Realm of Power

Just when the Central and Asian courts were worried about the refugees going south, Li Long was standing on an imperial warship riding the wind and waves, looking at the scenery on both sides of the Taiwan Strait that was retreating like a shuttle. For the first time, he felt an indescribable feeling in his heart. Refreshingly, Li Long returned to the southern court without permission without receiving the recall order. Li Long seemed to have been able to Seeing the stunned faces of the court ministers, Li Long no longer had any fear at all. This time, he came on behalf of the empire to ask the court to fulfill the agreement signed between the empire and the Long family, but One can only imagine what the court's expression would be like when they saw this completely one-sided agreement.

If not, how could we deserve the humiliation the Li family suffered some time ago!

Li Long's eyes flashed, his hands clasped together, his body standing upright on the bow of the imperial warship, a trace of strong hatred flashed in his eyes. It was obvious that he had welcomed the emperor back, but in the end, he was the one who made the first contribution to the emperor's return to the south. But it was someone else, and those court ministers, after learning the news that the emperor had abandoned them, had no plans for Li The attitude of the family is also a deviation between heaven and earth. Some time ago, there was still a lot of traffic, and it was as lively as when the Li clan was at its peak. In the blink of an eye, there were crowds of people at the door. One by one, they couldn't wait to distance themselves from the Li family. They seemed to be involved in The word Li family means bad luck, and everyone is afraid to avoid it.

Going back this time will let the entire court truly know what the Li family is!

The fleet sailed south along the tributary of the large river. After sailing for two days, it arrived at Baoqing City at the end of the tributary. The sudden visit of three imperial warships made the Chinese officials in Baoqing City turn green with fear. The unique characteristics of the Imperial Dragon Tooth warship The shape made the port full of people watching the fun. As the news spread, the news of Li Longnan's return was also delivered to the Zhongbia court as quickly as possible.

"What, Li Long is coming back?" The ministers looked at each other. No one expected that Li Long would go crazy this time.

"Without His Majesty's order, if Li Long comes back like this, is he deceiving the emperor?" In the Prime Minister's Pavilion, Yu Fenglong, who had just been appointed as the Prime Minister of the court, said with a heavy face and a livid face, "Send the order, Li Long will enter Xinjing." range, arrest him immediately!”

"Master Prime Minister, Li Long is also the head of the Li family and one of the four great clans. Is this right?..." The ministers looked hesitant, and one of them said, "Although the Li family is already weak, the so-called big tree has deep roots. Li The head of the civil service family for more than a hundred years, he has countless disciples and former officials. It is not an exaggeration to say that he is spread throughout Central Asia. Even though he is now weak, his influence in the local area is still considerable, especially for the Li family. The old patriarch Li Tai is still alive. He has been in charge of the court for nearly forty years. As long as this person is still there, although the Li family is weak, it will never be in a situation where the tree falls and the hozens are scattered. Just because they return south without authorization, they will be killed. Suppressing the Li family to death, no one can guarantee that the Li family will not erupt in a shocking counterattack. For a wealthy family like the Li family that has been passed down for hundreds of years, there is probably no unknown background in it. How many people can know?”

"What are you afraid of? The uprooting of the Li family is not my, Yu Fenlong's, but His Majesty's. With such support, what are you still worried about!" Yu Fenlong glanced at the ministers and said sternly with a cold face. He said, "The Long family just stabbed us in the back. The emperor's anger has not yet subsided, and Li Long did something like this again. The Li family is seeking death themselves, so they can't blame others!"

"Your Majesty wants to kill the Li family!" The ministers' eyes froze at the same time. Although they knew that the emperor did not want the Li family to revive, they did not expect that the emperor even had the idea of ​​​​killing the Li family. Yu Feng As soon as Long opened his mouth, he was slapped with the big label of deceiving the king. This was a crime that could be executed by the whole family. Even the Li family could not bear it. This was really going to put the Li family to death!

"As long as everyone is well aware of this matter, the Holy Lord's thoughts are not something we can speculate on!"

Yu Fenlong took a deep breath, stood up, looked at the sky outside the palace with his hands behind his back, sighed and said, "Li Long knew there was no possibility of returning to the south, so he just made a big fuss, hoping to earn some sympathy." , I hope everyone can still remember the old feelings, I am afraid that it is really hard to say whether Li Long will return to the south again,

The ministers were silent. Also, how could a place like the north bank of the river be inhabited by people? They could be captured and beheaded at any time because they were disliked by the Yelu family, or they could be captured and beheaded by the empire that hated the nobles of Zhongbia. Think of it as the chicken that kills the chicken to scare the monkeys! Now there is even more turmoil among the refugees on the river, and all the roads leading to the north bank, except the waterway, have been cut off. I heard that the guards around Li Long were completely disappointed with the Li family, and they all fled back in despair. The person in charge of Kezi’s North Coast of Zhongbia is afraid that even eating will be a problem. It is understandable that everyone sympathizes with Li Long, but the Li family, one of the four powerful families in Central and Eastern Asia, was so powerful back then. In just a few years, it is now on the verge of ruin. It is pitiful, deplorable, and... We deserve it. If the Four Gates did not waver and wither, how could we have risen like we are now! "The emperor means, what else can the ministers say?

