Adoption brings disaster

Seeing that I was calm in the face of danger and had made all the necessary arrangements, although everyone was more concerned, some were afraid, some were worried, and some were happy, but they were all calmed down by my temperament and did their own things according to my orders.

Soon, a table was set up outside. A Da went to deal with the corpse. The Taoist priest stayed on a tree branch in the distance, not knowing what he was thinking. As for the others, they endured the discomfort of the bloody smell and served me.

It is said that when people are in an extremely nervous state, they will always do things that they cannot do normally. For example, I am having a delicious meal with blood all over the floor and a corpse.

After eating and drinking my fill, my mind, which had been stunned by the shock, felt much better. Then I realized that the Taoist priest had killed someone, and the person he killed was the younger brother of Prince Gong's favorite twelfth concubine.

Thinking of this, I had a terrible headache. Prince Gong was not someone to be trifled with. Although for Prince Gong the one who died was only the younger brother of a concubine, this was a big trouble.

Seeing that the Taoist priest didn't care at all and seemed rather pleased with himself, I was speechless and said, "Taoist priest, you killed someone."

The Taoist priest glanced at me and said, "I know."

Seeing that the Taoist priest didn't care, I said again, "Master, you killed someone."

After saying it twice in a row, the Taoist priest got annoyed and said in a higher tone, "I know."

The Taoist priest's voice became louder, and my voice became higher and higher, repeating: "Master, you killed someone."

The Taoist priest's voice rose considerably as he shouted, "I know, but this evil man has done so many evil things and has lost all conscience. What's the harm in killing him? At worst, I'll pay for his life. I won't let a coward like you pay for my life."

The Taoist priest's words also made me angry. I stood up and said, "He has done so many evil things. He is full of evil and has lost all conscience. Didn't he start to do so today? Don't other people know that he has lost all conscience? Why didn't anyone else come out to kill him? Why did it have to be you who killed him?"

"I know you are just afraid of Prince Gong. I am not afraid of him. Killing one man and saving a hundred others is my chivalrous way."

The Taoist priest became increasingly agitated as he spoke. He threw his sword to the ground, grabbed a rope, and tied his hands. He said, "It's just a life for a life. Qianqiu, you can capture me and claim the credit."

Seeing him ready to sacrifice himself, I got furious. I pulled out my poisonous anaconda and hit the Taoist priest hard.

The Taoist priest was not paying attention and was hit hard by my whip. He became anxious and shouted, "Why are you hitting me?"

"Why should I hit you? I hit you because you are an idiot and a really bad teammate." I was so angry that I swung the anaconda towards the Taoist priest again.

The Taoist priest's hands were tied, so how could he resist my poisonous anaconda? He could only rely on his body skills to dodge here and there, shouting as he dodged, "Punish the wicked and eliminate the evil, even if I die a hundred times, I will never regret it."

Seeing the Taoist priest like this, I became even more angry. I didn't care about any whip techniques and just whipped him with all my strength.

I don't know how many times I swung the whip, maybe dozens or hundreds, but I was tired, so I threw the poisonous anaconda aside and sat on the chair.

As soon as I sat down, Chunyu offered me tea to calm me down. I was upset, so I drank the tea, rolled my eyes at the Taoist priest, and said speechlessly, "The root of this matter is not the man you killed, but Prince Gong behind him."

After hearing this, the Taoist priest sneered and said, "These things were not done by Prince Gong. Qianqiu is quite good at throwing dirty water, and he can actually blame it on Prince Gong."

"You idiot." I cursed him angrily, "If he hadn't condoned this man, how could he have done so much evil? He is the backer behind this man. If the backer falls, all the evildoers will immediately disappear. If the backer doesn't fall, even if he is killed, there are still countless others."

The Taoist priest seemed to understand a little, but not quite.

"Can't Prince Gong take thirteen or fourteen concubines? Doesn't he have other brothers or sisters for his twelfth concubine? As long as Prince Gong indulges, you can kill this man today and ten or eight more will come out tomorrow."

The more I spoke, the sadder I became. My brows furrowed even more, and my voice was filled with tears as I said, "But how many heroes like you are there in this world?"

The Taoist priest was silent, but he was still a little unwilling. He thought for a long time before saying, "Do you want me to kill Prince Gong?"

The Taoist priest's words made me so angry that I wanted to pick up the poisonous anaconda and hit him a few more times.

