Chapter 519 Emergency Response

A mutiny resulted in the deaths of nearly 10,000 people, including more than 3,000 rebel cavalrymen, nearly 5,000 guards and Wuhou Guards, hundreds of palace maids, eunuchs and boatmen, and more than 20 officials. More than 70 ships of the fleet were burned, resulting in heavy losses.

Yuwen Shu escorted the frightened emperor and empress back to the canal. Qu Tutong and Zhang Xutuo knelt down and pleaded guilty. Empress Xiao whispered, "Your Majesty, please forgive them!"

Yang Guang also knew that if they had not fought desperately, he would have been killed by the rebellious son. Yang Guang personally stepped forward to help the two generals up and comforted them, saying: "I am not a tyrant. You are loyal to me, how can I not understand!"

Qu Tutong and Zhang Xutuo were so moved that they shed tears and said, "Your Majesty, I cannot repay your kindness even if my body is torn to pieces!"

Yang Su stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, General Qu Tutong has captured more than a dozen Wagang bandits. After interrogation, we found that they are all soldiers under the King of Qi. They pretended to be Wagang bandits to give the King of Qi an excuse to send troops."

Yang Guang nodded and sighed: "It is a misfortune for the country that I have given birth to such a rebellious son!"

He also instructed Yang Su, "The victims should be properly buried!"

"The minister obeys the order!"

Xiao Cong asked, "Your Majesty, will you continue your southern tour?"

Yang Guang shook his head and said, "Since he failed in his mutiny, his next step will definitely be to launch a surprise attack on Luoyang."

Yang Guang no longer hesitated and made a decision immediately, "Pass on my order, cancel the southern tour, and the team will return to Luoyang immediately!"

On the morning of the second day after the emperor was attacked by the King of Qi's army, several horse-riding warriors rushed to Songcheng County and came to Yuelai Inn next to the north gate of Songcheng County. Several warriors dismounted and the leading warrior hurried to the backyard.

There are three courtyard-style guest rooms in the backyard of the inn, but they have all been booked. There are warriors standing guard at the door, and no outsiders are allowed to enter except the owner and the waiters.

The leading warrior who brought the news walked quickly into a courtyard in the middle, where Yuan Xiaoju was feeding the fish.

Yuan Xiaoju naturally went to Jiangdu, but today was the tenth day of the twenty-day deadline given by Xiao Xia, and there were still ten days left, so he should be able to make it in time.

Yuan Xiaoju was of course waiting for news from Yang Ling. He believed that there was a high possibility that Yang Ling would succeed. If Yang Ling succeeded, the world would be in chaos, and he would not have to go to Jiangdu anymore.

At this time, the leader of the warriors came in, knelt on one knee and clasped his fists, saying: "Reporting to the master, the Qi King's army failed in their surprise attack on the fleet last night and has now retreated to Hebei. The emperor's fleet has also turned around and returned to Luoyang."

"Why did you fail?"

"I heard that the fleet temporarily stopped at the west bank, and the surprise attack cavalry could not cross the river, so the emperor and all the officials abandoned the boats and fled, thus escaping the disaster!"

Yuan Xiaoju was stunned. They had considered the issue of the fleet stopping. Chenliu County was on the east coast, so they would usually stop on the east side for the convenience of replenishment. However, they temporarily stopped on the west side. It was estimated that they discovered danger, or they pretended to be bandits from Wagangzhai and aroused the emperor's vigilance, so they stopped the fleet on the opposite side.

What a mistake! Yuan Xiaoju sighed softly and immediately ordered: "Pack your luggage and go to Jiangdu!"

The news that the King of Qi launched a mutiny and the emperor was attacked in Chenliu shocked the world, but the speed of communication varied. The fastest, such as Yuan Xiaoju, knew about it the next day, while the slowest, such as Lingnan, took two months to get the news.

Xiao Xia received the news five days later that the emperor was attacked, the King of Qi's mutiny failed, and the emperor canceled his southern tour and returned to Luoyang.

This news also shocked Xiao Xia, and also caught him off guard. Wasn't Yang Ling controlled by the Wei family and the Qinghe Cui family? Both of these families were traditional families. Would they allow him to launch a coup?

