Chapter 237 The Emperor Issues Another Repentance Edict
Although no one was following or monitoring him, Qi Yanzhou was still very careful.
After all, he is now "famous" and will attract attention wherever he goes.
If people found out that he had contact with the old members of Qi's army, it might bring trouble to the other party.
A quarter of an hour later, Qi Yanzhou jumped into a house in the south of the city.
Ma Kun, an old member of the Qi family army, had been waiting for Qi Yanzhou in the yard.
When she saw him come in, she hurried over to him and knelt on one knee.
"Second Young Master, you have worked hard along the way."
Qi Yanzhou helped the gray-haired Ma Kun up, with a slight smile on his face.
"Uncle Ma, there's no need for us to be polite."
Ma Kun did not respond to this statement.
Ever since Qi Yanzhou decided to overthrow the tyranny, they were no longer close friends, but master and subordinates!
"Second Young Master, let's go inside and talk."
Ma Kun's house is not big, with a front yard and a back yard, three main rooms, two side rooms, a kitchen and a utility room.
He had three sons, but they had long since separated and were living together with his eldest son.
The eldest son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter live in a side room.
Ma Kun and his wife lived in the main house on the east side, with a living room in the middle and a guest room on the west side.
Knowing that Qi Yanzhou would come to see him today, he sent all his family members away so that they could talk about business.
The two went to the living room.
Ma Kun poured the tea that had been prepared long ago.
Although the tea was a little cold, it was suitable for the hot weather.
"Second Master, this tea is not good, you just have to drink it."
Qi Yanzhou picked up the teacup and said with a smile: "Uncle Ma, I am a rough man and I can't tell good from bad. As long as you pour it, it tastes good to me."
After saying that, he drank the half-cold tea in the cup.
It has a strong astringent taste with a sweet aftertaste.
It's not great tea, but it's not bad either.
Ma Kun knew that Qi Yanzhou was just being polite and did not continue.
After refilling Qi Yanzhou's glass, he asked bluntly, "Second Young Master, is it true that you are planning a rebellion?"
He used to be a soldier under Qi Yanzhou's grandfather and was a very intelligent man.
After the Qi family handed over their military power and the Qi family army was defeated by the emperor, he resigned and returned to his hometown in Dingzhou.
He lived an ordinary life relying on the military salary he had saved up for more than ten years and working for others.
But he would go to the capital every few years to meet with the retired General Qi and reminisce about the past, and they had a good relationship.
Later, when General Qi passed away, Ma Kun rarely went to the capital.
But as usual, the Qi family would send some silver and capital-specific food at the end of every year.
He would also ask his friends who came to Beijing to bring some Dingzhou-specific food to the Qi family.
With each passing day, the two families maintained their relationship in a polite yet distant manner.
until.
The emperor discovered that the second son of the Qi family, who was a dandy boy, was deliberately hiding his abilities but actually possessed martial arts skills.
He secretly poisoned Qi Yanzhou with fire during a palace banquet, and made him a military general in the name of important positions, and when he sent him on missions, he tried various assassination attempts on him.
After experiencing danger, Qi Yanzhou knew that if he wanted to protect the Qi family, he had to pick up the old subordinates left behind by the Qi family and use them as a bargaining chip to intimidate the emperor.
So, he spent three years contacting all the old subordinates who would not betray the Qi family.
Every year since then, they would find opportunities to get together and talk about their lives, current situations, and future plans.
When Qi Yanzhou was sent to recover southern Xinjiang, his plans for the former members of the Qi Family Army also began.
Thinking of this, he answered Ma Kun's question.
"Uncle Ma, the Zhao family's imperial power must be overthrown, but not now."
Ma Kun guessed it.
Otherwise, Qi Yanzhou would not have chosen to ask for exile, but would have rebelled directly.
"Second Young Master, what are your plans for the future?"
What he meant by his plan was whether or not to become emperor.
Qi Yanzhou understood the hidden meaning of Ma Kun's words and told him the truth.
"Uncle Ma, I am a military commander. I have the ability to maintain peace, but I don't have the talent to rule the country. So I will not be the emperor."
His plan was to secretly expand the Qi family army, let it infiltrate into various armies, become a person with a say, and gradually control the army.
When the time is right, he will push forward a new emperor.
Ma Kun disagreed with Qi Yanzhou's words and retorted: "Second Master, you have a broad mind, a brain, and care about the people. Even if you don't know how to govern the country, you will become a wise ruler!"
He didn't know how to rule the country.
But I know that a king who puts his people first and allows them to live and work in peace and contentment is a good king.
Obviously, the second young master has this ability.
So he stood up and knelt on one knee.
"Second Master, I hope you can take on the responsibility for the people of the world!"
Qi Yanzhou helped Ma Kun up.
"Uncle Ma, as long as we can overthrow the tyranny and bring peace to the country, it doesn't matter who sits on the throne in the end."
Seeing that Qi Yanzhou had no intention of becoming emperor, Ma Kun stopped trying to persuade him.
