After traveling through time, the adults were completely in my hands

At night, in a room of the county government office, the Jinyiwei members sat together on chairs, discussing the snake plague case in Qingshui County.

"Sir, the cave we discovered today is in the fiefdom of King Huaiyang, so King Huaiyang must be involved," Xie Xiaohu said first.

After hearing this, Wei Qing nodded in agreement.

"But sir, what I don't understand is that if Prince Huaiyang was really involved, why did he order so many snakes to be brought in, causing Qingshui County to become depopulated and almost a deserted city? What was his purpose?" A Jinyiwei also spoke up.

Hearing the Jinyiwei mention the word "empty city", Jindou suddenly thought of something. As soon as the Jinyiwei finished speaking, Jindou clapped his hands, stood up and said, "That's right, the Prince of Huaiyang is doing this very likely to turn Qingshui County into an empty city!"

"Empty city?" Several people in the room looked at the golden bean together.

"Yes, think about it, now that there are so many poisonous snakes in Qingshui County, won't the consequence be that all the residents here will be scared away, and the city will become an empty city? And this is most likely the result that King Huaiyang wants," Jindou said affirmatively with his eyes shining.

Everyone thought Jindou's words made sense, but they still had a question. Xie Xiaohu couldn't help but ask, "Then... why did Prince Huaiyang turn Qingshui County into a ghost town? Prince Huaiyang's fiefdom is already large enough, so he can't just come here to live there, right?"

"I think the reason Qingshui County has become a ghost town is simply because of two things."

Jindou took out a folding fan from his arms, opened it with a "swish", and said while shaking the fan and shaking his head: "First of all, maybe there is a gold mine under Qingshui County. Driving away all the people will make it easier for them to dig. Second,..." Jindou deliberately did not say anything else.

The people in the room were listening intently to what Jindou was saying. When they heard Jindou stop, they all became anxious and urged him, "Tell me quickly, what's the second reason?"

Jindou glanced at Wei Qing and saw that he was also looking at him seriously. He couldn't help but feel a little proud, so he said, "The second thing is that it's very likely that someone told the King of Huaiyang that Qingshui County is a Feng Shui treasure land, located on the dragon vein. Living here, you can use the dragon's power to become king or emperor!"

When Wei Qing heard Jindou say the words "become king and become emperor", his heart moved, and he couldn't help but think of what Emperor Qingyuan said in the palace the day before he came to Qingshui County.

At this time, after hearing Jindou's words, all the Jinyiwei in the room became serious. To claim to be king or emperor means to usurp the throne, which is a serious crime that will lead to the extermination of nine generations of the family.

Several Jinyiwei turned their eyes to Wei Qing, waiting to see what decision their commander would make.

Wei Qing hesitated for a moment. After all, what Jindou said was just a guess. If he wanted to arrest someone, and the person he wanted to arrest was a prince, he would not be able to do so without real evidence.

Seeing Wei Qing remained silent, Jindou slammed his fan shut and said, "Brother, as the saying goes, 'You can't get a tiger cub without risking it.' It's useless for us to speculate here. Why don't you send a visiting card to the Huaiyang Palace? We can go there and take a look. Maybe we can find some clues."

After hearing what Jindou said, Wei Qing felt that it made sense. Now that he couldn't find any clues outside, he decided to go to Prince Huaiyang's mansion and take a look.

******

In the main hall of the Huaiyang Palace, the Huaiyang Prince looked at the visiting card in his hand and said to the old Taoist beside him with a suspicious look on his face: "This commander, Lord Wei, suddenly sent a visiting card and said he would come to visit. Did he notice something?"

The old Taoist priest next to him, who was thin and had a cunning look on his face, said, "Don't worry, Your Highness. The source of the poisonous snake is very hidden, and I have also used a giant python to guard it. If anyone goes there, they will definitely be killed by the python. Therefore, this Lord Wei will definitely not discover anything."

"Then... now that he has sent someone to deliver a visiting card, should I see it or not?" Prince Huaiyang asked again.

"Of course I have to see him. If I don't, he will become suspicious. Don't worry, Your Highness. In just a meal's time, he will not discover anything in the mansion," said the old Taoist priest with a conceited look on his face.

******

When Wei Qing led his party to the palace, Prince Huaiyang had been standing at the gate for a long time. Seeing Wei Qing and his party riding horses from afar, he hurried to greet them.

Dismounting, Wei Qing bowed to the Prince of Huaiyang and said, "I have been here for many days, and today I come to visit Your Highness. I beg your forgiveness." He pointed to the gift he had brought with him and said, "It is only a small gift, and I hope Your Highness will accept it."

"I don't deserve it, I don't deserve it. I really don't deserve to make Lord Wei spend so much money. Lord Wei, please come in quickly," Prince Huaiyang made way.

Wei Qing turned around and motioned Jindou to follow him, and then he followed Prince Huaiyang to the main hall of the palace.

In the main hall, delicious food had already been served. After both parties drank a glass of wine, Prince Huaiyang pretended to be concerned and asked, "Master Wei, is there any progress on the snake plague in Qingshui County?"

Wei Qing shook his head and said, "I have no idea. In my opinion, it's just the changeable weather this year that has disrupted the snakes' habits. It's not a big deal."

As he spoke, Wei Qing raised his wine glass again and said, "This humble official toasts His Majesty!"

After drinking another glass of wine, Wei Qing put down the glass and sighed deeply.

Seeing this, the Prince of Huaiyang hurriedly asked, "Master Wei is so young, why are you sighing?"

"Alas...it's still an official matter, so it's better not to talk about it, it's better not to talk about it."

"Your Highness, you are so free and at ease here, I really envy you," Wei Qing said, raising his glass again: "I toast Your Highness another glass!"

After a few drinks, Wei Qing was obviously drunk and his body was out of control.

Jindou hurried forward and said, "Sir, you can't drink anymore. We have to go back soon."

"Don't worry about it. I'm happy to see the prince today," Wei Qing said, and was about to pick up the wine glass again, but suddenly his body tilted and he fell asleep on the table.

"This..." Prince Huaiyang pointed at Wei Qing.

Seeing this, Jindou hurriedly said, "Your Highness, please forgive me. Our master has been in a bad mood these past few days. He may have been drinking to drown his sorrows. I beg your forgiveness for a moment."

"Oh, why is Lord Wei in a bad mood?" Prince Huaiyang asked with interest.

"Your Highness, you may not know that several high-ranking officials in the court have recently united to exclude our lord. The incident in Qingshui County was originally a trivial matter and there was no need for the Jinyiwei to be dispatched. However, those high-ranking officials in the court came together to advise the emperor and forced this difficult task upon our lord. That's why our lord has been in a depressed mood these days and gets drunk as soon as he drinks!" Jindou said with a sad face.

"Oh, I see." Prince Huaiyang obviously believed Jindou's words. Thinking about his life full of intrigue when he was a prince, he couldn't help but feel sympathy for Wei Qing who was lying on the table.

"Then, let Lord Wei rest in our mansion tonight and leave tomorrow when you feel better," said Prince Huaiyang.

"Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness. My master will stay here for one night," Jindou said respectfully.