Chapter 30 (Let her go back)
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Several leading men walked up to Lai Shouzhong from behind: "General, aren't we here to rescue the Chief Clerk?"
Lai Shouzhong gritted his teeth, glanced at the soldiers behind him, and strode into the temple. He knelt down in front of the chief clerk's back with a thud, clasped his hands, and said, "Chief clerk has been framed by villains. Shouzhong cannot sit idly by. Today, I will defy military orders to rescue the chief clerk! Please, chief clerk, leave this hellish place with Shouzhong!"
His loud voice echoed in front of the temple gate, and the bewildered soldiers outside regained their composure, while the crowd began to clamor again.
The chief clerk stopped, his back swaying slightly. He turned around, raised his finger, and pointed at Lai Shouzhong: "Lai Shouzhong! You abandoned your post and disobeyed military orders. How should you be punished according to military regulations?"
Lai Shouzhong stared stubbornly at the Chief Clerk and said loudly, "I came here today with no intention of leaving Xizhou alive. After rescuing the Chief Clerk, I will go to the Governor to confess my crimes. Whether you kill me or torture me, I will let the Governor decide my fate!"
The chief secretary trembled with anger, wanting to berate Lai Shouzhong, but the words that came out were just a mournful sigh.
His gaze swept past the furious Lai Shouzhong and landed on Wei Mingsu, who was dressed in a blue robe.
Their gazes met amidst the gleaming of swords.
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The chief clerk's face turned ashen, but then he suddenly smiled and said, "Wei Mingsu, what audacity! Aren't you afraid that I'll go all the way and have Lai Shouzhong and the guards outside chop you into mincemeat?"
Everyone inside and outside the temple changed their expressions upon hearing this.
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Wei Mingsu's close followers drew their swords.
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The guards of the Protectorate wiped away their cold sweat and nervously took a few steps back.
Wei Mingsu looked at the chief clerk and said calmly, "The chief clerk will not issue an order."
The chief clerk said coldly, "What makes Governor Wei so certain?"
Wei Mingsu said, "Before I came to Xizhou, I had read through all the memorials that the Governor and the Chief Secretary had sent to Chang'an and Luoyang over the years. On my first day in Xizhou, the Governor and the Chief Secretary couldn't wait to hand over the Prince's case to me."
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Before Wei Mingsu came to Xizhou, he had already learned about the situation there through memorials. Moreover, from the moment he and the governor pushed Wu Yanxing's case onto Wei Mingsu, this young man saw through their arrogance to their weakness and figured out their bottom line.
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"Tie him up and send him to the Protectorate General's Office."
The chief clerk remained silent for a moment, then looked at the guards behind Lai Shouzhong and gave the order.
The guards were stunned.
The person the Chief Secretary was pointing at was Lai Shouzhong!
"Chief Secretary!" Lai Shouzhong stood up abruptly, drawing his sword and pointing it at Wei Mingsu. "Chief Secretary, Wei Mingsu is nothing but a villain! You command respect in Xizhou, and our brothers are willing to go through fire and water for you!"
"Shut up!"
The chief secretary, his face grim, shouted sternly.
If it had been Wei Mingsu who ordered the arrest, it would have further enraged the crowd. The guards outside would have already rushed into the temple with their swords drawn. However, the one who was enraged was the highly respected Chief Secretary. Seeing the Chief Secretary's ashen face, the guards did not hesitate and stepped forward to ask Lai Shouzhong to hand over his sword.
Lai Shouzhong looked at the long
Shi's gaze was filled with resentment.
The chief clerk had already turned and left in a huff.
The guards from the Protectorate approached Wei Mingsu, their faces flushed with embarrassment, and asked, "Prefect Wei, what do you think should be done with Lai Shouzhong?"
Wei Mingsu looked up at the tall pagoda behind the temple and said, "I will not overstep my bounds in handling the military affairs of Xizhou; I will leave it to the Governor."
The soldiers were taken aback.
