The prince is more stable

Chapter 601 Uprooted
Communicating with his generals was the easiest thing for Zhao Xiaoqian. He didn't need to tell them the cause and effect; he only needed to tell them what to do, and the generals would carry it out meticulously.

Only when absolute trust is established between superiors and subordinates can they be commanded with ease. Over the years, Zhao Xiaoqian has deliberately collected famous generals whose names have been recorded in history books, and these generals have never disappointed him.

Those who can leave their mark in history must have extraordinary abilities.

For example, Zhong Jianzhong was indeed outstanding in terms of strategy and military leadership. Zhao Xiaoqian repeatedly ran back to Zhengding City and left the soldiers in Zhong Jianzhong's camp. Under Zhong Jianzhong's command, the soldiers performed perfectly in both training and combat.

For example, Zhe Keshi, who came from the famous Zhe family in the Northwest, was a true son of a military family. He had a bit of a temper and a rather rough personality, but he was a fierce general on the battlefield, and the tasks assigned to him never disappointed Zhao Xiaoqian.

There are also Zong Ze, Zhang Rong, Di Zi, and others, each with their own unique characteristics.

Zhao Xiaoqian was proud that he had some talent for recognizing and employing people. The generals he personally selected were all extraordinary. Being able to lead such a group of famous generals to conquer all directions was truly a great fortune in his life.

Zhe Keshi had a bad temper, but he was as docile as a rabbit in front of Zhao Xiaoqian.

They were all the same age, and Zhe Keshi was even a few years older than Zhao Xiaoqian, but Zhe Keshi respected him very much, and respected him from the bottom of his heart.

In just a few years, with an army of tens of thousands, he single-handedly reversed the situation between the Song and Liao dynasties. Isn't that enough to convince people? Anyone who could accomplish such a feat would be worthy of Zhe Keshi's respect.

Being transferred from the Northwest to Zhengding by Zhao Xiaoqian was a great honor for Zhe Keshi, and the Zhe family in the Northwest was also very happy. During the Song-Xia War, Zhao Xiaoqian's performance was outstanding, which was noticed not only by Zhe Keshi, but also by the entire Zhe family, a military family in the Northwest.

When the imperial court ordered Zhe Keshi to join the Dragon Guard, the Zhe family sent him off without hesitation. They knew very well that letting Zhe Keshi follow Zhao Xiaoqian would definitely be a good deal, and his future would be dazzlingly bright.

So even though Zhe Keshi was a few years older than Zhao Xiaoqian, he acted like a well-behaved and obedient younger brother in front of Zhao Xiaoqian.

“I’m an expert at killing people, a real pro! Haha! Your Highness, just tell me who you want to kill, and I, Zhe Keshi, will personally twist their head off and present it to you as a wine vessel.” Zhe Keshi laughed heartily.

Zhao Xiaoqian curled his lip in disgust: "Stay away from me. What kind of pervert uses a head as a drinking vessel? I don't have that kind of hobby."

"Your Highness, I've heard that the Liao people have a fondness for this. They like to cut off the heads of their enemies, use ancient methods to salt them, and then make them into drinking vessels. They hold the skull, fill it with wine, and drink wildly. Tsk!"

"Stop talking nonsense. Did I call you all this way just to chat with me?" Zhao Xiaoqian pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. The paper was covered with place names and a string of Taoist temples and monasteries.

"Have your troops divide into several groups and take over all these Taoist temples and Buddhist monasteries," Zhao Xiaoqian said.

"Does 'take care of them all' mean... kill them all?" Zhe Keshi asked uncertainly.

Zhao Xiaoqian hesitated for a moment. Normally, given his personality, he would do things like killing the enemy and eliminating harm without giving them a chance to make a comeback.

However, if the Taoist priests and monks in these temples are only accumulating wealth, they are not guilty of a capital offense and there is no need to commit such a great sin. After all, Niao Niao is pregnant and should accumulate merit for the sake of the child, so it is not convenient for her to start a massacre now.

With a sigh, Zhao Xiaoqian said, "Arrest all the Taoist priests and monks first, and hand them over to the Imperial City Guard for interrogation and sentencing. The Imperial City Guard will decide how to deal with them."

"However, if anyone resists or tries to escape, kill them without hesitation."

Zhe Keshi took the paper from Zhao Xiaoqian's hand, glanced at it, and then grinned: "Your Highness, rest assured, leave this matter to me, I will definitely handle it properly for you, two days will be enough."

Zhao Xiaoqian continued, "After dealing with these Taoist temples and Buddhist monasteries, there is one more thing. This matter is quite swift and will allow you to go on a killing spree."

Zhe Keshi's eyes lit up immediately: "Really?"

Zhao Xiaoqian slowly pulled out another piece of paper from his pocket and said, "These are several hills and estates under the jurisdiction of Zhen Ding Prefecture. The people entrenched here are all bandits who kill and rob, about four or five groups. After you deal with the Taoist temples and Buddhist temples, immediately lead your troops to wipe out these places."

After a pause, Zhao Xiaoqian said, "When suppressing bandits, we can leave no one alive and send these scourges to their next life as soon as possible."

"Yes!"

He was born a killer; he would get excited just talking about murder.

After everything was settled, Zhao Xiaoqian left the camp. Zhe Keshi respectfully saw him off at the gate, then turned around and shouted with wide eyes, "By order of His Highness the Prince, must muster the troops!"

…………

In the following days, several groups of Song soldiers suddenly appeared in the nine counties under the jurisdiction of Zhending Prefecture, each group consisting of about two to three thousand men.

Carrying firearms, they stormed into the Taoist temples and monasteries built in the cities or in the countryside within the nine counties, capturing the Taoist priests and monks inside, leaving behind a group of believers looking at each other in bewilderment.

