Your Majesty, Please Stop!

Chapter 173: Jiang Hezhu's Dilemma

"Prince Jiang, let's get straight to the point!"

Xin Zhuo's cavalry carriage convoy had not yet reached the east gate of Dukang Mansion, but the officials of the prefectural yamen, local gentry, and noble families were already bustling with anticipation.

There were also the wealthy young ladies dressed up and surrounded by maidservants, standing by the roadside with sparkling eyes, their intentions unknown.

As the newly appointed Prince Jiang, Xin Zhuo was well aware of how to deal with the common people and the underworld, but when it came to the etiquette between high-ranking officials and nobles, he was quite crude. Fortunately, everyone present needed to consider his face, so he could choose to ignore it selectively.

Of course, after receiving a large number of gifts, everyone engaged in "pleasant conversations" with each other.

Only one middle-aged man with a big beard approached with a smile on his face, like a plaster stuck to a dog's skin.

"Dog! What do you want to say?"

Without waiting for Xin Zhuo to be surprised by who this person was, he saw that the Azure Dragon longsword in Sheng Lingge's hand had already landed on the man's back, as if they were familiar with each other.

"Commander Sheng, long time no see!"

The middle-aged man smiled, approached the carriage, and bowed obsequiously, saying, "I am Jiang Bieche. My father used to serve in the Jiang Mansion..."

Commander Sheng Lingge interrupted him cleanly, "He was a servant under Third Master, planting flowers."

"Yes, yes, yes!"

Jiang Bieche coughed lightly and looked at Prince Jiang inside the carriage, who couldn't understand his expression. "Under my humble knees, I have a son named Jiang Hezhu. He used to be ignorant and offended the prince's eyes. A few days ago, he caused trouble for the prince again..."

Xin Zhuo had already understood Jiang Bieche's intention. Jiang Hezhu had discovered Cui Ying'er and the others and asked, "Where are my people?"

"In the old stronghold three miles north of the city!"

...

"Come out, seriously, you guys are making it difficult for me. We have all been bandits before, we are all comrades!"

"Who is your comrade? Look at your ghostly appearance! If you dare, come in!"

"I won't go in!"

Outside the dilapidated gate of the old stronghold, Jiang Hezhu sat on the ground with a group of guards, their faces full of worry, their hair in disarray.

They had been pulling and struggling with Cui Ying'er and Murong Xiu for three days, never daring to leave Half Step.

He had never thought that a few bandits would become such a big hot potato. Originally, he had been chasing them all the way, but now he had lost interest. He was afraid that these people would not know how to arrange themselves in front of...Prince Jiang.

Only by inviting them out and treating them well could he increase a little hope in the already "adding insult to injury" misunderstanding.

"Boom boom boom..."

Suddenly, a deafening sound of horse hooves came from afar. After five hundred terrifying golden-armored cavalry, there were hundreds of local gentry officials and high-ranking dignitaries.

The momentum was grand!

Xin...Prince Jiang had arrived!

Jiang Hezhu's face changed again and again. He recalled everything that had happened in Fufeng Mansion and thought of the letter he had sent to Xin Zhuo months ago with great enthusiasm.

His scalp tingled and his heart raced, and then...

He pursed his lips, blinked his eyes twice, and burst into loud crying. Staggering, he rushed forward, "Prince! I'm innocent!"

Inside the carriage, it was quiet.

The hundreds of Iron Floating Guards looked at him coldly, and the pressure of their restlessness suddenly came, along with the ridicule on the faces of those who usually called him uncle or younger brother, and the fiery gaze of his father...

Jiang Hezhu suddenly acted out, crying loudly. He really wanted to cry. A small mountain bandit suddenly became the illustrious grandson of the Jiang family.

Is there anything crazier in this world?

Why did I provoke him? If I could start over, when I went to Fufeng Mansion, I would have gone to Fulong Stronghold to hang out with him.

Just as Jiang Hezhu cried more and more miserably, the carriage curtain opened, and a pair of feet stepped on his back, rubbing against his already clean new boots.

Jiang Hezhu looked up and saw Xin...Prince Jiang. His self-esteem, which had been strong in the past, had to go crazy, but at this moment...for some reason, it was scorching hot.

