Chapter 198 Zeng Tai: I’m so smart!

At night, the governor's mansion was immersed in tranquility.

However, the door of the second hall of the governor's mansion was opened and closed, and the Pingzhou government office, as well as officers and soldiers of the Right Guard, were coming in and out, creating a busy scene.

Di Renjie first called the Chief Secretary and Sima of Pingzhou to verify what Qiu Jing said this morning, but no flaws were found.

"Teacher, with so many people saying the same thing, it seems Qiu Jing is indeed innocent." As soon as the teacher spoke, he knew it was Zeng Tai who was speaking.

Di Renjie seemed to agree with Zeng Tai's words and nodded, saying, "Wang Xiaojie sued Qiu Jing. At least from the witnesses and material evidence we know, he is indeed innocent."

Upon hearing this, Ruyan and Li Yuanfang both nodded slightly, expressing their agreement with Di Renjie's conclusion.

Zhao Ji exchanged a subtle look with Di Renjie, who nodded imperceptibly.

After receiving a positive answer, Zhao Ji started to criticize, "I still have a little doubt in my heart. If I remember correctly, Yuan Fang mentioned to me before that Lord Qiu was robbed and killed by purple-clothed men. The leader was Wang Xiaojie's confidant named Zhou Sheng. Is this true?"

"It is true. I saw it with my own eyes. Judging from the war horses and weapons, it was undoubtedly the government troops who robbed and killed Qiu Jing." Li Yuanfang said firmly.

Zhao Ji frowned slightly, pretending to be puzzled: "I don't quite understand. Qiu Jing has already been dismissed and returned to Beijing. Why would Wang Xiaojie take such a big risk to send someone to rob and kill him?"

Zeng Tai looked wise and replied with a smile, "Why not understand this? Wang Xiaojie was in collusion with the Khitan, which caused the grain route to be robbed repeatedly. Of course he wanted to shift the blame to Qiu Jing."

"If Qiu Jing returns to the capital and tells the truth to the officials, wouldn't Wang Xiaojie be exposed? So of course he has to take the initiative and kill Qiu Jing."

When Zhao heard this, he burst into laughter and did not expose the loophole in Zeng Tai's words.

First, even if Qiu Jing was cleared of the charges, it did not necessarily prove that Wang Xiaojie was guilty. He could continue to push the blame onto his subordinates such as Su, Zong, and Sun, so there was no need for him to be afraid.

Secondly, with hindsight, if Wang Xiaojie had already planned to give up Pingzhou City and surrender to the Khitan, and did not intend to hide his identity as a traitor, why would he have gone to the trouble of silencing others?
However, Zhao did not open his mouth to point it out. Instead, he looked at Zeng Tai with a smile and brought up another topic: "Brother Zeng's words are not without reason, but there is a premise, that is, Wang Xiaojie is indeed a Khitan spy."

Upon hearing this, Di Renjie nodded solemnly and continued, "Yes, Wang Xiaojie is a trusted and beloved general promoted by the emperor. He was captured in a battle with Tubo in his early years and was later released."

"The emperor not only did not blame him, but he made great contributions to him. Later, he defeated Tubo and avenged the previous humiliation. He made great military achievements. This time, he was promoted from a commoner to a third-rank official, the highest position among the ministers. The emperor was very kind to him. It is incredible and puzzling to say that such a person was in collusion with the Khitan."

Ruyan said timidly: "But, this has indeed happened. Uncle, haven't you met many officers and soldiers who witnessed this incident?"

Di Renjie heard this and said, "Chengyuan, you were outside Pingzhou that night. Why don't you tell me about your experience?"

Zhao Ji smiled slightly and talked about what happened that night: "I arrived near Pingzhou City in the evening of that day, but I only brought a few thousand light cavalry, and the people and horses were tired, so I didn't dare to act rashly."

"After attacking the city during the day, the Khitans suddenly launched an attack after midnight, gathering near the north gate of Pingzhou City. With the help of the insiders, they entered Pingzhou City."

"I took advantage of the situation and set fire to the Khitan camp. The troops in the city fought back vigorously, and with the harassment from me and Su Honghui's troops, the Khitans were in chaos and were driven out of Pingzhou City again."