"The Li family's failure is also a hidden danger for you all."

Yu Fenlong's eyes flickered across the ministers' faces, and he grinned, "I'm afraid Li Long won't be able to hide the Yang He matter when he comes back this time!"

"Yang He!"

The faces of the ministers all changed. This sentence was really heartbreaking. They coaxed the emperor in the court to order a hundred thousand troops to be stationed in Yanghe to prevent the refugees from attacking the ministers' private fields. Once Li Long revealed this matter Come out, the emperor will not stop until he kills a few people!

"No matter what happens to the Li family, they will always be a wealthy family in the north. No matter how we treat the Li family now, they will not spare us once they gain power." A minister gritted his teeth with a ferocious expression.

"Yes, we must not give the north a chance! Li Long must not return to the court!" Another minister said with a firm expression. Most of these ministers are from southern aristocratic backgrounds. Because the imperial capital was broken twice, the northern aristocrats and wealthy families It has long since withered, and the wealth accumulated over generations was robbed by the prairie people in the ruined city. , the elites in the family were also killed and injured in the two wars. The northern faction, which was originally the mainstream of the Central and Asian courts, had long been unable to restrain the rise of the southern nobles, and even declined and withdrew from the core of power. Even the Li family was like this. In such a sorry state, one can imagine what the situation of the remaining northern factions is now.

Now that the southern aristocrats are in power, how can they be willing to let the north appear again! The representative of the north is undoubtedly the Li family

The ministers in the court reached a consensus and were about to send out the order to arrest Li Long. The exact news from Baoqing City also came. This time, there were three Imperial Dragon Tooth warships and 500 Imperial soldiers escorting Li Long south. , Li Long did not land ashore, but was always on board the three Imperial Dragon Tooth battleships. It seems that Li Long also knew very well that as long as he got off the imperial warship, he would be immediately detained by the local government. But now on the imperial warship, the local government had no way to do it. He once boldly tried to send a team of officers I went there, but was stopped by the Emperor before I even boarded the ship.

"This is a bit troublesome"

Hearing the news, Yu Fenglong's face became ugly, and he walked back and forth uneasily in the palace. He did not expect that Li Long was actually escorted by the imperial army. Although it was only 500 people, it was a regular army of the empire. , once Li Long is captured by force, there is a possibility of war with the empire. Since Fengtai Department, everyone knows how serious the consequences of provoking the empire will be. Heavy, not to mention that the empire still has an army of 100,000 people on the west road of Imperial Capital. The Yelu family in the north of Dahe Road also bows to the empire. If Zhongbia’s 300,000 troops are still there, they may still be able to clamor for a war. Now the Long family is In one fell swoop, two-thirds of the army was spared, with only one hundred thousand troops. The ministers all felt cold on their backs at the thought of pretending to be powerful to the empire.

We finally reached an armistice agreement with the Yelu family. How could we just turn around and start a war with the empire? When Yu Fenlong was hesitating, a minister said, "Prime Minister, although we cannot capture Li Long directly, we can change it. The Li family is still easy to capture. As long as we have chips in our hands, we don't have to worry about Li Long jumping." come out"

"You mean to arrest people from the Li family to blackmail Li Long?"

Yu Fenlong's eyebrows knit together slightly. It is undeniable that this method is feasible, but it is a bit despicable, but extraordinary times call for desperate measures! As long as Li Long can be silenced and it is best to return to the north of the river on his own, then it is nothing to capture a few members of the Li family as bargaining chips! Anyway, the Li family is weak, so what can they do? If Li Long is caught then, the Li family will be completely finished! Yu Fenglong walked to the table, picked up a pen and wrote down an order, stamped it with his prime minister's seal on the spot, then took the order and handed it to the minister who made the suggestion, stretched out his hand and handed it to him, instructing: "Immediately Go ahead and remember not to leak the news! "

"Understood!" The minister took the order and nodded with understanding. He knew what Yu Fenlong meant. After all, the Li family was also one of the four great clans. Once it was known that the people of the Li family were arrested in the court, Come to blackmail Li Long, especially if you let local officials who have good relations with the Li family know about it, I'm afraid it will cause a lot of trouble.

With a snap, Li Long put down his pen in the cabin and stretched his muscles vigorously. A servant had been standing beside him for a long time. Li Long handed a letter on the table to the servant and said in a solemn voice, "Will you?" Leave this to the local government.”