From the end of last year to now, Xiao Xia has been dealing with the rebellion of the Shanyue people in the south, and has no energy to consider Yang Ling's affairs. The entire General Administration Office is also busy suppressing the rebellion and the charity granary, or considering welcoming the emperor's southern tour, and the military is recruiting soldiers. No one has considered external factors. Yang Ling's mutiny was also beyond everyone's expectations. Xiao Xia immediately summoned all the senior officials to discuss countermeasures. As the head of intelligence and security, Li Luming first reflected on herself.

"The Intelligence Agency has also deployed intelligence points in Hebei to collect intelligence from Hebei, but the focus is on the movements of the National Protection Association, and secondly, the movements of the King of Qi. This morning, I specially reviewed the intelligence sent by the Hebei intelligence point and did find some clues. I treated it as general intelligence and did not pay enough attention to it."

"Did you find any clues?" Xiao Xia asked.

"The first clue was that the King of Qi dismissed all the officials from the noble families in the Prince of Qi's Palace. The Chief of Staff Wei Jing was dismissed, and another important staff member Cui Jingyi had his legs broken by an unknown person and was forced to resign and return home."

Xiao Xia was speechless for a long time. This information was too important. It was obvious that Prince Qi Yang Ling had broken off relations with the aristocratic family. Yet he didn't know such important information.

Gao Ying immediately asked, "When did it happen?"

“Early April this year!”

Gao Jiong said with some dissatisfaction: "Officer Li, this is very important information. You should report it in time."

Li Luming said sadly: "I know I was wrong!"

Xiao Xia couldn't bear to blame her, so she asked, "What's the second clue?"

"The second clue is that the King of Qi suddenly expanded his army in May. Although we don't know the exact number, intelligence sources estimate that there are at least 50,000 or 60,000 troops."

The news hit his forehead. This piece of information was more important than the previous one, but he still didn't know what was going on with Li Luming?

Liu Wenjing asked, "Does Li Shuling think that since we have recruited 30,000 naval forces and 20,000 new soldiers, the emperor should also allow the King of Qi to recruit soldiers?"

Li Luming nodded. She did think so, so she didn't take it too seriously.

Xiao Xia sighed and said, "It's no use saying this now. We can infer that the King of Qi has nearly 100,000 troops to back him up. Even if the assassination fails, he will not admit defeat and will definitely fight against the court from Hebei!"

Gao Jiong asked, "Your Highness, do you think we will be involved?"

Xiao Xia said slowly: "Whether we will be involved is another matter, but the rebellion of the Prince of Qi will inevitably have two major consequences. The first is that the separation between Hebei and Shandong will intensify, and the second is that the court will reduce the power of the vassal states, which will have a great impact on us. I don't want the Jiangnan Road General Administration Office to be disbanded. Let's think about countermeasures. How can we avoid this situation?"

Liu Wenjing said: "If Your Highness wants to avoid being stripped of his fiefdom, the only way is to make contributions and participate in quelling the rebellion of the King of Qi. On the one hand, this will show your attitude, and on the other hand, when the emperor awards merits, Your Highness can ask to continue to retain the Jiangnan Road General Administration Office."

Gao Jiong also said: "Your Highness, Envoy Liu is right. Only great achievements can offset the court's actions to reduce the power of the vassal states. However, I advise Your Highness not to be too hasty. You should closely observe the development of the situation and find the best time to send troops. You should provide timely assistance to the court instead of adding icing on the cake."

After the discussion, Gao Jiong immediately found Xiao Xia and said, "Your Highness, I suggest that you appoint another intelligence director, or separate intelligence and security. It is really wrong to omit two important intelligences!"

Xiao Xia nodded silently. Li Luming was good at internal security, but his intelligence was not satisfactory. When he suppressed the Shanyue rebellion before, the intelligence was not very timely. That was because the Shanyue were relatively weak, so it didn't matter if the intelligence was a little worse. But this time, the intelligence errors in Hebei were serious. This was not only a problem of ability, but also a cognitive problem. He did not realize the importance of intelligence. As an intelligence chief, this was a fatal flaw.

Xiao Xia sighed and said, "I understand. I will let Zhang Liang be in charge of intelligence again, and Li Luming will be in charge of internal security."

(End of this chapter)

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