The second Eastern Expedition is about to begin, which is not a secret for Li Fengyun. What Li Fengyun is eager to know now is whether Cui Hongsheng's fate has changed? This time he went north to Qinghe to conquer Houcheng, which intensified the Yongji Canal crisis. Will it help save Cui Hongsheng?

The premise of the second Eastern Expedition is that the domestic situation must be stable and the Grand Canal must be unobstructed, so the Hebei quelled the rebellion must be effective immediately. Cui Jiu said this and showed a proud look on his face, "Hebei quelled the rebellion and Duan Da was very responsible. The Holy Lord was angry and removed his official position and recalled him to Beijing. The Holy Lord ordered Duke Huang Tai to serve as the ambassador to Hebei to prosecute the arrest, prosecutor General Zuo Wuwei, and replace Duan Da to suppress the rebellion in Hebei."

Li Fengyun was very surprised and secretly excited. Cui Hongsheng was still alive, Cui Hongsheng was not dead, Cui Hongsheng's fate changed, which once again proved that history still had a possibility of change. However, if you want to achieve this goal, you must not only choose the right direction, but also take the right methods. If you have any problems at any link, you will return to the starting point, and all efforts will be in vain.

"Mr. Huang Tai has made a comeback?" Li Fengyun smiled, "Good news, this is the best news I heard today.

"The return of Huangtai Duke is directly related to the deterioration of the situation in Hebei." Cui Jiu looked at Li Fengyun and said in a pun, "And the battle in Houcheng is one of the important reasons for the deterioration of the situation."

This is Cui Jiu, on behalf of the Boling Cui family, solemnly expressed his gratitude to Li Fengyun. Although the expression was very implicit and obscure, as a wealthy family with respect for identity, it is really commendable to express gratitude to Li Fengyun. In addition to their recognition of Li Fengyun's wealthy family, there is also the warning Li Fengyun sent to Cui before the Eastern Expedition. It was this warning that saved Cui Hongsheng. The role played by Houcheng in the Battle of Houcheng was actually limited, but it was just to follow the trend. The Boling Cui family owed Li Fengyun a favor, and Li Fengyun was from the Li family in Zhaojun, so this favor was great. The verbal thanks from the Boling Cui family was not enough. It can be foreseeable that the cooperation between the two sides would inevitably lead to further.

Li Fengyun glanced at Li Baiyao who was sitting next to him silently. Seeing that he had no hint, he nodded gently and made a request in time according to his own ideas, "Spring is coming. Once the river thaws, the strategy of going south to Qilu will inevitably suffer setbacks."

Li Fengyun hopes that the situation in Hebei will improve rapidly after Cui Hongsheng's comeback, which forces the heroes of Hebei to temporarily avoid it and work together to attack Zhang Xutuo with the Qi and Lu rebel army.

Cui Jiu and Li Baiyao looked at each other, the former stroking his beard and laughing, while the latter hesitated for a moment and said cautiously, "Is it really important to defeat Zhang Xutuo?"

Li Fengyun's expression was slightly condensed, and he immediately realized that Cui and Li had optimistic predictions about the future situation. The reason for this result must be that there was major positive news in the Dongdu. In order to smoothly proceed with the Second Eastern Expedition and to ensure the stability of the situation in Hebei, the Holy Lord and the Central Committee may have made more compromises and concessions to Cui in politics to seek more support from Shandong people.

"I explained to you the importance of this strategy to the growth of our alliance." Li Fengyun looked at Li Baiyao and said very seriously, "When you were in Boling, you should have discussed this with the other party."

Li Fengyun's eyes turned to Cui Jiu. Cui Jiu nodded, indicating that Cui knew about this plan and had indeed discussed it.

"This strategy is conducive to the stability of the situation in Hebei, to the progress of the Second Eastern Expedition, to the Cui family repaying the favor of the Holy Lord, to the cooperation and development of the two rebel armies in the north and south of Henan, and the continuous growth of the Shandong rebel army is also conducive to the Shandong people to obtain greater political benefits." Li Fengyun looked at Li Baiyao and Cui Jiu, frowned and asked, "Why can't such a pro-disaster strategy be implemented? What are you worried about? Did the Cui family in Qinghe put heavy pressure on you and hinder you? If Cui family in Qinghe interfered, what is the reason?"