I stood up again and pointed at him, cursing, "Have you lost your mind from practicing martial arts? Prince Gong is innocent and we are just condoning him. We need to resolve this matter thoroughly and make him afraid. Why do you say you want to kill him?"

The Taoist priest wanted to argue, but he had no way to refute it. He could only sit on the ground and said with difficulty: "Did I really do something wrong?"

I ignored the Taoist priest and just picked up the poisonous anaconda and whipped the corpse a few times.

The Taoist priest knew why I was whipping the corpse, but it was a waste of effort. He laughed bitterly and said, "Your Highness, don't waste your energy. The sword I used is the precious sword of Li Qinghan, the Master of the Blue Water Without Clothes. Not to mention the people in the martial arts world, even the common people who have read some storybooks can tell it at a glance."

"Li Qinghan, the man without clothes in the clear water, is a hero among heroes. The Taoist priest is actually familiar with him, and he even gave his sword to the Taoist priest." Chunyu said in surprise.

When Ah Da heard everyone talking about Bi Shui Wu Yi, he also murmured, "Bi Shui Wu Yi Li Qinghan, why does this name sound so familiar?"

"Ah Da, you don't even know him. He's the best in the martial arts world, with unrivaled magical skills."

Ah Da was already unhappy at being snarled at, and when he heard about the number one person in the martial arts world, he became even more annoyed. He sneered and said, "What number one person in the martial arts world? I think he's just a rat who got the title for nothing. I'm afraid he's not even worthy of carrying our prince's shoes."

.....................

"Wait, who were you talking about?" I asked quickly.

"Li Qinghan, the one without clothes on the clear water. Your Highness, do you admire him too?"

I picked up the sword from the ground, looked at it, and asked, "Is this the Jade Water Sword?"

"That's right, this sword is the Bishui Sword of the great hero Li Qinghan, who was born in Bishui Wuyi. I remember back then."

I interrupted the Taoist priest's recollection and asked, "What is this person's character like?"

"Zhaixinglou once described him as the most virtuous person in Beishang Country in the past hundred years. When I first entered the martial arts world, I was extremely dissatisfied with this judgment. It was not until I met the great hero Li Qinghan and joined him in punishing evildoers that I realized how ridiculously wrong this judgment was."

Everyone was shocked when these words came out. I felt a pang of bitterness in my heart. It seemed that this matter would be difficult to handle. But then I heard the Taoist priest say, "Hero Li should be the most virtuous person in Beishang Country in the past thousand years. I am afraid that no one will surpass him in virtue in the next thousand years."

Whose naughty kid is talking so loudly and breathlessly? I was so angry that I kicked the Taoist priest hard and said with a stern face: "Talk nicely. If you keep talking like this, do you believe I will cut you into pieces with the Jade Water Sword?"

Seeing that I was in a better mood, the Taoist priest was no longer annoyed by my kick. He just chuckled and said, "Do you know why Hero Li is called Bishui Wuyi?"

"The word 'Bishui' is because the hero Li used the Bishui Sword, but the word 'Wuyi' is not mentioned in the storybook. I really don't know about it." Li Er said.

"Hero Li, like our prince, is a kind-hearted person who cannot bear to see others suffer. The difference between the two is that Hero Li's martial arts skills are extraordinary and have reached the pinnacle. I'm afraid that in Beishang, apart from the King of Zhenbei, he has no rival."

The Taoist priest looked at me and knew that I had caused trouble, so he continued in a flattering tone, "Your Highness is very resourceful. I'm afraid there is no one in the world who is smarter than your Highness."

"If you want to flatter me, then flatter me. But can you please be more polite?" I rolled my eyes at the Taoist priest and said, "Go on."

"Hero Li couldn't bear to see the suffering of the poor, so he was always generous. When he was penniless, he would give away or pawn his clothes to help others. That's why he often walked around the world shirtless. Later, people learned of his chivalrous deeds and nicknamed him "Bi Shui Wu Yi" to honor his virtue."

I thought about the contents of Prince Gong's file, and silently calculated in my heart that it seemed that there might be a turning point in this matter.

But then I thought again, this might be difficult to accomplish, but I can't just watch the Taoist priest die. Now I can only take it one step at a time. There will always be a way out when the car reaches the mountain. At worst, I can let the Taoist priest take refuge in the northern border army.

After figuring this out, I didn't hesitate and said, "Ada, follow the plan."

"Your Highness, please think twice. I see this place is deserted. I've already asked Ah Si to get the corpse-dissolving water. Wouldn't it be better to destroy the body and cover up all traces?"

