Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 429 Family misfortune
Chen Xu ignored the majesty of the king and took Wei Shou to another place.

The one just now was used for banquets, and this one was the palace where Chen Xu usually handled state affairs. They were completely different in nature.

Chen Xu asked again at this moment: "Is the King of Han really willing to sell the warhorse?"

"It's not that the Han State sells war horses to the Chen State, but that the Chen State can buy war horses from the Han State. As for the price and quantity offered by local horse merchants, these are not something that the government can decide."

"Han also has horse farms among the people. It's not just the government that raises war horses. The government's war horses are kept for their own use. But your country can buy these horses from the people on its own."

Chen Xu looked at his left and right and asked, "What about the iron?"

"Since the market is open, there are no restrictions. Merchants from your country can buy and sell whatever they want."

Wei Shou then talked about several important things, such as the currency issues between the two sides and the different prices of goods on the north and south sides of the river. What Wei Shou said made Chen Xu gradually believe that they really came to establish diplomatic relations and do trade!

Several important officials under Chen Xu also hurriedly participated and no longer took a wait-and-see attitude.

The two sides reached consensus on many issues. Of course, most of the time it was the Chen people who chose to make concessions. The Chen people were originally eager to form an alliance with the Han State, and now they learned that Liu Taozi wanted real trade, so they tried their best to accomplish this, even if it meant making many concessions!
Wei Shou immediately enjoyed extremely high treatment here.

The deputy envoys were also arranged to stay in an extremely luxurious mansion in Jiankang.

As soon as the sky brightened, several people helped the drunk Wei Shou back to the mansion. He was very drunk, and those people supported him and took him directly to the backyard, while the other messengers stayed in the front yard.

Gao Daohuo, who had just finished washing up, looked at Wei Shou's appearance and slowly narrowed his eyes.

A young messenger stepped forward and looked at Wei Shou who had entered the backyard. He could not help but say, "Duke Wei has become a little too proud of himself. These days, he and the Chen people have been feasting and drinking all day long. I heard that he wrote five or six essays and more than ten poems in a row. He made friends with all kinds of celebrities and became the new noble of this southern country. Yesterday, the streets were filled with celebrities waiting to meet him!"

Gao Daohuo shook his head. "Since His Majesty asked him to come here, there must be a hidden meaning behind it. Perhaps he was ordered to do this."

"But he still accepts bribes! Who of those who have come to visit him these days comes empty-handed? They all bring gifts. I've seen that the inner courtyard is almost full of things!"

Hearing the words of his attendants, Gao Daohuo hesitated for a moment, "Since he is the mastermind, we should obey him first. We can report these matters to His Majesty when we return."

Everyone agreed.

Wei Shou enjoyed himself here for nearly a month before he packed his bags with gifts and prepared to return to his homeland.

When he arrived, he was greeted by Yuan Xian, and when he left, Chen Xu personally saw him off.

Not only Chen Xu, many great scholars and famous officials in the country also came to see him off.

During this month, Wei Shou made a great name for himself in the south and made many friends.

Before leaving, Chen Xu held his hand affectionately, reluctant to let him go.

The two chatted for a few more words. When Wei Shou was about to leave, he looked around cautiously and then whispered, "Master Chen, there is something I need to tell you."

"Please speak."

"Most of the ministers in the Northern Kingdom are good people, except Zu Ting, who Your Majesty needs to be wary of."

Chen Xu was shocked. "I heard that Zu Ting is a wise minister in the north."

Wei Shou hurriedly said, "Before I set out, your majesty mentioned the matter of opening the market. Some people were worried that doing so would aid the State of Chen and weaken the State of Han, but Zu Ting said: Chen Xu is a tyrant, don't worry about it."

"His son is acting recklessly in the local area, killing innocent people indiscriminately, and pretending to be a good person in front of him, but he can't tell the difference. How can such a tyrant govern the State of Chen? Just trade with the state, don't worry!"

"Zu Ting and I have never been on good terms, and I had an argument with him because of this matter."

