Li Shao sighed at the pity, and then heard a report from his confidants, saying that Cui Guang and Wei Zijian had arrived. The two stopped talking and stood up to greet them.

The three of them were ministers in the same palace, and they were all related by marriage.

Li Shao's third son married Cui Guang's niece, and his second daughter married Cui Guangcong's son. Wei Zijian's wife, Cui Huirong, Li Chengzhi's mother-in-law, was Cui Guangcong's sister. Cui Huirong and Li Shao's

Mrs. Zheng is also a cousin, so the three of them are familiar with each other.

After a brief chat, Cui Guang asked with a smile: "It's just my bad luck and all kinds of mistakes. In the end, I fell short and failed the emperor's favor. The Queen Mother has now sent Uncle Yuan as an envoy. I guess it's coming soon."

Success? I just don’t know how many benefits were promised to this little thief..."

He was not polite at all. As he spoke, he sat down at the table, copied the imperial edict and read it.

After just a few glances, he suddenly took a breath of cold air.

"Li Chengzhi, Duke of the State of Lu, is honest, resolute, and loyal to the country. He is worthy of being called the Ping Fan of Hexi... He is now crowned the King of Liang and will guard Hexi forever. He is responsible for life and death, and his duties are inherited hereditary... I hope you will live up to my wishes. Thank you!"

Stay in Hexi forever, specialize in life and death, and inherit the position...

He is the Chancellor of the Secretariat, and also serves as the right servant of the family. All edicts, decrees, regulations, and edicts pass through his hands. How can you not understand the meaning of these sentences?

All the land west of Hexi is Liang soil, all the people west of Hexi are Liang people, and all the soldiers west of Hexi are Li clan tribes.

The so-called country within a country, listen to the tune but not the propaganda, that's how it is...

Not only Cui Guang, but also Wei Zijian, his eyes were so frightened that he was stunned.

If it is true as the imperial decree says, apart from not being able to "proclaim himself emperor", what is the difference between Li Chengzhi and the emperor?

This is more than just raising tigers to cause trouble. It can be said to be digging your own grave and seeking your own death. How dare the Queen Mother and the princes do this?

No matter how you look at it, this imperial edict is a bit strange. There is no joy in Cui Guang and Wei Zijian's eyes, but they are filled with horror.

Seeing the two of them looking like this, Li Shao was puzzled: "Is there something wrong?"

Wei Zijian glanced at Li Chengzhi, lowered his eyelids, and remained silent. Cui Guangze frowned: "I dare to ask Uncle Yuan, but the Queen Mother has another word to declare to Chengzhi?"

There was no oral instruction, otherwise Yuan Cheng would have said it.

Li Shao did not answer but asked: "Why did Shangshu say this?"

So there is no more?

Cui Guang's heart tightened and he asked suspiciously: "Uncle Yuan was originally leading troops in Guanzhong to help Shangshu Xi conquer the Gao family. Why did he send you as an envoy to the West Sea?"

"To be honest with the Minister, according to the wishes of the Queen Mother and Your Majesty, Yang Yanrong should be sent to Jingzhou as an envoy. The intention is that he and Chengzhi will be on good terms, and their friendship will be able to be both public and private, and both emotional and rational.

A little more room for change.

However, after he was appointed King of Chengzhi to Xiazhou, he thought that Yang Shu was only an official of the state and county. If he was an envoy, it would be unavoidable to be looked down upon. Even in terms of personal friendship with Chengzhi, he was far away from his younger brother. This was so that he could be replaced by his younger brother.

On a mission..."

Originally Yang Jun was sent to Jingzhou, but Yuan Cheng was sent to Li Shao instead?

As for Yuan Cheng, he was probably afraid that Li Chengzhi would kill him to sacrifice the flag, so he didn't dare to come.

After all, Yuan Cheng and Yuan Ying were colluding at the beginning, fearing that Li Chengzhi would not die. If Li Chengzhi's ability to kill quickly, Gao Zhao ranked first, Yuan Cheng must be ranked second.

Since Yuan Cheng knew that he might not even be able to save a whole body in order to force a sheep into a tiger's mouth, it would be okay to simply re-send Yang Jun instead.

