inspire-indiana Chapter 127 General Feng's Secret
Chapter 127 General Feng's Secret
A secret? What secret?
General Feng spent half his life on the battlefield, but his heart was always with the country.
Such a person seems to have an entirely transparent life; how could he possibly have any secrets!
This piqued Li Mao's interest.
Previously, he had only ever been traveling between Jiangnan and the northern frontier, constantly facing life-or-death situations, and had no time to think about gossip or secrets. Now, back in the palace, hearing one piece of gossip after another made Li Mao feel uncomfortable, but also quite amused.
At General Feng's prompting, Li Mao dismissed everyone.
General Feng then spoke: "Your Highness, in fact, in fact, this humble general..."
In fact, he had always been a man of Crown Prince Li Heng.
Li Heng began to oversee the state after Li Longji suffered his first stroke.
He is the true crown prince, and now he has gained some real power.
It can be said that he has firmly grasped the foundation of the Tang Dynasty.
However, a storm was brewing, and he, being meticulous, knew that to seize power, he needed far more than just these things.
Throughout history, military power has been synonymous with imperial power.
Li Heng was a scholar, not skilled in martial arts, and had never personally led an army into battle.
Adding to the mix was Li Mao, a brother who was both righteous and wicked, yet repeatedly victorious in battle, which made Li Heng uneasy. So he activated General Feng, a pawn he had cultivated in the army long ago.
General Feng followed Li Mao in his campaigns across the land, and the two worked together to achieve great military exploits.
While supporting Li Mao as if he were a general, General Feng actually had another purpose: to monitor Li Heng!
Li Mao was not surprised by General Feng's other identity.
After all, Li Heng is suspicious, so it's normal for him to plant spies around him.
After receiving the Crown Prince's secret report, General Feng immediately rode back to Chang'an without hesitation. The trust and understanding between the two had long surpassed the boundaries expected between an ordinary general and a prince.
However, he had no doubt as to why General Feng would suddenly self-destruct.
General Feng seemed to sense Li Mao's doubt and quickly said, "I have been following Your Highness for some time now, and I am now completely subdued by Your Highness's bravery in serving the country. I can see that Your Highness's ambition does not lie in the court."
"I can no longer be His Highness the Crown Prince's pawn. After thinking it over carefully, I have no regrets. I just feel sorry for Your Highness Prince Shou. You have trusted me for so long, but I have kept things from you. However... Your Highness Prince Shou, I hope you will not let this cause a rift with His Highness the Crown Prince. Although he asked me to monitor your movements, he had no intention of harming you."
"If Your Highness and the Crown Prince trust each other and work together, they will surely be able to protect the Tang Dynasty for a hundred years. As for me, I am now an old horse in the stable, and although I am determined to go far, I am powerless to do so. I only hope to see the two princes guard the Tang Dynasty together, prevent foreign enemies from invading, and prevent it from falling apart from within."
General Feng meant that he was willing to sacrifice his own reputation in order to eliminate any misunderstandings between Li Mao and Li Heng.
He felt that Li Mao was more insightful than Li Heng, so he treated Li Mao with honesty first.
Upon hearing this, Li Mao said in a deep voice, "After so long, General Feng should have realized that I originally had no hostility towards the Crown Prince; it was the Crown Prince who was suspicious of me. As for jointly protecting the Tang Dynasty, it is useless for me to agree alone; it is only proper for the Crown Prince to speak."
The implication was that he wouldn't hold Li Heng accountable for planting spies before.
However, if the crown prince continues to distrust his brother, he will not shamelessly rush to form an alliance with him.
General Feng also needs to mediate in this process.
General Feng's pale face immediately broke into a smile, and he hurriedly said, "Please rest assured, Your Highness, His Highness has listened to some of my advice on this matter. I thank Your Highness for not blaming me, and I will certainly not fail Your Highness's trust!"
Li Mao didn't say anything more, and after telling General Feng to take care of his health, he left.
It would be a lie to say that Li Mao had no resentment towards General Feng's "betrayal".
After all, we've spent so much time together, and even faced life and death together.
But he also knew that things were unpredictable and everyone had their own unavoidable circumstances.
Just as he was reluctant to leave Lady Wei in his palace even though he loved Yang Guifei dearly...
Thinking about it, Li Mao felt a pang of melancholy.
He quickly detached himself from these emotions and stopped thinking about them.
He then flew towards the side hall where Guo Ziyi was.
He desperately needs to do something to distract himself.
The best way is to plan how to attack the enemy and imagine how they will be routed!
Seven days passed, and Li Mao and the others remained hidden in the palace without making a move.
Shi Siming's private army went from being on high alert to being confused, and then to becoming lax.
Even Shi Siming's own son, Shi Chaoyi, started to get cocky, boasting, "I think this Prince Shou is scared out of his wits by his father's army. He only managed to break through the six northeastern city gates before he stopped making any moves. Who knows, he might have realized that his forces are far inferior to ours and has already followed his father's example and secretly fled from the palace!"
Shi Chaoyi's men, eager to curry favor with him, hurriedly said, "What the young general guessed is very likely. After all, dragons beget dragons, phoenixes beget phoenixes, and rats' sons know how to dig holes. That Prince Shou is the son of the dog emperor, so naturally he is just like the dog emperor."
"As for our young general... like father, like son, General Shi's son will surely surpass his master!"
Shi Chaoyi was young and ambitious, and even though he was only a teenager, he insisted on going out with his father to make his way in the world.
He now finds this kind of flattery most appealing and immediately bursts into laughter.
He said generously, "You know how to talk! Men, give me a reward! A generous reward!"
However, no one brought any reward for a long time.
Instead, the entire tent fell silent and no one spoke.
Shi Chaoyi was dissatisfied, glared at him, and was about to curse.
But then a familiar, tall figure slowly entered, his eyes cold: "Such arrogance and self-righteousness will not amount to anything!"
It was none other than his father, Shi Siming.
As a subordinate who reaped the benefits of the An Lushan Rebellion, Shi Siming was far more cunning than An Lushan. He concealed his true intentions and did not become complacent like An Lushan, which led to a counterattack by the enemy.
He was always wary of Li Mao.
Even after Li Mao's resounding victory in the palace defense battle and his subsequent period of inactivity, he remained vigilant. For the past seven days, he had maintained heightened alertness, fearing that a moment's inattention would allow Li Mao to launch another ambush.
but……
That good-for-nothing son of his dared to listen to slander and be so arrogant! If such a character is not properly disciplined, he may cause great trouble in the future, and might even lose his own life!
Shi Chaoyi looked indignant, but dared not contradict his father to his face.
He outwardly listened to Shi Siming's lecture, but his mind was already wandering elsewhere. His father forbade him to be arrogant, but he was determined to cause trouble and show his father his abilities!