Chen Xu's eyes were particularly confused.

"My son? Killing innocent people?"

"My sons are all very young, the prince never leaves the palace, and I only have one second son."

Wei Shou laughed, "Lord Chen, don't worry. With your character, how could your son be a bad guy? Zu Ting is the best at making up nonsense. He said there was a man with the surname Hou, who seemed to be the son of a certain general, who ran away because his family was forced to be killed. I think most of it was fabricated by him. Don't worry about it. Just be careful of Zu Ting."

"If he sends a letter in the future saying something nonsense, Master Chen will just pretend that he didn't see it."

After Wei Shou said this, he turned around and boarded the boat.

Wei Shou left the river with these rich gifts, but Chen Xu was very surprised at this moment.

His second son, Chen Shuling, was not fond of studying and had a bit of a martial spirit, which made him unpopular among the court officials, but he was always a very well-behaved person.

He was kind to others and filial to his parents. In the past, when I gave him money as a reward, he would give it to the poor people outside. He had a very kind heart and had asked me about the principles of benevolent government many times.

How could he kill innocent people?

Someone had written a letter to the emperor to report his affairs before, but Chen Xu did not believe it because he knew that all the ministers disliked his son and he suspected that the queen might be involved.

Crown Prince Chen Shubao was the Queen's biological son, but Chen Shuling was not.

Chen Xu was very disappointed with the crown prince and favored his second son more, which led to the queen also disliking Chen Shuling.

Chen Xu stood there in a daze, not saying a word for a long time.

Yuan Xian slowly walked up at this moment and asked in confusion: "Your Majesty, what happened?"

"Yuan Jun, you can take a car and go there now."

Chen Xu's expression became extremely solemn.

"Prepare a group of people for me now, don't tell anyone, and have the guards follow me in plain clothes. I want to go to Jiangzhou!"

Wei Shou stood at the bow of the boat. He wiped his face with clean water, combed his hair, and then raised his head.

When he washed like this, it was as if he had washed away all the smell of alcohol and decadence in recent days. He was clean and refreshed, without the smell of money, and had the air of a noble and famous person.

Gao Daohuo stood not far away, looking at him coldly.

"What did Duke Wei and Lord Chen say just now?"

"Haha, I just said some bad things about Zu Ting."

Wei Shou made no secret of it, "You don't understand, this is what His Majesty ordered."

He said calmly: "His Majesty asked me to tell you directly. If I tell you this directly, how could Chen Xu believe it? I can only use my own method."

Gao Daohuo pointed to another ship behind him.

This big ship was loaded with gifts that Wei Shou had received. Because his own ship was not big enough, Chen Xu specially sent a ship to carry the gifts.

Gao Daohuo couldn't help but say, "Let's not talk about other things. Are you planning to take this ship back so brazenly?"

"The Chen people gave it to me, why didn't you take it back?"

Gao Daohuo immediately ignored him. Gao Daohuo never liked these old guys in Yecheng. All of them were greedy and had no bottom line, but they all became important officials. Those who thieves still continued to steal, those who had affairs with widows continued to have affairs with widows, and those who accepted bribes continued to accept bribes. They did not have the demeanor of famous officials at all. According to Gao Daohuo's idea, these old guys should be buried together with the Qi State, which also had no bottom line!
Wei Shou didn't care about his attitude at all and just urged his men to sail faster.

They set out from Jiankang and walked for several days. When they arrived near Hai'an, they finally met the Han navy who came to greet them.

At that time, the Han navy was also very capable and dared to sail warships to the mouth of the Huai River.

In the past, people didn’t even dare to leave the dock.

The Chen State navy escorted them here and did not move forward, staying where they were. Wei Shou sped up and returned to his own formation.

Wang Lin asked the navy to escort them back to Hai'an Wharf.

At present, this place has been occupied by Lao Wang. This thief old man returned the water forts inside to the Chen people, but occupied the estuary.

