The First Lackey Under The Empress

An agent of the Kuang Fu Society?

Zhao Du'an was genuinely surprised to hear the middle-aged man state his identity.

After Zhuang Xiaocheng left, two successive branch leaders met their downfall. According to the news ascertained by the Zhao prison, there is currently no leader among the rebel party in the capital.

They are only managed by senior members within the city… Is this the one before me?

Without the title of branch leader, but actually a proxy who controls real power?

The national preceptor, that demonic Daoist, actually sent such a high-level fish right to my doorstep… His style of doing things is indeed as Zhenbao said, eccentric and flamboyant… Hmm, assuming this middle-aged man isn't lying.

Many thoughts flashed through his mind.

A cold smile appeared on Zhao Du'an's face:

"Listen to you? As far as I know, that demonic Daoist is best at using words to bewitch others. Do you think I would fall for that? Why not just capture you directly and throw you into the Zhao prison for slow interrogation?"

The tailor shop owner smiled:

"Because the national preceptor knows that with your capabilities, you wouldn't fear mere words and would instead seize the opportunity to speak with us. Moreover, sitting here is only me, not the national preceptor, so how can we speak of bewitchment?"

Zhao Du'an's gaze lingered on the man's bloodshot eyes.

Although he seemed amiable, the smile on his face carried a hint of wickedness… Clearly not quite normal!

This situation was not mentioned during the small court session.

Evidently, the demonic Daoist's abilities are far more extensive than the court is aware of.

"Heh, the master behind you guessed correctly. This official really wants to hear what you've come to say," Zhao Du'an suddenly smiled, then abruptly said coldly:

"Enough nonsense. Speak, what did the demonic Daoist send you here to do?"

The middle-aged man's expression was sincere: "The national preceptor wishes to invite you to abandon darkness and embrace the light, to join the Kuang Fu Society and work together for a great cause."

Zhao Du'an was stunned. His first reaction was that he had misheard.

But when he saw the other party's earnest and sincere appearance, a sense of absurdity washed over him.

He "ha"ed and couldn't help but change his sitting posture, mocking:

"Is that demonic Daoist crazy, or is Zhuang Xiaocheng crazy? Or have you bunch of rebels all lost your minds?"

Persuade him to surrender?

Abandon darkness and embrace the light?

Have him join the Kuang Fu Society?

Zhao Du'an was so angry he laughed. At this moment, the copper hot pot in front of him bubbled and boiled.

He picked up long chopsticks, placed two slices of jade-green cabbage leaves from the plate into the pot, and his expression became very natural:

"Why do you think I would join you? Based on the fact that the imperial court is growing stronger day by day, while you are withering away?"

The middle-aged tailor shop owner didn't smile. He leaned forward slightly, his expression still earnest:

"Does Your Excellency find it laughable?"

"Isn't it laughable?" Zhao Du'an retorted.

The middle-aged rebel shook his head and sighed:

"It seems Your Excellency is like the vegetables in this pot, only aware of the water temperature, yet unaware that in the end, you will be food in someone else's mouth, a dish on a plate."

After a pause, he continued:

"Perhaps, in Your Excellency's eyes, you have been riding the spring breeze lately, your power in the imperial court has been steadily rising, repeatedly doing things for the false emperor, overthrowing one political enemy after another, and even cutting down two Tiangang of our Kuang Fu Society, with the prospect of becoming a future grand secretary… But, Your Excellency is blinded by a leaf, deeply trapped in the game, yet unaware."

These words had the style of a street fortune teller trying to scare people.

Zhao Du'an wouldn't have cared normally, but for some reason, a hint of anticipation arose.

Zhao Du'an pinched his long chopsticks, narrowed his eyes, and asked with a smile:

"Game? What game am I trapped in? Tell me about it?"

His expression was one of watching you perform.

The middle-aged man didn't seem to care at all, but instead asked with a smile: "Has Your Excellency read 'Records of Departing the Buddha Country'?"

