Chapter 548 To Kill or to Spare
Lin Changning hadn't expected that his younger brother had so many things buried in his heart. After sighing, he sat down next to Chang Zhiyuan and patted Chang Zhiyuan's loose, upright long hair.
"I am your family. We are all family, why should we distinguish between each other? Things are much better now, and life will gradually get better in the future."
As Lin Changning spoke, he flicked Chang Zhiyuan's forehead, his voice rising slightly at the end, "But whatever you do, I'll support you. Whether it's scientific expeditions or making meritorious contributions, I'll be behind you, backing you up. Go ahead and do it with confidence."
Chang Zhiyuan seemed to have shed his mature exterior, showing more of a boyish side in front of his older sister. His phoenix eyes, just like Lin Changning's, curved slightly as he nodded and said, "I understand."
Lin Changning seemed to have thought of something and gently tapped Chang Zhiyuan's head: "Things are not like they used to be at home. There may be people watching us all around. Be careful what you say from now on, and don't switch to my older sister again, so as not to give anything away."
Chang Zhiyuan's expression turned serious. He nodded, seemingly a little nervous, wondering if others had overheard his whispered words about his elder sister.
Lin Changning chuckled and shook his head: "Nothing's wrong now. I sent the people away when I came, and the guards are also stationed outside your courtyard. There won't be any trouble this time, but you'll be entering officialdom sooner or later, so you still need to be vigilant about these things every day."
Chang Zhiyuan said seriously, "I understand, Aning."
Lin Changning stood up and smiled gently at his younger brother: "I won't disturb your rest. You can rest as you please, since you're quite free anyway. Don't fall behind in your studies. I'm going to the Prince's Mansion to check on my second brother. I heard he was seriously injured and he was still unconscious when he came back yesterday."
Chang Zhiyuan slowly shifted his body on the bed and waved to Lin Changning: "Then I won't see you off. If you wake up, please say hello to Wen Zhizhi and tell him I'm fine."
Lin Changning turned and left the courtyard, his back to Chang Zhiyuan, and waved his hand: "I know."
After leaving the manor, Lin Changning rode his horse swiftly towards the Prince's manor. Upon arriving at the gate, he dismounted. The guards at the gate, seeing that it was Lin Changning, quickly made way for him to enter the manor.
Lin Changning first went to pay his respects to the Princess. After the Princess inquired about the situation of Li Mingshu, Yue'er, and his own family, he was pulled away by Li Mingde, who rushed over in a hurry.
Lin Changning gave the princess a helpless bow, and was then pulled out by Li Mingde, who indeed had urgent business to discuss with Lin Changning.
After pulling the man to a secluded spot, his first words were: "You ordered the deaths of the Ji family father and son?"
Lin Changning tilted his head slightly, looking at Li Mingde with some confusion: "What do you mean?"
Li Mingde rubbed his aching temples: "I received a message early this morning that Ninth Uncle has taken over the capital. Although he has not yet ascended the throne, the old noble families in the capital have joined forces to put pressure on Ninth Uncle, asking him to spare the Ji family and those people from the Marquis and Duke families who are hostile to us. Now Ninth Uncle has written back to ask about their situation."
Lin Changning frowned: "I shot and killed that Ji family brat yesterday. I just caught the old man this morning. After checking on my second brother, I personally killed him tonight."
A hint of murderous intent flashed in Lin Changning's eyes, and his gaze toward Li Mingde also carried a touch of hostility: "He poisoned Ashu, how can Father let them off?"
"The Ji family is fine, kill them if you want, but what about that Su family brat, the Zhou family, and the Song family? And what about all the other aristocratic scions we've captured along the way? I'm afraid Uncle Jiu will have a hard time if we kill them all. We've conquered the country, but we still need these old nobles to stabilize the court. These people all have connections, and we'll need their help to defend the borders in the future..."
Lin Changning looked at Li Mingde with some confusion: "The Su family can't be kept, and the Ji family can't be kept either. You can do whatever you want with the rest. I didn't say I was going to kill the other aristocratic families."
Li Mingde: ? ? ?
"So you said yesterday that none of those caught would be spared?"
Lin Changning laughed in anger: "Eighth Brother? Ming Shu was poisoned, Yue'er's heart is still bruised, and my brother's back was beaten so badly by that Ji fellow that he didn't have a single good piece of flesh left. If I don't kill them, am I supposed to keep them alive for the New Year?"
Li Mingde suddenly realized: "Oh, then kill the one surnamed Ji if you want, but keep the other noble families alive. Many of the people in the army sent by the emperor this time are from the families of old noble families. A number of them died yesterday when you ordered the killings. I only managed to stop them this morning. Since you have no objections, leave some of them to be sent back to the capital."
Lin Changning shrugged: "Eighth Brother, do as you please. I'm going to check on Second Brother. After I see him, I'm going to personally kill that old beast!!!"
Seeing the murderous glint in Lin Changning's eyes, Li Mingde felt a chill run down his spine. He waved his hand at Lin Changning and said, "Go on, go on. The second brother is awake now. I'll go to your residence to see Ashu and Yue'er later."
Lin Changning hummed in agreement, turned around and familiarly made his way to Qi Rong's courtyard. When he entered the house, he saw that the guards around him were extremely strict, and even the area outside the windows was covered with a layer of light gauze.
Lin Changning was a little confused. She looked at the maid who was about to come out and asked, "What's the meaning of covering these windows?"
The maidservant bowed to Lin Changning and said, "Greetings, young master. The doctor from the Liu family said that the second young master's health has been damaged this time, and he is weak and should not be exposed to the wind. So the princess asked us to cover the places in the room that might be drafty with several layers of light gauze, so that it is both breathable and windproof."
Qi Rong, who was sitting on the bed covered with a thick quilt, heard Lin Changning's voice and slowly sat up, leaning back. He said with a hint of a smile, "Little Six is here?"
Lin Changning nodded to the maid, turned around and went into the inner room. After carefully closing the door, she looked at Qi Rong, who was lying on the bed with his black hair neatly combed and tied with a shoulder strap, hanging loosely over his chest, wearing only a white undergarment.
"Second brother? Are your injuries any better?"
Qi Rong felt a chill run through his body. He covered his mouth and coughed lightly twice, a flush appearing on his pale face: "Cough, cough, it's nothing, nothing."
Lin Changning quickly stepped forward and sat down next to Qi Rong, carefully pulling the blanket up around Qi Rong again. When she touched Qi Rong's wrist, she felt it was extremely cold.
Frowning, he called out, "Go and get a hot water bottle."
After speaking, she waited for the maid outside the door to respond, then turned to look at Qi Rong, her brows furrowing slightly as she asked with concern, "Why is Second Brother so cold?"
Qi Rong smiled at Lin Changning, his eyes softening with a hint of teasing: "It's alright, he'll be fine after a while. Little Six is quite hot, like a little furnace. As soon as he sat down next to Second Brother, Second Brother felt a warm breeze. Sit with Second Brother for a while to warm up the bed. My bed is never warm enough today."
Lin Changning knew that Qi Rong was joking, but seeing how pale and fragile he looked, she didn't want to worry her and tease her. She felt a pang of sadness.
Lin Changning placed his long, warm palm on Qi Rong's hand, his eyes lowered to conceal the sting in them: "Are you cold? Let me warm you up, Second Brother..."
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