Chapter 54 I'm done playing, I'm going to flip the table!

Perhaps it's wrong to talk about people behind their backs, because just as she finished speaking about Qin Shaozong, Dai Li heard the two women outside greeting her.

Dai Li swallowed the words that were about to come out of her throat.

Soon, the burly figure walked in from outside the door, blocking out a large portion of the sunlight as he entered.

Qin Shaozong was not surprised to see Qin Yanzhou there, but when he saw his face, the man raised his long eyebrows and looked down from his forehead to the tip of his chin.

His eyebrows and eyes looked just like hers, but his nose, mouth, and overall features were quite different, probably because he inherited it from his blind and ignorant father.

Ha, her taste isn't very good either; anyone with a decent appearance could easily bewitch her.

His gaze returned to the young man's features, and Qin Shaozong nodded slightly. "That's more like the lady's son."

“What do you mean, ‘looking’? He is who he is,” Dai Li said, dissatisfied, then asked him, “Why is the Marquis here?”

The long table inside was not a four-sided table; only the two sides facing each other along the long side were available for seating, and Dai Li and Qin Yanzhou had already occupied one side each.

Qin Shaozong walked over to Dai Li's side without any awkwardness, sat down next to her, and asked, "Can't I come if I have nothing to do?"

Dai Li: "..."

The atmosphere around Qin Yanzhou became tense.

Ignoring the person opposite him, Qin Shaozong noticed a teacup on the table, raised his hand and poured himself some tea. "However, I have come here today because of something important."

Qin Shaozong looked up at the young man across the table and said in a nonchalant tone, "Your mother and I have something to talk about. You go outside and play by yourself."

Qin Yanzhou did not move.

One breath, two breaths...

The atmosphere gradually froze, shifting from the warmth of spring to the chill of late autumn. Dai Li suddenly realized an important issue: a matter of weighing the pros and cons.

Although the North is now in a state of implicit opposition to Yanzhou, and a major war is imminent, what if...?

If Fan Yanzhou, fearing the power of the two provinces, were to turn against them and submit, he could send out a person and claim that this person had been spreading rumors and causing the peace to be ruined, and then have him beheaded and displayed to the public, thus achieving the goal of sacrificing a pawn to save the king.

This series of combined attacks may very well turn hostility into friendship, allowing all three forces to reconcile and turn their attention to jointly attacking the Green Lotus Sect.

She couldn't accept that the person who had abused her son for years got away scot-free. She wanted him to pay the price, she wanted him dead!

However, she was outnumbered and outmatched, and could only deal with Fan Yanzhou through Qin Shaozong. Before that, she could not afford to have any disagreements with him.

On the other hand, Dai Li also understood that even though she had concealed many things, Zhouzhou was no longer a child. Moreover, given Qin Shaozong's domineering nature, he might have said whatever he should or shouldn't have after she fainted last night.

Her son had just been found, and she didn't want him to be unhappy.

Before Dai Li could figure out how to weigh the options, the young man, seemingly sensing her dilemma, stood up and said, "Mother, I'll wait for you outside. You can call me anytime."

Dai Li felt an overwhelming bitterness in her heart.

Her son has become more perceptive, but she dares not imagine what experiences forced him to learn to read other people's expressions.

After he left, Qin Shaozong placed the teapot on the charcoal rack. The teapot struck the rack with a soft sound, like the tolling of a bell, which brought Dai Li back to her senses.

There was an empty seat opposite, but Qin Shaozong showed no intention of moving. He said lazily, "Does Madam know about your son's experiences over the years?"

Dai Li hesitated before saying, "I don't know much, I only know that he went to Fanyanzhou seven years ago and struggled to make a living."

Qin Shaozong responded with an "Mmm," and then told her about the Fan family's background. He started by talking about how the Fan family rose to power, and briefly mentioned Fan Tianshi, "...Fan Tianshi especially loved collecting orphans, raising most of them from the age of eleven or twelve. During this time, he used both kindness and severity to train those immature orphans into dogs who would follow his every command. Later, he would tell them to go east, and they would go east; he would tell them to kill whomever he wanted. If they accidentally died along the way, he would wrap them in a straw mat and throw them into a mass grave, or simply feed them to the wolves in his mansion."

They were all rootless duckweed anyway; once they died, they died. Nobody cared, and nobody would seek justice for them.

Dai Li began to tremble. She clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her soft palms, leaving deep crescent-shaped marks.

Qin Shaozong then brought up another matter, "The other night someone attacked the mansion in the middle of the night, and the leader was none other than your son."

Dai Li cried out in alarm, overwhelmed by a belated sense of fear.

Zhouzhou hadn't mentioned it, nor had she connected the two events. Qin Shaozong was powerful, and many wanted to get rid of him; she never imagined that the leader in black was her son.