It's not that the imperial court doesn't pay attention to it, after all, Cui Guang and Wei Zijian have been sent to recruit him once. The former is one of the eight assistants, and the latter is also a young minister and a close relative of Li Chengzhi, which can be said to be full of sincerity.

Although Yang Shu was just an intermediary, he had a deep connection with Li Chengzhi. It was reasonable and reasonable for him to be appointed as deputy envoy first, and after arriving in Xihai, he would respect Cui Guang as his chief and then grant Li Chengzhi an imperial edict.

But Yuan Cheng changed his mind and became Li Shao?

Cui Guang endured his surprise and asked solemnly: "Where did King Cheng go?"

"Naturally, I will sit in Guanzhong and provide support from the center to help King Qinghe, Shangshu Xi, Governor Xing, Governor Cui and others to stabilize the six towns in the north."

Why does Yuan Cheng need to take charge of such a trivial matter?

With Li Shao, a local tiger, wouldn't it be more effective to get twice the result with half the effort if he stayed in Guanzhong to provide support?

Wei Zijian finally couldn't hold it back and said in a suspicious voice: "Dare I ask, brother, if the king of Rencheng wants to recruit grain and troops from Guanzhong?"

"The troops have not been recruited, but a lot of food has been borrowed..."

Borrow food?

The two of them were startled, and looked at each other, both seeing the horror in the other's eyes. Then they turned their heads in unison and looked directly at Li Chengzhi.

Li Chengzhi was confused: "See what I do?"

Wei Zijian sighed sadly: "Even though I have speculations in my mind, my uncle still wants to ask you: You will definitely not accept all the rewards in this decree, right?"

Li Chengzhi was stunned for a moment, then squeezed out a dry smile: "I would like to ask my uncle, what should I do and what should I do? What are the obstacles?"

It seems that I guessed it right.

Forever sealed in Hexi, living and killing alone, and hereditary duties... This is already a country with divided borders and lands, a country within a country. But Wei Zijian did not see a trace of joy or pride on his face.

Moreover, Li Chengzhi had just sent people to invite Yuan Zhi away in order to force him to surrender the soldiers and civilians of Dunhuang Town, but his intention was clear: he would never give up until he and the Yuan family fought to the death.

And this was only the second thing. What frightened Wei Zijian and Cui Guang the most was that the Queen Mother and the court seemed to have planned this event?

Otherwise, how could it be possible to confer Li Chengzhi the title of Prince of Liang with just a fluttering imperial edict?

It is a state within a state, and it is also a Wei state in name only. Even after the election of the Buji Dynasty, Li Chengzhi must decide whether the imperial court should send subordinate officials to Hexi, whether Hexi should pay tribute to the imperial court, whether to send people as hostages to the imperial court, and whether to send people as hostages to the imperial court.

Who is the pledge?

If Hexi suffers external humiliation, how will it resist it? If internal strife breaks out, how will it be quelled?

What's more, to the south of Hexi is Tuyuhun and to the north is Rouran. These two have a deep feud with the Yuan and Wei Dynasties. If they invade Guanzhong or the Central Plains via Hexi, Li Chengzhi will not stop them or stop them.

Resistance, fighting or not fighting?

There are too many to mention, and I'm afraid it would take ten days and ten nights to discuss them all. How could Li Chengzhi secure the title of King Liang with just one imperial edict?

That's why Cui Guang asked if the Queen Mother had another oral message to Li Chengzhi. If so, it means that the imperial court did intend to appease Li Chengzhi. This time it was just to test Li Chengzhi's tone. Once confirmed, he will definitely send important ministers to Hexi again.

, it may be Yuan Cheng, or it may still be Cui Guang, who negotiates the outline and beginning with him.

If not, it means that the imperial court had already expected that Li Chengzhi would refuse the edict. The purpose of sending the envoy this time was nothing more than to show the world, so as to occupy the great righteousness...

"Since you are determined to rebel, you are a traitor. And since I am deeply favored by the emperor, I can only sworn to be at odds with you. As the saying goes, people who are different will not conspire with each other, so it’s okay if I don’t drink this wine today!"

Cui Guang sighed leisurely and stood up immediately, "But I know you well, so I will give you another piece of advice, hoping that you will do well: If I were you, even if I didn't want to join the imperial court, I would certainly not embarrass Uncle Yuan.

