Huangming

Chapter 132 The Beacon Fire of Luolu Fades, the Ice of Luochuan Reunites

The snowy night was as dark as ink, and the cold wind swirled snowflakes, lashing against the mottled walls of the inn.

Chen Liangbi reined in his horse and stood at the main gate of the post station, his iron armor covered in frost, his eyes filled with killing intent.

Behind him, three hundred elite soldiers from the royal palace stood silently like ghosts, their torches casting a crimson glow against the snow.

"That eunuch Wang Tiqian will die tonight!"

Chen Liangbi suddenly drew his sword, the blade slicing through the wind and snow.

"My lads! Kill the angel, and wealth and glory will be within your grasp! His Highness Prince Fu can only lead us to fight for a monumental achievement!"

Behind him, the soldiers gripped their weapons tightly, but their eyes darted around.

Assassinating an angel is a capital offense punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family!

Moreover, when Chen Liangbi mobilized them, he had neither the seal of the Prince of Fu, nor the official seal of the Commander of the Fu Prefecture Guard, nor the copper seal of the Henan Provincial Commander, nor any formal troop mobilization order, dragon-patterned jade tablet, or gilded silver talisman.

This is a private investigation.

This is not in compliance with regulations.

If it weren't for Chen Liangbi's kindness to them, they would never have come to this post station.

He seemed to sense everyone's hesitation.

Chen Liangbi encouraged them, saying, "Don't overthink it. I have the Prince of Fu's password. If we storm the post station and kill Wang Tiqian, there will be a reward of a thousand gold pieces. If you want wealth and honor, follow me!"

Does Prince Fu want to kneel?
Chen Liangbi refused to allow him to kneel!

As long as he stirs up trouble in Luoyang, Prince Fu will have no choice but to rely on him.

I have heard that the emperor in Beijing is tyrannical and cruel. He has been on the throne for less than three months and has already slaughtered countless people in the capital. He is no wise ruler.

In addition, the Liaodong region was constantly ravaged by war, leaving the nine border regions exhausted.

Even if a rebellion broke out in Luoyang, the imperial court could not immediately send many troops to quell it.

Given enough time, and relying on the wealth of the Prince of Fu's mansion, he could raise an army of 100,000 men within a month.

Then
It is not impossible to emulate the story of the Jingnan Rebellion.

They elected Prince Fu as emperor, while he himself became the most powerful person in the land.

In any case, if Prince Fu is forced to go to the capital, once he leaves Luoyang, the sphere of influence he has cultivated for many years, and loses the protection of local officials, his crimes of privately selling military equipment, embezzling military funds, and forcibly seizing farmland and causing people's deaths will inevitably be exposed.

At that time, even a prince would not be able to escape the punishment of the law, and his life would certainly be in danger.

As the Prince of Fu's henchman, he too could not escape death.

Not resisting means death; resisting means there is still a way to live and a chance to become a superior person.

Why not give it a shot?

Thinking of this, Chen Liangbi no longer hesitated, immediately spurred his horse to charge, and shouted loudly:
"Come on!"

"Kill!"

Shouts of battle suddenly rang out.

Inside the inn, Wang Tiqian was so startled that his fingertips trembled, and the teacup fell onto the table, cracking with a sharp sound.

Dark shadows surged around the window like a tide, and shouts of battle, footsteps, and the clanging of armor pierced the deathly silence.

Never mind, even though we're not fully prepared, we still have to use our methods!

If this traitor had more than a thousand men, he would admit defeat; if not, he would be defeated.
Sorry about that.

It will become a stepping stone for Wang Tiqian to take another step forward!

Wang Tiqian regained his composure, slid an iron whistle out of his sleeve, and stuffed it into his mouth.

A sharp whistle suddenly rang out, and countless dark figures instantly rose from the rooftops around the inn. The Henan Wei archers, who had been lying in ambush for a long time, drew their bows and prepared to fire, their arrowheads gleaming like stars!
They watched as hundreds of guards from the Prince of Fu's mansion charged in.

"Fire arrows!"

The commander of the Imperial Guard roared.

In an instant!
Arrows rained down, and the guards at the forefront of the royal palace fell to the ground with screams.

Chen Liangbi deflected the stray arrows with his sword and roared, "Raise your shields! Charge in!"

Boom~!

The gates of the post station burst open with a bang, and more than ten Imperial Guards stood beside Wang Tiqian, swords drawn.