Let's move forward first. When we get to the step of establishing a new emperor, perhaps the second young master will change his mind.
"I don't trust anyone else, I only trust the Second Young Master."
Qi Yanzhou smiled and patted Ma Kun on the shoulder, "It's enough that Uncle Ma trusts me."
After that, he and Ma Kun started talking about business.
"Dingzhou City is the largest prefecture in the northwest, with a large number of troops stationed there. If we want to capture the Imperial City, we must first capture Dingzhou City."
Although he started to send people to the prefectural government, provincial governor's office and garrison three years ago.
But just like the imperial palace, the people placed there are in unimportant positions.
Because the royal family also knew how important Dingzhou was, the three people who controlled this state were all royalists.
If the royal family was not now in disgrace, the prefect Zhu Hong would not have personally welcomed the exile.
Therefore, his people wanted to go further and gain real power, but they lacked an opportunity.
Thinking of this, Qi Yanzhou asked Ma Kun.
"Uncle Ma, what's going on in Dingzhou City recently?"
Ma Kun thought for a moment and replied, "Ever since the Second Young Master and the Emperor fell out, Prefect Zhu, Governor Wu, and General Pei have all become very vigilant and have searched Dingzhou City inside and out three times."
Fortunately, the people he placed in the government offices and garrisons were all in low positions.
Otherwise, you might be found out and killed on the spot.
Qi Yanzhou knew very well that before the imperial power fell, the three people in charge of Dingzhou would leave a way out for themselves, but would not betray the emperor.
The reason why the emperor trusted them was that their sons were sent to the capital as hostages since birth.
They won't choose another good tree unless they have no other choice.
"Uncle Ma knows Dingzhou City very well. Have you found a way out?"
Ma Kun nodded and said, "Second Master, I suspect Zhu Hong has a mistress and she gave birth to a son for him."
He had suspected it before, but he had never found any evidence and thought he was just overthinking.
But today, Zhu Hong personally welcomed the Qi family at the city gate, which deepened his suspicion.
Even though he knew that doing so would make the emperor unhappy, he still did it in order to have an extra way out.
This shows that he had something to rely on and was not completely controlled by the emperor.
After listening to Ma Kun's guess, Qi Yanzhou nodded in agreement.
"That makes sense. Uncle Ma, tell me why you suspect Zhu Hong has a mistress?"
"Like the emperor, Zhu Hong believed in Taoism and would go to the Taoist temple to burn incense on the first and fifteenth day of every month, staying there for the whole day.
There were some orphans in the Taoist temple. Every time he went there, he would bring food and toys, and even send a teacher to teach them. ”
Qi Yanzhou could hear something wrong in Li Ma Kun's words.
"As the emperor's lackey, Zhu Hong is not a good official. He does not need to show favor to orphans to win the hearts of the people."
"I thought so too, but I didn't find anything from the Taoist temple or the orphan."
"I'm going to the Taoist temple tonight."
Ma Kun immediately objected, "Second Master, you will leave early tomorrow morning, so don't take any risks. I will check it out."
Qi Yanzhou picked up the cold tea and took a sip.
"I came to Dingzhou City on purpose, first to see you, and second to do something."
The emperor will never give up his desire to destroy the Qi family.
And his counterattack will not end!
Ma Kun reminded: "The attitude of Governor Wu and General Pei towards the Second Young Master is unclear, so you must be careful."
Qi Yanzhou nodded and put down the teacup.
"Okay, I will. Is there anything wrong with these two?"
"Inspector Wu is not in Dingzhou recently. He has gone to inspect the counties and towns under his jurisdiction. There is nothing special about the Wu family.
General Pei, on the other hand, has recently suffered a leg disease and is recuperating at home. I heard that his mother's health is not very good either. ”
After Ma Kun finished speaking, he suddenly thought of Zhao Mingxu.
"Second Master, Zhao Mingxu has been getting closer to Zhu Hong recently."
"I see, Uncle Ma, your health is not very good either. When Xi Ze passes through Dingzhou, I will ask him to take a look at you. Dingzhou needs you to look after it carefully."
Qi Yanzhou didn't want Ye Chutang to get into trouble, so he could only wait for Xize to come to Dingzhou.
Ma Kun smiled and joked, "Don't worry, Second Young Master. Even if I'm buried, the three brothers of the Ma family will still be at your service."
Peace on earth and a peaceful and prosperous country are the mission of the Qi Family Army!
As long as the Qi family exists, the Qi family army will not disband!
"Uncle Ma, you will have to wait until that day, because it won't be long, five to ten years."
Ma Kun knew that Qi Yanzhou would not speak without a purpose, and a light appeared in his slightly cloudy eyes.
"Okay, I'll live until that day."
Qi Yanzhou and Ma Kun talked about the world situation again.
"Uncle Ma, before I leave tomorrow morning, I will come to see you again and tell you what I have gained from this trip."
After saying that, he left the Ma family and returned to the post station.
The people from the Zhao family had been taken away by Zhao Mingxu, and they ignored Ye Siyin who was in premature labor.
