Inheriting a Taoist temple, the story begins with Wu Zetian offering incense.

Chapter 330 The King of Zhao, Cuckolded by His Son! [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

Throughout their journey, Su Jian and Sima Qian remained tight-lipped, never mentioning their true purpose for coming to Handan. They only said that they would travel from Jizhou to Henan, then cross the river to Luoyang, and finally head to Chang'an in Guanzhong.

Having arrived in Handan today, ostensibly to seek lodging here, the vanguard captain shouted with full force towards the city wall:

"I am a cavalryman under the Grand Marshal. I am on patrol of the border defense of Dai County and have been ordered to return to Chang'an from Ji Province. I ask my colleagues in Handan to open the city gates so that we can rest for the night. The Grand Marshal will replenish the lost grain and fodder in the future."

When we arrived in Xiangguo the day before yesterday, Su Jian had already sent someone to inform us, but the people in Handan were clearly pretending not to know and did not intend to let the cavalry into the city.

On the city wall, the prime minister of Zhao replied very politely:
"You have all come from afar, which is truly a long and arduous journey, and we certainly have a responsibility to receive you, but..."

Just as he was about to find an excuse to decline the matter, Liu Pengzu, who was standing nearby, said:

"You idiot, why are you talking to him like this? Get those soldiers out of here right now! Don't give them a single grain of rice in Handan, let them starve to death... We've had the worst luck in eight lifetimes, how did we end up with such a stupid prime minister? All the grain of Zhao has been wasted by you, you stupid pig..."

He kept cursing, and the prime minister, his blood boiling, in a fit of rage, simply shouted down towards the city wall:

"Handan welcomes you all to come into the city for rest and recuperation at any time. Open the city gates!"

Liu Pengzu wanted to govern personally, but the Han Dynasty had a rule that princes with fiefdoms were not allowed to interfere in government affairs, and the management of the fiefdoms was the responsibility of the prime minister appointed by the court.

To prevent the prime minister from embezzling Zhao's assets, and also to prepare for his own rule over Zhao, Liu Pengzu would secretly sabotage every new prime minister who took office.

He had many methods, such as deliberately inducing the other party to say things that were detrimental to the court, framing them, or simply sending maids from the Prince's Palace to seduce the Prime Minister or his associates.

During Liu Pengzu's lifetime, the State of Zhao changed its prime minister on average every six months, and the longest term did not exceed two years.

He hoped that one day Emperor Wu of Han would be annoyed and stop appointing prime ministers, and simply let Liu Pengzu manage the Zhao state... Unfortunately, Liu Pengzu never fulfilled this wish, even until his death.

Despite his seemingly impatient nature, Emperor Wu of Han (Liu Che) was actually quite patient in certain matters.

For example, when Liu Pengzu frequently impeached the prime minister, Liu Che (Emperor Wu of Han) acted very leniently. He said, "You say the prime minister is no good? Fine, replace him immediately. The new one still isn't good? Then keep replacing him!"

Liu Pengzu believed that his talents surpassed those of Liu Che, and he often resented his father for being blind to Liu Che's abilities.

This guy really wanted to find an opportunity to prove himself, so he made managing the Zhao state his goal. As a result, the prime minister of Zhao changed one after another, but Liu Che never gave him this opportunity.

Now, hearing Liu Pengzu scold him, the Prime Minister of Zhao no longer gave him any face. He directly opened the city gates and let Su Jian and Sima Qian outside the city lead three thousand cavalrymen into Handan.

Liu Pengzu was furious and yelled, but he was helpless because politics was not under his jurisdiction. He was anxious but there was nothing he could do.

There was a huge drill ground in the city. After the Rebellion of the Seven States, the various vassal states were not allowed to keep troops, so the drill ground in Handan was abandoned.

Su Jian ordered his men to set up camp, and not long after, the Prime Minister sent someone to deliver grain.

