Chapter 103 is about her divine intervention in the world, and her unique affection for him.
"Your Highness." Wei Li'an entered carrying a large jar of wine, bowing with a smile.
Upon seeing this, Li Tiankuo, who was discussing matters with Bai Yuheng and the others, smiled and said, "Li'an, no need for formalities, please sit down."
"Thank you, Your Highness." Wei Li'an put down the wine jar, and a strong, domineering aroma of wine wafted out with his movement.
“This wine is a fine wine that my father-in-law has treasured for many years. When he heard that I had come to see you, he specially asked me to bring it with me. It’s just right for Your Highness…” Wei Li’an glanced at the others and smiled, “I wonder if any of you would like to drink some wine? I would like you all to have a taste as well.”
The butler readily prepared wine glasses, and after a few sips, the group got down to business.
"Li'an, why were you suddenly transferred to the city gate? Has something happened in the capital?" Li Tiankuo dismissed all the onlookers and got straight to the point.
Wei Li'an sighed deeply: "Your Highness, you shouldn't have come back at this time..."
He lowered his voice mysteriously and said, "A major incident has occurred in the capital. Within a few days, several princes and princesses have met with tragic ends..."
Li Tiankuo's eyelids twitched. Now, recalling the banquet last night, he realized why he felt there were fewer people missing. It was all because Prince An was too boisterous and had diverted his attention, preventing him from noticing the situation.
"How so?" Li Tiankuo wasn't interested in those princes and princesses; most of them had bullied him when he was young. But he wanted to find out who had done it and why.
"Overnight, Princess Shurou and Prince Jing were found dead in their home under mysterious circumstances, shocking the court and the public." Wei Li'an felt a chill run down his spine at the thought of the elusive murderer. "The next day, Princess Zhaoyang, Princess Duanyang, and Prince Ding were found dead, and at the same time, rumors about His Majesty's identity spread like wildfire..."
"His Majesty was furious. He covered up the news of the princess and prince's death and ordered the execution of all those who spread rumors behind the scenes..." Wei Li'an felt a surge of irritation as he recalled the days of killing. He smiled and said, "When I was leading the martial law team, I overheard an old woman discussing this matter with her family. I felt sorry for her, but my adjutant told me to do so. His Majesty was so angry that he sent me to guard the city gate."
Rumors stop with the wise. There are many ignorant people among the masses. How can we kill them all? Such drastic measures will likely arouse resentment among the people in the future, making the situation even more difficult to deal with.
For several days, rumors spread that princes and princesses had died tragically. The old emperor was so angry that he couldn't sleep all night and lost his temper. Even though the whole city was under martial law, the guards protected the only remaining princes and princesses, and a group of rumor-mongers were killed outside the city gates, in the end, they still couldn't save the precarious royal reputation and the royal bloodline.
The common people say that the emperor's lineage was illegitimate, and that Heaven sent down divine punishment, which led to the tragic death of the imperial heirs and the loss of all power to their lineage.
Li Tiankuo fell into deep thought after hearing these words.
Wei Li'an downed a cup of wine in one gulp, and then said, "Your Highness's return at this time is probably..."
Li Tiankuo naturally understood Wei Li'an's unspoken meaning. He said, "As a prince, I receive the royal stipend and protection. In these difficult times, it is only right that I share the burden of the royal family. Li'an, you don't need to worry about me. I am no longer the helpless child I once was..."
His tone inevitably carried a hint of pride; possessing special skills always gives one more confidence than others.
Seeing his reaction, Wei Li'an was also happy for him. He raised a cup of wine and said, "Then Li'an congratulates Your Highness on your successful return from your studies!"
Li Tiankuo waved his hand: "I haven't completed my studies and returned; I only have a little ability to protect myself."
After a few moments of modest flattery, the two smiled at each other, clinked glasses, and downed the wine.
"Your Highness! Your Highness!" The steward knocked on the door urgently, his voice choked with breath. "Your Highness! His Highness the Crown Prince has passed away!"
Li Tiankuo abruptly stood up, his brow furrowed in a deep frown. He opened the door and asked coldly, "What's going on?"