Facing Li Fengyun's doubts and Li Fengyun's aggressive strength, Li Baiyao's face looked a little ugly, while Cui Jiu knew Li Fengyun better, and did not care. He smiled slightly and said, "After the defeat in Pyongyang, the navy was not only unforeseen, but also made contributions. The navy commander came to protect thee. Zhou Fashang and Cui Junsu were both highly rewarded by the Holy Lord. The adverse impact brought by this was too great. The three of them and the navy suffered unimaginable pressure. The second eastern expedition is about to be imminent. The navy wants a second expedition, but this time there cannot be any mistake. The holy master cannot defeat, come to protect thee. Zhou Fashang and Cui Junsu cannot bear to be defeated." Cui Jiu looked at Li Fengyun with a serious tone, "So, for the victory of the second eastern expedition, not only will the situation in Hebei be stable, but the situation in Qilu also needs to be stable, and the unobstructed Grand Canal is the top priority."

Li Fengyun had a expressionless face and sneered secretly.

Cui Jiu's words confirmed Li Fengyun's speculation. The political situation in the Dongdu had undergone major changes. The Holy Lord made major concessions to the people of Shandong. As the core force of the Shandong political group, the Cui family of the Qinghe family of Cui family and the Li family of Zhaojun naturally gave great support to the Holy Lord. In this way, Li Fengyun's three rebels joined forces to attack Zhang Xutuo, which was contrary to this new political situation. The three great families in Hebei would not help Li Fengyun in terms of emotion or reason.

"Are you optimistic about the Second Eastern Expedition, or are you worried that King Qi will launch a mutiny during the Holy Lord's expedition?" Li Fengyun asked bluntly.

"The Second Eastern Expedition is indeed optimistic, this is a fact." Cui Jiu waved his hand and said confidently, "The Goguryeo small country, it cannot afford such a war, so the victory of the Second Eastern Expedition is within reach. Of course, it may also fail. The only possibility that this result is a sudden and drastic change in the domestic political situation."

Li Fengyun laughed, "Are you worried about the mutiny of King Qi?"

"You have predicted that the second Eastern Expedition failed, and the reason was that someone launched a mutiny." Li Baiyao said with a serious expression, "Today, those who are capable of launching mutiny and dare to launch mutiny, and those who are sure of successful mutiny are the King of Qi. In addition..." Li Baiyao pointed to Li Fengyun, "It is you, your cooperation with the King of Qi has ulterior motives. Do you dare to swear that you will never use or encourage the King of Qi to betray the Holy Lord?

Li Fengyun shook his head, very disappointed, and lost interest in speaking for a while. It would be better not to speak than to talk.

This is the difficulty in cooperation with wealthy families. Wealthy families have inherent psychological advantages. In any case, no matter whether your strength is strong or weak, whether you are an emperor or a hegemon, you must try your best to take the initiative and try every means to squeeze your value for his use. The so-called cooperation is unequal cooperation, and its efforts are all for greed and insatiable demands. The cooperation rules it formulates are all over the ruling terms.

Li Fengyun has always tried to use his "foresight" advantage to win cooperation. Now his advantage has been recognized by the wealthy family, and the two sides have begun to establish cooperation, but the wealthy family must take the initiative in cooperation and squeeze every point of Li Fengyun's value. Li Fengyun is the chess piece in its hand, not the chess player sitting opposite it.

When Li Baiyao saw Li Fengyun not speaking, he thought he had hit Li Fengyun's vitals and couldn't help but feel a little proud, "You once said that the King of Qi is contrary to the ruling philosophy of the Holy Lord, so it is impossible to inherit the imperial throne. Since that is the case, why do you still help the King of Qi launch a mutiny? You know that the King of Qi cannot defeat the Holy Lord and cannot seize the imperial throne, but you insist on going against the will of heaven. Wouldn't you seek death?"

"It's meaningless to do this." Cui Jiu also advised, "You join forces with the three rebels to attack Qilu, just to make wedding dresses for the King of Qi. But even if the King of Qi controlled Henan, Qilu and Xuzhou, and launched a mutiny, they would not be able to win the imperial rule. At that time, Yang Liang, the King of Han, was the overlord of the northern region, controlled more than 50 counties and more than 100,000 troops, and was dozens of times stronger than the King of Qi. What was the result? Of course, father and son were killed by each other, brothers were fighting against each other, and the people of Guanlong were killed by each other. This is indeed a great pleasure for us Shandong people, but have you ever thought about it? After the King of Han, Yang Liang was defeated, how many Shandong people were buried with him? If the King of Qi was following the King of Han, how many Shandong people would die in a bad life?"

