Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 360 The Saint’s Secret Instructions
"What? We're going to Laizhou to make arrangements and frame the Japanese?"

In the Dali Temple, Li Yuanfang was surprised when he heard Di Renjie's words.

As Di Renjie packed his luggage, he said, "Keep your voice down. This is His Majesty's order. This matter is top secret and cannot be known to anyone. That's why I'm only bringing you along."

Li Yuanfang asked in confusion, "Why is your Majesty doing this?"

Di Renjie glanced at him.

Li Yuanfang smiled and said, "I've said too much again. So how are we going to frame the Japanese?"

Di Renjie asked, "Do you remember that you asked me this afternoon which country was the most suspicious?"

"Yes, you said it was Ezo. I was just about to ask you, why is Ezo the most suspicious?"

Di Renjie tied the bundle tightly and said, "It's simple, because they have the greatest motive."

"motivation?"

"Yes, no country would dare to attack our Tang soldiers lightly."

"Ezo dares?"

“They had to do it.”

Di Renjie said in a deep voice, "From what I know, Emishi is now internally divided and in a difficult situation, and Japan attacks them every year."

"The Japanese are training their troops in Kyushu. While it seems they're doing it to fight us, it will also put immense pressure on the Emishi. The Emishi are undoubtedly worried that Japan won't fight us, and we'll turn around and attack them. If that happens, the Emishi might be destroyed!"

"Under this kind of life-or-death pressure, they are likely to take the risk of attacking our Tang soldiers, pinning the blame on the Japanese, and leading us to attack Japan, so that they can get some respite."

Li Yuanfang looked at him in surprise.
"Lord Di Si, how come you even know about the Ainu people? Do you really have magical powers?"

Di Renjie smiled and said, "I heard it from Zhang Shaoqing. He once talked with the Mohe people and learned a lot about the Ainu people from them."

Li Yuanfang nodded and said, "Hearing what you said, it is indeed possible that it was the Emishi who did it. Why don't you tell His Majesty about this?"

Di Renjie slung the bundle on his back and said, "First, these are just my guesses. There is no evidence. Second, I'm afraid Your Majesty doesn't want to hear this."

"In no mood?"

Di Renjie glanced at him and said, "Otherwise, why would His Majesty have us plan this and point the finger at Japan?"

Li Yuanfang touched his chin and said, "In other words, Your Majesty doesn't want to fight Ezo, but wants to fight Japan!"

Di Renjie said, "That's what happened. Okay, hurry up and pack up, we're going to Laizhou tonight."

Li Yuanfang patted the knife in his hand and said, "This is all I need."

Di Renjie was stunned and asked, "You don't have any clothes?"

Li Yuanfang smiled and said, "Didn't you bring three sets? I've seen them all. Lend me one when the time comes. You and I are about the same size anyway."

Di Renjie asked again, "No money for traveling?"

Li Yuanfang said, "Didn't you bring a small silver insulator? It's enough to cover our expenses along the way."

Di Renjie said expressionlessly, "Yuan Fang, you haven't married yet, and you don't have to support a family. It's not good to be so stingy."

Li Yuanfang blinked and said, "I learned it from you."

Di Renjie curled his lips, there was really nothing he could do to him.

The two men went to the stable and each took a horse, heading east, leaving Chang'an City from Chunming Gate and heading towards Laizhou.

……

Laizhou coast, a high cliff facing the sea.

Helan Minzhi looked up at the endless sea, and from time to time he turned his head to glance at the wooden pole beside him, with an anxious expression on his face.

The wooden pole was ingeniously designed, with a wooden bird on top. The base was movable and marked with scales, and it rotated with the sea breeze.

This bird is called the Xiangfeng Bird, which developed from the Xiangfeng Bronze Crow and was a common tool used by the Tang people to measure wind.

Based on their observations of the wind, the Tang people studied the monsoon cycle, and then used the patterns of the wind to go out to sea, so they could ride the wind and avoid getting lost at sea.

Ever since the weapons were robbed, he and Li Ji had taken turns going out to sea to investigate the matter.

Unfortunately, after so long, not only are there no clues, but even the accident site has not been found.

Fortunately, the two of them were full of passion and energy and were not discouraged.

At this time, several large ships appeared on the sea level in the distance, breaking through the waves. They were the Laizhou navy.

Because of the military equipment robbery, the sea was unsafe, and Li Ji was escorted by the Laizhou navy every time he went out to sea to investigate.

There is a port two miles away from Sidewind Cliff.

Helan Minzhi rode his horse to the port and waited for a while before seeing the big ship docking and Li Ji coming down from the gangway.

"What's the situation?" Helan Minzhi asked.

Li Ji shook his head and said, "We still haven't found the location of the attack."

Helan Minzhi sighed deeply and said, "It seems that this matter is more difficult than you and I imagined."

"What? Are you discouraged?" Li Ji glanced at him.

Helan Minzhi raised his head and said, "Whoever loses heart, I will go out to sea tomorrow!"

Suddenly, the sound of horse hooves was heard, and a yamen runner from the Laizhou Governor's Mansion came over from a distance and said that Li Zhong asked the two of them to return to the Governor's Mansion.

