"Thank you for fulfilling my request, sir!"
Regardless of the circumstances, Zhang Shaoyou had finally agreed, and the young eunuch felt a wave of relief wash over him.
"Your words are too kind, Eunuch. I am merely acting under imperial decree!"
Zhang Shaoyou was no fool. The young eunuch's unguarded words might go unnoticed by others, but he dared not accept such a compliment.
Heeding the emperor's command was entirely different from making his own decisions!
Cai Jing was gone, and the Cai family was about to face ruin. He had no desire to be linked to the Cai family by anyone with ulterior motives at this critical juncture.
"It was my mistake to speak out of turn. In that case, I shall take my leave now!"
Since his objective had been achieved, the young eunuch saw no reason to linger. He turned and headed directly towards the imperial palace.
Zhang Shaoyou wasted no time. After straightening his robes, he led his subordinates back to the Kaifeng Prefecture prison.
A quarter of an hour later, Cai Tao, having changed into a new set of clothes, finally walked out of the Kaifeng Prefecture prison.
Stumbling out of the gates of Kaifeng Prefecture, he was still completely bewildered, utterly unable to comprehend what had transpired.
During his confinement in the prison, he had almost resigned himself to his fate, yet he never could have imagined walking out of jail unharmed.
"Scholar! Scholar!"
As Cai Tao stared blankly at the gates of Kaifeng Prefecture, a servant from the Cai family hurried over.
"Why are you crying? I'm alive and well, aren't I? I've barely escaped from prison, so why the tears? Do you think I'm not miserable enough already?"
Seeing the servant's tearful state, Cai Tao became irrationally angry and reprimanded him.
"Scholar, the Master is gone!"
The servant spoke while kneeling directly on the ground.
"What did you say?"
Upon hearing this, Cai Tao instinctively grabbed the servant by his collar, lifting him from the ground.
"Scholar, the Master is gone! It happened just a few hours ago!"
"Gone... gone where..."
After a few ragged breaths, Cai Tao slumped to the ground, his eyes vacant as he mumbled to himself.
"Scholar, please accept my condolences. The Master's funeral arrangements await your direction!"
Although Cai Tao usually disdained his father's cautious nature, faced with this reality, he felt an inexplicable panic.
"I... I want to go home..."
After a full quarter of an hour of silence, Cai Tao shakily stood up and, with the servant's assistance, boarded a nearby carriage.
"Scholar!"
As the carriage entered the Cai family manor through the back gate, Fan Shiyong came to meet him.
With just a single glance, the servants of the Cai family immediately withdrew.
These were critical times, and as one of Cai Jing's most trusted confidants, Fan Shiyong's prestige was currently unparalleled.
"How did my father die? His health wasn't the best, but it hadn't reached that point. Are they lying to me? Is the old man lying to me? Are you all colluding to deceive me?"
As soon as the servants retreated, Cai Tao grabbed Fan Shiyong by the shoulders, shaking him violently.
"Scholar, please calm yourself. The survival of the entire Cai family now rests on your decision! The Master is gone, and he sacrificed himself to save you. If not for that, do you truly believe you would have escaped so easily this time?"
Looking at Cai Tao's agitated state, Fan Shiyong spoke with a calm tone.
"Why did he have to save me? Why did he have to save me! I didn't need him to save me, I didn't want him to save me!"
Upon hearing Fan Shiyong's words, Cai Tao became even more agitated, his emotions completely collapsing. Tears flowed like a breached dam.
Even though he was an utterly selfish person, the knowledge that his father had died saving him couldn't help but bring tears to his eyes.
"Scholar, this is the letter left for you by the Master. Please, read it!"
Although Cai Tao was on the verge of collapse, Fan Shiyong understood that this was no time for grief.
Cai Jing was dead, and the officials of the Cai faction were in a state of flux. If there was no strong figure to rally them and stabilize their morale at this moment, Cai Jing's life's work and influence would vanish in an instant!
Without these people, Cai Tao would be defenseless!
Cai Jing had held power for over a decade. While he was alive, he had no fear of retaliation from his enemies. But after his death, the situation would be entirely different. It was highly likely that Yu Shen would soon rise to power!
Once he ascended, the best way to secure his own position would undoubtedly be to purge Cai Jing's remaining influence.
Forming alliances and attacking factions would quickly lead to the dissolution of the entire Cai party.
Without the deterrence of political power, the wealth controlled by the Cai family would truly become a death warrant.
Whether it was Fan Shiyong's words that gave him confidence or Cai Tao finally maturing, after several deep breaths, he finally managed to calm down. He opened the envelope and began to read his father's final testament.
However, the more he read, the more his emotions collapsed.
In the letter, Cai Jing seemed to have foreseen his own death and thus left this suicide note. He offered no advice on how Cai Tao should handle his death. He only instructed Cai Tao to resign all his official positions and return home with his remains!
"Scholar, what did the Master say?"
Only when the sound of hurried footsteps from outside the door was heard again did Fan Shiyong lower his voice and ask Cai Tao again.
It wasn't that he was unfeeling; it was simply that the situation had completely spiraled out of his control, making him nervous, unwilling to be nervous, and unable to afford not to be nervous.
Logically, after the Prime Minister's death, the first people to arrive should have been the officials from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices for funeral arrangements. Yet, the first people to arrive were the elite soldiers of the Sun Guard!
Cai Jing had clearly committed suicide, but both Gao Qiu and the Emperor were determined to conceal the cause of his death at this moment!
At this juncture, even Fan Shiyong could not fathom what Cai Jing had written in his memorial to the Emperor that had caused such a grave reaction!
"What did he say? What else could he say?"
The thought of his old man actually ordering him to return home with his remains made Cai Tao grit his teeth in hatred.
At this critical juncture, if he couldn't advance further, with the resources he currently possessed, he would be unable to support the Cai faction.
Moreover, Cai Jing had ordered him to resign his official post and return home to observe the mourning period for three years.