Chapter 422 Conspiracy
In a blink of an eye, Li Yuan had been in Luoyang for two months.

Originally, he was planning to return to Guanzhong in April. After all, there were wars in Qinzhou and Xiazhou, and returning to Guanzhong earlier would help resolve these issues.

However, due to poor health, he stayed for a longer period of time. During this period, Li Yuan also issued an imperial edict to let Prince of Qi Li Yuanhui be in charge of military and political affairs.

He recuperated in the palace for more than a month before he recovered. In May, good news came. In the battle of Ji County, the Tang army had defeated the Tuyuhun and Qiang-Hu coalition forces of more than 100,000 people.

Li Yuan also felt refreshed by the good news, and his physical condition was also very good.

So he put the plan of returning to Chang'an on his agenda. But if nothing unexpected happened, something unexpected was bound to happen.

Li Yuan felt that Li Yuanhui had actually been dealt with by him. They were both monarch and subject, and father and son. No one could bear the pressure of justice. There should be no problem. During this period, Li Yuanhui did not take any action, and did not even meet with his old subordinates. Naturally, he would not have any plans. Everything was under control, at least he thought so.

Liu Xuanji in the north originally planned to keep his troops in place because he knew what Li Yuan was here for.

He knew that if he took action at this time, Li Si might not be able to escape.

On the contrary, if he showed weakness at this time, as long as he did not send troops and there was no war in Hanoi and Hebei, Li Yuan would definitely move Li Si away.

If Li Si refuses to leave, who knows what trouble will happen between him and his son.

As the military officer Ling Jing said, after Yuan Shao's death, Wei Wu attacked Hebei, but the brothers Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang had not yet turned against each other and joined forces to fight the enemy. Even Emperor Wu of Wei could not achieve victory. But after Wei Wu withdrew his troops, his brothers naturally turned against each other because of the issue of succession. This is the so-called chaos without attack.
Even if nothing happened, as long as Li Si was not guarding Luoyang, it would be a major benefit to him.

But sometimes, even if you are calculating, you cannot predict the whole direction of things, let alone the hearts of everyone and the choices they make.

Li Yuanhui seemed to admit it, but some people did not.

Just as Li Yuan gathered a group of people to discuss returning to Chang'an, Dugu Ying, Li Qinglian and Li Baishi gathered in a tavern in the south market of Luoyang.

The one who invited everyone here to discuss was Dugu Ying.

They were considered the core members of the Qi Wangfu. Li Yuanhui would often consult with them whenever he made a decision or had any plan. Among them, Li Baishi was mainly responsible for government affairs, Dugu Ying was in charge of confidential matters, and Li Qinglian gave advice.

Dugu Ying got straight to the point and said, "I won't beat around the bush with you two. This time, the princess asked me to come here to tell you a few words."

Upon hearing this, both of them looked serious and listened attentively.

Dugu Ying said: "The princess said, 'The king has returned to Chang'an. He and the prince are now very close friends, but what will happen when the prince ascends the throne in the future? You have been with the king of Qi for a long time. Things have come to this point. The king is bound by the father-son relationship. You can decide for yourself.'"

As soon as he finished speaking, the box was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

Several people were thinking about what Dugu Ying meant. In fact, Dugu Ying was really instructed by Princess Murong Jiayin.

When Murong Jiayin mentioned this to Li Yuanhui before, she thought that Li Yuanhui had made some preparations, but as the emperor's health gradually improved, she began to doubt. What exactly are you planning? Do you have any arrangements? She was a little worried, so she asked Dugu Ying to come and pass on the message.

Li Baishi and Li Qinglian also understood what the princess meant. The King of Qi could not be touched because he was the emperor's son. But you are different.
But what to do? How to do it?

After a while, Li Baishi said, "Your Majesty has been very kind to us. If Your Majesty has the order, I will not refuse even if it means I have to fight on the front line. But now Your Majesty is determined to lead Your Majesty to Chang'an in the west. What can we do? Your Majesty has brought an army of 100,000, and Liu Xuanji is eyeing us from the north."

Li Qinglian said: "Brother Baishi is right, but once the king enters Guanzhong, he will be like a dragon trapped in a shallow shoal. As long as your majesty is alive, your majesty will have wealth and honor for a day, but what about the future? Your majesty is not young anymore. Once the prince ascends the throne. Although the prince and your highness have a very close relationship and a deep brotherly love, what about the future? How will Emperor Wen of Wei and Emperor Wen of Han treat their brothers?"

Dugu Ying said: "The king started from Jianghuai, fought for more than ten years, and conquered half of the territory of the Tang Dynasty. Many of his old subordinates are in Guandong. If the prince ascends the throne, he will definitely cut off the wings of the Tiance Mansion and take away the power of the king. We are all here for our ancestors, and our life and death depends on the thoughts of others."

After saying this, the three of them fell silent.

The situation is already like this. If Li Yuanhui follows him back to Chang'an, which is thousands of miles away from Jianghuai, the power of Tiance Palace and Qiwang Palace may not be affected in the short term, but they will definitely be purged in the long run.

It would be extremely difficult for them to do anything.

Whether for their own future and wealth, or for the sake of their relationship with Li Yuanhui, they didn't want to just sit there and wait for death.

