The Prodigal Son

Shi Yi had calculated everything, except that Zhao Luan would be completely enraged by Sun Min's death and would even disregard the threats from Bei Qi.

He knew that Zhao Luan would most likely suspect that Sun Min's death was related to him.

But doubt is just doubt!

He believed that no matter who investigated, they wouldn't be able to trace it back to him!

However, the investigation into the salt administration issues traced back to him.

Regarding the salt administration, he had no idea what Zhao Luan was thinking, and no one in the court could give him any information on this matter.

He has no way of knowing how far the imperial court will go in its reform of the salt administration!

"This...it shouldn't be, right?"

Shi Wang frowned deeply. "Didn't the imperial court previously appease our Shi family? How could they...?"

"The past is the past, now is the present!"

Shi Yi interrupted him, "Zhao Luan has given Qin Yu all the military and political power in this entire land of Kyushu. Don't you understand yet?"

"I know, she's prepared for the worst!" Shi Wang replied with a grave expression.

That's pretty obvious!

Anyone with a modicum of intelligence can see it.

If anyone tries to cause trouble, Qin Yu will surely unleash a massacre!

With only 10,000 cavalry, Qin Yu defeated the combined forces of Min and Chu, numbering 100,000. With troops in his hands, Qin Yu is unlikely to cause trouble in the entire land of Kyushu unless absolutely necessary.

"Yes! The worst-case scenario!"

Shi Yi's face was grim. "The worst-case scenario is to uproot all ten major salt merchants and officials from various regions!"

Disappointment twitched his eyelids, but he still couldn't quite believe it. "The imperial court wouldn't be that crazy, would it?"

If the imperial court were to actually do that, the impact would be enormous!

Even if Zhao Luan wanted to be willful, the ministers in the court probably wouldn't let her continue to be so willful.

"The imperial court wouldn't be that crazy, but Qin Yu would!"

Shi Yi's face was full of worry. "Don't forget, Qin Yu now holds all the military and political power in this land of Kyushu! This Qin Yu is a complete mad dog! He won't think too much, and he won't reason with you. Nobody knows what kind of madness he'll unleash next!"

If someone else were to manage the salt affairs, I wouldn't have much to worry about!

They can find scapegoats, or they can find ways to lead them in a direction they've set.

At worst, the historians will accept the punishment!

Paying money can prevent trouble!

But Qin Yu is different. This person's actions are completely unpredictable. No one knows what he will do next. He wanted to guide Qin Yu in the direction he had set, but he was worried that Qin Yu would not take the bait at all.

When others lose their direction, they try every possible way to find it.

Qin Yu had lost his bearings, so he just went all out!

He might arrest and torture anyone he suspects!

From Qin Yu's actions in Linhai, it can be seen that he is a cunning mad dog who does not follow any rules or common sense!

At that time, he dared to detain the chief official of Linhai County without any evidence and torture him to extract a confession.

Now that he holds absolute military and political power over the entire land of Kyushu, he will surely be even more unscrupulous!

He even suspected that Qin Yu, that bastard, would arrest him and everyone in the Shi family and torture them to extract confessions!

Upon hearing Shi Yi's words, Shi Wang felt a sudden sense of panic.

Believe it or not, Qin Yu, that mad dog, might actually do something like that!

"So what should we do now?"

Shi Wang looked at Shi Yi with a blank expression.

"I don't know what to do!"

Shi Yi rubbed his head, looking exasperated. "I've been thinking about what to do next since yesterday, but facing this completely unreasonable madman, I don't even know where to begin..."

People in high positions of power are not scary!

Many people in high positions of power care about their reputation, and even if they use their power to intimidate others, they still need to find a symbolic reason.

But Qin Yu didn't care about any of that!

These kinds of people believe that whoever has the bigger fist is right!

You try to reason with him, and he throws punches at you.

You talk to him about rules and laws, and he just draws his knife!

If this kind of madman doesn't have power, he's easy to deal with; you can just dig a hole and trap him.

But once they seize power, they become extremely difficult to deal with!

