Huangming

Chapter 131 Bewitched by Golden Ointment, Warlords Rise at the Inn

After Wang Tiqian left, Prince Fu, Zhu Changxun, with the help of his close attendant eunuchs, went to the study hall and summoned Chen Liangbi, the commander of the guards of the Prince Fu's residence, the Taoist priest Li Chongdao, the unsuccessful candidate Zhao Shiyong, the right chief secretary Zhou Shiwen, and others to seek their advice.

Prince Fu, Zhu Changxun, slumped in a rosewood chair in the study, his fat bulging out from the armrests, looking like a bloated lump of dough.

He wiped away his sweat and, panting, said, "Tell me, are we going to the capital tomorrow, or what are we going to do?"

"You can't go!"

Chen Liangbi, the commander of the guards of the Prince of Fu's mansion, slammed his fist on the table, causing his armor to rattle.

"Twenty thousand troops from the Beijing Garrison are pressing in? Who are you trying to scare! Our Prince's Mansion has three thousand elite soldiers, plus eight hundred elite warriors we secretly keep. If we really fight, how could twenty thousand corrupt Beijing Garrison soldiers be a match for us?"

He looked at Zhu Changxun with eager eyes and said, "Your Majesty, there is no need to be afraid of Wang Tiqian!"

Chen Liangbi was originally a military officer in the Beijing Garrison. In the 42nd year of the Wanli Emperor's reign, he was transferred to the Prince of Fu's residence.

His wealth and status all depended on the Prince of Fu's mansion. If the Prince of Fu fell from power, he would lose his wealth and status.

If Prince Fu were to enter the capital this time, in his view, he would face a nine-out-of-ten chance of death.

Therefore, he did his utmost to prevent Prince Fu from entering the capital!

Seeing this, the Taoist priest Li Chongdao stroked his beard and said with a sinister smile, "Your Majesty has taken my elixir. If you enter the capital now, the imperial physicians will surely notice something amiss. It would be better to feign illness and delay until I refine another batch of 'Five Stones Calamity-Avoiding Pills' and pretend to be seriously ill. Then Wang Tiqian will not dare to let Your Majesty go north to the capital."

Li Chongdao relied on Prince Fu for his livelihood. After Prince Fu consumed the golden elixir he had previously refined, it caused him to fall seriously ill.

He was subtly disliked by Prince Fu, so naturally he wanted to prove his abilities this time.

otherwise
Wouldn't his wealth and status be gone?
Living on the streets and resorting to charlatanry is no easy life.

However, before he could finish speaking, he was loudly rebuked by Zhao Shiyong, a candidate who had failed the election: "Bullshit! Your lousy elixir formula caused the King to break out in rashes all over his body, and you still want to take more elixirs? Do you want to poison the King?"

Prince Fu already had a psychological aversion to Li Chongdao's elixir.

They had absolutely no interest in his so-called 'Five Stones Calamity-Averting Pill'.

It would be ridiculous if someone actually died from taking the elixir.

"I think we should give up on the Golden Elixir method of delaying the inevitable," Zhu Changxun said with a heavy heart.

Hearing that Prince Fu was on his side, Zhao Shiyong raised his voice even louder.

"Your Majesty, if His Majesty truly intended to kill, Wang Tiqian should have acted today! In my humble opinion, this is merely a test!"

Zhou Shiwen, the Right Chief Secretary and confidant of Prince Fu, was quite displeased to see this old scholar, who hadn't even passed the provincial examination, daring to display his schemes in front of him. He then spoke up sarcastically:

"Brother Zhao, you failed the imperial examination three years ago, but you've certainly honed your ability to 'guess the emperor's intentions'?"

He straightened his clothes and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, you are the most beloved prince of Emperor Wanli! The current emperor has just ascended the throne and is already slaughtering his own relatives? He would not dare! But if he disobeys the imperial decree, it will only give His Majesty an excuse to punish him for treason. I hope Your Majesty will see this clearly."

Zhao Shiyong's face turned pale and then red after being ridiculed by Zhou Shiwen, but he dared not utter a word in rebuttal because of Zhou Shiwen's status in the Prince of Fu's mansion.

