Chapter 47: 'Thieves' Have Their Own Code

Liang Shicheng was stunned. How could a 'tough guy' who robs also give change? He quickly waved his hands and said, "Your Highness, there's no need!"

"Tsk, Grandma Liang, don't you know that thieves have their own code? We have a clear price, no cheating, one-way fee, pay once and unlimited use within a day. It's two coins for a person, five coins for each horse, and ten more coins for a carriage. But we offer a discount to the elderly, fifty percent off, so we'll only charge you half! As for these guys with knives, they have to pay double. You can take their horses as a fine!" Zhao Cheng handed a string of copper coins to Liang Shicheng and gestured for the servants to come forward and lead the horses away!

"Your Highness, we are here to announce the imperial decree. Could you please be lenient!" Liang Shicheng thought to himself that the fine was too high. The toll for one person and one horse was only seven coins, while a mediocre horse was worth twenty guan, not to mention the saddles. Liang Shicheng watched the imperial guards, who were tightly holding the reins, and pleaded on their behalf.

"Mr. Liang, give the horses to the Prince. I'll explain it to my superiors when I get back!" Cai You, who was kneeling, couldn't stand it anymore. With a knife at his neck, he was still haggling over a few horses.

"Alright, alright, all of you get off your horses and give them to the Prince!" Although Liang Shicheng was jealous of Cai You, he also feared the power of his family. Seeing the Prince's ruthless act of killing a horse, he feared that a disagreement might lead to Cai You being chopped. He quickly agreed, thinking that the Prime Minister's family had plenty of money, and if Cai You was willing to take the blame, why not let him?

The imperial guards reluctantly dismounted, their faces turning blue as they handed the reins to the servants of the Zhao family. They stood by the road, feeling depressed. In the past, whenever they announced the imperial decree, they were always treated with great respect, but today, they had to pay a toll on this muddy road, and their leader was still lying there, his fate unknown. Although they were angry, they could do nothing about it.

"Hey, there's a beautiful lady here!" Zhao Cheng lifted the curtain of Cai You's sedan chair and was surprised to see a beautiful woman with disheveled hair and half-covered clothes cowering in the corner. "Zhao Xin, I'll give this beauty to you as a wife!" He turned to Zhao Xin, who was following behind, and said with a smile.

"Second Master, you're bullying me!" Zhao Xin's face turned red, and he stomped his foot in anger.

"I'm giving you a wife, and you say I'm bullying you. If you don't want her, I'll take her away!"

"Second Master, would you even dare to take such a woman?" Zhao Xin opened his mouth in surprise.

"Hehe, I'll sell her to the entertainment district. With her figure and appearance, she's worth at least ten guan!" Zhao Cheng said as he put down the curtain.

"Your Highness, this is the concubine of the Governor of Gongzhou, who has an owner!" Liang Shicheng quickly stepped forward to explain, thinking to himself that this Prince was truly a demon, no, even more demonic than a demon.

"Ah, so she's Chen Tang's concubine. But why is she in Cai You's carriage? That's not proper, right, Grandma Liang?" Zhao Cheng thought for a moment and asked Liang Shicheng, who was still in a daze.

"This..." Liang Shicheng didn't know how to explain, standing there speechless and blushing.

"Your Highness, should we cut this guy? My arm is getting tired!" At this moment, Pan Long's voice came from the side.

"Cut, cut, I've never seen someone being cut before!" Zhao Cheng left Liang Shicheng and ran over to watch the execution.

"Your Highness, you can't do that! He's an imperial envoy. If you kill him, the Emperor will blame you!" Liang Shicheng quickly chased after him and shouted, thinking that the Prince wouldn't really kill the envoy just to watch an execution!

"Cut!" Seeing the Prince in place, Pan Long wiped his knife on the shoe and raised it high. Xue Bao lifted Cai You's arm, and Cai You, in pain, leaned forward, stretching his neck out, looking like a turtle.

"Don't cut!" Liang Shicheng closed his eyes and shouted, inwardly sighing, "Cai You, I've pleaded for you. Don't blame me when you're a ghost. It's the Prince who wants to kill you!"

"Stop the execution!" A person ran over from a distance and shouted loudly.

Hearing the shout, Pan Long hesitated. He wasn't stupid and recognized the voice as Huang Jingchen's. He tilted the blade slightly, grazing Cai You's scalp and cutting off his hair, but fortunately, there was no blood.

"Damn, this guy got off easy!" Zhao Cheng spat and cursed, truly having the intention to kill in that moment. He was willing to take the punishment to get rid of these two. Cai You, who was uneducated and only knew how to deceive the Emperor, was one of the main culprits in the 'alliance with the Jin to resist the Liao' that led to the fall of the Song Dynasty, his crimes not less than those of the 'Six Villains.' Liang Shicheng was also one of the 'Six Villains,' who, relying on the Emperor's trust, dared to forge the Emperor's handwriting to create a large number of fake imperial edicts, a unique villain in Chinese history.

