The Empress came ashore and beheaded the meritorious officials, forcing me to wear the yellow robe

While Li Jize was vigorously building momentum and propaganda to pave the way for the upcoming rebellion...

The envoy sent by the court also ran back and forth, and returned to the empress to tell the civil and military officials of the court about the King of Qin's request.

"The King of Qin said he had no intention of being disloyal to the court or His Majesty. The current commotion was actually a result of dissatisfaction within the army with Commander Zhou Yan. After the military mutiny, the King of Qin immediately quelled the internal rebellion. For this reason..."

Having said that, the messenger also brought a number of boxes filled with human heads.

"The King of Qin presented the heads of several generals who mutinied in the army!"

In the court, all the civil and military officials were whispering and discussing.

Some say that the King of Qin was worthy of being the pillar of the Great Qi State. He reacted quickly, and from the fact that he quickly killed the rebels and sent their heads to the court, it was clear that he was loyal to the court and had no intention of rebelling.

But the chief minister of the cabinet, Ye Xianggao, squinted his eyes, stroked his beard and fell into deep thought.

How could it be such a coincidence?

On the way to the Northern Expedition, the army mutinied, and coincidentally, it was Commander Zhou Yan who died? Did this allow Deputy Commander Li Jize to take over the reins?

He didn't believe that there was no trick behind so many coincidences.

only……

The current Li Jize is no longer the Tiance General he once was. He has become treacherous and shameless, not to mention commanding a large army. The Prime Minister Ye Xianggao saw through it but did not point it out, leaving the court and the emperor to guess for themselves.

Sure enough, after hearing what the messenger conveyed about Li Jize, who had absolutely no intention of rebelling, the empress breathed a sigh of relief.

It seems that Li Jize is still the same Li Jize, without any change, so she feels relieved.

Thinking of this, the empress smiled a rare relaxed smile. She asked the envoy, "Since the barbarians have already invaded the territory of Da Qi, has the King of Qin said when to send troops?"

"This……"

The messenger frowned, looking embarrassed.

"Why? He doesn't want to send troops?"

The empress's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and she had a bad feeling.

"The King of Qin said that the military pay and rations haven't arrived yet, and we can't let our brothers go to war on an empty stomach!"

To put it bluntly, Li Jize just wanted money and food, and he would not move unless the court gave them.

The Empress was indeed a little annoyed. Her face was livid as she said in a cold voice, "Why? How could I possibly owe him such a small amount of food and wages? It's urgent to help him, as it's like putting out a fire. Let him send his troops to meet the enemy immediately! When the time comes, I will naturally make up for his food and wages."

After that…

With a "thump", something happened that surprised all the civil and military officials in the court.

Without saying a word, the messenger knelt in the middle of the room and kowtowed desperately.

The empress was stunned upon seeing this, looking at the envoy with a puzzled face, while he kowtowed in fear, "Your Majesty, before I came here, Qin... Li... Li Jize had one more thing to say, but I... I dare not say it! I am guilty of death!"

The more this happened, the more curious the empress became. She clenched her fists and looked at the envoy who was kowtowing in the hall. She said coldly, "I forgive you! What did Li Jize say?"

"Li Jize...he said...if Your Majesty is anxious, you can mobilize the troops of General Zuo and others!"

Wow!

As these words were spoken, everyone in the court was shocked!

The empress was stunned on the spot. For a moment, she didn't understand what Li Jize meant.

On the contrary, after hearing this, she just said in a gloomy and cold voice: "General Zuo's troops? Zuo Santong's troops are okay for fighting bandits, but expecting him to fight barbarians? Isn't that wishful thinking?"

In the court, all the officials were silent, and some of them were so embarrassed that their faces turned red.

until……

"Cough cough!"

Ye Xianggao, the chief minister of the cabinet, coughed softly. As the empress looked puzzled, he stepped out of the room and whispered, "Your Majesty! I believe Li Jize's words aren't about whether Zuo Santong's men can defeat the barbarians. Rather...he's reminding you, why can a monk touch it but a Taoist priest can't?"

Empress: “???”

Until this moment, these girls still haven't reacted!

Another court official stood up and told a proverbial story about a Taoist priest who tried to molest a young nun but failed, so he complained, "Why can the monk touch her but the Taoist priest can't?"

That’s all I have to say. As for the rest, Your Majesty, you can guess it yourself.

The empress was not really stupid. After going around in circles, she got some advice from the civil and military officials in the hall who were all smart people.

Great! She understood instantly.

Li Jize hadn't changed at all; he was still loyal to the court and the emperor! This guy almost had rebellion written all over his face.

He is deliberately humiliating the empress!

Zuo Santong is the monk, she is the nun, and Li Jize compares himself to a Taoist priest!

Why did you, the Empress, have to give him the military pay before he could march to fight the rebels? Now that it's my turn, you owe me the money first and then pay me the military pay later?

Aren’t you bullying honest people?

This is outrageous! This is absolutely outrageous!

Not only did he openly put the "hidden rules" on the table, but he also openly humiliated the empress. If the money and food are not available! You want me, Li Jize, to fight the barbarians? You are daydreaming.

boom!

"Bastard!"

The furious empress's pretty face flushed red, and she slapped the dragon throne hard with her backhand.

Frightened, all the ministers in the court knelt on the ground, shouting loudly: "Your Majesty, please calm down!"

"Li Jize! This thief has evil ambitions and no loyalty to his king or his father. Doesn't our Great Qi have any more soldiers capable of fighting? I intend to issue a conscription order, ordering troops from all over the country to come to the capital to defend the king! Punish this traitor!"

Oops! Good guy!

The subtext of the empress's words was that she was going to turn the table over and get rid of Li Jize first.

Who would have thought that these two were childhood sweethearts and almost became husband and wife?

One of them stripped away his military power, broke off his marriage, and drove himself crazy, while the other pretended to be crazy and seized the military power. Now he has switched his offense and defense and openly slapped the current empress in the face in front of all the ministers in the court!

As for Li Jize's behavior, in the feudal era when imperial power was supreme, every one of them was enough to play the game of "Nine Clans Elimination".

Unfortunately, the timing chosen by Li Jize was so clever!

There are rebels in the Central Plains and barbarians in the north. The empress suddenly feels embarrassed and wants to summon troops from all over the world to kill Li Jize?

Ah this...

What a stupid operation!

Li Jize didn't purge the court, nor did he directly charge back into the capital! This shows that he still didn't dare to rebel openly!

To put it bluntly, Li Jize was just talking nonsense to vent his anger about the empress going ashore and beheading her meritorious officials.

Originally, Da Qi was still able to survive. The empress summoned all the troops from all over the country. It was unknown whether Li Jize was dead or alive, but if the rebels and barbarians attacked from all sides, Da Qi would definitely die.

Secondly...

Li Jize’s words are true but not unreasonable!

Is it true that monks cannot touch Taoist priests?