Wang Lin and Wei Shou were not very familiar with each other, they were just nodding acquaintances.

Wei Shou got off the boat and met Wang Lin. Both of them kept a certain distance and were not too close.

"Thank you for your help, General Wang."

"It's our duty, so there's no need to do that."

The two men exchanged greetings, and Wei Shou pointed to the large ship behind them.

"This ship was a gift from the Chen people. Many of the things inside are very valuable. They should be General Wang's travel expenses to welcome him. There is a large jade stone inside, which may be exchanged for a few golden-winged warships."

Wang Lin was stunned for a moment, "Given by Chen?"

"Yes, I exchanged them all for poems one by one, hahahaha. Many of these treasures are what southerners love the most. General, you'd better count them first. It's not that I don't trust the soldiers under your command, but there is too much money, so it's better to be cautious."

Wang Lin stopped talking nonsense and nodded quickly. He sent his most trusted person on board to take inventory, but he remained with Wei Shou.

He did not ask in detail why the southerners gave these things to Wei Shou. He just asked in confusion: "Why did they give these things to me instead of to His Majesty?" "If we give them to His Majesty, His Majesty will still send them here. It would be better to leave them here. The navy is in great need of money right now. The southerners have agreed to trade with us and even promised that we can reserve or directly purchase large ships at their shipyard."

"These things can just replenish the navy's strength."

Wang Lin said solemnly, "I have heard a lot about Duke Wei in the past, but today I know that the rumors are not true!"

"Hahaha~~"

Wei Shou smiled awkwardly, and Wang Lin sent someone to arrange for them to rest while he continued to count.

Gao Daohuo followed behind Wei Shou. After seeing what the other party had just done with his own eyes, he was a little confused at the moment.

Wei Shou glanced at the young man and asked, "What? Weird?"

"So Duke Wei accepted those gifts just to give them to the navy?"

"Not entirely. The things are good. Why should we refuse them if we can get them? Besides, if I refuse their gifts, how can I make them feel at ease to form an alliance with us?"

"Given my reputation, if I refuse the gifts and stop associating with them, I'm afraid they will suspect I have ulterior motives."

Gao Daohuo scratched his head and said, "But Duke Wei, please go over there."

"Yes, I took a lot of money and did a lot of bad things in the past."

"At that time, everyone accepted the money. It was rare to find someone who didn't accept the money. When the ministers in the court got together, they never discussed world affairs or domestic politics. They only talked about money, land, and treasures."

"But things are different now. The Han Dynasty rose from obscurity, but in just ten years, Your Majesty has achieved such a great success. It is the will of heaven. You are going to unify the country and establish an unparalleled reputation!"

"We study, become officials, and strive to move up the career ladder, is it just to make some money to be buried with ourselves like those ignorant Xianbei people?"

“Who doesn’t want to leave his name in history, who doesn’t want to be worshipped by future generations?”

"In the past, no one thought about these things. They just wanted to accumulate wealth. That was fine then, but now, everyone wants to leave their names in history and become a wise man who pacifies the world. I have studied for so many years, how can I fall behind?"

"I am already very old, and I don't know how many years I have left to live. If I don't find a way to make up for my past mistakes, I am afraid that I will be despised by others after I die."

He looked at the impulsive young man with a complicated look in his eyes.

"I really envy you guys. You are so young but you are following the wise king, unlike us."

"It's too late. I met you too late."

Chen State, Jiangzhou.

The group of people marched forward at full speed, with knights leading the way in front. These knights were all wearing ordinary clothes and looked like guards of a wealthy family.

Behind the knights were several carriages, all of which looked ordinary.

Anyone who saw it would think that this was a wealthy family visiting friends or something.

When they just arrived at the gate of Jiangzhou, the guards here stopped them directly.

There were only three guards, and they looked more like bandits than soldiers. They were in tattered clothes, with their swords unsheathed. Facing the knights who outnumbered themselves several times, there was not a trace of awe in their eyes.

The leader looked even more arrogant, with a ferocious look in his eyes.

