Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 202: The Obedience Test for Kang Yi

Few people in the world can see these things and remain unmoved.

Even Song Shi'an.

Therefore, the idea that "the innocent are innocent" is a rather false proposition.

People can be moved.

Of course, Song Shi'an was very clear about one thing—none of these belonged to him.

He only has the right to use it.

Therefore, it suddenly became as calm as still water.

"Do these need to be weighed again?" Song Shi'an asked. "I'm not very familiar with the treasury's procedures."

“The Imperial Guards weighed it when it left the warehouse. Then, people were kept on guard here,” Zuo Ziliang said. “If Your Excellency is still not at ease, you can weigh it again.”

“How could I not trust the Embroidered Uniform Guard?” Song Shi’an laughed. “Besides, I’ll be even more at ease knowing that Brother Ziliang and I will be using this money together.”

There is one principle in the transaction: once the handover is completed, the previous person bears no responsibility whatsoever.

You can point it out on the spot.

If they then claim there's counterfeit money or they're short of cash, that's just nonsense, and nobody will believe it.

Therefore, some movie plots where counterfeit money is hidden under real money to get away with it are ridiculously absurd.

They all have to go through each step using a banknote detector.

When Song Shi'an took over, he originally wanted to do some inspections, but since the Embroidered Uniform Guard had already made such a point, it would be impolite for him to be too serious.

Song Shi'an deliberately brought Zuo Ziliang along, yet Zuo Ziliang didn't seem to mind. This detail pretty much tells us that scheming is impossible.

“Okay,” Song Shi’an said.

"Please sign and stamp this document, Your Excellency." The treasury manager also produced the document.

After signing his name, Song Shi'an took out his seal and stamped it on.

Thus, Song Shi'an removed 20,000 taels of gold from the national treasury in one stroke.

Two boxes in one cart, sealed with leather sheds and hemp ropes, so that from the outside, you could not tell what was being transported inside.

"Kang Yi should have received it too, right?" Song Shi'an asked.

“My lord,” Zuo Ziliang said, “I had them taken directly to the Guoxin Hall.”

In response, Song Shi'an instructed: "The gold will be escorted by the Imperial Guards, and the Kang family will be escorted out of the city by the Embroidered Uniform Guards. They will be inside the carriage and not allowed to show their faces. Then, the officials of the State Trust Office will leave the city at different times, allowing us to leave first."

"Yes." Zuo Ziliang nodded, preparing to carry out the order.

"Brother Ziliang, are you so decisive?" Song Shi'an said with a smile. "You haven't even asked why yet."

"His Majesty's order is for me to assist the magistrate and obey his every word," Zuo Ziliang said. "I will simply carry it out."

Wei Ye's arrangement is excellent.

"As expected of the Embroidered Uniform Guard." After praising them, Song Shi'an added, "Separating our departures from the city is the main theme of our mission this time. In everything we do, we should try our best not to alarm the public or arouse suspicion from others."

"This will be used against us," Zuo Ziliang said.

"As expected of Brother Zuo, your words hit the nail on the head."

That's what Song Shi'an thought.

Are there any people in Dayu who received sponsorship from foreign forces?

There must be.

The news that the State of Yan was going to form an alliance with the State of Qi would soon spread throughout Sheng'an City.

It could even be said that quite a bit of word had already leaked out, since the imperial court hadn't made any special effort to keep it a secret.

At this time, Song Shi'an was sent on a mission, bringing with him a cartload of goods. People couldn't help but speculate: Was he going to bribe Yan?

At this point, Yu Jian, who had already received the money, stirred up another controversy: "Our great Yu, if our little brother wants to form an alliance with someone else, shouldn't we give him a good beating instead of handing him money?"

Even Song Shi'an, the hero who fought against Qi, has fallen from grace!
How could he possibly govern a country while he's with these scoundrels!
This is perfectly normal.

This is a war of public opinion.

The Great Yu also did the same thing to the Qi and Yan states.

It has nothing to do with the wisdom and patriotism of the people.

If only the State of Yu is troubled by public opinion, while the State of Qi is united, it means that the people in Yu who are trying to infiltrate the country have not made any effort, and it also means that the emperor is not willing to spend money on this matter. Other than that, it proves nothing.

"My lord, I know what to do along the way."

This puts Zuo Ziliang right in his comfort zone.

We, the Embroidered Uniform Guards, are best at operating silently.

When I was eavesdropping from the roof beam, did you notice?

"Alright." After finalizing the arrangements, Song Shi'an immediately gave the order, "Set off on your mission."

And so, three groups of people left through the North Gate at different times and in batches.

The 20,000 taels of gold were naturally sent out of the city as baggage.

Finally, they met up in the suburbs.

This caravan consisted of only two carriages, the more luxurious and spacious one being the main carriage driven by Song Shi'an.

The remaining carriage, somewhat rough and simple, was the one used to transport Kangyi.

The rest of them were cavalrymen.

The purpose was to reach the State of Yan as quickly as possible.

Song Shi'an got out of the carriage and, with the help of San Gou, got off the ground and walked to Kang Yi's carriage.

At this moment, a member of the Imperial Guard asked, "Sir, shall we let them show themselves?"

"Everyone, get down," Song Shi'an said.

