Thief Emperor

Chapter 123 We’ll see!
There is nothing wrong with what Cui Shao said.

The imperial court ordered local government offices to recruit soldiers, and then they would wait for orders from the military commander who would be sent by the imperial court. Cui Shao, the local governor, was only responsible for recruiting soldiers. At most, the soldiers he recruited could fight a little, so the military commander would mention him when he asked for credit later.

That's why he cares so much about it.

However, this is for ordinary provincial governors.

Who is Cui Shao? A young master from a thousand-year-old family, the nephew of Prime Minister Cui Yuan!

With such a status, he would have a say no matter who the court sent. It would not be difficult to let Li Yun lead a battalion independently. He would see whether Cui Shao was willing to do so and whether he was willing to use his own face to help Li Yun do things.

And now, Li Yun has a bargaining chip in his hand, that is He Gang.

Although after several days of interrogation, it was found that He Gang did not have much power or a particularly high status within the Qiudian Group, his identity was very special.

Because Qiu Dian's family conditions were average, he didn't have many relatives, especially those who rebelled with him. Apart from those with the surname Qiu, the person closest to him was He Gang.

With such a person around, Cui Shao could send him directly to the capital in a cage while the imperial army commander had not arrived yet. Then his uncle the prime minister could say a few good words in front of the emperor, and a useless and great achievement would be accomplished immediately!
Therefore, even Cui Shao, who was born in an aristocratic family, was a little excited at this moment. He looked straight at Li Yun and asked, "How did you catch him?"

"We were ordered to suppress bandits in various places in Xuanzhou. When we arrived in Ningguo County, we found traces of a group of bandits from Tianmu Mountain. Although Tianmu Mountain is not within the territory of Ningguo County, since they have harassed Ningguo, we have to suppress them. So I led the anti-bandit team and chased them to Tianmu Mountain."

"After arriving at Tianmu Mountain, we found that the bandits there were wantonly slaughtering villagers from nearby villages. When we arrived at Xia'ao Village, we found that nearly half of the villagers had been slaughtered by the bandits. The anti-bandit team was furious, so we went to Tianmu Mountain and fought fiercely for a day and a night before we wiped out all the bandits there!"

"After we wiped out the Tianmu Mountain bandits, we suddenly discovered that these Tianmu Mountain bandits were connected with the Yuezhou rebels. The one who communicated with them was none other than the rebel Qiu Dian's brother-in-law He Gang. With the help of a plan, we finally captured the rebel He Gang and killed dozens of them!"

There were some truths and some falsehoods in what Mr. Li said. The process and result of the incident were basically true. Even if Cui Shao sent people to investigate, they would not be able to find any flaws.

However, Li concealed his motives for going to Tianmu Mountain and some details that were unfavorable to him, and Cui Shao would never be able to find out these details.

Cui Shao took a deep breath and slowly calmed down. After a long while, he sat down and asked, "Do you have any evidence?"

Li Yun knew that this guy was not asking for evidence of killing the thief, but was asking if there was any evidence of He Gang's identity.

He had been prepared for this matter. He took out a waist badge from his bosom, handed it to Cui Shao, and said, "Please look, sir. This is the waist badge of the so-called Yue Palace of the rebel Qiu Dian. Only with this badge can you pass through the Yue Palace."

"In addition, He Gang also has a seal proving his identity, but I came in such a hurry that I forgot to bring it with me."

Cui Shao took the rough badge and saw the seal script word "Yue" on it. He read it over and over again, then slapped his thigh and shouted.

"it is good!"

He looked at Li Yun, somewhat anxiously: "Where is the rebel now?"

"Still in Tianmu Mountain."

Envoy Cui took a deep breath and managed to regain his composure.

"Why didn't you bring them back to Xuanzhou? Tianmu Mountain is too close to the rebels' lair, and there might be unexpected changes."

Li Yun smiled and said, "Don't worry, sir. The rebels don't seem to be that powerful. I will definitely bring He Gang to you in one piece."

Cui Shao nodded and said, "Okay, then Captain Li, bring He Gang to Xuanzhou as soon as possible. After I interrogate him, I will immediately escort him to the capital and hand him over to the court for punishment."

Li Yun stood there and did not agree, just smiled and said nothing.

Cui Shao was a little annoyed and said in a muffled voice: "After all, I am your superior, so why are you so inconsiderate when I ask you to do something?"