The steward, with a mournful face, said, "This servant is unaware that it was the Grand Eunuch of the Imperial Palace who secretly delivered the imperial decree, ordering you to enter the palace as soon as possible!"
Li Tiankuo glanced at the crowd who had all put down their wine glasses and were looking at him, then nodded to Bai Yuheng and the others: "I'll take my leave first. I'm afraid you'll have to handle the matter of the fragments."
Bai Yuheng waved her hand: "You go ahead and do your work, this is something we can handle."
Li Tiankuo nodded, and without stopping, changed into a prince's robe and boarded the carriage heading to the palace.
The people in the main hall looked at each other in bewilderment. Wei Li'an was not familiar with them, and seeing this, he also took his leave.
Only Bai Yuheng and the other three remained inside.
"It seems things aren't peaceful in the capital either." Cui Mingcan frowned. This matter concerns the royal family, and they have no right to interfere, let alone meddle. They couldn't say much, but they were worried about Li Tiankuo's safety.
The four were silent for a moment, then continued from where they left off: "The current location of the fragment is to the north..."
"Isn't the direction to the north the direction of the palace?"
"..."
The four of them fell silent for a moment.
Bai Yuheng sighed, "It seems we're going to get caught up in this mess."
"When soldiers come, we'll block them; when water comes, we'll dam it." Pei Yuan filled her wine glass and gently comforted her.
"We must find the fragments of the Four Directions Mirror as soon as possible, and stay as far away from the royal struggles as possible. We mustn't get involved with the North." Bai Yuheng took a sip of wine. "This scheme is very similar to Emperor Wu of the Great Qi Dynasty's ascension to the throne two hundred years ago. First, he spread rumors that Emperor Mingzong was not Emperor Gaozong's biological son, but rather that a prince had been replaced by a cat. Then, the regional princes, under the banner of upholding legitimacy, attacked Shengjing, causing constant internal strife. Finally, a prime minister who had long since retired from the front lines promoted the real prince to the throne. This was the later Emperor Wu..."
"But the history books only used a few words to record it..." Cui Mingcan had read quite a few history books, but there were no details at all. The historians only used a dozen or so words to summarize it: "Emperor Mingzong was incompetent, lost several cities, the king ordered him to abdicate, and Emperor Wu took his place."
Bai Yuheng recounted the details of the incident in such a vivid and incredible way, as if she had witnessed it herself, leaving Cen Ying and Cui Mingcan completely bewildered.
Cen Ying exclaimed in surprise, "Yu'er, how do you know so much?"
"..." Bai Yuheng pursed her lips, realizing she had let something slip, and felt a pang of guilt. "Ahem, a branch of my family once married a descendant of the Qi family. They carried with them historical records, which I read when I was young, but they were later burned..."
Bai Yuheng gave an awkward smile, thinking to herself that she couldn't very well tell them that she had almost been dragged into a scheme orchestrated by Emperor Wu...
Seeing her embarrassment, Pei Yuan quickly drank to hide his smile. The lies came out of his mouth so easily, which was quite amusing.
"Oh, I see!" Cui Mingcan exclaimed in realization, laughing. "We've known each other for so long, yet we still don't know your background. Hey, why don't we tell you while we still have time?"
Cui Mingcan showed great curiosity, blinking as he stared at her. Bai Yuheng recited the false testimony she had prepared in advance: "Ahem, there are no more people in my family. We are from Qizhou. If we can be considered to be related to the past, we can say that we are a declining family inherited from the previous dynasty. However, that was the glory of my father's generation. Now it has long since turned to ashes."
Cui Mingcan sighed, "Truly, life is unpredictable."
After saying that, he patted her shoulder and comforted her, "It doesn't matter if you have no home now. My home is your home. If you have nowhere to go during the New Year or other holidays, you can come to the Cui family in Jiangzhou to find me!"
Bai Yuheng smiled and toasted him, saying, "Alright! Then I'll have to bother you."
Cui Mingcan chuckled and waved his hand generously: "It's no trouble at all! Come on in! I'll treat you to the best food and drinks!"
