Chapter 504: Collusion

Taking Jiang Tu's letter, Chen Guanlou returned to the office and called Qian Fugui.

"Go to the Jiang Prefecture and tell the Jiang Prefecture steward that half of it will be calculated in antiques, calligraphy, and paintings. Do you know our rules? Market price is 30% to 50%; it must not exceed this price."

Qian Fugui nodded repeatedly, "Master, rest assured, I will handle this little matter properly."

"This is not a little matter. Since we collected the money, we must be attentive in doing things. Tell the Jiang Prefecture steward that the antiques, calligraphy, and paintings are for giving gifts and running relationships for his master. So, it's best to take the best. Don't use roadside goods to prevaricate people. Prevaricating me is fine, but prevaricating the people who can decide Jiang Tu's life and death, the entire Jiang Prefecture will be finished."

"Master, do you really want to help Jiang Tu run relationships?" Qian Fugui didn't understand and was very puzzled.

"Do you think that because Jiang Tu is a treacherous official, he doesn't deserve to live and should die?"

"Shouldn't he die?"

"He should die. But don't forget, 99% of the things he did were following the late Emperor's instructions. The person who really should die is already lying in the coffin."

"But as a great treacherous official, the late Emperor is already dead; what reason does he have to continue living."

These words made sense.

Chen Guanlou didn't know how to refute for a while.

He pondered for a while, "We are just prison guards, collecting money and doing things. As for whether he should die or not, it is up to the Three Judicial Offices and the Emperor to decide. If the Emperor wants him to die, let alone twenty thousand, even twenty million, he won't live. If the Emperor wants him to live, without twenty thousand, only two thousand, he can also live."

"Master, I still think this matter..." Qian Fugui hesitated.

Chen Guanlou patted his shoulder, "I know you have a burden in your heart. If it really doesn't work, I'll let Xiao Jin go on this trip."

"No need, I can do it. I know the main purpose of Master doing this is still to extort Jiang Tu and take money from the treacherous official's hands. Cheating that group of bastards is better than cheating ourselves."

"Exactly. Cheating that group of bastards is better than cheating ourselves. Just treat him as the God of Wealth, and we found an excuse to take money from his pocket. As for whether the matter can be done, that's not our concern."

Qian Fugui accepted the errand and went to the Jiang Prefecture to get money. To be on the safe side, he also made an appointment with someone who appraised antiques in advance.

Chen Guanlou drank tea; he had received news from Medical Official Mu that Master Liaochen of the Wu Xiang Temple was a Grandmaster.

The cult bandits causing trouble in the palace, this matter must be true.

The cult bandits poisoning the Emperor and Empress, this matter, suspicious!

If the cult bandits really had such great ability, could they have been beaten by the court for many years and didn't dare to show their heads, only daring to be mice in the gutter?

He had a small guess in his heart: could the mysterious Boss Qi be a member of the cult bandits?

The cult bandits needed loyal believers, capable subordinates, and stable financial resources. Trafficking seemed to fully satisfy these three requirements. Trafficking children, keeping them to cultivate, brainwashing them to become loyal believers, the most capable subordinates, and having stable financial resources.

Poisoning, also very consistent with the style of the cult bandits?

Explaining it this way could explain why Pan Niangzi didn't say Boss Qi's true identity until she died, and repeatedly emphasized that he couldn't provoke Boss Qi. Boss Qi's power behind him was very strong and immeasurable.

And, the cult bandit Zhang Daohe, who risked exposing his identity to rob Wang Qiren, the former imperial son-in-law, from the depths of the Heavenly Prison.

What was the use of Wang Qiren?

Familiar with Emperor Taixing, familiar with the palace, and even familiar with some old eunuchs who didn't die.

The altar explosion, Emperor Taixing comatose, poisoned to death... it seemed everything was connected.

However, there was a key point that didn't make sense: why did the cult bandits take the risk to kill Emperor Taixing? What was the significance and purpose of doing so?

Just for killing?

Right now, the court's power was concentrated on dealing with the two rebel groups in the north and south, and the cult bandits had already moved away from the court's attention.

Unless...

The cult bandits cooperated with the rebels.

To be precise, the cult bandits cooperated with the rebel Prince Chu.

Was it easier to deal with the cunning Emperor Taixing, or easier to deal with a new emperor who had just ascended the throne and whose throne was not yet stable? Obviously, it must be the latter.

The alternation of old and new, the court turmoil, was enough to let the rebels take this opportunity to catch their breath. The season of transition, lack of grain. The whole world was short of grain, waiting for the summer grain to be stored before fighting.

The court could allocate grain from other places to the front line.

Where could the rebel Prince Chu get grain? He could only get grain from the government's warehouse.

How to get it?

Get it while it's chaotic!

Get grain while the court's emperor died, the new emperor couldn't be elected for a long time, and the world's hearts were in turmoil.

Of course, these were all his personal guesses.

There was another possibility: the cult bandits in the palace were used by others, used by some imperial prince hiding in the dark. It was also possible that they were used by some radical official.

After all, some people were hoping for the emperor to die every day, determined to change the sky and let the Great Ming's sky change to a new color.

He had to suspect Zhao Mingqiao.

This representative of the madmen, the leader of the radical organization, he could really do things like bombing the altar and poisoning the emperor.

That night, Chen Guanlou went to the Zhao Prefecture.

Zhao Mingqiao had just sent away a guest, a guest with a mysterious identity, and also a martial artist.

Chen Guanlou suddenly appeared, clearly startling the other person.

"When did you come?"

"Was the altar explosion done by the cult bandits?" Chen Guanlou went straight to the point and asked directly.

Zhao Mingqiao was clearly stunned, "How would I know. The Three Judicial Offices have just started investigating the explosion case, and there is no news yet."

"You should know something, right." Chen Guanlou asked casually.

Zhao Mingqiao shook his head and denied it, "I don't know anything. If I had known in advance that someone was going to bomb the altar, I would definitely have issued a warning."

Chen Guanlou didn't commit himself, nodded casually, "So, you are innocent."

"Of course I am innocent."

"I thought you hoped the old emperor would die, sincerely hoped."

"I sincerely hope he dies, but I will never let him die in such an extreme way. I remember everything you said back then. I am a benchmark, a role model, a pioneer; I must set rules and set an example for the people below, and cannot let the team go to extremes."

Chen Guanlou couldn't tell whether what he said was true or false for a while, and his intuition went on strike at this moment.

"Do you really believe the cult bandits poisoned the old emperor?"

"Since the Old Ancestor said it was done by the cult bandits, it must be done by the cult bandits." Zhao Mingqiao emphasized the words Old Ancestor.

"Did you see the Old Ancestor?"

"Saw him once."

"What did he look like?"

"Sorry, I can't remember at all. The Old Ancestor doesn't seem to want anyone to remember his appearance. Anyone who has seen him can't recall his appearance afterwards. I only remember he seemed very gentle."

"Gentle?" Chen Guanlou felt a little surprised. A Grandmaster, giving people a gentle feeling, yet no one remembers his appearance. This style of doing things is a bit split.

Being able to erase everyone's impression of his appearance, it is clear that the Old Ancestor is definitely not a gentle person. Instead, he appears decisive in killing and cold in means. ===== CHAPTER 505 =====