Do you have the strength to force me to join the Liangshan bandits?

Chapter 451 Gao Qiu: Your Majesty Still Loves Me [3rd Update, Requesting Monthly Tickets]

Huh?
Tong Guan, as the "Eunuch Minister," immediately realized what was going on:

So... His Majesty agreed to this condition!
After all, exchanging only three states for peace in Shandong isn't exactly an impossible deal...

Cai Fu had a multitude of fierce generals and elite troops under his command, and Emperor Huizong of Song simply could not muster the army to suppress Cai Fu.

Even if they manage to pull it out, it'll be like robbing Peter to pay Paul; they might lose half the country just to eliminate Cai Fu!
The Song Dynasty has 280 prefectures, so giving Cai Fu three prefectures would be more cost-effective.

Moreover, Cai Jing's suggestion was too brilliant. Sending Cai Fu to fight Tian Hu was like "driving a tiger to devour a wolf."

Whether Cai Fu defeats Tian Hu or Tian Hu defeats Cai Fu, it's a good thing for the imperial court!
Two dogs fight, play off.

The imperial court is the fisherman; Cai Fu may win, but the imperial court will never lose!

It has to be the Grand Tutor! He's practically a mind reader for His Majesty!
Tong Guan couldn't help but feel a deep respect: This is what a true man should be like!
Tong Guan immediately chimed in, "Your Majesty, the Grand Tutor is absolutely right!"

"The rebel Tian Hu has seized five prefectures: Weisheng, Fenyang, Jinning, Zhaode, and Gaizhou. He has a large army and many generals, making him difficult to suppress!"
"If Cai Fu defeats Tian Hu, the imperial court can reclaim five prefectures without losing a single soldier!"

Tong Guan didn't finish his sentence, but everyone present understood his meaning.

Although Emperor Huizong of Song bestowed three prefectures upon Cai Fu, he was able to take back five prefectures. So, when you calculate it that way, he actually made a profit!
Yang Jian sighed: "Tian Hu has many soldiers and generals, and Cai Fu is such a hero. I hope he doesn't perish in Hebei..."

If Gao Qiu hadn't witnessed Yang Jian's gloating expression firsthand, everyone would have thought he was worried about Cai Fu.

Yang Jian's words made Emperor Huizong of Song beam with joy:

"Yes, I hope Cai Fumo doesn't perish in Hebei!"

Cai Jing, Tong Guan, and Yang Jian all expressed their opinions. As four of the greatest treacherous officials, Gao Qiu had to say something about who was superior.
"If Cai Fu kills Tian Hu, then let him go and fight Wang Qing!"
"Wang Qing has occupied eight prefectures and eighty-six counties!"
"In this way, Your Majesty can exchange these three states for thirteen states in return!"

Gao Qiu laughed after he finished speaking, but to his surprise, Cai Jing, Tong Guan, and Yang Jian all turned to look at him!

Emperor Huizong's expression also changed, and he sternly questioned:

"What? Wang Qing actually controls eight prefectures and eighty-six counties?"

"Didn't you say last time that Wang Qing only had scabies and that eliminating him would be as easy as turning your hand?"

broken!

Gao Qiu suddenly realized that he had lied about military intelligence and failed to eliminate Wang Qing, but had deceived Emperor Huizong into believing that he had succeeded!

I accidentally blurted it out just now...

Gao Qiu immediately knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"
"Last time, I mobilized troops to suppress the rebel Wang Qing. Although I beheaded countless people and recovered three military prefectures, I did not achieve complete success..."

"I originally thought that Wang Qing's power was gone and he would not amount to anything."

"Unexpectedly, after the imperial army returned to the capital, Wang Qing's power was revived and quickly expanded to eight military prefectures..."

"waste!"

Emperor Huizong was furious: "Since Wang Qing is so arrogant, then let Cai Fu deal with him!"
"I don't want to see anything resurface. This time, I want to see Wang Qing's head!"

His Majesty still loves me...

Gao Qiu breathed a sigh of relief and immediately bared his large silver teeth:

"The minister obeys the order!"

His pair of large, silver teeth gleamed brightly, a skill Gao Qiu had mastered without a teacher.

Sure enough, when Emperor Huizong saw him, he looked like a big rabbit, baring his large silver teeth, and couldn't help but laugh.
"You, you, you!"