The two of them returned to the governor's residence together and came to the back hall, only to see that in addition to Li Zhong, there were two more people in the room.

"Minister Di Si, General Li!" Li Ji said happily.

Di Renjie stood up and bowed, saying, "Greetings to His Majesty the Prince of Wu."

Helan Minzhi's eyes lit up when he saw Di Renjie coming. He thought to himself, "Great! The top detective in the Tang Dynasty has arrived. I want to see how he investigates this matter."

Li Ji asked, "Lord Di Si, are you here for the military equipment?"

Di Renjie said, "That's exactly it."

Li Ji smiled and said, "That's great! I'm a little overwhelmed and will have to rely on you from now on."

Di Renjie said, "No problem."

Li Zhong held a banquet at the governor's residence to welcome Di Renjie and the other man.

Helan Minzhi originally wanted to see how Di Renjie investigated the case, but when he woke up the next day, Di Renjie and Li Yuanfang were gone.

He asked Li Ji and found out that the two had gone out to sea early in the morning.

Helan Minzhi only blamed himself for getting up too late, and thought that after Di Renjie came back, he must follow him the next time he went out to sea.

However, Di Renjie and his companions went out to sea for ten days.

Helan Minzhi even suspected that they had encountered a storm and were swept away by the waves.

On the twelfth day, Di Renjie and Li Yuanfang finally returned, and...

"What did you say? They have already solved the case?" Helan Minzhi widened his eyes.

Li Ji nodded, took his hand, and said, "Hurry up and go to the governor's mansion, otherwise they will return to Chang'an."

"Don't worry, I haven't even put on my pants yet!"

However, when the two of them hurried to the governor's mansion, Di Renjie and the other man had already left.

He came and went like the wind and solved the case...

Helan Minzhi seemed to collapse and sat on the chair. For the first time, he felt deeply frustrated.

Li Ji did not have such a high self-esteem, and he had already seen Di Renjie's ability, so he was not too surprised.
"Brother, have Lord Di Si and the others really investigated this matter?"

Li Zhong nodded and said, "They found an Ainu man on Zhongjian Island and obtained important clues from him. They have already taken him back to Chang'an."

Helan Minzhi was startled, suddenly remembering that Wu Meiniang had sent someone to tell him to focus his investigation on the Ezo people. "Could it really be the Ezo people who did this?" he asked.

Li Zhong shook his head and said, "No, I heard from Di Siqing that it was the Japanese who did it!"

At this moment, a soldier hurried into the room and said with a bow, "Your Highness Prince Chen, Commander-in-Chief Sun requests that you come over to discuss an important matter."

Li Zhong asked, "Do you know what it is?"

The soldier said, "I don't know, but His Majesty just sent someone to convey an order, which may be related to this."

Li Zhong was startled and quickly stood up and headed towards the Laizhou Governor's Mansion.

Helan Minzhi was secretly puzzled, thinking, "Di Renjie was just sent here to investigate this matter, so why is His Majesty sending an order to Laizhou?"

After being personally involved in national affairs, he finally realized that his abilities were just average.

It’s the first time Helan Minzhi misses Chang’an after being out for so long.

He shook his head, threw these useless thoughts into a corner, returned to Sima Yamen, found a confidant, and asked him to return to Chang'an to tell Empress Wu all the situations in Laizhou City.

The situation in Laizhou has become increasingly confusing, but what about Yingzhou?
Yingzhou Governor Liu Rengui was also in trouble.

Goguryeo sent Wang Ziquan, a male student, to Yingzhou to explain the matter of military equipment to them.

He has already met Quan Nangong.

The other party assured him that this was definitely not done by Goguryeo, and also invited Liu Rengui to send people to several ports of Goguryeo to investigate!
"Commander-in-Chief, since they have invited us to come, we should go and investigate thoroughly so that we can give an explanation to His Majesty."

The person who spoke was Liu Renyuan.

After Goguryeo sent Quan Nansheng to the Tang Dynasty, Liu Rengui asked him and Jiang Ke to withdraw their troops and return to Yingzhou.

Liu Rengui: "General Jiang, what do you think about this?"

Jiang Ke said slowly, "As far as I know, although Goguryeo has a seaport, it does not attach importance to its navy. The soldiers have long been lacking in training, and the warships are dilapidated. It is impossible for them to do this cleanly and without any loopholes!"

In fact, Goguryeo had previously attached great importance to the navy and trained a navy of tens of thousands of people.

After being defeated by the Tang Dynasty, they gave up their navy and focused all their energy on building cities and researching city defense weapons.

Jiang Ke's meaning was very clear.

Goguryeo was not worthy of suspicion in the first place, and now Quan Gaisuwen sent his eldest son to Yingzhou to explain, which further proved this point.

Liu Rengui was silent for a moment, then said, "General Jiang, you may leave. General Liu will stay."

Jiang Ke was slightly stunned, but didn't say much. He bowed and took his leave.

Seeing him dismiss Jiang Ke, Liu Renyuan asked in surprise, "General, are you still suspicious of Goguryeo?"

