Chapter 170 Avoiding the limelight
"All of them?! Lin Gong, are you crazy? You let two people whose backgrounds you don't even know clearly participate in the whole process?"
"I'm just wondering! Don't you have anyone under your command? Can't you even find a confidant? If you don't have anyone, why do you come to me to borrow? Why do you have to use two people whose background you don't know?"
"Can you tell me what's going on in your head?"
Lin Gong was almost embarrassed after being scolded by the prince. Apart from his own father, Prime Minister Lin, he had never been scolded like this before.
"Your Highness doesn't know the details at all! Although those two people are not my people, but... anyway, there should be no problem."
"Let's take a step back. Even if they betrayed me, what can they do if the Overwatch Council knows my plan? The action hasn't started yet! Nothing has happened yet. What can they do to me?"
"It's reasonable for me to kill Fan Xian for insulting me! It won't implicate Your Highness, so is Your Highness really that angry?"
"To?"
The prince laughed in anger.
"Do you think I'm angry because I'm worried that this will ruin my reputation? My conflict with Fan Xian is known to everyone, so what reputation do I need? Am I not angry because I'm worried about you? So you mean I'm meddling in other people's business, right, Lin Gong?"
Lin Gong's anger came and went quickly, and he regretted it as soon as he finished speaking. Now he was ridiculed by the prince again, and his face turned red with embarrassment.
The prince was kind-hearted and thinking of him, but he got angry at the prince instead. He really didn't know what was good for him!
Realizing that he had said the wrong thing and had lost his temper, Lin Gong quickly gave in with a red face.
"I, I didn't mean that. I just couldn't accept the sudden failure of the plan, so I got a little impatient. Your Highness knows that I am impatient. I was anxious and said something wrong, which angered Your Highness. It was all unintentional. Please don't take it to heart!"
Seeing Lin Gong's sincere apology and his initiative to offer up the way, the prince's expression improved a lot and he decisively stepped down. Now was not the time to care about this.
"Okay, let's put this matter behind us. Let's not talk about it anymore. Let's get back to the case. The situation may not be as optimistic as you think. It's hard for you to explain the weapons. I won't ask you how you got them. Go back and clean up your mess quickly. Don't leave any handles or excuses for the Supervisory Council."
Lin Gong was stunned for a moment. Armaments? What armaments? Oh, it should be other preparations made by the princess. The princess is ruthless and ruthless, so there is no need to remind her. No, after all, it's just a fight. I'd better send a letter to remind her later.
Thinking of this, Lin Gong nodded.
As long as he is willing to listen to the advice, the prince will feel much more relieved. As long as he cleans up the mess in advance, there shouldn't be any big deal.
After finishing the important matters, the prince finally had the leisure to ask Lin Gong the questions he was curious about.
"Oh, there's a question I don't understand. How do you plan to control the giant tree after you tie it up?"
Lin Gong answered subconsciously.
"Token..."
After saying just two words, Lin Gong's voice stopped abruptly and he stood there in a daze.
"Token? What token? Is it from his master?"
The prince asked curiously.
Lin Gong did not answer, but fell into deep thought with a gloomy expression.
Oh no, I forgot about this. The two swordsmen were present when the token was taken, and the token was given to them. It's probably in the hands of the Supervisory Council now. If Si Lili is really a spy from Northern Qi as I guessed, then this will be troublesome.
It’s all Lin Jingyan’s fault. He kept saying that something felt wrong and that he had a bad premonition. Now, his bad words have come true!
We can only hope that the eldest princess keeps her mouth shut.
No, that's too stupid. Forget about saving him, it's too troublesome. I have to kill him immediately.
When the prince saw that Lin Gong not only did not answer but also had such a serious expression, his heart skipped a beat. Could it be that this token was related to something else?
Lin Gong said hurriedly after he came to his senses.
"Your Highness, do you have any idea how to kill those two people in the Overwatch Council dungeon?"
The prince was stunned for a moment and his face sank.
"What's going on? What does the token involve? You weren't even moved by the matter of the weapons, so why do you want to silence me when the token is mentioned?"
Lin Gong said anxiously.
"It's hard to explain it in a short time. Your Highness, please tell me if there is any way to silence him first!"
The prince said unhappily.
"No! I can think of a way to deal with ordinary government offices, but that's the Supervisory Council. Don't you know that royal family members are not allowed to interfere?"
Lin Gong complained in his heart, "Why are you pretending? If I don't allow you to interfere, then you really won't interfere? If you don't interfere, how can you get the news from the Supervisory Commission?"
Since I can't count on the prince, I can only ask the eldest princess.
The prince asked.
"What's going on? Tell me."
Lin Gong had no choice but to tell the whole story of Si Lili.
The prince was silent for a long time after hearing this.
"Go out and hide for two days. I'll think of a solution."
Lin Gong didn't want to leave.
"Is it necessary? I don't know her at all. I just asked her for a token."
The prince said, his tone was terribly calm.
"What do you think? At this sensitive time, can you bear the charge of colluding with the enemy's spies to murder the talented scholar of our Qing country?"