After all, according to normal thinking, it is impossible for the King of Qi to reuse the prince after he comes to power.

One is to let him be a rich and idle man, but to pluck out his claws and teeth and clip his wings.

The second is to imprison him directly, or find a reason to kill him. In this way, the power of Tian Ce Mansion and Qi Wang Mansion will be like monkeys scattering when the tree falls, and they can employ any talented people without worry.

The first one may gain a good reputation, but will cause turmoil in the government and the country.

The second group, although they carry a bad reputation, can stabilize the government. So in fact, Li Yuanhui himself may be more dangerous than them. Because as long as he dies, these people will not pose a threat to the prince.

Dugu Ying pointed these out directly in order to let Li Qinglian and Li Baishi make a choice.

After thinking about it, Li Qinglian said, "Brother Dugu, if you have any brilliant ideas, just tell me. As long as we can keep the king in Luoyang, everything will still have a chance. Even if Luoyang is lost, what does it matter? As long as the king stays east of Hangu Pass, we still have a chance!"

Li Baishi was a little hesitant because he was not sure who Dugu Ying represented.

It is said to be the princess, but what if it was Li Yuanhui's instruction?

But after some hesitation, Li Baishi chose to follow the crowd. Now that things had come to this, no matter whether Dugu Ying represented Princess Murong or Li Yuanhui himself, he could not afford to back down.

Because Dugu Ying and Li Qinglian were definitely going to do something, and Li Yuanhui would definitely know what was going on.

If he hadn't participated in this matter, he would have been really embarrassed in the future.

So the topic immediately changed from whether to do something to how to create something that would force His Majesty to give up the decision to move the King of Qi.

From a strategic perspective, Li Qinglian directly proposed a very bold plan.

"Whether it's Huai County, Liyang, Chaoge, or Fangtou, none of them are as good as the Heqiao! The Heqiao is the main road from Luoyang to Hebei. If there is a problem with the Heqiao, the entire Henei will be cut off from Luoyang! Even if Luoyang has a 100,000-man army, it can't quickly support Henei, and even the Yan army can hold the ferry. Don't forget that the garrison commander of Liyang has also been replaced."

Dugu Ying questioned, "But the bridge is heavily guarded. It would not be easy to burn down the bridge without the cooperation of others."

Li Baishi said, "This is easy. The one currently guarding the three cities of Heqiao is General Zuo Wuwei and Duke of Zhongli, Zhu Deyu. He is from the same hometown as me and is an old friend of the king. He was promoted by me. His relationship with the king is even closer than ours. I will go and persuade General Zhu."

Li Baishi took the matter over directly. Dugu Ying and Li Qinglian also agreed immediately. Although they were also familiar with Zhu Deyu, they were not as easy to talk to as people from the same hometown.

After the three men dispersed from the South City, Li Baishi disguised himself and left the city directly, heading north all the way to the river bridge.

After seeing the defenders, he immediately showed his identity certificate and then came to Zhongyu City. At this time, the sun was setting.

Zhu Deyu was inside Zhongyu City, having dinner on the city wall with Tang He, Tang Yun and other brothers. He was very surprised to see the newcomer. "Why is Li Changshi here? Come and sit down. Someone, bring me two more dishes and a pot of hot wine."

Li Baishi was a little hungry after the bumpy journey. They had just discussed some things when they met in Nanshi in the morning. So he naturally nodded to Zhu Deyu, quickly ate a bowl of rice, and then drank a sip of tea.

After finishing eating, Li Baishi took a breath and said, "General Zhu." Then he looked at him straight.

Zhu Deyu naturally knew that there was something important to say, and then he waved his hand and said, "Have you finished eating? If you have, get out of the way. I have something to say to Li Changshi."

Several people immediately stood up and went out.

Who knew that just as these people went out, Li Baishi hadn't even waited to speak when he suddenly saw fire on the northern section of the floating bridge.

Many soldiers also shouted, "Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

Upon seeing this, Zhu Deyu hurried out to arrange for people to defend and rescue the pontoon bridge, but he did not expect Li Baishi to directly pull his sleeve.

"Li Changshi, what are you doing? Go away quickly. Come back and tell us if there is anything wrong. This river bridge is a vital piece of land. If something goes wrong, it will be a big trouble."

Li Baishi shook his head, still holding on to his sleeve. Then he asked, "How big can the trouble be? Is there anyone other than the King of Qi who can handle it?"

Zhu Deyu was shocked when he heard this. He was a warrior and very strong, so it would be easy for him to get rid of Li Baishi.

But at this moment he had no strength left. He walked to the top of the city wall and looked at the fire coming from the floating bridge in the north. Suddenly he understood something.

This Li Changshi, isn't he here just for this matter?

Then he remembered that the person guarding the north city of Heqiao was his cousin, Dou Fengjie, who was always cautious in his actions.

Is there really an enemy attack?
You should know that His Royal Highness the Prince of Qi had already arranged protective measures upstream of the bridge. Even if a boat was set on fire upstream, it would be difficult for it to directly reach the bridge.

Now, one fire ship after another from the north directly hit the floating bridge, which meant that all the protective measures were gone.
Looking at the flames rising into the sky, Zhu Deyu suddenly laughed.

Something is going to happen.

(End of this chapter)