Chapter 997 Be frank!
Pei Zhixiu’s words brought Ye Mingsheng’s thoughts back to that summer night many years ago································

With the introduction of Shen Jianzhong, he went to Mingyan Tower in Luoan to meet An Zhirong and found out what An Zhirong was doing!
As Shangguan Hongyuan's black glove, An Zhirong has been helping Shangguan Hongyuan do some shady things.

For example, he sold pig iron and other strategic materials to Khitan Luobi in order to obtain good horses from Khitan Luobi. Shangguan Hongyuan used these good horses to develop cavalry. It is no exaggeration to say that An Zhirong played a significant role in the development of the Longxiang Army, the cavalry unit of the Imperial Guards!
However, Khitan and Luobei also used the pig iron sold by An Zhirong to forge more weapons and repeatedly invaded the borders of Da Zhou, causing great suffering to the people of Da Zhou on the border!
However, Shangguan Hongyuan, who was the Prime Minister at the time, was happy to see this happen. After all, the Imperial Guards of the Great Zhou could be said to be his private soldiers. The development of the cavalry of the Longxiang Army meant the growth of his strength!

After obtaining pig iron, the Khitan also invaded Liaoyang and Youyan. At that time, the Liaoyang Governor Song Wenhui and the Youyan Governor Zhao Fuqu did not get along well with Shangguan Hongyuan, especially Zhao Fuqu, who was a thorn in Shangguan Hongyuan's side!
Therefore, the trade of exchanging pig iron for good horses with the Khitans could not only increase one's own strength on the one hand, but also weaken the strength of one's political enemies on the other.

This can be said to kill two birds with one stone for Shangguan Hongyuan, so he has been actively promoting trade in this area······························
Although the trade of pig iron for good horses was very profitable for Shangguan Hongyuan, it was a dirty job after all!
The Luobi people and the Great Zhou have a blood feud that goes back hundreds of years. Banning strategic materials such as pig iron from flowing into the grassland has been the Great Zhou's unchanging national policy for hundreds of years!

According to the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty, let alone pig iron, even if you sell iron pots to the grassland, you will be beheaded. In serious cases, the whole family will be executed and the three clans will be exterminated. The people of the Great Zhou Dynasty also despise the act of selling pig iron to the grassland!

As the Prime Minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Shangguan Hongyuan has to maintain his reputation, so he certainly cannot do this matter personally, and he cannot let himself be involved in this matter!

Therefore, Shangguan Hongyuan needed someone to do this for him. At that time, the An family was declining. So in order to restore the family's prestige, An Zhirong wanted to get in touch with Shangguan Hongyuan, and thus became the person who helped Shangguan Hongyuan do this dirty work!
At that time, the trade route was threatened by the big bandit Zhen Sanshan, so An Miaoyi needed someone who was trustworthy and good at fighting to help him deal with Zhen Sanshan!

Therefore, Ye Mingsheng, who had just made a contribution to the surprise attack on Liujing and had a relationship with the Cui family, appeared in front of An Zhirong on the recommendation of his teacher Shen Jianzhong.

To be honest, this job is too dirty after all, and the consequences will be very serious once discovered, so Ye Mingsheng was hesitant at the beginning································
However, under the threat of An Zhirong's power and the temptation of stacks of silver bills, Ye Mingsheng finally fell. But after Ye Mingsheng's strength grew and he could get rid of An Zhirong's control, Ye Mingsheng immediately closed this trade route!
After finishing the meeting with An Zhirong at Mingyan Tower, Ye Mingsheng met his dream lover Murong Qingwu, who was dressed as a man and came to Mingyan Tower with her brother to recite poems and write essays!
At that time, Ye Dong, Ye Kui and others all knew that Ye Mingsheng loved Murong Qingwu, so after they came back, they were still discussing the matter between Ye Mingsheng and Murong Qingwu.

While they were discussing, Pei Zhixiu was eavesdropping on them, but her eavesdropping behavior was discovered by Ye Dong who came out of the toilet.

Ye Dong told Ye Mingsheng about this matter. In his opinion, Pei Zhixiu was able to eavesdrop secretly without Ye Dong and Ye Kui noticing. She was definitely not an ordinary woman in the palace!
Pei Zhixiu, who was leaning in Ye Mingsheng's arms, had been observing Ye Mingsheng's expression after he finished speaking. Seeing that Ye Mingsheng seemed to have remembered this incident, he said angrily:

"What Ye Dong and Ye Kui said was very interesting. They said that you secretly kept the portrait of Murong sister and not only treasured it very much, but even slept with her in your arms!"

