I, Kangxi, am here to overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming!

Hong Xiguan chuckled inwardly as he looked at the man who seemed completely lost.

Haha, young man, you're still too young.

You get all smug just because I give you a little sunshine?

The main course is yet to come!

Hong Xiguan gestured for Wohe to sit down and then had Cao Yin serve him tea.

This kind of treatment made Woch feel flattered and overwhelmed. When he sat down, half of his buttocks were hanging in the air.

Hong Xiguan sighed seemingly unintentionally, a trace of worry on his face, and slowly said, "Wohe, although you have thwarted Ao Bai's prestige today and restored face for me and for the rules of this palace, but..."

His tone shifted abruptly, and his voice became serious.

"I'm worried about you too."

Wohe felt a warmth in his heart and quickly said, "Serving His Majesty is my duty! I am not afraid!"

Hong Xiguan shook his head: "You're not afraid, but I am! That Ao Bai is vindictive and narrow-minded. Today you made him lose face in public. He may not dare to do anything to you openly, but he will definitely try to take revenge on you in secret, and even... take revenge on your family."

Upon hearing the word "family," Woch's expression changed slightly.

He may not be afraid of death, but he cannot disregard his father and mother.

Hong Xiguan took in his expression and continued, "Moreover, what worries me even more is the defense of the Qianqing Palace."

He pointed out the window to the patrolling guards.

"Look, most of the guards on duty in this palace are from the Bordered Yellow Banner, and many of them are related to Ao Bai."

"Today, you're here, so you dare to stop him. But what if you weren't here? What if someone else were on duty?"

"I can't sleep soundly!"

His words were sincere and heartfelt, vividly portraying the bitterness and helplessness of a young emperor who was "weak, pitiful, and helpless."

Woch was filled with righteous indignation, his fists clenched tightly!

Outrageous!

Ao Bai is so arrogant! He's turned the Emperor's palace into his own backyard?!

These guards, receiving royal salaries, are actually loyal to Ao Bai! They're utterly traitors!

He immediately stood up and said angrily, "Your Majesty! Please issue a decree! This servant will go and drag out all those treacherous fellows!"

"Foolish!" Hong Xiguan hissed. "What evidence do you have? Empty words will only alert them and make them more wary!"

Wokh immediately deflated.

Hong Xiguan looked at him and patiently advised, "This matter requires careful consideration. To eliminate the root cause, we must... replace the person in charge."

He paused, then looked intently at Wohe: "I need a group of truly loyal warriors, loyal to me and to the Qing Dynasty, to protect this Qianqing Palace!"

"And these people, I can't trust anyone else, I can only... trust you!"

"Me?" Woch's breathing became rapid again.

Hong Xiguan seemed to recall something, or perhaps it was just a casual remark, and said, "I've heard that your father, Lord Fei Yanggu, is a Grand Minister of the Interior, and holds the power to deploy a portion of the imperial guards?"

"I want you to go back and discuss this privately with your father."

"See if we can select some elite soldiers from the guard battalions of each banner... skilled, from respectable families, upright, and with no connection to Aobai, and gradually transfer them to the Qianqing Palace to serve under the pretext of 'strengthening the palace'."

Hehe, after going through all this trouble, this is my real purpose!

Since it's inconvenient for me to speak directly to Fei Yanggu, I'll let you, my "good son," whisper sweet nothings in your father's ear!

Tell him, "Your son is now a favorite of the emperor! If we, father and son, can accomplish this for the emperor, will we ever have to worry about wealth and honor in the future?"

This is called "balancing public and private interests" or "binding interests together"!

After hearing this, Woch felt as if everything had suddenly become clear!

Yup!

How could I not have thought of that!

My father is the Grand Minister of the Interior!

If only Amakken could help by sending a group of trustworthy people from the Plain Yellow Banner to replace Ao Bai's henchmen, wouldn't that solve the problem?

