Chapter 60 Flipping the Board and Conceding Defeat

Inside the carriage, the princess had already dragged out the silk-lined soft quilt from beneath the seat, beckoning Tongyuan to kick off her shoes and socks and climb aboard to examine the interior fittings with her.

Tongyuan cast a sidelong glance at Geng Wenshi, and whispered, "Your Highness, the Minister of Works is still here."

Only then did the princess realize that it was the Minister of Works who had delivered the carriage, and her pretty face instantly flushed with embarrassment.

Geng Wenshi, who had turned away precisely because the princess was removing her shoes and socks, could only gaze at the horizon and offer the princess a belated greeting.

Clearly, the princess had no wish to waste time on him, so Geng Wenshi took his leave.

The princess did not ask why the Minister of Works had made the delivery in person, nor did Geng Wenshi harbor any desire to claim credit.

To catch a glimpse of the princess acting like a shy young maiden today was already an unexpected delight.

After inspecting the vehicle, the princess immediately decided that she would never ride in that ordinary little sedan chair again; from now on, whenever she went out, she would use this carriage.

"Tongyuan, let's go for a ride."

Upon returning to the Ministry of Works, Geng Wenshi remained absent-minded.

He knew what Xiao Zhi was striving to achieve step by step: suppressing the aristocratic clans, rectifying the officialdom, and liquidating corruption.

These matters were plain for all to see, and everyone knew them, yet there was no second person besides Huai Zhong who could bind the major aristocratic clans together onto the same boat.

If the liquidation were truly carried out line by line, the Geng family, being a prominent local clan and influential lineage, could evade disaster for a moment, but not for a lifetime.

Therefore, making Xiao Zhi the imperial son-in-law and commander of the guards was the optimal choice.

Within the imperial palace, Qin Yong had just received a memorial from Xiao Zhi, which merely outlined what he had been doing over the past few days. This memorial read more like a courtesy greeting.

It also explained that due to physical indisposition and a slight chill, the return journey to the capital might take a bit longer.

"A-Bao, what do you think?" Qin Yong tossed Xiao Zhi's memorial aside, his expression somewhat displeased.

Xiao Zhi's delaying of his return was clearly deliberate.

The emperor's decree was obeyed by Xiao Zhi, but its execution was carried out with reservations.

Hubao chuckled and said, "Your Majesty, Lord Xiao is not feeling well, and yet he must travel back to the capital with haste. I'm afraid he will suffer somewhat along the way, especially since medicine and physicians are scarce out on the road."

Qin Yong turned his head and stared at Hubao.

Hubao shrank his neck, the corners of his mouth twitching as he managed a forced smile.

"You old dog, you certainly are shrewd," Qin Yong scolded, then broke into a smile.

Subsequently, he said, "Go and give the order. Have the Imperial Hospital dispatch two imperial physicians to go out and welcome the Lord Viscount of Loyalty and Righteousness."

Hubao acknowledged the order and was about to leave when Qin Yong called him back. "Take some fine, nourishing medicinal herbs and tell him to drink up. Also, arrange for a few palace maids to accompany and wait upon him. Ensure they look after him with the utmost care, and under no circumstances let him catch the wind again."

"And dispatch a squad of elite imperial guards to protect Lord Xiao's safety."

Hubao accepted the command and departed. Just as he stepped out of the Hall of Diligent Governance, he ran straight into Shi Weigong, who had come to have an audience with the emperor.

Shi Weigong had received a message sent by carrier pigeon, learning that Shi Weizhi's ancestral estate had been raided.

Shi Weizhi had also been locked inside a prisoner's cage-cart and escorted toward the capital.

His estate had been raided, and he had been arrested and dispatched to the capital immediately—meaning there had been no interrogation in between.

Shi Weigong felt this was an opportunity; once Shi Weizhi entered the Imperial City Bureau, it would be too late for anything.

Unless one possessed superhuman endurance, no one could withstand the brutal tortures of the Imperial City Bureau. Even if one managed to endure them, a person would emerge as nothing more than a cripple.

He had to persuade the emperor to relent and release Shi Weizhi before the latter reached the capital.

"Eunuch Hu, His Majesty..."

Shi Weigong wanted to ask Hubao about the emperor's mood and whether it was an appropriate time for him to cry and plead for mercy.

Without waiting for him to finish, Hubao said, "Lord Shi, the Emperor is extremely busy right now. You had better come back another day."