Within just two days, the Song army swept through more than ten Taoist temples and Buddhist monasteries, causing unrest among the local people. When they heard that it was Zhao Xiaoqian, the prefect of Zhending, who gave the order, the people were even more confused.

These people were originally devout believers, some of whom were Taoists and some Buddhists. Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly issued this strange order, and all the Taoist temples and monasteries under his jurisdiction were swept away. In the eyes of the people, wasn't this prince going against the gods and Buddhas?

For a time, discussions and disturbances arose throughout the territory of Zhen Ding Prefecture.

By the time the discussions reached Zhengding City, public opinion had become quite serious. Faced with the questions raised by the people under its jurisdiction, the Zhengding government immediately posted a notice bearing the official seal, detailing how Taoist temples and monasteries were extorting money and swindling farmers, and listing in detail how a certain Taoist priest or monk had defrauded someone of a certain amount of money in a certain year and month.

Prefect Zhao Xiaoqian of Zhending has arrested a Taoist priest and a monk in order to cleanse the area, investigate and punish illegal activities, and restore order to the region. He hopes that all the people under his jurisdiction will be aware of this.

When the notice from the government office was posted, the people suddenly realized what had happened. Those who had been cheated out of their money and were still kept in the dark stomped their feet and cursed loudly, extremely angry.

As for the authenticity of the notice issued by the government office, almost no one doubted it.

There was no other reason than that it was said by Prefect Zhao Xiaoqian. If he said it was true, then it must be true. How could a god-like figure like the Prefect deceive the people?

Those who had been cheated out of their money thought about it carefully and realized that it was true. Villagers in many villages also suddenly realized the truth. Some who had been cheated out of their entire fortunes cried out in despair, full of regret.

As soon as the notices were posted by the government office, the public criticism and opinion quickly subsided, and the Taoist temples and Buddhist temples were also searched and sealed by the yamen runners of the Zhengding government office.

The matter was not over yet. The Taoist priests and monks had just been arrested and imprisoned in the Zhen Ding Prefecture prison when the Imperial City Guard took over the interrogation and busied themselves with verifying their confessions and securing evidence.

Meanwhile, Zhe Keshi's 10,000 troops began to attack several bandit groups north of Zhengding Prefecture.

Bandits were entrenched in various places, living as outlaws. Whether they were as loyal as the heroes of Liangshan is unknown, but it is certain that their martial arts skills were inferior to those of the heroes of Liangshan. Moreover, no matter how high their individual martial arts skills were, they were no match for a regular army lined up in battle.

Zhe Keshi won this battle with a clear advantage, and his forces were divided into several groups and launched attacks simultaneously.

The bandit suppression operation ended in less than an hour that day, with the outcome being entirely predictable.

The four or five bandit groups were easily wiped out by the Song army. Zhe Keshi captured the bandit leader, spared his life, and killed the rest on the spot, leaving none alive.

The fact that Zhe Keshi spared the life of the bandit leader was not because he was soft-hearted, but because Zhao Xiaoqian instructed him to keep him alive for interrogation, to verify his confession and evidence. In the future, these survivors would be used as tools to secure the Chai family's guilt.

In just a few days, Zhao Xiaoqian uprooted the territory and influence that the Chai family had painstakingly built up in the territory of Zhen Ding Prefecture.

Chai Ruona never expected that Zhao Xiaoqian would be so disrespectful. Just a few days after giving him a stern warning, he took action and even mobilized regular troops.

The most elite imperial guard of the Song Dynasty, which drove the Liao Kingdom north and annihilated 15 Liao armies, was actually transferred by Zhao Xiaoqian to deal with a few bandit groups.

To say it's like using a cannon to kill a mosquito is to give the mosquito an unfair advantage.

…………

Bian Jing, Yanfu Palace.

Zhao Xu's face was gloomy as he stared at the memorial in his hand. This memorial had just been sent to Bianjing, and Zhao Xu had read it many times in the Funing Palace. He could almost recite every word on it.

The memorial was written by Zhao Xiaoqian, and its contents were quite explosive.

Zhao Xu had received a similar memorial several days earlier, also written by Zhao Xiaoqian.

The first memorial detailed how the Chai family of Daming Prefecture built Taoist temples and monasteries in many places in Hebei, where the Taoist priests and monks swindled money, causing great harm to the people of Zhending Prefecture, with many being cheated out of their entire fortunes.

Just as Zhao Xiaoqian had guessed, Zhao Xu did not take his first memorial seriously and was unable to make any reply.

To be honest, Zhao Xu is not someone who can afford to offend the Chai family of Daming Prefecture.

After all, Emperor Taizu left behind a will before his death, the first of which was to instruct all the emperors of the Song Dynasty to treat the descendants of the Chai family well, and not to punish them unless they rebelled. Even if the descendants of the Chai family rebelled, they could only be executed in secret, and the relatives of the Chai family should not be implicated or the matter made public.

This is the legacy left by the founding emperor, and it is now engraved on a stone tablet outside Yanfu Palace.

Therefore, Zhao Xu could only ignore Zhao Xiaoqian's first memorial impeaching the Chai family.

What else can he do?
Even the emperor cannot do whatever he wants. Many things are taboo and untouchable for the emperor, including the Chai family.

Zhao Xu could only pretend not to hear Zhao Xiaoqian's memorial, so he didn't even reply with a single word, as if he had completely forgotten about it.

Today, Zhao Xu received Zhao Xiaoqian's second memorial, which also impeached the Chai family. This one was much more substantial, and Zhao Xiaoqian also attached a lot of evidence of the Chai family's illegal activities.

After carefully examining the document, Zhao Xu's expression gradually darkened.

He finally realized that something was wrong with the Chai family, which he had been deliberately ignoring.

(End of this chapter)