Chapter 5 Forces of all sides

Send Sun Zaiyuan away, and it was already dark. Xu Jinghong did not stay much in his residence, so he changed into clothes that were easy to walk in the night and went out. This time, he entered the beam alone, in addition to understanding the situation in Beijing earlier so that he could have a judgment, but also to save the person he cared about from the prison first. If he wants to identify himself and then go to the prison to save people, he may be suspected by some people who know the situation once it is done, so he must take the lead.

Daliang City under the night seems to be colder than the day. Except for the soldiers of the patrol camp who pass by from time to time, there is no popularity at all. This is very beneficial to Xu Jinghong's dark action. As for those soldiers who have passed by a team, it is naturally impossible to find this nightwalker who always hides his figure through buildings.

The familiarity with the roads and buildings in Beijing made Xu Jinghong quickly come to the heavenly prison under the Ministry of Criminal Justice. This is a rather majestic, castle-like building made of boulders. Inside and outside, there are a lot of guards, especially the important people in the court. In order to prevent their remnants from coming to rob, this defense is naturally tighter.

In less than half a cup of tea, there were three groups. A total of 21 people passed by the wall in front of him. Xu Jinghong's heart was sinking and he knew that he was still a little simple about this matter. It's just that this airtight defense is very difficult for you to enter, not to mention the defense line that is obviously more difficult to cross. Moreover, even if he really has the ability to cross this line of defense and go straight into the cell, I'm afraid it is impossible to successfully rescue people with a person.

In the end, he had to stand still and observe carefully, hoping that in a certain period of time, the guards would slack off. But until dawn, there are no flaws in the rotation and defense inside, and this is only the defense on the surface, and it is bound to be more difficult for people to steal in the core.

"Oh, it seems that I can't do it if I want to save people smoothly this time." Xu Jinghong sighed secretly and then returned on the same road. He had too many responsibilities, and naturally he would not force himself to do self-destruction as soon as his head was hot. Fortunately, he is still alive, and there may be other ways to save him, so it is acceptable for him to give up temporarily.

In the next two days, Xu Jinghong had a more accurate understanding of the situation in Beijing through Sun Zaiyuan and his occasional outings. Obviously, because the court suddenly defeated more than a dozen rich families led by the four major families and temporarily suppressed the dissatisfaction of the people, in addition to guarding the remnants of those families, the situation in Beijing is not as tense as expected. It is only because of the chaos caused before that the bigwigs who have now mastered the regime dare not slack off at all, so today's deserted phenomenon will appear.

After understanding all this, Xu Jinghong did what he was going to do according to the situation of all parties in North Korea. Since the emperor transferred himself to deal with the remnants of those families, and he also had a lot of holidays with them, he fought well with them this time to eradicate these guys who had harmed the people in the past and are still harmful now. At the same time, when doing these things, he can also take the opportunity to expand his strength, so that he can compete for power in the court with Zhao cong, the king of Jing.

With this plan, Xu Jinghong went out of the city again. This time, he will come in from the gate of the capital with his brothers and let everyone know that he is back!

Xiong Geng and others are indeed a little tired of nestling in the remote places outside the city. Now when he saw Xu Jinghong coming back, he surrounded him: "The team is Zheng, but have you decided to take us to the city?"

Xu Jinghong smiled and nodded: "I have figured out the situation and the distribution of power in all aspects in Beijing, and I have a clear plan. Now it's time for us to go into the city to meet them openly!"

"That's great!" Everyone shouted happily, and many of them came to the capital of the Song Dynasty for the first time. Naturally, they were full of yearning for this central place and prosperity. However, when they came to the gate and looked in, they couldn't believe that this was the beam of the capital of the Song Dynasty, because it was too lonely inside.

Seeing these hundreds of strong men suddenly gathered before the gate, the soldiers guarding the gate were a little scared. However, they still have to cross-examine their responsibilities. Fortunately, Xu Jinghong was prepared for a long time and asked people to take the order of the Ministry of War and the waist cards of himself and others to show them, which did not cause any bigger trouble.

However, the news of their entry into Beijing soon reached the ears of some people. Before they came near the house, many people heard the news and came to their door.

As soon as the person was settled down, there was a sound of inquiry outside the door: "Is Xu Dutong there? Come to visit under the order of King Jing!"

Xu Jinghong did not dare to neglect and quickly welcomed people in person. He has decided to rely on Zhao Cen during this period. Naturally, he can't be rude to the people under King Jing. However, he was still a little surprised that King Jing came to the door so anxiously and so blatantly, because in his memory, Zhao Cong has never been such an impatient person.

