That smiling face, which seems to be laughing at the world, also seems to be laughing at itself, is full of sarcasm.

Kou Ji hugged Concubine Yang in his arms, a little at a loss.

He didn't expect Concubine Yang to be so strong, she said she would die, and she didn't give others a chance to save her at all.

What's more, he still has doubts in his heart that have not been solved, and he still needs Concubine Yang to help solve his doubts, Concubine Yang is now dead, he asked Liu Congmei if he asked, Liu Congmei may not tell him the truth.

Kou Ji looked at Chen Lin.

Chen Lin also looked at Kou Ji at this time.

The two of them looked at each other and sighed in their hearts.

When they came, the two of them hated Concubine Yang in their hearts, and they both had the intention of slashing Concubine Yang in their hearts to help Zhao Zhen seek justice.

But now that Concubine Yang hanged herself, they couldn't be happy.

"Kou Shumi, please also hand over the mother to the slave maid......"

The female officer beside Concubine Yang didn't know when she walked to Kou Ji's side, she couldn't see any joy or anger on her face, squatted down slightly, and whispered in a low voice.

Kou Ji thought about it for a while, and felt that the female officer next to Concubine Yang should be a close confidant of Concubine Yang, and should not toss the remains of Concubine Yang, so he handed over the remains of Concubine Yang to the female officer next to Concubine Yang.

The female officer looked very delicate, but her arms were very strong.

After Kou Ji handed over the remains of Concubine Yang to the female officer, the female official easily picked up the remains of Concubine Yang and walked to the beauty couch in a corner of the hall.

After Kou Ji saw that the female official put the remains of Concubine Yang on the beauty couch, he turned his head and stared at Liu Congmei and said, "I still have doubts in my heart, I don't know if you can solve my doubts?" ”

Liu Congmei's mouth was sealed, unable to speak, and his gaze staring at Kou Ji was full of mockery.

Seeing this, Kou Ji frowned slightly, "It seems that you don't plan to tell me......"

"Kou Shumi wants to know something, just ask the slave and maid, and the slave and maid know."

After Concubine Yang's female official placed the remains of Concubine Yang, she returned to the hall, and after she heard Kou Ji's words, she bowed and said softly.

Kou Ji was slightly stunned, and asked, "How can Concubine Niangniang's methods be threatened by Liu Congmei?" If I am a concubine and encounter a threat from Liu Congmei, I will definitely act decisively, except for Liu Congmei, so that Liu Congmei has no chance to threaten me. ”

The female officer gritted her teeth slightly and said, "Niangniang was just kind at first. Liu Congmei has been following Liu Niangniang since she was sensible and was trained by Liu Niangniang. Occasionally, the mother will give some pointers.

Calculated carefully, Liu Congmei is half of Niangniang's disciple.

Liu Congmei was at the end of his rope and begged for Niangniang's door, Niangniang had the ability to shelter him, so it was naturally impossible not to see death without help. ”

When Kou Ji heard this, he roughly understood the whole story.

Concubine Yang initially just took pity on Liu Congmei and secretly sheltered Liu Congmei.

Liu Congmei took advantage of the situation to hide in the palace and quietly contacted some of the remnants left by Liu E, including some people sent by Liu E to lurk under Concubine Yang.

Liu Congmei has someone in his hands, so he naturally will not stay in the palace in a proper manner, and will inevitably make some small moves.

But even so, Concubine Yang still has enough strength to deal with Liu Congmei, why did she let Liu Congmei be presumptuous in the palace?

Kou Jihu looked at the female officer suspiciously.

The female officer seemed to see Kou Ji's thoughts, and sighed slightly and said: "The handle in Liu Congmei's hands is not very harmful to Niangniang, even if it is exposed, Niangniang is at most a stigma on her back."

Whether it's a clear name or a stigma, the mother doesn't care.

Even if the official family knows about Niangniang's past actions, will they really expel Niangniang from the palace because of past events?

Although Niangniang has hurt other people, she has not hurt the official family, and even single-handedly blessed the official family.

The reason why Niangniang is subject to Liu Congmei is because the things in Liu Congmei's hands are very harmful to the official family.

Once the things in Liu Congmei's hands are spread, the reputation of the first emperor, Liu Niangniang, Niangniang, and even many people in the palace will be lost.

The official family will lose face because of this.

If it was in the past, the face of the official family would be hurt.