This will both relieve the Emperor's burdens and strengthen the power of our Ulanara family!

This is simply killing two birds with one stone!

Wokh became more and more excited as he thought about it, and immediately kowtowed deeply!

"Your Majesty is wise! This servant...this servant understands!"

"This servant will return home tonight and will certainly discuss this matter thoroughly with my father! Please rest assured, Your Majesty, for Your Majesty and for the Qing Dynasty, my father and I will be willing to die a thousand deaths!"

Seeing his excited expression, as if he had been sold out but was still helping to count the money, Hong Xiguan nodded with satisfaction.

Go forth, young man!

Go and become that key piece that can move the entire game.

My empire depends on you... and your father.

……

Ao Bai's residence.

Inside the study, Ao Bai sat there with a sullen face, waiting for a letter.

"Squeak!"

The door to the study was gently pushed open.

A sleazy figure crept in, a sinister smile barely concealed on his face.

The newcomer was none other than Ao Bai's younger brother, Mulima, the commander of the Bordered Yellow Banner.

"Brother, I've found it!"

Murima stepped forward and handed over a piece of intelligence he had just found.

"Brother, you are truly a brilliant strategist! That kid, that Wokh, really is the son of that old scoundrel Feiyangu!"

"Moreover, his arrival as a royal bodyguard is too suspicious!"

"Everyone in the palace says it happened a few days ago in the West Garden! The Emperor... in front of everyone, borrowed an imperial horse, bestowed an imperial bow, and finally, personally spoke up to promote him beyond the usual ranks!"

"Bang!"

A loud bang, and it suddenly exploded!

Ao Bai slammed his large, fan-like hand down hard on the rosewood octagonal table in front of him!

The entire table collapsed with a crash!

"Little Emperor! It really is you!"

Ao Bai slowly stood up, his eyes flashing with a terrifyingly fierce light!

"Excellent! Truly my...good Emperor!"

He laughed in anger, his teeth grinding together.

"Only a few days?! Your wings haven't even fully grown, and you've already learned to manipulate emperors?! You dare to plant your own people right under my nose?!"

"And that old codger Feiyangu! Not content with contradicting me in court, he's now sending his son to be the little emperor's dog, trying to bite me?! Does he think my blade is dull?!"

Seeing this, Murima immediately pressed his advantage, leaning close to his ear and saying in a sinister tone, "Brother! This matter cannot be left like this!"

"Think about it, Fei Yanggu and his son are practically pointing their fingers at you, openly provoking you! If we don't teach them a lesson, won't just any Tom, Dick, or Harry dare to ride roughshod over us in the court?!"

"Besides, brother... I've heard that old bastard Fei Yanggu's new concubine he took two years ago is... tsk tsk, her figure, her face, she's like a celestial being who stepped out of a painting!"

Just thinking about that woman's appearance made Murima's face unconsciously reveal a lewd grin, and he almost drooled.

Last year, relying on his position as the Commander-in-Chief of the Bordered Yellow Banner, he personally visited Fei Yanggu, hoping to "exchange" a few horses and some jewels for that beauty to play with for a few days.

As a result, that old bastard Feiyanggu turned on the spot, cursed loudly, and even picked up a knife to chop him up!

If Murima hadn't run fast, there would probably have been bloodshed on the spot!

Murimar will never forget this humiliation!

He lowered his voice and continued to fan the flames: "Brother, that scoundrel Feiyanggu completely disregards you! Last year, he even tried to kill me with a knife! He's incredibly arrogant! We can take advantage of this opportunity..."

"That's enough!"

A sharp shout, like a bucket of ice water, was poured over Murima's head.

Ao Bai suddenly turned his head, his tiger-like eyes staring contemptuously at his younger brother.

My good-for-nothing brother, whose mind is filled with nothing but women and money, is truly despicable! He'll die from a woman's body sooner or later!

However, Murima is right, this is a perfect opportunity!