By the time everyone started cooking, it was already completely dark.

At mealtime, Sima Qian quietly issued a verbal military order:
"Liu Dan, son of King Zhao Liu Pengzu, secretly wrote a letter to the Xiongnu, expressing his willingness to serve them and pledge his loyalty to the death... His Majesty sent us here to hunt down King Zhao and his family and to uphold the glory of the Han imperial family!"

Soon, all three thousand cavalrymen learned the purpose of this operation. They were all eager to rush to the Handan Palace and capture the entire Zhao family alive.

Upon entering the city, Su Jian observed the location and defense configuration of the Prince's Mansion. While everyone was eating, he even secretly launched a drone to conduct reconnaissance.

With action imminent, Su Jian began assigning tasks to each team. Two hundred cavalrymen were not assigned tasks but were instead instructed to follow Sima Qian and act as they saw fit.

Before long, squads of cavalry quietly left the camp and, following the routines of previous field training, began to encircle the royal palace in Handan, striving to ensure that no one escaped.

Sima Qian, leading his two hundred cavalrymen, wandered through the streets and finally found the Jiang residence.

Jiang Chong was still called Jiang Qi at the time. Because his younger sister married Liu Dan, the crown prince of Zhao, he was highly valued and became Liu Pengzu's advisor and honored guest.

Sima Qian said to his subordinates:

"According to the drone's observation, a side gate of the Zhao King's palace is located deep inside this courtyard. If it is not blocked, the Zhao King's family could easily escape the city. Now we need to break into the courtyard and guard this vital passage to prevent the Zhao King's family from escaping."

The team leader asked:
"Commander Sima, what should we do if there are people in this courtyard?"

“Kill them all without mercy, show no leniency.”

After saying this, Sima Qian took the lead and was the first to rush in. When the cavalry saw this, they followed suit and entered one after another, cutting down anyone they saw, regardless of age or gender.

Just as the attack was about to begin, one of the scholars, dressed in a manner that was neither male nor female, blocked the cavalryman's path and loudly demanded to know who he was. Sima Qian then chopped off his head with a single stroke.

After chopping them up, Sima Qian secretly used the flashlight given to him by Wei Qing to check and confirmed that it was exactly the same as Jiang Chong's portrait. Only then did he feel relieved and took the lead in killing the other members of the Jiang family.

Ever since Jiang married Liu Dan, the Jiang family's status in the city has risen dramatically. They seized farmland from many families and even forcibly took over other people's mansions, expanding their original three-courtyard house into a seven-courtyard house, which was only separated from the Prince's Mansion by a wall.

Such a tyrannical local bully had no qualms about killing him. Sima Qian, brimming with fighting spirit, entered the room and quickly beheaded several members of the Jiang family, quietly completing the crucial task of exterminating three clans entrusted to him by Emperor Wu of Han. The plan, personally devised by Wei Qing, implemented by Marquis Su Jian of Pingling, with Sima Qian providing assistance, was handled flawlessly. The strategic objective of "exterminating three clans of the Jiang family" was cleverly concealed within the operation to capture the Zhao King's family.

Even if someone asks about it afterward, those involved will only say that they eliminated the King of Zhao's henchmen during the operation, and no one will care who the henchmen were.

When Sima Qian finished his mission, Su Jian led his men into the palace and tied Liu Pengzu up.

Liu Pengzu launched into a tirade:
Do you know who I am?

Su Jian nodded:

"I know, he is the father of Liu Dan, a disgrace to the Han people and a traitor to the country!"

Upon hearing his son being branded a traitor, Liu Pengzu could hardly believe his ears:

What did my son do?

"He has corresponded with the young king of the Xiongnu and wants to take you to join the Xiongnu and become their lackeys... If Emperor Gaozu were alive, he would surely praise your family as good children."