Liu Rengui picked up a letter on the table.

"Renyuan, please take a look at this letter."

Liu Renyuan took it and saw that it was a letter from Li Ji to Liu Rengui.

The content of the letter was very rich. It not only commemorated the time when the late emperor led his ministers to attack Goguryeo, but also praised Liu Rengui for his meritorious service in defending Yingzhou and making military deployments.

In addition, he also mentioned the robbery of military equipment, his words revealing his worry, and said that he was in Chang'an and was powerless to do anything about it.

I also ask Liu Rengui to put the country and the people of Yingzhou first and work harder.

Liu Renyuan looked surprised. This was just a simple greeting letter between old friends. Why did Liu Rengui want to show it to him?
"Commander-in-Chief, is there any problem with this letter?"

Liu Rengui said calmly, "When I was in Chang'an, I didn't have a close relationship with Lord Li."

Liu Renyuan smiled and said, "Perhaps he admires your achievements in Yingzhou and wants to befriend you."

Liu Rengui shook his head and said, "You don't know the Duke of Ying. He's not that kind of person. This letter is actually him hinting at something for me to do."

"What's the matter?"

"Think carefully, why did he mention the late emperor, why did he mention the people of Yingzhou, why did he mention the looting of military equipment, and why did he say that he was in Chang'an and was powerless?"

Liu Renyuan's thick eyebrows furrowed into a frown. After a long moment, he was startled and said, "He wants us to..."

"It's good to know, no need to say it out loud." Liu Rengui interrupted.

Liu Renyuan swallowed and nodded.

Li Ji obviously hoped that they would point the finger of blame on Goguryeo for the looting of military equipment, thereby prompting the emperor to attack Goguryeo and fulfill the late emperor's last wish.

Li Ji was indeed powerless in this matter, and only Liu Rengui from Yingzhou could do it.

If Goguryeo could be destroyed, the lives of the people in Yingzhou would naturally be much better.

Liu Renyuan, over forty years old and eager to make a contribution, said in a deep voice, "Commander-in-chief, I think Lieutenant Li's suggestion is feasible!"

Liu Rengui looked at him and said, "If this matter is exposed, aren't you afraid of being held accountable?"

Liu Renyuan whispered, "We can avoid doing any actual evidence. We can just find some suspicious aspects of Goguryeo and report them to His Majesty."

Liu Rengui tapped the table lightly with his fingers without saying a word.

Just then, the personal guard came to report that Jiang Ke wanted to see him, and with him was a nobleman.

Liu Rengui was slightly startled and quickly stood up, saying, "Please invite the noble in."

After a while, Jiang Ke and a man dressed as a eunuch came in.

Jiang Ke bowed and said, "Commander-in-Chief, this is Qin Fujian from the Internal Affairs Bureau. He has been ordered by the Emperor to deliver the decree. I will bring him here."

Liu Rengui bowed and said, "Excuse me, Supervisor Qin."

The eunuch smiled slightly, bowed, and said, "General Liu, there's no need to be so polite. This is the Holy Saint's secret decree. The Holy Saint said it doesn't need to be read aloud. You are the only one who can see it."

The secret edict is the imperial edict, which only has the emperor's seal on it, and it is not printed on the regular scroll of the Secretariat, but on a very thin piece of Shu paper.

Liu Rengui bowed and took the secret order.

The Qin Mansion Supervisor bowed and said, "I am in a hurry to return to the palace to report, so I will take my leave now." He turned and left.

Liu Rengui ordered his men to send Qin Fujian away, then walked to a corner, spread out the secret decree and began to read it.

After a while, the wrinkles on his forehead disappeared and a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

Liu Renyuan and Jiang Ke were both curious, but did not dare to ask more questions.

After a while, Jiang Ke and Liu Renyuan were both shocked.

It turned out that Liu Rengui burned the secret decree in the candlelight.

"General Jiang, General Liu, listen to my orders!"

The two of them bowed together: "I am here!"

Liu Rengui said: "General Jiang, you will immediately lead 10,000 naval forces to Xiongjin Port to station there."

According to the original deployment, the Yingzhou Army should have been stationed in Xiongjin Port long ago, but the deployment was suspended only because of the sudden robbery of military equipment.

Jiang Ke was filled with surprise, but judging from what had just happened, this was most likely an order from the emperor. He bowed and said, "I obey your command!"

Liu Rengui looked at Liu Renyuan again and said, "General Liu, please prepare for your mission."

Liu Renyuan was slightly taken aback and asked, "Commander-in-Chief, are you sending me as an envoy to Goguryeo?"

Liu Rengui said in a deep voice, "No, you are going on a diplomatic mission to Japan. This is a dangerous matter. Go to the Internal Affairs Office immediately and discuss it with Captain Huang."

Liu Renyuan said: "I will obey your orders!"

After the two men left, Liu Rengui burned Li Ji's letter, then wrote a reply letter and ordered it to be sent to Chang'an.

"Mr. Liu, His Majesty has already made a comprehensive plan. You don't need to worry too much. You must be careful." He looked towards Chang'an and muttered to himself.

(End of this chapter)