Chapter 224 Entering the City
Rong Que had no choice.
Jixiang roasted a chicken that Wang Yu brought back, and stewed some soup for Su Qingqing in a casserole with boiled herbs. However, Rong Que fed it to her with his mouth, but she could only swallow seven or eight mouthfuls before she couldn't swallow anymore, and even vomited out the part she had swallowed before.
How can we hold on and reach the next city?
"I'm going to see Zhao Ji."
Rong Que handed Su Qingqing to Jixiang and stood up to walk out.
Wang Yu hurriedly chased after him.
"Your Highness, Zhao Ji was not a member of the prince's party before, so we cannot judge what he is thinking. Now that King Yu has messed things up, you really..."
Rong Que's reputation now is that of a traitor. If he meets an enthusiastic student, he will probably stamp his feet and scold him.
"It doesn't matter. I'll test Zhao Ji's attitude. Besides, even if he wants to attack me now, he has to deal with the bandit threat first.
The imperial court will certainly not be able to spare the energy to send troops to suppress the bandits in the short term. If I can help him suppress the bandits, he will not attack me until the bandits are wiped out.
It will take at least ten days or half a month to suppress the bandits. This time is enough for Qingqing to recover.
We'll talk about the details when the time comes."
Wang Yu still felt it was risky, "How about I go find Zhao Ji?"
"He doesn't know you and won't believe you, but he has seen me. No need to say more. You just need to take good care of them here. Tie that man up in the car before I come back."
Patting Wang Yu on the shoulder, Rong Que said, "Thank you for your hard work," and left.
The night was dark, and when Rong Que arrived at the city gate, snowflakes began to fall from the sky.
After knocking on the city gate, Rong Que took off a jade pendant and handed it in, "I want to see Zhao Ji. I have a way to catch the bandit."
The bailiff opened the door a crack and looked suspiciously at the tall, handsome but weathered and tired man outside.
"Who are you?"
Rong Que only said: "Give the jade pendant to Zhao Ji, he knows it."
After saying that, Rong Que didn't say another word and pretended to be leaning against the wall waiting.
Several yamen runners inside discussed something in a low voice, then said to Rong Que, "Wait."
Immediately afterwards, Rong Que heard the sound of footsteps receding, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
The reason why he didn't just climb over the wall to find Zhao Ji but chose this way was that he had a tentative intention.
If Zhao Ji came to see him immediately, this matter would be worth a gamble.
What he was betting on was not Zhao Ji's loyalty to the prince or the court, but the hearts of the people of Datong County.
Wang Yu said that Zhao Ji was still patrolling late at night.
He should be a good official.
As for Rong Que himself, he has a great reputation in suppressing bandits, and Zhao Ji should trust his ability.
Or, in this critical moment, Zhao Ji had no choice but to give it a try.
After waiting for a while, there was a chaotic sound of footsteps from inside, and then the small door that could accommodate one person was opened.
Rong Que originally thought that the first person to come out would be a yamen runner or he would be called in directly, but he didn't expect that Zhao Ji himself came out and knelt down to salute.
Rong Que immediately helped him up and said, "This is not the place to talk."
Zhao Ji obviously didn't expect to really see the prince at this time. His heart was filled with excitement. He wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, Your Majesty... Please come in, please come in."
Rong Que said: "I have a few friends outside, I want to take them into the city."
Zhao Ji agreed without hesitation, and asked the yamen runners to guard the city gate, and personally accompanied Rong Que to pick up the person.
Wang Yu packed the carriage early in the morning, and the carriage set off immediately when Rong Que and the others arrived.
After nearly a month of traveling, Su Qingqing finally washed her body with Jixiang's help, changed the medicine on her wound carefully, and lay down in the soft and comfortable quilt.
The floor heating in the room was burning red, and Jixiang would use ginseng soup to moisten her lips from time to time.
The juice moistened the lips and seeped into the gaps between the teeth.
Although the city was on high alert against bandits, there was still enough food and medicine in the city. The monk discussed with the doctor and prepared a prescription to make medicine for Su Qingqing.
outhouse.
Zhao Ji knelt down and saluted Rong Que with tears on his face, "If Your Highness can really save Datong County from the dire situation, I will never refuse to die."
Rong Que waved his hand, "Master Zhao, there is no need to be so polite. I am no longer the crown prince."
He laughed at himself.
"King Yu killed my father, and now that the new emperor has ascended the throne, I am not even a crown prince. I am more like a traitor.
Let's be frank. My wife is seriously ill and we need to stop to let her recuperate. I am very grateful to you, Lord Zhao, for facilitating this. In return, I will give you a satisfactory result in suppressing the bandits.
From now on, Sir, please call me by my courtesy name."
The news about what happened in Kyoto had already spread everywhere. Although the entire city gate of Datong County was blocked due to banditry, Zhao Ji had heard about it before.
The prince originally went to kill King Yu, but King Yu kidnapped the crown princess. In order to save the crown princess, the prince killed the people in the Xishan camp at that time.
This is indeed the behavior of a foolish, ruthless and treacherous official.
But the emperor had already died by then, and the fight for the throne was bloody and cruel. Who knew what the situation was like at that time?
Zhao Ji was just an ordinary county magistrate.
He never participated in or took sides in important court affairs. It didn't matter who was the emperor. As long as he was still the county magistrate of Datong, he would benefit Datong and nothing else would matter to him.
However, Rong Que and the others have special identities. If they are still addressed as the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess, he won't mind, but that doesn't mean others won't have other thoughts.
Rong Que, whose courtesy name is Congzhou.
Zhao Ji readily agreed, "In that case, I am sorry for the inconvenience. Could you please tell me more about the arrangements for suppressing the bandits?"
Rong Que smiled.
This Lord Zhao is indeed only concerned about the bandit problem.
Zhao Ji had already introduced the situation of the bandits to Rong Que on the way. He tapped the table with his index finger and said, "Tomorrow morning, I will take people to find the bandit's lair and find out their strength. I will come back and make a decision. What do you think, sir?"
Rong Que went to find out the details, and Su Qingqing stayed here.
It not only helps him recuperate, but also gives Zhao Ji peace of mind and gives him something to hold over him.
Zhao Ji immediately said, "In that case, you can take a rest, sir. However, how many people will you bring with you when we set out tomorrow morning? I will count the number of people so that I can make arrangements in advance."
"No, I have someone."
Zhao Ji was stunned.
Rong Que laughed immediately, "Your Excellency, you don't think that I am going out to escape with only a few of you, right? It's inconvenient for a large army, so they are all stationed outside."
Zhao Ji's eyes suddenly glowed with heat.
Before, he thought that there were only Rong Que and his few people. Although he brought the people back with a glimmer of hope, he was still worried.
What does he have to worry about when he has a large army !
With a smile on his face, Zhao Ji left.
Rong Que had been feeling very dizzy for a long time. As soon as Zhao Ji left, he stood up by supporting himself on the table and almost vomited.
