Return of the Swallow

Qin Yining's face was expressionless, but there was a sneer in her heart. She took a step forward and saluted: "Return to your Majesty, my wife..."

Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by a high-pitched male voice full of anger.

I saw a middle-aged speaker coming forward angrily, saluting and saying, "Your Majesty, I have something to say!"

Li Qitian seemed very surprised and frowned displeased: "Gu Aiqing, I am asking, is it inappropriate for you to interrupt Princess Zhongshun so suddenly?"

"Your Majesty, I know that what I am doing is too rude. But I am a straight person. When I see someone trying to confuse Your Majesty with sweet words, but they also try to act like a virtuous and virtuous lady, I have no choice but to speak up. .”

The ancient censor bowed and continued: "Please, Your Majesty, listen to what I have to say. If what I say is wrong or untrue, I will leave it to Your Majesty's disposal!"

Li Qitian frowned, as if he was in a dilemma. Seeing the sincerity of the ancient censor, he had no choice but to smile and say: "That's all, just say it first."

"Yes!" The ancient censor bowed excitedly, and then said indignantly: "Your Majesty, as the censor, it is my duty to participate in the ten crimes of Prince Zhongshun!

“The first crime is to kill innocent people indiscriminately without mercy;

“The second crime is to be arrogant and humiliate the veterans of Northern Hebei;

“Being greedy for money and money, causing misunderstanding between the king and his ministers, is the third crime;

“Forcibly robbing a minister’s daughter and ignoring the will of the Holy One are four sins;

"Leaving the capital without purpose and intending to seize the treasure alone is the fifth crime;

“Corrupting disaster money and disregarding the lives and deaths of the people is the sixth crime;

“The seven sins are greed for power and jealousy of the talents of colleagues;

“Forming cliques for personal gain, privately raising government soldiers, and having evil intentions are the eight sins;

“Being unfilial and disloyal, disrespecting your legitimate mother, and being unworthy of a human son are nine sins;

“Resisting an edict, disrespecting the emperor, and defecting to another country are extremely heinous crimes!

"A person who is so arrogant, rebellious, unfilial, unfaithful and unjust has so many crimes that it is difficult to describe them! I sincerely ask the Holy One to punish him severely!"

"I second the proposal!"

"Go back to your Majesty, I also agree with you!"

"Prince Zhongshun has become a minister in vain. Please strictly handle it, so as to set the course of the dynasty!"

…

As the words of the ancient censor fell, more than a dozen people immediately stood up and loudly echoed. In the excitement of the crowd, some people may believe that Pang Xiao is a bandit and a road bully who commits all kinds of crimes including burning, killing, looting and other crimes.

Li Qitian was sitting at the top of the table, his brows furrowed all the time, looking like he couldn't bear the blow but was trying to stay calm.

However, Pang Xiao, Qin Yining, Qin Huaiyuan and Qin Xiuyuan did not say a word or defend themselves.

However, many people from the noble faction saw the clues and guessed that the biggest reason why the Holy One set up today's battle was because of Pang Xiao's outstanding performance. They are the same as Pang Xiao. They followed Li Qitian to conquer the world and achieved what they are today. Pang Xiao is the benchmark for their row. If he falls, I am afraid they will be next.

Therefore, many nobles stood up and argued for Pang Xiao on the spot. And these people had their own close officials and colleagues of the same faction. They all followed the trend and stood up to argue with the censors.

Seeing Xungui joining the battle circle, Li Qitian's subordinates also joined in.

Seeing that the other party was getting stronger, someone familiar with Pang Xiao came out to intervene.

For a moment, the scene was as chaotic as a vegetable market. The adults were quarreling, and they were even tougher than the street gangsters. Their quotations from classics were even more offensive and persuasive than their swear words.

Li Qitian's brows wrinkled tighter and tighter. He never imagined that at this juncture there would be so many people willing to speak up for Pang Xiao. It seems that Pang Xiao's status in the minds of courtiers and people is no longer what he understood.

Li Qitian couldn't help but secretly rejoice that he took action early. If Pang Xiao was given more time to develop and grow, I'm afraid he would have taken root more firmly by then, and it would be even harder to shake his foundation.

The two parties were quarreling in full swing, and both sides were arguing with each other. This was the first time such a large-scale debate had occurred in a court meeting since the founding of the Zhou Dynasty.

Qin Yining lowered his head and listened, feeling a little nervous.

The ancient censor took the lead today, and he must have followed Li Qitian's orders. I believe Li Qitian must have a backup plan.

Although Pang Xiao is now a bachelor of Wuying Palace, he is a military commander and has gained great prestige in the army. Even among the common people, most people know about his reputation as the "Prince God of War". So how could Li Qitian not arrange troops to deal with Pang Xiao?

Today, there are Gyeonggi Guard Camp, Shenji Camp and Three Thousand Camp guarding near the capital. Another thing worth mentioning is the Huben Army stationed in the fields on the outskirts of Beijing.

Qin Yining's heart skipped a beat, and he couldn't help but use the corner of his eye to look at the ministers arriving at the Zhenghe Hall today. During the Great Court Meeting, all Beijing officials of fourth rank and above can participate.

But among these people, there was no Ji Zeyu!

Qin Yining's pupils shrank suddenly, but his face remained calm, reminding himself not to panic or to let others catch him. After taking a closer look, he found that Ji Zeyu was not here today.

Qin Yining's heart felt cold.