Then he looked at Cen Ying and said, "Heroine Cen, what about you? I only know that the Five Poisons Sect is your family's."
Cen Ying suppressed her suspicions and said, "Although my father is the leader of the Five Poisons Sect, I grew up in a village in Wuzhou. My mother was originally a village girl. She met and fell in love with my father when she was young, and that's how I was born... When I was five years old, I showed excellent talent in medicine, and that's when my grandfather allowed me to join the Five Poisons Sect."
Cen Ying's large eyes dimmed slightly as she spoke of the past: "Hmph, don't look at me like that. I'm not pitiful at all! My parents loved each other, and I was especially pampered in my uncle's house when I was young. I lived a carefree and happy life. Later, after I joined the Five Poisons Sect, although my grandfather didn't like my mother, he loved my talent even more and doted on me. Hmph, the Five Poisons Sect will be mine in the future, and even my other cousins will have to be subordinate to me."
Cui Mingcan exclaimed, "As expected of you! Truly a heroine of a renowned family! So forthright!"
Cen Ying forced a laugh at his praise, proudly raised her neck, and hummed, "Of course!"
Cui Mingcan then turned to look at Pei Yuan. He was most curious about this aloof and mysterious Uncle Pei! "Uncle Pei, what about you?"
Three pairs of eyes turned to him. Although Bai Yuheng had saved him and taken him as her disciple, she had never taken the initiative to learn about his background. It was his scar, and she would not do anything to reopen old wounds. Now that Cui Mingcan had asked, she couldn't help but feel curious.
Pei Yuan met Bai Yuheng's curious gaze, and a plan formed in his mind. He was also happy that she had finally taken the initiative to be curious about his affairs. Didn't this mean that she had made great progress?
In a mere instant, Pei Yuan's mind raced with a thousand thoughts.
He smiled faintly, recalling the past, and no longer felt the same hatred as before.
“I was the eldest son of the Pei family of Jingzhou a hundred years ago.”
"The Pei family of Jingzhou? The Pei family that has been the chief ministers of the previous dynasty?" Cui Mingcan was shocked. He didn't realize that he had so many powerful figures around him!
Pei Yuan nodded: "Yes, but I was born with bad luck; I am an evil spirit."
Although the Pei family was a prestigious family that had produced prime ministers for generations, they were cursed because they had offended too many people.
His mother died from excessive blood loss shortly after his birth, and his father was also killed due to being framed by political enemies. The entire Pei family was on the verge of collapse.
With the building on the verge of collapse, the anxious crowd could only attribute all the misfortunes that had befallen the Pei family to their newborn son.
Even though he was the only legitimate child, the new head of the family ordered him to be abandoned in the wilderness to fend for himself.
He was later rescued by his aunt, but since his aunt's family was of the same lineage as the Pei family, misfortune loomed over everyone around them like a dark cloud, and everyone was filled with fear and unease, afraid that the guillotine hanging over their heads would fall.
As expected, he was abandoned again. His aunt, who had once pitied him, now hated him and often regretted saving an evil spirit.
He had been a beggar, a thug, robbed food and territory... he had done all those things just to survive.
Later, he offended some gang members, and because he was reckless, the gang leader took a liking to him and forcibly took him as his apprentice. Naturally, he was happy to have a place to shelter him from the wind and rain.
The person who trained him and honed his skills were his former closest relatives, whom he used as a practice target.
Later, after he completed his studies, he killed his so-called master.
Later, he became a homeless beggar.
He lived a muddled life, spending his days killing people.
He who kills will be killed by others.
He was trampled underfoot, lying humiliated in the mud, hating the world, hating those who brought him into this world, hating his closest relatives who loved him yet abandoned him time and time again, hating everyone who hurt and hated him...
Pei Yuan seemed to have forgotten what it felt like to be on the verge of death.
But what does it feel like to be reborn?
Pei Yuan looked at Bai Yuheng with reddened eyes, and reached out his hand from his knees to embrace her tightly under her immersive gaze.
It's her.
A goddess descended to earth, and pitied him alone.
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