Qingfeng became the Prime Minister of Qi State. Lu Pu'ai was awarded for his meritorious service and became a doctor of Qi State. He recommended Lu Pukui to Qingfeng. Qingfeng was on the rise and agreed to let Lu Pukui return to serve in his country.
After Lu Pukui came back, Qingfeng saw that he was tall, strong, handsome and capable, so he asked him to assist his son Qingshe.
In order to avenge Qi Zhuang Gong, Lu Pukui tried his best to flatter Qingshe. Qingfeng was very happy to see that Lu Pukui had martial arts, knowledge, bright mind, and good appearance. The relationship between the two was just like Lu Pu's before.
Same thing, they often practiced martial arts, drank, and hunted together, and finally became inseparable and became good friends.
Qingfeng learned that Lu Pukui had not married yet, so he married his daughter to him. In this way, the original master-servant relationship became a son-in-law relationship. At this time, Lu Pukui completed his first step of the plan.
That is, gain Qingfeng's trust.
One day, Lu Pukui and Qingshe practiced swordplay together. Qingshe's martial arts was much better than Lu Pukui, but Lu Pukui connected Qingshe's more than ten moves without any flaws. Qingshe praised him and said: "He can take more than ten moves from me."
There are very few people. You are one of them."
Lu Pukui struck the ground with his sword and said with a smile: "My little ability is nothing. If my friend Wang He were here, he might be able to pick up a few more moves from you."
Qingshe asked: "Wang He, who is he?"
Lu Pukui said: "Sir, you also know that I was the bodyguard of the late king Zhuang Gong. Wang He, like me, was also the bodyguard of Duke Zhuang. His martial arts are superior to mine."
Qingshe asked: "Where is this person?"
Lu Pukui said: "He is not in Qi State and has long since fled to Ju State."
Qingshe asked: "Why did you run away?"
Lu Pukui said: "After the assassination of our late king Zhuang Gong, we all fled abroad for fear of being implicated."
Qingshe said: "Ji Zhu has been brought to justice. Those who originally protected the late emperor have been exempted. You can call him back."
Lu Pukui crossed his hands and said, "If the young master can take him in, he will be even more powerful than a tiger."
Qingshe smiled and said, "That's easy to say. Just ask him to come."
A month later, Wang He returned to Qi. Due to Lu Pukui's recommendation and praise, Wang He quickly gained Qingshe's appreciation and became Qingshe's confidant.
In this way, Lu Pukui had ambushed two killers around Qingshe and even Qingfeng, one was himself and the other was Wang He. They were just waiting for the opportunity.
Let’s talk about Qingfeng. During his tenure as prime minister, he was not only arbitrary, but also greedy. He was also very picky with his ministers, and even the food expenses in the palace were required to be frugal. After a few months in power, some people began to oppose him. Of course,
Qingfeng didn't realize it at all. He was still happily immersed in the crowd of flattery.
At that time, it was popular to drink "phoenix claw soup" in Linzi city. Phoenix claw soup is a soup made from chicken feet. The reason for the popularity was that Qi Jinggong liked to drink "phoenix claw soup". The monarch led the fashion, and ministers also followed his example. So from
This style became popular among the aristocratic circles in the capital.
Productivity in the Spring and Autumn Period was very low. There were originally few chickens. It took at least a year from hatching for a chicken to be edible. The main problem was that a chicken only had two chicken feet, and a bowl of "phoenix feet soup"
I need several chicken feet. Since the powerful people in Linzi City regard drinking "phoenix feet soup" as a symbol of nobility, there are not enough chickens. Things are rare and valuable. Therefore, after this trend became popular for a period of time, "phoenix feet soup"
"Claw soup" has become a kind of luxury. Most people can't afford it. Those who can eat it have their status.
One day, Qi Jinggong invited ministers Gao Guo and Luan Du to the palace for dinner. These two ministers held high positions and had to serve "phoenix claw soup" to match their status.
The cook asked Qingfeng to pay more to buy vegetables because of the increase in chicken prices. Qingfeng felt very unhappy and did not want to approve the money.
Lu Pu'ao happened to be present. He wanted Qingfeng to offend someone, so he deliberately said: "Do we have to eat chicken? Can't we eat duck?"
