Chapter 17: The Peach and the Plum Tree

  Li Shimin burst out laughing and said: "You're something else! You're even more ruthless than I am. That third point of yours won't do; the local officials here are my brother's trusted men. Tell me, what do you plan to do about those other two points?"

  I smiled and said: "To kill these Japanese rabbits, we must grasp their actions. This is easy to do. As long as we don't leave here, I think they will come soon. They are in the dark, we are in the light, but they should not know that we have taken precautions. That's what they mean by 'mutual understanding'. Since there is mutual understanding, let's have a fight. 60 miles away from here, in Gaoyou Town, Officer Wang has sent people from our Xuanjia Camp to take over. Your Highness can secretly go to that place and hide for the time being. Leave us a few people here, and after finding the new Korean envoy, bring him to Gaoyou, that's all."

  Li Shimin said: "This method is indeed feasible. I don't have to go to Gaoyou either. Let's settle this with the Japanese here."

  I said: "What kind of person is Old Chen?"

  Qin Qiong said: "He used to be one of my subordinates, but due to injury he couldn't serve in the army, so he left and opened this rice shop here. He's a good man, I can vouch for him with my life."

  I said: "Well, if Your Highness thinks it's feasible, then we'll start making preparations. However, Your Highness must not stay here. The officials in this place are someone else's confidants, and this is not a good location. Please leave quickly, Your Highness."

  At this time, Xu Yu Chan said: "Your Highness, what he said makes sense. You should set off to Gaoyou immediately. We can handle things here."

  Li Shimin sighed and said: "I understand what you're saying, but can I just leave like that? What will those Japanese people do after I'm gone? They won't be so foolish."

  I said: "Is there anyone in Yangzhou who is familiar with Your Highness?"

  Li Shimin said: "The people in the officialdom do not recognize me, but there are people among the common folk who know me very well. This time I came to Yangzhou also to pay a visit to this person."

  Xu Yuqian said: "Is Your Highness referring to Sister Gongsun? I've been wanting to pay my respects for a long time too."

  I said: "Is this person reliable?"

  Li Shimin's face suddenly turned red and he said with a hint of embarrassment: "She is an old friend from my Jianghu days."

  Looking at the surprised eyes of others in the house, Li Shimin smiled slightly and said: "I've heard stories about you, Xiaoyao, since I was a child. At that time, I admired you so much. Later, our family hired a teacher to teach my brothers and me martial arts. When I was 17 years old, I thought my skills were quite impressive, so I sneaked out of the house. At that time, I carried a sword and had a large amount of silver on me. I wandered around what I considered to be the Jianghu, waiting for opportunities to right wrongs. Indeed, I encountered several small disputes in the market, but later I finally met a big one - a flower thief. As soon as I saw him, I knew it was time to do business."

  As soon as he finished speaking, we all burst out laughing. Only then did Qin Qiong say, "I didn't know the young master had such an experience."

  Xu Yu Chan hastily said: "Don't interrupt, let the Second Prince continue."

  Li Shimin continued: "As the thief was carrying that woman and just climbed up to the house, I rushed over. Without saying a word, I raised my sword and stabbed. The thief was startled, dropped the woman, and begged for mercy, even taking out a lot of silver. I told him to follow me to the government office, or else I would kill him. Unexpectedly, he started fighting back. After we fought, I realized that his martial arts skills were much higher than mine. The moves I learned didn't work at all. In the end, my sword was even snatched away."

  Just as he was about to deliver the fatal blow, Gong Sun Yulan arrived and killed the thief with just a few moves. After sending the woman back home, she took me, who had been beaten like a dead dog, back to her residence, and that's how we met.

  Later on, I met a few like-minded good friends and we traveled the world together. Those were the days! No matter how hard it was, we shared everything with each other. I remember one time when Fourth Sister lost our money, but fortunately there weren't any corrupt officials or bullies around. Big Brother led us to the dock to unload goods, and after scraping together some more money, we continued on our journey. We even gained a bit of fame, and at that time, people in Jianghu called us the "Hot-Blooded Seven Heroes".

  At this time, Guzhishi Shibo suddenly interrupted and asked: "Are you the Old Seventh of the Seven Heroes, Qin Li Yi Xinjian?"

  The Chess Master also said: "I've heard of you guys before, you were quite something back then, worthy of being the leader among young people. What happened to Tian Di Yi Sha Yue Gu Fei Long, the eldest of your Seven Heroes? He wasn't very old but his kung fu skills were incredibly high, and he was a good person too. How come you guys suddenly disappeared without a word?"

