Chapter 364 Mawei Slope (7)

The dark night sky suddenly showed a red color. It was countless torches surrounding the small Mawei Post. The firelight reflected the entire hill in blood. The rain could not extinguish the anger in the hearts of the soldiers. They marched thousands of miles to defeat the rebels and protected the Tang Dynasty, but they had such an ending, when they wanted to kill their commander today.

There was no roar, only silence, silence in the darkness, only the grim smile of death in the cold eyes. With just a command, Mawei Post will be barbed into a flat ground. Li Qing stood at the horse, his eyes were calmly staring at the gate. He had been waiting for a long time on that day, and now it finally arrived, but when it really arrived, he was not excited, only calm and even a little sad.

After waiting for half an hour, no one came out. Is it scared to death or was it in the nervous discussion? Perhaps both were there. Finally, two long figures were dragged out from the gate of Mawei Post. Someone was about to come out. The shadows were reflected on the ground. They turned around step by step, hesitating, hesitating, and even pushed each other.

"Brother Li! I am your elder brother Yang, Yang Zhao! Do you remember? We sold snow mud and ice water together back then!" Yang Guozhong, who was trembling and crying, finally came out. He bent over, his whole face turned gray, and his eyes were filled with endless fear. He was followed by the censor Wei Fangjin. He looked taller than Yang Guozhong. At this moment, his power had given way to the strength of his body. Although he was following behind, he was still afraid, and his teeth were fighting violently.

Li Qing stared at the "Brother Yang" who had been entangled with him for more than ten years, and suddenly smiled slightly. This smile was like a ray of sunshine in the severe winter, which made him see hope for life. He also smiled and smiled very flatteringly. But when his smile had not stopped, Li Qing's hand was already gently swinging in the smile. Hundreds of crossbow arrows shot up with wind and rain, and immediately inserted Yang Guozhong and Wei Fangjin's bodies, like two porcupines, slowly fell to the ground, without even a scream. Yi Rensheng died in the night rain at Mawei Slope, with a face that had not yet disappeared.

Li Longji sat alone in the room waiting for Yang Guozhong's result. There was no light in the room, and his expression could not be seen. However, from his dim eyes, it can be inferred that his mood was also as dark as it was. Things had happened, and regret was useless. What he thought about now was how to save his life. At seventy years old, he had never been as afraid of death as he did today. It was just a test, and it was also a punching bag. If Li Qing did not kill him or even killed him and relieved his hatred, his life might be able to be saved.

"Your Majesty, something is not good!" A guard stumbled to the door and shouted in a crying voice: "Yang Xiangguo has been shot to death by arrows, and his head has been provoked to show his public!"

"What!" Li Longji seemed to have fallen, and his eyes turned dark, and he was about to fall. At this moment, a low scream came from the inner room: "Ah!" This was Yang Guifei's voice, with endless horror in her voice.

It was this exclamation that made Li Longji suddenly awake. The imperial dignity of more than 40 years surged like a tide, raising his head and straightening his waist. This dignity finally defeated his fear of death. He gradually calmed down and began to think about the situation and countermeasures in front of him.

Li Qing did not rush in and was still surrounded outside, which means that he probably had no intention of killing himself. Otherwise, why would he have to surround him and not attack him and kill someone directly. His killing of Yang Guozhong should be just a warning, he was waiting for someone he could trust to negotiate with him.

Thinking of this, Li Longji calmed down slightly and immediately ordered: "Let Gao Lishi come to see me!"

After a moment, Gao Lishi walked over and was locked up for only a few hours. He seemed to have grown ten years old. His back, which was slightly hunched in the past, became even more bent. He knelt in front of Li Longji tremblingly. The energetic eunuch Gao, who had been in the past, was completely gone.

Although Li Longji imprisoned him, the loyalty formed over the past few decades still made him not feel resentful to Li Longji. Gao Lishi looked up at him. The emperor's haggard face made him feel sad. He kowtowed and comforted him softly: "Please rest assured, I know that Li Qing will not really take action!"

"How do you know?"

Li Longji's tone was cold, as if he was asking casually. He still couldn't forgive Gao Lishi. He smiled sarcastically and added: "You know whether he kills me or not."