Qingfeng was already impatient. After hearing what Lu Pu'ai said, he asked the cook to sell duck feet to make soup. The cook didn't dare to say anything and hurriedly slipped out.
Before the banquet started, Qi Jinggong, Gao Hui, Luan Du, and two accompanying ministers walked into the dining room chatting and laughing, and then took their seats respectively. In ancient times, people sat per person. Qi Jinggong sat horizontally and sat in the middle. Gao Hui,
Luan Du sat at a table for himself and sat on the right. Opposite to him on the left were two accompanying ministers, also at a table for each person. There was a low armchair on Qi Jinggong's seat, and the others did not have any, so they could only kneel and sit on the mat.
Above. This is also etiquette to show respect for the king.
The banquet began, and the waiter carried a large tray and delivered the already divided food and wine to everyone's table. When the "phoenix claw soup" was served, Gao Hao and Luan Du looked forward to it with smiles on their faces.
Because having "phoenix claw soup" means that the monarch values them and gives them high-standard treatment that matches their status. At the same time, it is also an honor to eat "phoenix claw soup" at the monarch's banquet. Unexpectedly,
When the lid of the soup bowl was opened, Gao Hao and Luan Du saw that the "phoenix feet soup" turned into "duck feet soup".
Luan Du leaned over to take a closer look and frowned. He couldn't help but glance at Gao Hui. Gao Hui glanced at Qi Jinggong. Qi Jinggong also frowned. The two of them immediately understood that this was all Qingfeng's fault.
The ghost.
However, Gao Hui and Luan Du were both mature and prudent ministers. They knew that today was a treat for the king, and they had to save face for the king and not complain casually. At this moment, Qi Jinggong took a sip of the soup, nodded and said, "No.
Come to think of it, the duck feet taste pretty good too."
Gao Huo and Luan Du also picked up the spoons, took a sip each, and echoed: "Well, not bad, not bad."
In this way, Gao Hao and Luan Du swallowed the "duck foot soup".
After the banquet, the two of them left the palace. Gao Gao said to Luan Du: "After Qingfeng took power, he was mean everywhere, even deducting food expenses in the palace. This is obviously a sign of neglect of the ministers."
Luan Du said: "It doesn't matter whether we want to eat chicken or not. The problem is, if he continues to do it in such a arrogant way, one day we may not even have a chance to go to court. We have to be careful."
The two men complained all the way. Unexpectedly, all their complaints reached Qingfeng's ears.
Qingfeng said to Lu Pu'a: "Gao Gao and Luan Du are so dissatisfied with me, what should we do?"
Lu Pu'ao said: "Warn them first. If they still talk nonsense and oppose you, just kill them and give those who oppose it a showdown. Let's see who dares to talk nonsense."
After listening to Lu Pu'ai's words, Qingfeng no longer cared about Gao Hui and Luan Du.
Lu Pu'ao told Lu Pukui all this. Lu Pukui said: "There is a rift between Qingfeng, Gao and Luan. This is an opportunity. Let's use this opportunity to provoke them to fight among themselves. As long as they fight,
We can find an opportunity to defeat Qingfeng."
Lu Pu'ao said: "Brother is right, leave this matter to me."
A few days later, Lu Pu'ao went to see Gao Huo. He first told Gao Huo and Luan Du about their complaints about drinking "duck foot soup", and then told Gao Huo that Qing Feng was very dissatisfied with them. Finally, he He even added fuel to the fire: "Doctor Gao, I got news that Prime Minister Qing may want to take action against you and Dr. Luan."
"Humph, he dares!" Gao Hao got angry. He said: "He Qingfeng and Cui Zhu killed the late king Zhuang Gong, and the debt has not yet been settled with him. Does he want to harm us again? Just wait. I will never sit still and wait for death."
"If a high-ranking official can uphold justice and punish rebellious ministers, but I am not talented enough, I am willing to follow you and sacrifice your life to serve. If the matter is accomplished, the credit is yours. If the matter is not accomplished, I will bear the responsibility alone. I will never harm you, the old man."
Gao Huo smiled and said: "It's good that you have such a heart. But we can't rush things. We must be steady and patiently wait for opportunities."
