Do you know: I am the crown prince

Chapter 389 The man behind the scenes
But if Hu Zhongyan's brother is involved with the Wizarding Cult, then that makes sense.

Hu Zhongyan said that he did not have the heart to kill his own relatives for the sake of justice, but in fact it was all for his own benefit.

In ancient times, relatives were required to protect each other's property. Except for the serious crime of treason, relatives not only could not report it, but also had to help conceal it.

Otherwise, not only will the report be in vain, but you will also be held accountable.

This regulation is also intended to maintain the harmony of clan families.

Although the Wizard Cult is a cult, it has never rebelled before. Hu Zhongyan's brother is involved with the Wizard Cult, but it cannot be considered a serious crime of treason.

According to the rules of protecting one's relatives, this matter falls within the scope of protecting one's relatives.

Once Hu Zhongyan reports it, he will be held accountable.

From this perspective, it seems that Hu Zhongyan was right not to report it, and there is no need to get involved with the Wizarding Cult.

But that's not how things work. Once the Wizarding Cult rebels, it's unclear whether his brother knows about it or not.

Before Zhao Xing ascended the throne, he had opposed the Qingmiao Law implemented by Zhao Xing in Kaifeng Prefecture.

This incident will also become a reason for Zhao Xing to deal with him.

However, Zhao Xing did not dwell on the specific reasons, but asked: "I still have one thing that I don't understand. The rebellion in Jiangzhou was led by the Wizard Cult, and even some people from the Wizard Cult were in charge. Although I don't understand the purpose of the Wizard Cult launching a rebellion at this time.

But for the Wizard Cult, they certainly want the rebellion to last as long as possible. However, when it comes to sending troops to quell the rebellion, you have always advocated increasing the number of troops and even opposed my sending more troops to Hehuang.

If you do this, there is no way the people in the wizarding sect don't know, right?"

Hu Zhongyan was silent for a while after hearing this, and then said, "I don't know what the Wizard Cult wants to do, but after the imperial court sent troops to quell the rebellion, the Wizard Cult seems to be confident in dealing with it. They asked me to find a way to stop the imperial court from sending more troops to Jiangzhou."

“The reason why I oppose sending more troops to Hehuang is because I have carefully understood your Majesty’s character.

Your Majesty seems to be very confident in the decisions he has made. The more I try to stop you, the more determined you become. This is why I am trying to stop you from sending more troops to Hehuang."

Zhao Xing was stunned after hearing this. He thought for a long time that Hu Zhongyan was taking advantage of his rebellious psychology.

Indeed, after sending reinforcements to Hehuang, Bianliang was left with a lack of military strength. Once the Song Dynasty was defeated, it would be difficult for the court to mobilize more troops to Jiangzhou.

"Do you have anything else to say?" Zhao Xing asked.

"I know my crime is unforgivable. I am willing to exchange the information taught by the wizard for your majesty to spare the lives of my family!" Hu Zhongyan said.

"Haha." Zhao Xing laughed and said, "You still dare to negotiate terms with me?"

"It can't be considered as negotiating terms." Hu Zhongyan shook his head and said, "I have not been in contact with the Wizard Cult for a long time, and the Wizard Cult has always been wary of me, but after some conversations, I can judge that many of the rebellions that have occurred over the years are related to the Wizard Cult.

The Wizarding Cult hides in the dark, destroying the stability of the world and is always a threat. Your Majesty must want to eliminate it.

Whether my family members are killed or not is of no consequence to Your Majesty.

Moreover, since Your Majesty ascended the throne, there has been too much killing, and the people in the court are in a panic. Your Majesty can also calm people's hearts by forsaking my family."

"Haha, I am convinced by what you said."

Zhao Xing smiled and said, "But since I know that you are involved with the Wizard Cult, it means that I am not completely ignorant of the Wizard Cult. The Grand Master is here too, and I promise that if the information you told me is useful, I can spare your family's life. But if I already know the information you told me, don't blame me."