Li Fengyun couldn't stand it anymore. Li Baiyao and Cui Jiu were talking about "righteousness", but in fact they were all for "self-interest". The greedy and shameless face was disgusting. Li Fengyun decisively raised his hand to stop it and asked coldly, "Can you tell me what major changes have occurred in the political situation of Dongdu? In addition to the return of Huangtai Gong, what major personnel changes are there?"

Cui Jiu and Li Baiyao smiled at each other, their joyful expressions. The two no longer concealed it and informed them in detail about Cui Hongjun's appointment as the chief of the Prince Zhao's Mansion, Cui Ze as the chief of the Prince Yue's Mansion, and the new round of imperial controversy triggered.

"It is obvious that the Holy Lord used this to announce to the world that the succession of the Emperor's General will be based on the principle of "establishing wise men", and the princes and grandchildren all have the possibility of "a pursuit of the throne, and the King of Qi's self-conceived "escape from the Eastern Capital," thus evolved into self-self." Cui Jiu was happy and said with a mockery, "The King of Qi originally wanted to develop outside to threaten the Holy Lord and seek to seize the Emperor's General, but he did not have the potential to "develop" in the foot, but he was successful, but he had no potential for "development". In fact, he had been deposed and had been permanently deprived of the right to inherit the Emperor's General. It can be foreseeable that the Wei family would soon abandon him, and the people of Guanlong would not continue to support a "deposed, prince who could not inherit the Emperor's General."

"The reason why King Qi received the support of the Guanlong people headed by Wei is because according to the principle of inheritance of the legitimate and chief, he is the only prince with legal inheritance rights." Li Baiyao sighed, "But the Holy Lord turned his hand into clouds and turned into rain, and in a blink of an eye, he overturned the inheritance principle. He eliminated the threat of the King of Qi without spending a soldier and a soldier, and split the alliance between the King of Qi and the Guanlong people headed by Wei. Now the King of Qi is alone, the family is alone.

Not to worry, the people of Guanlong turned to support the King of Dai Yang You, while the King of Zhao, King of Yan Yang Zhen, and King of Yue Yang Tong also had their own supportive forces. Dongdu immediately began a new round of imperial ruling struggle. In this way, the Holy Lord easily reversed his unfavorable situation in Dongdu, regained the initiative in the court, and forced the major forces in Dongdu to compromise on major national policies such as the Second Eastern Expedition, the modification of the military system, and the adjustment of taxes."

At this point, Cui and Li's plans for the future are already very clear.

The King of Qi is no longer important. No matter how Li Fengyun designs and uses him, he will never get the results he needs. On the contrary, he should take advantage of the current situation and actively cooperate with the Holy Lord to kill the King of Qi, completely eradicate the threat of the King of Qi to the Holy Lord, the political situation of the Dongdu, and the threat of the Second Eastern Expedition.

Li Fengyun was surprised. He originally thought that King Yang Nan of Qi was developing outside and Cui Hongsheng's return were all part of his changing history. Although so far, their impact on the historical process can be completely negligible, but the accumulation of small amounts and accumulation of strengths has made it. Li Fengyun firmly believed that at a certain moment, the direction of history will definitely be changed by himself. However, the news he just heard gave him a blow, and the slightly deviant history returned to its original trajectory again.

The Holy Lord broke the crisis in Dongdu with one move, and the King of Qi was "destroyed". Although the King of Qi was still a noble prince, with 20,000 troops under his command, he was granted the important task of suppressing rebellion and working hard to suppress the thieves in Xuzhou, a nominal eldest prince actually lost the right to inherit the imperial unity. What is the difference between his power and potential from an ordinary royal family member? There is no difference. On the contrary, his situation is very dangerous because he also has the right to inherit the imperial unity, and is nominally the prince closest to the emperor's throne, so his existence threatens the Holy Lord and other heirs of the imperial unity. Therefore, he must die. Even if he does not die, he must find a reason to legally deprive him of the imperial unity, completely deposed him, and imprison him for life.

How different is the King of Qi today and the King of Qi who is still locked in the Dongdu cage in history? There is basically no difference. Although the King of Qi who is locked in the cage cannot breathe fresh air, he has no worries about his life. Although the King of Qi today can breathe fresh air, there is no safety guarantee.

