Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 39 The Man Living in the Background

Li Ming had been dragging his feet on the Hou Junji case for a long time. Previously, he had wanted to use him as a bargaining chip to make Li Er cry.

Now he has an even more urgent task - to stay alive and develop.

Hou Junji is one of the heroes in the Lingyan Pavilion. He has high personal bravery and leadership ability. If he can be recruited under his command, he will definitely be a great help.

It just so happens that rescuing Hou Junji can do him a favor, which is the basic operation of winning people's hearts.

Moreover, by coincidence, Li Ming was also labeled as a member of the prince's party. By winning over Hou Junji, who was also a member of the party, he should not arouse the prince's fear for the time being...

probably.

It was definitely Li Ming's own idea to approach Hou Junji in the name of investigating the Li Xiaogong case.

It has nothing to do with some old silver coin who drinks tea all day.

"Woo woo, I want to see my grandfather~" Hou Baolin looked at Sun Fujia with tears in his eyes and a long snot running down his nose.

"I...I understand..." Sun Fujia looked away under great pressure.

He didn't know why these four children cared about Hou Junji, nor did he want to know.

He just wanted to get rid of the plague god as soon as possible so that he could devote himself to serving His Majesty again.

"I have imprisoned Hou Junji somewhere else. Please follow me."

Sun Fujia led Li Ming and his party out of the cramped and damp cell, walked out of the main building of the Dali Temple, and came to a secluded forest in the backyard.

There is an independent courtyard deep in the forest, with pavilions, terraces, bridges and flowing water, which is quite elegant.

"General Hou's case is still under trial, and he is temporarily detained here." Sun Fujia made a gesture of invitation:
"I have some chores to attend to, so I'm sorry I can't keep you company. There are servants in the yard, so if you need anything, you can always let me know."

Having said that, he left tactfully.

Li Ming was greatly enlightened.

Is this detention or recuperation for veteran cadres?
It is true that the law enforcement is both forceful and warm.

Always leave a way out for yourself so that you can meet again in the future. This Sun Tingwei is also a talented person who has mastered the officialdom thoroughly.

Hou Baolin pushed the door open impatiently and shouted at the top of her voice:

"Aweng! Aweng!"

A burly man was sitting in the dark. He was stunned when he heard his grandson's shout:

"Pauline? Why are you here?"

Hou Baolin jumped into the big man's arms like a calf, shouting happily:

"Brother Ming, it was Brother Ming who brought us to see you!"

"Hey, don't wipe your snot on me... Who is Brother Ming?"

Hou Junji picked up the heavy little Baolin with one hand, and then he found three children standing at the door.

"You are... His Royal Highness the Prince? Young Master Changsun? And... who else?"

Hou Junji put his grandson down and bowed to the two distinguished guests and the man.

Only then did Li Ming see clearly the country-destroying killer who had been living in the background since the first chapter—

A large-sized Hou Baolin.

People got married early in the Tang Dynasty. Hou Junji was probably only in his forties, with a solid and strong beard, and he would be a typical middle-aged man or young man in modern times.

"Hmm? Your Highness, is there something in my nose?" Hou Junji found that little Li Ming had been staring at his nostrils.

I thought Baolin had the Hou family's hereditary rhinitis... Li Ming coughed awkwardly and looked away.

Maybe it was because he was too much like Hou Baolin, but Li Ming couldn't be serious when facing this general who had both merits and faults and a distinct personality.

Hou Junji invited the children to come into the house and sit down. There were several military books on the table and maps hanging on the wall.

He laid out dried fruits and preserved fruits, complaining gruffly:

"There's no notification in this damn place. Please forgive me for not welcoming you in person."

He is full of resentment now.

After marching thousands of miles and destroying a country, he returned victoriously, but instead of being rewarded, he was given a hat and invited in for tea.

Having worked for the Li family for a lifetime, which donkey would be willing to be made into donkey-hide gelatin?
Chang Sunyan said while holding a sour pickled plum in his mouth:

"My subordinates, please be patient. This is all because of those Confucian scholars who are afraid of chaos in the world and are making trouble.

"His Highness Li Ming hates this. If His Highness comes, there will be justice!"

His grandfather, Changsun Wuji, was Hou Junji's political ally. Changsun Yan picked up his grandfather's ideas and added some of his own understanding.

Hou Junji pounded the table heavily:

"Humph, I knew it! The one who took the lead in opposing me was that fellow Fang Xuanling, right?
“On the day of the Xuanwu Gate Incident, that fellow and Du Ruhui, two cowards, did not dare to enter the Qin Palace. They had to be abducted into the palace by Black Charcoal Head before they dared to offer advice.

"Now that the world is at peace, the precious sword has been hidden, and the rat who can only talk has become the guest of honor! Your Majesty is really stupid... Ugh!"

His dissatisfaction with Li Shimin was obvious.

Hou Junji has always been outspoken. Historically, he once shared his idea of ​​rebellion with Zhang Liang.

As expected, my teammates reported me.

Unexpectedly, Li Shimin was so careless that he didn't do anything to him at that time.

It was not until a few months later that this guy actually rebelled together with Crown Prince Li Chengqian and was killed.

