After Qiu Yizi exchanged a few words with Wen Honghui, his nervous mood had already calmed down. He deliberately pointed out his identity as a "turkey" in the army, wanting to test his temperament and scheming.
However, the light in the boat awning was very dim, and it was impossible to see the changes in Wen Honghui's expression. He sounded very calm and steady: "How can a sparrow know the ambition of a swan? Your Highness Yi Yi is naturally not a short-sighted person. A man with real talent and knowledge, how can he be inferior to others?"
Qiu Yi said: "There are countless talented people in the world, countless famous ministers and generals in the court, and countless saints and hermits who have retired to the mountains. I think your talent and virtue cannot convince the people, and you still want to be the emperor. It's a joke!"
"That's not necessarily true!" Wen Honghui said, "The Emperor Taizu of the Han Dynasty was just a beggar, and it took him only ten years to conquer the world. Is he really a man of both virtue and talent who can convince people? I now have millions of followers of the Holy Church, scattered all over the Han Dynasty, and I have a lot of money in my hands. Why can't I fight for the throne?"
Qiu Yizi smiled contemptuously: "You only know one side of the story. You said your religion has millions of followers, but how many people can you expect to follow your teachings when you don't even believe in them? The battle to suppress the rebellion two years ago was still unsettled, but now people are calm and looking forward to enjoying the emperor's grace and prosperity. Who would follow you in rebelling?"
Wen Honghui twitched the muscles at the corners of his mouth in the dark and said, "Your Highness Yi said that I don't understand the general situation of the world. Do you know everything? Don't forget that the emperor has not yet sat firmly on the dragon throne. There is also a Lingnan King Zheng Gui in the south who is eyeing him covetously. Even the emperor's health is getting worse and worse. How many days can he sit on the throne?"
Qiu Yizi was stunned when he heard this: besides himself, only a few people including his master Zhongli Kuang knew that the emperor Zheng Rong suffered from a hidden illness; even if the "Shi Wei" disguised by Wen Honghui was trusted by the emperor, it was impossible for him to know the emperor's physical condition, which was the biggest secret in the world, so well.
Thinking of this, Qiu Yizi's mood had calmed down a little, but he couldn't help but get a little excited again, and said: "No one knows the health of the current emperor better than me. The emperor was born a prince who led the army on horseback. He has been trained since childhood. Now he is in the prime of his life. Even if he can't live forever, at least he can sit on the throne for ten or twenty years. If there are any hidden worries in the world, they can be eliminated in these days. By then, even if your sect is not wiped out by the court, I'm afraid its strength will be greatly damaged, and it will be even more unable to stir up trouble."
In fact, what Wen Honghui said about the emperor's illness was half true and half false.
Just as Qiu Yizi thought, the emperor's physical condition was the top secret of the Han Empire. Even the princes might not know it, let alone an imperial envoy who delivered the emperor's orders. He only pieced together the information that the emperor was in poor health based on scattered reports from a few believers who served as eunuchs, cooks, doctors, and palace maids in the palace.
Therefore, after listening to Qiu Yizi's well-founded analysis, Wen Honghui couldn't help but feel guilty, but he didn't give in at all: "Everything depends on human effort. No matter how difficult the task is, there are always people who will do it, not to mention the throne of the emperor. This is the wish of my Wen family for hundreds of years. How can I dismiss it just because of a few words from you?"
"So what if he became the emperor?" Qiu Yizi heard that he seemed to be at a loss for words behind his words, so he continued to ask, "You have also been hiding beside the emperor since Guangyang. My adoptive father was such a handsome and heroic prince back then. Since he became the emperor, he has been entangled in worldly affairs every day and has less than three or four hours of sleep every day. I went to Beijing to see the emperor in the middle of this year. After only a few months, I have lost a lot of weight... Think about it carefully. For the sake of the people of the world, even if you become the emperor, can you definitely do better than my adoptive father? Hmm?"
Wen Honghui's mouth muscles twitched involuntarily when he was asked by Qiu Yizhi. He gritted his teeth and said angrily: "If Zheng Rong can do it, why can't I do it? No, I am smarter and more capable than Zheng Rong. If he can do it, I can definitely do it better than him!"
"Hahaha!" Qiu Yizi laughed up to the sky. "That's easy for you to say. My adoptive father has good ministers and famous generals to assist him, and he has experience in governing Youyan Road. However, facing the complicated affairs of the world and the accumulated problems over the years, he still seems to be unable to cope with it. You are a pimp who specializes in warm tent affairs, and you actually want to rule the world? You think too highly of yourself!"
Qiu Yizi's words obviously deeply hurt Wen Honghui's self-esteem. Even in such dim light, one could still see his face getting redder and redder. Finally, he grinned grimly: "Humph! Kings, princes, generals, are you a bit different? The Zheng family has been sitting on the throne for so many years, it's time for someone else to take over! I want to sit on the dragon throne and show it to the world!"
Qiu Yizi also responded sharply: "Since you are determined to cause chaos, then I will be the pillar of Qingtian's protection. Don't think that you have millions of followers under your command. The uprising in Henan two years ago was also very powerful, but the Youyan army pointed its spearhead at the rebels, and the rioters surrendered in unison. You might as well stick your head out and take a look. The Yangtze River is flowing, but Yanziji has stood in the river for billions of years. How could it move at all? What's more, you don't deserve to be compared to the Yangtze River and the Yellow River. You are just a small muddy stream!"
