It’s hard to break a phoenix’s destiny

Chapter 584 Who has the courage to fight a tiger?

When Liu Cong heard the news of the tiger coming out to eat people, he was drinking and eating with a group of beauties. Those beauties were all dressed up, smiling like flowers, with sweet voices and soft bodies. Even Liu Yi, who had been surrounded by flowers for a long time, couldn't help but feel hot all over when he entered the hall.

But these were the women in the emperor's harem, the women of his brother Liu Cong, so he did not dare to act rashly. He did not dare to look around, but just looked at the food on Liu Cong's table and said, "Brother, there is new autumn grain harvested these days, and I sent you some. By the way, migratory birds are flying south, and I set up an ambush on the mountain and shot down a lot of wild geese, which I also sent to you."

"Oh." Liu Cong looked at him with a smile, patted his increasingly round belly, and suddenly asked: "Liu Yi, I heard that a tiger ate your housekeeper? Isn't this a bad idea?"

"The tiger has not eaten for three days, and it must be starving. The housekeeper happened to be at the door... Oh, it's bad luck." Liu Yi lowered his head and sighed, "But it's a good thing that the tiger dragged him back to the villa, and it won't pose a threat to the people of Pingyang for the time being. I think we should find someone to repair the wall that the tiger broke, in case it runs out and hurts people again."

"Okay, you can handle this matter." Liu Cong didn't care at all and raised the wine glass in his hand. "Take a sip?"

"I will not drink any more, and my brother should drink less too." Liu Yi said with a sincere and caring tone, "Then I will get busy now and will not disturb you anymore."

"Go ahead." Liu Cong drank the wine in his hand without looking at him. However, after leaving the room, he turned around and looked at the woman sitting on the left side with half her face covered, and laughed, and gave her a thumbs up.

The woman also raised her head, with a cunning look in her bright eyes. She raised the wine glass in her hand and drank it all. Then a few maids came over to pour wine. When the maids left the hall, the woman was gone.

Less than half a cup of tea later, Pingyang Prefecture Governor Qian Pufang hurriedly knelt outside the palace and asked for a meeting.

Liu Cong then asked all the women in the harem to leave, and he met Qian Pufang alone.

Mr. Qian has always been the prefect of Pingyang City. At the age of 56, he has been working diligently for more than 30 years as the prefect. He is an upright person. Therefore, whether he is an official in the Jin Dynasty or the Han Dynasty, the rank and position are the same. He thinks that as long as he can do things for the people of Pingyang, it doesn't matter who he is loyal to. Because of this thinking, he actually lives a much easier life and doesn't have so many routines.

Liu Cong liked him very much because he was not malicious and spoke with insight. Therefore, he allowed him to come directly to the main hall to report to him on various matters.

"Your Majesty, this tiger must be killed." Qian Pufang's face was full of anxiety. "A life has already been lost, we can't let it..."

"Who can kill this tiger?" Before he could finish, Liu Cong asked, "You?"

"Ah... I am old and weak, and I know I can't do it." Qian Pufang was very direct, "General Liu found ten hunters and asked them to rush in and hunt the tiger. It should be possible."

"Then did you know that the general's men were injured by this tiger a few days ago? They haven't recovered yet. Do you think our Han soldiers are brave, or those hunters are stronger? For so many years, we have only heard of tigers appearing in Phoenix Ridge, but we have never seen hunters kill tigers, right?"

Liu Cong was not polite at all and asked three questions in a row, leaving Qian Pufang at a loss as to how to answer.

"You have been in Pingyang City for many years. Have you ever seen anyone beat a tiger?" Liu Cong added another question. This time, Qian Pufang was completely silent. He looked at Liu Cong with his mouth open, "This... seems not to have happened."

"That's it. Besides, who do you think has the guts to fight a tiger? That would be like risking one's life." Liu Cong started laughing. "We should think about this matter carefully."

"That won't work. This tiger has already eaten a person today. If it gets hungry again tomorrow, it will come out and hurt people again." Qian Pufang said anxiously, "Your Majesty, we still need to think of a way to deal with this."

"What can we do?" Liu Cong snorted. "Hasn't the general sent some people around? The crown prince has also arranged his servants around. Then you should send some people to guard nearby. If a tiger comes out, even if you can't beat it, you can always shout a few times, right? Find a few guards who can run fast. If they see something wrong, they can run away!"

Seeing that the emperor had revealed his displeasure, Qian Pufang did not dare to go against his will. He could only agree meekly and left the palace to make arrangements.

As a result, two days later, the tiger jumped out of the gap in the rammed earth wall again, looking for food. Liu Yao's guards and the yamen runners of Qian Pufang ran fast, while the two servants of Liu Yi's villa ran slowly and were killed by the tiger in the street. This time, the tiger must have been hungry, so it started to tear and eat them in the street.

The news spread quickly, and the entire Pingyang City knew about the bloodbath. No one dared to go out, and all the shops closed their doors. Even the government offices and the palace began to put up their door panels, and the soldiers put on their armor and held their long swords tightly in their hands.

For a moment, the atmosphere was extremely tense.

Liu Yao got the news and hurried back from the camp ten miles away. However, he still did not lead his troops into Pingyang. After all, this matter was taboo. He first checked the situation at the gate of the other courtyard. No one dared to clean up the bloodstains. The mess revealed the ferocity and cruelty of the tiger. Even someone like him who had fought on the battlefield did not dare to look at such a scene.

But after the tiger entered the courtyard, there was no sound again.

"If we don't go in and catch the tiger, there will probably be even bigger disasters!" After seeing the scene, Liu Yao went straight into the palace and almost shouted at Liu Cong.

Liu Cong rubbed his ears. Many officials were also present. When they saw that Liu Yao had spoken, they followed suit. The main idea was to ask the emperor to put pressure on him and send people into Liu Yi's villa.

"Three lives have been lost. We must go in. Your Majesty, do you have any concerns?" Liu Yao was really straightforward. He glared at Liu Cong and said, "It's just a yard."

"Didn't the Crown Prince say that you can't come in?" Liu Cong began to pass the buck, "If he doesn't want to, then I can't force you to come in."

"Then I'll go find him." Liu Yao looked at Liu Cong again and found that he was nodding to him secretly. Although he was a little confused, he felt that Liu Cong agreed with this approach. Therefore, even if Liu Cong didn't say anything, he still went to Liu Yi's Crown Prince's Mansion outside the palace.

This place is separated from his general's residence by a wall, but it is much more beautiful than his own residence. Liu Yi is also a person who loves beauty and enjoys life. He even copied the architectural pattern of the Jiangnan water town. Pavilions, towers, corridors and terraces are all available, and there is a very beautiful artistic conception in the twists and turns. But Liu Yao was not in the mood to watch these, so he kicked the guards who were blocking him and rushed in.