Chapter 32 Conspiracy 3

  "Qiang people? Qiang people often come and go after a fight, what's there to be afraid of?"

  "But this time, it's not that simple."

  Looking at Nalan Xixi's serious expression, Nan Gongyan gradually became a bit tense.

  Nalan Xixiao continued: "This time, the Qiang people and the eight barbarian tribes have formed a large army of 400,000 to attack. As far as I know, the garrison at Shanheguan has only 200,000 troops, and it is not easy to resist until now."

  "How could this be?! How could there suddenly be an army of 400,000?! Last year I still heard that General Li had a great victory over the Qiang people, how...?"

  Nangong Yan listened to this astonishing number and could no longer remain calm, which meant that Nangong Jin was not just unable to extricate himself, but... would definitely die.

  "Hmph, if the Xianbei people had the endurance to persuade the eight tribes of Man and Yi to form a coalition army with them to attack Luotian, they wouldn't have been defeated and fleeing in disarray all those years ago." Nalan Xixi sneered.

  "You mean..." Nan Gongyan gradually realized.

  "There must be a traitor in the court, and this traitor's power should not be underestimated. There are people in the court who respond to each other, inside and outside, and the Qiang people and the barbarians have gained great confidence, so they dare to take this risk." Nalan Xianyu analyzed.

  "The current situation is not optimistic, Luo Tian has nearly 300,000 troops in the hands of Zuo Party, and the front line requires Huang Renzhong to lead his army to reinforce, but Huang Renzhong has been slow to move. They are stalling for time with us, and Shanheguan can't afford to wait even a day. The more we delay, the less chance of winning." Nalan Xianuo slightly furrowed her brow.

  "...Ah, I remember now. There are several generals on the Right Party's side who are very loyal to my brother, and they have troops under their command. Let them go, I'll let them handle it..." As she spoke, Nangong Yan turned around and was about to leave.

  Nalan Xue Nora lived with her, coldly saying: "Princess, please calm down. Now they can't leave. They know that the king needs reinforcements, but if they take the king's last army away from the imperial capital at this moment, the Left Party will immediately rise up and usurp the throne. Then, let the Qiang people and the king fight each other, and finally, they will reap the benefits of the fishermen."

  Nangong Yan's face turned pale, she began to realize how serious this crisis was. Externally, there were strong enemies, internally, there were hidden dangers, and the people of the Left Party were very sinister. They designed to let the Qiang people fight with Nangong Jin. If the Right Party sent troops to reinforce Nangong Jin, it would be equivalent to handing over Luotian. If no one went to reinforce him, and Nangong Jin died on the battlefield, they could still reap the benefits without lifting a finger.

  Nangong Yan's eyes gradually became hollow, her tears wetting her cheeks. The long-forgotten feeling of helplessness and powerlessness invaded her once again, but this was only the tip of the iceberg.

  "As soon as the king encounters difficulties, being robbed of Luotian by the thief, the other twelve vassal states will inevitably raise the banner of justice to kill the rebellious thief and fight for the throne, and the world will be in chaos." Nalan Xinnuo said, clenching his fists tightly.

  The Luotian Dynasty, the Luotian Emperor, such a title has always been an irresistible temptation for the heroes of this world. Those with ambition, courage and ability in this world have always been eyeing this position at all times.

  Everyone was staring at him all the time, and everyone wished he would die immediately.

  He abandoned her without hesitation, because... he still had something that couldn't be abandoned?

  Nalan Xixi took a deep breath, she didn't know how many times she had used this excuse to comfort herself, to convince herself to forgive him. In fact, there was no need for forgiveness, because she had never hated him.

  The depth of love makes it even more unbearable to accept his abandonment.

  Suddenly, her body stiffened, a frail figure squeezed into her arms, her body trembled slightly, sobbing softly, the tone was heartbreaking helplessness and despair. "What to do... what should I do, brother needs me, he must need someone by his side now, but I can't do anything..."

  For some reason, Nalan Xiong suddenly remembered that story and the desperate girl in it. The girl was now wondering what to do next.

  Nalan Xixiao's eyes were puffed up bright red, he gently patted Nan Gongyan's back and softly said: "Princess don't be afraid, with me here, those thieves will never succeed."

  Absolutely, without a doubt, this tone was very familiar to Nangong Yan, it was the usual tone of her brother. She raised her head and looked at the young man in front of her, at this moment there was no special expression on her face, under the light cloud and gentle breeze, the cold and fierce killing intent suddenly made her feel at ease, for a moment she felt that with her around, there was nothing to be afraid of.

  "I believe you." Nangong Yan wiped away her tears and looked at Nalan Xinnuo with determination.

  Nalan Xixiao was taken aback for a moment, although she had long been accustomed to these four words. She had always been entrusted with all sorts of trust by others, and she would never betray such trust.

  But when such trust came from Nan Gongyan, there was an inexplicable aftertaste in her heart.

  "What should I do?" Nan Gongyan continued to ask.

  "Firstly, I'd like to trouble Your Highness to take me to meet the current Right Chancellor."

  "But how can the Right Prime Minister trust you, after all, you are the prince of Yunyun..." Nan Gongyan hesitated.