Qiu Yizi's words were even more piercing and harsh than the previous ones. Wen Honghui calmed down from his rage, adjusted his sitting position, and said calmly: "Your Highness Yi, I admire your loyalty; I have also seen your ability with my own eyes. However, Your Highness Yi is good in every way, but he is too ignorant of the current situation. Take now for example, you are clearly on my boat, and you dare to speak so shamelessly. Are you afraid that I will order you to be buried at the bottom of the river and fed to turtles?"
After hearing this, Qiu Yizi hadn't said anything yet, but Wen Lingjiao, who was standing beside him, was so anxious that she could no longer sit still. She raised half of her body and said, "What do you want to do, brother? Master Qiu is your invited guest!"
Wen Honghui glanced at Wen Lingjiao and said coldly, "Sister, you have grown up and your arms are bent outward. You know Qiu Yizi, he is the most cunning and sly person. Many people have been killed by him, and even the emperor of the previous dynasty was forced to death by him. If we let him go, I am afraid that the prosperity of the Holy Religion will be ruined by him!"
Wen Lingjiao grabbed Wen Honghui's sleeve and said, "Didn't you just say that the teachings of the Holy Church are all lies? Why are you still talking about the Prosperity Holy Church now?"
In Wen Honghui's heart, his sister had always been well-behaved and obedient since childhood and had never talked back to him in person. But today, she dared to talk back to him again and again, making him feel alienated in this small boat with only three people.
In a rage, Wen Honghui had long forgotten that his sister Wen Lingjiao was a weaker woman. He used all his strength to swung his sleeves and broke the two cicada-wing nails of Wen Lingjiao's right hand that was grabbing his sleeves. Blood immediately flowed from the jade-like fingers.
Wen Lingjiao couldn't bear the pain, so she cried out "Ah" and let go of her hand. She pinched her injured finger with her left hand and squatted in the corner of the boat awning, sobbing.
When Wen Honghui saw Wen Lingjiao's tearful look, he couldn't help but feel a little pity for her. He wanted to bend down to help her, but he was afraid of losing his status and dignity. For a moment, he half-squatted and stood in the boat awning, feeling awkward and at a loss.
Qiu Yizi felt a sharp pain when she saw this, and quickly crawled to Wen Lingjiao's side. Seeing that the blood that had been oozing out from her fingers had stopped seeping out, she felt relieved and comforted her, "It's just a minor injury, it's okay, just bear with it for now, and you can bandage it after we get to the shore."
Wen Lingjiao nodded with tears in her eyes: "I'm fine, don't quarrel with my brother... You have your ideas... He has his ideas... Neither of you can convince the other, and it's useless to quarrel!"
Wen Honghui heard Wen Lingjiao's words, which hinted that Qiu Yizi wanted him to give in. Seeing how close the two of them were, he suddenly felt an inexplicable jealousy and shouted, "Where's my aunt?"
Before he finished speaking, he saw a corner of the boat's door curtain lifted up, letting in a few rays of sunlight, and a head poked in - it was the woman in black who was on the same boat. At this time, she had taken off her hat, allowing Qiu Yizi to see her old but still bright eyes.
Wen Honghui then ordered, "Aunt, tell the boatman to row to the other side of the river immediately, and keep an eye on Qiu Yizi, don't let him run away."
After hearing this, Qiu Yizi thought: You have martial arts masters protecting you, but don’t I have any
Thinking about this, Qiu Yizi also asked loudly: "Where is Yuchi Jiming?"
No one agreed.
Qiu Yi was a little anxious and called out again: "Jiming, where are you?"
But the old woman smiled and said, "Sir, please don't call me that. The girl outside can't promise you anything!"
After hearing this, Qiu Yizhi's brain "boomed" and she actually asked with a stutter: "You...what did you do to Yuchi Jiming? Do you know that she...she is the daughter of Wulin leader Yuchi Lianghong!"
The old woman smiled again: "What's so great about Yuchi Lianghong? Should I be afraid of him, old lady? But for the sake of the Yuchi family, I will just knock the girl unconscious and will not kill her."
When Qiu Yizi heard this, he felt very disappointed - he was able to make up his mind to board the ship to meet Wen Honghui because he relied on his niece Yuchi Jiming, who had extraordinary martial arts skills. Now even she was defeated. Could he just let others manipulate him
At this moment, two boatmen shouted from outside the boat awning: "There seems to be someone under the water!"
The old woman was also startled when she heard this, and then she retracted her head to see what was happening on the deck.
After a while, the woman stuck her head into the boat awning again and said to Wen Honghui, "There are two turtles making trouble under the water. They are so annoying. They have killed the two boatmen. But it doesn't matter. I am here to ensure that the young master is safe."
Qiu Yizhi was relieved after hearing these words. In fact, when he discussed with Lin Shuhan, he had already thought of the possibility that Tianzun would meet on the boat, and he specially assigned two personal soldiers, "Iron Head Dragon" and "Yangtze Crocodile", to pretend to be fishermen and boatmen, and row a small boat on the river to meet them.
The two men were good at underwater skills and knew the rules of boating. Seeing that the boat's sail was painted black but they were not in a hurry to cross the river, they guessed that there must be something strange, so they rowed closer to check the situation. Later, they saw Yuchi Jiming on the deck being knocked down, and they thought that the person in the sail must be Qiu Yizhi, and it was very likely that she was in danger. (To be continued)