"Your Highness, is it okay for me to carry you on my back?"

"It's a little uncomfortable."

Xin Zhuo jumped down and walked towards the gate of the old village on the opposite side. He sighed with relief, and his mentality inexplicably changed. He had changed from being chased and hunted everywhere, from being hungry and full, to a new situation where he had a new group of thieves and guns. He no longer had to worry about being chased and killed. "Everyone, come out. Let's go to the capital and make a breakthrough!"

"Oh? It's the voice of the leader!"

"Yes! Definitely!"

There was a rustling sound from inside, and soon the door opened, revealing Cui Ying'er, Murong Xiu, Huang Da Gui, Bai Jianxi, Han Qianniang, and Han Qiniang's siblings, as well as the figure of Xiao Huang.

"Leader!"

Seeing Xin Zhuo, everyone was overjoyed. They ran a few steps forward and saw the imposing cavalry and the dense crowd of officials and nobles in the distance, and suddenly hesitated.

"Leader, is there an unsolvable problem?" Han Qianniang's face turned pale, and she made eye contact, meaning that the leader should come in quickly and hold them off.

It was Cui Ying'er who noticed something unusual. She asked cautiously, "What happened, Leader? Who are these people?"

Xin Zhuo sighed, "There's an imposter."

The words "imposter" were not understood by the nearby gentry and cavalry, but the bandits of Fulong Mountain, who were used to the leader's nonsense, understood.

Murong Xiu looked around carefully and lowered his voice, "What kind of imposter?"

Xin Zhuo also lowered his voice, "The legitimate eldest grandson of the Jiang family, I'm confused now."

Murong Xiu's face changed abruptly, and he shook his head vigorously, "Is this plan... suitable? Isn't it too risky?"

Bai Jianxi's eyes also flickered. He turned his back to the crowd and approached the leader, speaking in a very low voice, "Leader, how did you deceive them? What role do we need to play? Do we have the advantage?"

"The advantage is currently with us!" Xin Zhuo got into the role inexplicably and said seriously, "We must be confident and natural. My current identity is the legitimate eldest grandson of the Jiang family in the capital. You are my bodyguards, but don't reveal anything, or our lives will be in danger!"

"Leader, we'll follow your lead!"

"Alright!"

The group of people looked towards the crowd in the distance and suddenly became confident.

Huang Da Gui laughed towards the crowd, "That's right! Our leader is indeed the legitimate eldest grandson of the Jiang family, very impressive... We knew it early on, but this matter was kept secret and not mentioned under normal circumstances."

Lowering his voice, he asked, "Leader, is that what you mean?"

"Yes, very good!" Xin Zhuo nodded.

Han Qianniang's eyes suddenly turned red, and she choked up, "Our young master has suffered so much, but he finally made it back home..."

Bai Jianxi had tears streaming down his face, trembling as he looked at the sky, "Our young master has been wandering outside for many years. Who else cared for him? Only us loyal bodyguards have been with him all along."

"Haha..." Cui Ying'er couldn't help but laugh.

Han Qianniang casually patted her, "Yinger, you're too much. You should have told us earlier that your acting skills are not good."

"Yes!" Cui Ying'er sighed and instantly got into character.

The crowd in the distance looked confused. Why were they suddenly crying so miserably?

"So you all knew, but you didn't say anything earlier!"

Jiang Hezhu suddenly felt a bit resentful in his heart. He rushed over, carefully avoiding Xin Zhuo, and pointed at the others, "You deliberately provoked me, bullying me like this!"

Lowering his voice, Bai Jianxi asked, "Leader, what role is he playing?"

Xin Zhuo cleared his throat and looked at Jiang Hezhu, "Young Master Jiang, we have a relationship, but you owe me 300,000 taels of silver, 500 pieces of fine silk, and six top-quality horses. When will you repay me?"

"When will I..." Jiang Hezhu's face turned pale. Wasn't this a joke? These were basically all the assets of his family. This Xin Zhuo used to be a mountain bandit. Where did he get so many things?

"That's right! The young master owes it. It's all prepared!"

Jiang Bieche in the distance felt a bit of pain but also joy. "I'll deliver them to you immediately!"

The next chapter will have at least seven parts.

(End of this chapter)