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

Chapter 749 Qin Hui: The King of Qi Must Die! [1st Update]

"Obligated!"

Cai Fu said without hesitation:

"The Crown Prince is my brother-in-law, and the Prince of Kang is my brother-in-law. They are both my flesh and blood!"

"I originally promised Prince Kang that I would not help either side, but I never expected that Prince Kang would use such a conspiracy to kill the Crown Prince!"
"I value fairness above all else. If he defeats the Crown Prince and seizes the throne through fair and square means, I won't say a word!"
"But I can't stand by and watch my brothers be killed through scheming and trickery, and I have to intervene!"

Cai Fu's appearance, temperament, and even voice made his words particularly convincing to Zhong Shidao.

Even the very old Zhong Shidao was moved by Cai Fu's words:

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for upholding justice. Please accept Zhong Shidao's bow!"

When Zhong Shidao arrived, he did not pay respects to Emperor Gaozong of Song or Cai Fu, but only to Emperor Qinzong of Song, who died under mysterious circumstances.

At this moment, he bowed to Cai Fu, expressing his sincere gratitude.

In these chaotic times of war, without a sense of loyalty, who would stand up for the dead?
……

No!

I must go back and take a look!

Emperor Gaozong of Song couldn't sleep after returning home. He was worried that Cai Fu and Zhong Shidao might cause trouble while he was away...

Emperor Gaozong of Song scrambled to his feet and, accompanied by Liu Guangshi, returned to the mourning hall.

But right around the bend, Emperor Gaozong of Song suddenly slammed on the brakes and pulled back, peeking furtively into the distance:

In the dim light, the white-haired Zhong Shidao was bowing to Cai Funa!

That old beast!
Emperor Gaozong of Song turned green with rage and slammed his fist against the wall.

Why not worship himself, but instead worship the King of Qi?
I am the emperor!

I should have come back and seen for myself, otherwise how would I have known that Cai Fu and Zhong Shidao had some dirty backroom deals?

How can this be good?

Emperor Gaozong of Song almost ground his decayed teeth to powder:
He had already made up his mind that as long as Zhong Shidao was willing to submit to him, he would bestow upon Zhong Shidao the title of "King of Zhenxi".

Unexpectedly, Master Zhong, who had a path to heaven but chose the path to hell, barged into it instead!

Emperor Gaozong of Song also had specific rules for bestowing titles upon princes. For example, Prince Zhong, Cai Jing, was 75 years old; Prince Zhenxi, Zhong Shidao, was 71 years old...

He wouldn't grant titles to those under seventy, so that he could both highlight his own abilities and avoid creating future problems.

However, the title of "Prince of Zhenxi" could not be bestowed upon him now, and Emperor Gaozong of Song angrily turned and returned to his palace:

"Guards, summon the Prince of Zhong to see me!"

Cai Jing has not made any public appearances these past two days, not because he doesn't want to, but because he has caught a cold and is bedridden.

After all, he was getting old and was prone to illness, but Cai Jing lived quite a long life.

Historically, Cai Jing lived to be eighty years old, but died on the road due to the hardships of exile.

If he hadn't lost power and had stayed in Beijing to enjoy the best medical care, Cai Jing might have lived to be ninety.

Cai Jing was already asleep, but Emperor Gaozong of Song summoned him so urgently that he had no choice but to get up and go to the palace.

When Cai Jing met Emperor Gaozong of Song, the emperor was pacing back and forth like a blindfolded donkey.

Privy Councilor Chen Zongshan, Grand Commandant Duan Chang, Vice Minister of War Qin Hui, Commander of the Palace Guard Qiu Yue, and Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard Liu Yanqing, among other trusted ministers, had all arrived long ago.

We are only waiting for Cai Jing.

Cai Jing quickly stepped forward to apologize.

Emperor Gaozong of Song was already impatient and didn't even bother to inquire about Cai Jing's condition before going straight to the point:

"Lord Zhong, Zhong Shidao has already surrendered to King Qi!"

"what?"

Cai Jing opened his cloudy old eyes wide in disbelief:

"Ahem! Has Master Zhong already made it clear?"

"Although it wasn't explicitly stated, I personally witnessed Zhong Shidao kneeling before Prince Qi in a secluded place!"