"I didn't run into Wang Xiaojie who had defected. The only thing that can be confirmed during the whole process is that there was a Khitan insider in Pingzhou City."

Di Renjie nodded, thoughtfully.

Zeng Tai listened quietly for a long time and suddenly interrupted: "But, more than one person saw Wang Xiaojie defect. The Right Guards in the city and the soldiers of the front camp who mutinied under Su Honghui all witnessed this." "You can't know a person's heart by his appearance. Wang Xiaojie has always been known for his bad temper and has both good and bad reputations. It doesn't seem strange that he did such a thing."

Di Renjie stroked his beard and sighed, "If that's the case, it's terrible. Chengyuan, I remember you mentioned in the letter you sent me that you and Wang Xiaojie discussed the marching route for the surprise attack on the Khitan royal court."

Zhao Ji's expression was solemn after hearing this. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "That's true. If we were to borrow the route through the Turks, it might be leaked. But I only knew Wang Xiaojie tacitly about changing the route."

"The entire army, including General Yang, only learned about this after we set out. However, we encountered a Turkic army that was clearly heading for us near the Xi people's king's tent..."

"That's it. If it wasn't Wang Xiaojie, who leaked the plan?" Zeng Tai suddenly spoke loudly.

Zhao Ji sucked in a breath of cold air when he heard this, and shook his head repeatedly, as if he was a little scared: "Thinking about it carefully, if it wasn't for some strange coincidence that Brother Li Dafang came to join us, the outcome would have been very different..."

Zeng Tai also shook his head repeatedly and listed Wang Xiaojie's crimes: "It seems that Wang Xiaojie first leaked the marching route of Chengyuan's army and contacted the Turks to ambush."

"Secondly, he colluded with the Khitans to rob the army of its military supplies, putting the army in a dilemma. Then he acted on his own and led the army to a point of no return, leading to the defeat at Dongxishi Valley."

"After the defeat, he turned right into wrong and framed Qiu Jing. Finally, he surrendered Pingzhou, opening the door for the Khitans to further seize Cangzhou and Youzhou. The consequences were truly disastrous. Fortunately, Chengyuan got help from heaven and disrupted Wang Xiaojie's plot!"

"But why did Wang Xiaojie send me three letters for help when Pingzhou was besieged?" Zhao Ji asked again.

Zeng Tai had gotten stuck in a dead end, his mind was spinning quickly, and he immediately replied: "Chengyuan, why don't you understand? You accidentally ran into the Khitan attack on the city and attacked the Khitan's rear, which caused the Khitan army to lose its composure."

"If you arrive earlier or later, you may end up following General Zong Huaichang's footsteps and fall into the trap carefully set by the Khitans. They are trying to lure you here!"

Zhao Ji seemed to have suddenly realized something and nodded repeatedly: "So that's it!"

Di Renjie, Li Yuanfang and Ruyan also nodded in agreement.

Zeng Tai felt extremely pleased when he saw that everyone was convinced by his analysis.

However, he immediately restrained his expression, frowned, and pretended to be serious and said: "I'm afraid there are more than just Wang Xiaojie behind this!"

Di Renjie made a solemn conclusion: "In this way, everything can be explained. The purple-clothed men who attacked Yuan Fang, Ruyan, and us must be from the same huge organization as Wang Xiaojie."

"In this case, Wang Xiaojie may not be working for the Khitan, but his organization and the master behind him are cooperating with the Khitan and even the Turks!"

Zeng Tai was so excited when he heard this: "Yes! Master, you are indeed very insightful. Now I can explain Wang Xiaojie's motives."

Di Renjie sighed deeply, feeling deeply moved: "Yes, this organization instigated the Khitan rebellion and attempted to involve the Turks in the conflict. Their intentions are not small!"

Ruyan was listening to Zeng Tai's nonsense, which was leading everyone astray. She was originally listening with great interest, but now she was suddenly awakened by the fact that he was the one who was eating the melon, and broke out in a cold sweat.

She thought to herself, "Although Di Renjie was misled for a while, Zong Huaichang is still alive. I'm afraid things are not that simple..."

　My stomach has been a little better these past two days, but as soon as I turn on the air conditioner and get exposed to cold air, it starts to flare up again. The good news is that without the air conditioner, my stomach feels better because it's hot.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)