Liu Pengzu did not believe it:
“My son has never met any Xiongnu king. You must be framing him... I knew that coming to Handan to rest and recuperate was a trap, but I didn’t expect you to be here for me. Tell Wei Qing to come and see me. That dog who was born a horse slave dares to play dirty tricks on me.”

Su Jian asked:

"Do you know that your son has slept with all your wives and concubines? Your daughters, granddaughters, and great-granddaughters have also fallen into his clutches. Are you aware of all this?"

Liu Pengzu was taken aback. He hadn't expected that Wei Qing's men would know so much about his family's scandals. It seemed that this was premeditated and that they had a grand plan!

The only thing he can do now is to hurry to Chang'an to see Liu Che and plead for his brotherhood. Maybe that will still be of some use; otherwise, his whole family will be doomed.

However, Handan was far from Chang'an, and Liu Pengzu could not get there in a short time.

Not long after he was tied up, Liu Dan was also brought over, his clothes disheveled, along with two of Liu Pengzu's concubines, who were also disheveled.

The son cheated on his father, leaving Su Jian speechless with frustration.

Liu Pengzu's more than ten children were all imprisoned in rooms in the Prince's Mansion, one child per room, and were forbidden from contacting each other.

After the Zhao family was arrested and the situation in the palace was settled, Su Jian led two trusted men into the room where Liu Pengzu was being held. The two men first put a rope around Liu Pengzu's neck, then hung the rope on the roof beam and tightened it little by little.

Su Jian said slowly:

"The emperor's ceremonial robes, imperial carriage, seal, and armor were found in the Zhao royal palace, indicating a plot to rebel. After the conspiracy was exposed, King Liu Pengzu of Zhao said he was ashamed before His Majesty and hanged himself that night... I, as a general, request to be demoted to a commoner for dereliction of duty, so as to appease the spirit of King Zhao in heaven... How about that? This explanation is quite reasonable, isn't it?"

Liu Pengzu was no longer able to answer. He struggled desperately, but to no avail. His mind gradually dissipated, and he soon lost consciousness...

When Zhou Yi got up in the early morning, Xi Shi had already prepared breakfast and even tried making meat pies. She would leave after eating breakfast and return in five days.

Wu Zetian said:
"The water might not recede that quickly, so why not stay a couple more days?"

Xi Shi shook her head:

“Immortal Master, this is the Immortal Realm. The longer I stay here, the more reluctant I am to leave. But there are still things to do in the Spring and Autumn World. I cannot hide here forever and rely on your and the Immortal Master’s care.”

These words struck a chord with Wu Zetian. Every time she returned to the Zhenguan world, it was torture for her. No matter day or night, her mind was filled with the Hunyuan Palace and the handsome man in front of her.

After breakfast, Xi Shi packed her luggage, pushed her bicycle, and left the courtyard, departing from Hunyuan Palace via Xiaopenglai.

While Wu Zetian was washing the dishes, Zhou Yi returned to his room, opened his black notebook, and discovered that his merit points had skyrocketed to seven jin and six liang.
Sima Qian exterminated Jiang Chong's entire clan, altering the timeline of Emperor Wu's world; merit +50.

[Su Jian, following Wei Qing's strategy, exterminated the entire family of Zhao King Liu Pengzu, earning +30 merit points.]

[Liu Dan's death grants +10 merit points]

【…】

Zhou Yi was surprised. He hadn't expected Liu Dan to be listed separately. It was indeed meritorious to annihilate such a notorious scoundrel in history. Not bad, not bad. In the future, we should dig out more scoundrels from various worlds.

It's not difficult, the rewards are good, and it offers excellent value for money, making it the top choice for accumulating merit.

While he was reciting his merits, a different scene unfolded in Bianliang, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, where the emperor secretly led out more than 1,500 warhorses from the palace, claiming they were a gift from heaven to protect the Song Dynasty.

Therefore, he must follow the guidance of Heaven, personally lead an expedition against Western Xia, and recover the lost lands of China!

(End of this chapter)