We will definitely send him back to Guanzhong properly, and how fast he will be sent..."

He bowed to Li Shao again: "I am rude to my brother today, please don't take offense, Uncle Yuan."

After saying that, he walked out of the hall calmly.

Wei Zijian also bowed to Li Shao, and then said: "Chengzhi, I'm afraid disaster is coming, so it's better to prepare early and don't be careless!"

Just like that, the two of them left hand in hand without even staying for a moment.

But the strange thing is that Li Shao was neither surprised nor annoyed, he just remained silent with a sullen face.

Li Chengzhi's face suddenly turned gloomy and clear, and he stared straight at Li Shao, with all kinds of thoughts coming to him.

In terms of literary talent, since Cui Guang can be regarded as a great Confucian, he is naturally a head above Li Shao. In terms of military affairs, although Li Shao is not a famous general, he has won more victories than lost in half a lifetime of conquests. He can be called a mainstay, and he is much better than Cui Guang.

In terms of their understanding of the current situation, both of them have been in official positions for half their lives, and they have already become as wise as fools. In terms of their understanding of the court, the Queen Mother, Yuan Cheng and others, they should be about the same.

So even Cui Guang, who is trapped in the West Sea and has no eyes and ears, can see through the problem. It makes no sense that Li Shao can't see the clues?

Of course Li Shao knew why the imperial court was so hasty that he could confer Li Chengzhi the title of King of Liang without any explanation other than an imperial edict.

He also knew why Yuan Cheng was so good at making suggestions that he replaced him as his envoy to conquer Xihai.

It was simply that the imperial court had expected that Li Chengzhi had eaten the weight and had become determined, and would definitely turn the tables. But it was also afraid that Li Shao had colluded with Li Chengzhi, and a den of snakes and rats would tip off Li Chengzhi, or even cause trouble secretly.

Simply kicked him away.

Then why did Li Shao readily fall for it even though he knew it was a trick?

"If I stay, how will chaos arise in Guanzhong? I know clearly what Yuan Cheng wants, and I even know that he is falsely passing on the imperial edict. Even if he refuses to grant the edict, Yuan Cheng can't do anything to me, but Uncle Shi still agrees.

, coming to the West Sea!"

Li Shao sighed leisurely, "You don't know something. With the continuous wars in the past few years, the imperial court has already been unable to make ends meet. When Xi Kangsheng was ordered to conquer Gaozhao, he had already spent a lot of time and food, demolishing the east to make up for the west. The same was true in Guanzhong:

The Changping warehouse in Fanzhou County had been emptied out the year before last. In the past two years, it was even more difficult to wait until the summer harvest, and all the autumn taxes in Guanzhong were collected. What's more, Xi Kangsheng asked me to borrow it several times.

The lack of food has long caused complaints among the gentry and people in Guanzhong.

But now that it is known that you will never surrender, the court naturally can only make early plans. As the saying goes, before the troops are moved, food and grass go first. Whether the court will send troops or not, it is not known when it will send troops. At least there must be food first.

Therefore, Yuan Cheng was extravagant this time. It was called borrowing grain, but it was actually a forced conquest. It was no different from the harsh government that Yuan Yi gave Beizhen the year before. So if Shi Shu stayed in Guanzhong, wouldn't he be helping Zhou to abuse him?

It's ridiculous that Yuan Cheng only thinks that removing me will turn Guanzhong into a mess. He can let him take whatever he wants, but he doesn't know that the gentry in Guanzhong have already shared the same hatred and are united in one heart...

So you can rest assured, I am afraid that chaos will break out in Guanzhong before the imperial army reaches the West Sea... Then you can take advantage of the opportunity and enter, or plot against Guanzhong, or target Luojing..."

Li Chengzhi was shocked.

He knew that Li Shao had always been facing him. Although he was not as open as Zhang Jingzhi and supported him without hesitation, he was definitely looking after him secretly.

Regardless of other matters, if Li Shao had not been in charge of Qizhou and Liangzhou had not covered it up in every possible way, Li Song and others would have been able to live in the West Sea. It would have been even more impossible to quietly transport so much grain out of Guanzhong to Hexi.
To be continued...