That night, Qin Shaozong said that of the assassins who attacked the mansion, one was captured alive and two escaped. He didn't say how many he killed, which means that apart from those three, all the assassins were killed.

Zhouzhou was one of the two who fled.

If he had reacted slower the night before last, or hadn't escaped, this wouldn't have happened. It's easy to guess that her son only learned about the search in the north yesterday; otherwise, he would have come to find her directly the night before last.

Just a hair's breadth away, just a hair's breadth away from separating mother and child forever...

A large, scorching hand reached out and enveloped her cold, trembling hand, then pried open her clenched fist. "Madam, the past cannot be undone, and one should not speculate about things that have not happened."

Dai Li bit her lip hard. "I know, but I can't help it."

She couldn't help but speculate about things that hadn't happened and things that had. Regret, heartache, resentment, and self-blame merged into a venomous snake, constantly eroding her reason.

Dai Li knew that she was somewhat mentally unstable.

From the moment she heard about the school bus plunging into the river, and from the moment she saw her son covered in injuries, she knew she could never go back to the way things were.

The former is indeed untraceable, the latter...

Fan Tianshi must die; otherwise, her hatred will not be appeased!

"Fan Tianshi has adopted many sons, but over the years, some have died and others have become disabled. Only your son and another person are still in service." Objectively speaking, Qin Shaozong felt that the boy's ability to survive until today was indeed a testament to his exceptional physical strength and resilience.

Qin Shaozong said unhurriedly, "The training he received was at most two years, which means your son started working for that Fan guy around the age of fourteen. From spreading rumors and petty theft to things like sneaking into the mansion the other night... and killing someone."

He emphasized the last two words, and sure enough, she was startled, her face turning even paler.

Although she didn't say it explicitly, Qin Shaozong guessed from the details that "Peach Blossom Spring" was probably a rare and peaceful place.

"Your son has made so many enemies in recent years that you could count them on one hand."

Qin Shaozong squeezed her fingertips, then inserted his long fingers between hers. "Some of those enemies are just small, insignificant families, not worth fearing, but others are powerful and influential. Just to my knowledge, there's a governor of Qingzhou. Nangong Xiong told me at the banquet that the gifts Qingzhou was sending to the court were robbed, and he guessed that the robber was your son. Nangong Xiong wouldn't speak without reason; if he could say that, he must have some clues or evidence."

Dai Li's pupils trembled slightly. She opened her mouth, but it felt as if a handful of straw was stuffed into her throat, preventing her from speaking at first.

It wasn't until the second time that she regained her voice. "You told me before that if you found my son, you would definitely treat him as a true son of the Qin family."

"Indeed." He said those two words without hesitation.

Dai Li was taken aback, unable to figure out what this person was up to.

"I will help your son clean up all the messes he's gotten into, but in return, I want my wife to stay by my side forever." He revealed his true intentions.

Zhouzhou asked her if she wanted to leave. If she wanted to leave, he could help make arrangements.

These words shocked her. She immediately wanted to ask, "Zhouzhou, how can you arrange this? Do you really have that ability?"

Qin Shaozong's power is immense; he has practically ruled the north, and no one in the north can rival him. As for other regions that might be able to rival Qin Shaozong, they would never mobilize their forces for a mere woman.

And if the son has such ability, why doesn't he leave the Fan family, but stays in the Fan family for seven whole years?

A series of mysteries shrouded Dai Li, leaving her in turmoil.

She remained silent for a long time. Qin Shaozong rubbed her inner wrist with his thumb. "What has Madam decided?"

His current status is a testament to the fact that Qin Shaozong is not the type to give silently without expecting anything in return.

He takes on all the dirty and hard work, but when it comes to rewards and recognition, he's like a coward, not uttering a sound even when hit with a stick. That's not his style.

That kid is too busy with all his troubles to get away with. Since that's the case, why not take this opportunity to take things a step further with her?

After all, if that kid wasn't her own son, she wouldn't care whether he was being chased and cut into eight pieces or continued to be Fan Tianshi's dog.

A sudden flash of inspiration struck Dai Li, and she quickly lowered her eyes to hide the strange look in them.

After pretending to think for a moment, she hesitated and said, "Forever is too long. You men are so fickle. If you don't like me by then, won't I be trapped in a small courtyard, unable to do anything but trim the flowers and feed the fish? I might even cut the flowers bare and feed the fish to death, and still not see you."

"No." He only said two words.

As for what he "won't" do, Qin Shaozong didn't specify.

Regardless of what he replied, Dai Li always followed with the same sentence, "I hope Your Excellency will give me some time to consider this matter."

Qin Shaozong noticed that she seemed troubled, but also meek and obedient. For some reason, he felt that her expression looked somewhat familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before.