Gao Lishi couldn't help feeling uncomfortable when he heard his tone of a mean tone. He served him for decades and knew that he was a very stubborn person in his bones. It was almost difficult to turn back what he knew. Now that he believed that he had betrayed him, his life would be sad in the future. After a long time, he sighed secretly and whispered: "Your Majesty! Li Qing has wiped out the An Lushan rebels, and Chang'an knows it. Then he set out to find Your Majesty. If he uses his excuse to be harmed by the rebels, who would believe it? The old slave knows him very well. With his mind, he will never do such a big deal, so he is just siegeing and not attacking now. The old slave probably is waiting for Your Majesty to interview him!"

"Wait until I interview him! Humph! Is he qualified?"

Perhaps realizing that Li Qing would not kill him, Li Longji gradually regained the coldness he should have when he was an emperor. "Go and ask him, what does he mean by surrounding me? What exactly does he want to do!"

"Old slave obeys the order!"

Gao Lishi stood up with difficulty, and under the gloomy eyes of Li Longji, he slowly walked towards the gate. There were only a few guards standing inside the gate, holding knives and looking out nervously. Gao Lishi waved his hand gently, "What's the point of standing here? Let's go to the emperor."

Several guards ran back to the inner courtyard. At this time, several windows moved and the yard returned to silence. Gao Lishi suddenly felt sad. He raised his head and walked out the door.

The fire was still there outside the gate, and thousands of soldiers stood motionless in the rain like stone sculptures. Although the arrows had been skeletoned and the knife was unsheathed, no one dared to move without the commander's order. Gao Lishi looked up at the head hanging on a tree. A flash of lightning flashed by, and the sky suddenly turned white, which made Yang Guozhong's head with a flattering smile look extremely hideous. He held back the fear in his heart and continued to walk forward. The soldiers made way out. From a distance, he suddenly saw a white tent in the pine forest. His heart suddenly relaxed, at least it was a hint that the negotiation was about to begin.

"General, you've done too much!"

Gao Lishi looked at Li Qing with a gentle smile coldly, turned around and pointed to Yang Guozhong's head hanging on the tree, and said angrily: "The emperor is already in his seventies. Those princes and grandchildren have grown up in the deep palace. Have they seen this? Don't you feel it too cruel to threaten them like this?"

Li Qing's gentle smile gradually disappeared. He snorted heavily, and took Li Longji's secret order from his arms, swayed in front of Gao Lishi, and then said sternly: "Do you know what this is? It was the emperor's secret order that Chen Xuanli killed me. I was invited to hand over the military power, but he buried a hundred swords and axe players in the big tent. If I hadn't seen the opportunity, I would have lost even the luck of hanging on the tree. Li Qing came here just to seek justice!"

Gao Lis was speechless, and suddenly felt powerless in his heart. How many things were there that he didn't know last night?

"But no matter how you can't kill the Prime Minister and threaten the Emperor!"

Gao Lishi's tone was already weak. Since Li Qing dared to surround the inn, what else could he do? The king wanted his minister to die, but he had to die, but he actually wanted to seek justice from the king. There was no king in his eyes. Emperor, Gao Lishi's lips moved, and finally murmured: "General, be more tolerant of the emperor's old love for you!"

Li Qing nodded slightly, "Mr. Gao is someone I respect, I want to give this face." He turned around and winked, and immediately a personal soldier ran to remove Yang Guozhong's head. Seeing Li Qing talking to him again, Gao Lishi couldn't help but smile bitterly and walked into the tent with him.

"Does the general still insist on the emperor abdicating? Is there no room for negotiation?" Gao Lishi sat down and asked bluntly.

"Room in negotiation?"

Li Qing sneered and said, "Did he ask you to come and discuss it with me? It is inevitable that he will abdicate, and he cannot help. I just want to give him a decent step for the sake of the monarch and minister in the past. I have already taken this step. Is there still a way out?"

Gao Lishi thought for an afternoon and had a certain plan in his heart. He smiled slightly and said, "The General has actually arranged a way out for retreat, right?"

Li Qing's eyes gradually narrowed, and he stared at Gao Lishi and said, "What does Gao Weng mean?"