But not at that time. ”

"What's not to do?"

Chen Lin couldn't help but ask.

Kou Ji took a deep breath and sighed, "Because at that time, I was conquering Hexi. Relying on their majesty, the officials suppressed the opposition in the court and sent food and salaries from all over the country to help me.

If the harem scandal is exposed, the official family will not only lose face, but also lose its majesty.

Once the official family loses its majesty, people from the government and the opposition will lose their reverence for the official family.

Voices opposing the war in Hexi will form a wave overnight.

It is possible that the official family will be forced by the government and the opposition to give up their aid to me.

It is very likely that my war in Hexi will be a failure. ”

The Hexi War was a crucial battle in the Great Song Dynasty.

Because of the war in Hexi, the Great Song Dynasty completely straightened his waist.

The Great Song Dynasty also embarked on the road of expanding its territory because of the war in Hexi.

Before the war in Hexi, Da Song guarded his own one-third of an acre of land and did not dare to go out.

After the war in Hexi, the Great Song Dynasty immediately had the courage to argue with the Liao State.

When the Great Song Dynasty launched a war against the Liao State, nearly half of the officials in the Great Song Dynasty opened their mouths to war.

Before the war in Hexi, once the Great Song Dynasty encountered a war, there were not so many officials in the court who spoke about war.

In the event of a war, half of the officials will ask for peace, some will keep silent, and only a few will talk about war.

Therefore, the Hexi War can be said to be a battle related to the national fortunes of the Great Song Dynasty.

Concubine Yang shouldn't have seen it so deeply, she should have felt that Zhao Zhen was young at the time, and it was very difficult to sit on the throne to subdue the hundred officials, if there was a big victory, it should be easier to subdue the hundred officials, so she was unwilling to drag Zhao Zhen back at that time.

That's why she was coerced by Liu Congmei.

The rest of the matter, the female officer didn't say, Kou Ji could probably guess a rough idea.

After the war in Hexi, Concubine Yang should have wanted to find a time to deal with Liu Congmei quietly.

It's just that after the Hexi War, Kou Ji and Zhao Zhen chose to launch a war against Liao without hesitation.

In order to avoid the fire in the backyard affecting the war ahead, Concubine Yang could only continue to be coerced by Liu Congmei.

Kou Ji stared at the female official, "After all the dust of the war has landed, why did the concubine ......?"

The female official glared at Liu Congmei, gritted her teeth and said: "The official family has taken the female dependents in the palace out of the palace several times, and Liu Congmei took the opportunity to send the things in his hand out of the palace. Niangniang wanted to settle the matter quietly, but she didn't find what he had in her hand, so naturally it was difficult to move him. ”

Kou Ji groaned: "The concubine has already found the things he sent out of the palace?" ”

The female officer nodded slowly.

Kou Ji frowned and said, "Since the concubine has been staring, how can he get involved with Chen Meiren." ”

The female officer glanced at Kou Ji and said, "When he hooked up with Chen Meiren, our sisters were secretly supporting the Zhang sisters. ”

Speaking of this, the female officer glanced at Chen Lin.

"Niangniang can't cover the sky with one hand in the palace. During that time, Gonggong Chen kept stuffing people into the palace and staring at all parts of the palace. Niangniang didn't want to make this matter known to everyone, so she let the rest of the sisters restrain their whereabouts.

Liu Congmei seized that opportunity and hooked up with Chen.

After Chen's pregnancy, Niangniang knew that the matter could not be solved quietly.

Niangniang felt ashamed of the official family in her heart, and she had no shame to face the official family, and she was unwilling to make it difficult for the official family, so she took the initiative to ask for death, so she set up this bureau and let you open the matter.

Now, what Liu Congmei has in his hands, Niangniang has been burned, and Liu Congmei herself has fallen into your hands.

After the death of Liu Congmei and Chen, all people and things that are unfavorable to the official family will disappear. ”

When Kou Ji heard this, he felt a lot of emotion in his heart.

The words of the female official and the words of Concubine Yang, together, should be the truth of everything.

Except for the selfishness of the late Concubine Zhang, Concubine Yang was thinking about Zhao Zhen in other things.

It's just that she did bad things with good intentions.

It was obvious that it could be a one-size-fits-all thing, but she dragged it out and brought it to today's situation.

Some people may question why such a smart person as Concubine Yang would make such a stupid mistake in this matter without leaving any beginnings and tails.