It was the eldest princess who colluded with the enemy's spies. What does it have to do with me? Unfortunately, it was hard to say this.
Lin Gong said as a bachelor.
"Anyway, I'm not leaving. At worst, I can go to the Supervisory Council and explain everything. I just want to take revenge on Fan Xian for humiliating me. There is no collusion at all."
The prince sneered.
"Do you have the final say on whether or not to collude? You think the people in the Overwatch Council are all good men and women, don't you? They can chisel out three pounds of nails even if they don't have a boat, not to mention you who can't explain many things clearly."
Lin Gong didn't care.
"Yes, yes. No, no. I don't believe the Supervisory Council dares to do anything to me. Could they dare to frame me and force me to confess?"
"..."
The prince laughed angrily. "I really am...why didn't I realize you were so naive before? Do I need to remind you how cruel the court struggle is? Do you think you represent only yourself? You represent Minister Lin and me! If this kind of handle is handed to my second brother, can he still be merciful and turn a blind eye? Well, even if he doesn't make a fuss about this matter for the sake of Minister Lin, what about your majesty? Don't you know what your majesty's attitude is towards Minister Lin and your Lin family? Can your majesty miss this opportunity to suppress Minister Lin?"
When the Lin family was mentioned, Lin Gong's passion finally cooled down, and fear and anxiety appeared in his eyes.
The prince glanced at him and said.
"You are not a three-year-old child. I will stop here. Just go out and hide for a while. As long as you are not taken to the Overwatch Council, there is still room for maneuver. I will try my best to think of a way to suppress this matter."
Lin Gong was indeed obedient now.
"Okay, I'll listen to your Highness. Where is the best place to hide?"
The prince breathed a sigh of relief and thought about it.
"The north is under martial law, and there are spies everywhere. Go south and choose the place yourself. Be careful not to reveal your whereabouts. I will send you a message when things have calmed down."
Lin Gong nodded.
"Then I'll go back and prepare, and leave tomorrow."
The prince was speechless, he really had a big heart.
"What tomorrow? What if those two can't hold on today? Go back and pack up quickly. No, don't pack up yet. Wait until we are outside and arrange for someone to do the shopping. Go back and simply prepare and leave."
Lin Gong opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but after thinking about it, he swallowed his words back, closed his mouth and nodded.
"I see."
Looking at Lin Gong's departing back, the prince shook his head helplessly and sighed.
……
When Lin Gong returned home, he first asked the leader of the guards to gather his men, then hurried into the house, tore off a piece of paper, picked up a pen and started writing on it.
When I was finishing the paper, Lin Jingyan walked in with a confused look on his face.
"What happened? Is the Second Young Master going out of town?"
Lin Gong stood up and took out a pigeon from the pigeon cage, stuffed the rolled note into the mailbox, covered it, and then went to the window to release it directly.
Watching the pigeon take off, Lin Gong breathed a sigh of relief and then answered Lin Jingyan's question.
"Our plan has been exposed. Let's go out of the city and head south to avoid the limelight."
Lin Jingyan's expression changed drastically when he heard this.
"What? How could this happen?"
Just as Lin Gong was about to explain, the leader of the guards came with a report.
"Second Master, the people have been gathered and the carriage is ready."
Lin Gong nodded and looked at Lin Jingyan.
"I'll tell you slowly on the way out of town."
After leaving the house, the group mounted their horses.
Lin Jingyan looked at Lin Gong who was about to rush into the carriage and suddenly asked a question.
"Second Young Master, don't you need to tell Prime Minister Lin about leaving the city?"
Lin Gong paused when he heard this, then stood up and looked in the direction of Prime Minister Lin's residence. A hint of apology flashed in his eyes. He was silent for a moment and then shook his head. He waved to Lin Jingyan and leaned over to get into the carriage.
Seeing this, Lin Jingyan said no more and shouted loudly.
"set off!"
After saying that, he grabbed the reins tightly and squeezed his legs against the horse's belly.
"drive!"
Following an order, a group of people escorted Lin Gong all the way to the south gate of Kyoto.
……
Changxin Palace.
After reading the last secret letter from Lin Gongchuan, the princess curled her lips, threw the letter away, and continued to pound the petals.
Lan Xiang said in front of him.
"Early this morning, the crown prince summoned Lin Gong to the East Palace. The two talked for a long time, during which they had an argument. Then Lin Gong left the palace, delivered this secret letter, and left the city with his men."
The eldest princess smiled after hearing this.
"The Crown Prince is not slow to react. Hiding away from the spotlight is the best option for Lin Gong."
Lanxiang added.
"It's easy to hide away, but it's not that easy to come back."
The eldest princess looked at her with a smile and said nothing.
Lanxiang said.
"Your Highness, the interrogation at the Overwatch Council is still going on, and the two Si Gu Jian disciples have not spoken yet."
The princess thought about it after hearing this.
"Just hold on for another day and it will be almost done."
"Yes, the Inspectorate has already reported the matter of the weapons to the City Patrol Department."
The eldest princess stopped what she was doing and looked at Lanxiang.
"Ah, do you think the general's family knew about his arms trafficking?"
……
(End of this chapter)
