Chapter 101 The Duke's Purpose
In Qi Rong's tent, the Duke of Qi sat in the main seat, his gaze sweeping over his eldest son, who had been raised in the Chu Prince's mansion since childhood. The young man in front of him pursed his lips and frowned, seemingly lost in thought. His handsome face didn't even look at his father; he just kept his head down, reviewing official documents.
The Duke of Qi snorted coldly: "I didn't even offer you a cup of tea when I came here. How rude of me."
Qi Rong tossed the official document aside, his face contorted with displeasure, and stared coldly at the Duke of Qi, sneering, "That's right, someone born of a father but raised without one is naturally unruly."
Losing face, the Duke of Qi stood up abruptly, pointed at Qi Rong's nose, and cursed, "What did you say? You unfilial son! I am your father! How dare you speak to your father like that?"
Qi Rong, impatient, crossed his arms and said, "We've sent out countless waves of assassins already. What are you pretending to be, being all lovey-dovey? Hypocritical. If you have something to say, say it. If not, get out and don't interfere with my processing of official documents."
The Duke of Qi was indeed feeling guilty. After a moment, he flicked his sleeves and sat back down, no longer speaking, and simply waited quietly for his youngest son.
About fifteen minutes later, Zhiqi arrived late with Qi An'an, who had changed her clothes. Lin Changning and the other soldiers went home to change into their regular clothes and headed to the garrison.
The Duke of Qi is no pushover; it's best to keep an eye on him.
Qi An'an was somewhat guilty as Zhi Qi pulled her into the tent. When she saw her father, she shrank back like a mouse and stammered, "Father, are you well? Father, you have come from afar and must be tired."
After glancing at Qi Rong, the Duke turned around and put on a kind face, looking at Qi An'an: "An'an, you've grown taller and stronger. Did you miss your father?"
Qi An'an glanced at her eldest brother, whose expression remained unchanged, and then at her father, who was smiling kindly. Suddenly, she got goosebumps, but she still had to be perfunctory: "I did."
The Duke of Qi said with a hint of pleasure, "An'an, your father and mother miss you. You've been with your elder brother for long enough. It's time to go back. You've probably fallen behind in your studies."
Qi An'an ran up to Qi Rong's desk, grabbed his clothes tightly, and stared at the Duke with wide eyes: "Father, I'm not going back! I want to follow my eldest brother, and in the future, I want to follow my eldest brother and my sixth brother to make great achievements, protect the people of Da Xuan, and even steal the cattle and sheep from the Tartars!!"
"......"
He knew that if he followed him any longer, his heart would become wild, but the Duke of Qi remembered that his youngest son was too young to be forced, so he softened his tone: "An'an, don't you miss your second and third brothers? And your mother, they are all at home waiting for you to come back."
"Then why don't Mother and my two brothers come to Daxing to see me?" Qi An'an asked with innocent puppy eyes.
"!!!" Duke Qi cursed the wicked child in his heart, but still tried to coax his young son: "Your second and third brothers are not fully recovered from their injuries, and your mother is at home taking care of them, so she has not come to see you."
Qi An'an pouted: "Dad, stop lying to me. My mother is busy taking care of my brothers, she doesn't have time to think about me. Besides, if she really missed me, she wouldn't not even send a letter. Mother proclaims her love for my eldest brother every day in the capital, but she hasn't come to Daxing to see him all these years. You adults just lie to children. I'm not going back, I'm going to stay with my eldest brother."
The Duke, pointing at Qi An'an, was filled with rage: "You worthless brat, are you coming back or not?"
Qi An'an looked up at Qi Rong, who was silent, and thought that his eldest brother was probably also reluctant to part with him. So he tightly gripped Qi Rong's clothes and said, taking advantage of his brother's power, "I won't go back. Mother only loves my second and third brothers. Father, you are also biased. Only my eldest brother is the best to me. I won't go back."
Duke Qi took a deep breath, feeling like he was about to be driven mad by his two wretched children. However, if he stayed with his eldest son for a while, his younger son would likely become estranged from them. If he returned, his wife would probably cry every day. Moreover, the imperial army was about to arrive at the border, and Daxing was in a strategic location, so his younger son was probably not safe there.
The Duke of Qi suppressed his anger and looked at Qi Rong: "Look at the bad things you've done to your brother! You should talk to An'an; his mother misses him terribly."
Qi Rong shrugged, his face showing complete nonchalance: "I won't try to persuade him. His mother isn't my mother. My mother died a long time ago."
After saying that, he looked at the hand that the Duke of Qi was pointing at and sneered, interrupting the Duke of Qi before he could insult him: "I have a father but no father to raise me, so stop talking about family ties. Even if you are to be taught a lesson, it is not your place. Guards! Drag the Duke away!"
Zhi Qi stood to the side and gestured, saying, "Please, Your Excellency."
After saying that, he grabbed the Duke of Qi and dragged him out of the tent. As soon as they were outside, the Duke of Qi flung open his sleeve and glared at Zhiqi with a sinister look: "Good slave!"
After speaking, he lifted his robe and led his personal guards outside.
When Qi An'an saw her father leave, she patted her little chest in fright: "Oh my, that scared me to death."
Qi Rong chuckled, crossing his legs as he looked at Qi An'an: "Then why do you insist on staying here with me? Aren't you afraid your parents will really abandon you?"
Qi An'an proudly raised her little head and said, "If you don't want it, then don't want it. I'll talk to my older brother. Besides, if I'm here, then my parents will turn to the rat. What was it again?"
"We're afraid to act rashly, like throwing a stone at a rat to catch a thorn in the side." Qi Rong nodded helplessly at Qi An'an's little head.
Qi An'an nodded with her hands on her hips: "Big brother, haven't you noticed that there haven't been any assassins coming to you lately? It's all because of me~ With me here, Father and Mother won't send anyone to assassinate you."
Qi Rong raised an eyebrow, his expression turning serious: "How old are you to be thinking about this? Who told you the assassins were sent by them?"
With an innocent and unguarded expression, Qi An'an looked at Qi Rong seriously: "What my second brother said is true. At the beginning of the year, I went to see my mother at night in the manor and overheard him saying that he had sent people from the manor to assassinate my eldest brother."
Qi Rong shook his head and sighed: "The border is likely to be in chaos soon. It's not safe to send you back rashly. Just stay in the garrison. Don't worry about your father. I'll send someone to send you back once the situation stabilizes a bit."
No sooner had he finished speaking than several reports came from outside the tent.
"Come in."
Upon hearing this, a group of officers dressed in uniform and uniform tentatively peeked in, glanced around, then looked at Qi Rong, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.
Lin Changning didn't see the Duke of Qi, but seeing Qi An'an by the desk, he knew the Duke had probably left. He asked, "Commander, where is the Duke? What did An'an say?"
“They’ve been kicked out. The situation is unstable. An’an should just stay here. It’s safer in Daxing.”
Commander Shi asked, "Commander, when will the Duke leave?"
Qi Rong shook his head slightly: "I don't know. The imperial court's order will be coming down soon. It is estimated that they will soon launch a campaign against Prince Sheng. An'an's father should have come ahead of the way. After all, Daxing is an important location. If he comes early, he probably wants to seize power."
Lin Changning stroked his chin and repeated, "Seize power? Seize whose power? Seize the command of the troops?"
Qi Rong nodded casually and said, "It's highly likely. His Majesty's decree should be issued in a few days. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sent such a useless, incompetent duke. After much thought, it's highly likely that the expeditionary force is wary of us, so they sent someone with a higher nominal seniority to suppress me and seize power."
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