gnovel Chapter 45 Three Sworn Brothers
Chapter 45 Three Sworn Brothers
In order to try Wang Yansheng, Zhao Kuangyin specially appointed his trusted advisor Lü Yuqing as the judge of Kaifeng Prefecture, and the first thing he did after taking office was to try this case.
Lü Yuqing simply opened the gates of Kaifeng Prefecture completely and held a public trial for Wang Yansheng in front of countless onlookers. He sentenced Wang Yansheng to be executed in the autumn and paraded through the streets as a warning to the public.
For so many years, we haven't seen the country's judicial system function properly and try military personnel. When Wang Yansheng was actually put into a prison van and paraded through the streets, some people couldn't help but burst into tears on the spot.
Historically, when Wang Yansheng extorted money from Wang Pu, some military men pleaded for him, as the conflict was essentially a clash between civil and military officials.
Although he was convicted of arson in this current world, everyone knows that he injured the emperor's younger brother, Zhao Guangmei.
Moreover, in order to take the opportunity to rectify military discipline, the public was told that Zhao Guangmei's injuries were more serious than they actually were. The current version circulating is that she was shot half to death and was still in critical condition.
Who would dare to plead for him now? After all, Empress Dowager Du was still alive. The old lady always loved her youngest son the most, and Zhao Kuangyin was a well-known filial son. They were simply not to be trifled with.
After the trial of Wang Yansheng, taking advantage of the public's interest, Lü Yuqing ordered people to beat drums and gongs, welcoming citizens to file similar lawsuits.
More than twenty cases of robbery, rape, and extortion were handled in one go, all of which were tried in public. The Palace Guard and the Imperial Guard also carried out military reorganization at the same time and strictly enforced military law. At least half of the social security problems in Kaifeng were solved overnight.
Of course, the person in charge of managing and enforcing military discipline in the Palace Guard was Zhao Guangyi, who was the Commander of the Palace Guard. However, the paperwork for the actual execution fell to Wang Jun, who was in charge of the business and was actually Zhao Guangyi's confidant. Let's leave that aside for now.
A few days later, Zhao Guangmei, Wang Lu, and Li Jilong, the three little ones, gathered at the Wudi Temple, swore an oath to the rooster, and burned their prayer cards.
"I, Zhao Guangmei"
"My King's Prosperity"
"I am Li Jilong"
"The three of us are of the same mind and share the same sense of righteousness. Now, before the incense table in the Temple of King Wucheng, we swear to Heaven that we are sworn brothers, and in order of age, Zhao Guangmei will be the eldest brother, Wang Lu will be the second brother, and Li Jilong will be the third brother."
First, I seek to share wealth and honor, support each other in times of trouble, help each other in times of good or bad, and depend on each other for life and death; second, I seek to ensure the stability of the nation and the well-being of the people, to abide by the laws of the country, and to never betray my original aspirations.
May anyone who breaks this alliance be punished by Heaven and Earth, and may the gods witness and annihilate them with the five thunderbolts. This is proclaimed before Heaven and Earth, King Wucheng, and all the renowned generals of past dynasties; may they be subject to your scrutiny.
After exchanging visiting cards, the three of them stood up and addressed each other as "elder brother" and "younger brother," creating a harmonious and joyful atmosphere.
The culture of sworn brotherhood was very popular during the Five Dynasties period, especially in military camps, where it was almost ubiquitous. Although the Song Dynasty strictly prohibited sworn brotherhood in the military, this was only the beginning of the dynasty, and such an edict had not yet been issued.
A head kowtowed to the ground is no empty gesture. Li Keyong's Thirteen Protectors, Guo Wei's Ten Army Chiefs' Arm-Piercing Alliance, and Zhao Kuangyin's Ten Righteous Brothers are all famous figures known to all. But those who actually accomplished something are not worth mentioning.
Kang Yanxiao (Li Shaochen) is about to rebel because his sworn brother was killed; Guo Congqian dares to stage a coup and kill the emperor after his sworn brother was killed; Shi Hongzhao, Yang Bin and Wang Zhang, three sworn brothers, were all exterminated along with their entire families after one of them got into trouble.
In short, the practice of forming sworn brotherhoods during the Five Dynasties period was completely different from that in the Ming and Qing dynasties, let alone in modern times. To some extent, it meant that if your entire family were exterminated, you would be counted as one of them; it wasn't something that could be done casually.
With that one kowtow, he was essentially hooked up on Zhao Guangmei's pirate ship, with no way off. Now, even his main mission in the Song Dynasty had changed:
The deadline for achieving the highest rank in the official hierarchy was significantly brought forward, and it had to be completed during the reign of Emperor Taizu. Furthermore, preventing the Qin Prince's rebellion was also added to his main mission.
He had absolutely no idea how to prevent the Qin King's rebellion from happening.