So Kangyi and his family got off the bus.

Because they didn't know anyone, they were like fledglings, carefully observing everything.

Kang Yi and his wife were still somewhat apprehensive. Their son, on the other hand, remained expressionless, staring blankly ahead with dead fish eyes.

After recognizing Song Shi'an from his official robes, Kang Yi slowly bowed and said, "Yi greets Lord."

The princess consort gazed at the very handsome man who was embracing her son from behind, her eyes wandering but unable to resist observing him. "Your Highness is a prince of my Great Yu, there's no need for you to bow to me," Song Shi'an said with a smile. "On the contrary, I should bow to you."

If Kang Xun were to write a letter to Wei Ye, it would begin with "Your subject Gou says"... no, Your subject Xun says.

So Song Shi'an's apparent humility and respect for him was actually a disgusting statement.

"As a mere clerk, how dare I accept Your Excellency's greeting?" Kang Yi kept a very low profile, not wanting to get any verbal sparring.

After all, no matter what, he is still a prisoner.

Song Shi'an smiled and gently beckoned to the young master's wife: "Come here."

The young master's wife tensed, and the next moment, realizing it was her son being called, she instinctively hugged him tightly. But Kang Yi, standing beside her, said sternly, "The Lord is calling you."

The princess knew that she had to completely obey Song Shi'an, and there was no other way, but when she actually had to do so, she was still held back by her weakness.

This is human nature.

However, she had promised to obey his every word.

So, struggling, he let go.

Her child, who was no more than ten years old, walked up to Song Shi'an without any hesitation after being let go by his mother.

"what's your name?"

Song Shi'an pinched his cheek and asked with a smile.

“Kang Qing,” he said expressionlessly.

“Alright, Kangqing.” Song Shi’an nodded, then looked at the carriage over there and asked, “Father and Mother’s carriage is too small. Would you like to sit here with me?”

Kang Yi's hand clenched immediately, but quickly loosened.

The princess's eyes instantly welled up with tears, revealing an expression of resistance.

Zuo Ziliang watched with great interest as Song Shi'an conducted the obedience test.

He knew that Song Shi'an had sent this envoy to the hostage house yesterday afternoon.

It's perfectly normal; as an important bargaining chip for this mission, prior discussions are understandable.

Even though Zuo Ziliang really wanted to know what was said.

But looking at it now, it's not tamed enough.

"Listen to you."

Kang Qing looked up at him and readily agreed, making his mother tremble with worry.

"Who am I?" Song Shi'an asked.

“Lord Song,” Kang Qing said, “Mother’s carriage is too small. I would like to ride in Lord Song’s carriage.”

"Good boy."

Song Shi'an chuckled and patted the back of his head, then stood up, looked at Kang Yi, pointed at his son, and laughed heartily.

The other party could only force a smile.

Xin Yue could tell that Song Shi'an was already very much like a villain.

But that doesn't matter; what attracted me to him was never his kindness.

"Let's set off for the State of Yan."

At Song Shi'an's command, everyone boarded the carriages and mounted their horses, and the journey officially began.

Song Shi'an also said to Xin Yue, "Tie the horse to the front of the carriage, and you get in too."

"Yes."

Inside the large carriage, Song Shi'an sat in the middle, Xin Yue sat to the side, while the young master of Yan, Kang Qing, knelt on the carriage floor in front of Song Shi'an.

"Why aren't you sitting?" Song Shi'an asked.

"Kang Qing cannot sit in front of the Earl," Kang Qing said emotionlessly.

This kid really does have a cunning and malicious streak.

“You’re quite different from your spineless father,” Song Shi’an mocked.

Xin Yue, standing to the side, felt that this was going a bit too far...

But she knew that this was just a matter of being a little bad in terms of human nature.

As a compliance test, this is perfectly fine.

Song Shi'an originally expected to see a sinister look in the other person's eyes that said, "You're not allowed to insult my father," but the other person showed no emotion at all and completely accepted the comment.

Song Shi'an suddenly lowered his head and stared straight into his eyes: "Call me father."

Xin Yue slowly looked at the man beside her.

Kang Qing slowly raised his head and glared at Song Shi'an.

The next moment, with a sudden 'bang,' he slammed his head heavily on the board, then raised his face, which was swollen with a bump: "Dad."

…………

In the main hall of the Yan Kingdom.

"Dead? The envoy from Yu Kingdom died on the way?!"

When Conson, who was sitting on the throne, heard the news, he was furious.

The officials below all lowered their heads.

"Moreover, he's been dead for so many days, even Sheng An probably knows about it, so why am I only finding out now!" Kang Xun cursed.

The faces remained blank, and no one answered.

At this moment, Chancellor Gongsun Xing explained, "The envoy from Yu was killed by a group of mountain bandits, so by the time we found out, it was already quite late..."

Conson clenched his fists, with nowhere to vent his frustration.

However, he did not directly argue with Gongsun Xing.

Slowly, he stood up: "You all accepted Chen Xing's bribes with such ease. You must have had a way to repel the Yu Kingdom's army, right?"

Having said that, he angrily turned and left the court.

The officials also symbolically prostrated themselves on the ground, ashamed to be subject to the king's might.

(End of this chapter)