"Dead? This is impossible!"
Hearing Cao Bin's words, Huang Yushi screamed in surprise, and when he saw Cao Bin looking at him, he quickly added:
"How could Mr. Han be so unwise?"
Seeing the panic on Huang Yushi's face, Cao Bin roughly understood his background.
The Marquis of Yangzhou was able to build the officialdom of Huaidong as iron as a barrel, so he must have some comrades in the court, at least with deep connections in the "official selection".
Cao Bin and Han Jiang both knew this.
I also know that those people are not determined to keep the Marquis of Yangzhou, but the Marquis of Yangzhou has their leverage and has sent dead soldiers to hide in the capital.
Nowadays, the newspaper industry in the Song Dynasty is relatively developed. Once the news of Yangzhou Hou's death comes out, the dead man is likely to make the evidence in his hands public to the world, and let those people die together.
After calming down his mind, Huang Yushi no longer cared about offending Cao Bin. He held up the imperial edict and said:
"Master Marquis, I have come here with an order. If you deceive me, it will be a crime of deceiving the emperor."
As he spoke, he glanced at Han Jiang and said with gloomy eyes:
"I believe that Mr. Han dare not deceive the imperial court and will not kill the Marquis of Yangzhou without the court's trial... I also ask Mr. Cao to tell the truth and hand over the Marquis of Yangzhou to us."
Hearing this, Han Jiang quickly looked at Cao Bin pitifully.
"Master Hou..."
After seeing Huang Yushi's unusual reaction, he instantly understood Cao Bin's plan and knew that the other party did not deliberately harm him. While he was secretly relieved, he could not help but secretly complain.
Damn it, this guy Cao Bin got himself into trouble again.
Co-author is not your direct subordinate, just use it like an animal, you are really not a human being!
If things go well, if Yangzhou Hou's soldiers do not act as expected or there are other changes, he will probably die to the end and be completely hopeless.
After experiencing Cao Bin's bad character, he didn't think that the other party would admit the crime of deceiving the emperor and rescue him.
On the contrary, he could take the opportunity to kill the Marquis of Yangzhou to prevent this person from secretly causing trouble in the future. Anyway, the crime has already been borne by him.
Cao Bin ignored his plea for mercy, placed the tea bowl heavily on the table, frowned and said displeasedly:
"Huang Yushi said this because he suspected that I had deceived you?"
When Huang Yushi heard this, the corners of his mouth twitched a few times, and he said in a muffled voice:
"I don't dare to doubt the Marquis, but there are many doubts about this matter. After all, we are here under the Holy Order. We must do our best. Please don't embarrass us, the Marquis."
In any case, he did not want to believe that the Marquis of Yangzhou was dead.
What's more, who in the court doesn't know that Lord Cao is acting absurdly and unscrupulously? It is not impossible to lie and deceive the king.
It's just that Cao Bin's power was too strong, and he felt that he couldn't withstand it. If Cao Bin was offended to death, even if he escaped this time, the future would be unpredictable, so he looked at Zhan Zhao:
"Guard Zhan, this case is jointly handled by Yushitai and Kaifeng Mansion. You are also the deputy envoy of the imperial court. Look..."
Bao Heizi's Kaifeng Mansion has always been stubborn. Isn't it just to use Zhan Zhao at times like this?
Zhan Zhao didn't understand the twists and turns, and he sympathized with Han Jiang who was cheated. Seeing that Huang Yushi put the responsibility on himself, he couldn't avoid it, so he had to say:
"Master Marquis, we are here on the orders of the emperor. Since we have doubts, can you allow us to search the palace and clear your name?"
"If this case is blocked, I'm afraid it will be difficult for the Marquis to explain to the court..."
Hearing this, Huang Yushi was very happy. He liked colleagues who were outspoken and not afraid of offending others.
Zhan Zhao made it so clear that he didn't believe that Cao Bin ignored the taboo.
But before Zhan Zhao could finish speaking, Xia Suiliang and others had drawn their weapons and stepped forward one after another, staring at him eagerly and shouting:
"Bold and unbridled..."
Seeing this, Zhan Zhao couldn't help but feel numb. The golden lantern and big sword came out, and he couldn't afford to offend him.
Fortunately, Cao Bin waved his hand to stop them:
"How to explain to the court is my business, so you don't have to worry about Guard Zhan."
"Besides, you and I seem to have some kinship. It would be better for you to avoid cases involving me!"
Hearing this, Zhan Zhao suddenly became depressed.
He was already a bit shy about his wife recognizing Cao Bin as her adoptive father. Now he almost died on the spot, but he had no choice but to bite the bullet and meet again:
"Greetings to that, Yue, Yue... Zhang."
Cao Bin nodded with satisfaction:
"In public places, just use your official position as appropriate."
Huang Yushi was already a little dumbfounded. He was still a little dizzy until he was sent off the boat. He came with a decree, and was dismissed so easily? How outrageous.
It's just a matter of wealth and life, how could Huang Yushi be willing to give up so easily?
He didn't know that Zhan Zhao still had worries in his heart. He just thought that Zhan Zhao was given the title of Yumao by the late emperor and was one of the best in the world. Nowadays, if soft tactics don't work, he can only use hard tactics.
If Zhan Zhao could visit Cao Bin at night, things would turn around, so he whispered:
"Guard Zhan, the imperial court's order is for us to escort Han Jiang and the Marquis of Yangzhou to Beijing together."
"Master Bao has always been selfless. You can't protect Marquis Zhongjing for personal reasons. How about..."