Imperial Son-in-Law Wan Wei's face turned deathly pale, but he forced himself to shout, "Chen Liangbi! You dare to kill an angel! This is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family!"

"Nine generations?"

Chen Liangbi laughed wildly and said, "His Majesty has been deceived by you treacherous eunuchs. Everyone in the world wants to cleanse the court of corrupt officials. Once the Prince of Fu sits on the throne, I will be a meritorious official in the Jingnan Campaign!"

He spurred his horse and charged straight in, his blade flashing as it slashed at Wang Tiqian's face!

In a flash, a dark figure leaped down from the beam—it was Huang Sheng!
The frail professor stabbed the horse in the eye with a dagger, causing the horse to neigh and rear up, throwing Chen Liangbi to the ground!
"Traitors, be executed!" Wang Tiqian shouted shrilly.

The Imperial Guards swarmed forward, smashing their sword sheaths, and before Chen Liangbi could even get up, he was forced into the snow and mud.

Outside the post station, the Henan guards had already surrounded and annihilated the enemy, and the Prince's guards were routed like stray dogs.

The wind and snow gradually subsided.

Wang Tiqian stepped on Chen Liangbi's back, leaned down and grinned sinisterly: "Commander Chen, you're not exactly a 'Ban Chao' at all. You haven't even gotten to the outhouse at the post station."

You think you can kill me with only three hundred men?
Who are you looking down on?
Chen Liangbi's eyes were bloodshot; he knew he had fallen into a trap.

This old eunuch was always on guard against assassination attempts.

He transferred all the soldiers from Henanwei.

really
Just as he thought, the emperor had no intention of making things easy for Prince Fu.

With such precautions, how can Prince Fu expect to fare well when he arrives in the capital?

"If you want to kill or behead me, please do as you please!"

Since he was going to die anyway, Chen Liangbi wanted to make his death as dignified as possible.

"hehe."

Wang Tiqian narrowed his eyes and asked, "Dying isn't that easy. Tell me the truth: who ordered you to kill me?"

Seeing that Chen Liangbi remained silent, Wang Tiqian gave him a hint.

"If you confess the truth, you'll die a quicker death. If you don't cooperate, have you ever heard of the punishments in the Imperial Prison? Among the Imperial Guards accompanying me, there are several from the Northern Garrison Command. You'd better think carefully before you speak."

Upon hearing the words "imperial prison," Chen Liangbi visibly trembled.

However, he remained silent.

Wang Tiqian frowned deeply; his limited patience was about to be completely worn down by this man.

"Is it Prince Fu?"

Wang Tiqian's true intentions were revealed at the last minute.

"hehe!"

Chen Liangbi sneered and said, "The prince has no intention of rebelling. It seems that you have wanted the prince dead from the beginning, and now you want to frame Prince Fu."

"Hahaha~"

He laughed wildly, not caring how much snow he inhaled.

"Even if I die, I will not let you succeed! You castrated dog! If you have the guts, kill your Grandpa Chen!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Tiqian's face turned even blacker than a black pot.

But soon, he started to laugh.

"Very well, we'll see just how tough you really are!"

Wang Tiqian kicked Chen Liangbi hard, then turned to the Jinyiwei guards from the Northern Garrison and said fiercely, "Torture him severely, use all your skills from the Northern Garrison. Whoever can get him to reveal the mastermind and sign the confession will be rewarded with a thousand taels of silver and promoted to centurion!"

Upon hearing that there would be both a reward and a promotion, those Imperial Guards from the Northern Garrison Command looked at Chen Liangbi, who was pinned to the ground, as if they had seen gleaming gold.

"Rest assured, Your Majesty, I will definitely pry open the mouth of this audacious traitor!"

"Bring him inside and subject him to severe torture!"

Chen Liangbi was dragged into the inner room, and soon after, screams of agony rang out.

The sheer horror of it was truly chilling.

Accompanied by this chilling scream, Zhou Ding, the Left Chief Secretary of the Prince of Fu's Mansion, stepped forward and said to Wang Tiqian, "Chen Liangbi's assassination of the envoy will cause a great uproar. Eunuch Wang, you must first stabilize the situation to prevent even greater trouble from arising."

"What Chief Secretary Zuo said has struck a chord with me. No matter who is behind this, we must not let those with ulterior motives take advantage of it, and we must especially protect the safety of His Highness Prince Fu!"

As if he truly cared about Prince Fu, Wang Tiqian said, "The guards of Prince Fu's residence can no longer be trusted. Let the soldiers of Henan Guard protect Prince Fu in his place, and we will decide what to do after everything comes to light!"