Emperor Gaozong gritted his teeth and said, "Zhong Shidao has never even knelt before me!" "Ah, this..."

Cai Jing wondered if there might be any misunderstanding, but Emperor Gaozong of Song said again:
"They're still using coded language and playing mind games right in front of me!"

"The King of Qi said to Zhong Shidao, 'An old steed in its stall may still aspire to gallop a thousand miles!'"
"Seventy years old is the perfect age to realize one's ambitions!"
"At this age, you no longer need to look back or hesitate. Just do whatever you want with all your might!"

Zhong Shidao replied to King Qi, "This humble general will first go to pay respects to His Majesty, and then listen to Your Majesty's teachings!"

“Listen to what it means to ‘not need to look before or after’? What it means to ‘listen to the king’s teachings’?”
"I wouldn't believe they weren't colluding!"

"An old steed in its stall may still aspire to gallop a thousand miles..."

Cai Jing sighed: "This is Cao Mengde's 'Though the Tortoise Lives Long'."

"It seems that King Qi doesn't want to be 'Sai Xuande,' but rather 'Sai Mengde'..."

"hiss--"

Chen Zongshan and Qin Hui couldn't help but gasp in shock.
Does the King of Qi really want to be like Cao Cao?
Emperor Gaozong's expression changed drastically: "Then wouldn't I become Emperor Xian of Han?"

Cai Jing coughed twice and then said, "Five years ago, this old minister heard a child in the market in Tokyo spreading four rumors—"

"'The nation's wealth was squandered by the loss of timber, and the war was fought over water. Thirty-six provinces were ravaged by war, and chaos was sown in Shandong.'"

"Later, it really came true for Song Jiang."

Three years ago, this old minister heard four rumors being spread by children in the marketplace—

"A straw offering robe, a single field. Calamity arises in Daming Prefecture, a fiery dragon lurks in the marshes."

"At that time, the old minister sent someone to deliver a letter to Liang Shijie, urging him to be extremely careful, but in the end, he was unable to save Liang's life..."

Qin Hui was quick-witted and, with hindsight, immediately realized what had happened:
"Grass sacrificial clothes, a mouthful of land, put them together and it's just the two characters Cai Fu."
"Prince Qi was originally the prison warden of Daming Prefecture, but later became the chief of Liangshan Marsh..."

"These four rumors are about King Qi!"

Cai Jing coughed and nodded.

"Your Majesty, it seems that Prince Qi..."

After hesitating for a long time, Qin Hui finally spoke, word by word:

"They must die!"

His three words silenced everyone, but Emperor Gaozong of Song admitted that Qin Hui had spoken to his heart.

"Not bad!"

Emperor Gaozong of Song said through gritted teeth:
"King Qi must die!"

"And he must die immediately!"
"Otherwise, when the funeral is held tomorrow, who knows what kind of trouble King Qi and Zhong Shidao will cause!"
"I humbly request, my esteemed subjects—"

Emperor Gaozong of Song bowed deeply to everyone present:
"Help me!"

The assembled officials hurriedly knelt down, saying it was their duty to do so.

……

Cai Fu went back to his room and washed his face.

Lu Junyi and Guan Sheng had already taken their turn to rest, and only Lu Zhishen and Wu Song were with him.

During his time in Jiangzhou, he was always protected by at least two incredibly brave men.

The three brothers were talking when suddenly a strange knocking sound came from outside the door:
"Clang! Clang! Seven booming sounds!"

Cai Fu: "Come in."

The door creaked open, and a large black rat darted in!
It was none other than Shi Qian, the "flea on the drum"!
Cai Fu asked him with a smile, "Qian'er, have you finished collecting the evidence?"

Shi Qian: "Your Majesty, rest assured, everything will be fine!"

"Furthermore, Li Zhu, the Grand Commander of Huaixi, has led three thousand elite Huaixi troops to arrive from the west!"

"Sun Li, the Pacification Commissioner of Jiangnan, has also led three thousand elite troops from Jiangnan to arrive from the east!"

"These two groups of men are hiding in the mountains outside the city, just waiting for a 'skyrocket' to be launched!"

"In addition, the generals that Your Majesty has named have all entered the city ahead of time and are staying at the Fulai Tower in Jiangzhou, ready to be summoned by Your Majesty at any time!"

(End of this chapter)