So I was attracted unconsciously while listening, and didn’t notice General Ye Dong standing beside me…”

Seeing Pei Zhixiu talking about this matter, Ye Mingsheng also had a question in his mind, and immediately spoke:
"You know Ye Dong told me about this?"

Pei Zhixiu nodded slightly, then whispered in Ye Mingsheng's arms:
"General Ye Dong does have some skills. Although I didn't notice him at first, I soon found him!"

Ye Mingsheng was not surprised to hear this. He stroked Pei Zhixiu's body with his big hand and asked with a smile:
"Then Jixiu, why didn't you do him then?"

Facing Ye Mingsheng's question, Pei Zhixiu was silent for a while before saying quietly:
"I thought about it at the time! But for some unknown reason I didn't do it, and then I saw him go to see my husband!"

"But it's fortunate that I didn't take action at that time, otherwise you would have lost a great general today!"

After gently tapping Pei Zhixiu's snow T-shirt, Ye Mingsheng said with a smile:

"So when Ye Dong reported to me, Ji Soo, you were outside the house?"

Facing Ye Mingsheng's frivolous behavior, Pei Zhixiu also became envious. She whispered in Ye Mingsheng's ear:

"No, I was on the beam at that time!"

Hearing this, Ye Mingsheng laughed a little. The next second, he became bolder and said in a deep voice, "Big S, who was wandering on Pei Zhixiu's S, is so handsome!"

"You are such a bold female thief! How dare you eavesdrop on this general's conversation? Tell me what crime you deserve..."

Although they are an old married couple, Pei Zhixiu still looked at Ye Mingsheng shyly and tenderly after hearing what Ye Mingsheng said. She then turned over skillfully with her back to Ye Mingsheng and whispered softly:

"Please punish me according to the family rules!"

Half an hour later, Ye Mingsheng, who had finished executing the family rules, lay on the bed somewhat exhausted, while Pei Zhixiu leaned in Ye Mingsheng's arms and continued:
"I know that you probably suspected me a long time ago, so when I saw General Ye Dong reporting to you, I was really worried!"

Ye Mingsheng smiled and shook his head when he heard this, then gently stroked Pei Zhixiu's slightly round face due to pregnancy and said:
"Jisu, let me tell you a little secret!"

Hearing the word "secret", Pei Zhixiu also became interested, and looked at Ye Mingsheng with interest with her big eyes.

Under Pei Zhixiu's gaze, Ye Mingsheng whispered:

"I still remember you examined me in Gongdu. You reminded me that I was poisoned. In fact, I took the poison myself!" Pei Zhixiu felt incredible when she heard Ye Mingsheng say this. After sleeping in the same bed with Ye Mingsheng for such a long time, she didn't think that Ye Mingsheng was someone who would commit suicide!

Feeling Pei Zhixiu's surprise, Ye Mingsheng scratched her face and said with a complicated expression:

“At that time, in order to seek official position, I embezzled several thousand taels of silver in spoils of war in the palace, and killed hundreds of bandits, chopped off their heads, and pretended to be the heads of Luobei people to seek credit…”

"But the higher-ups knew about this and wanted to prosecute me, so I committed suicide out of fear of being convicted. But after you rescued me, Jixiu, I never thought of committing suicide again. Jixiu, do you know why?"

Pei Zhixiu shook her head without thinking. Seeing her like this, Ye Mingsheng couldn't help but kissed her red lips and then said slowly:

"At that time, I was thinking that I, the commander of the imperial guards, would die without having taken possession of a little girl like you. This life would be a real loss!"

Upon hearing this, Pei Zhixiu immediately hit Ye Mingsheng's arm and said in a tender voice:

"Your head is always full of bad ideas!"

As the night deepened outside the window, Ye Mingsheng and Pei Zhixiu spent some time together. Although he didn't know why Pei Zhixiu suddenly opened her heart tonight, Ye Mingsheng held Pei Zhixiu's hand and reiterated his eternal promise.

"Jixiu, as long as I'm here, no one can hurt you and the child!"

Pei Zhixiu was very moved when she heard Ye Mingsheng say this, and some tears appeared in the corners of her eyes.

Early the next morning, Ye Mingsheng said goodbye to Pei Zhixiu and started a new day of work, and he called Ye Cheng over.