Professor Huang Sheng, the Prince of Fu, was stunned upon hearing this.

It's called protection, but isn't it actually surveillance and control?
Seeing the silence of the crowd, Wang Tiqian rolled his eyes and said, "When the thief was captured just now, Professor Huang from Henan made great contributions. I will report this to His Majesty. He will surely reward you handsomely. If you can continue to make contributions, His Majesty will definitely give you important positions because he loves talent so much."

Let's unite the people around us first.

Sure enough, upon hearing this, the eyes of the commanders of Henan Guard lit up, and they immediately knelt down, saying, "We will serve you to the death, sir!"

Seeing this, Wang Tiqian smiled, but still corrected him, saying, "It's not about dying for our family, but about dying for His Majesty."

Several people immediately spoke up.

"We, your humble servants, will serve Your Majesty to the death and follow Your Excellency's lead without question!"

"Good good!"

Wang Tiqian was very satisfied with the cleverness of these people.

It is not too late.

Not wanting any unforeseen circumstances, he immediately said, "Gather all the troops and follow me to the Prince of Fu's residence. 'Protect' the Prince of Fu!"

"I humbly obey my orders!"

At this moment, in the Prince Fu's Mansion...

Inside the sleeping quarters, the candlelight flickered, casting intermittent light on and off the oily, sweaty, chubby face of Prince Fu, Zhu Changxun.

He had just swallowed a bowl of bitter medicine brewed by Li Chongdao and was slumped on the rosewood couch, groaning incessantly, when suddenly he heard a high-pitched, urgent report from the eunuch accompanying him outside the palace: "Your Highness! Something terrible has happened! Eunuch Wang has surrounded the Prince's residence with his troops!"

"what?!"

Zhu Changxun's fat body trembled violently, and he almost rolled off the couch.

He struggled to prop up his 300-pound body, his throat gurgling like a broken bellows.

"Quickly, bring Zhou Shiwen and the others in!"

The palace gates burst open with a roar, and the alchemist Li Chongdao, the unsuccessful candidate Zhao Shiyong, the right chief secretary Zhou Shiwen, and others, who had been waiting outside, scrambled into the sleeping quarters.

Li Chongdao's Taoist robe was stained with medicine, Zhao Shiyong's beard and hair were disheveled, and Zhou Shiwen's official hat was askew; all of them had ashen faces.

"Your Majesty!"

Zhou Shiwen knelt down in front of the bed, his voice trembling.

"That brute Chen Liangbi secretly dispatched three hundred guards to the post station to assassinate Wang Tiqian, but they were captured by the Henan Guards who were lying in ambush! Now Wang Tiqian has brought witnesses and led his troops to block the gate of the mansion!"

"You damn idiot!!"

Zhu Changxun roared and smashed the gilded table beside the couch to pieces with his fat hand, his sores swollen and turned purplish-red from anger.

"I will refine him into a golden elixir! I will put him in a cauldron of boiling oil!"

He was panting heavily, his face deathly pale.

To assassinate an angel is tantamount to treason.

Chen Liangbi was the commander of the guards of the Prince of Fu's mansion, and the soldiers he led were all guards of the Prince of Fu's mansion.

Who would believe that he wasn't behind this?
What would Wang Tiqian think?

When news of this reaches the capital, what will His Majesty think?
If he commits the crime of treason
Wouldn't that mean he's doomed?

Zhu Changxun was deeply worried.

As he contemplated the consequences, various ways to die flooded his mind, and Prince Fu's breathing gradually became rapid.

Uh ah~
Zhu Changxun suddenly cried out in pain, then his eyes rolled back, and his obese body fell backward like a mountain of flesh: he was so angry that he almost passed out!
"Your Majesty!!"

Li Chongdao rushed forward to pinch the prince's philtrum, Zhao Shiyong trembled as he stuffed ginseng slices into the prince's mouth, and Zhou Shiwen shouted to the outside of the hall, "Quickly summon the imperial physician! Quickly!!"

After a chaotic scene, Zhu Changxun finally caught his breath.

He lay sprawled on the couch, his brocade mattress soaked with sweat, yet his eyes flashed with the ferocity of a trapped beast: "Has Chief Secretary Zhou sent out the Duke of Ying's silver yet?!"

Zhou Shiwen broke out in a cold sweat: "I just sent someone on horseback to Kaifeng."

"not enough!"