"Why, are you in such a hurry to attend the funeral? You are rushing so fast, are you trying to break through?!"

The knight said with a straight face, "We are going into the city."

"If you want to go into the city, take the money and tell your master that the tax for carts and boats is one thousand per person, two thousand per horse, and three thousand per cart."

The knight was a little angry. "The tax on carriages and boats in Dachen is only 20 coins per horse. Aren't you robbing me?"

The soldier laughed. "Robbery?"

"Do you know who the governor of our family is?"

"King Shixing!! The most beloved son of the current emperor! The entire Jiangzhou belongs to him. Let alone robbing, even if they want your life, what can you do?"

The knight stopped talking and looked behind him.

"What are you standing there for? Go tell your master that if you don't pay the vehicle and vessel tax, you won't be allowed to pass. This is the king's order!"

The knight turned around immediately, but before he reached the carriage, a very majestic voice sounded from inside the carriage.

"No need to tell me, I've heard it all."

The next moment, Chen Xu pulled open the car curtain with force and walked out.

The soldiers looked at the man walking down. He had a dignified expression and was dressed in extraordinary clothes. Especially his face, which looked somewhat similar to his master. The more they looked at him, the more similar he looked! !

He suddenly didn't dare to speak, his temperament weakened a lot, and his voice became smaller.

"This old man"

"Take it!!"

At Chen Xu's command, the knights took action immediately. The three men were quickly pinned to the ground and brought in front of Chen Xu.

Chen Xu was furious and stared at them. "Tell me the truth about what Chen Shuling did here, otherwise I will kill your entire clan!!"

Hearing these words, the arrogant soldier trembled all over and almost cried.

"It's not the king who did it, it's not the king, it's us who set up the levels privately."

"Come here, search for the families of these people now"

"Your Majesty, spare my life! I'll tell you! I'll tell you!!"

The soldier did not dare to conceal it any longer, and hurriedly told the story of Chen Shuling dispatching soldiers to various places to forcibly collect vehicle and vessel taxes.

Chen Xu pressed the soldier to tell him the rest of the story. Seeing that they could no longer hide it, the soldier told him everything.

When Chen Xu heard from the soldiers that his son had killed people at will, pretended to be a military hero, seized other people's wives and daughters, and handled administrative affairs in a disorderly manner, he became even more excited than when he saw Chen Shubao holding a banquet. He turned red and hot, his hands were shaking, and he couldn't even speak.

"Official Office!! Go to the Official Office!!"

Chen Xu gave the order.

The crowd no longer concealed themselves, changed their clothes, and ran all the way towards the government office.

But when they entered Jiangzhou, they realized what a mess this place had become due to the destruction done by Chen Shuling. The villages along the way were empty, and one could smell burning marks in many places. There was no one to be seen on the roads. This was simply pushing Chen State into the Qi model.

This was even more so inside the city. When the soldiers stationed in the city saw the Emperor's scepter and the elite knights escorting them, they were no longer the same as before and they all fled.

Chen Xu ordered them all to be arrested.

When they rushed all the way to the government office, the officials there were almost scared to death, and someone had already rushed in to inform Chen Shuling.

But Chen Shuling was so drunk that they couldn't wake him up.

When Chen Xu broke in, he saw several shivering women and his drunk and naked son.

"brute!!"

"brute!!!"

"Beast!!"

Chen Xu untied his belt and started whipping Chen Shuling. When the belt really landed on him, Chen Shuling woke up. He looked in horror at his father who suddenly appeared in front of him.

The current situation made it impossible for him to defend himself and he could only cry and beg for mercy.

Chen Xu beat his son harder and harder, leaving him covered in wounds.

"I also thought about letting you replace Shubao as the crown prince!! I also asked Shubao to imitate your character more!!"

"you!"

As Chen Xu was fighting, his eyes went dark, he couldn't hold his breath, and he fell down.

In front of him, Chen Shuling was also beaten all over, bloody and had already fainted.

(End of this chapter)