On the contrary, Chen Liangbi was so angry that his face turned red when he heard that Zhou Shiwen had urged Prince Fu to go to the capital.

"you!"

Chen Liangbi suddenly grabbed Zhou Shiwen by the collar.

"How much silver did that Zhou fellow take from the eunuch faction? If His Majesty goes there, he'll probably be locked up in the high walls of Fengyang!"

Prince Fu was so annoyed by the noise that he slammed his hand on the table and yelled, "All of you, shut up!"

He panted for a moment, then suddenly stared at Zhao Shiyong: "You're saying this is a test?"

Zhao Shiyong was overjoyed when the Prince of Fu called his name. He leaned closer and whispered, "I've heard that the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs is in a three-way power struggle, with Wei Chao and Wei Zhongxian each holding important positions, while Wang Tiqian is weak. In my humble opinion, that old dog Wang Tiqian is eager to make a name for himself, so he's using Your Highness as a stepping stone!"

His eyes gleamed as he said, “If you go to the capital without hesitation, you will appear to have a clear conscience. Then, if you complain to the Emperor about the officials in Luoyang deceiving him, His Majesty will not dare to do anything to you.”

"Wonderful!"

Prince Fu's eyes lit up, and his fat hands patted his belly so hard it trembled.

"Just push all those land and salt taxes onto Zhang Lun and Lü Bangyao!"

After figuring things out, the bitter look on Prince Fu's face faded considerably.

Ouch~
He suddenly felt a sharp pain in his body.

The rash is painful again.

He waved to Li Chongdao.

"come here"

Li Chongdao stepped forward with a fawning smile, thinking that the Prince of Fu had some instructions. Unexpectedly, the fat prince kicked the Taoist priest to the ground and roared, "You're in so much pain, Prince Fu! Go and brew some medicine! If these rashes aren't gone before we set off tomorrow, I'll refine you into a golden elixir!"

Li Chongdao was kicked by the 300-pound Prince Fu and almost passed out. Now, seeing stars, he got up and hurriedly said, "I will go and brew the medicine right away."

After saying that, he scrambled out of the study.

Upon seeing that Prince Fu was determined to go to the capital, Chen Liangbi hurriedly knelt on one knee and said, "Going to the capital this time is certain death. Your Majesty, please reconsider!"

"idiot!"

Prince Fu spat a mouthful of phlegm onto his armor.

"Is the Duke of England's Beijing Garrison just for show? I bet you're just hoping I die soon so you can swallow up your private stash of weapons!"

After speaking, Zhu Changxun turned to Zhou Shiwen, grinned, and said:

"Chief Secretary, write a letter to Zhang Weixian, saying that I am concerned about the soldiers' thin winter clothes and have specially gifted them 10,000 taels of silver."

First, establish good relations with the British.

I, Prince Fu, am a model prince, how could I possibly rebel? Meanwhile, at the Luoyang post station.

Wang Tiqian and Prince Consort Wan Wei met with Zhou Ding, the Left Chief Secretary of the Prince of Fu's residence, and Huang Sheng, the Prince of Fu's tutor.

The Left Chief Secretary of the Chief Secretary's Office was a legitimate civil official appointed by the imperial court, unlike the Right Chief Secretary, who was appointed by the Prince's Mansion.

His duty was to 'guide the king to good,' but in reality, he restrained the actions of the vassal kings.

Zhou Ding once submitted a memorial advising Prince Fu to reduce the amount of land he owned to appease the people, but he was ostracized by the Prince's Office and disliked by Prince Fu, so he was not a confidant of Prince Fu.

Huang Sheng, the tutor who accompanied Prince Fu, was recommended to serve as a tutor in Prince Fu's residence as a candidate for the imperial examination, but in reality, he secretly monitored Prince Fu's actions for the court.

After Emperor Taichang ascended the throne, he secretly ordered Huang Sheng to strengthen surveillance. When Prince Fu, Zhu Changxun, discovered this, Huang Sheng was alienated by Prince Fu.

The two men were now standing around Wang Tiqian.

Wang Tiqian picked up a cup of tea and asked the crowd, "You all know the situation in the Prince of Fu's mansion best. I have a question for you: After I announce the imperial decree today, will the Prince of Fu rebel?"

