng at the age of 19 and lived in the Eastern Palace for more than ten years. He was deeply supported by both the government and the country. He also handled the government affairs for Deng Sheng for many years. In terms of reputation and means, he was not comparable to that of the fledgling Deng Zun.

"Otherwise!" Hu Weiyong shook his head and said, "In fact, the ability of the King of Qi is not inferior to that of the prince, and it is even more than that of the prince!"

"How can I tell?" Liu Jian asked back.

Hu Weiyong said: "Do you know how old is the King of Qi?"

Liu Jian thought for a while and replied, "If the Xiaguan remembers correctly, King Qi was born in the 11th year of Qianyuan, and there are twenty-two this year."

"Then do you still remember the crown prince, King Jin, and King Wei when he was in office?" Hu Weiyong asked again.

Liu Jian shook his head and said, "This official is not very clear about it."

Deng Hao, Deng Han, and Deng Yu were still the prefect when he became an official, and he had no chance to contact the central government. How could he know?

Hu Weiyong said: "The crown prince took office in the 18th year of Qianyuan. That year, the crown prince was eighteen years old. The king of Jin and Wei became officials in the 19th year of Qianyuan. That year, the king of Jin and Wei were only sixteen years old. Now the king of Qi was only twenty-two years old. In comparison, it was already very late. Moreover, when the crown prince first took office, His Majesty only allowed him to walk in the three provinces and six ministries and had no real power. The king of Jin and Wei were only small soldiers under Duke Chen back then. However, now the king of Qi was in charge of Guanzhong as soon as he took office. It can be seen that the prince of Qi has been recognizing his ability. According to his original opinion, the reason why His Majesty has been slow to let the king of Qi serve as an official is to suppress the king of Qi. From this, it can be seen that the king of Qi is not simple, and is even stronger than the prince."

Liu Jian thought carefully and thought Hu Weiyong was very reasonable. If Deng Zun's ability is almost the same as Deng Hao and others, then according to Deng Sheng's character, Deng Zun should have been allowed to become an official a few years ago. Moreover, both in politics and military affairs need to start from a low point. How could it be like now? Deng Zun directly took charge of Guanzhong as soon as he became an official, and monopolized the power of Guanzhong. This is very unreasonable. The only explanation is that Deng Zun is very capable, and Deng Sheng believes that he can clean up the mess in Guanzhong.

"Then Prime Minister, how should we help the King of Qi now? How can we arouse the King of Qi's ambition to fight for the throne?" Liu Jian asked.

As Hu Weiyong said, the conflict between him and the prince Deng Hao is well known to the world. As Hu Weiyong's party, he must have been regarded as a thorn in his side by the prince Deng Hao. Once Deng Hao ascended the throne, how could he tolerate them? You must know that there are many talents in Deng State now, and there are many people who are stronger than Liu Jian and Hu Weiyong. Without Hu Weiyong and Liu Jian, others will soon take their place. For the sake of the future, they have to make plans in advance.

Hu Weiyong said: "This is not a good opportunity to fight for the throne. Now that the King of Qi has just become an official, he cannot compete with the prince at all. What we need to do is to cultivate the power for the King of Qi and guide him slowly. When the time is ripe, it is a good opportunity to take action. Now that Your Majesty is in full bloom in spring and autumn, according to his original opinion, even if Your Majesty lives for more than ten or twenty years, he will not be a problem. All the princes are nearly fifty years old. The King of Qi is just young and strong, and he controls the fertile land of Guanzhong, so he will have a chance of victory."

Liu Jian nodded. Deng Zun is alone now. If he showed his ambition for the throne at this time, he might be able to kill him in the cradle with just one move.

"What do the prime minister thinks we should do?" Liu Jian asked.

Hu Weiyong said: "The King of Qi is in charge of Guanzhong and governing the government affairs of the six counties of Guanzhong. It is definitely necessary to have a large number of people. We can select a group of officials to assist the King of Qi. As long as the King of Qi can achieve results in Guanzhong and show outstanding abilities, it will definitely make the Chinese and Chinese military in the court look at it with admiration. By then, some speculative people will approach the King of Qi. After all, who doesn't want the Dragon's merit? And now it is rumored that the prince's power to move the capital to His Majesty the capital. This incident has caused many people to be dissatisfied with the prince. Once the King of Qi emerges, these people will become the help of the King of Qi!"

