SFS Chapter 380 The Struggle for the Throne
Chapter 380 The Struggle for the Throne
He Tianxia led his men away from the Huang residence and went to a teahouse.
Longyan is full of brothels, and men go out all night to seek pleasure.
As soon as He Tianxia and Song Moran entered the dark pavilion, the madam who greeted them paused for a moment and came over to greet them personally.
"Please come in, everyone!"
He Tianxia nodded slightly, and the madam immediately took a few quick steps forward, lifted the curtain, and whispered in a voice that only the two of them could hear as he passed by.
"Sir, the men are in the secret room of the third compartment. They've arrived. There are three of them, all carrying knives."
"Alright." He Tianxia didn't waste any words and went straight to the room, which was fully equipped with wine and food, except that there were no prostitutes to accompany him.
"Mr. Song, please sit down!" He Tianxia told the guards to stay outside and sat down with Song Moran.
"Okay!" The two chatted quietly for a while before he tapped the bowl with his chopsticks. The cabinet on the wall opened in response, and three short men came out.
One of them, speaking in broken Mandarin, said, "General, we said, okay, when will you give us the notification?"
He Tianxia didn't even raise his head or glance at them. He pulled something out of his pocket and tossed it over, saying, "It's settled. Go!"
"General! You bastards!" The man was about to say something more.
He Tianxia looked up in disgust and shouted, "Get out!"
The man swallowed his words, and the group slunk into the cabinet, passed through the tunnel, and left.
He Tianxia took a sip of wine, feeling depressed.
Song Mo Ran said softly, "General, these bastards are probably not the type to stay subservient for long. If possible, it's best not to leave any tricks up your sleeve."
“I know perfectly well that I’m just borrowing it for a while. Once this is over, I’ll leave no one alive. Those who are not of my kind will surely have ulterior motives!” He Tianxia said coldly as he watched the cabinet disappear. “They’re just caged birds. How could they possibly fly out of my grasp?”
"It's good that the general understands; I, Song, need not worry."
"What do you think of the recent power struggle between the brothers in Prince De's mansion? Who will emerge victorious?" Although He Tianxia was ruthless, he lacked cunning. However, he believed that he was good at managing people, so he put on a humble and respectful demeanor and asked with concern.
Song Mo Ran poured himself a glass of wine and pondered, "I think Zhao Lue is better. His brother Zhao Qi is not ruthless enough, so he will ultimately fail."
“Zhao Qi? Isn’t it said that Zhao Lue is even more virtuous? He served Prince De for three months, personally cleaning up his excrement and urine, and was a famously filial son?” He Tianxia asked, puzzled.
"General, you've seen many battles and straightforward killings. You wouldn't know that the most deadly tricks are the underhanded ones. Prince De has never married because of Zhao Lue. His son Zhao Qi was born by accident because a maid drugged him. And when Zhao Lue turned twelve, he immediately announced to the world that he would be made a prince. With such virtue, it is only right that he serves him." Song Mo Ran slowly drank his wine.
Seeing this, He Tianxia immediately poured him another cup, signaling him to continue.
"How can you tell? General, do you know that both of these women argued with the old prince about taking concubines, but the outcomes were quite different?" Song Moran asked, deliberately showing off.
He Tianxia had no idea about any of this. He had been guarding the border all along, and the north had only recently been pacified. He had only been transferred to the capital in the last two years, and his network of connections had not yet been established. Although Prince Gong valued him highly, he had heard from his informant that he was wary of him because of his name. He was even considering changing his name.
"I don't know, sir. Please tell me. I'd like to hear the details."
"It's quite a coincidence that Wang Tuanlian's current wife is the concubine that Zhao Lue wanted to take back. Of course, the old prince disagreed and threatened to take away his title of prince. Zhao Lue immediately gave up the idea of taking a concubine and even married Cao, the woman the old prince requested."
"Zhao Qi is different. He took a woman from a brothel as a concubine. I heard that his widowed wife harbored resentment because he spent every night with that concubine, so she plotted to have an ugly servant rape that concubine." Song Mo Ran told gossip in a serious tone.
He Tianxia listened with great interest, "This woman is so ruthless, and then what?"
"Who would have thought that the concubine was also a fierce woman, and she stabbed Liang on the way to offer incense. Zhao Qi wanted to protect the woman and suppress the news of Liang's death, but who was Liang? She was the daughter of the former Prime Minister Liang. How could he let her have her way? In the end, the woman died with resentment. This shows that the two men had different personalities, and Zhao Lue was more decisive in dealing with the world."
"So it seems Zhao Lue definitely has the upper hand?" He Tianxia picked up his wine cup and put it down again. "What do you think of the recent rumors in the capital that Lady Cao is pregnant?"
“Hehe~” Song Mo Ran chuckled, “Just listen to these things, General, don’t take them seriously. Given Zhao Lue’s determination to get the throne, he can’t let his wife do such a thing. And Cao Shi, as someone trained by the Empress, would certainly not make such a mistake.”
"I understand now!" He Tianxia nodded. That makes sense.
“Now Prince De is close to the Empress, and although Prince Gong and other old ministers have made connections with the noble ladies sent to the palace by the General, if that noble lady becomes pregnant in the future, the General’s future will be limitless.”
Song Mo Ran spoke clearly and explicitly, also making it clear to him that she was assisting him.
"Thank you for your insight, sir. I should indeed be aware of these things." He Tianxia naturally understood his meaning and was taking the opportunity to flatter him. He had a long road ahead of him, and he had to take things one step at a time!
It was very late at night, and the two talked for a very long time.
At Prince De's residence, Zhao Lue stood guard by the bedside, listening to the faint breathing sounds on the bed. He suppressed his irritation. People say that there are no filial sons at the bedside of a long-term sick person. He was really tired of pretending. This old man was half-dead and half-alive, so annoying. For so many days, he hadn't been able to eat or sleep well. Was it because old people were afraid of death and became sentimental? After serving him for so long, he sometimes suspected that his father was doing it on purpose.
"Cough cough!" Just like that, even though his breathing is steady, he insists on coughing twice, and I'll definitely have to call him later.
Zhao Lue pretended to be asleep, as if he hadn't been woken up. Sure enough, the next second, "Ahem, Lue'er, help me up, I need to get up in the middle of the night!"
Zhao Lue suppressed his anger and cooperated with his act of filial piety. For four whole months, this was done every day without fail. Moreover, he would deliberately choose to get up before the night watchman's watch, light the lamp, and sometimes he would even have someone go out to order some food for him to serve him before he went to sleep again. This was all for show, to impress outsiders and to praise him for his virtuous character and for being truly deserving of the title.
He felt disgusted by all of this, and he always called him by his own name, never Zhao Qi. Was he afraid his brother would kill him? Because he had caused the death of Zhao Qi's mother? Zhao Lue thought maliciously. At least in this respect, he was better than Zhao Qi.
It's just a matter of enduring, isn't it? He's just watching to see how long this old geezer can last.
The old man slowly fussed around for a while, washing his hands and then eating half a bowl of bird's nest and chicken soup. He rinsed his mouth and cleaned his face before lying down again. He finally fell asleep again, and only then did Zhao Lue return to his own courtyard.
It's already dawn.