Chapter 712

The Great King's infallible pie-drawing technique was slapped in the face on the spot; his thick-skinned face also embarrassed and stalled for a moment.

"Cough! Surely something went wrong. I ordered people to treat the Prince of Guanghan well… What are you looking at? Go investigate!"

Baili Hu gave him a meaningful look, full of implications. The Great King held his head high and puffed out his chest, strenuously showing he had nothing to feel guilty about.

"This time Zhou Ke went himself, and after a while came back to report: '……After sending the Prince of Guanghan to the capital, the Snow Cavalry quickly left Guanghan; later, people from Changzhou came over to take charge of prefectural affairs, and the Prince of Guanghan had no news. These relatives of the Prince of Guanghan could only pack up their belongings and head north. Who would have thought… the times are bad; they suffered several rounds of extortion and robbery. Although being close relatives of the imperial clan, they preserved their lives, but by the time their possessions reached Chang'an, nothing remained. When they arrived in Chang'an and found that His Majesty and the Prince of Guanghan were not in Chang'an, and the court had no policy to settle them, they then continued north to seek refuge in Youzhou.' In short, the Prince of Guanghan was completely sidelined in Guanghan; these people had no choice but to go to the capital to seek refuge, but the times were too chaotic and they met disaster."

"Great King: ……"

"Baili Hu let out a cold snort and gave the Great King a mocking glance."

"Could the Great King tolerate someone ruining his grand pacification scheme? This guy immediately cranked up his acting."

"Outrageous! What are the officials in Chang'an doing?! The first-generation Prince of Guanghan is my paternal uncle, and those people are my cousins and nephews; they met disaster, yet Chang'an did nothing?! If the Grand Ancestral Master isn't among them, does he not keep the imperial clan in his sights? This is rebellion!"

"The Great King flew into a rage on the spot, while his attendants knelt in a clamor, begging His Majesty to quell his anger."

"Baili Hu then drawled from the side: 'Isn't the Chang'an Minister of Justice Lu Tong from the northern border? So many people have entered and left Chang'an—doesn't the Minister of Justice know?' Stop pretending; what's the use of dumping the blame on Chang'an? Isn't the person in charge of Chang'an your own confidant? I also know that your cousin holds the Chang'an Feathered Forest Guard."

"Great King: ……"

"Sigh! Fatty Four knows way too much!"

"Upon thinking about it, the Great King could guess eight or nine out of ten. The first-generation Prince of Guanghan was his grandfather's eldest son by a concubine, already enfeoffed for many years; this old man is twenty years younger than his father, a whole generation apart. He is still fertile, with his sons and daughters totaling twenty or thirty, and together with the Guanghan lineage of the grandchildren, that branch is enormously large."

"As for the Chang'an court, he still doesn't know, right? It's also penniless to the point of jingling. The Grand Ancestral Master, the direct person responsible, isn't present either, and no one is stepping up to accommodate these freeloaders. Lu Tong is even more petty; he probably found an excuse to ignore them for a few days, and these people had no choice but to continue north to seek the Prince of Guanghan. Nevertheless, having become this sorry sight, the Great King still feels sympathy for them."

"Upon seeing that Fatty Four was not easily fooled, the Great King struggled for two seconds then resigned himself to lying flat."

"Never mind; anyway, I have already tried to make up for giving Fatty Four face."

"The Great King opened his mouth, and Baili Hu thought he'd have to make excuses a while longer, when he heard this guy speak righteously: 'Exactly! Lu Tong, who failed in his duties, didn't run away; when I go back I'll give Lu Xing and Lu Jia a beating to vent my anger!'"

"\"Huh? \" Baili Hu almost choked; nobody would have expected that the Great King could utter such shameless conclusions with a straight face…"

"Wei Shen suppressed a laugh, playing along with his family's Tai Ping, and interjected: 'On what grounds does Lu Xiu escape this calamity?'"

"\"Upon hearing that name, the Great King practically blazed with anger: 'Exactly! Let that shameless wretch still strive to perform in front of my sister… Then we'll put him first on the list!'\""

"Wei Shen: 'So very good~'"

"The two were enthusiastic about researching a revenge plan, but they disagreed so much they almost came to blows; who knows how the topic diverged so wildly into this."

"Baili Hu was angered by these two genuine shameless wretches: 'You two are really brothers.'"

