Li Xiao was locked under the deck of the back ship, in a cabin that was originally used to store debris on the ship. Because it is not used as a passenger cabin, this cabin has no windows, is semi-sealed, and is located below the deck of the ship, so it is damp and dull. However, after experiencing life and death, Li Xiao was so tired that he almost collapsed, but he still slept soundly while lying on two temporary wooden boards. It wasn't until he woke up from hunger that he realized that he was no longer the elegant young master in Chang'an City, but a poor man who escaped death but became a prisoner. Thinking of his own experience, he couldn't help crying. With the cry, the door was pushed open, and an ordinary face appeared in his sight. Li Xiao recognized this face as the guy who directed people to bring him to Ye Chang. "Haha." Seeing that he was just crying and had nothing else to do, Bian Ping laughed twice, then retracted his head, and the door closed again with a bang. "What's wrong?" asked the guard guarding him. "That boy is crying. I heard that he is a high-ranking official in Chang'an. Shaoqing he is much higher-ranking than our lord. I didn't expect him to be such a thing." "Comparing him with our lord, Brother Bian, "You said something wrong." "Yes, yes, I said something wrong. It's time to slap, slap, haha." Bian Ping really slapped his face lightly, and the guard laughed and clicked his tongue. He didn't know why. Li Xiao still wanted Bian Ping's virtue. "How do you think our lord will deal with this guy?" The guard asked again after a while. "How to deal with it? Of course it depends on him. With what he has done, it would not be an exaggeration for our lord to kill him ten times and punish his whole family, but our lord has always been kind. As long as he" Li Xiao could hear what he said next. It was a bit unreal, and he felt something in his heart. He stopped sobbing and put his ear to the door panel, wondering what Bian Ping would say. But the other party seemed to have finished speaking, leaving only a string of intermittent laughter. Li Xiao felt uneasy again. If he started crying because of his own experience, now he is worried because of his future. Although we are now free from the assassin, falling into the hands of Ye Chang seems to be no better than being caught by the assassin. The only difference is quick death and slow death. Are you saying that you have only one way to die? While he was thinking about it, the door was suddenly pushed open again. Because he was pressed against the door, he was almost knocked over by the door. When he looked up again, he saw Ye Chang appearing in front of him with a gentle expression. "Ye Ye Ye Sima, have mercy on me, have mercy on me, I'm just a little person relying on my father's influence, Ye Sima, please have mercy on me." "I can spare you, but I'm afraid no one else can spare you. Li Xiao, what do you think if I If I put you on the shore, how many days can you live?" Li Xiao suddenly shook, and there was fear in his eyes. "I want to kill you, but I don't want to bear this crime for others." After Ye Chang finished speaking, he motioned behind him: "Give it to him." One person entered the cabin sideways and placed a food basket in front of Li Xiao. , the tangy aroma coming from the food basket is the taste of food. Li Xiao suddenly felt as if a hand was reaching out from his belly, and he couldn't wait to grab all the food in the food basket. Without caring about any image and etiquette, he opened the food basket. It was just some homely food, but he ate it very deliciously. Ye Chang watched him wolfing down the food without saying a word. He just asked someone to bring him water when he choked. Filling his stomach in the shortest time in his life, Li Xiao took a breath, then knelt down in front of Ye Chang and leaned deeply: "I just beg for mercy, and I am willing to serve Ye Sima." "How can you serve me?" Ye Chang He shook his head, his voice still very gentle: "Thesis, I already have Confucian scholars who are proficient in official documents, and in terms of martial arts, I have warriors in front of me who are worthy of all men. What ability can you have for me?" "I I" Li Xiao couldn't find any place where he could serve Ye Chang for a while. ¡°I heard that you suspect that the assassin came from the prince?¡± After ignoring him for a while, Ye Chang asked again. Li Xiao didn't think much about it, just gritted his teeth: "The assassin was not sent by Ye Sima, then then it can only be sent by the people around the prince." Ye Chang was very interested, and he didn't have any good impression of Li Heng. In fact, as Wei Jian's downfall, he vaguely felt in his heart that he and Li Heng could only stand on opposite sides. If Li Heng succeeded Li Longji's throne, his only choice would be to escape. It is precisely because of this that he can't wait to establish the foundation of Liaodong and wants to send his sister-in-law and nephew to Liaodong. "How can you see that?" "The prince himself is not involved in this matter, but Zhang Pei is a very insidious person." Li Xiao racked his brains desperately, trying to find something that could keep him alive. Although he is stupid, he still has