He was no ordinary soldier; otherwise, the governor wouldn't have sent him to the temple to observe how Wei Mingsu dealt with Lai Shouzhong. He had just pondered this carefully and understood Wei Mingsu's intention in forcing the chief clerk to reveal himself. Lai Shouzhong's rampage at the temple, failing to rescue the chief clerk, had even placed him in danger. The chief clerk must have also seen through Wei Mingsu's scheme, fearing he had a backup plan, and refused to leave, ordering Lai Shouzhong to be bound.
The chief clerk voluntarily relinquished his military power.
Wei Mingsu could take this opportunity to seize control of the military in Xizhou.
But at this moment, he took a step back.
The soldier secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Lai Shouzhong has openly disobeyed military orders. I will take him to see the commander-in-chief right away!"
...
The standoff in front of the temple ended quickly.
Lu Huaying watched as Wei Mingsu rode back on horseback. A short while later, several monks crossed the courtyard, stood at the foot of the pagoda, and waved to the people on the pagoda.
Tong Jin laughed and said, "Alright, we can go down now."
The group then descended the tower.
As Lu Huaying walked across the courtyard, she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her shoulder; a stone had fallen and landed in front of her boots.
A man's laughing voice came from the earthen wall beside him: "Third Sister! Third Sister!"
Lu Huaying raised her head.
A head popped out from the wall. Chai Yong was perched on the top of the wall, his dark face smeared with yellow dirt. He grinned at her as she looked up.
He had dark skin and looked like someone from Xiliang. When he smiled, his clear eyes became even brighter and more vivid. His smile was as radiant as the rising sun, under a clear blue sky, full of light.
Lu Huaying paused for a moment, then quickly walked to the foot of the earthen wall.
"Third Sister, I'm so glad to see you!" Chai Yong craned his neck to speak to Lu Huaying, "Are you alright?"
Lu Huaying said, "I'm fine, Prince Chai. Where are my brother and sister-in-law?"
Chai Yong whispered, "They're with Wu Lang, don't worry. They're fine too, they're just worried about you."
"Please tell them not to worry about me."
"Alright! Don't worry about them. With Wulang and me here, Third Sister, I..."
Before Chai Yong could finish speaking, a monk's exclamation rang out behind him, and a group of monks came over to urge him to leave.
He was immediately a little annoyed, raised his eyebrows at Lu Huaying, and jumped down.
"Lu San Niang! What are you doing?"
Afu ran over and looked at Lu Huaying warily.
Lu Huaying didn't hide anything from him: "I spoke a few words with Prince Chai."
Afu frowned and said, "You can't just talk to other people. Go back to your room and continue writing the 'Alchemy Classic'!"
The group returned to their room. As soon as Lu Huaying sat down, Afu immediately shoved a pen into her hand, pulled out a sheet of yellow paper from his pocket, and slammed it onto the table: "Write quickly! Don't even think about slacking off!"
Lu Huaying flipped open the yellow paper he had taken out and said softly, "These need to be rewritten."
Afu looked down and saw that all the yellow papers were black and the words were illegible. He hadn't noticed when he put the yellow papers away and had stuffed a piece of paper with still-wet ink into the middle. The ink had seeped through the paper and stained the whole stack of yellow papers black.
Lu Huaying didn't speak, lowered her head, and began to rewrite.
Afu's face turned bright red as he looked at the yellow paper.
Tong Jin walked over and said to Afu, "Be more careful next time."
"Luo Binwang wrote the 'Proclamation Against Wu Zetian,' which has made him famous for all time. And you? You acted as an accomplice to the tyrant, killing my two uncles and sending their heads to the gods by fast horse."
"All of you, please that vixen! All your education has amounted to nothing, yet you're a despicable scoundrel! You'll be remembered with infamy for eternity!"
He turned and walked out, returning to his room to continue examining the chief secretary's letters.
Wei Mingsu glanced in the direction of the courtyard gate.
Tong Jin waited for him in front of the courtyard gate, then stepped forward and said, "Ah Lang, Lu San Niang said she wants to see you. I told her that you don't have time to see her, but she said she can wait."