"yes"

The servant took the letter and left. Li Long walked out of the cabin, took a deep breath, and looked at the nearby Baoqing City with a complicated expression. The sparkling river water washed against the stone steps on the dock, and countless white colors appeared. The threads spread out to both sides. The one sent away just now was a copy of the agreement signed by the empire and the dragon class. Li Long thought of the shock of the court ministers when they saw this copy, and felt an urge to laugh.

The Emperor of Zhongbia, who abandoned the Li family, will also experience the feeling of being betrayed this time.

In that agreement, China and Biya used trade taxes as collateral and control of six port cities. If it is really implemented, then China and Biya's finances will be reduced by one-third, and the imperial merchants will The previous intrusion into the Zhongbia market made a lot of money in the fluctuations of the refugee attack. Not to mention, in order to retaliate against the Zhongbia court who had embarrassed him for several months, Long Po not only changed the conditions proposed by the empire Accepted them all, and even deliberately set a stumbling block for the court.

That is the Yangshui River area. It has completely become the private property of the ministers of the Central and African courts. I am afraid that I did not expect that Long Po had already added a line to the south of the big river with a stroke of his pen. Part of the land was mortgaged to the empire in exchange for a bargaining chip to transport grain directly to the southwest. Almost all of the Yanghe area was in

This is interesting. Li Long naturally knew the truth about Yang He. When he saw this, his first feeling was toothache! As expected, Long Po was bold and dared to do anything. However, the Long family had completely given up on the plan to take over the Zhongbia Court, so there was no need to offend anyone. On the contrary, it weakened the power of the Zhongbia Court even more. The more advantageous it is for the Long family, but doing it so blatantly made Li Longdu lament that the world has changed so unbelievably.

Although he didn't have the slightest fondness for Long Po himself, Li Long had to admit that this time, Long Po helped the Li family express their resentment. In the negotiation between the empire and the Long family, this dragon-level leader The leader acted extremely cheerfully, or he had really given up on taking over the Central Biya, so he invisibly downplayed the hostile attitude between the Li family and the Long family. Li Long also saw that the No. 1 general in Zhongbia was responsible for the entire country. How deep is the resentment between China and the Biya court?

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Li Long wouldn't have believed it to death. The man who calmly signed the agreement that almost sold out all the interests of China and Libya during the negotiations was the one who led the Southwest Long Family and the prairie people into two fierce battles. Long Po, the head of the Long family who has been in the family for many years, is known as the backbone of the sky in Central Asia!

The content of that text is so heartbreaking.

So much so that Li Long, who was delivering the text, had to be protected by the emperor before he could go south. After arriving in the south, he didn't even dare to get off the deck of the imperial battleship. Only under the protection of five hundred imperial soldiers could Li Long feel a trace of sense of security

Although we know that the Zhongbia court dare not go to war with the empire, who dares to say that the Zhongbia emperor who was greatly stimulated will not go crazy! With the Imperial warships here, at least in the river waters, you can leave as you please! It was Li Long's idea that the text of the agreement, which was supposed to be sent to the southern court in person, was unable to go south midway.

On the third day of June, in the Political Affairs Hall of the Zhongbia Court

The cicadas were chirping in the summer night. The Minister of Internal Affairs, Cai Long, was wearing a Gebu mid-shirt. In the still cold night, he was reviewing the documents that were to be delivered to the court meeting the next day. A thin layer of sweat was already breaking out on his head. , two maids with picturesque faces behind them. He gently fanned himself there. Tomorrow's meeting will be the first meeting of the Imperial Palace after the emperor's return to the south. The importance of it can be imagined. There is absolutely no room for error. Even if someone below has already seen it, Cai Long also has to review the strategies one by one in person.

"Master, this is urgently sent from Baoqing City!" A servant walked in with a newspaper.

"Put it there"

Cai Long narrowed his eyes slightly and waved his hand to the servant without paying much attention. Ever since Li Long arrived, the Baoqing City government has been tense. After all, three imperial warships were parked on the pier, and the entire pier was occupied by the Empire. Soldiers are under martial law, no one is allowed to rely on them at will Recently, Baoqing City was just an inland city. How had I ever seen such a tense posture? Baoqing Zhizhou’s legs felt weak when he saw this posture. He reported every day, looking forward to the stars and the moon, hoping that someone from the court would arrive early. Take away the Imperial people on the dock as soon as possible

The governor of Baoqing did not know that the court had no intention of meeting with the empire at all. During the day, they discussed using the Li family to blackmail Li Long. Naturally, he was even more indifferent to Baoqing City's demands. When Cai Long would need to prepare After reviewing the meeting documents, it was already midnight. After stretching, Cai Long looked at He glanced at the Baoqing City newspaper that was placed in the corner. He hesitated for a moment and did not pick it up. Instead, he casually blew out the lights on the table. If there is anything to read, it is impossible for the court to send someone to Baoqing. Those who are in contact with Li Long only need to be dragged over there. When someone from the Li family is captured here, Li Long himself will not be able to sit still r