Zhan Zhao frowned. Although he was a little unhappy with Cao Bin's domineering behavior, he was also a little confused by Huang Yushi's attitude. He was about to reply when he heard Han Jiang, who was being escorted off the ship, say with a straight face:
"If I am someone, I will cooperate honestly with Cao Hou's plan. If the plot is not serious, there is still a chance to escape unscathed."
"If you don't know yourself and still want to create some conspiracy in front of Cao Hou, I'm afraid it will be difficult for your family to survive!"
It's not that he has given up his resentment towards Cao Bin, it's just that now that the matter has come to this, he also wants to convict the Yangzhou Marquis Party as soon as possible.
Although Cao Bin tricked him, in terms of the overall situation, he did agree with the other party's plan.
Hearing this, Huang Yushi said a little unnaturally:
"Master Han, what do you mean?"
At this time, Zhan Zhao also realized that he didn't understand that Huang Yushi wanted to use him as a swordsman? So he glanced at Huang Yushi coldly, snorted softly, and ignored him.
He felt that he should just do his job well. Except for Mr. Bao, there were too many evil-minded officials.
However, after knowing Cao Bin's general purpose, all his unhappiness disappeared...
While the Huaidong salt affairs were gradually getting on the right track, the battle in the capital had already become fierce.
After nightfall, although the Imperial City of the Song Dynasty was locked, Pan Renmei and He Jianzhang were still discussing important matters with the Queen Mother Pan in the Funing Palace.
At this time, He Jianzhang, the political advisor, was persuading:
"The Queen Mother, we can't delay any longer, we must use troops."
"Wang Yanling is a minister of Tuogu. He is protected by the late emperor's edict. He is too powerful. It is difficult to suppress this person by just relying on court discussions."
"As far as I know, Marquis Zhongjing has roughly sorted out the salt affairs in Huaidong, and he will be able to return to Beijing in as soon as one month. By then, it will be a tripartite check and balance, and it will be difficult to make any big moves."
"This opportunity is not to be missed!"
Queen Mother Pan hesitated for a moment, lightly opened her red lips and asked:
"There must be a reason. On what charges did I accuse Wang Yanling, and where did I go to find the evidence? I'm afraid the ministers won't accept it."
He Jianzhang said quickly:
"It's unnecessary. The Queen Mother is the king, Wang Yanling is the minister, and there are troops and horses in the hands of Master Pan, why should we worry too much?"
"After we capture this person, we can just plant any charges. Who dares to disobey him?"
Hearing this, Pan Renmei nodded, stroked her beard and smiled:
"This is exactly what I meant. Wang Yanling only thought that we were waiting to sit back and watch Cao Bin leave Beijing just to interfere in the bank."
"But I don't know that my real goal is him, the Prime Minister..."
After saying that, he still didn't know what he wanted to say:
"My original intention was to kill Wang Yanling's eldest son and find his flaws, so that I could probably justifiably capture Wang Yanling."
"After that, we will take advantage of Cao Bin's departure from the capital to destroy his minions, and then either hide or kill him. Who else in this court can compete with you and my father and daughter?"
"I never thought that this guy Cao Bin is really capable. He could clarify the Huaidong salt affairs so quickly. I was forced to take action in advance."
Hearing this, Queen Mother Pan said with some displeasure:
"My father never said he would deal with Cao Bin, and my daughter wants to use him to assist my son. How can we deal with it like this?"
"Take Huaidong Salt Affairs as an example. This problem affects half of the imperial court's annual income. All the court officials are avoiding it. Even the father dare not take over to relieve his daughter's worries."
"If Cao Bin hadn't handled it properly, I don't know how much wealth would have been lost."
Pan Renmei laughed twice in embarrassment, quickly shook her head and persuaded:
"Your Majesty, don't be confused. Although Wang Yanling is powerful and overwhelming, Cao Bincai is even more dangerous."
"Although Wang Yanling has a high reputation, he has no weapons in his hands. If the situation is urgent and critical, he can be captured with just an imperial edict and a team of soldiers."
"Cao Bin is different. He has great prestige in the army. A slight negligence can turn everything upside down. What's more, Cao Bin is so young, so you need to know that people's hearts are unpredictable."
Hearing this, He Jianzhang's eyes suddenly lit up, and he looked at Queen Mother Pan expectantly.
But she hesitated for a moment and said seriously:
"You can cut its wings, but you can't kill them!"
When He Jianzhang heard this, his disappointment was palpable, and Pan Renmei also sighed and said:
"Cao Bin's military power is outstanding, and his military might is unrivaled. The empress will regret it one day."
Queen Mother Pan said displeasedly:
"Does my father want me to imitate King Zhao of the Warring States Period? He destroyed his virtuous ministers and generals, and then was kidnapped by the Liao people and taken to the enemy's country?"
Pan Renmei disagreed:
"It is easy to make peace with foreign enemies, but difficult to control internal forces."
"So what if the Liao people are greedy? Just give it to them. No matter how bad the Song Dynasty is, it will still be my mother's Song Dynasty."
"That's not the case with thieves..."
Queen Mother Pan didn't want to hear anymore, waved her hand and said:
"Grand Master, stop talking. Just do as I say. First, expel Wang Yanling from the court..."
Seeing this, Pan Renmei could only nod in agreement. He Jianzhang was about to follow him out of the palace, but suddenly heard Queen Mother Pan ask coldly:
"He Jianzhang, you deliberately made friends with the generals of the Imperial City Division and sent Gong Liangchen to the Imperial City Division to take charge of the east gate of the harem. What do you want to do?"
He Jianzhang was frightened when he heard this. He thought that his conspiracy with Gong Liangchen had been exposed. He was begging for mercy when he heard Queen Mother Pan say harshly:
"If you dare to make your own decisions again, go to Qiongzhou and stay there for the rest of your life!"