Left Chief Secretary Zhou Ding shook his head and said, "Replying to Your Excellency, Prince Fu has neither the courage nor the ability. Although Prince Fu's mansion has trained a considerable number of soldiers, Prince Fu is stingy, and those soldiers all have grievances against him and will not follow him in rebellion."

Prince Fu was rich, but stingy.

He had no popularity among the people of Luoyang, and no prestige among the soldiers.

Such a person has absolutely no chance of successfully rebelling.

Upon hearing this, Wang Tiqian was slightly disappointed. He had been hoping that the Prince of Fu would rebel, capture him, and present his immense wealth to the emperor in hopes of gaining favor.

Now it seems
His plan is probably doomed to fail.

"Eunuch Wang."

Professor Huang Sheng, who was accompanying Prince Fu, reminded him from the side: "Prince Fu may not rebel, but his men may. I think everyone should be careful tonight. I'm afraid some people will take risks and follow in Ban Chao's footsteps."

Wang Tiqian narrowed his eyes and tapped his fingers lightly on the table: "Oh? Professor Huang, that's interesting. Tell me, who would take the risk?"

Huang Sheng lowered his voice, his neck hunched forward like an alert quail: "That military man Chen Liangbi! I have personally witnessed him hoarding firearms, and he often tells his guards that fortune and honor are found in danger. I am worried that he will take the risk and kill the eunuch, forcing Prince Fu to rebel."

"fart!"

Suddenly, Prince Consort Wan Wei slammed his hand on the table and stood up, making the teacups rattle.

"How dare a mere guard commander touch an angel? This captain will go and chop him up right now!"

He was about to draw his knife and leave when he said that.

"Princess Consort, wait!"

Zhou Ding grabbed Wan Wei's sleeve and said with a wry smile, "Your commotion has only alerted the enemy."

Wang Tiqian suddenly smiled sinisterly: "I'm actually hoping he rebels. What do you think we should do if Chen Liangbi really leads his men in tonight?"

"That's just right!"

The commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard beside Wang Tiqian excitedly interrupted.

"This humble servant will lead the Henan Guard soldiers to lie in ambush around the post station, waiting for Chen Liangbi to come. When he does, we will catch him red-handed!"

Zhou Ding frowned: "Your Excellency, this is inappropriate. If a bloodbath really occurs, His Majesty will lose face."

"Zhou Changshi is overthinking it."

Wang Tiqian slowly sipped his tea and said gently, "Your Majesty only cares about the results. As long as things aren't messed up, any means are acceptable."

The old eunuch said to the people in the post station, "Send the order! Everyone must remain in their armor. The Henan Guard should bring more soldiers to ambush the surrounding area. Tell them that as long as they defend the post station like an iron fortress, each person will be rewarded with ten taels of silver! If they perform meritorious service, it is not impossible for them to be promoted beyond the usual level."

Under the reward, there must be a brave man.

Wang Tiqian intended to utilize their strength and courage.

The accompanying Imperial Guard commander licked his lips and leaned closer, whispering, "Sir, should we... deliberately leave a flaw?"

Huang Sheng shuddered upon hearing this. Zhou Ding was about to dissuade him when Wang Tiqian said quietly, "You little commander, you really know the art of fishing!"

The candlelight cast an indistinct glow on half of his face.

"Unfortunately, our bait is too precious and can't withstand the bites. We should prioritize safety."

Although it's a risky move, at least you have to save your own life, right?

suddenly!

A snapping sound came from outside the window, like a tree branch breaking, and everyone present fell silent.

Outside the post station, shadowy figures could be seen everywhere.

Wang Tiqian's expression changed drastically.

Could it be that.
Chen Liangbi has already made his move?
But I haven't made many preparations yet!

PS:

I recently revised the previous text, and the editor warned me that some content was risky.

After two days of revisions, it's almost done.

These past two days have almost killed me.

I have to go to work, write 10,000 words a day, and revise previous texts.

If it truly burns out completely, it will turn into relics.

My beloved subjects, please cast a few monthly votes to comfort me, sob sob~
(End of this chapter)