Ye Cheng came to Ye Mingsheng and reported immediately:

"Your Excellency, recently some officials from the six ministries have privately submitted memorials to you, expressing their support for you to become emperor..."

Upon hearing the news, Ye Mingsheng's expression became somewhat amused. As the saying goes, a country cannot be without a king for a day. But now the little emperor Jiang Rui has been dead for more than two months, which means that the throne of the Emperor of the Great Zhou has been vacant for more than two months!
The princes and ministers of the Great Zhou were very concerned about the matter of establishing an emperor and quickly began to make the selection. Some people even fought overtly and covertly for this.
However, Luoan City is already under the control of the Fengwu Army, so no matter how fiercely they fight, Ye Mingsheng still has to give the final nod to select the new emperor. If Ye Mingsheng doesn't give the final nod, it will be useless even if someone wins!
Because Ye Mingsheng had focused his main energy on the war with the Golden Horde, he had no time to find a puppet, so this matter was temporarily put on hold.

Now that the war is settled and everything is back on track, choosing a new emperor has become the top priority of the Great Zhou Dynasty!
Logically speaking, Ye Mingsheng should have started working on this matter as soon as he arrived in Luoan, but he has been in Luoan for several days and still has not settled this matter!

Therefore, many people thought that Ye Mingsheng did not want to choose a new emperor, but wanted to directly change the dynasty and become emperor. Therefore, this matter was publicized in Luoan!
The officials of the imperial court were not surprised that Ye Mingsheng had such an idea, although Ye Mingsheng always boasted to the outside world that he was a loyal and capable general of the Great Zhou.

However, under the powerful propaganda of the Luoan court in the past, Ye Mingsheng was still labeled as a traitor, so it was expected that Ye Mingsheng wanted to become the emperor...
However, Ye Mingsheng had launched the war under the slogan of clearing the court of corrupt officials, so many people believed that Ye Mingsheng would have some dignity and would not usurp the throne so quickly!
Therefore, after the news that Ye Mingsheng wanted to be emperor spread, some of the old and young people in the Great Zhou were also indignant about it!
To be honest, there are still 3,000 nails in a broken ship. The Great Zhou Dynasty lasted for 300 years. Although the country has declined in recent years, there are still many people who care about the Great Zhou Dynasty, both among the people and in the government!

Therefore, after hearing that Ye Mingsheng wanted to usurp the throne, many people stood up and angrily denounced Ye Mingsheng. Even people were cursing in front of Ye Mingsheng's mansion these days!

Some people were cursing in the streets, and naturally there were also people who wanted to gain the credit for supporting him, so some people also sent messages to Ye Mingsheng to express their support for him to take the throne.

Some people even said very bluntly that as long as Marshal Ye gave the nod, they would start looking for people to write a joint letter, or create some auspicious omens and visions to support Ye Mingsheng!
Ye Mingsheng was well aware of this situation, and he did it on purpose just to test the status of the Great Zhou in the hearts of the people, in order to get a feel for the real abdication action in the future.

After all, Luoan is not Yijing. Although the Fengwu Army has occupied Luoan militarily, its foundation in Luoan, the political center of the Great Zhou, is still shallow, and even the people's hearts have not yet been completely won over!

Therefore, Ye Mingsheng needed to know everyone’s attitude towards his enthronement, and he also planned to take this opportunity to send away some of the people who opposed him...
Now that Ye Mingsheng had obtained the result he wanted, he immediately told Ye Cheng:
"Ye Cheng, you take care of this matter! It's time to close the net!"

As soon as these words came out, Ye Cheng also flashed a gleam of light and bowed and said:
"I understand. I will definitely handle this matter beautifully and not let any fish slip through the net!"

Hearing this, Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly, and then continued to ask:

"Mrs. Pei, who have you seen recently?"

Although revisiting the old place makes people think a lot, Ye Mingsheng still feels that this is not enough to make Pei Zhixiu break the tacit understanding with him and be frank with him!
So Ye Mingsheng suspected that in addition to the factor of revisiting the old place, something else happened that he didn't know about!

Facing Ye Mingsheng's question, Ye Cheng thought carefully for a moment, then shook his head and said with certainty:
"Mrs. Pei is pregnant, so the only people around her are maids and nannies. Apart from them, she has not seen anyone else!"

At this point, Ye Cheng seemed to have thought of something and continued:
“But a few days ago, Mrs. Pei received a letter from Yijing…”

(End of this chapter)