"Ada, do you know you made a fatal mistake?" I said, lying in a comfortable position on the chair. "Never underestimate your enemy, especially a powerful enemy."

"Your Highness, this is a great injustice to me. Not to mention a person like me who has no roots, even among the civil and military officials in the whole court, who dares to look down on Prince Gong?"

"Who is Prince Gong? It's no exaggeration to say he's the most powerful man in the world. Do you think he won't be able to find out it was us if we destroyed the body? Do you think he won't have any evidence if we cover it up?"

"But."

"Besides, if he wants to, does he really need evidence? Instead of passively defending, it's better to take the initiative. Through this back-and-forth, we might even be able to find a glimmer of hope."

A Da still didn't understand my arrangement, but he didn't say anything, just frowned tightly.

I was so annoyed by his doomed look that I said, "The Taoist priest only killed the brother of Prince Gong's concubine. If it weren't for Prince Gong, everyone would applaud him even if he killed a hundred of these scums."

"Yes, not to mention the Taoist priest, even I want to kill him, but how can we afford to offend Prince Gong?"

"Prince Gong might be against us, but it's just a heroic act of rage for a woman. As the saying goes, a strong first move will weaken the second and finally run out. What I want is to wear down his heroic spirit. Then, this matter is just the Taoist killing a villain. What's the big deal?"

I took a sip of tea and continued, "I will openly hang the body in the downtown area, and then print thousands of copies of these crimes and throw them everywhere. Prince Gong wants to suppress public anger and resentment. This will be a case of one strong move and then a weak one."

"Your Highness is very wise. What should we do in this three-year period?" After hearing my explanation, Ah Da, although he did not agree, still complimented me very much.

I know that Ah Da is just fulfilling the emotional value of a servant, and I don't expect him to really agree with me. I am just trying to reassure them, and I don't need their real approval.

So I added, "Prince Gong is naturally suspicious. Seeing such obvious marks on the body, he must have first thought that someone had framed him and was using him as a pawn. Once he confirmed that we were the ones who did it, he would start to think more deeply about whether we were being directed by someone else. This is my third point of exhaustion."

"Your Highness is truly so wise that he is almost a demon. I admire you."

"I have seen many brilliant people in my life, but compared to Your Highness, they are nothing."

........................

Everyone is flattering me, some are sincere and some are fake, but I know very well that these are just words to reassure them. As for how things will develop, it is not within my control at all. I can only take it one step at a time and respond to each move as it comes.

After finishing all this, I was a little tired. A Da went to do what I asked him to do, while the Taoist priest and A Si followed me back to the palace. We won’t mention them anymore.

We didn't talk all the way. When we returned to Qianqiu Pavilion, it was already dark. I looked at His Majesty the Seventh Prince from afar sitting on a chair. A delicious dinner had already been placed on the table. His Majesty the Seventh Prince served me a bowl of soup. The soup was no longer hot. I didn't know how long His Majesty the Seventh Prince had been waiting for me.

"Next time if I come back late, you can eat first. You have been working very hard recently, so you don't have to wait for me."

"The dinner is indeed cold. Someone come and make a new one for the table."

The servants serving beside me quickly cleared the things off the table. I was a little tired today and didn't react for a while to teach His Highness the Seventh Prince to save food. When I remembered, the new dinner had already been served.

"Qianqiu, did you encounter anything interesting when you left the palace today?"

"Nothing interesting happened. I just met two doctors with excellent medical skills and hired them to open a clinic."

"The Zhang family's father and son both have fairly good medical skills and ethics. I've also asked the palace to arrange for two military doctors to work in the clinic." The Seventh Prince took a sip of his soup. "Has Qianqiu encountered any difficulties?"

My heart tightened when I heard this, but I kept my composure and said, "I have a great son like you, who would dare to give me a hard time?"

"If your highness encounters any difficulties, I can help."

"If I encounter difficulties, I will definitely ask Chongguang to support me." I gave a smile that I thought was perfect.

Chongguang wiped his hands and stood up to go to the study. When he left, he turned around and looked at me with a smile, saying, "Except for this Zhaixing Tower, I am not afraid of anything else."

Then he mumbled a few words. If you understood lip reading, you would know that the Seventh Prince meant, "Just do whatever you want, I will stand behind you." Unfortunately, I didn't understand and just responded stupidly, which made the Seventh Prince quite sad for a while.

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