There were ice cubes in the station, which was rare and very refreshing. Everyone was taking a rest.
Qi Yanzhou went to the room under the guidance of the postman.
The sound of the door opening woke Ye Chutang up.
She yawned and sat up, and asked, "Azhou, there won't be any more trouble in Dingzhou City, right?"
"No, it's still early for dinner, so I'll sleep a little longer."
"No, or I won't be able to sleep at night."
Ye Chutang stood up and sat at the round table with Qi Yanzhou.
She asked, "Dingzhou is a fortress in the northwest, can you take it?"
“We are working on it.”
"What can I do for you?"
Qi Yanzhou held Ye Chutang's hand and said distressedly, "No, you should have a good rest."
"If you don't want to rest, let's go out for a walk and restock some supplies."
"Okay, I'll take you to eat Dingzhou delicacies."
While the two men were strolling on the busiest street in Dingzhou City, the head of the deposed prince was delivered to the palace.
Zhao Chengyu suffered a lot of torture before his death. He was unkempt, with scars on his face and was extremely thin.
The queen took a long time to recognize that he was her only son.
He couldn't catch his breath and passed out.
The emperor woke up two days ago, but he was in poor spirits, the ulcers in his body were still getting worse, and he spent a lot of time in a coma.
He looked at Zhao Chengyu's horrible head and felt a chill on his neck.
"Take it away, take it away quickly!"
The eunuch immediately took the head away, but handed over a letter.
"Your Majesty, this is a letter from Qi Yanzhou to you. Please open it yourself."
The emperor knew that the content of the letter would not be good, but he still wanted to know what was written.
He stretched out his festering hand tremblingly.
Just as his hand was about to touch the letter, he immediately pulled it back.
"This letter may also be poisonous. Open it and read it to me."
The eunuch was frightened by the emperor's words and let go.
The letters fell to the ground.
He didn't want to get his whole body festering, but he didn't dare to disobey the emperor's order, so he could only bite the bullet and pick up the letter and open it.
"The head of the deposed crown prince is my Mid-Autumn Festival gift to the emperor. Is the cut on the neck rounder than the moon?
Your Majesty, how does it feel to be festering all over and threatened with death?
Don't worry, this is just a warning, but I can't guarantee it will happen next time.
Behave yourself, or I'll chop off your head.
Your Majesty, please issue another edict of repentance, go up to the city wall, and kowtow to the people of the city!
This is an order, not a negotiation! ”
After the eunuch finished reciting with a trembling voice, he knelt on the ground with a plop.
"Your Majesty, please calm down!"
Although Qi Yanzhou's letter was extremely arrogant, the emperor was not angry at all, he was only happy.
Because he won't die!
The huge rock that was weighing on his heart disappeared, making him feel much better.
"Someone come!"
The shadow guard came out from the darkness and knelt on one knee in front of the dragon couch.
"Your Majesty, please give your orders."
"All the palace servants in the bedroom, leave no one alive!"
The letter that Qi Yanzhou threatened him in must not be known to anyone.
In this way, writing a confession of guilt and kowtowing to the people were his own ideas.
The people's resentment towards him would be alleviated a little.
The shadow guard took action and blood flowed like a river.
"Your Majesty, all the palace maids have been killed."
"Burn the letter."
"yes!"
The letter humiliating and threatening the emperor was burned to ashes.
"Go tell Eunuch De that he will not die, and let him recover in peace."
"I obey your command!"
Eunuch De took a decoction to treat the epidemic, but it had the opposite effect and his condition was much more serious than the emperor's.
His whole body was covered with ulcers and smelled foul due to the high fever, and he was in a coma almost every day.
But sometimes he would become conscious.
Although the imperial physician was unable to develop an antidote to alleviate the condition of Eunuch De and the emperor.
But no one was infected, which means the two people did not have an epidemic disease.
This made everyone in the palace breathe a sigh of relief.
When the shadow guard went to Xishou Palace, Eunuch De was in a coma.
He told the news to Shuangxi, who was serving him, and asked Shuangxi to convey the emperor's words to Eunuch De.
The shadow guard returned to the emperor's bedroom to report.
The emperor asked the new palace maid to move the table onto the dragon couch so that he could write his edict of apology.
After being tormented by the fear of death for so long, he now just wants to live a good life.
Only by staying alive can you turn the situation around and get revenge!
so.
This time, in order to satisfy Qi Yanzhou, he wrote the edict of repentance with extra sincerity.
As soon as she finished writing, the queen, who was extremely sad, woke up.
The chamber had been cleaned, but the incense could not cover up the strong smell of blood, which made her feel sick.
When she saw that the emperor still had the mind to write an imperial edict, she became so angry that she screamed wildly.
"Where's Chengyu? Where is my Chengyu?!"
Looking at him is like looking at an enemy.
The emperor glanced at the queen calmly and said, "Outside the palace, make arrangements so that he can be buried as soon as possible."
"Chengyu died without a complete body. If we don't find his body, how can we bury him?"
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