his little cleverness. Suddenly he remembered somethingWhen he came, he took Zhang Pei out of his pocket. He remembered that Ye Chang and Zhang Pei had a feud, and then thought that the reason why he disliked Ye Chang was largely due to Zhang Pei. It was Zhang Pei who mentioned in front of him that Ye Chang was frivolous and unfit for reuse, and then he slandered Ye Chang in front of his father As for the source of the discord between Zhang Pei and Ye Chang, at this time, he I actually remembered that it seemed that at Princess Yuzhen's party, Ye Chang swept his face. "Zhang Pei?" "Yes, yes, it's Zhang Pei. This person is the most deceitful. He flatters and flatters on the surface. The saint was actually in the same party as Wei Jian, Huangfu Weiming, etc. They often met in private, thinking that the saint's favor and trust in Li Linfu was not a blessing to the country They instigated my father to fight with Li Linfu, and also instigated the relationship between my father and Yesima. They said that Ye Sima was mean. "At this moment, Li Xiao grasped at straws, so he poured a lot of offensive words on Zhang Pei. He is actually a fool, but there are times when Blind Meng hits a dead end. He doesn't even know that his nonsense words are close to the truth. "Why is he doing this?" Ye Chang was not deceived by his words. "First, it's because he thinks he should be the prime minister, but he is just a minister, and he has long been secretly dissatisfied; second, becausebecause he is already in his prime, he wants to be a hero of Conglong." Li Xiao's words are not nonsense. Not only Zhang Pei, but also his father Li Shizhi realized that Li Longji was getting older and could not stay on the throne forever. Whether it is for yourself or for your children and grandchildren, you need to make long-term plans. However, Li Longji was old and never died, and he held power very tightly. He would rather entrust power to powerful ministers like Li Linfu than hand over power to Prince Li Heng, and even monitored Li Heng openly and covertly. He was almost undisguised about being wary of suspicion, which made Li Shizhi and others very worried. At this time, Ye Chang remembered Jiang Mei's evaluation of the prince Li Heng: quite like his father, Li Longji had made friends with many people at the time, so when he launched two coups to eliminate Empress Wei and Princess Taiping, he had all his cronies available. Li Hengruo is very similar to his father, so why not imitate him? "But Li Longji's suspicion of Li Heng was far greater than Li Dan's wariness of Li Longji, so Li Heng had to make two sides. On the one hand, he was filial to his son, Kuanhe, and the prince, and on the other hand, he was the future master of England. "Do you know who the prince has in his hands?" Ye Chang wanted to understand this and suddenly felt a little cold. "Wei Jian, Wang Zhongsi, Huangfu Weiming these people are all in the hands of the prince. There is also Zhang Pei, who openly keeps a distance from the prince, but in fact secretly colludes with the internal supervisors around the prince. It is not easy for the prince to get along with him. Everything my father said was conveyed by him." Ye Chang suddenly remembered that when seeing him off in Baqiao, Li Xiao once said something like "waiting for the prince", but Li Shizhi stopped him in time. He mentioned the matter and asked: "What did you want to say at that time?" Li Xiao's face changed and he hesitated. Ye Chang sighed: "Do you think I am asking questions for myself? I am asking questions for you. If I don't know what the plan is over there, how can I judge who sent the assassin?" "I I want to say that if the prince inherits the great treasure, you will all die" Li Xiao's voice lowered. "Oh? What plans does the prince have?" Li Xiao hesitated for a while, and then whispered: "It turns out that there is one. Huangfu Weiming and Wang Zhongsi are in charge of the military, and my father and Wei Jian are prime ministers. As long as Li Linfu is removed, everything will be over." Then ask the saint to be the emperor." When he told the plan, Ye Chang let out a long sigh. Li Longji Ye Chang is almost certain that this plan was not completely hidden from Li Longji. At least, Li Longji was aware of the possible existence of this plan with the acumen developed in many years of political struggle. So Li Longji used Li Linfu, and Li Linfu used Ye Chang and Lu Qi to kill Wei Jian, Huangfu Weiming, Wang Zhongsi, etc. in one fell swoop. These people are the backbone of Prince Li Heng's power. Their elimination means that Li Heng has lost the ability to threaten Li Longji. As for why Li Longji didn't simply destroy Li Hengjie maybe it was because he was old and no longer had the courage he had before, or maybe the case of the three common people made him feel a little regretful, so he was not so ruthless. . Originally, Ye Chang thought that the so-called Prince's Party was just something Li Linfu had guessed existed, but now he learned from Li Xiao that this small group did exist and had activities. From this point of view, he always thought that the people playing chess outside the chessboard were Li Longji and Li Linfu. In fact, he was wrong. The real people