Tang Dynasty: Taking the Empress Dowager to a brothel, Father Emperor, what a coincidence!

Qin Qiong and Du Ruhui walked out of the central command tent one after the other.

As the two turned a corner and passed a secluded supply tent, the felt cloth next to them was suddenly lifted.

A large hand grabbed Qin Qiong's arm and pulled him inward forcefully.

Qin Qiong reacted very quickly, grabbing the other person's wrist with his other hand.

His other hand had already reached for the sword at his waist.

"Second Brother! Don't do it, it's me."

A voice abruptly stopped Qin Qiong's movements.

Du Ruhui nearly bumped into Qin Qiong's back from behind, and before he could react, a large hand pulled him directly into the tent.

There were no lights in the tent, and it was pitch black all around.

Using the faint light reflected from the snow outside, Du Ruhui was finally able to make out the figure in front of him.

Cheng Yaojin rubbed his eyes, then leaned forward and pinched Du Ruhui's face hard twice.

"hiss!"

Du Ruhui gasped in pain.

"Cheng Zhijie, what are you doing?"

"Hot? Soft?"

Cheng Yaojin took two steps back.

"You old sly fox, you're still alive?"

Du Ruhui rolled his eyes in annoyance.

Qin Qiong sighed to himself.

After news of his appearance spread, Li Chengqian arranged for Qin Huaidao to take the blame.

But this couldn't be hidden from Cheng Yaojin, a cunning and ruthless man.

Others might not recognize Qin Qiong, but Cheng Yaojin had been his brother for half his life, so how could he not recognize him?

"Zhijie, you're staying up all night just to stake out us?"

Qin Qiong looked at Cheng Yaojin and asked.

Cheng Yaojin plopped down on a nearby stack of grain and sneered:

"Second brother, you're so unfair."

That little brat was walking around in your tent wearing your armor. Others might not notice, but surely I could! The mark on the breastplate of your armor from when Wang Shichong's men slashed you back in Luoyang is still there.

I knew something was wrong right away. I was the one who put that armor in your coffin when you were buried.

To prove my point, I'll wait here.

Cheng Yaojin then turned to look at Du Ruhui.

"I thought only Second Brother had come back to life, but I didn't expect you, you old fox, to be breathing too. Tell me, what exactly happened? Why did you two fake your deaths?"

Qin Qiong glanced at Du Ruhui but remained silent.

Du Ruhui leaned against the stack of grain and calmly began to speak:

"Zhijie, since you're blocking this way, you must already have some guesses in your mind."

"I'm not guessing anything."

Cheng Yaojin suddenly stood up and paced around in frustration twice.

"Did you come here with the Crown Prince... to rebel?"

Du Ruhui shook his head and said:

"It's not a rebellion, it's self-preservation."

"Self-preservation?"

Cheng Yaojin snorted coldly.

"The Great Tang War God and the current Prime Minister, do you two need to protect yourselves? Has His Majesty mistreated you?"

Du Ruhui did not answer Cheng Yaojin, but instead asked a question:

"Zhijie, I ask you, how did His Majesty obtain the throne?"

Cheng Yaojin blurted out instinctively, "Xuanwu Gate..."

He shut up before he could finish speaking.

These three words were an absolute taboo in the Tang Dynasty.

Du Ruhui sneered:

"His Majesty sat on that chair by stepping on the corpses of his brothers and forcing the retired emperor to abdicate."

This made His Majesty successful, but it also became a hurdle that His Majesty could never overcome in his heart.

His Majesty aspires to be a great emperor for all time, wanting to prove to the world that he is a better emperor than the Crown Prince.

Du Ruhui paused, his tone becoming somewhat profound.

"But if His Highness the Crown Prince smoothly inherits the throne, and his civil and military achievements even surpass His Majesty's, what will the people of the world think?"

Everyone would think that it is only natural for the eldest son to succeed to the throne.

What about His Majesty's killing of his brother and forcing his father to abdicate at Xuanwu Gate back then?

Cheng Yaojin was stunned.

He's a rough man, but he's not stupid.

Du Ruhui's words directly revealed Li Shimin's hidden thoughts.

"His Majesty's subconscious would never allow the Crown Prince to be too perfect or too successful."

Du Ruhui ignored Cheng Yaojin's expression and continued speaking.

"The more outstanding the Crown Prince is, and the more military achievements he has, the more His Majesty will feel that his throne is illegitimate. He will suppress the Crown Prince, support the Prince of Wei, and use various means to check and balance him."

The Crown Prince's life-risking victory in Liaodong to conquer a nation will only become a death sentence in Chang'an.

Du Ruhui pointed to himself, then to Qin Qiong.

"Shubao and I were already on the verge of death. It was His Highness the Crown Prince who used magical means to pull us back from the brink of death."

Our lives belong to His Highness. His Highness must leave a way out for the Tang Dynasty and for himself in Liaodong.

"We two old folks will naturally pave the way for him."

Cheng Yaojin fell silent after hearing this.

He plopped back down on the grain stack without saying a word.

Qin Qiong then stepped forward and patted Cheng Yaojin on the shoulder:

"Zhijie. This path is too dangerous; one wrong step and you're doomed."

You have a large family, and Chu Mo has just been commended for his service in the army.

I don't want you to make the same choice as me. Just pretend we never met today.

Tomorrow morning you will return to Chang'an with the army and continue to be a duke in your new role.

Cheng Yaojin raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, and demanded:

"Second brother! What kind of talk is that?"

He flung Qin Qiong's hand away.

"What do you take me for? A coward who clings to life and fears death?"

Back in Wagang, what did we brothers say? We'll share the good times and the bad.

Now you're following that old fox into this deadly business, while I go back to enjoy a life of leisure? You're insulting me.

So what if we're helping the Crown Prince? What's the big deal? The Crown Prince has always treated my family's Chu Mo well. So what if we have to go through Xuanwu Gate again?

I'll go find the Crown Prince now. I'll hand over these hundred or so catties to him."

As he spoke, Cheng Yaojin got up and tried to walk out.

"stop."

Du Ruhui grabbed Cheng Yaojin.

"Let go of me. You old fox, don't stop me."

Cheng Yaojin immediately became anxious.

"Zhijie, if you go to see the Crown Prince now, you will be harming His Highness and us as well."

Du Ruhui held him tightly.

Cheng Yaojin stared at Du Ruhui and asked:

"What do you mean?"

Du Ruhui released his grip and slowly spoke:

"Your Highness is currently in a very precarious situation."

The Hundred Cavalry Guards are watching Chang'an, and His Majesty also has spies in the army.

If even you, Duke Lu, openly pledge allegiance to the Crown Prince, what will His Majesty think? His Majesty will feel that the veteran generals in the army have completely sided with the Eastern Palace, and that his military power has been stripped away.

At that point, it won't just be suppression; His Majesty will take direct action.

Do you really think the 100,000 troops the Crown Prince brought will genuinely follow him back to Chang'an? Who knows how many of them are actually planted by His Majesty?"

Cheng Yaojin asked with a grim expression:

"What should I do then?"

Du Ruhui said with a smile:

"I want you to be a hidden agent."

"A spy?"

"right."

Du Ruhui nodded.

"A spy that even His Highness the Crown Prince is unaware of."