To this, Kou Ji has the answer in his heart.

It's just scruples and restraints.

The barefoot are not afraid to wear shoes.

In the past, Concubine Yang was a barefoot person, she was not afraid of doing wrong things, and she was not afraid of being pierced by others.

Because she is a loner in the palace.

Even if someone pierced her face, she would just die.

No one else can be implicated.

But after she had Zhao Zhen in her heart, she put on her shoes and had concerns.

She considered the problem from Zhao Zhen's point of view, always thinking about minimizing the harm of everything that happened in the palace, so that Zhao Zhen would be less injured, or not injured.

It is precisely because of this that she was ruthless and cut through the mess quickly, and finally let things happen to the point of being out of control.

Kou Ji has seen many similar examples.

A destitute person, before he or she has no family, before he or she has no children, he or she can do anything with his hands and feet, even if it is to poke a hole in the sky, and he has the courage to try it in his heart.

But once you have a family and children, you will always have some concerns when doing anything dangerous.

He or she will be afraid that his or her head will be hot for a while, and he or she will leave the child behind.

It's a pity that the people can tolerate their worries, but the harem can't.

As soon as you have concerns, others will take the opportunity to tear apart what you are trying to protect.

"Hoo ......"

Kou Ji let out a sigh of relief and looked at Liu Congmei.

"Harm others and yourself! You're damned! The concubine Niangniang used her own death in exchange for a way for others in the palace to live. Should you also use your own death to seek a way out of life for the people of Liufu? ”

Concubine Yang hanged herself in order to avoid Zhao Zhen's difficulty, and to prevent Zhao Zhen from making too much killing.

But all she can bless is some people in the palace.

Like the people under her.

People outside the palace, Concubine Yang can't shelter.

Liu Congmei heard Kou Ji's words, and glared at Kou Ji viciously, he seemed to have something to say, but Kou Ji didn't want to hear it.

What Concubine Yang and the female officials in Concubine Yang's palace said, even if it was not the truth, even if there were doubts, Kou Ji would treat them as telling the truth.

Because of the truth they gave, they hurt Zhao Zhen the least.

The damage Zhao Zhen received was smaller, and the chance of wanton killing would also decrease.

After all, this matter is a bad thing for the royal family, so it shouldn't involve too many people in it.

After Kou Ji questioned Liu Congmei, his eyes fell on Liu Mei.

Liu Mei was trembling all over, standing in place and refusing to move half a step.

Seeing this, Kou Ji frowned and said: "Uncle Liu, you are also a person who has served in the court, you should understand that what Liu Congmei has done is not punishable, and it will affect the nine clans." ”

"Is Kou Shumi forcing father and son to kill each other?"

Liu Mei did not respond to Kou Ji's words, but Chen Lin said something gloomily.

Kou Ji's brows furrowed for a moment.

Chen Lin continued: "Father and son cannibalize each other, but it is a tragedy in the world. If the news of Kou Shumi's persecution of fathers and sons to kill each other spreads, I am afraid that he will have an unkind reputation. ”

Kou Ji snorted coldly, "I'm a privy envoy, a man in charge of the army, what's the use of having a benevolent reputation?" ”

Chen Lin said coldly: "Our family knows that you want to protect Liu Heng, but the decision on this matter is not in your hands, but in the hands of the official family." So whether Liu Heng can live or not, the official family has the final say. Even if you are forcing other fathers and sons to kill each other here, if the official family does not want Liu Heng to live, everything you do is in vain. ”

Kou Ji frowned and said, "Liu Heng doesn't know about this, and those who don't know are not guilty." ”

Chen Lin said with a cold face: "Do you want to make decisions for the official family?" ”

Kou Ji frowned tightly and didn't say anything more.

Chen Lin said in a deep voice on the side: "For the sake of you to find out about this matter, I will sell you a face this time." You take Liu's father and son to see the official family, whether Liu Heng can live depends on whether you can ask for an amnesty for Liu Heng from the official family.

Our family will go to the palace of the Queen Mother to see the Chen family first, and then go to see the official family after our family confirms that the Chen family is alive or dead. ”

Kou Ji glared at Chen Lin.

Chen Lin smiled coldly, his eyes wandered over the Liu family and his son, and then he glanced at Kou Ji deeply, and walked away from Concubine Yang's dormitory, and went straight to Concubine Li's bedroom.