However, Qin Shaozong was captivated by the half-concealed compromise in her words, "Alright, then I'll give Madam five days."

Dai Li bargained with him, "Five days is not enough. My son has just been found. I could talk to him for a long time about the old stories from all these years. How about a month? I will give you an answer in a month."

Fearing he might refuse, Dai Li also mentioned the battle, "With war imminent, Your Majesty will likely be quite busy lately. Whether it takes five days or a month, it won't make much difference to you."

Qin Shaozong lowered his gaze and looked into those shimmering eyes. Her features were exceptionally beautiful, and at this moment, her eyes were still veiled with lingering moisture, like the beauty of nature, or the spring waters of a riverbank, possessing an indescribable charm.

"Okay." In a moment of distraction, Qin Shaozong heard himself respond again.

Having received the promise, Dai Li immediately brought up another matter, "Once Commandant Mo returns, will Your Lordship launch a war against Yanzhou?"

The water in the small pot next to her was boiling, and steam was billowing from the spout, just like the resentment that was churning in Dai Li's chest at this moment.

Qin Shaozong picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said without revealing his emotions, "We'll see."

Dai Li knew what he meant by those words.

His main purpose in heading south was to suppress the Green Lotus Sect. If Yanzhou was indeed entangled with the Green Lotus Sect, he would deal with them as well. However, if the other side was sensible and changed its attitude drastically, willing to humble itself, the matter might be put on hold.

Breaking two chopsticks one at a time is much easier than breaking two chopsticks together.

Dai Li, however, didn't want to wait a moment longer. She fanned the flames for him, "My lord, the fact that Yanzhou could send assassins to infiltrate the mansion and then frame Qingzhou afterward shows that this Fan Yanzhou is a wolf in sheep's clothing, determined to break the alliance between the North and Qingzhou. If we let it go unchecked, or turn a blind eye and downplay the matter, who knows if Yanzhou will suddenly launch an attack when the three sides are jointly attacking the Qinglian Sect? If trouble arises from within, and they secretly collude with the Qinglian Sect from the inside, this battle might end in complete defeat."

Qin Shaozong turned to look at her, his eyes smiling, and said, "Madam, you have quite the sharp tongue."

Neither of them looked away; the brown eyes were calm and unfathomable, while the black eyes were resolute yet gradually sharpened.

"I admit I have selfish motives; I wish I could kill all those who abused my son immediately."

Dai Li changed her form of address midway through, "But my lord, I am, after all, your advisor. Do you think what I just said was wrong? If Mr. Nalan knew that Fan Yanzhou sent men to raid the mansion at night, wouldn't he advise you to deal with Yanzhou first? I think he would."

She made no attempt to conceal her intentions. There was no need; her hatred for Fan Tianshi was already irreconcilable, so why add anything more?

Dai Li tried to pull her hand away, but the large, dark hand held it tightly, and she couldn't get it back.

"My lord, Mr. Nalan requests your presence in his study," someone outside said.

Dai Li recognized Qiao Wangfei's voice and smiled.

What did she just say? If Mr. Nalan knew about the night raid on Yanzhou, he would definitely come to persuade him. Look, here he is!

Looking at her upturned lips, Qin Shaozong seemed to see her fluffy fox tail wagging again.

The man chuckled softly, "Madam is incredibly resourceful."

Qin Yanzhou was standing a few steps away from the door when Qiao Wangfei came to report and saw him.

At first glance, Qiao Wangfei almost didn't recognize it.

She changed her clothes, the gruesome scars on her face were gone, and her demeanor seemed to have become much more peaceful; she had undergone a complete transformation.

Before Qiao Wangfei could look any further, the upper peak came out of the house.

When Qin Yanzhou saw Qin Shaozong come out, he went inside without looking at him.

Inside the house, Dai Li, whose foot was injured, was still sitting in the same spot, waiting for her son to come in. She asked in a low voice, "Zhouzhou, has he been discharged from the hospital?"

Upon hearing this, Qin Yanzhou retreated to the main gate, turned his head to look in the direction of the courtyard entrance, only to find it empty; the two people from before had already left.

He nodded to Dai Li.

Dai Li beckoned him over to sit down, and lowered her voice as if giving a secret signal: "You just asked me if I wanted to leave, and of course I do. But now is not the time; we have to wait."

A hint of doubt appeared in Qin Yanzhou's eyes. "Waiting for what?"

Dai Li smiled and said, "Of course, we'll wait for Qin Shaozong to help you clean up the mess. Fan Tianshi must die, and so do the enemies you've made over the years, Zhouzhou. We need to deal with them as thoroughly as possible. Once it's done, we'll leave."

Forget the one-year promise, forget the forever. Now that her son has been found, she's done playing games; she's going to flip the table.

Author's Note: Please give me some nutrient solution! [heart emoji]