  Li Shimin's eyes suddenly turned red at this time, and he slowly said: "In the third year of our adventure, we arrived in Liangzhou and happened to meet Hei Tujue's army wanting to slaughter the city at a place called Xiaoshi City. We assisted the local officials and soldiers in defending, and defended for half a month. Seeing that they couldn't attack, Hei Tujue retreated, but four of our seven people died in battle, and my brother lost his eyesight. Later, we brought back the ashes of our brothers to the Central Plains, and my brother left without saying goodbye on a rainy night. Fourth sister Gong Sun Yulan came to Yangzhou, and I returned home too."

  Looking at Li Shimin who was crying uncontrollably, I suddenly felt that this high and mighty prince had become more approachable. He is a person who knows the coldness and warmth of human relationships and has a strong sense of justice. If he becomes emperor in the future, the people should be able to live a good life.

  Qin Chixi's master said dejectedly: "I didn't expect that the once renowned Seven Heroes would end up like this. Well, you haven't disgraced your former reputation... Alas..."

  Li Shimin said: "This time I came to Yangzhou, originally I was going to wait for things to settle down before visiting my fourth sister. But now that this has happened, it seems that's not possible. My fourth sister is currently living a peaceful life, and if I go there now, she may not be able to continue her current lifestyle."

  I said: "Your Highness is right, it's better not to disturb her for now. Your Highness can set out early tomorrow morning to Gaoyou, I'll take care of things here."

  The next morning, Old Master Chen hired nine large carts outside and returned. Li Shimin disguised himself as a store assistant and waited until the nine carts were all loaded with grain before setting off to Gaoyou with Old Master Chen and several others.

  As I was about to leave, Li Shimin said to me: "My two brothers are indeed ruthless and cunning, but they are not mixed with people. This time, I think they will only make a move after the negotiations with Silla are over. They don't want to make this world too chaotic, so that there's no way to clean up when they take over."

  Standing in the room wearing Li Shimin's attire, I also stuck two short mustaches on my upper lip. Then, imitating Li Shimin's appearance, I sat down in the chair and said: "Qin Qiong, go invite the Taishou gentleman from here."

  Qin Qiong looked at me with a puzzled expression and said, "Isn't this equivalent to jumping into the net ourselves? That Governor Zhao Nan Village is one of the Grand Master's trusted men, after all."

  I smiled and said: "Don't worry, even if we don't show up, I think he'll know we've arrived. After the talk is over, those Japanese people won't get their way, and when he comes to shut the door and catch the thief, our identities will be unclear, and at that time it will truly be a case of 'killing someone without making a sound'."

  Xu Yu Chan replied: "Your Highness said before you left that Jiulang would be in charge of this matter, so we'll just do as he says."

  Qin Qiong remained silent after listening, bowed to me and left. Chess Master Shibo asked: "What do you plan to do?"

  I paced a few steps in the house and said: "Let's make my identity known throughout the city, so that he can't lay a hand on us, and we'll have him run errands for us."

  Before long, Qin Qiong returned and said: "Your Highness, the governor of Yangzhou, Zhao Nan Village, is outside asking to see you." After finishing speaking, he winked at me. I suppressed my laughter and said: "Let him in."

  No sooner had the words fallen than a ball of flesh rolled in, and arrived at my feet, where it knelt down on the ground, and after knocking its round head several times with a voice like killing a chicken, said: "Zhao Nan Village, the governor of Yangzhou, pays his respects to King Qin."

  I smiled and pulled him up, saying: "When I came, my brother had already told me about you, praising that you are a capable person, one of the most famous officials under his command, so I can rest assured to entrust matters to you. It seems that this time I have come to your territory to trouble you. Moon cicada quickly give Zhao sir a seat and serve tea."

  Zhao Nan Village's Four Joy Meatballs face was smiling like a flower, and with narrowed eyes said: "I'm flattered by your mistaken affection, I don't dare to accept it. Being able to serve you is my good fortune, everything here will be done according to your instructions."

  I nodded my head in satisfaction and said: "Very well, after the matter is settled, I will personally go to Father Emperor and Big Brother to explain your merits." Then, the tone of the conversation shifted and I said: "Before this trip, someone in the capital said that you are corrupt and abuse the law, and that Father Emperor wants to investigate you, but it was suppressed by Big Brother and me. You should be careful, I will take care of what needs to be taken care of. I know that being a local official is not easy, and even if there are some small mistakes, I can cover for you. But if something big happens, the heavens won't tolerate it, and you'll be finished. Our brothers' faces have also been exposed in front of Father Emperor, do you understand?"