After Chen Lin left, Kou Ji's eyes fell on Liu Mei, opened his mouth, and stopped talking.

He specially summoned Liu Mei into the palace in order to let Liu Mei kill her relatives in righteousness and help Liu Heng find a way to live.

Liu Mei stood aside just now, and she had already heard everything in her ears.

But he did not choose to kill his relatives in righteousness, but stood still.

Kou Ji had the intention to force Liu Mei to make a move, but in the end, after thinking about it, he gave up the idea.

Chen Lin is right, whether Liu Heng can live or not, Zhao Zhen has the final say.

Even if he forced Liu Mei to kill Liu Congmei, if Zhao Zhen felt angry, Liu Heng would still not be able to live.

Whether Liu Heng can survive or not is still on Zhao Zhen, not on Liu's father and son.

If he wants to protect Liu Heng, he can only find a way to help Liu Heng find a way out of Zhao Zhen's mouth.

"Take them with me and follow me to the official dormitory......"

Kou Ji commanded in a deep voice.

The eunuch who was guarding outside Concubine Yang's bedroom escorted Liu's father and son out of Concubine Yang's bedroom.

Out of Concubine Yang's bedroom, Kou Ji ordered someone to temporarily seal off Concubine Yang's bedroom.

Although Concubine Yang has hanged herself, how to deal with her remains and how to deal with the people in her bedroom depends on Zhao Zhen's meaning.

After Kou Ji sent people to block Concubine Yang's bedroom, he rushed to Zhao Zhen's palace with people.

When Kou Ji arrived at Zhao Zhen's dormitory, it was already late at night, and Zhao Zhen had already slept.

Kou Ji ordered someone to give a sigh.

Zhao Zhen was woken up in the middle of the night and summoned Kou Ji in the side hall next to the dormitory.

Kou Ji took Liu's father and son to the side hall, leaving Liu's father and son outside, and entered the side hall alone.

As soon as he entered the side hall, he saw Zhao Zhen staring at him with blazing eyes.

"The fourth brother woke me up in the middle of the night, but the case was found out?"

Kou Ji gave Zhao Zhen a solemn salute and said, "The minister has already found out about this case. ”

"Tell me quickly!"

Zhao Zhen seemed to have two flames rising in his eyes, staring at Kou Ji and asking.

Kou Ji saluted Zhao Zhen again and said, "Before telling the official family the truth, the minister wants to ask the official family for a special purpose. ”

Zhao Zhen raised his eyebrows slightly, stared at Kou Ji without saying a word, and waited for Kou Ji's next words.

Seeing this, Kou Ji said in a deep voice: "The minister hopes that the official family will make a special decree to spare Liu Heng from dying." The minister can want to guarantee the official family that Liu Heng did not know from beginning to end, let alone participated in all kinds of things in the harem.

I implore the official family to remember Liu Heng's contribution to my Great Song Dynasty and the face of the minister, and spare Liu Heng's life. ”

Zhao Zhen stared at Kou Ji, took a deep look, and said, "Listen to the fourth brother, all kinds of things that happened in my harem are related to the people of the Liu Mansion. ”

Kou Ji didn't hide it and nodded decisively.

Zhao Zhen sat on the chair, was silent for a long time, and said: "The fourth brother opened his mouth to intercede for Liu Heng, presumably all kinds of things that happened in the harem were deeply implicated by the people of the Liu Mansion. ”

Koji nodded again.

Zhao Zhen asked in a deep voice: "I have lost two emperors, do you think I should let Liu Heng go, or not Liu Heng?" ”

Kou Ji sighed in his heart, did not speak, just bent down deeply.

Zhao Zhen's question is not easy to answer, and it cannot be answered.

Zhao Zhen saw that Kou Ji was silent, so he spoke again: "If I refuse to let Liu Heng go, will the fourth brother tell me the truth?" ”

Kou Ji raised his head slightly and said solemnly: "The minister doesn't dare to hide anything. ”

Zhao Zhen nodded slightly, sat on the chair and was silent for a long time, and said, "Since the fourth brother entered the court, he has never asked me for anything, but I have always begged the fourth brother to do something. After careful calculation, I owe the fourth brother a lot.

Now that the fourth brother is begging me for the first time, I can't help but give the fourth brother face.

As long as the fourth brother can ensure that Liu Heng has nothing to do with this matter, I can let Liu Heng live.