The three stood up, and Wang Lu grasped Zhao Guangmei and Li Jilong's hands, saying, "Eldest brother, third brother, as the saying goes, three people of one mind can turn barren land into gold. From now on, my life is your life, and my heart is your heart. I will never waver in my loyalty. I swear to be with you through thick and thin, and to follow you to the death."
Li Jilong: "How can you be so good at making up lyrics? The lyrics weren't even written on the poster! You're making them sound so good, what am I supposed to say?"
"You could say I'm the same way."
"Okay, I'll do the same," Li Jilong said, clasping his hands in a fist salute.
Zhao Guangmei reached out and took their hands: "Come on, let's go get something delicious to eat."
Wang Lu: "The best food in all of Kaifeng right now is at Tongfu Inn. It's definitely full at this time. We didn't make a reservation in advance, so we definitely won't be able to get a table."
Li Jilong: "Do we need to make a reservation to eat at Tongfu Inn?"
"It's so fresh! Boss, don't you need to make a reservation? All the tables are full. As the boss, I can't just kick out the customers and sit there eating by myself."
"We can eat in the kitchen."
"Then we might as well go to my second brother's residence. Let me and my second brother cook for us. The chef at Tongfu Inn was also trained by my second brother."
"Alright, let's go to my second brother's residence then."
"Brother, where is your residence? Didn't the Emperor bestow a residence upon you? Where was it given to you?"
"Hey, don't even mention it, Second Brother. I was just about to discuss this with you. I heard that Grand Commandant Han is retiring and going to Luoyang. His huge mansion is going to be given to you and Uncle Jun?"
"Um."
"Then I'll stay at your place for a while."
"Huh? What's going on?"
"It's not just a house that was bestowed upon me, but the Song Dynasty doesn't have much money. I don't know where they got this dilapidated house from, it needs to be renovated."
Our Tongfu Inn is making quite a bit of money, so I was thinking, why don't we use the profits from the Tongfu Inn to renovate my new house while we're renovating it? We can move in after the renovation is finished.
"Hehe, I'll take advantage of you guys a little. I'll take all the profits before the house is renovated, and I'll make up the difference from my profits after that."
Wang Lu: "Why don't you live in the palace?"
"I've already been granted a residence, why should I go back to live in the palace? Besides, I'm all grown up now."
"Are you old yet?"
"I'm all grown up now."
"I don't believe you, unless you treat me to a trip to a brothel."
"I can shop around, but the two of you can't."
"I can shop around."
Li Jilong: "I can't go sightseeing, alright? If you two are living together, how about I stay at Second Brother's house for a while? It's Grand Commandant Han's residence, it has four courtyards, would you welcome me, Second Brother?"
"How could I possibly say I don't welcome them? It just so happens that my cheap grandfather is going to Luoyang, and he's taking most of the servants and maids from the house with him. I'll have to buy a new batch of servants or hire a new batch."
Zhao Guangmei: "Ah, then we must need to buy quite a few things. In that case, I'll give you the dividends."
"No need, my dad is rich, he earns more money than I do."
........................
Inside the Palace Guard, everyone in the entire Commandery was extremely busy due to the need to enforce military discipline. Wang Jun, as Zhao Guangyi's trusted confidant and chief clerk, was no exception, sitting for one or two hours straight without being able to stand up.
He's been worrying about too many things lately, and he hasn't been able to sleep well. He looks quite haggard. Whether it's Wang Lu and Zhao Guangmei getting closer or his hoarding and speculation, it's all been taking a toll on him.
Han Tong said he would help him find someone to solve the problem that day, but now that he's about to leave, no one knows where that person went.
Could they have forgotten about this?
Just as he was pondering this, a colleague came over and whispered in his ear, "Brother Jun, the Jade Purity Immortal Master requests your presence."
"What immortal master? I'm so busy I'm practically running around like a headless chicken, how could I possibly have time to see any immortal master? Give me a straight answer."
"Oh my, Brother Jun, it's Immortal Master Yuqing! It's Immortal Master Yuqing!!"
"The Jade Purity Immortal Master is... ah~~~~, the Empress Dowager!"
The empress dowager they are referring to here is, of course, Empress Dowager Fu of the Later Zhou Dynasty. Even after the founding of the Song Dynasty, although Zhao Kuangyin continued to treat her with the respect due to an empress dowager and she continued to reside in the West Palace, things remained largely the same as before.
However, she changed into a Taoist robe and began to call herself the Jade Purity Immortal Master. In order to distinguish her from Empress Dowager Du, people inside and outside the palace simply called her the Jade Purity Immortal Master.
Wang Jun keenly realized that this Empress Dowager Fu was probably the person Han Tong had mentioned, the one whom even Zhao Guangyi feared and who could help him solve the problem of stockpiling grain.