Adoption brings disaster

Chapter 139

The place where the twelve thieves from Longxi robbed and killed me was already outside the capital. Apart from the arrangements for Li Qinghan which delayed some things, other matters were taken care of by His Royal Highness Prince Yong's guards, so I didn't have to worry about them at all.

In this way, we rode at full speed and arrived in the capital in less than an hour. His Royal Highness Prince Yong and I then went about our own business, so we won't mention it here.

It is said that being busy is the best medicine in the world. As long as you are busy, you won’t have so many painful emotions and so many sad times.

Originally, I felt extremely guilty because Hero Li died saving me. I was also inevitably heartbroken when King Zhenbei passed away. However, after returning to the capital, I was busy with various things, and my heart calmed down. I had no time and would not think about these things.

It was only on the second day after I returned to Beijing that I arranged all the matters concerning the funeral of Hero Li and Ah Xiaogao. My subordinates went about their business, and His Royal Highness Prince Yong brought General Lu to my house.

Actually, this is not accurate. Looking at General Lu's anxious look, His Royal Highness Prince Yong seems to be here to supervise him, as if he is afraid that General Lu will ask me to do something difficult again.

General Lu was extremely excited, but he was afraid that I would embarrass him and not help him, so he humbly and flatteringly handed me a box and said, "Your Highness Qianqiu, this is the list. Please take a look."

Since I agreed to take care of this matter, I naturally had no other opinions and took the box from General Lu's hand.

However, I did not open the box. I put it aside and said, "This matter is not difficult to handle. It is just a matter of giving people a taste of their own medicine."

"Qianqiu, are you trying to get Qiansha to take action?" His Royal Highness Prince Yong understood me best. He frowned and said, "Although this method is the most foolproof, as far as I know, if you want a killer of Wubusha's level to take action, the cost will be very high. And this list is..."

His Royal Highness Prince Yong's words were quite clear. He meant that if Wubusha killed one person, he would be bankrupt. There are at least more than ten people on this list. How could I afford it?

Since I dared to say this, I was naturally prepared, and I chuckled and said, "Chongguang's words are not correct."

"Oh, something's wrong?" asked King Yong.

I smiled and said, "The expense isn't insignificant, it's enormous. Yesterday, when we entered the city, I asked Wuxin and the others to investigate. If we were to ask a master like Wubusha to do it, in addition to the person they killed being worth the effort, they would also need 100,000 taels of gold."

"One hundred thousand taels of gold." Although General Lu was knowledgeable, he couldn't help but gasp when he heard this number.

General Lu was shocked, his eyes full of heat. He looked at me and said, "I'm afraid the tax revenue of Beishang Kingdom in three years is not this much. I have always heard that Baofu Escort Agency is rich, but I didn't expect it to be so rich."

Upon hearing this, His Royal Highness Prince Yong frowned and said, "The escort agency has indeed made a lot of money over the years. Although it's not quite 100,000 taels of gold, it should be close. However, as far as I know, the Poor Clinic and the New Farmers' School have spent most of the money over the years. Qianqiu, do you still have any money left?"

General Lu was so confused that he asked, "How did they spend 100,000 taels of gold? Both the escort agency and the academy look very poor."

I chuckled and said, "How the money was spent isn't a big deal. It was simply used to provide disaster relief and educate people. But I have one question I'm confused about, and I'd appreciate your help."

"Your Highness Qianqiu, please feel free to ask. As long as we know something, we will tell you everything. Even if I don't know, I will find a way to find out and tell Your Highness Qianqiu." General Lu said.

"You must know this." I looked at His Royal Highness Prince Yong, then at General Lu and said, "One hundred thousand taels of gold is no small sum. Even for someone as wealthy as His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, it would be extremely difficult to come up with such a huge sum. I want to know why His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would spend such a huge sum to buy the life of an imperial official."

"Uh." General Lu lowered his head and glanced at His Royal Highness Prince Yong, hoping that His Royal Highness Prince Yong would come up with something to perfunctorily answer me.

Unexpectedly, His Royal Highness Prince Yong simply said, "Spending such a huge price to kill an official of the imperial court is naturally because if we don't kill him, the price we pay will be more than 100,000 taels of gold."

I looked at His Royal Highness Prince Yong with interest and motioned for him to continue.