Zhu Changxun suddenly grinned maliciously, grabbed Zhou Shiwen by the collar with his fat hand, and said loudly, "Prepare another 50,000 taels, no, 100,000 taels! Send them to Zhang Weixian along with the pair of 'Sea and Sky Glow' Ru kiln vases in my treasury!"

His voice was like a knife scraping rust; now, to save his own life, he was willing to give up even things he usually treasured.

"Tell him that I have not rebelled. I will set off for the capital tomorrow, but if anyone dares to harm any of my relatives along the way, the Duke of Ying's mansion will not be spared!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Shiyong suddenly interjected, "Your Highness is wise! We should also prepare a generous gift for Wang Tiqian."

Prince Fu naturally understood the principle that troublemakers are hard to deal with. He nodded and said, "Send 100,000 taels to Wang Tiqian to shut him up."

Hearing the knocking at the gate outside the mansion, Zhou Shiwen was also flustered. He quickly advised, "Your Majesty, it is better to go out and apologize now. If the envoy is kept waiting for too long, he may harbor resentment."

Upon hearing this, Prince Fu gritted his teeth, finally made up his mind, and said in a heavy breath, "Help me change my clothes! I need to go out and apologize immediately!"

However, just as he was helped to his feet by the eunuch, his obese body trembled violently, and a hint of fear flashed in his eyes: "But what if that eunuch Wang Tiqian believes that I am plotting a rebellion and arrests me directly? What should I do?"

Right Chief Secretary Zhou Shiwen quickly stepped forward and said in a low voice, "Your Highness need not worry! Chen Liangbi led troops without Your Highness's order, nor did he have the seal of the Prince's Palace to mobilize troops. No one can accuse Your Highness of treason."

Moreover, if the Prince truly intended to rebel, why would he only send three hundred guards? If Wang Tiqian dares to arrest someone without evidence, he would be committing the crime of deceiving the Emperor!

Prince Fu was skeptical, but with no other option, he gritted his teeth and said, "Very well! Help me out!"

Two eunuchs supported his obese body on either side, and laboriously moved him out of the hall.

With each step Zhu Changxun took, his crimson dragon robe trembled with his fat, and sweat soaked through his clothes, dripping onto the white marble steps.

Outside the gates of the Prince's Mansion, the wind and snow gradually subsided.

The night was deep, but more than a thousand torches illuminated the palace.

Wang Tiqian stood with his hands behind his back, while the Imperial Guards behind him stood solemnly with their hands on their swords, creating a tense atmosphere.

Seeing that Prince Fu had finally appeared, the old eunuch narrowed his eyes, a half-smile on his face: "Is Your Highness aware of what happened in Luoyang?"

Zhu Changxun forced a smile and said, panting heavily, "Eunuch Wang, I have heard that the traitor Chen Liangbi dared to lead troops to assassinate the imperial envoy without authorization, so I have come to beg for forgiveness!"

Wang Tiqian feigned surprise: "Oh? It really was him who led the troops on his own? And without anyone else instructing him?"

Upon hearing this, Prince Fu was terrified, and the fat on his face twitched slightly with tension: "Absolutely no one else instructed him, much less did I instruct him to do such an outrageous thing."

Seeing the doubt still on Wang Tiqian's face, he continued to explain: "If I really wanted to rebel, why would I only send three hundred men? It must be that scoundrel Chen Liangbi who acted on his own initiative and wanted to frame me for something unjust!"

Wang Tiqian's gaze was sharp as a knife, slowly sweeping over Zhou Shiwen and the others behind Prince Fu, finally landing on Zhu Changxun's sweat-drenched face. He said meaningfully, "Since Your Highness says so, I will naturally report the truth to His Majesty."

Upon hearing this, Prince Fu breathed a slight sigh of relief and quickly gave a wink to those behind him.

Zhou Shiwen immediately presented a brocade box and respectfully said, "Eunuch Wang, His Highness knows the hardships the angels endure, and has prepared this small gift to express his gratitude."

Wang Tiqian glanced at the brocade box and saw a silver note for 100,000 taels of silver. He did not take it, but said indifferently, "Your Highness is too kind. I am acting on imperial orders and dare not accept gifts."

Prince Fu's face stiffened, and a vein throbbed slightly on his forehead, but he suppressed his anger and said with a forced smile, "I greatly admire Eunuch Wang's loyalty. However, regarding Chen Liangbi's matter, I humbly request that you put in a good word for him before His Majesty."

