Unavoidable

That day, Gao Changgong was sitting quietly in the study of the palace, bowing his head and thinking about everything that had happened recently. Suddenly, there were hurried footsteps outside the door. The maid Xiaohe gently pushed open the door, looking nervous, and whispered: "Your Majesty's imperial edict has arrived."

He was shocked and walked quickly to the front hall. The eunuch who delivered the edict respectfully read the content of the imperial edict to the kneeling Gao Changgong. The general meaning was that there had been many good news from the border in the past year, and the emperor wanted to reward meritorious people and give a banquet at noon tomorrow.

Gao Changgong took the imperial edict, felt the heavy gold brocade on his fingertips, but a trace of uneasiness emerged in his heart. The emperor's rewards and honors usually mean glory, but this time, knowing more hidden secrets, he could no longer be indifferent to the undercurrents under the calm water.

His eyes fell on the vigorous handwriting on the imperial edict again, and his mood became more complicated. Gao Changgong understood that it was one thing to make excuses not to attend some public occasions, and it was another thing to refuse the emperor's summons, and the latter was absolutely impossible.

 

The next day at noon.

When Gao Changgong entered the palace, the first thing that caught his eye was the gorgeous furnishings specially added for the banquet, including several exquisite armors displayed on the shelves, and paintings of battle scenes painted by court painters. The grand banquet had just begun, and the guests around were well-dressed and talking and laughing, as if everything was as calm as usual. Gao Changgong slowly walked towards the emperor, his face still maintaining a calm expression, but the feeling of uneasiness in his heart still lingered.

The emperor sat high in the center of the hall, smiling and looking at him with smiling eyes. The ministers on both sides also saluted him. When he walked through the corridor and walked to his seat, Gao Changgong even doubted for a while whether he was overly worried? Was this just a simple celebration, just like the celebrations he had attended safely in previous years?

 

Then, the emperor raised his glass to praise him, praising his outstanding achievements on the battlefield, and his words were full of praise. Gao Changgong thanked him modestly and looked at the ministers around him as calmly as possible. They all bowed their heads and smiled, raised their glasses and agreed, and there was harmony.

However, halfway through the banquet, the emperor changed the subject and his tone became slightly lower. He casually mentioned some rumors and asked, "I heard that some people in the army said that you had selfish motives on the front line and did not hand over all the spoils to the court? Is this true?" The words were understated, but they were like a sword that pierced the original harmony.

The atmosphere in the whole hall suddenly tensed. Gao Changgong did not respond for a while, and the laughter around him paused slightly. The ministers' eyes changed subtly, no longer the initial politeness and respect, but a kind of temptation and suspicion. The smiles in the corners of the eyes of several counselors deepened, and they exchanged glances, as if waiting for something.

The emperor did not stop and continued, "It is not the duty of a minister to maintain his own troops." The words were gentle and the tone was steady, without even the slightest hint of accusation. But Gao Changgong clearly felt that the hidden edge in the emperor's words had pushed him to the forefront.

Gao Changgong's palms were slightly sweaty. He still maintained a calm expression, but his heart was already tense. He glanced at the ministers around him and found that they were still pretending to be calm, as if nothing had happened. Although the atmosphere of the banquet was not completely frozen, the chill had silently permeated the entire hall.

As the wine was served three times, the atmosphere at the banquet became more and more subtle. The sound of wine glasses colliding was endless, and the attendants shuttled back and forth, filling each minister with fine wine. Although Gao Changgong remained calm, the uneasiness in his heart never dissipated. At this time, Emperor Gao Wei suddenly stood up, showing a strange smile, raised his wine glass and said: "Today, not only will we reward merits, but I have also prepared a special gift for King Lanling."

All eyes in the hall were immediately focused on the emperor. Gao Changgong looked up at him, with a vague ominous premonition in his heart. Gao Wei waved to the attendant beside him and said coldly: "Go, present the gift."

The attendants quickly walked in from outside the hall, holding a dark red secret letter, and walked towards Gao Changgong very solemnly. The secret letter was carefully handed to him, with his familiar private seal printed on it. Gao Changgong was stunned, frowned slightly, and stared at the letter with his head down. His heart couldn't help but speed up a bit, and a chill surged up his spine.

The emperor chuckled and said coldly: "Lanling Wang, do you recognize this secret letter?" His voice was calm, but with invisible oppression. Gao Changgong shook his head, and his uneasiness became stronger. He hesitated for a moment, but still reached out to open the envelope.

The moment the letter was unfolded, the whole room was silent, as if all eyes were focused on the lines in his hand. The content of the letter was a conspiracy "written" by Gao Changgong - the letter described in detail how Gao Changgong secretly contacted the enemy country, planned to cooperate with the enemy inside and outside, intending to overthrow Gao Wei's rule and seek the throne. What's even more shocking is that the letter also mentioned the names of several important officials in the court, including Prime Minister Hulugu, You Pushe and Shi Kai, and included them in Gao Changgong's "accomplices" who wanted to win over and act together.

"This letter was intercepted by our army from the enemy country," Gao Wei said lightly, "What a coincidence, your names are in the secret letter." He put down his wine glass, his eyes revealing a playful sneer.

Gao Changgong stared at the letter paper, his eyes full of disbelief. He couldn't understand that the seal and handwriting of this letter were exactly the same as his own, almost impeccable. Gao Changgong raised his head suddenly, looking directly at the emperor, with a surge of anger and powerlessness in his heart. He knew that all this had long been a carefully planned trap, and he had fallen into it.

The other ministers at the banquet looked at each other, some showed astonishment, and some watched coldly, as if they had known it for a long time. The counselor Wang Yao spoke first, pretending to be shocked: "If this is true, wouldn't it be the outrage of both humans and gods?" His words were full of hints, guiding the doubts in the hearts of others.

Gao Changgong suddenly felt that the air around him became heavy, and he knew that he was in an extremely dangerous situation at the moment. If he does not make an effective defense, not only he himself, but also the loyal ministers around him will fall into an irretrievable situation.

"This is impossible..." However, his response was only a low murmur. He had already tightly grasped the letter in his hand, and his eyes swept coldly towards the emperor, but he only saw a faint sneer on Gao Wei's face.