Performing the full act.
To deceive Wei Heng, Yang Ge had still put some thought into it.
He retrieved a complete set of banners from the possessions of the imperial envoy and divided Fang Ke’s hundreds of soldiers into five groups, transporting the banners out of Yangzhou to Hangzhou in the manner of ants moving house.
In the process of operation, he genuinely aimed to deceive Wei Heng, implementing various disguises on Fang Ke’s hundred.
From disguising the troops and dispersing them on a large scale,
to controlling the timing of their departure from the city on a small scale.
Even he himself, just before the last group of troops left the city, specifically went to consult Wei Heng on the various secrets of the "Golden Bell Cover" second layer.
After returning from where Wei Heng was staying, Yang Ge immediately summoned Qin, disregarding his excuses, forcefully entrusted him with the affairs of Yangzhou, and told him that he must return to Yangzhou within ten days.
After executing a set of smooth consecutive moves, Yang Ge then peacefully found a secluded residence and focused on the "Golden Bell Cover".
And the entire set of disguises he created indeed deceived Wei Heng’s informants in Yangzhou.
Not until the third day, when Wei Heng routinely checked the imperial envoy’s belongings, did he find a set of imperial banners missing.
Recalling that he hadn’t received any news related to Yang Ge for a couple of days, he then felt that something was quite amiss...
He immediately went personally to the government office to investigate, only to find that Qin was the one overseeing the work inside.
Faced with the interrogation from Wei, the senior eunuch from the palace, Qin dared not and did not wish to conceal anything for Yang Ge.
He immediately spilled the beans about how Yang Ge had forcefully dumped this mess in Yangzhou on him that day, and how he had managed to vanish with his trusted group of hundred soldiers, explaining everything in detail to Wei Heng.
The imperial banners, the trusted hundred soldiers, Yang Ge personally going...
All the signs combined frightened Wei Heng into exclaiming, "Damn, I’ve been tricked by that little monkey!"
It wasn’t his fault for realizing too late.
Nominally, his elite palace guards, who were the protective detail for the imperial envoy.
However, Yang Ge himself was also a great master of return to the truth; he did not need Wei Heng to follow him every step of the way.
Moreover, Yang Ge did not like them always following him... Without a secret decree, his status as the leader of the palace guards was still subject to the control of Yang Ge holding the imperial sword.
Secretly, his role as Yang Ge’s sheath, staying in Yangzhou was intended to limit Yang Ge’s anti-corruption actions to the Jiangzhe tribunals.
But what was the status of the Jiangzhe tribunals?
Unless Yang Ge as the imperial envoy personally went to Hangzhou, even if his four hundred brocade-clad guards went to Hangzhou together, they couldn’t touch a hair on the tribunals’ chief officials!
So as long as Yang Ge was still in Yangzhou, it wasn’t time for Wei Heng, the sheath, to make his move...
Anxiously, Wei Heng immediately gathered his elite palace guards and rushed out of the city towards Hangzhou.
Just as Wei Heng had left the city, Gu Tong appeared in the house where Yang Ge was hiding, reporting to him that Wei and others had left the city.
Yet Yang Ge, only on the second day after Wei had left the city, changed into his bright red python robe and casually entered the government office, holding the imperial sword.
When Qin, who had rushed over upon hearing the news, saw Yang Ge, he was utterly dumbfounded.
He awkwardly bowed deeply to Yang Ge, "Master... Master..."
Yang Ge, smiling broadly, helped him up, jokingly said, "Master Qin is truly good at currying favor, climbing up the legs of the palace so quickly!"
He never doubted this old fellow’s "integrity" and "morality".
And indeed the old fellow had not disappointed him… he sold him out without hesitation.
As Fang Ke once said, "Those who can make it to a thousand households in the brocade-clad guards are not necessarily the benign and loyal kind."
Qin, with his head lowered as if he had no place to hide his shame, replied, "This official is ashamed."
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The smile on Yang Ge’s face grew even more intense, "Since you’re ashamed, then make amends for your errors… otherwise, if I end up in big trouble, I’ll definitely drag you down with me!"
Qin’s aged face stiffened, "How can you say such a thing, Master? This official is absolutely loyal to you, as clear as day and night!"
"Is that so?"
Yang Ge laughed, patting his shoulder, "Then I would be troubled by your loyal self to set up an execution ground at Vegetable Market for me!"
Upon hearing the word ’execution ground’, before Qin could even be shocked, he heard Yang Ge continue, "Don’t pull any tricks. Even if Wei returns now, if I want to send you to the execution ground, he won’t speak half a word against it… I suppose you’ve been making a good amount of money these days?"
Frightened by his words, Qin hurriedly dropped to his knees, "Master, please allow your official to explain..."
In the past, although Yang Ge out-ranked him, it wasn’t easy to act against him..
But now, being the imperial envoy holding the imperial sword, dealing with him would not be harder than crushing an ant!
"It’s the rule, I understand!"
Yang Ge patted his shoulder again, but this time those two pats almost made him spit blood, "We’re all brothers sharing food from the same pot; as long as you don’t reach out too far, I won’t block your fortune... but on the condition that you handle the tasks I have assigned you properly!"
"The saying goes, if the job is well done, we share the blessings; if there are difficulties, I will face them! "
"If the job isn’t done well, if I have to be beheaded, I’ll pulverize you first!"
"I’ve made myself clear, how you should proceed is for you to figure out..."
After finishing, he stepped past the still-bowing Qin, striding toward the main hall of the government office: "Someone, bring all the case files of the Jiangzhe corruption case here, into the main hall!"