His Royal Highness Prince Yong was completely open with me, and he added, "Your Highness Qianqiu, do you remember the last time we met? That time, I was on an unexpected inspection tour of Beishang, following my father's order, and I stumbled upon a case of illegal salt trafficking."

I actually don't remember this incident anymore, but fearing General Lu might be suspicious, I could only pretend to remember and said, "It's just a case of smuggling salt. Even if it's related to His Royal Highness, the most he can be accused of is lax discipline or greed. It won't cause any big trouble."

Prince Yong listened, nodded, and said, "At first, I thought the same as Qianqiu. I didn't pay much attention to it. I just asked my people to investigate. If they can find something, it would be good to cause some trouble for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"It seems that you have found something extraordinary." I said with a smile.

"At first, nothing serious happened. We just knew the mastermind was the Crown Prince's grandfather. I don't know if it was because he became arrogant because his grandson was the Crown Prince, or if he was just getting old and confused. My people disguised themselves and easily struck up a conversation with him. With a little trickery, we got evidence of smuggling salt."

I added, "The Crown Prince's grandfather's illegal salt dealings did cause him some trouble, but if the Crown Prince sacrificed his own family for the sake of justice, he would have gained a good reputation, which wouldn't be a loss. Since His Royal Highness paid such a high price to hire someone to kill someone, it seems he has uncovered some secrets."

"It's actually not a big deal. It's just that the amount is a bit large. It's at least over 100,000 gold. And my people have solid evidence. 80% of this gold has gone into the prince's pocket."

"What did His Royal Highness the Crown Prince do with such a large sum of money?" I rubbed my clothes subconsciously and said to myself.

"Is there any need to think about this?" General Lu shouted anxiously, "This will definitely be used against us."

His Royal Highness Prince Yong rolled his eyes at General Lu and said speechlessly, "Do you really need to tell us this? The question is how are you going to use this money to deal with us? With such a large sum of money, there are so many things that can be done. If we don't investigate thoroughly, it's like having a sword hanging over our heads."

General Lu was a rough man, so naturally he didn't care about these things. He said nonchalantly, "Oh, why think so much? When the enemy comes, we will fight them. When the water comes, we will block it with earth. This time, we have taken away His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's money. I'm afraid the Crown Prince will have a hard time in the future."

His Royal Highness Prince Yong and I looked at the complacent General Lu, smiled at each other and were a little speechless. However, we also knew that most military generals were like this, and he wouldn't understand even if I explained it, so we didn't say anything more.

General Lu naturally knew that we disliked him a little, but he didn't care.

Prince Yong seemed to be concerned about me and asked again, "Qianqiu hasn't told us yet, where did you get such a large sum of money?"

"That's right. Killing one person costs 100,000 taels of gold. If all the people on the list are killed, it will cost at least one million taels of gold. How does His Highness Qianqiu have so much money?" General Lu asked belatedly.

"A million gold coins wouldn't be enough even if I sold the palace. I don't plan to kill everyone on the list, just two or three," I said. "As for this money, it was given to me by others, so I don't feel bad about using it."

My words made His Royal Highness Prince Yong and General Lu even more confused. General Lu said, "Who is so generous? He gave away hundreds of thousands of taels of gold just like that. Why didn't anyone give me any?"

His Royal Highness Prince Yong didn't say anything, but just stared at me with an inquiring look.

I didn't explain, but just took out a letter and showed it to them. After reading it, they had different reactions.

After reading this, General Lu was about to gather the army to suppress the bandits, but His Royal Highness Prince Yong frowned and said, "What on earth is Shuikushan thinking by giving you so much money?"

"What else can they think about? It's just a matter of diverting the trouble away." I chuckled. "The Eighty-Eight Villages is the money bag of the entire evil sect. Shuikushan took it all in one go. How can the evil sect let it go? Naturally, all the masters will come out to get the money back. How can Shuikushan resist? Diverting the trouble away is their best strategy."

"What are your plans for this matter, Qianqiu?" asked His Royal Highness Prince Yong.

"Originally, I didn't want to get involved in this matter. I'd rather pay them back and have some peace of mind," I said.

My eyes turned cold as I changed into a comfortable position and continued, "According to the news from the escort agency, the Eighty-Eight Village is indeed moving closer to Jincheng. We have evidence to prove that they are planning to join forces with the Twelve Bandits of Longxi to kill me. So I changed my mind. I want not only their money, but also their lives."