"Records of Departing the Buddha Country" is a very ancient book in this world, containing many stories of Buddhas and deities from the Buddhist sect thousands of years ago.

It is considered the mythology of this world. Its earliest origins are difficult to verify, but it is widely circulated and has been adapted into operas and is a classic story told by storytellers in teahouses.

Zhao Du'an hadn't read the original, but had heard some scattered storytelling, so he had a superficial understanding and nodded.

The middle-aged man said:

"In 'Records of Departing the Buddha Country,' there is a story about Buddhas in the Buddha Country. The supreme World Honored One, like a human emperor, rules over all the Buddhas. Among the Buddhas, there are three great Buddhas who are the most powerful because they each control a powerful magical artifact."

"King Zun Buddha wields the prayer wheel. When the axle turns, the Buddhist scriptures within radiate great light, which can reverse time and interfere with reincarnation."

"Treasure Light Buddha wields the green lamp. The spark of light within can incinerate the three realms."

"Medicine Master Buddha wields the seven-colored conch. When blown, it can make hundreds of millions of living beings intoxicated and submit."

He continued to recount:

"The three great Buddhas, relying on the magical artifacts in their hands, gradually increased their power in the Buddha Country, stirring up storms. Even the World Honored One was helpless. The World Honored One wanted to take back the three artifacts, but was worried that the three great Buddhas would not agree.

If he were to forcibly demand them, he feared that the three Buddhas might either carry the artifacts and defect to the evil demons or leave the Buddha Country and establish their own domain. As the World Honored One was distressed, in order to recover the artifacts, he devised a scheme."

"He pretended to be in seclusion and fell asleep, but secretly found a mortal practitioner named Moro, taught him supreme magic, and guided Moro to kill his way into the Buddha Country.

Moro was unruly and arrogant. After rushing into the Buddha Country, he tore the scriptures in the prayer wheel to shreds, extinguished the flames on the green lamp, and blocked the seven-colored conch with sand, preventing it from making a sound… throwing the Buddha Country into chaos."

Wait… this story sounds a bit familiar… Some kind of otherworld version of "Havoc in Heaven"?

… Zhao Du'an gradually became engrossed and didn't interrupt.

The middle-aged shopkeeper continued:

"The Moro practitioner threw the entire Buddha Country into chaos, and the three great Buddhas were also greatly troubled. At the critical moment, the World Honored One emerged from seclusion, enraged and unable to restrain himself, using great magic to suppress Moro, restoring peace to the Buddha Country.

He re-wrote the scriptures, repaired the prayer wheel, went south to the Fire Heaven, borrowed divine fire to re-ignite the green lamp, and dredged the seven-colored conch from the East Sea…"

"King Zun, Treasure Light, and Medicine Master, the three great Buddhas were grateful. The World Honored One also used this battle to recover the three great artifacts without any hindrance."

After a pause, he said seriously:

"The game set by the World Honored One is the 'Three Buddhas Offering Treasures Scheme.' The strategy set by the World Honored One is an orthodox, aboveboard scheme. Later generations have often imitated it."

"In the past, when General Zhengxi led his troops, the army lacked food. To avoid unrest among the troops, he deliberately ordered the grain distributors in the army to use small measures to distribute grain to the soldiers. The soldiers were furious. When the crowd was enraged, the general publicly executed the grain distributor, declaring that the rice and grain had been embezzled by this parasite. The soldiers' anger immediately subsided."

"Further back, during the reign of the previous dynasty's Emperor Ling, fiefs were granted. To prevent the royal princes from becoming too powerful, he issued the 'Decree of Grace,' ordering the princes' descendants to divide the fiefs equally. What should have been a struggle between the princes and the emperor was transferred into a struggle between the princes' descendants…"

"All of this is no different from the 'Three Buddhas Offering Treasures Scheme.'"