Wang Tiqian finally smiled and nodded slightly: "Your Highness, rest assured, as long as you set off for the capital on time tomorrow, the matter will be resolved."

The eunuch delivering the imperial decree refused to accept the gift no matter what. Zhu Changxun was undecided but had no choice but to nod and say, "I understand."

Seeing the Prince of Fu's reaction, Wang Tiqian already understood.

It seems that Chen Liangbi's attempt to assassinate the envoy at the post station was truly unrelated to Prince Fu.

If he really wanted to rebel, he wouldn't have surrendered so easily now.

Pity.

If only Prince Fu would really rebel.

Although Chen Liangbi is now a member of the Prince of Fu's household, he mobilizes troops without the official seal or troop mobilization documents of the Prince's household.

If Prince Fu insists that Chen Liangbi acted on his own, it would be difficult for him to convict Prince Fu.

After all, Prince Fu is the current emperor's uncle, belonging to the close relatives of the imperial clan.

Even if Your Majesty is ruthless, you must be mindful of the consequences.

He could not directly attack the Prince of Fu's residence until the Prince of Fu actually rebelled.

But Wang Tiqian quickly composed himself.

They couldn't confiscate the property of the Prince of Fu, but they could still squeeze some money out of him.

Of course, before doing these things, we must first completely control Prince Fu.

This prevented him from having a desperate and drastic action.

Wang Tiqian slowly said:
“Your Highness, Chen Liangbi, a mere guard commander, dared to mobilize troops without the king’s order to commit treason. This shows that the guards of the Prince of Fu’s residence are no longer reliable. To ensure Your Highness’s safety, I have already transferred soldiers from the Henan Guard to the residence to reorganize the guards and prevent any troublemakers from causing chaos.”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Changxun's obese body trembled violently, and a flash of shock and anger appeared in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

He was breathing heavily, forcing a smile, but his voice trembled slightly with suppressed anger:
"Eunuch Wang is truly considerate of my needs."

Wang Tiqian narrowed his eyes, a half-smile on his face: "Your Highness is too kind. I am merely acting on the Emperor's orders to ensure Your Highness's safe passage to the capital to meet the Emperor."

Zhu Changxun clenched his fist tightly in his sleeve, his nails digging deep into his palm, but he could only suppress his anger and slowly nod: "In that case, I will do as you say, sir."

He knew perfectly well that Wang Tiqian's actions were by no means "protecting" him.

It was clearly an attempt to completely control the Prince Fu's mansion and eliminate any possibility of resistance!
However, the Duke of Yingguo, Zhang Weixian, has 20,000 troops stationed in Kaifeng. If he dares to refuse, Wang Tiqian only needs to submit a report to confirm his crime of disobeying the imperial order. At that time, what awaits him is probably not going to the capital to be questioned, but directly besieging Luoyang!
He had no choice but to obey.

now.

Outside the Prince of Fu's mansion, soldiers from the Henan Guard were already lined up and waiting for orders.

Wang Tiqian waved his hand, and the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard immediately stepped forward and shouted loudly: "By order of His Highness Prince Fu, the Henan Guard has taken over the responsibility of guarding Prince Fu's residence. Everyone must disarm and surrender. Anyone who disobeys will be punished for treason!"

The guards of the Prince's mansion looked at each other, their gazes all turning to Prince Fu.

Zhu Changxun's face turned ashen, but he could only grit his teeth and nod, saying, "Do as you say."

Zhu Changxun was naturally unwilling to hand over his life and fortune to others, but he had no other choice.

Once he arrived in the capital, he went to complain to his nephew, the emperor!

Seeing that their lord had spoken in this way, the guards had no choice but to remove their swords and let the Henan Guard soldiers take over the key locations within the mansion.

For a moment, footsteps echoed haphazardly within the Prince Fu's mansion, and the flickering torchlight cast shadows on the vermilion palace walls, reflecting a somber atmosphere.

Within half an hour, the Henan guards had taken control of the Prince of Fu's residence.

After gaining control of the situation, Wang Tiqian gradually revealed his true colors.

"Your Highness, let's go inside the hall to discuss matters."

A meeting?

Prince Fu was stunned.

Aren't we supposed to set off tomorrow?

What else is there to discuss tonight?
Prince Fu had a bad feeling.

Could it be that this eunuch doesn't care about 100,000 taels and wants to ask him for more benefits?

Prince Fu forced a smile and asked, "What is the matter the angels are discussing?"

(End of this chapter)