Emperor Longqing showed no mercy. He went from being a vassal prince whom officials along the way vied to flatter to a fugitive criminal. The gap between the two was really huge.
If it weren't for Xue Changshi and others supporting him, he would have collapsed long ago.
The more exhausted he was and the more miserable he became, the more resentment accumulated in his heart.
He clearly did nothing wrong!
Even Xue Changshi couldn't help but sigh and complain: "How can His Majesty be so disheartening? Even if the young master is at fault, you have always been loyal, and you have submitted a letter of apology. You have done everything you should do. Why does His Majesty insist on killing us all?"
King Jin sat silently aside without saying a word.
The weather in early spring is still very cold. At night, there is no high bed and soft pillow, and there is no quilt. He has to sleep outdoors. He is depressed and sighs deeply. "He has a black heart. How can we expect him to be kind to me, his cheap brother, when he can mercilessly kill the Yue family who helped him to the top?"
Having said that, he still had no idea what to do in the future.
Just like what Xue Changshi said, All under heaven belongs to the king, and all within the four seas are the king's subjects. Even if he tries to escape, where can he escape to
Xue Changshi knew him very well. Seeing him like this, he knew that the time was almost right. He asked him softly, "What are you going to do next, Your Majesty?"
This question hit the nail on the head and also touched the hearts of King Jin and the guards present.
King Jin was somewhat bewildered, but he did not dare to show any hesitation. He gritted his teeth and said, "What else can we do now?!"
Xue Changshi thought about it and said, "It's not that there is no way."
At this time, saying there was a way undoubtedly touched everyone's heart. Everyone immediately turned their eyes to him, looked at him eagerly, and urged him to tell him what the solution was.
Even the King of Jin couldn't help but be surprised and delighted: "Sir, do you have a solution?"
The moon was bright in the sky and a fire was burning on the ground. Xue Changshi's face was hidden in the dancing flames and his expression could not be seen clearly. All that could be heard was his voice, which was as calm as ever.
"Of course there are, but I don't know if Your Majesty dares to do it." Xue Changshi paused for a moment and observed the expression of the Prince of Jin. Seeing that he looked eager, he continued, "During the reign of Emperor Zheng'an of the previous dynasty, he repeatedly committed atrocities and aroused public anger. His brother, the Prince of Liang, raised an army in anger to attack him. He was unstoppable all the way... Finally, his army arrived at the gates of the capital and forced the tyrant to surrender..."
Of course, everyone has heard of this.
After all, it's too famous.
But... ... Prince Jin reacted, looked at him with some disbelief and hesitation, and asked: "Sir, do you want me to rebel?!"
As soon as he uttered the word "anti", everyone present, including himself, was shocked, and they all shuddered in unison.
But after the initial fear and disbelief, King Jin sadly realized that this was the only way out.
Unless he can escape to the ends of the earth, he will die no matter what.
And even if you escape, you will have to live in fear for the rest of your life.
What’s the point of living like this
Moreover, Emperor Longqing forced him to this point, couldn't he resist? !
He did not comment, but said in a solemn tone: "It's a pity that I have nothing now and have fallen to this point. Even if I want to rebel, how can I do it?"
Before Xue Changshi could speak, another guest who had not expressed his opinion raised his voice and said, "Why not? Your Majesty, have you forgotten that we have a full complement of people in Guangchang?"
As a local vassal king who has been running the place for so long, it would be a lie to say that he has no power.
Hope ignited in the eyes of the King of Jin, but his expression immediately darkened as he thought of something: "It's not that simple. My fiefdom and Lao Wu's are in the same place! He is in Xunyang and I am in Guangchang. If I rebel, Lao Wu will be the first one to stop me in order to gain merit. He is much more powerful than me."
The Prince of Linjiang was a powerful vassal, and the prefects of Xunyang and Hongdu were all his people.
Xue Changshi shook his head slowly: "It's too early to say these things now. The emperor is so perverse that King Linjiang may not be able to tolerate him for long. Our priority is to return to the fiefdom first and make plans later. After all, the fiefdom is our own territory."
At least I don't have to be like I am now, reduced to a lost dog, where everyone can come and step on me.
Prince Jin suddenly perked up. He had actually been driven to a state of confusion recently, but no matter what, hearing that there was a solution was much better than having nothing at all.
He paused, took a step forward, looked at Xue Changshi, and asked, "But now we are being hunted down everywhere. How can we pass these checkpoints and return to our fiefdom?"
This is a problem.
It is still a very serious problem, because Emperor Longqing will definitely send troops to pursue and intercept them.
Especially, he also killed the Jinyiwei.
It was equivalent to openly challenging Emperor Longqing.
Xue Changshi turned around and discussed with his retainers and officials for a while before saying, "Your Highness, let's pack less and not travel with so many people. Let's go separately and disguise ourselves as merchants... ... Say we are going to Jiangxi to purchase porcelain..."
Information has always spread slowly. It takes a while to report the affairs of the Jinyiwei. They can take advantage of this period of time to hurry on their journey.
It may not be impossible to escape.
This was the only way now. King Jin nodded, yawned sleepily with tears in his eyes, and ordered the chief guard: "In this case, you should discuss with the gentleman who should accompany me. Merchants don't make a big fuss when they travel, so take those who should be taken, and don't take anyone who shouldn't be taken, so as to avoid being recognized and revealing your whereabouts."
The captain of the guard quickly responded.
The King of Jin lay down tiredly on the haystack, covered with a thick piece of clothing, and forced himself to close his eyes.
He hasn't rested for many days. If he doesn't take the time to close his eyes, he will probably collapse.
Xue Changshi discussed with the captain of the guard and the trusted officials of the King of Jin until very late at night. When the moon was no longer visible and the sky was completely dark, they finally came up with a general plan.
He assured the captain of the guard to record the names of those who followed him and those who were separated at the rear, and said that he had to go to the toilet, so he released a carrier pigeon in the dark night, and then returned to Prince Jin as if nothing had happened.
Prince Jin thought that Emperor Longqing had done it on purpose, so he killed him.
But in fact, he didn't know that Emperor Longqing certainly had reasons to be angry, because Emperor Longqing was not angry because of Chu Jingmeng and the Fourth Prince. The problem was with the letter of apology that Prince Jin had placed high hopes on and hoped to use to get rid of the crime.
It was this letter that cost him his life.