Gao Lishi took two steps behind his back, shook his head gently and said, "If you don't know, unless you don't do it yourself, what is your real purpose? You are recruiting troops privately in the name of a militia, but not filing with the Ministry of War. What does this mean? Li Qing, several officials have submitted memorials, and I have detained them. What is this not your way out?"

Speaking of this, Gao Lishi sincerely said: "Let's make a deal. The emperor will make the King of Chu the crown prince, and will not abdicate first. But I will persuade the emperor to grant you the King of the Stone Kingdom. Do you think this is good?"

"Absolutely not!" Li Qing refused flatly. He walked up to Gao Lishi and said loudly: "Mr. Gao, do you think I'm asking the emperor to abdicate for his own selfishness? Since I was in charge of the salt administration in the fifth year of Tianbao, how much taxes in the court have increased in recent years, but how much is used for the country. The government's troops were corrupt, the land was arbitrary annexation, and the powerful and the wealthy had become slaves. Have he considered these? No! He only knew how to be greedy for pleasure. You know more than anyone else's annual palace expenses. In the end, because of his incompetence, An Lushan rebelled, but he slapped his butt and threw the people of Guanzhong to the rebels. Shouldn't he be responsible for this?"

Every word hit Gao Lishi's heart. He couldn't say a word. After a while, he whispered: "Then I can persuade the emperor to issue a crime and apologize to the world!"

"No! I have said that there is no room for bargaining in this matter."

Li Qing turned around and stared at Gao Lishi and said loudly: "Establish a new king, work hard to govern, purify the court, wipe out An Lushan, and then clean up the rivers and mountains of the Tang Dynasty from the beginning. This is what the people of the Tang Dynasty want. He is already a twilight person, and the Tang Dynasty must not sink with him!"

"Okay! I'll tell the emperor that he is old and should abdicate." Gao Lishi whispered a few words, and walked to the door of the tent. He suddenly turned around and said, "Li Qing, it's a blessing for me to have you here. Maybe it's hard for us to meet again in the future. I'll give you six words in the end, "The birds are gone, and the good bow is hidden!"

After saying that, he sighed to the sky, "I can't help but what can I do!" He walked away step by step.

Li Qing looked at his back, shook his head slowly, and said to himself in a low voice: "Mr. Gao, just wait and see!"

．

．

"I want me to abdicate? No! It's definitely not possible!" Li Longji pointed at Gao Lishi's nose with a blue face and roared: "I asked you to talk to him, will you come up with this result? Do you also hope I abdicate, right?"

"Your Majesty!" Gao Lishi knelt down on the ground with a thunderous sound, kowtowed on the ground repeatedly, and said with tears in his eyes: "I am loyal to Your Majesty, and I have no other intentions. Please understand your Majesty's good intentions."

"Is it a good intention to make me abdicate? Let me tell you that as long as I am here for one day, I will not give up the Tang Dynasty to others! If he wants to kill me, let him kill me."

Li Longji was so angry that he trembled all over, "Come here!" He shouted, and the two guards immediately walked in and waited for their orders. Li Longji pointed outside and ordered sternly: "Go! Go and summon Li Qing to see me!"

The two guards looked at each other, and their eyes were full of fear, but they didn't dare not go. They all pushed me and left in fear.

About a quarter of an hour later, the sound of footsteps suddenly came from the yard. Li Longji looked through the window and saw more than 300 strong soldiers surrounded Li Qing and strode into the yard. More than a dozen guards were crowded at the door, staring at the group of ferocious men nervously.

"Your Majesty! Li Qing is here to see you." Li Qing's voice came from the yard.

Li Longji opened the window and saw Li Qing standing with a sword high, he couldn't help but sneer: "Li Qing, do you still have the face to call me Your Majesty?"

Li Qing smiled and replied calmly: "If Your Majesty is willing to abdicate, I can change it to the Supreme Emperor!"

"What if I don't want to abdicate?"

Li Qing narrowed his eyes and stared at him and said softly: "If Your Majesty does not want to listen to my minister's advice, then don't blame me for not obeying the etiquette of the king and the minister!"

"Come!" He turned his hand and pointed to the Buddhist temple, "Take me away with the Imperial Concubine and all the princes and grandchildren!"