The middle-aged man finished speaking in one breath.

Leaning forward, with his hands propped on the corners of the table, he stared at Zhao Du'an, who was deep in thought, with those bloodshot eyes, his voice involuntarily increasing:

"Does Your Excellency think that the situation you are in now is any different from the 'Three Buddhas Offering Treasures'?"

His voice carried an invisible power of persuasion:

"Now, the false emperor is in power, at odds with the Eight Princes, but in the final analysis, the struggle between the false emperor and the Eight Princes is still an internal struggle among the imperial clan.

Do you think that if the false emperor's power grows and she firmly sits on the throne, she will really slaughter all of the Eight Princes? No! She won't!

She won't commit such a great crime. She is now proclaiming that the Second Prince Jianwen committed regicide, killing his brothers and sisters, and stood up to ascend the throne in the name of justice, so how could she slaughter her uncles and aunts? Bearing the infamy for eternity?"

"But… the struggle with the Eight Princes is inevitable. Therefore, if the false emperor is the 'World Honored One,' and the Eight Princes are the 'Three Buddhas,' then the false emperor also needs to find a 'Practitioner Moro' to create a disturbance.

On the surface, she will treat the Eight Princes with affection, respecting them as uncles and aunts, and address the princes and princesses as siblings, all amiable on the surface, but secretly sending ministers like you to fight and struggle…

It's fine now, but if she secures her position and the Eight Princes no longer resist, and the Xu imperial family reconciles.

At that time… guess, will the false emperor publicly kill you, saying that you privately targeted the princes, or that you were instigated and bewitched? To maintain the imperial family's tender affection?!"

The middle-aged shopkeeper's speech became faster and faster, and his eyes became redder and redder.

Deep in his pupils, two whirlpool-like black eyes flickered with light, rippling with invisible power.

Making Zhao Du'an, who was listening on the opposite side, have to be convinced, believing, considering this possibility.

"Glug, glug…"

The copper pot on the table boiled again at this time, bulging with large bubbles.

In the white soup, tofu, vegetables, and the already overcooked, whitish mutton rolls were surging.

Zhao Du'an was dazed, waking up from listening as if he had had a dream, he looked at the opposite side of the copper pot.

The middle-aged shopkeeper had already sat upright again, holding the melon-skin hat in both hands, like a gentleman, with a gentle smile on his face.

"Clap… clap… clap…"

Inside the private room, the sound of Zhao Du'an clapping lightly suddenly rang out.

His hands clapped gently, revealing an admiring expression on his face, meaningfully saying:

"What a 'Three Buddhas Offering Treasures Scheme,' what a bewitching national preceptor, what a heart-wrenching theory, so, all these words were given to you by the demonic Daoist, to have you say them to me, to bewitch me to betray and defect?"

The middle-aged man shook his head and said: "Your Excellency misunderstands, in fact, the national preceptor never bewitches others."

"Oh?" Zhao Du'an was really a little surprised.

Only to hear the middle-aged man earnestly explain:

"The national preceptor never bewitches others, the national preceptor only elicits and amplifies the desires and fears that people already have. We know that some people in the imperial court say that the Second Prince Jianwen's coup was due to the national preceptor's bewitchment."

He sneered, as if disdaining this statement, shaking his head and saying:

"What a responsibility-shirking excuse, but in fact, if the Second Prince had no intention of launching a coup to seize power in his heart, the national preceptor would not have been able to bewitch him. The so-called bewitchment requires that you already have that thought in your heart; if there is no desire in your heart, bewitchment will not succeed."

"People will resist words they don't like to hear; people only listen to the words they want to hear."

"So, the old emperor wanted to live forever, hoping to hear that there was magic that could help him live forever. The national preceptor said he could help him, and the old emperor believed it. That's all."

"So, you are also afraid of being abandoned by the false emperor as a pawn, I just helped you say it, so how can it be considered bewitchment?"