"Prince, moving the capital is just a rumor and has not been confirmed. I am afraid it will not have any impact on the prince, right?" Liu Jian said in confusion. After all, since the relocation of the capital has been rumored, no one in the court has come out to confirm or clarify. So far, moving the capital is just a rumor.

Hu Weiyong shook his head and said, "Otherwise, you should know that there is no groundless thing in this world. Since this rumor can be spread, it must be based on it. I am afraid that the capital is moving is true. It's just that Your Majesty does not want to cause too much trouble, so he will not make any secrets, but will only test all forces in the form of rumors."

Liu Jian nodded understandingly and said, "Prime Minister, the official understands!"

"Just understand!" Hu Weiyong said with satisfaction.

Just when Hu Weiyong and Liu Jian were plotting to assist Deng Zun in fighting for the throne, Chen Zhi, who came from Guanzhong, also came to Wancheng with Xue Rengui's memorial. After settling in the inn, Chen Zhi went to the palace to meet Deng Sheng.

Deng Sheng also summoned Chen Zhi at Ganyang Palace as soon as possible.

"The sin is the one who is the one who is guilty. I wish you a long life and a long country will be forever!" In Ganyang Palace, Chen Zhi leaned on the ground and bowed to his feet.

"General Chen doesn't have to be too polite, please get up!" Deng Sheng smiled and raised his hand to help Chen Zhi.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Chen Zhi responded and stood up.

While Shen Zhi stood up, Deng Sheng also took the opportunity to let the system detect Shen Zhi's four-dimensionality.

"Chen Zhi, Martial Arts: 91, Commander: 94, Intelligence: 87, Politics: 83"

"It's indeed a good general!" After seeing Chen Zhi's four-dimensional data, Deng Sheng couldn't help but secretly praise him. Chen Zhi is worthy of being called the second only to Bai Qi in the young and strong generation of Qin. This data is still at the upper level even in the current Deng army. In Zhao, Li Rubing is probably the only one who can beat Chen Zhi.

"I am deeply pleased that General Chen can abandon the darkness and turn to the light. General Chen is relieved. With General Chen's ability, he will never be buried in Deng." Facing Chen Zhi, Deng Sheng couldn't help but draw a big pie.

"Thank you Your Majesty for praise. Your Majesty is this written by General Xue, who ordered me to present to Your Majesty in person. Please read it!" After that, Chen Zhi took out a piece of paper from his sleeve and presented it with both hands.

Gui Xiang took the note from Chen Zhi and handed it to Deng Sheng.

Deng Sheng opened it and saw that this was Xue Rengui's explanation of the layout and details of the Battle of Chang'an to him, and Xue Rengui promised that the war in Guanzhong would end before the beginning of winter. Moreover, Xue Rengui also mentioned Chen Zhi in the commentary, praising Chen Zhi as a talent. After Deng Sheng finished reading it, he nodded and closed the commentary.

Then, Deng Sheng said to Chen Zhi: "General Chen, Xue Qing admires you very much in the memorial. It seems that Xue Qing has a very good impression of you. It's been a long time since I saw Xue Qing praise someone like this."

"Your Majesty, this is just a promotion by General Xue. I am ashamed of you!" Chen Zhi said modestly.

Deng Sheng was very satisfied with Chen Zhi's attitude, nodded and said, "General Chen doesn't have to be too humble. I know Xue Qing's character very well. If you are not capable and just a mediocre person, Xue Qing will never recommend you to me. General Chen, I will give you the title of General Fenwu today, and will be awarded the title of Wei Yuanbo. As for your place, after the war in Guanzhong is quelled, you will be treated. During this period, you will be together with your family in Wancheng for a good life."

