Chapter 260: Collusion

Jinling. ReadМ

News of the fall of Jincheng was rushed to the palace via eight hundred miles.

At the same time, Beidi once again threatened to hand over a message from King Yan.

When he learned that Cui Yan, the captain of the Jincheng Forbidden Army, had surrendered to the enemy and Jincheng was lost, Zhao Heng furiously threw the paintbrush in his hand to the ground.

"Your Majesty, calm down. It has become a fact that Jincheng has been captured by Xiliang. Don't be so angry about it." Liang Cheng picked up the brush and put it back carefully.

Zhao Heng's face turned livid, "I didn't expect Beidi to show off to me so quickly. They are such a bunch of losers. How could they lose Jincheng so easily?"

"His Royal Highness King Yan is in charge of Yanzhou, but there is no reliable person in Jincheng." Liang Cheng sighed.

Liang Cheng's words reminded Zhao Heng.

During the Battle of Yanguan, Xiao Yuanshan escaped before the battle. Now the Xiao family is still trying to shirk the responsibility and cannot find anyone to arrest him.

This time Jincheng was lost, and the main generals of Jincheng were the Wang family.

After all, the current Dasong Imperial Army has been corrupted by powerful clans and is riddled with holes.

In the past, when the royal family was weak, he could only turn a blind eye.

But now, King Yan has made the royal family great.

He felt the need to reorganize the Custodes.

Moreover, in the Battle of Yanguan and the fall of Jincheng, he lost nearly 150,000 forbidden troops.

Therefore, taking advantage of this time to replenish his troops, he wanted to establish a brand new Forbidden Army.

The generals have to choose between the Mo family and the Yang family.

As for the equipment, he wanted to give King Yan a military supply order.

Armor, artillery, he wants them all.

As long as a brand new imperial army is built, he will no longer need to worry about the powerful clans, nor will he need to rely on King Yan for everything.

Anyone who dares to disobey him will be weighed against his imperial army.

But at the moment, he still needs to resolve the matter in Jinzhou.

Dasong's territory was occupied by Xiliang. As the emperor, he had to ask.

Although Xiliang surrendered to Beidi, it is now colluding with Beidi.

But this still can't change the fact that Xiliang once betrayed Dasong.

Jinzhou was captured by Xiliang, which was a great shame and humiliation for Da Song.

The historian's pen will not leave him a good reputation in the history books.

The previous emperors of the Zhao family would also scold him in heaven.

He was hesitating what to do when a eunuch came to report that Dou Wei had arrived.

Zhao Heng frowned. I am afraid that all the civil and military officials in the court knew about this important matter.

"Your Majesty, Jincheng is lost. This is a disgrace to Dasong." Dou Wei came in in a hurry, saluted, and screamed sadly.

When Zhao Heng heard this, his expression became even more dull.

This Jincheng is guarded by the imperial army, and of course the biggest responsibility lies with him as the emperor.

Thinking of the scenery that King Yan had brought to him a few days ago, he felt even more depressed compared to his current embarrassment.

"What does the prime minister think now?" Zhao Heng asked.

Dou Weidao: "Jinzhou has been the territory of the Central Plains since ancient times. I believe that Xiliang cannot be allowed to invade the territory of Dasong under any circumstances, so we should send troops to retake Jinzhou."

Zhao Heng nodded and suddenly looked at Dou Wei with interest, "The prime minister has always advocated peace, why is he so determined to fight this time?"

Dou Wei's face stiffened, and he said: "Your Majesty, Jinzhou is really too important. At present, Xiliang surrenders to Beidi, and Xiliang controls Jinzhou, which is the same as Beidi controlling Jinzhou. In the future, once they cross Jinhenan to the south of Jinzhou Next, what lies ahead of them will be the vast plains of the Central Plains, and it will no longer be possible to resist the Beidi army. "

Zhao Hengshen thought so.

This time, Beidi caused quite a lot of trouble for him.

To resolve this matter, one is to hand over King Yan, and the other is to take back Jinzhou through war.

But if he handed over to King Yan, he would never get King Yan's artillery again.

After weighing the balance, war is the only way left.

Looking at the Dasong Mountains and Rivers hanging in the study.