"Huang Dahan, save me!" Xue Bao released Cai You, who collapsed on the ground. Seeing Huang Jingchen approach, he crawled over and hugged his leg, crying out.

"Scholar Cai, please get up. The Prince was just joking with you!" Huang Jingchen pulled Cai You up, patted his shoulder, and comforted him.

"Not funny, on the stage, when they perform beheadings, they always shout 'losing one's head is just a small scar,' without crying. Cai You, you're too..." Zhao Cheng shook his head, disappointed.

"Your subordinate, your subordinate..." Cai You, who had just escaped death, was still in shock, unable to say a word. Liang Shicheng, standing nearby, secretly rejoiced, grateful that he hadn't taken the lead, or he would have been no better off than the Prime Minister's eldest son.

Zhao Cheng picked up the hat that had fallen to the ground, dusted it off, and put it on Cai You's head. "Cai You, you haven't finished with me yet. We'll settle accounts later." He then led the servants and the horses away.

Cai You pouted, wanting to cry. Why was he doing this? The Second Prince's methods of dealing with him were the same as those used on Chen Tang, just a change in form but not in substance. He had just criticized Chen Tang for being ignorant yesterday, and today he himself was ignorant. He should have been more careful before speaking. He wondered if the method Chen Tang used to please the Prince would still work, and whether he would also be made to stand in the street and slap himself a hundred times!

"Mr. Liang!" Liang Shicheng, who had just risen to prominence, though a new noble, still had to show respect to his old superior.

"Oh, Mr. Liang, you're not serving in the palace. Why are you here?" Huang Jingchen asked in a surprised tone.

"Mr. Liang, the Second Prince has been promoted to a Prince. We are here to announce the imperial decree. We didn't expect the Prince to be 'performing' here. Scholar Cai spoke without restraint and offended the Prince. Please intercede for us!" Liang Shicheng said respectfully.

"Oh, this is good news. Announcing the imperial decree is a serious matter and cannot be delayed. Let's take care of the main business first. I'll explain to the Prince later!" Huang Jingchen said excitedly, urging them to return to the mansion.

"What are you all standing there for? Set up the ceremonial guard!" Liang Shicheng shouted at the guards and imperial guards.

The guards had already paid and stayed far away, enjoying the show. Seeing the people from the capital being humiliated, they felt relieved and happy. They were happy that even the imperial envoys couldn't provoke this young master, making their own grievances seem insignificant. They felt balanced. The imperial guards, whose horses had been 'confiscated,' had to walk on foot. Their bright armor now became a burden, but they had no choice. Fortunately, the Prince had shown mercy, leaving the envoys' carriage, or they would have had to carry it. The group, dejected, followed the envoys' carriage slowly toward the Prince's mansion.

When they arrived at the Prince's mansion, the gates were tightly closed. The gatekeeper said that because the envoys had come suddenly, the mansion was preparing the incense altar, and the Prince was bathing and changing clothes to receive the decree. He asked the officials to wait, then closed the gate, giving them a cold shoulder.

Unexpectedly, the wait was long. At first, the guards could still hold their flags, but then they started leaning on them, and eventually, they sat on the ground, not caring about the cold. The imperial guards, who initially tried to set an example for the lazy guards, couldn't hold out. The heavy armor, weighing over forty pounds, and the additional weapons, totaling twenty to thirty pounds, were usually only worn during court sessions or grand ceremonies, with shifts. But now, they had been wearing them for the whole morning, and they couldn't hold out anymore. One by one, they slowly sat down.

"Captain Li, is the Prince always like this?" The imperial guard captain, who had fallen off his horse and lost a front tooth, spoke with a lisp, sitting next to the head of the local guards and giving him a string of copper coins, similar to offering a cigarette to get closer.

"Captain Wang, I've heard that the Prince, though young, is a reasonable person. One day, our governor's son also rode a horse and collided with the Prince. The Prince only beat him up and didn't do anything else. But later..." The head of the guards, a shrewd person, knew what the captain meant. He was worried about the Prince's actions and came to probe. He left his words hanging.

"Captain Li, what happened later?" The captain, indeed, asked anxiously. Suddenly, Captain Li seemed to have lost his voice, only looking at the silver bag on the captain's waist without speaking. "Oh, Captain Li, you're the old hand here. We don't know the rules. Please explain them to us," the captain said, pulling out a piece of silver weighing about two ounces and giving it to Captain Li, smiling but inwardly seething. However, since he needed help, he had to lower his head.

"Captain Wang, what are you doing!" Captain Li reluctantly accepted the silver and opened up. "Since there's no one else here, I'll tell you the truth. That day, our governor's son was asking for death. The Prince let him go, but he had his servants shoot an arrow at the Prince. The next day, he sent his estate workers to surround the Prince's mansion, trying to seize their land. This angered the Prince, who took the matter to the state government. The result..." Captain Li gave the captain a knowing look.