Shi Weigong's face fell, and he hastily produced a thick stack of bank notes, shoving them into Hubao's sleeve.

"Eunuch Hu, this old minister begs you to put in a few good words..."

Hubao tightened his grip on his sleeve. Once the money was in his hands, there was no reason to return it, regardless of whether he helped or not.

Hubao sighed. "Minister Shi, you... you had better prepare for the funeral arrangements."

"What?" Shi Weigong cried out in shock. "Is there truly not the slightest room for maneuver?"

Hubao replied, "Lord Shi, if I were you, I would flip the chessboard and concede defeat. Once you concede, you won't have any more pieces captured."

Hubao's meaning was for Shi Weigong to bow his head to Xiao Zhi; by whatever means necessary, as long as Xiao Zhi stopped capturing their pieces.

If this game of chess were allowed to continue, Xiao Zhi would clean them out entirely.

Flip the board and concede defeat...

Shi Weigong knew that the advice Eunuch Hu offered was the most objective and sensible.

Could Xiao Zhi deliver a checkmate in one move—that is, directly remove Shi Weigong from his post?

He certainly could.

Yet Xiao Zhi had not done so, precisely because he sought stability; every radish pulled up required another radish to fill the hole.

To take down Shi Weigong would stir up a mire of trouble, which offered no benefit to the stability of the Great Chu court.

Would it not work to refuse to concede?

Unless...

Xiao Zhi died.

Once Xiao Zhi died, everything would be resolved.

However, once this risky move was made, there would truly be no turning back, forcing them to walk down that dark road to the very end.

This was precisely why he had previously colluded with Song Qi.

The assassination of Xiao Zhi would be carried out by Song Qi's men, while he would relinquish benefits that made people drool with envy.

If Xiao Zhi did not die and launched a counterattack against this madman, conceding defeat afterward would be useless; it would undoubtedly be a fight to the death.

"Many thanks, Eunuch Hu." Shi Weigong bowed deeply toward Hubao.

Hubao merely nodded and said, "His Majesty still has decrees for this servant to attend to; Lord Shi, please excuse me."

Would Shi Weigong continue to seek leniency from Qin Yong?

He understood the situation clearly in his heart—there was no need, and pleading was useless.

The Emperor would never agree, because he needed Xiao Zhi to serve as his blade.

If the Emperor were to relent and show mercy, Xiao Zhi's blade would be dulled.

*I do the arresting here, while you grant pardons over there; I take the blame for offending people, while you reap all the virtue.*

*I am exerting myself for the sake of your imperial realm, and you pop up to undermine my foundation.*

Returning to his residence, Shi Weigong sat before his clan members without uttering a word.

"Weigong, say something! What did the Emperor say?"

"Why is that Xiao Zhi stubbornly hounding the Ministry of Revenue? Why is he stubbornly hounding our Shi family?"

"That brute, that madman, I wish I could fight him to the death!"

"Among our Shi family, your and Weizhi's official ranks are the highest. If Weizhi is convicted, you, as the Minister of Revenue, will also stand alone and unsupported."

...

"Enough."

Shi Weigong raised his hand, signaling everyone to stop talking.

At this moment, Shi Weigong's face was ashen, resembling dead ash.

"Presently, there are only two paths before the Shi family."

"The first path: take the initiative to submit and yield to Xiao Zhi, and I can resign from office. By doing so, the lives of the nine branches of the Shi family can be preserved."

"The second path: since the source of trouble cannot be eliminated, we eliminate the person who creates the trouble. Once we fail..."

He did not continue, but everyone knew what the consequences would be.

Silence descended upon the crowd.

No one was willing to concede defeat, yet not a single person dared to murder Xiao Zhi.

Today's Xiao Zhi was no longer merely a halberd-bearer; he was also the Viscount of Loyalty and Righteousness.

"Since none of you are speaking, may I assume that everyone has already made a choice?" Shi Weigong sneered.

Within this clan of his, people's hearts were scattered. When facing benefits, they scrambled forward, but when confronted with the slightest risk, they all shrank back like turtles with their heads tucked in.

Still, no one spoke. Everyone remained silent, their eyes even darting about to avoid meeting Shi Weigong's gaze.

Shi Weigong let out a few cold laughs, flicked his sleeves, and strode away.

"Someone come, prepare the carriage! This old man is going to see someone!"