He barely escaped with his life, tumbling and crawling all the way.
But when he looked back, he saw that most of the ten brothers the prime minister had entrusted to him had died at the hands of Wu Xiao.
Zhang Shirong was overjoyed, and his legs immediately went weak, causing him to collapse to the ground.
Just then, Zhu Fei was leading his guards on patrol at the palace gate.
"Brother Zhu!"
When Zhang Shirong saw Zhu Fei, it was as if he had seen a close relative; tears and snot streamed down his face.
He quickly scrambled forward, grabbed Zhu Fei's leg, and cried out, "Brother Zhu, the Third Division of the Embroidered Uniform Guard has rebelled!"
"Brother Zhang, what...how did you get into such a sorry state?"
Zhu Fei suppressed a laugh and asked, feigning shock.
"This humble general doesn't know either!"
Zhang Shirong's face was deathly pale, and he stammered and cried, "I was just in charge of military discipline and had only given a few lashes when that bunch of spoiled brats, led by Wu Xiao, started hacking at us indiscriminately. If I hadn't run away fast, I would have died there too! Six of our ten brothers were hacked to death! They were all our comrades!"
"What! This is outrageous! In broad daylight, under the clear sky, they dare to commit such a crime openly! This is simply outrageous!"
Zhu Fei immediately put on an indignant and heartbroken expression!
But he was secretly overjoyed. This Wu Xiao truly lived up to his reputation as a son of a military family! He had taken out six of his brothers in a single encounter!
He suppressed his inner elation and said through gritted teeth:
"Those beasts! We're going to get revenge right now, I'll personally stand up for you!"
"Thank you so much, Brother Zhu!"
Zhang Shirong was overjoyed upon hearing this and led the way, running towards the military camp.
Zhu Fei led a group of guards and soon arrived at the main tent of the Third Garrison Commander.
The two sides were now locked in a standoff.
"Where is Wu Xiao now?!"
Zhu Fei glared at him and shouted in a deep voice.
Only then did everyone notice.
It turns out that the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief, Zhu Fei, has arrived!
"I'm right here, you surnamed Zhu, what do you want?!"
Wu Xiao took a step forward, stood at the front of the group, and shouted at Zhu Fei.
They showed no respect to the new superior. In their circle, family background was everything! It was one thing for Jia Zhengjin to boss people around back then, after all, his father was a veteran of three reigns and an imperial tutor. But what kind of person is Zhu Fei?
Why should I submit?!
But Zhu Fei showed no mercy to this spoiled brat and immediately shouted sternly, "What are you doing? What do you mean, 'what are you doing'? You are incredibly audacious to commit murder directly! Arrest these people immediately!"
Upon hearing this, Wu Xiao was taken aback for a moment, then immediately sneered disdainfully.
"Zhu Fei, do you really think you're some kind of commander? We're not people you can afford to offend. Even if I let you arrest me, you'll have to release me obediently right away."
Zhu Fei sneered and waved his hand unmoved: "Grab him!"
His men immediately swarmed forward!
...
Two hours later, a pile of memorials quickly appeared on Qin Yu's imperial desk.
Various ministers jointly submitted a memorial, all of which were impeaching Zhu Fei. A quick glance revealed that they were all from the military and noble groups.
"Your Majesty! Zhu Fei is tyrannical and domineering. My son was arrested simply because he accidentally brought dice into the military camp. It wasn't gambling at all!"
"Yes, Your Majesty, and my son Wu Xiao, how could he have killed anyone? It was clearly those six guards fighting amongst themselves, and they died in front of my son's camp..."
...
The group of wealthy nobles, living off the land, launched into a tirade of accusations, which Qin Yu found amusing. However, in front of all the ministers, he slammed his fist on the table and stood up in a fit of rage.
"You are all right! This Zhu Fei is really quite audacious. Does he think the Embroidered Uniform Guard is his own backyard?"
Qin Yu looked at the memorial in his hand, then glanced at the faces of the officials.
Seeing that their expressions had improved, Qin Yu immediately smiled and said:
"My dear ministers, rest assured, I will immediately issue an oral decree to Zhu Fei to release the prisoners. You can go to the military camp now to pick up your sons."
"Your Majesty is wise!" the ministers all knelt in unison to express their gratitude.
Qin Yu smiled and waved his hand to signal everyone to rise, then whispered, "Anfu, convey my imperial edict that Zhu Fei release the people immediately, and proceed with everything according to plan."
"yes."
Anfu nodded, then turned and led the others away.
...
Many ministers, led by the Marquis of Wuwei, rushed to the military camp.
They were all extremely worried about their son's safety.
"My lord, gentlemen, what brings you all here?"
Upon hearing the news, Zhu Fei hurriedly went out to greet them. When he saw these important officials in the court, he immediately put on a humble and apprehensive expression.
"Zhu Fei, what have you done to our son? Release him right now!"
Marquis Wuwei roared with wide eyes, and the other officials echoed his words:
"That's right! Hand over our son now!"
Zhu Fei seemed to have just come to his senses, and said with a smile, "Gentlemen, I'm taking good care of your sons. If you don't believe me, go and see for yourselves in the camp."
Upon hearing this, the gentlemen looked on with suspicion, wondering what kind of trick this fat pig was up to now.
"Hmph! If even a single hair on our son's head is missing, I will never forgive you."
Marquis Wuwei snorted coldly and took the lead in walking out, with the other ministers following closely behind.
When they entered the tent, they saw their sons sitting there, full of energy, drinking, gambling, singing and playing the flute with women in their arms. They didn't look like they had been bullied at all.
And these little rascals seem to be having a great time!
At least there was wine, meat, and fruit on the table, so it didn't look bad.
"Well, did I not bluff you lords?"
Zhu Fei walked over with a beaming smile, his eyes full of flattery as he looked at the assembled officials.
Marquis Wuwei's anger subsided considerably; he had heard what had happened on his way here.
His son had led the killing of six of Zhu Fei's men, and he was worried that Zhu Fei would take his anger out on his son!
In hindsight, he was overthinking things.
Marquis Wuwei was a shrewd and calculating man. Although he thought Zhu Fei was unreliable, he was indeed indebted to him at this moment.
Marquis Wuwei then composed himself and tentatively asked, "May I leave with my son now?"
"Of course you can, but... since you killed six guards, how about each of your families contribute some compensation?"
Zhu Fei rubbed his hands together and chuckled.
pension?
The officials looked at each other in bewilderment. So this fat pig wanted money!
After all that, this guy had been arresting and locking them up, but hadn't abused their eldest son at all; he was just waiting for them here!
Zhu Fei, that guy is really shrewd!
Seeing the surprised looks on everyone's faces, Zhu Fei couldn't help but smirk.
He wouldn't be foolish enough to actually break ties with these powerful military and noble groups in the court for the sake of those six dead spies. Making a fortune off the deaths of Sima Lie's six loyal dogs is the real business!
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