Wei Mingsu had seen that look in his eyes many times: "In Young Master Xu's eyes, a mere lowly status is not worth mentioning. Just like four years ago, the lives of the people of the three prefectures were not worth mentioning in the eyes of Young Master Xu's uncle."
Wei Mingsu lowered his head and flipped through the Chief Secretary's letter, saying, "Before I left Luoyang, His Majesty gave me a box and told me to read the contents of the box before I came to Xizhou."
Blood flowed into Young Master Xu's mouth, staining his teeth crimson. He opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva at Wei Mingsu.
The chief secretary nodded calmly.
Inside the temple, Wei Mingsu's attendants opened the box that had been brought back from the Protectorate and asked the Chief Secretary to confirm if it was his item.
The chief secretary was taken aback, and in his excitement, he actually stood up.
Tong Jin couldn't help but ask, "You figured it out?"
The attendants were all very cautious and dared not speak.
The saliva that Young Master Xu spat out had already dried.
Wei Mingsu stepped forward and looked at Young Master Xu: "Young Master Xu, how do you think the world views the rebellion four years ago?"
In the evening, Wei Mingsu opened the door and came out of the room.
The chief clerk snapped out of his daze, a flicker of pain and regret crossing his face, and sat down.
Young Master Xu laughed and said, "The wicked woman is like a hen crowing at dawn, and the world has suffered for too long. After my uncle swore an oath to revolt in Yangzhou, he gathered 100,000 righteous troops in just ten days. The 'Proclamation Against Wu Zetian' was the will of the people! If it weren't for you villains aiding and abetting the wicked, my uncle would have received support from all sides, and the princes would have followed suit and attacked Luoyang in one fell swoop, killing that wicked woman. How could the Tang Dynasty have fallen into the hands of that wicked woman?"
When Wei Mingsu was in Liucheng, did he say something like this?
"Chief Secretary, these were found in your study. Please take a look."
Wei Mingsu turned around: "The Chief Secretary helped you escape to repay a debt of gratitude. No one doubted your identities, and you were able to escape smoothly, but you insisted on killing Wu Yanxing."
Wei Mingsu remained silent, glanced at the wound on Young Master Xu's forehead, gestured for his attendant to stop the bleeding, and then turned and walked away.
Everything in the Western Regions had nothing to do with him anymore.
Tong Jin realized he had misspoke, scratched his head, and said, "To be honest, Afu is two years older than me, but he was injured here..."
“Young Master Xu, your uncle’s uprising was not to repay the Emperor’s kindness, nor for the sake of the people. He was disloyal and unjust, only to realize his own ambition and seize control of a region. Young Master Xu’s whole family participated in the rebellion and supported the occupation of Jinling. I also received a proclamation from Yangzhou back then. Young Master Xu, there’s no need to mention any righteousness in front of me.”
With Lai Shouzhong taken away, the guards outside the temple lost their leader. A dozen or so attendants shouted, and they dismounted and dropped their swords.
Wei Mingsu said, "Over the years, His Majesty has read every single memorial sent by the Governor and the Chief Secretary to Chang'an and Luoyang requesting the dispatch of troops. His Majesty has kept all of those memorials."
The attendant, who was rummaging through boxes with his head down in the room, couldn't help but look up and steal a glance at him.
The chief clerk signed the document, then slumped down at his desk, his voice hoarse: "Wei Mingsu, Lai Shouzhong was once a great general... who made great contributions to the country. He shouldn't have died in prison. Can we give him a chance to atone for his crimes?"
Young Master Xu was speechless.
Young Master Xu pushed aside his attendants, raised his head, and sneered.
Wei Mingsu looked down at him and said, "You killed the Prince, so you will be sent back to Luoyang for trial."
Lu Huaying said in a gentle voice, without a trace of anger on her face.
Four years ago, you met Luo Binwang once in Yangzhou to discuss calligraphy.
