You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 79 I will never betray the Great Zhou in life, nor the royal family in death.

Xi'an Prefecture, the prefectural city.

The Cui family lived in a room in one of the mansions here.

Prince Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian, looked at Prince Kang, Zhou Qi, who was glaring at him angrily, and sighed helplessly; "Seventh Prince, don't look at me with such angry eyes."

"Do you know? Grand Tutor Yan Hua is dead. I had Zhao Gao poison him in the imperial prison."

“I know you’ve been hiding your talents all along. None of us brothers are mediocre.”

"It's just that I was born at the wrong time."

"With your intelligence, once you know that Zhao Gao is one of my men, you should be able to understand a lot."

"Yes, it's what you think."

“I’m not convinced by the fifth brother. All of us brothers are better than that sickly fifth brother. Why did Father choose him in the end?”

"I'm not reconciled, I've been scheming about everything."

"Unexpectedly, all my schemes were discovered by the Fifth Prince, and my Prince Xiaoyao Mansion was also confiscated by the Imperial Clan Court. I have no way out."

"If I don't fight my way out, I'll die."

"Seventh Brother, do you understand?"

Prince Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian, looked at Prince Kang, Zhou Qi, and finally spoke the words that had been on his mind.

By this time, Zhou Qian, the carefree prince, had nothing left to hide.

Since his schemes have already been uncovered by that person in the palace, there's no need to cover them up any longer.

Upon hearing the words of the carefree prince, King Kang Zhou Qi sneered: "So, you're going to raise the flag of rebellion under Cui Songshan's instigation?"

"Do you know what consequences your actions will bring to the Great Zhou?"

"Do you want the Great Zhou Dynasty to be utterly destroyed?"

"Are you still a member of the Zhou royal family?"

"Grand Tutor has just died in battle, and the blood of 30,000 brave warriors has been spilled on the northwestern land. How dare you, a royal prince, raise the flag of rebellion?"

"How can you face the spirits of the thirty thousand brave warriors in heaven? How can you face the spirit of the Grand Tutor in heaven?"

King Kang, Zhou Qi, launched a series of angry rebukes against King Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian.

King Kang, Zhou Qi, never minded the internal strife surrounding that position.

Because it is the supreme right, no one can resist the temptation of holding the reins of power over the world.

The capable ones go up, the mediocre ones go down.

This has always been the rule.

However, King Kang of Zhou Qi hoped that such a struggle would be confined to a certain scope, rather than raising the flag of rebellion when the Grand Tutor had just died in battle, 30,000 of his elite troops had been wiped out, and the Zhou Dynasty was in a precarious state.

This is not a power struggle.

This is upending the entire Great Zhou Dynasty.

Faced with King Kang's (Zhou Qi's) angry rebuke, the carefree king's face also turned ugly; "Then what do you want me to do?"

"Sitting around waiting to die?"

"Just wait to die?"

"Or should I drink my own throat and commit suicide?"

“It’s not your Kangwang Mansion that’s been raided, it’s my Xiaoyaowang Mansion. I have no way out.”

"I know you mean to say that aristocratic families are not trustworthy."

"How could I not know that? I have never believed in aristocratic families."

"My relationship with the powerful families is merely one of mutual exploitation. Once I seize power, I'll have plenty of ways to deal with them."

As Zhou Qian, the carefree king, spoke, a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

To be honest, in the past, Zhou Qian, the carefree prince, trusted Cui Songshan and the Cui family very much, regarding them as his strongest supporters.

After all, Cui Songshan was his maternal uncle, and the Cui family was his maternal family.

This kind of relationship has always been the most reliable among royal princes.

The carefree King Zhou Qian has achieved his current success only because he has the support of the Cui family, one of the seven great families.

But the events in the four northwestern prefectures brought Zhou Qian, the carefree prince, to his senses. He realized that even his maternal uncle, from the Cui family on his mother's side, was not trustworthy.

Such a major event in the four northwestern prefectures was kept secret even from the carefree Prince who supported him. What trust could there be in such a person?

"Looks like you're hopeless."

"Then we have nothing more to say, and you don't need to say anything either."

"I know what you want to say, but I can tell you clearly that although I, Zhou Qi, am the least favored prince in the eyes of the Emperor, I am also the prince with the lowest status in the royal family."

"But the blood of the royal Zhou family still flows in my veins."

"I will never betray the Great Zhou in life, nor will I betray the royal family in death."

After King Kang of Zhou finished speaking, he closed his eyes.

As Zhou Qian, the carefree king, said, none of his brothers were mediocre.

King Kang of Zhou, Qi, was the same.

Therefore, when the carefree King Zhou Qian entered, King Kang Zhou Qi had already guessed the purpose of his visit.

King Kang, Zhou Qi's last words, "I will not betray the Great Zhou in life, nor will I betray the royal family in death," were his answer to King Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian.

Upon hearing these words from King Kang, Zhou Qi, Prince Xiaoyao's expression shifted slightly, but in the end, he said nothing and turned to leave the room.

……

In the hall, Cui Songshan sat in the main seat, took a sip of tea, and looked at a subordinate standing in front of him, saying, "So, Prince Kang has refused?"

“Yes, Third Master.” The subordinate nodded.

Cui Songshan smiled; "It was expected."

"None of the late emperor's sons were mediocre rulers."

"King Kang certainly has a good spirit."

"The Prince of Xiaoyao also saw things very clearly. He actually guessed about 50-60% of the aristocratic families' previous plans in one go."

"However, the most surprising one is the one in the palace, who has been hiding the deepest secret."

Cui Songshan put down his teacup, his eyes darting around.

Their plan would have been perfect had it not been for the unexpected turn of events involving the person in the palace.

But now, with the changes in that person in the palace, although half of the goal has been achieved, it might bring a lot of trouble.

In particular, even their aristocratic family couldn't predict what would happen next.

If this isn't handled properly, it could really cause a lot of trouble.

All they can do now is try to clean up the mess and leave no trace.

After pondering for a moment, Cui Songshan said to his subordinates standing in front of him, "Go and proceed according to the plan! Be careful."

"Afterwards, do not leave any trace."

“In particular, the deaths of the 30,000 Divine Martial Guards and Grand Tutor Wen Zhong cannot be linked to the aristocratic families in any way.”

"Even unfounded rumors are unacceptable."

Cui Songshan said with a serious expression.

The deaths of 30,000 Divine Martial Guards and Grand Tutor Wen Zhong were no small matter; even aristocratic families had to be careful.

Especially Grand Tutor Wen Zhong, who was the pillar of the Great Zhou Dynasty and a veteran of three reigns.

He's not some nobody.

If the death of Grand Tutor Wen Zhong implicates their aristocratic family, then even their family will not fare well.

"Yes."

The subordinate acknowledged and left.

After his subordinate left, Cui Songshan muttered to himself, his eyes gleaming, "I hope nothing goes wrong."

"We had planned everything, but we didn't foresee this unexpected turn of events with that person in the palace."

……

(End of this chapter)