novelzi Chapter 140
Chapter 140
After the news was swiftly delivered to the Capital City, Li Shuchen's second uncle, Prince Zhong, angrily threw the intelligence report at his Gray-robed Aide's face and said sarcastically, "Look at your brilliant idea!"
"You said the bandit problem in Jinzhou was rampant, and suggested we coerce the mountain bandits to cooperate, then frame them afterwards. It would be cleaner and leave no trace. But what's the result? We've handed him a good reputation for free!"
"He's using the attack as an excuse to take that fool Mo Wangshan to suppress the bandits, and he's even using the poison I prepared at the post station to poison him!"
"That little bastard..." Prince Zhong cursed furiously.
One of the advisors quietly looked up and reminded him, "Your Highness, you're his uncle..."
Prince Zhong choked.
He pondered for a moment - if the little bastard was his nephew, what did that make him?
An old bastard?
Prince Zhong pursed his lips tightly.
He glared again at the outspoken advisor: "You're so clever!"
"Since you're so capable, think of a way to get rid of this little pri... nce."
A calculating, venomous gleam flashed in Prince Zhong's eyes.
The Emperor was disappointing, only managing to produce two princes in so many years, not even a princess.
Clearly, the Emperor was lacking in that department.
Unlike him, with nineteen sons and seventeen daughters.
He was very capable!
Killing his elder brother to take the throne was too difficult and could easily lead to accusations of regicide and fratricide, condemned by history books. It would be better to directly eliminate his two princes. With the Emperor heirless, he would naturally need to adopt a successor.
He had many sons and could lend one to his royal brother.
Once his son ascended the throne, he would become the de facto Emperor Emeritus.
Prince Zhong's schemes were well-laid.
So when the Emperor inexplicably wanted to depose the Crown Prince, he was the first to support it.
After the Crown Prince was deposed and exiled, he had sent assassins, but the Crown Prince had luckily escaped. Later, upon learning that he had lost the use of his leg, Prince Zhong had underestimated him.
Coincidentally, Consort Yao became pregnant with the second prince, so he began plotting against the second prince.
Now that the second prince was in a coma, who would have thought the Emperor would recall Li Shuchen, whose leg had healed. Prince Zhong turned his attention to Li Shuchen once again.
While they were still brainstorming ideas, Li Shuchen faced his third assassination attempt.
On the twenty-fifth day of their journey, they reached the borders of Yunzhou.
In deserted areas, Qi Huan couldn't help but casually leave some water and steamed buns by the roadside.
Saving a life was worth fifty points.
Replenishing a bottle of water cost about two points, and a pound of Shandong steamed buns cost about six points.
The points gained from doing good deeds far outweighed those spent on purchasing food.
Why not help the refugees while accumulating more points?
Qi Huan helped the disaster-stricken refugees as much as she could while ensuring her own safety. But truly solving this problem would require the government's intervention.
She had heard that Yunzhou City had emergency grain reserves and a spring that hadn't run dry in a hundred years. The refugees on the road all said things would be better once they reached Yunzhou City. They had already passed through three county towns, and after two more, they would reach Yunzhou City.
She was surprised to encounter Li Shuchen here.
According to Yan Jiu, Li Shuchen had set out the day after them. They had entered Yunzhou, abandoned their horses, and walked for three days. By rights, Shuchen should have traveled faster in his carriage.
What Qi Huan didn't know was that Li Shuchen had encountered an assassination attempt earlier, which delayed him for a day, plus another day of recovery, coincidentally bringing them together at this time.
Her gaze fixed intently on the distant carriage, longing to see him.
As night fell, with no village in sight, Commander Mo ordered his men to set up camp.
The weather was stifling, and almost everyone was sticky with sweat.
During a drought, no one would waste water on bathing.
The surrounding refugees reeked of sweat, and the biting mosquitoes made it difficult to sleep.
Yan Qing swatted a flying insect with a loud slap. As she was about to discard the mosquito's corpse, she suddenly heard a woman nearby say, "If you're not going to eat it, can I have it?"
"......"
Meanwhile, a large wave of refugees quietly approached, wielding clubs as they advanced towards the guards' carriages and horses.
The person at the front shouted loudly, "They have water! And food! There are more of us, we can surely grab some! Charge!"
"Charge!"
Driven by the need for food and water, the refugees' eyes glowed red with determination. They were no longer intimidated by the guards and rushed forward, swinging their clubs.
Li Shuchen had anticipated this.
Earlier, Commander Mo and Eunuch Luo had insisted on following the emperor's verbal orders, refusing to travel light. Their conspicuous presence was bound to cause trouble.
If the refugees came to loot and met no resistance, they would continue to do so.
However, if they resisted and the guards killed anyone, it would be blamed on him. His reputation would be ruined, and the common people would despise him.
Li Shuchen stepped out of the carriage. With a light touch of his toes, he flew onto the roof of the vehicle. His hands clasped behind his back, he parted his thin lips and, using a bit of his inner energy to project his voice, called out: "Stop!"