The motive for the rebellion was very simple. One reason was that he was imprisoned this time and harbored resentment towards Li Shimin.

Secondly, he wanted to try his luck and get promoted one step higher than the powerful Minister of Personnel. In the final analysis, it was greed that led this Lingyan Pavilion hero to a path of no return.

Fortunately, Fang Yize was not brought along... Li Ming could not help but admire his own wit and continued:

"I understand that General Hou has grievances. Now there is a tyrant in power, treacherous ministers in power, and the bureaucracy is rigid. Everything must be done according to the rules. If there is any discord, they will be thrown into prison at any time!"

Hou Junji was startled, thinking that the prince was a bit too extreme, and could not help but lower his voice:
"Our dynasty is not that bad. Your Highness is too outspoken."

Thanks to his grandson Hou Baolin, Hou Junji had heard of the name of the problematic prince for a long time - to a degree that even he, Hou Dadan, felt was too bold.

A comedian defeats a reckless man. Li Ming successfully suppressed his opponent in terms of momentum, and he even got a little excited:

"Those treacherous officials actually slandered the general for embezzling the spoils of war and plundering the people of Gaochang. They really found a pretext to accuse him..."

Hou Junji's expression became subtle.

"That's not true."

Li Ming was stunned: "Did you really embezzle money?"

Wasn’t it because the incompetent ruler was jealous of talented people and just found an excuse?
"What's so strange about this? If you can't make money from fighting, who would fight with you?" Hou Junji waved his hand indifferently:
"If I don't take it, how can the deputy general take it? If the deputy general doesn't take it, how can the soldiers take it? If the soldiers don't take it, how can the Tang Dynasty expand its territory?"

"Yes, only through corruption can we expand our territory!" Hou Baolin roared in a baby voice.

"You've been led astray!" Li Ming patted Baolin's little head without any hesitation.

Hou Junji was immediately furious: "What are you doing?!"

"I said you led the child astray!" Li Ming blew his mouth and hit Hou Junji on the forehead.

The scene suddenly fell silent.

Chang Sunyan and Di Renjie looked at the table and dared not say a word.

Hou Junji's eyes were wide open with anger, and he stood up like a mountain.

How could a general who leads an army fall to the point of being slapped in the face by a child?
"Uncle, don't be angry! Sit down, sit down, and have some tea!" little Pauline chirped.

Hou Junji calmed down and said in a muffled voice:

"I just thought it was just a naughty child. I hope Your Highness can be more prudent in the future."

The two children breathed a sigh of relief.

But Li Ming didn't want to let it go.

He looked directly at Hou Junji and said seriously:
"The general is also like this. He clearly has endless wealth and glory, but he still covets money and material things. As a result, he is imprisoned and his reputation is damaged. He is too unstable."

Perhaps because the grandfather and grandson looked so similar, he subconsciously regarded Hou Junji as a larger version of Hou Baolin and was not afraid of him at all.

And rationally speaking, as his first goal to win people's hearts, he doesn't want to recruit a greedy bastard.

Hou Junji's old face turned red, as if he had been slapped, and he roared:
"What did you say?"

"I said you would bring yourself and your family into the abyss." Li Ming faced the angry giant bear without fear:

"You have the official position and military power you want now, why are you still not satisfied? Do you want to be an emperor to be satisfied?"

Hou Junji was stunned.

I thought that the notorious "that" prince was just naughty.

I didn't expect it to be so strong.

Except for his father who was the emperor, no one in the world dared to scold him in person like this.

You know, there are no guards here!

interesting.

The corners of his mouth slowly drew:
"Your Highness, do you want me to beg for my bones?"

Li Ming responded sharply:

“Rather than being greedy and bringing disaster to yourself and your family, it is better to enjoy your grandchildren and watch Baolin grow up in peace and stability.

"What crime did Pauline commit that she had to endure the pain of separation from Aung because of your mistake?"

The scene fell into silence.

Chang Sun Yan and Di Renjie were both confused and felt that this conversation was a bit too advanced for them.

Hou Baolin instinctively felt uneasy and burst into tears:

"Aunt! Aunt! Are you going to...are you going to leave Pauline?"

Hou Junji's face turned red and white, and his rough eyes gradually softened. He hugged Hou Baolin distressedly and wiped his nose for him:

"No way, don't listen to his nonsense.

"Auntie is not going anywhere. Auntie wants to see our little Baolin get married. When the time comes, Auntie will wipe the nose of little Baolin's fat boy like he did today."

"My son doesn't have a runny nose," little Pauline muttered.

After comforting his grandson, Hou Junji sighed and asked in a slightly teasing tone:
"Why, Your Highness, have you condescended to visit me just to tell me that my family is very happy?"

Li Ming's eyes dimmed:

"Yes, you don't know how much I envy you, General.

"You can sleep peacefully every night with your family by your side, without having to worry that you might never wake up again."

Oh?
Hou Junji fiddled with his beard, which was as hard as steel needles, meaningfully.

As an old minister of Xuanwu Gate, he followed the Li family's family ethics drama from beginning to end, and of course he could hear the hidden meaning.

This is already in the second season?
(End of this chapter)