Immediately, several soldiers rushed into the Buddhist temple, pulled out their swords and forced Yang Guifei out. More than a hundred other people rushed into the wing room in front. There was only a burst of crying and begging for mercy, and a group of princes and grandchildren were pulled out of the inn.

At this time, Yang Guifei was so scared that she was disgraced. Under the threat of Xueliang's sword, she stepped back towards the gate step by step. Seeing that she was about to leave the yard, she couldn't help crying, "Sanlang! Save me, I don't want to die!"

When Li Longji saw his beloved concubine crying like a tearful person, his heart was as if he was stolen and he shouted: "Li Qing, stop!"

Li Qing stopped, but did not turn around, but turned his back to him, quietly waiting for his reply.

"I issued an order to make the King of Chu the crown prince and wait a hundred years before I can ascend him to the throne!"

Before he finished speaking, Li Qing had already walked out of the yard and waved his hand and said, "Take it away!"

"Your Majesty save me! Sambang save me!" Yang Guifei's crying gradually faded away. Li Longji closed his eyes in pain. He punched the window frame with a fierce punch, "Li Qing, you are so cruel!"

．

．

Concubine Yang was taken to the big tent. Li Qing pulled up the curtain and silently stared at the peerless beauty. For a moment, Li Qing said to her calmly: "The Empress was kind to Li Qing in the past, and I will never hurt the Empress. Please wait in the tent with peace of mind. No matter what you hear, you don't have to be afraid!"

Concubine Yang looked at Li Qing in surprise. She couldn't believe her ears. Li Qing actually remembered her kindness. She was moved in her heart, so she nodded slightly to him, lowered her head and walked into the tent. Finally, she heard Li Qing order the soldiers behind her and said, "Give me strict protection. If anyone dares to enter the tent without permission, military law will be carried out!"

．

．

Li Longji sat at the table with his head in his arms and said nothing. His attachment to the throne and his concern for his beloved concubine were like two sharp swords fighting in his heart, while Gao Lishi stood aside and looked at the tortured old man with pity.

Suddenly, there were rhythmic roars outside, "Kill the Yang family and harm the traitors! Execute Yang Yuhuan!" This was the sound of thousands of people roaring together, and it rushed into Li Longji's ears like waves. There was a faint scream of someone being killed in the roar, and there was also the voice of a woman.

Li Longji stood up in fear. His eyes were filled with fear and his legs were trembling. Only a guard ran to the door and shouted: "Your Majesty, Yang Xuan, Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and Mrs. Han, were killed!"

"Kill the Yang family and harm the traitors! Execute Yang Yuhuan!" A few screams came from the roar.

"Your Majesty! King Ying and his little princes were all killed!"

Li Longji could no longer support him. In the face of a powerful psychological offensive, he almost collapsed. He turned around and pulled Gao Lishi and said wailingly: "Eunuch, what should I do?"

Gao Lishi knelt down again and advised: "Your Majesty, I now suspect that this is the instruction of the King of Chu. Even if the Empress dies, the King of Chu will still force His Majesty to abdicate in the end. Why bother with this? Your Majesty, you can save the Empress!"

Li Longji finally sighed, and he sat down dejectedly and said in great weakness: "Go! Go and take my beloved concubine back, I promise to abdicate."

．

．

On June 13, 12th year of Tianbao, Li Qing launched a mutiny at Mawei Post, killing Yang Guozhong and his son and Han lady. Li Longji was forced to abdicate and immediately issued an edict to abdicate, ordering King Li Yu of Chu to take over the throne. Li Qing immediately ordered his personal soldiers to send Li Longji and his party to Xingping County to be under house arrest. He rushed back to Chang'an overnight and read Li Longji's abdication edict to the officials.

On June 15, King Li Yu of Chu ascended the throne in the Hanyuan Hall of the Daming Palace under the escort of the three thousand An Anxi La Lisboa, changed the lunar name to Zhide, respected the late emperor Li Longji as the emperor, and took him back to Xingqing Palace for retirement. He immediately appointed the Minister of Rites Pei Kuan as the left prime minister, and the governor of Anxi Jiedu Li Qing as the right prime minister, and was the same as the Minister of the Central Secretariat and the Grand Marshal of the World.
Chapter completed!