"Upon hearing that, the Great King came over, chuckling, and patted Old Four's shoulder: 'Don't be jealous, we're the real brothers~'"

"Baili Hu shrugged him off, and those listening got goosebumps."

"The Great King had already set up a ladder and was climbing up quickly: 'Someone, summon the person in charge; it's not too late to set things right now.'"

Zhou Ke quickly brought an old man whose clothes were still fairly intact; he was the second son of the first‑generation Guanghan King. Although by seniority he is the Great King's paternal cousin, he is actually one year older than Ning De.

The other party knew the person before them was the new emperor; without a word they knelt down and offered a great salute, their attitude extremely humble. If the other party's attitude had been worse, or if they were simply a troublemaker, the Great King would have felt more at ease. Looking at the other party's withered face and white beard, the Great King hesitated for a moment.

Bai Li Hu also came over and sat beside the Great King, just wanting to hear how he could brazenly lie to such an elderly, pitiful clansman.

The Great King held back for a while, really feeling embarrassed to say anything harsh to this white‑bearded man. Anyway, he had no intention of returning the fief, and currently lacked the ability to let them live as they did in the fief. How could he possibly draw a prefecture's output to support these people? When he goes out to fight, he himself relies on snatching a bit of grain to eat.

The truth is hard to say, and also hard to hear.

The Great King looked at the little yellow flowers sprouting by the roadside and suddenly said, "Life isn't always as we wish; to be able to smell the fragrance of flowers is already a blessing. What do you say, cousin?"

His meaning was to let these relatives accept the reality of setbacks; bearing the surname Bai Li is already fortunate enough. Those who robbed them aren't afraid of stirring up the big trouble of the clan; they wouldn't have lived to this moment, nor be able to stand here.

The white‑bearded cousin wore a look of bewilderment, stared blankly for a moment, then instinctively looked toward the person beside the Great King; he didn't understand.

What are you pulling a book bag for? He's barely read for a few days.

Bai Li Hu rolled his eyes and, in a sarcastic tone, translated for the Great King: "His Majesty says there aren't that many good things in the world; just being alive now is already not bad!"

The Great King: "…The translation was good; next time don't translate."

Awkward·JPG

Upon hearing this, Wei Shen again spoke up to help the Great King shift the focus, enthusiastically recommending the old man: "This is the Prince of Jing. I feel Your Highness's words are a bit excessive, but it's fine; you all share the Bai Li surname, one family, so be more cordial." By saying this, it seemed as if those earlier words were meant by the two brothers.

The Great King happily winked at his cousin; Bai Li Hu was again angered by those two shameless fellows. He wanted to swing his sleeves and leave, yet also wanted to see how the Great King would deal with the entire Guanghan King clan before departing.

The Great King had already begun consoling his cheap cousin, saying he would strictly investigate the bandits who robbed them.

The white‑bearded cousin was old, not foolish; tears streamed down his face as he cried, letting the Majesty worry, and then asked how the Guanghan King was faring in Youzhou.

"... Elder Brother Wang, everything is fine in Youzhou; though the south is in turmoil, our Youzhou remains safe. Elder Brother will continue as the Guanghan King, unchanged. I have also granted you a princely residence in Youzhou; if you go to Youzhou, Elder Brother, the family can reunite, and the whole clan can be accommodated. Up ahead there is a county town; I have ordered the county magistrate to send Elder Brother back to Youzhou."

The white‑bearded cousin, having had half of his three souls and seven spirits worn away on this journey, with his spirit completely dissipated, now only wishes to stay alive; he sincerely thanked the Great King in a very pragmatic way, and was then escorted by cavalry to the nearby county town.

After seeing off the person, the Great King proudly looked at the fourth brother; Bai Li Hu certainly knew what he was showing off about.

The main point is just a tight‑fisted loudmouth; the Guanghan King's entire family never mentioned how they would make a living from now on.

"You want me to also give up Jingzhou and be like the Guanghan King? Crowd the whole family into one residence, barely scraping enough to fill our stomachs? Dream on!"

"I will certainly grant you a stipend according to your princely rank."

Bai Li Hu thought of the huge debt he had accrued along the way; it would likely be many years before he could receive any stipend… He let out a cold laugh, stood up, and left.

The Great King caught up with him, saying, "Hey? Don't go~ You're a lone bachelor; where would you be cramped? If you don't want to stay, Mother will send you to live in the palace!"

Bai Li Hu immediately walked even faster…