If Ji Zeyu commanded the Tiger Guards and cooperated with the Gyeonggi Guards, the Three Thousand Battalion and the Shenji Battalion to encircle and suppress Pang Xiao, he would have absolutely no chance of winning with the more than fifty elite Tiger Guards in Pang Xiao's hands.

As for the city defense troops of the Five Cities Soldiers and Horses Division, when she entered the city today, she also found that these people were moving around more frequently than before.

It seems that Li Qitian has made complete preparations today and plans to take down Pang Xiao in one fell swoop, and those who are related to Pang Xiao...

Thinking of this, Qin Yining suddenly took a deep breath and forced himself not to think about it anymore.

First of all, Pang Xiao is not a reckless person. Since he dares to bring her to this "Hongmen Banquet" today, he must have been fully prepared. He is not the kind of person who would reach out and hit you on the left cheek, and would also lean in and ask someone to slap you on the right cheek again. Besides, he is not the kind of person who can ignore his family.

Secondly, if Li Qitian wants to succeed today, he may have to pass the test of public opinion. As long as you grasp the situation carefully and keep an eye on the direction of the wind, there is still room for maneuver.

Pang Xiao was actually very worried about Qin Yining's condition, fearing that she might have fetal gas due to fear and anxiety. However, observing her performance, he saw that her expression was as normal, and she was not pretending to be calm, but was panicked for a moment and then slowly thought about it. He was very appreciative in his heart that he could have a wife who was so understanding. , it is really his luck.

At this time, the argument between the two houses reached a fever pitch. Suddenly, many neutral ministers noticed that Li Guanwen, the eunuch beside the emperor, hurriedly walked to Li Qitian from the side with his head lowered and whispered a few words in a low voice.

Everyone couldn't help but be a little curious. Li Guanwen didn't show up when he went to court today, and now he suddenly came, what happened.

Li Qitian took advantage of the people below to be noisy and asked Li Guanwen in a low voice: "Why hasn't Ji Lan brought anyone here?"

Li Guanwen's face was almost wrinkled into a bitter gourd, with a constipated expression on his face. He hesitated and lowered his voice and said: "Your Majesty, Prince Consort Ji said that there is something unusual in the Huben Army camp. He cannot leave, but must stay in the camp."

When Li Qitian heard this, he exerted force on his hand and almost crushed the string of topaz beads he was playing with.

He didn't show any signs of strangeness and scolded in a low voice: "What's going on! Didn't you see the Tiger Ben Army last time? Ji Zeyu's control over the Huben Army is not inferior to that of Pang Xiao, so why does something change happen at a critical moment? ? Is there really something strange happening, or is he unwilling to come to help me?"

Li Guanwen was so frightened that he didn't dare to say a word. At this time, he would make more mistakes if he said too much.

Li Qitian took a look at the people in the court and found that many people had begun to pay attention to his direction. He quickly calmed down his expression, and still put on his original expression of worrying about court affairs. He gritted his teeth and said: "The current situation will cause chaos at any time. What should I do if it’s really safe then? If I need him to protect me, if he doesn’t come, who is he sitting for?”

Li Guanwen was trained like a quail. He wanted to step aside and be a transparent person, but he had to take Ji Zeyu's words into account, so he could only say, "Ji Prince Consort said that if something happens, Ji Prince Consort will fight for it." My life must protect the safety of the Holy One."

"This life?" Li Qitian almost cursed.

By the time Ji Zeyu came to sacrifice his life, he might have been killed by the traitor Pang Xiao.

Li Qitian was very angry. The assigned Yanguan participated in the performance of Pang Xiao, but there was a problem with the military commander. You must know that Pang Xiao has a deep foundation among the people, and his status in the hearts of the people is very transcendent. If he cannot attack from inside and outside, this time Success is almost impossible.

If he can't get a fatal blow this time and give him a chance to breathe, things will become more and more difficult and dangerous in the future.

Li Qitian ordered Li Guanwen in a low voice: "Go and urge me again!"

"According to the order." Li Guanwen wiped his sweat, but did not dare to act the same, and retreated quickly.

At this time, the debate among the courtiers became more and more confusing. The two parties who impeached Pang Xiao and those who explained Pang Xiao's behavior were still arguing. The two sides even began to attack each other, and many people's hidden secrets were shaken. Out.

Li Qitian was just pretending to be worried at first, but in fact he listened with admiration to these people's criticism of Pang Xiao. He felt that every word of those people meant what he said to his heart, which made him feel particularly comfortable.

But now Li Qitian is really worried.

If Pang Xiao is in a moment of impatience and really rebels, with his martial arts skills, Ji Zeyu may be the only one who can stand up to him in the entire capital. Pang Xiao's strikes were fast and ruthless. If he finally broke up and let him get close, Li Qitian was afraid that he would die before Ji Zeyu came to save him.

At this moment, another young man dressed as a small eunuch came up from the side.

Li Qitian's pupils shrank, and he had a bad feeling in his heart.

This young man is not an ordinary prisoner, but a spy under his command. Specifically doing things like spying and assassination for him. Usually they communicate secretly, but for an occasion like today's court meeting, he changed into the clothes of an internal prisoner and came openly. It's hard for Li Qitian not to wonder if something happened outside.

The young man arrived, saluted, and then leaned next to Li Qitian and said a few words. On the spot, Li Qitian was shocked and dropped the topaz bead string in his hand.