His eyes stopped for a while in Jinzhou, then in Yanzhou, and then in Qinzhou.

The closest ones to Jinzhou at the moment are King Yan and the Ma family.

As for the Yuan family, he didn't trust the Yuan family's troops to go to Jinzhou.

After all, there was a gap between King Yan and the Yuan family.

Dou Wei observed Zhao Heng's expression and said at this time: "Your Majesty, Yanzhou is adjacent to Jinzhou. We can order King Yan to send troops to Jinzhou to recapture Jincheng, and then order the Ma family to send troops to assist King Yan."

This is exactly what Zhao Heng was thinking about just now.

Jinzhou has always been a state controlled by the royal family. Currently, the 70,000 imperial troops at Yanguan need to guard Yanguan and cannot be mobilized.

If the Dou family and other powerful troops are sent to Jinzhou, these bastards will not only ask for money and food endlessly.

The most important thing is that they retreat when fighting and seize benefits faster than anyone else.

Let them go, and they may not be able to win by then, and they will have to waste money and food.

Furthermore, he didn't want Jinzhou to be tainted by them.

So after much thought, I still feel that these two are the most suitable.

First of all, the Ma family, unlike other powerful families such as the Dou family, still obeyed his orders.

As for King Yan, he refused him for the second time and handed it over to Beidi, so it was natural for him to send troops.

However, if Beidi also participates in this war, I am afraid that King Yan and the Ma family will not be able to take back Jinzhou with their few troops.

But judging from the current news, the Beidi army did not enter Jinzhou.

Perhaps although Xiliang surrendered to Beidi, there was still a gap between the two.

Therefore, let the two of them take the lead.

It would be best if Beidi did not send troops. If he sent troops, he would mobilize more troops to enter Jinzhou.

"That's it." Zhao Heng said.

This way he feels at ease and the court spends the least amount of money.

"Your Majesty is wise." Dou Weidao said with an undetectable smile on his lips.

These days, he got more information about Yanzhou.

Among them, the official examination held by the King of Yan made him hate it.

If land is the foundation of the wealthy and powerful families, the recommendation system is the foundation of the foundation.

What the King of Yan did was equivalent to slapping the face of the powerful families.

Therefore, he felt that it was not enough to just use Yuan Li to check and balance the King of Yan.

Originally, he and Beidi cooperated to get rid of the Ma family father and son in order to control the Ma family and facilitate the powerful families to trade war horses with Beidi in Jinzhou.

But now, he felt it necessary to take this opportunity to let the King of Yan fall into the vortex of war in Jinzhou.

In this way, let Beidi and the King of Yan consume each other, and they will reap the benefits.

...

The next day.

The ministers attended the morning court, and Zhao Heng announced the decree in the court.

At this time, a small eunuch suddenly entered the hall and came to Liang Cheng's ear and said something.

Liang Cheng's face changed drastically when he heard this. He said to Zhao Heng, "Your Majesty, the Ma family has come to the capital with a fast horse to report that the father and son of Mazhou Mu died unexpectedly."

"What!" Zhao Heng exclaimed.

After a long silence, he suppressed the shock in his heart.

Facing the ministers, he said, "I just got some bad news. The father and son of Mazhou Mu died at the hands of bandits."

"What, how is this possible?"

"The father and son of Ma Xuan are dead."

"This is simply unbelievable."

"..."

Hearing this news, the ministers talked about it.

The Ma family dominated the northwest of Dasong and resisted Xiliang all year round.

At this juncture, the father and son of the Ma family died, and the Ma family would be leaderless.

Although Ma Yuan had always been at odds with his brother, it was because of disagreements on government affairs.

But he still had deep feelings for this brother.

Hearing this, he stood there for a while and suddenly fainted.

Seeing this, Mi Yan immediately supported Ma Yuan and pinched his Ren Zhong for a while. Ma Yuan woke up slowly and cried loudly.

Zhao Heng sighed slightly, and then he was happy.

Ma Xuan and his son died, so Ma Yuan could inherit the position of the head of the family.

Compared with Ma Xuan, he felt that Ma Yuan was more loyal to him.

