The Qi King was provoked by Zhang Fang’s words, his face darkened and his eyes glinted with coldness as he asked, “Does Young Master Zhang intend to let this king go?”
Zhang Fang did not respond to the Qi King; instead, he stood up, walked to the door, opened it, and stepped outside.
Uncle Xing and the others stood outside, and upon seeing Zhang Fang, immediately asked, “Young Master, what’s going on? Are they really mountain bandits?”
The battle had been so fierce, with so many deaths. Uncle Xing felt that they didn’t resemble mountain bandits but rather disciplined assassins trained to kill. Moreover, since Zhang Fang had captured the limping man, Uncle Xing believed the other side’s identity must be significant. Yet, Zhang Fang had not explained anything about the situation so far.
Zhang Fang glanced at Mu Qing and the others, instructing them, “I trust very few people, so I would appreciate it if the three of you could help count the goods in the carts.”
Yuan Juan and Mu Qing took their instructions to do the work. Lin Zheng approached Zhang Fang and asked, “Young Master, what do you need me to do?”
“Take good care of those injured today. Make sure the meals are generous,” Zhang Fang replied absentmindedly.
Lin Zheng nodded quickly.
After he left, Zhang Fang pulled Uncle Xing aside and said, “Uncle Xing, that person in the house is the Qi King.”
Upon hearing this, Uncle Xing was dumbfounded, unable to believe he said, “How could the Qi King be here?”
He suspected the combat skills of those individuals were far beyond that of ordinary bandits; they seemed more like elite guards!
Zhang Fang explained, “I suspect he has made arrangements to pull off a clever ruse. He sends everyone to the capital to seize power for him while he hides in Mei County to command from there. If this attempt fails, he can continue to bide his time in Mei County and plot for another chance at a comeback.”
Uncle Xing gaped, muttering, “This matter must be reported to the minister immediately.”
Uncle Xing had no idea how to handle this situation.
However, Zhang Fang said, “We are far away in Mei County and have no idea about the current situation in the capital. If this news cannot be sent smoothly to my father and the Qi King’s people find out, we will be in danger. Additionally, the Qi King still has more than nine hundred private soldiers near Mei County.”
His legs felt unsteady, and Uncle Xing reached out to hold the wooden door, anxiously asking, “Then why are we still here? Let’s leave this place at once!”
“We cannot leave. The governor of Jiangzhou is an ally of the Qi King; if we try to go out of Mei County, we will definitely be intercepted. Escaping Jiangzhou won’t be easy,” Zhang Fang explained. Earlier, Xu Chang had sent someone to Mei County to gather information, but the messenger had been detained here. The delay in returning would surely raise Xu Chang’s suspicions. Xu Chang must have made arrangements to intercept anyone trying to leave Mei County.
Uncle Xing felt an even greater sense of anxiety; his face went pale as he asked, “Are we to just stay here? If those nine hundred men break into the city to rescue the Qi King, we won’t be able to withstand them…”
“I have other strategies,” Zhang Fang said, suspecting the Qi King’s private soldiers had come from the reduced manpower in Mei County over the years.
“What are your strategies?” Uncle Xing pressed Zhang Fang. Despite having watched him grow up, Zhang Fang now seemed unfamiliar to Uncle Xing.
“Don’t worry about this matter, Uncle Xing. As for the Qi King, I need you to personally oversee him; don’t let anyone else find an opportunity to let him escape.” Zhang Fang had very few people he could fully trust by his side. This crucial task had to be entrusted to Uncle Xing; he did not feel secure with anyone else.
Uncle Xing wore a serious expression and specially summoned guards brought from the Zhang family to personally guard the exterior of the house, keeping a close eye on the Qi King.
Zhang Fang awaited the appearance of the nine hundred men, already devising how to handle them. If he could successfully persuade them to abandon the notion of rebellion, Mei County would be secure!
That evening, Yuan Juan rushed to Zhang Fang with a complex expression, reporting the counted goods.
“Young Master Zhang, there are three carts of gold, totaling one hundred thousand taels of gold! Twelve carts of grain, at least five thousand stones! Six carts of weapons, amounting to three hundred and twenty-eight pieces.”
One hundred thousand taels of gold! Zhang Fang had never seen so much money in his life. He hurried to see it for himself.
Everyone else had been sent away, leaving only Mu Qing and Chang Bao to guard the area.
The items had been unloaded, and they led Zhang Fang to the boxes containing the gold and opened them.
Seeing so much gold, Zhang Fang was dazzled. The Qi King had indeed not been idle for the past twenty years!
After finally diverting his gaze from the gold, Zhang Fang examined the grain and remarked quietly, “There must be more grain hidden away.”
The Qi King had worked hard for so many years, secretly supporting numerous private soldiers. It was impossible for him to have hoarded only this little grain.
Yang Zhu, the accountant, was still alive, and Zhang Fang specially interrogated him.
At first, Yang Zhu was quite stubborn. However, when Zhang Fang threatened to harm the Qi King, Yang Zhu visibly panicked and could only disclose the situation truthfully. He even revealed the locations of the hidden grain.
Zhang Fang confirmed one important thing from Yang Zhu’s admission: the private soldiers who followed the Qi King to rebel indeed came from Mei County. Over the years, Yang Zhu had deregistered these young men; whenever he cultivated a batch of capable individuals, he would send them to various locations to await orders from the Qi King, ready to jointly attack the capital.
The number of private soldiers supported by the Qi King reached as many as seventy thousand! Zhang Fang was speechless upon learning this figure.
Additionally, the Qi King had secretly developed his own business empire, so supporting such a large force posed no pressure and drew no suspicion! Just his own businesses and grain shops alone numbered thirty-six! After these years of development, those private soldiers had silently infiltrated the capital!
Zhang Fang felt a chilling apprehension; the Qi King had plotted for many years and was likely highly confident.
However, fortunately, an unexpected twist had occurred. Now the Qi King was in Zhang Fang’s hands. Even if the coup in the capital succeeded, without the Qi King to take charge of the situation and ascend to the throne, those lower-ranking officials would surely falter.
After storing the gold, the grain was directly sent to the granary, and the weapons were placed in the storehouse. That night, Zhang Fang slept uneasily, worried about the safety of Minister Zhang.
Recently, dark clouds loomed over the capital. The emperor was constantly on guard against the Qi King, repeatedly screening the officials in court but discovered no one had issues. He could not understand what leverage the Qi King possessed to dare harbor such ambitions of snatching his throne. At times, the emperor even suspected he had overestimated the Qi King. Perhaps the latter merely held empty ambitions without the ability to realize them.
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