A staff member of King Jing came. In addition to the greetings sent by King Jing, he also gave Xu Jinghong a house larger than here. Xu Jinghong naturally accepted such a kindness. The other party is going to buy himself, and he has that intention that naturally will not refuse. However, Xu Jinghong was the first to appreciate King Jing's method of buying people's hearts. It seems that with the change of identity and needs, a person's style of behavior will also change.

Before the staff left, he also made an invitation for his prince and invited Xu Jinghong to go to the new King's mansion two days later. Naturally, there was no need for him to refuse such an invitation and agreed repeatedly.

Xu Jinghong was a little surprised by the second and third guests. Because it turned out to be the prince and the king of Yong. You know, he has never had a friendship with these two princes. Why can't it be their turn? But since they came to our door, we still had to meet each other and say a few words. The two servants who came on behalf of their prince did not say much, but said a lot of compliments and admiration on behalf of their masters, and finally left some gold and silver objects and said goodbye. But from their words, Xu Jinghong still heard a lot of solicitation.

After sending away the two princes' lobbyist with vague words, Xu Jinghong also muttered to himself: "I just came to the beam, and I don't have any position. Why are they so eager to recruit? Will my return to Beijing be heavily used this time, and will it be known by the people in the dynasty? Or have these coveted people really reached the stage where everyone has to fight for it?

But he couldn't figure it out, because soon there were guests coming. This time, it was Meng Huchong, who patrolled the city, and several other officials he didn't know. The former is obviously leading the way, while others are the upstarts in the dynasty who emerged after the family. They just said polite words. Before entering the topic, they couldn't stay, because someone came to report that there was someone from the palace.

After all, Xu Jinghong was an official of the imperial court, and this time he was ordered to return to Beijing. The first person to see him was the emperor. So these people stopped staying and left through the side door. At this time, the people in the palace were respectfully welcomed into the main hall by Xu Jinghong. He didn't know the person who came. He should be a small internal prisoner who used to work in the palace.

The internal supervisor came to send a message, but the emperor asked Xu Jinghong to enter the palace early tomorrow morning and arrange a new position for him in front of the ministers. Xu Jinghong quickly said hello, and after sending people away, he ordered to close the door to avoid the guests. Now that the emperor knows that he has arrived, it is not good to meet other officials, and he does not feel that he should meet anyone else. At least before he understands the distribution of power in the dynasty, it is better to remain neutral.

And the brothers also complained. They felt that this half day in the capital was more difficult than a day of practicing in northern Xinjiang. It's better to have a happy battle with the Hu people.

"I think everyone will soon get used to this kind of life, because from tomorrow, we will have to fight against enemies who can't be seen on the surface in such an environment." Xu Jinghong said to everyone with a glass while eating, which made everyone show bitterness when drinking this glass of wine.

In the evening, he called some close people to his study and had a secret talk with them. As for what he said, the other brothers did not know.

In this way, the first day of Xu Jinghong's official appearance in the capital has passed, but behind this seemingly calm, there has begun to be a surging undercurrent. All forces have begun to win over, or trying to deal with this potential helper or confrontation.

In Jingwang's mansion, Zhao cong, who has already grown a beard and seems to be much more mature than before, is listening to the staff he sent to Xu Jinghong to describe the process of talking with him. With a satisfied smile on his face, Xu Jinghong accepted such a heavy gift, which seemed to mean to rely on himself.

After listening, he looked at Sun Zaiyuan, who had never said anything: "Mr. Sun's speculation is still correct. Xu Jinghong does have a good impression of me because of his previous relationship. In this case, we must not give any chance to the other two sides. We must win him as soon as possible!"

"What the prince said is that Xu Dutong cares about this person. As long as we treat each other like this, he will not vote for others. Moreover, the emperor transferred him back this time to reuse it. With him helping us in the court, our current unfavorable situation can be slightly changed. If you stick to it slowly, maybe one day, the position of the prince will change. Sun Zainyuan quickly gave his attitude. When referring to Xu Jinghong, he didn't have many close words, which was also the details that he revealed in front of people after thinking about the superior.

Sure enough, listening to him say this, Zhao Cong's face showed a satisfied smile and nodded, "Yes, Xu Jinghong's ability is quite good. Not to mention his previous actions in the capital, I'm afraid that no one in my court can do it with all the contributions he has made in the southwest and northern Xinjiang. If I can really get his help, I will definitely make a difference!"

Unconsciously, his name for Xu Jinghong was no longer as enthusiastic as before. He called him by his name instead of calling him brother. Of course, this also changed with the change of his identity. In the past, Zhao cong was just an idle prince with no power and no power, and he didn't dare to think about the throne. But now he has mastered a certain power. If he wants to go up to the middle, he must have the concept of superiority and inferiority anyway.