But capital sins can be avoided, but living sins cannot be escaped.

How I deal with him, I have to listen to the evil done by the people of the Liu Mansion before making a decision. ”

Kou Ji bowed deeply to Zhao Zhen and said, "Thank you for the love of the official family." ”

Zhao Zhen stared at Kou Ji and said, "Can you tell me the truth now?" ”

Kou Ji groaned slightly, and slowly spoke.

As soon as Kou Ji spoke, Zhao Zhen's face changed.

Kou Ji observed Zhao Zhen's face while slowly telling Zhao Zhen about all the things that happened in the harem.

During this period, Zhao Zhen was not angry, but his face kept changing, the green tendons on his forehead were constantly beating, and his palms were subconsciously clenched into fists.

Kou Ji finished telling everything, and Zhao Zhen didn't say a word.

Kou Ji said to the end, took a deep breath, and said in a low voice: "The concubine Niangniang hanged herself to death in order not to make it difficult for the official family, and also to let the official family make less murder." ”

After finishing the last sentence, Kou Ji stared at Zhao Zhen's expression tightly.

Zhao Zhen didn't shout, nor did he make trouble, he was a little scary calmly.

After he listened to Kou Ji's story, his cold gaze fell on Kou Ji, and as soon as he opened his mouth, it was a cold and sharp language like ice ballast.

"Can Yang's words be able to control the outside of the palace? I remember that when I ascended the throne, I said that the harem was not allowed to interfere in politics, and everything in the harem was not allowed to leave the palace. ”

Kou Ji's heart skipped a beat when he heard this.

Zhao Zhen called Concubine Yang a little lady for more than ten years.

Now that he has changed his name to Yang, it can be seen that he has been extremely angry in his heart.

He didn't explode on the spot, probably suppressing the anger in his heart.

When he erupts, it will inevitably be a stormy wave.

Facing Zhao Zhen's question, Kou Ji took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "If the concubine is a mother, she will naturally not be able to leave the palace. She doesn't want the official family to kill more evil, but she hopes that the official family will not kill the palace people because of her fault......"

"I know ......"

Zhao Zhen's cold words blocked the rest of Kou Ji's words in his stomach.

Kou Ji opened his mouth, and thousands of words finally turned into a thick sigh.

When Zhao Zhen sighed at Kou Ji, he stared at Kou Ji and said, "Fourth brother, you have given me a problem. ”

When Kou Ji heard this, he sighed in his heart.

The problem that Zhao Zhen said naturally refers to the fact that Kou Ji asked for a special purpose for Liu Heng in advance.

"Shame on ......"

Kou Ji arched his hand.

Zhao Zhen waved his hand and said, "This matter is indeed as the fourth brother said, Liu Heng didn't know about it from beginning to end, and he didn't participate from beginning to end. I have seen the scene of Liu Heng sacrificing his life and forgetting death for the sake of my country.

It's not impossible for me to spare his life.

The fourth brother doesn't have to blame himself. ”

When Kou Ji heard this, he was about to bow down and thank him, but after thinking about it for a while, he found that Zhao Zhen was not comforting him, but seemed to be comforting himself.

He was convincing himself not to hurt Liu Heng's life.

In other words, Zhao Zhen has already given birth to the idea of killing.

Liu Heng is clearly on the list of must-kills.

But Kou Ji was the first to intercede, and he agreed.

So he was trying to convince himself to let Liu Heng jump to his life.

At this moment, Zhao Zhen's tranquility is only the tranquility before the storm.

When the storm comes, I'm afraid it will be a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

Zhao Zhen's performance now is completely different from the previous performance of Han Meiren after one corpse and two lives.

After Han Meiren had two deaths before, Zhao Zhen cried and shouted and locked herself in the dormitory, loving and pitying herself.

Now it is more calm than ever, and it is also more abnormal than ever.

Kou Ji felt that Zhao Zhen, who was calm, was far more dangerous than Zhao Zhen, who was crying and shouting.

Kou Ji hesitated for a moment and said, "Official, this matter ......"

Without waiting for Kou Ji to finish speaking, Zhao Zhen interrupted Kou Ji's words in a stiff tone.

"The fourth brother is investigating cases in the palace, day and night, and he must be tired. The fourth brother will go back to the house and rest first. I will give an order to the four gates, telling them to open the door and let the fourth brother leave. ”