  "The princess said that the empress intentionally wants me to marry you." Nalan Xianyu said calmly.

  Nangong Yan's face turned slightly red, normally she wouldn't have agreed to it, but now that her brother was at a critical juncture, she couldn't care about so much anymore. Besides, she really liked Nalan Xixi.

  When they arrived at the Right Chancellor's mansion, it was already deep into the night. The steward of the Right Chancellor's mansion saw that it was Nan Gongyan who had come to visit and was first startled, without even reporting back, he nervously led Nan Gongyan directly to the front hall.

  They walked to the front hall, where the maids had brought tea. After a while, the Right Prime Minister hurried out, already in his seventies, but looking much older than his actual age due to years of hard work.

  He was about to perform the ritual of kneeling and bowing, when Nan Gongyan hastily got up and helped the Right Prime Minister to his feet. "Prime Minister Hong, there's no need for such courtesy," he said. "In terms of seniority, I should be the one bowing to you."

  Hong Xiangguo was moved to tears and immediately sat down beside her. "I don't know why the princess has come to visit in the middle of the night?"

  Nangong Yan raised her eyes, didn't speak, picked up the teacup and drank tea. Hong Xiangguo understood, turned his head to the butler and the maids around him.

  "You all go down first, without my order, no one is allowed to come in."

  "Yes." The people below echoed and retreated.

  After making sure no one was around, Nangong Yan got up and knelt down in front of Hong Xiangguo with a thud. "Please, Lord Prime Minister, save the people of the world, save my imperial brother!"

  Hong Xiang's family had been loyal to the royal family for four generations, and all of them were faithful officials. The etiquette and education they received were very strict, which made him unbearable. He was so scared that he quickly got up and knelt down in front of her. "Princess, please forgive this old minister! Whatever you command, I will carry it out without fail. This old minister swears to be loyal to the king until death!"

  Nangong Yan let out a sigh, helped Hong Xiangguo up, and wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes. "The current situation must be clear to you as well, Your Excellency."

  Hong Xiangguo's expression turned solemn, he nodded slowly, but didn't know what to say. Now it was like a game of dead chess, unable to advance or retreat, and could only anxiously wait.

  "I want to introduce someone to Prime Minister."

  Hong Xiangguo looked up and saw a figure falling from the rooftop. A young man in white clothes, with an indifferent expression, glanced at him lightly, meeting his gaze, Hong Xiangguo felt a chill run down his spine.

  What a heavy killing intent! He stood quietly beside Nangong Yan, not speaking. Hong Xiangguo hesitated for a moment, looking at Nangong Yan, who introduced: "This is the prince of Fengyun Country, Nalan Xianyu."

  "Met the prince." Hong Xiangguo cupped his hands, and although his eyes were well-hidden, Nalan Xinnuo still saw his suspicion.

  Naturally, at this critical juncture, people from Feiyun Country coming to join in the excitement would definitely raise suspicions.

  Nangong Yan also understood and continued: "Prime Minister, Xi Nuo is the emperor's old friend from his past, and he was also chosen by the emperor as my future husband, he is a trustworthy person."

  Old friend from the past? Nalan Xino looked at Nan Gongyan, but didn't see anything special. Ha! Nalan Xino, what are you thinking? Do you think he would tell Nan Gongyan about your existence? Don't be naive.

  As expected, Hong Xiangguo immediately dropped his guard when he heard that he was someone trusted by Nan Gongzhen. "So that's the case... it's best that the prince can come and assist at this time..."

  "Prime Minister, he is someone my imperial brother trusts, and also someone my mother and I trust. Therefore, please, sir, you must follow his intentions." Nan Gong Yan spoke softly and tactfully, not wanting them to think that these loyal and dedicated old ministers were inferior to an outsider.

  Hong Xiangguo is not a narrow-minded person either. The fact that the Nangong family trusts him so much shows that he also has some skills. He nodded and cupped his hands, saying: "Your humble servant understands."

  "May I ask, Prime Minister, how many men and horses does the Righteous Party have now?" Nalan Xianyu asked respectfully.

  The Righteous Party has four hundred thousand elite troops, led by General Quan and General He.

  General Quan, General He? Nalan Xiong's mind flashed with two people, but if they were both generals, how could they be taken to the same forest? No, it should be because they went to the same forest, so they are his most trusted men, so he handed over his last troops to them when leaving.

  "It's urgent, Your Excellency, please gather the right-wing officials immediately. If we don't take action now, His Majesty might be in grave danger." Nalan Xianyu said seriously.

  At the third watch, in a secret room of the Prime Minister's residence, gathered the civil and military officials who held significant power in the current dynasty. They had heard that the Emperor secretly dispatched someone to lead them together against the Zuo Party, but that person still hadn't appeared.

  In the room, there was a commotion as everyone was guessing the identity of the newcomer. Suddenly, He Xian became impatient and stood up, shouting at Hong Xiangguo above: "Xiangguo, where is the person you mentioned?"

  Everyone chimed in to ask where the person was, and Xiang Guo looked back with a difficult expression. At this time, a cold and oppressive voice with a few hints of pressure slowly echoed from the rear hall.

  "Sorry for keeping everyone waiting."