"Ma Yushi, this is not the time to be sad. You should go to Qinzhou immediately, take charge of the Ma family, and work with King Yan to stabilize the chaos in the northwest of Dasong." He said.

As soon as he finished speaking, an official suddenly stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, Ma Yushi cannot inherit the Ma family. Ma Zhoumu has an eldest son in Jinling. He should be the next head of the Ma family. If the rules are broken, I am afraid that the Ma family will be confused, and the chaos in the northwest will be even more out of control."

Zhao Heng looked displeased and looked at Ma Yuan. He said, "Is this true?"

Ma Yuan nodded, "Your Majesty, my brother has an eldest son named Ma Chong, who has been studying in the Jinling Imperial College."

Zhao Heng looked very disappointed. He thought that the Ma family, one of the eight powerful families, would be able to get closer to the royal family.

Lazily, he said, "Announce Ma Chong to the palace."

In less than half an hour, Ma Chong was taken to the Golden Palace by the imperial guards.

When the imperial guards found him, he was in a brothel with two women lying on his back.

"Are you Ma Chong?" Zhao Heng asked with a sidelong glance.

"Reply...Reply to the emperor, I am Ma Chong." Ma Chong replied.

Mi Yan looked at Ma Chong and frowned.

This Ma Chong is thin and pale, and he is a man who indulges in women.

How can such a person be in charge of the Ma family?

Thinking of this, he sighed lightly, wondering why his nephew is so miserable.

First, there was the chaos in Yanzhou, and now there is chaos in Jinzhou again.

Zhao Heng also frowned. Although he can appoint the candidate for the governor, he cannot decide the succession of the Ma family.

Without the support of the Ma family, there is basically no difference between having this governor or not.

Because of this, he used to simply give face to the powerful families, and the powerful families would nominate the governor of the state, and he only needed to take a look.

Ma Yuan also looked at Ma Chong at this time, and he said: "Do you know that your father and brother are dead?"

"What!" Ma Chong was startled at first, and then covered his face with his sleeves and cried, "Father..."

Zhao Heng frowned even more, why did this cry sound a little fake?

He said: "The Ma family needs someone to take charge of the overall situation. When you return to Qinzhou, you should work with the King of Yan to resist the enemy and recapture Jinzhou."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Ma Chong bowed and still cried.

Thinking of the chaos in the northwest at this time, Zhao Heng suddenly became irritable, and without saying a word, he got off the dragon throne and disappeared in the Golden Palace.

Liang Cheng shouted "Dismiss the court" while chasing after him.

The emperor left, and the officials looked at each other, shook their heads and sighed one by one and dispersed.

Dou Wei turned around to leave, and suddenly saw Ma Yuan blocking him.

"Ma Yushi, you..." Dou Wei crossed his arms and looked at Ma Yuan, whose eyes were red.

"You did it, didn't you?" Ma Yuan stared at Dou Wei.

The chaos in the northwest was too coincidental.

Jincheng was captured, and his brother and nephew died tragically.

Most importantly, he knew that Ma Chong had always had close contacts with the Dou family.

So, when an official mentioned that Ma Chong would inherit the position of the head of the Ma family, he immediately became suspicious.

"Ma Yushi, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want." Dou Wei said coldly.

In the past, he still gave Ma Yuan three points, because Ma Yuan had the Ma family behind him.

But now Ma Chong has inherited the Ma family, and this Ma Yuan is just a dog who has lost his home. How can he stand in front of him?

Seeing Dou Wei's arrogant expression, Ma Yuan was even more furious. He pointed at Dou Wei and said, "It must be you! It must be you! Just wait, I, Ma Yuan, will definitely find out the truth and avenge my brother and brother."

"Everyone, everyone, Censor Ma actually said that the father and son of the Ma family were killed by me, the Prime Minister of Dasong. He must have gone crazy because he failed to inherit the position of the head of the Ma family." Dou Wei heard this, not only was he not angry, but he laughed out loud.

"Hahaha..." Many officials of the powerful families laughed in agreement, and their eyes were full of ridicule when they looked at Ma Yuan.

Ma Yuan was so angry that he reached out to grab Dou Wei's collar.