Wei Mingsu said with his hands behind his back, "Your uncle not only didn't take Luoyang directly, but also divided his troops to cross the Yangtze River, intending to attack Jinling, because he..."
His advisors all said that Nanjing possessed an imperial aura, had the natural barrier of the Yangtze River, and was a prosperous land; occupying Nanjing would allow for both offensive and defensive maneuvers.
Wei Mingsu glanced at the paper signed by the chief clerk and said, "I have handed him over to the governor for disposal."
...
Lu Huaying was taken aback.
He patted his head.
"The victor is king, the loser is villain! Your words are all sophistry!" Young Master Xu roared, his blood-stained face contorted in a ferocious expression. "Wei Mingsu, how dare you talk about righteousness? If it weren't for your meddling, I would have escaped long ago!"
Wei Mingsu said with a mocking expression, "Speed is of the essence in war. After your uncle gathered 100,000 righteous troops in the name of the late crown prince, why didn't he take advantage of their high morale to cross the Huai River and take Luoyang directly?"
Young Master Xu sneered: "That Wu fellow deserves to die! I killed him on behalf of Heaven!"
Wei Mingsu grunted in response and stopped walking.
He thought Wei Mingsu would use Lai Shouzhong as a warning to others and to intimidate Xizhou.
The chief secretary stared at him and asked, "What did His Majesty show you?"
He stood in the cold wind for a while, then said, "Let her go back."
Wei Mingsu put down the letter and went to the neighboring courtyard.
The chief clerk was somewhat surprised.
"Wait in the yard."
His attendant brought him a piece of yellow paper and asked him to sign and put his fingerprint on it.
Afu blushed, nodded, and turned to leave.
Lu Huaying raised her eyes: "What did you see?"
Young Master Xu had just tried to kill himself by banging his head against the wall, breaking his forehead and drawing blood from his hair. Half his face was blood red, and the other half was deathly pale. He looked up at Wei Mingsu, who had walked in, and laughed loudly: "You ungrateful, sycophantic scoundrel, Wei! Give me a quick death!"
Tong Jin lowered his head, looked at Lu Huaying, and said in a low voice, "Thank you for your understanding. Afu didn't mean it."
Wei Mingsu did not make any sarcastic remarks.
It got dark.
Where is she?
“A-Fu is pitiful. Everyone in his village died, and he was the only one who survived. He has been loyal to the young master for three years. I heard that the Lu family drove the young master out of Chang'an four years ago, and he harbors some resentment towards them.” Tong Jin paused, smiled, and said, “But you don’t need to worry. A-Fu won’t bully you. The young master specifically instructed us in Liucheng that what happened four years ago is in the past. Who would dare to use the grudges from four years ago to make things difficult for you? Pack your bags and go back to the capital.”
"I know."
Young Master Xu couldn't help but shudder, gritting his teeth as he said, "I don't want to fall into that vixen's hands!"
A hint of disdain flashed in Young Master Xu's eyes.
Wei Mingsu lowered his eyes and glanced at the boots on his feet.
The servants in the room shuddered.
"It's hateful that my father was betrayed by his subordinates, suffered a defeat and was killed, and his great cause was not accomplished, which is why a villain like you can swagger around like this."
"Young Master!" A servant hurried in and whispered, "Young Master Xu just tried to commit suicide, but we stopped him."
He sat there lost in thought, the light in his eyes dimming, and he murmured, "I have only myself to blame..."
Wei Mingsu asked, "What about Lu Sanniang? She's just an innocent woman. If Young Master Xu is truly not afraid of death, why frame her?"
Tong Jin reported on the situation at the □□ today, and finally said, "Ah Lang, when we came down from the tower today, Chai Shizi took advantage of the chaos to climb up the wall and met with Lu San Niang. They talked for a while. I think Lu San Niang is no longer a suspect, so she didn't stop us."
"Wei Mingsu! Why did you leave? Are you afraid I'll expose your dirty secrets?"
Wei Mingsu turned and left.
"yes."
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