These kinds of people are the ruthless gamblers in casinos; if they can't handle the game, they'll flip the table!

Seeing Shi Yi's headache, a ruthless glint suddenly flashed in Shi Wang's eyes. "How about... we just send someone to kill Qin Yu?"

Kill Qin Yuyao?

Shi Yi's heart skipped a beat, but he quickly dismissed the idea.

"This is a last resort! Now is not the time to take this step!"

Shi Yi gently shook his head. "Qin Yu has experts by his side, and he always has five hundred Golden Armored Imperial Guards with him. Killing him won't be easy! If we fail, this madman will definitely become even madder! Moreover, there are rumors circulating that Qin Yu and Zhao Luan have some ambiguous relationship. If Qin Yu dies, and Zhao Luan becomes a second madman, no one can protect our Shi family!"

"So we're just going to keep being passive like this?" Shi Wang was filled with anxiety.

Shi Yi's face was grim. He lowered his head and pondered for a moment before replying, "If all else fails, let's send out two scapegoats and see how Qin Yu handles it! We'll see Qin Yu's attitude first before taking the next step!"

They have absolutely no idea what Qin Yu is planning to do.

He worried that the more tricks they played, the more they would provoke Qin Yu, that madman.

When this madman acts recklessly, no one can guarantee that their own family members won't become victims of his blade.

Shi Wang opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

After a moment, Shi Wang sighed helplessly, "Then I'll arrange a scapegoat!"

"Okay, make it clean!"

Shi Yi nodded slightly. "Furthermore, strictly control everyone in the family, including those from the collateral branches! Anyone who dares to cause trouble at this time, break their legs!"

"good!"

Shi Wang nodded emphatically and advised, "You should go see your eldest grandson! It's not good that you didn't even look at the baby after he was born."

Influence?

Shi Yi gave a wry smile.

What time is it? Who cares about the impact?

After a moment of contemplation, Shi Yi slowly stood up. "Fine! Let's go take a look! After we're done, I'll go see Qin Yu!"

"Are you going to see Qin Yu?"

Shi Wang was startled and immediately became worried.

Shi Yi sighed softly, "Such a big problem has arisen in the salt administration. As the Salt Commissioner of Liangjiang, I must go and apologize! I'll also take this opportunity to sound him out!"

"He won't just arrest you and torture you to extract a confession, will he?" Shi Wang asked worriedly.

"this……"

Shi Yi opened his mouth slightly, unsure of what to say for a moment.

If it were someone else, they definitely wouldn't do that!

But Qin Yu...

It's hard to say!

If that were the case, I would have walked right into a trap.

"Then let me first submit a letter of apology!"

After much deliberation, Shi Yi ultimately decided against betting on whether Qin Yu, this madman, might suddenly go insane.

It's reasonable that I couldn't apologize in person while I was inspecting the salt administration.

Yes, that's it!

It's best to be cautious when dealing with this completely unreasonable madman.

Having made up their minds, the two left the study.

Just as they were about to go to Shi Yi's eldest son's courtyard, someone suddenly rushed over and whispered in Shi Yi's ear.

Upon hearing this person's words, Shi Yi swayed and almost fell to the ground.

"Second Brother!"

Shi Wang quickly helped his brother up, asking with a worried expression, "What happened to you?"

Shi Yi steadied himself, raised his hand to signal the newcomer to step back, and then gritted his teeth and growled, "Qin Yu was assassinated a few days ago in Jiankou County, Langjun. According to the assassin, you ordered them to do it..."

"What?"

Shi Wang's face changed drastically, and he immediately swore, "Second Brother, I absolutely did not do this! This is clearly a frame-up!"

"I know!"

Shi Yi gritted his teeth, "What I'm worried about now is that Qin Yu, that mad dog, will use this as an excuse to attack my Shi family!"

Upon hearing Shi Yi's words, Shi Wang felt a pang of anxiety, and his face turned deathly pale.

A sinister glint flashed in Shi Wang's eyes as he lowered his gaze.

The situation is critical!

If necessary, one of the brothers might have to be sacrificed...