Li Fengyun's mood suddenly became bad.

The Holy Lord’s move not only made his long-term planning lose the possibility of implementation, but also destroyed his short-term planning. Without the "big banner" of King Qi, what will Li Fengyun use to change history in just a few years in the next few years?

Li Fengyun forced himself to calm down and force himself to find the remaining value of the King of Qi. What value does the King of Qi have? Only when he is not dead, as long as he is not knocked down by his political enemies, then he will always have the right to inherit the imperial unity. Whether according to the principles of establishing a legitimate, establishing a chief or establishing a wise man, whether the saint lord is open or implicitly implied that the King of Qi has lost the qualification to inherit the imperial unity, the King of Qi is the first heir to the imperial unity recognized by the law. This is the value of the King of Qi.

The battle between imperial rule is a game of the top power and a political game of the highest ruling class. The middle and lower aristocrats are basically not qualified to participate. As for the common people, they only care about food and clothing, and the distance between them and the top political game of the power is as far away as the distance between them and the stars in the sky. Therefore, the "big banner" of the King of Qi has indeed lost its appeal among wealthy families, but for the middle and lower aristocrats and ordinary people, their appeal is still there and there is no deterioration.

We must protect King Qi and protect this "big flag" so as to maximize the remaining value of King Qi. Li Fengyun made a decisive decision. The first thing he did after returning to the alliance was to rush to Xuzhou. This time, not only was he eager to see King Qi, but the King of Qi might also be eager to see him, and he also desperately suffered any consequences. King Qi was in danger, so what would he care about?

Cui Jiu and Li Baiyao keenly noticed the change in Li Fengyun's emotions. This was a good thing, which showed that Li Fengyun had to adapt to the situation. As long as Li Fengyun changed his attitude towards King Qi, the two of them could complete this mission.

"From the latest changes in the political situation of the Eastern Capital, if we fail to eradicate the potential threat of the King of Qi before the Holy Lord goes north to Liaodong, then in order to prevent violent turmoil in the domestic political situation during the Eastern Expedition, the Holy Lord must take a series of restrictions on the King of Qi, which may anger the King of Qi and eventually lead to the father and son's rebellion." Cui Jiu said solemnly, "The second victory in the Eastern Expedition is beneficial to Zhongtu and the people of Shandong. For this reason, we hope to achieve this goal around March next year."

Li Baiyao then added, "With your strength, it is not difficult to achieve this goal. As long as you defeat the King of Qi and give Dongdu sufficient excuses, the King of Qi will have to return to Beijing, so that all the hidden dangers will be eliminated."

All hidden dangers were eliminated? Li Fengyun laughed. If he didn't know the trajectory of history, he might be confused by appearances, and like the Holy Lord and the important officials of the Central Committee, like Li Baiyao and Cui Jiu, he believed that King Qi had the motivation and strength to launch a mutiny. But fortunately, he knew history and knew who was the real hidden danger and who was the real mutiny initiator.

"Do you know someone's prediction for the situation next year?" Li Fengyun asked.

"You said there was a mutiny, and the second Eastern Expedition failed." Li Baiyao replied, "But now, the basis of your prediction has changed, and the political situation in Dongdu has undergone major changes. You must re-define it, and the deduction results must be different."

"It is precisely because the King of Qi's escape, Dongdu, and his presence, that there is a possibility of a mutiny." Cui Jiu pointed out without hesitation, "Now the situation has changed, and the supporters of the King of Qi scattered all over the night. How likely is the mutiny successful? And you have also predicted that this mutiny will end in failure, that is, your purpose is to kill each other, to cause heavy damage to the Guanlong people, and thus create more opportunities for the Shandong people. But now the Shandong people have won a preliminary victory in the court. As long as the Second Eastern Expedition wins, we can take advantage of the victory and expand the victory, so there is no need to use violent means. Injuring the enemy a thousand and hurting one thousand and oneself cannot be done. Mutiny will not only hurt the country's destiny, but also hurt ourselves."

Li Fengyun shook his hand, "Someone's prediction is that a mutiny broke out in Donghu, but the one who launched the mutiny was not King Qi, and also a participant in the mutiny."

Cui Jiu and Li Baiyao looked at each other, their eyes showing surprise.

Li Baiyao couldn't help it and asked anxiously, "Who will launch a mutiny? Who dares to rebel?"
Chapter completed!