At this time, Mi Yan suddenly grabbed Ma Yuan and dragged him out of the hall, saying, "Prime Minister Dou, don't be offended. Censor Ma must have been too sad and confused."

Dou Wei hummed coldly, raised his head and left with his hands behind his back.

Back to the Dou Mansion.

Dou Wei's face gradually turned cold, and the smile at the corner of his mouth spread to his entire face, "Hahaha..."

Hearing his father's laughter, Dou Kuang came over at this time.

But he didn't dare to get close, just said: "What makes father so happy?"

Dou Wei was in a particularly good mood today, and he seemed to like Dou Kuang.

He said, "Ma Chong is now the head of the Ma family. This plan is unusually smooth, and even if they go to investigate, they can only find out that it was done by Beidi. Even if they suspect our Dou family, they can't produce any evidence."

"This is indeed a great joy." Dou Kuang was excited.

Dou Wei nodded, "By the way, go find Ma Chong and ask him to go to the manor outside Jinling City tonight, and tell him that I want to see him off."

"Yes, father." Dou Kuang replied yes and left with a smile.

Before he took a few steps, he heard the conversation between his father and the housekeeper behind him, "Go and invite the third prince."

Hearing this, his smile disappeared immediately, and his steps seemed to have no strength.

In the evening.

When the setting sun hid in the black clouds and mountains, dyeing the sky red and yellow.

A carriage appeared in the Dou family manor outside Jinling City.

The curtain of the carriage was lifted, Ma Chong walked down, and was led into the manor.

At this time, his face was full of complacency, and there was no trace of grief.

"Hey, Master Ma, please take a seat." Dou Wei came out and took Ma Chong's hand and sat down at the banquet.

He sat in the first seat, and Ma Chong sat on his left.

Dou Kuang and other children of the Dou family sat further back.

"This is all thanks to the prime minister..." Ma Chong's gratitude was almost overflowing.

"Hush, you and I just know what's going on." Dou Wei interrupted him.

Ma Chong smiled and nodded.

At this time, the wine and food were served, and the dancers danced to the singing of the singing girl.

After three rounds of drinking, Dou Wei said, "I hope that Master Ma will not forget his promise to our Dou family when we return to Qinzhou this time."

Ma Chong's eyes had been fixed on the graceful dancer. When he came to his senses, he said, "I understand what the prime minister meant. This time when I return, I will specially dispatch troops to open up a trade route to allow the trade between the powerful families and the northern barbarians to proceed normally."

Dou Wei nodded with satisfaction, "Also, when sending troops to Jinzhou, don't exert any effort, just watch the King of Yan fight."

In his opinion, the population of the four northern counties of Yanzhou is sparse.

As long as the King of Yan's military strength is continuously consumed, the King of Yan will gradually have no soldiers to use.

At the same time, the large-scale death of the King of Yan's young and strong men will inevitably drag down the King of Yan's farming.

In this way, the further decline of Yanzhou is inevitable.

The arrogance of the royal family will also be suppressed.

"But after returning to Qinzhou, I am afraid that some members of the Ma family will not obey me." Ma Chong suddenly became worried.

Dou Wei laughed softly, "Don't worry about this. Do you think you are the only one in the Ma family who wants Ma Xuan and Ma Han to die? Without cooperation, the Beidi assassins will not know the whereabouts of Ma Han and Ma Xuan in advance."

Ma Chong suddenly realized and clapped his hands, "The prime minister is still far-sighted. This way I will be relieved. As long as I sit firmly on the position of the head of the Ma family, I will follow the prime minister's lead in the future."

"Okay." Dou Wei shouted softly and drank a cup with Ma Chong.

Then he waved his hand, and two extremely charming dancers walked out of the queue with a smile and threw themselves into Ma Chong's arms.

Soft jade and warm fragrance, Ma Chong immediately forgot about Dou Wei's existence and only cared about flirting with the dancers.

Dou Wei's eyes flickered.

Among the eight powerful families, the Ma family has now become a vassal of the Dou family, and the Xiao family has always been on good terms with the Dou family.

With the power of the three families, his momentum in the court will now increase greatly.

Whether it is to suppress the royal family or to fight for the position of the crown prince for the third prince.

He wanted to see who could still compete with him?