Li Dutou looked calm and said, "The envoy asked me to come to the prefecture, so I came right away. I am now in Tianmu Mountain, and the rebels may be watching me. If the envoy insists on transporting He Gang back to Xuanzhou, and he is robbed by the rebels on the way, it will be too late for regret."

Cui Shao could naturally hear the threat in these words. He was almost laughing out of anger and slammed the table: "Are you negotiating business with me? Are you doing business with me?"

"Don't dare."

Li Yun said calmly, "If the envoy insists on having the person back now, I will go and bring him back immediately."

Cui Shao grunted, gnashing his teeth and said, "You bastard! If the imperial army commander doesn't arrive this month, he will definitely arrive next month! When he reaches the vicinity of Yuezhou, will the credit for capturing the rebels be attributed to him or to me?"

"You must give him to me first, at least before the marching commander arrives. Otherwise, he will be of no use to me."

"When I send the people to the capital, I will naturally write a letter to ask for your credit. Even if I don't go to the military commander to negotiate peace, will the court lose your credit?"

Li Yun smiled.

It is better to believe that there are ghosts in the world than to believe what these officials say! He lowered his head slightly and said, "Since the envoy said so, I will escort the people back right away. If anything goes wrong on the way, it will not be my business."

Cui Shao's face turned black.

He looked up at Li Yun, took a deep breath, and said, "How about this, let's find a compromise. You bring the person to Xuanzhou City first, and I will confirm his identity. Don't rush to escort him to the capital. Wait until the imperial army chief arrives and takes care of your matter before escorting him to the capital. Okay?"

"Of course I will obey your orders."

There is no way to continue the stalemate with Cui Shao on this matter. After all, there is really no way Li Yun can do anything with He Gang.

At that time, if the imperial army commander was determined to split up Li Yun's anti-theft team, Li would have no choice but to break them up into small pieces and let those anti-theft teams become bandits in the mountains again.

Since he already has a plan to deal with it, there is no need to push Cui Shao too hard.

After the two of them took a step back, they finally came to an agreement. Cui Shao looked at Li Yun and couldn't help but clapped his hands and said, "When I was in the capital, I never thought that one day I would be negotiating terms with a county head like this. Li Zhao, Li Zhao, you are really a talent."

"Don't dare to take it seriously."

Li Yun smiled and said, "It's just that the envoy needs me to do something, and I also happen to ask the envoy for something, so we each get what we need."

"In fact, it is the same whether in the capital or in the countryside. It's just that you are of noble birth and have never discovered this truth before."

Most things in the world are essentially exchanges of interests. Cui Shao didn't realize it before, but in fact it was because when he gained benefits, his family or his elders paid the price for him.

As for the benefits that some people gain by using their power, in fact it is the entire public power that bears the cost for individuals.

Now, it is difficult for public power to restrain Li Yun, and Cui Shao has to make some exchanges of interests with Li Yun.

After hearing what Li Yun said, Cui Shijun was thoughtful. After a long while, he clapped his hands and sighed, "Before I left the capital, my uncle told me that if I put more effort into the local area, I could learn a lot. At that time, I didn't think so. Now, Li Dutou has taught me some truths."

Cui Shao stood up, looked at Li Yun, and said, "Okay, we've reached an agreement."

"Now, the chaos in Yuezhou may affect nearby states and counties. Li Dutou has a lot of skills and can be used in many places. There are still many areas for us to cooperate in the future."

"Let's have dinner together tonight?"

Li Yun lowered his head slightly and said, "There are still many things to do in Tianmu Mountain. I also have to escort the rebel He Gang back. I will have dinner with you again if there is a chance."

"Alright."

Cui Shao sat back in his seat and said calmly, "Then after Yuezhou is completed, we will have a meal together."

Li Yun clasped his fists and said with a smile, "Of course, of course."

After that, he turned and left.

Governor Cui watched Li Yun go away, anger slowly growing in his eyes.

He slammed the table, trying to suppress his anger.

What a peasant! How ignorant of the current situation!

Envoy Cui groaned and talked to himself.

"We'll see!"

On the other side, after leaving the Xuanzhou government office, Li Dadutou walked to the gate of the government office and looked back at the government office with a cold look in his eyes.

These court officials are so selfish, each one is worse than the other, especially Cui Shao.

The so-called thousand-year-old family has this virtue.

The world has become so rotten that it is almost impossible to reverse the situation.

But now is not the time to settle accounts with them.

Thinking of this, Li turned his head and got on his horse. Before shaking the reins, he looked back at the sign of the yamen again, with only three words left in his mind.

"We'll see!"

(End of this chapter)