playing chess were the father and son Li Longji and Li Heng. Even Li Linfu was just a chess piece. But this chess piece is also thinking about how to get rid of the chess player. This is politics. "So, the person who assassinated you and tried to frame the blame on me might have been sent by them"?Zhang Pei is quite suspicious. "Ye Chang pondered for a long time, and then laughed: "If I spare your lifeare you willing to obey my order? " " I wish to be born to my parents and to live me, Mr. Ye. If I can survive, I am willing to work for Mr. Ye. " Bian Ping next to him lightly clicked his tongue. He is worthy of being a prime minister and a high-ranking official in the court. He is really good at flattering people. It is a professional level, and I am considered good at this skill, but I only dare to call Ye Chang my lord, but I dare not call him "Ye Gong". In his early twenties, he was already called "Ye Gong" When Ye Chang was interrogating Li Xiao, Shangyang Palace was already in chaos. Every eunuch and palace maid was frightened. The few eunuchs and female officials in charge were not as domineering as before, and their faces were as pale as earth. "You haven't found it yet?" a female official asked. "No, I've searched everywhere in the ditch and the pond I really, really" "What can I do? I've only been here two days, and I've already made such a fuss" "Live If you want to see a person, you must see a corpse. Otherwise, how can we explain to the saint? We are no longer lucky people in this Shangyang Palace. If the saint blames us again, how can we deal with it other than death? " In the discussion, no conclusion can be reached. After arguing for a long time, everyone got tired and another round of silence began. At this time, with the sound of rapid footsteps, a sergeant burst in. He looked a little unnatural and was still dripping with water: "I found this at the iron fence of the Yugou Water Gate leading to the valley water." He was holding a piece of silk in his hand. The sash was hung from Concubine Mei. The passage created by Bian Ping was small and in the water. When Concubine Mei held her breath and got out, she pulled off the silk ribbon on her body and said, "Is this something that belongs to the empress?" Everyone turned their attention to a palace maid who was kneeling beside her. . This is Concubine Mei¡¯s personal concubine Xuezhi. Since she serves Concubine Mei personally, she knows the things around Concubine Mei. She carefully examined it for a while, and then cried loudly: "Where is your mother-in-law?" The sergeant hesitated for a moment, and then said: "At the bottom of the iron fence, I found a small exit." "What?" Originally, she was still there. The sitting eunuchs and female officers all stood up immediately, and their expressions changed drastically. "You mean, one person can get through that exit?" a eunuch asked sharply. The sergeant looked at Xuezhi: "As long as you are not too fat, you can get through" "Mother, could it be" Everyone's expressions changed drastically. Could it be that Concubine Mei escaped? Concubine Mei was banished to the cold palace, and she was nominally the master of Shangyang Palace, but they, the palace maids and eunuchs, were still responsible for surveillance. If Concubine Mei was allowed to escape and fall into the common people, they would definitely die without a burial place. " What about the memorial?" After a long time, someone said. "Exactly, the memorial that the empress gave to the saint, Xuezhi, take it out." "How can we see the memorial from the empress?" Xuezhi said in a trembling voice. "What time has it been? If you want to die, hand over the remains." A eunuch walked over and scolded fiercely. They have already called the memorial "the memorial", and no one raised any objection. It means that these internal officials and female officials have reached a certain tacit understanding. Xuezhi couldn't resist them, so she could only hand over the memorial. This was actually a letter, which was found on Concubine Mei's bed. It is not known when Concubine Mei wrote it. The letter was not sealed, so a eunuch opened it, and everyone, whether literate or not, came to read it. But it was a suicide note, saying only that he had sinned against God and could not see the saint again. He felt miserable in his heart and had no intention of remaining alive, so he had no choice but to commit suicide. At the end of the suicide note, she also asked Li Longji to release her maids from the palace and marry him to a good family for the sake of years of kindness. After receiving this letter, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. ¡°My queen has a strong temper,¡± someone sobbed. "Yes, the saint must be sad about it But our Shangyang Palace has been in disrepair for a long time, and even the iron bars of the water gate are rusted and rotten. We must also apologize to the saint." The soldier who came to report had a strange look on his face. He was about to say iron The fence was not rusty, but more like someone had sawed it open. But as soon as he opened his mouth, more than a dozen pairs of stern eyes stared at him. ¡°It¡¯s better for him to have one less thing to do than to have one more thing to do.