The first county magistrate in history

Chapter 282: The Merit Overshadows the Master, and the Bow is Hidden After the Bird is Killed

An Dehai was startled by Yuan Shiqing's shout and looked at him in confusion: "What's wrong?"

Yuan Shiqing said seriously, "This is a secret letter that His Majesty has personally read!"

An Dehai was also stunned, and it took him a long time to react.

But he didn't take it seriously. He just scratched his head awkwardly and bowed to apologize: "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I was just too impatient. The matter of the Fifth Prince is of great importance."

As he said this, he returned the bamboo tube to Xia Mochu with both hands.

"It's okay!" Xia Mochu smiled faintly and took the bamboo tube.

But there was a hint of uneasiness in her eyes.

She remembered Qin Zheng's reminder that arrogant ministers and unruly sons would bring disaster to the country.

Also, eunuchs are a disaster for the country...

Recently, Uncle An has indeed become more and more outrageous.

But what can she do?

Uncle An was loyal to her and took great care of her.

Without Uncle An, how could she secure the throne of Daqian?

You can't scold or punish Uncle An, right?

The old man was also embarrassed.

But, in the long run, it is not a good thing.

Ever since she became the empress, she has gained a deep understanding of human hearts and human nature.

Human nature is definitely not static!

It seems that Uncle An needs to be disciplined in the future to change his bad habits.

Xia Mochu opened the bamboo tube and took out the paper scroll inside. After reading it, his expression changed.

An Dehai, Yuan Shiqing, and Li Qiuhan all looked at Xia Mochu anxiously.

Ningguta’s actions concern the safety of the royal family and the Daqian Empire!

After a long while, Xia Mochu finally said, "Qin Zheng didn't kill the five princes. Instead, he used their lives to exchange for a copper mine."

"What?" An Dehai exclaimed in disbelief. "The Fifth Prince actually compromised. How is that possible?"

In his opinion, the Fifth Prince Xia Qiming is definitely not someone who would compromise, even if a knife is placed on his neck.

He was also surprised that Qin Zheng did not kill the five princes.

Qin Zheng’s previous style was that he dared to kill even the most powerful person.

How did you become smarter this time?

Is there something that Qin Zheng dare not do?

Xia Mochu looked at An Dehai and said, "Uncle An, you insisted on recommending Qin Zheng to go to Guanxi to provide disaster relief. Is it because you think that Qin Zheng's character will make him kill the Fifth Prince?"

An Dehai did not deny it: "Until the Five Princes are eliminated, I will not be able to sleep or eat. Unfortunately, Qin Zheng did not fall for it. Your Majesty, this is an opportunity. I ask Your Majesty's permission to personally go to Guanxi!"

Xia Mochu sighed, "It's too late. Not only did Qin Zheng not kill the Fifth Prince, he also prevented the Western Border King from assassinating the Fifth Prince! By now, the Fifth Prince should have returned to Ningguta safely."

"What?" An Dehai was furious. "The Fifth Prince left Ningguta without permission and should be executed according to the law! Qin Zheng is an imperial envoy, albeit only to investigate the grain crisis. But he holds the imperial sword, as if he were the emperor himself. How could he let the Fifth Prince go? What does he want to do?"

Xia Mochu shook his head: "Qin Zheng is very smart. The Fifth Prince is a royal relative. How can a mere imperial envoy like him decide his life or death? Even if he has the Imperial Sword!"

An Dehai huffed, "Sure enough, his madness is fake!"

Xia Mochu smiled bitterly: "Qin Zheng is too smart, who can beat him!"

The implication is that you should stop fighting with Qin Zheng.

An Dehai didn't seem to understand Xia Mochu's meaning and asked in confusion, "Your Majesty, since you know my purpose and know that Qin Zheng would not do this, why did you accept my suggestion?"

Xia Mochu smiled, and her smile was cruel: "Because, I also want to kill the Fifth Prince. Without him, my mother would not have died."

"Alas!" An Dehai sighed: "Your Majesty, we could have eradicated the problem completely back then..." An Dehai didn't say anything else. After all, that was the decision of the late emperor.

Xia Mochu also sighed. "If Qin Zheng kills the Fifth Prince, the Fourth Princess will certainly avenge him. At that time, even if Qin Zheng doesn't want to participate in the royal family dispute, he will have to bear the wrath of Ningguta. I'm not trying to harm Qin Zheng, but if Qin Zheng is really an envoy of the Five Elements Sect, this time, if he is involved in the royal family dispute, it will force the Five Elements Sect to protect Qin Zheng, which is equivalent to protecting the Daqian Dynasty. It is also equivalent to indirectly acknowledging that I am qualified to be the empress and will not choose a new master."

An Dehai was immediately excited and said happily, "So Your Majesty has already planned this! This time, Your Majesty is testing Qin Zheng to confirm whether he is the envoy of the Five Elements Sect?

The result was that Qin Zheng was confirmed to be the envoy because he did not kill the five princes.

Yuan Shiqing was also excited: "Because one of the purposes of the Protector God is that he will not intervene in the internal struggles of the royal family unless it is absolutely necessary, unless it will cause a large-scale war and harm the people!"

