Chapter 280 Finding a Way Out
"Yan'er, put the hairpin down first, so you don't accidentally hurt yourself."
An Yan looked at her with heartache.
With tears streaming down her face, Su Yan'er said, "Brother Yan, please promise me you won't go looking for that bastard, okay? The An family is a century-old family, there won't be any risks. Even if the emperor falls from power, that bastard won't dare to touch us. We also have the obligation of filial piety to uphold, why should the An family be a pawn!"
Why can't I agree to her request? Why can't I make a vow?
"I... hiss..."
An Yan seized the opportunity to try and snatch the hairpin from her hand, but ended up getting pricked.
The sharp end of the hairpin pierced through my arm, sending a sharp pain through my arm.
An Yan took the opportunity to hug Su Yan'er, "Okay, I promise you, I won't go! Don't hurt yourself."
Su Yan'er panicked and hurriedly looked at the wound on his arm.
"Brother Yan, are you alright?"
She didn't mean to hurt anyone; she was just too heartbroken.
"I'm fine. Don't do that again next time, you'll hurt yourself. Yan'er, you know, you've always been the only one in my heart."
An Yan sighed, pulled out the gold diamond, and blood instantly soaked his moon-white robe.
Just as he was about to speak, the butler rushed in, "Master, Master Tao has arrived."
An Yan frowned. "Why did he come at this time?"
"This...this servant doesn't know either."
An Yan turned to comfort Su Yan'er, "Yan'er, you go back first, I'll go see what's going on."
"Brother Yan, your arm is injured. Shall I bandage your wound first?"
Su Yan'er felt extremely distressed.
They were childhood sweethearts and their relationship is deeper than anyone else's. She felt very sad.
Seeing that he was injured but still willing to speak softly to her, Su Yan'er felt a secret pleasure.
That woman has never received such unique favoritism before, has she?
Only her, An Yan only loves her.
"No, let's talk about it when I get back. After all, the other party is the head of the Tao family; we can't keep him waiting too long."
Before leaving, An Yan gave instructions to his servants.
"Clean up all these things on the ground and replace them with new ones from the storeroom for the Second Madam."
After saying a few words of comfort to Su Yan'er, he went to see the head of the Tao family.
However, the second wife, Madam Jiang, received the news shortly afterward.
"How many batches have they smashed already? Do they really think this is free garbage?"
The second wife sipped her bird's nest porridge and let out a faint, mocking sound.
Logically speaking, Su Yan'er should be the mistress of the family and should be managing the household affairs. However, Su Yan'er is aloof and neither good at nor fond of these trivial matters. Most importantly, she doesn't know how, so the responsibility fell on her.
It's ridiculous to say that out loud; what wife doesn't know how to manage a household?
There was a lot of money to be made in this, and Jiang was quite happy about it at the time.
"What should we do, Second Madam?" the servant asked Jiang for her opinion.
"Let her smash it. After all, she's An Yan's wife. People change, and there will always be times when she can't be arrogant anymore."
living room,
The head of the Tao family waited for a while, and just as he was getting impatient, he finally saw An Yan.
It has to be said that An Yan is truly handsome, and even at his age, he still possesses an extraordinary air about him. If he were young, he would have captivated countless women.
However, An Yan was also known for his infatuation. He married a divorced woman and doted on her like a precious jewel, without having a single concubine by his side.
"Master An has quite the airs; he's kept me waiting for a long time."
Upon seeing the person, the head of the Tao family said something sarcastic.
"Some things at home have kept me from getting here," An Yan said, bowing slightly.
The arm that had been stabbed was simply wrapped in a cloth, and blood was already seeping out through it.
"Are you injured?" Patriarch Tao asked, looking at An Yan's arm.
“It’s just a minor injury, nothing to worry about. Patriarch Tao, let’s get down to business,” An Yan changed the subject.
"His Majesty's intention is to return to the capital and negotiate with Prince Jing."
An Yan frowned upon hearing this, "Why does His Majesty act so unpredictably? What on earth is he up to?!"
Previously, they intended to surrender, since their aristocratic family's status wouldn't change and the emperor wanted to stand up to them. Now that he's prepared, is he trying to be a coward again?
"A phoenix in distress is no better than a chicken, and a dragon in distress, I don't need to say more!" The head of the Tao family took a sip of tea and frowned.
He sneered inwardly. This was last year's tea; did the An family not take him seriously?
An Yan was unaware of the Tao family head's thoughts. "No matter who becomes emperor, it won't have much impact on us, unless he wants to shake the foundation of Jiangnan."
"You're right. Then, Young Master An, shall we head to the imperial palace now?"
Tao Jiazhu made a polite remark.
He didn't care whether An Yan was injured or not, since it wasn't him who did it.
"good."
The two arrived at the imperial palace.
"You two, please sit down."
Emperor Honghui raised his hand and suddenly noticed An Yan's arm. "An Yan, how did you get injured?"
"This looks like it was stabbed by a woman with a hairpin. What happened? Did the tigress at home unleash her fury?" Emperor Honghui gossiped.
"I accidentally injured myself while practicing martial arts. Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty." An Yan naturally wouldn't reveal who had injured him.
Emperor Honghui glanced at it several times before finally looking away.
He sat down and sighed sadly.
"Sometimes I really want to be ruthless and make Prince Jing a traitor, but then I think of my father. Even though he has forced me to this point, I don't really want to harm my brothers!"
Tao the family head was internally screaming: You don't want to? You can't.
Because you can't, therefore you can't!
All you can do is ramble on and on about some nonsense!
But what can be done? As a subject, one must always give the emperor a way out.
"Your Majesty did this for the sake of the people, to spare them the suffering of war. On behalf of all the people of Jiangnan, I kneel and thank Your Majesty!"
The head of the Tao family knelt down and shouted with great emotion.
"I agree."
An Yan was a beat slow on the uptake today, but he disdained such flattery.
"Get up." Emperor Honghui was extremely satisfied.
Now that the steps have been laid, he naturally has to go down them.
"Bring me pen and ink. I will personally write a letter to Prince Jing."
No sooner had the letter been sent out than Emperor Honghui "fell ill" again.
Su Yan'er was overjoyed upon hearing the news.
"Does that mean we no longer have to bow down to that bastard?"
She was such a proud person; she would rather die than bow her head.
"It shouldn't be necessary, you can rest assured now." An Yan comforted her on the surface, but in reality, she was thinking about something more serious.
When King Jing arrived in Shangjing, he killed countless people, including many powerful families, and surrendered two-thirds of his family fortune. His status had long since declined.
With Prince Jing taking over Jiangnan, the An family will certainly no longer enjoy its former glory.
And that illegitimate child will become a new noble in the new dynasty...
"Brother Yan, I really didn't mean to hurt you. You know I can't control my emotions."
Su Yan'er spoke softly, finally feeling at ease.
“We were betrothed since we were children. When we broke off the engagement, I locked myself in my room and tried to kill myself several times, but in the end I couldn’t bear to leave you and never see you again.”
"Brother Yan, I truly love you."
Hearing these words, An Yan felt a pang of heartache. "I know. Take care of yourself. Don't overthink things. I will never betray you."
"Brother Yan, that bastard child will always be a source of trouble. Can't we just let him die?"
An Yan nodded.
"This time I won't let you down again."
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