"I thank Your Majesty for your kindness!" Chen Zhi was very happy. Although this official position and title were far inferior to his when he was in Qin, Chen Zhi was just a surrendered general at this time. Moreover, in the battle of Guanzhong, he had only the contribution of offering the shovel, which was not as good as the Xiliang Ma clan and the Sima family in Lintao. It was already very good to be able to get an earl, so Chen Zhi was very satisfied.

Deng Sheng said: "I will give you a decree later. With this decree, you can freely go to and from the General Governor's Office and the Yulin Guard station outside the city to understand some of my military system, which will be of great help to you in the future."

"Thank you Your Majesty!" I have to say that Deng Sheng's arrangement was definitely of great help to Chen Zhi. Chen Zhi was a surrendered general and it was definitely difficult to integrate into the Deng army. Moreover, he did not have a comprehensive understanding of the military system of the Deng army, and he could freely go to the General Governor's Office and the Yulin Guard's Territory, which was very helpful for Chen Zhi to integrate into the Deng army.

At this time, Gui Xiang saw someone outside the palace, so he walked out to ask. After a while, he walked directly to Deng Sheng and said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, Mingjing Mingshou Yao Guangxiao asked for a meeting!"

Deng Sheng frowned immediately. At this time, Yao Guangxiao came to see him, and there must be something wrong. So he said to Chen Zhi: "Chen Qing, it's getting late today. You should go back first and wait for the decree of reward at home!" After the king and ministers decided, Deng Sheng's name for Chen Zhi also changed, from the original General Chen to Chen Qing.

"Yes! I'm leaving!" Chen Zhi responded and walked out of Ganyang Palace.

After Chen Zhi left, Yao Guangxiao walked in. As soon as Yao Guangxiao came in, Deng Sheng asked Gui Xiang to go out first.

After Gui Xiang left, Yao Guangxiao said: "Report to Your Majesty, at dusk today, the Minister of the Shangshu Ling Hu Weiyong and the Minister of Works Liu Jian had a secret conversation at the Duke's Mansion of Wuling County for a long time, but their intentions were unclear!"

When Deng Sheng heard this, he frowned. Hu Weiyong was a person who made Deng Sheng feel very troubled. If you want to talk about his ability, Hu Weiyong did have it, otherwise Deng Sheng would not have let him be the Secretary of the Shangshu. Moreover, Hu Weiyong was very loyal to Deng Sheng, but at the same time, Hu Weiyong's personal selfishness was also very strong. Since he became the Secretary of the Shangshu, he has arranged close friends everywhere to expand his power, which was very rampant. If it were not for Jiang Wan, Cui Hao, Zhang Bin and others suppressed him, his followers would have been in the court and the people. What's more, Hu Weiyong and the Crown Prince Deng Hao, and the discord between the country and the crown prince, would inevitably lead to unstable state.

"Do you know what the two of them are talking about?" Deng Sheng asked.

Yao Guangxiao shook his head and said, "They were talking in the study of the Duke's Mansion of Wuling County. Hu Weiyong still held his back and no one was approaching, so he could not find out what the two of them were talking."

Deng Sheng thought for a while and said, "Keep paying attention to the movements of Hu Weiyong and Liu Jian. Once you find any signs of bad behavior, report to me immediately. In addition, this matter should not be circulated, otherwise I will never let it go!"

Hu Weiyong is the Shangshu Ling. If someone knows that Emperor Deng Sheng sent Mingjing to monitor Shangshu Ling, it would probably cause criticism.

"Here, please rest assured, your Majesty, no one else will know about this." Yao Guangxiao said.

"Okay, go out!" Deng Sheng said.

"Here! I'm leaving!" Yao Guangxiao responded and left.

After Yao Guangxiao left, Deng Sheng began to speculate on the motivation for the secret talks between Hu Weiyong and Liu Jian. Now the whole city is concerned about only two things, one is the rumors of moving the capital, and the other is that King Deng Zun of Qi and King Deng Fu of Chu became an official. I believe that the secret talks between Hu Weiyong and Liu Jian are inseparable from these two things.

Thinking of this, Deng Sheng murmured: "Hu Weiyong, Hu Weiyong, I have given you a chance again and again. Don't continue to test my bottom line. I really don't want to kill you!"