His Royal Highness Prince Yong's eyes were also icy, but after a moment, he suppressed his murderous intent and said, "The martial arts world is in turmoil right now, and the court is in turmoil. It's not appropriate for Qianqiu to confront the Eighty-Eight Villages now. It would be better to give them some money first to understand the matter, and then deal with them later."

I sighed and said, "I know these evil demons won't be around for much longer. Without them, the Eighty-Eight Village will be nothing more than fish on my chopping board. I have the final say on how to kill them."

After I finished speaking, my eyes looked somewhat sad. I sighed and continued, "But before he died, Hero Li asked me if he had died a worthy death. If I really back down on this matter, wouldn't Hero Li's death have been in vain? I must fight for Hero Li to die a worthy death."

"But." His Royal Highness Prince Yong wanted to persuade him again.

I knew what Prince Yong was going to say, so I gave a wry smile and said, "But what is it? If it weren't for that incident, I wouldn't have entered the martial arts world, nor would I have been involved in this karma. You must bear half the responsibility for Hero Li's death."

I know that what I said is particularly unreasonable. Regardless of whether that incident happened or not, I would not hesitate to join the world of martial arts for an answer. It's just that I feel uncomfortable now, and I have to push the responsibility onto others to feel better.

General Lu had no idea what we were talking about and could only try to persuade us anxiously. I was afraid that if they continued to persuade me, I would give up, so I could only put on a stern face, patted the list General Lu brought, and said, "You guys go back. I'll take care of this matter."

His Royal Highness Prince Yong knew my personality best. Once I made a decision, I would not change it easily. So he did not try to persuade me anymore, but just arranged for someone to protect me and did not mention it.

I chatted with His Royal Highness Prince Yong for a while longer, then sent them off. Not long after, the three escort leaders Wuxin Wude and Qingyu arrived at the house.

"I think Li Er has explained this matter clearly to you. Tell me what you think." I said after taking a sip of tea.

"Your Highness often says that harmony brings wealth. If we eat it all, I'm afraid we will have to break off relations with the Eighty-Eight Village." said a leader of the escort team.

"We can't let them take it all, otherwise they will think that our escort company is afraid of them. In my humble opinion, it would be better to return the money on the entire ship to them as a reward for their dog-eat-dog drama." said another escort leader.

"This plan is very clever, and it has the spirit of killing three warriors with two peaches. I think we can use more, less, or even none at all. This way we can divide them, and maybe we can even destroy the Eighty-Eight Villages without bloodshed." The last escort leader also agreed.

I listened to the ideas of the three escort leaders, and it is indeed the best solution at the moment. I can get money and sit back and watch the fight between the two tigers. It really kills two birds with one stone.

I turned to look at Wuxin and Wude again. Wuxin didn't say anything, but just kept thinking. Wude pouted and said, "But they want to kill Brother Qianqiu. Are we really going to let them go like this?"

"The Divine Doctor is wrong. When did we ever say we would let these ignorant fellows go? We are just taking our time. When the time is right, we will destroy them all at once. That is the best strategy."

"It is unwise to confront the Eighty-Eight Village head-on at this time, but we can't just let it go of their attempt to surround and kill His Highness Qianqiu. We have to find a way to satisfy both parties." Qingyu said.

"Actually, I always thought the name 'Eighty-Eight Village' was not nice." I said casually.

After hearing this ridiculous remark, everyone didn't know how to respond. Only Wuxin smiled and said, "The name 'Eighty-Eight Villages' is indeed not a good name. Your Highness, what do you think of the name 'Eighty-Eight Tombs'?"

After hearing Wuxin's words, everyone understood what I meant. The three escort leaders quickly said, "Your Highness, please think twice."

I ignored the escort leader and chuckled, "Eighty-eight graves is barely acceptable, but it's still not as good as Eighty-eight mass graves."

Seeing that I ignored them, the three escort leaders knew that I had made up my mind. They stopped talking about taking things slow and steady and started talking about how to wipe out the Eighty-Eight Villages.

It is said that it is the Escort Agency versus the Eighty-Eight Villages, but in fact it is a showdown between the righteous and evil in the martial arts world. As the saying goes, evil cannot prevail over good, it just depends on the price paid.

But I am about to leave this world, so naturally I don’t care what the price is. No matter how high the price is, I want to make Li Qinghan die a worthy death.

Predict what will happen in the future, and listen to the next decomposition.