Gao Qiu: (皿)
……

Qingzhou, the Prince of Qi's residence.

"Brother, you're not being fair this time!"

Lu Zhishen pouted and complained to Cai Fu:
“You’ve brought back two promising talents. Zhang Kui is skilled with a gun. You can have him become your second brother’s apprentice!”

"Zheng Huai uses a stick, why don't you let him become my disciple?"
"How could my seventh brother, who wields two swords, possibly teach staff techniques?"

Cai Fu smiled and said, "I promised Seventh Brother a long time ago that I would choose a good apprentice for him, as you know."

"Besides, Third Brother, you already have two good disciples. Aren't two good disciples enough for you?"

"I don't care!" Lu Zhishen said unreasonably, "Brother, you still have to pick a good apprentice for me!"

Cai Fu laughed heartily: "Good, good, good!"

"If I meet someone suitable in the future, I'll definitely save it for you!"

The two brothers were chatting and laughing when Hua Rong came in to report:

"Your Majesty, Li Gang requests an audience."

Cai Fu estimated that Li Gang would come to see him in the next couple of days, so he asked Hua Rong to invite Li Gang in.

Li Gang was deeply moved when he saw Cai Fu upon entering.

In fact, he had been conducting investigations in Qingzhou all this time.

You might not believe it, but in order to uncover the truth, Li Gang even disguised himself as a brothel patron and went to the brothel every day to chat with the fallen women.

Don't underestimate those women who have fallen into prostitution. They have to serve so many customers every day, and they actually acquire a huge amount of information without realizing it.

As the saying goes, there are 360 ​​professions, and every profession has its share of spies.

They receive guests from all walks of life and have a very comprehensive understanding of information.

Li Gang spent money to chat with them, and they chatted all night long.

Those fallen women thought Li Gang was incapable, but little did they know that Li Gang had already emptied their minds.

These days, Li Gang has visited brothels all over Qingzhou and finally saw Cai Fu's true colors.

So today, Li Gang took the initiative to come to Cai Funa's door, and bowed deeply upon seeing him:
"Your Majesty, forgive me!"

Cai Fu helped Li Gang up with both hands: "What crime have you committed, sir?"

Li Gang said with shame, "To judge a gentleman by the standards of a petty person is a sin!"

Cai Fu laughed heartily.

Shi Qian had already reported to Li Gang what he had been busy with these days.

However, Cai Fu didn't take it to heart; he wanted to convince Li Gang completely.

Furthermore, he said that he was upright and had nothing to fear, and that Li Gang could investigate him at will.

Ignorance is no excuse.

Cai Fu gave Li Gang a double entendre, then pulled Li Gang's hand and sat him down:
"Have you been resting well these days, sir?"

rest?

Li Gang was too embarrassed to admit that he had been working day and night without sleep.
"Having rested well, does Your Majesty have any requests?"

"It's good that you've rested."

Cai Fu smiled and said, "Sir, you've just arrived in Qi. How about you temporarily serve as my 'Inspector of Seven Provinces'?"

Li Gang was taken aback: "What is the 'Seven Prefectures Inspector'?"

The title of "Eight Provincial Inspectors" was a title that only appeared in the Ming Dynasty. Their official title was "Supervisory Censor," and they were mainly responsible for inspecting various provinces and assessing the governance of officials.

This was the most suitable option for a good official like Li Gang, and it also made it easier for Li Gang to understand the situation in the State of Qi.

In any case, Cai Fu was in charge of the State of Qi. If Cai Fu set up a "General", then there was a General; if he set up a "Seven-Prefecture Inspector", then there was a "Seven-Prefecture Inspector".

After explaining to Li Gang, Cai Fu said, "You will be in charge of inspecting the seven prefectures of Qingzhou, Yizhou, Yanzhou, Jizhou, Lingzhou, Dongchang Prefecture, and Dongping Prefecture on my behalf."

"If there are corrupt officials, once they are found out, you can execute them first and report later to set things right!"

"I will send my disciples Shi Xiu and Zhang Bao to protect you closely."

"When it is necessary to act first and report later, my disciple Shi Xiu's ghost-head saber can represent me and cut off the dog heads of corrupt officials with one stroke!"

[A big update tomorrow, please give me some monthly votes and recommendations, or 2 votes~]

(End of this chapter)