In the fifth year of Tiantong, on the tenth day of June, under the city of Chang'an.

At this time, the city of Chang'an was already bloody. The Deng army attacked Chang'an for ten days, and the losses of both Deng and Qin were quite large. After ten days of fighting, the number of casualties of Deng's army exceeded 30,000, while the Qin army also suffered nearly 20,000 casualties. Moreover, there were hundreds of thousands of military and civilians in Chang'an. The daily consumption was astronomical. Although Chang'an's money and grain reserves were abundant, they could not withstand such consumption.

At this time, a bad news came from the Chang'an Palace. Emperor Qin Yingzhuang's condition worsened and his life was hanging on the line. According to the imperial doctor, I am afraid that there will be no more time.

The reason why Qin State can hold on to this day depends entirely on Yingzhuang's support. If Yingzhuang falls, the Qin army's spirit will probably fall to the bottom. By then, even Bai Qi, who is using troops like a god, will be unable to make up for the world. Therefore, all the imperial doctors in Qin State are concentrated in Yingzhuang's bedroom and try their best to save Yingzhuang's life, but it seems that the effect is not good.

In the Qin Emperor's bedroom, Li You and Baili Jin, these two remaining old ministers of Qin State surrounded Yingzhuang's sickbed, while Bai Qi, another important minister, commanded the Qin army to resist the Deng army's attack in the city, and could not escape for a moment.

"Li Xiang, Doctor Baili, I'm afraid I'm not going to have much time!" On the sickbed, Ying Zhuang looked at Li You and Baili Jin with a pale face and said.

"Your Majesty, don't say such words. Your Majesty is in his prime and has always been healthy. Now he is just a casual cold. The imperial doctors have diagnosed His Majesty and will get better!" Li You said with tears in his eyes.

Ying Zhuang was not really old. It was only eight years old in the 25th year of Qianyuan to ascend the throne. It was in his early thirties. It was logical that he was in his prime. However, after he succeeded to the throne, the Qin State's power was declining day by day. Ying Zhuang worked hard, was unwilling to eat and could not sleep at night. Especially in the past two years, he suffered repeated blows and suffered physical injuries, which brought a heavy blow to Ying Zhuang's body. By this time, the medicine stone was already useless.

Upon hearing this, Ying Zhuang shook his head and said, "Suce Li doesn't need to comfort me. I know my health myself. I invite two of you to come today to explain the funeral."

"Your Majesty!" Li You and Bai Li Jin and the other two were all sad when they heard this!

"Li Xiang, Doctor Baili, I have a difficult life for my children. Only one young son is less than ten years old. After I die, you can support him ascend to the throne. If you can repel Deng's army and report to the relevant Zhongji, I hope that all your heart will support you and revive the Qin Dynasty. If... If God really no longer pleads with my great Qin, please keep a trace of blood for me, Ying Qin, and don't let Ying Qin break his roots." Ying Zhuang said with his body in a strong support.

Ying Zhuang had only one son Ying Han, and he was less than ten years old. Although Ying Zhuang was very disgusted with Ying Ziying's surrender to Han King Liu Bang, and believed that he had lost the blood of Ying Qin, when he was in the scene, he realized that Ying Ziying's feelings were just to preserve Ying Qin's bloodline. However, Xiang Yu was too cruel back then and slaughtered most of the Ying Qin royal family.

Yingzhuang had only one son, and he didn't want to lose his descendant. It didn't matter if he died. He couldn't bear to die. He also worried that Deng would slaughter the Ying Qin royal family like Xiang Yu back then. However, from the historical process of Deng's rise, Deng's country has always been courteous to the royal family that surrendered. Although he lost his freedom, he at least saved his life. Therefore, at the last moment of his life, although Yingzhuang did not clearly say the word surrender, the meaning of it was self-evident.

Li You and Bai Li Jin are also smart people, so they can naturally understand the profound meaning of Ying Zhuang. At this time, Ying Zhuang had already put down Ying Qin's dignity in order to preserve his last bloodline. Of course, this was limited to the situation where Qin was unable to turn the world back.
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