Half a year later, the weather turned warm. Qingfeng chose a sunny time and took his servants and retainers to Donglai for hunting. Qingshe stayed at home to look after the house. Lu Pu'ao had already discussed countermeasures with Gao Hao. So he excused himself from illness and did not go to Donglai with Qingfeng.
A few days later, it was time for the Qi Imperial Ancestral Temple to offer sacrifices. The Lu Pu brothers and the Gao and Luan families prepared to take action. The Gao and Luan ministers united with the Chen family, the Bao family, and the Chen and Bao families to agree to participate.
On the day of the sacrifice, Qi Jinggong took Yan Pingzhong and others as well as a large number of nobles to the Ancestral Temple. Ministers of Qi State also arrived one after another. Because Qi State was originally the territory of Jiang Taigong, and Qingfeng was named Jiang, so Gao and Luan I thought Qingfeng would definitely show up by then. So I decided to do it on this day.
The four generals of Gao, Luan, Chen, and Bao all brought their people, and all of them were ambushed inside and outside the Ancestral Temple, just waiting for Qingfeng to arrive.
Near noon, people from the Qing family appeared. Everyone was surprised to find that it was only Qingshe who came, but Qingfeng did not show up. It turned out that Qingfeng had not returned from hunting.
Luan Du asked Gao Hui: "Doctor Gao, Qingfeng didn't come, what are we still doing?"
Gao Hui said: "The arrow is already on the string and we have to take action. Kill Qingshe and take advantage of the opportunity to take the Qing family home. Qingfeng is alone outside, so I don't expect him to make trouble."
Luan Du asked again: "Did Brother Lu Pu notify you?"
Gao Hui said: "Don't worry, everything has been arranged."
Qingshe arrived at the gate of the Ancestral Ancestral Temple, and asked his servants and retainers to wait outside according to the rules, and then entered with Lu Pukui and Wang He. As soon as he entered the Ancestral Temple, he saw Gao Hao coming to greet him. Qingshe bowed and saluted.
Gao Huo asked: "Why didn't Prime Minister Qing come?"
Qingshe said: "My father went hunting in Donglai two days ago. It's a long way and he won't be able to come back in time."
Gao Hao yelled and suddenly raised his hand, and the ambush soldiers on both sides swarmed out. Qingshe was startled and turned around to run, only to see the door slam shut. Qingshe shouted: "Where is Lu Pukui?"
Lu Pukui arrived in response and stabbed Qingshe with an arrow. Qingshe was agile and dodged the sword edge, but his left shoulder was injured. Qingshe wanted to escape again, but unexpectedly, Wang He ran from the side. When he came out, he raised his spear and struck it with one blow, piercing Qingshe's right shoulder. Qingshe yelled, grabbed Wang He's spear and dragged it backwards. Wang He held on to the spear and did not let go. , was dragged to the edge of the altar by Qingshe. Qingshe grabbed a copper pot on the altar and threw it at Wang He. Wang He couldn't dodge and his brains exploded. Lu Pukui arrived just in time and slashed it with his sword. He took Qingshe’s head.
This sudden change shocked Qi Jinggong. He hid under the altar, trembling all over. The minister Yan Pingzhong said from the side: "My lord, don't be surprised. This is the ministers avenging the late king."
After hearing this, Qi Jinggong stood up and said: "Don't mess up, everyone. Qingshe has rebelled and has been executed. The rest of the people will withdraw from the Ancestral Temple."
The Lu Pu brothers first led their people to evacuate outside the Ancestral Temple. Gao Hao also followed. He ordered the Lu Pu brothers and the people of the Gao, Luan, Chen and Bao families: "You should take advantage of the situation to seize Qingfeng's family."
Copied. Move quickly so as not to leak anyone."
Everyone took the order and left.
As for Qingfeng, he got the news on his way back from hunting and did not dare to go back, so he took a few confidants and fled to the State of Lu. The people of the State of Lu did not treat him well, so he fled all the way south to the State of Wu.
.Wang Wang Yimai admired him very much and granted him the title of Zhu Fang (Danyang County, Jiangsu Province).
Qingfeng just found a place to stay. Unexpectedly, the good times did not last long, there was a coup in Chu State, and the newly appointed King Ling of Chu sent troops to capture Qingfeng and punished him for the crime of treason.