Xia Mochu wasn't particularly pleased. He nodded and said, "Once the Five Elements Sect takes action on behalf of my royal family, they'll be tied to my royal family from now on. If Qin Zheng can mobilize the Five Elements Sect to destroy Ningguta, that would be great. If not, the Five Elements Sect and their Sky Thunder Cannons are enough to intimidate Ningguta for decades, preventing them from making any rash moves. This gives me plenty of time to prepare."

At this moment, Li Qiuhan, who had been listening, was stunned.

Looking at Xia Mochu in astonishment, His Majesty actually had such a deep plan?

This is not like the empress before.

Li Qiuhan, An Dehai and Yuan Shiqing had no idea about the empress's plan.

They had studied it before, and because of the appearance of the Black Cavalry, they suspected that Qin Zheng was an envoy of the Five Elements Sect, who had come down to inspect.

But that's just speculation.

Could it be true?

Li Qiuhan looked at the empress deeply and thought to himself, Her Majesty actually had a relationship with the envoy of the Five Elements Sect. This coincidence is simply adding wings to a tiger!

Doesn’t it mean that as long as Qin Zheng is around, the Five Elements Sect will have to support the royal family in the future?

Xia Mochu suddenly said with a deep gaze, "Qin Zheng didn't kill the five princes, which was basically what I expected. However, the worst-hit area of the Guanxi grain crisis is Qinghe, and the Qinghe governor Qi Daozhong is Liang Heng's brother-in-law. Qin Zheng can choose not to kill the five princes, but he must kill Governor Qi Daozhong. Because, as long as Qi Daozhong is alive, there will be no breakthrough in the Qinghe grain crisis case. If Qin Zheng kills Qi Daozhong, it will inevitably provoke resistance from the Qi family. If Qin Zheng does not destroy the Qi family, the Qinghe grain crisis will still not be resolved. But destroying the Qi family will inevitably anger Liang Heng, the King of the Western Territory. In this case, the Five Elements Sect will still help Qin Zheng."

An Dehai, Yuan Shiqing and Li Qiuhan all looked at Xia Mochu in astonishment.

Since when did the empress become so shrewd and calculating? This is simply a series of schemes!

Even An Dehai didn't expect that Xia Mochu had deeper plans.

An Dehai said with genuine surprise, "As an imperial envoy holding the imperial sword, Qin Zheng discovered that a criminal had left Ningguta without permission. Even if he was a member of the imperial family, he could not be executed. According to the law, he must be escorted to the imperial capital for the personal judgment of His Majesty. But he released him without permission, which is a capital offense."

Of course, if he were an envoy of the Five Elements Sect, we wouldn't dare punish him. But in order to avoid exposing his identity as an envoy and to make amends, he must make amends. Qi Daozhong and the Qi family have committed countless evil deeds. If Qin Zheng doesn't kill them, it would be unreasonable. Therefore, to protect himself, he must kill them! Your Majesty, the plan is successful!

Xia Mochu smiled. "Given the volatile personality of the Western Border King Liang Heng, he will definitely step in personally to resolve the issue. At that time, Qin Zheng might kill Liang Heng, or he might not. After all, that is Guanxi, and the Western Border Army is guarding the border, so there can't be chaos."

Regardless of whether he kills him or not, he and Liang Heng have a feud that will last until one of them dies. Qin Zheng, Five Elements Sect, don't even think about staying out of this!"

"Hahaha..." An Dehai suddenly burst into laughter, tears streaming down his face.

Xia Mochu, Yuan Shiqing and Li Qiuhan were all shocked.

"Uncle An, what's wrong?" Xia Mochu asked puzzledly.

An Dehai suddenly fell to his knees and kowtowed to Empress Xia Mochu, saying excitedly, "Your Majesty's plan is truly wise. Your Majesty, I have a piece of advice I must offer. In the past, I worried about whether Your Majesty would be able to handle the situation on your own if I died. I was overthinking. With Your Majesty's plan, I can die with peace of mind."

thump!

thump!

Yuan Shiqing and Li Qiuhan also knelt down, their eyes filled with tears of excitement.

Li Qiuhan was happy for the empress's growth.

An Dehai and Yuan Shiqing felt a sense of relief.

Over the years, they have spared no effort to cultivate and help Xia Mochu, and it can be said that they have worked hard.

However, when women are in power, the results are always unsatisfactory.

Empress Xia Mochu is not cruel enough.

When it comes to intrigue and scheming, they are no match for the treacherous ministers inside and outside the court.

However, the calculations of today's empress are enough to show that today's empress is truly worthy of the throne.

Xia Mochu was moved by An Dehai's words, her eyes sparkling, and she quickly helped the three people up.

But he sighed and said, "The reason I can come up with the plan today is entirely due to the inspiration from the governance method of Hongtong County. There are endless strategies in it, which are daunting!"

After hearing the empress's words, An Dehai's face suddenly darkened.

Yuan Shiqing sighed in his heart, Qin Zheng, Qin Zheng, why are you so outstanding?

You always say that serving the king is like serving a tiger, but do you know that a tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind?

Do you know that when one's achievements surpass those of his master, the bow will be put away when the bird is dead!