"However, the prince still needs to restrain his methods of attracting him." Sun Zaiyuan thought about the suggestion and said, "Now your majesty still quates the power very much. If he finds that the prince is too close to him, I'm afraid it will be unfavorable to both sides."

"Well... You're right. My father has been planning for this day for so many years, and he naturally cherishes the power he gets. He doesn't want us sons to have too much power. As my husband has been saying, we should take indisputable things first and only collect those talented but not reusable officials, so that we can have a certain voice in the court.

"Yes, Xu Jinghong should still be loyal to His Majesty, at least on the surface. In this way, his help to the prince will be the greatest at a critical moment. Another staff member, Zuo Feng, also said in echo.

"Okay, then follow this principle. As long as he can make a statement, I won't force it. I will find an opportunity to talk to him in the early morning tomorrow. Finally, Zhao Cong made a final summary, and he was quite confident in the effect of Xu Jinghong's investment this time.

On the other side, the prince's East Palace is six or seven similar to Zhao cong, but the more frivolous prince Zhao Jue also discussed with several of his masters about how to get more power. It's just that what they are talking about now is not Xu Jinghong. Although he has also sent someone to meet, it is just a statement. They are not too relieved to recruit this martial artist who may have a certain power in the future. Because his status is higher than that of the two brothers, he is confident that he can send those talented and thoughtful officials to his home.

What he cares about now is the Lu family, which has always been the attitude of a powerful family in the court. He asked unhappily, "What is the attitude of Lv Shaoqun? Why did he learn from his father and refuse to show his attitude on big things? Lv Shaoqun, one of Lv Zhong and one of his sons, has now become a household servant.

Five of the seven masters fell one after another, and naturally there were many vacant positions in the court, and the ability of those newly emerging dignitaries was obviously not enough to fill these vacancies, which led to the two old rich families, Xu and Lu, to get unexpected gains in this regime change. And Lv Shaoqun is the highest one among them.

The Shangshu of the Ministry of Household is now controlled by the people of King Yong, so if you want to compete with him in finance, the prince must take down the servant who is also in the Ministry of Household, second only to Shangshu, and the Lv family represented behind him, so that the prince wants to recruit him more. .

"If you have a father, you have a son." Shang Yan, the young master of the prince, said distressed, "I have talked to him several times, and his words are not clear, but he refuses to nod his head."

"Hmm, it seems that he is a little disrespectful!" Zhao Jue said coldly with some dissatisfaction, "If he hadn't had a Lu family work*, I would have wanted to grab this position!" But don't be proud. The Lu family is his * Yes, but sometimes, it will also bring disaster to him! My father has always been ill with these families. As long as we think about it, it is not difficult to destroy the Lu family.

"If the prince really wants to do this, I can recommend someone." Another young prince, Lou Kun, thought of the guest he sent to meet Xu Jinghong and said, "Today, a man came to Beijing. He had fought with the seven masters for a long time, and even the Fang family was removed by him. Presumably, with these feuds between him and the seven masters, he will not refuse to do these things.

"You mean Xu Jinghong from the north, right?" The prince still knew about this famous warrior: "What news did the people we sent bring?"

"I heard that King Jing and King Yong also sent their men to visit him, but at present, the relationship between this person and King Jing is the latest. If the prince wants to win him over, he has to do it as soon as possible.

"It's just a martial artist. I haven't reached the point of being hungry." Zhao Jue said disapprovingly, "Now there are still many powerful generals in Beijing. If you want to recruit them, you have to recruit them first. As for what you said, don't be in a hurry to let him fight with the Lu family. Lv Shaoqun should still fight for it. After all, it's always much better to get such help and become enemies with them!"

"See you clearly!" Shang Yan quickly praised: "I will try my best to deal with it. Whether it is for himself or the future of the Lu family, he must have a choice!"

"Well, let's do it like this. Xu Jinghong also looked at him. Although he was not in a hurry to come to him, he didn't want to see people from the other two sides digging him over!" After leaving this sentence, the prince yawned and left.

In the Yongwang Mansion at the other end, Zhao Zhuang, the king of Yong, did not pay much attention to the arrival of Xu Jinghong, but after asking some opinions about this person, he also led the topic to Lv Shaoqun, the servant of the household department. For this senior official who can compete with Shang Shu, backed by the prime minister's father and a strong family background, no matter which prince who cares about the high position will not be easily let go.

"Does he still have contact with the prince's people?" Zhao Wan raised his eyebrows and felt uneasiness in his heart.

"Yes, but depending on the situation, the prince and he don't seem to have reached any ideas. So I think we still have a chance." Talking to Zhao Huan was a short and fat young man. His face was full of fat, but he was full of cunning. If Xu Jinghong was present, he would be shocked, because this man was Xu Shihao, one of the legitimate sons of the Xu family who finally left the capital!