Hu Zhongyan was silent for a while after hearing this, and then said, "The woman in my house who is in charge of contacting the Wizard Cult is named Ruyu. I am not sure if she is really my real name, but this woman's identity should not be simple."

"I already know about this matter. Before you came, Yin Hanzhang, who arrested you, had already noticed it and reported it to me. The Prime Minister was also there at that time." Zhao Xing said.

Hu Zhongyan looked at Han Zhang when he heard this. Seeing Han Zhang nodded, he said doubtfully, "Of course, I want to say more than this. This alone cannot protect my family."

"As far as I know, the person commanding the rebels in Jiangzhou has a high status in the Wizard Cult. If Your Majesty can capture him, it will be of great help in eradicating the Wizard Cult." Hu Zhongyan said.

He judged this from his conversation with Ruyu.

"Sanshui!" Zhao Xing's face changed when he heard this, and he said, "Send a message to Song Chaozhong immediately, and tell him to capture the leader of the rebels!"

"Yes!" Sanshui responded and hurried away.

"This alone is not enough!" Zhao Xing looked at Hu Zhongyan and said.

"The Wizarding Cult is related to the descendants of the Chai family!" Hu Zhong said in shocking words.

"Impossible!" Zhao Xing's face changed when he heard that.

You should know that the Song Dynasty was established by seizing the kingdom from the Guo family, or more precisely, the Chai family.

At that time, the emperor of Later Zhou had no son, so he passed the throne to his adopted son Chai Rong.

After Emperor Taizu seized power, although he did not kill all the descendants of the Chai family, he still kept them under close surveillance.

Although Emperor Taizu's means of seizing the world were not very glorious, he did better than any other emperor in history in this regard.

He left a bloodline for the descendants of the Chai family who changed their surname to Guo.

For example, Princess Pingning’s maiden family, the Marquis of Xiangyang, is descended from the Chai family.

"It's not the Guo family, it's the Chai family." Hu Zhongyan emphasized.

Zhao Xing breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this. The Chai family was a prominent family in Xingzhou with a large number of people.

Hu Zhongyan emphasized that they were not the Guo family, meaning they were not the descendants of Chai Rong, but members of the Chai family.

Even though the Song Dynasty was established a hundred years ago, Chai Rong was a wise ruler back then.

Taizu was able to conquer the world thanks to the family fortune left by Chai Rong.

If Chai Rong had not died too early, there would have been no Emperor Taizu at all.

"If your majesty thinks that they are not members of the Guo family, then you can ignore them."

Seeing Zhao Xing's relieved look, Hu Zhongyan said hurriedly, "Although the Song Dynasty has been established for a hundred years, the one from the Chai family was very popular when he was in power. Even now, there are still people who worship his longevity tablet."

"do not worry."

Zhao Xing waved his hand and said, "I will certainly not neglect this."

The one from the Chai family was indeed very popular back then. It was okay in other areas, after all, the territory of the Later Zhou Dynasty was not that large at that time.

But in the Central Plains area, there are indeed many people who remember his kindness.

But the common people cannot tell the truth from the false. If someone really raises the banner of being the descendant of the Chai family, he should not be underestimated.

Zhao Xing felt relieved because this way, the possibility of someone from the Guo family being involved would be low.

If the Guo family got involved, Zhao Xing would really have a headache.

After all, Taizu left behind ancestral instructions that even if Chai Rong's descendants rebelled, they could only be placed under house arrest.

Moreover, if we take action against Chai Rong's descendants and let them take advantage of us, it will cause a lot of trouble.

"Then your majesty promised me..." Hu Zhongyan looked at Zhao Xing with some anticipation.

"If I had known this, why would I do it in the first place?"

Zhao Xing shook his head slightly and said, "I can promise to spare your family's lives, but I will demote them to slavery. Whether they can escape slavery in the future depends on their luck."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Hu Zhongyan knelt down excitedly and kowtowed heavily to Zhao Xing.

(End of this chapter)