Chapter 294 Xiao Yan's "Confession"
Tang Ning quickly asked Hang Li to drive over. Compared with Emperor An's spacious and magnificent imperial carriage, her carriage was much smaller and more delicate.
Emperor An was dizzy from a headache, barely able to stand. Xiao Yan half-carried him onto the carriage, and once he was squatting on the shaft, he said to the outer room, "It's already night outside. Your Majesty, it's best not to disturb too many people on this trip. Eunuch Feng and Commander Yu will accompany me. The rest of you must remain in the academy and are not allowed to leave without permission."
After saying this, he looked to the side and said, "Tang Ning, you stay here. I'll send a message when His Majesty's headache subsides."
Tang Ning nodded quickly: "Brother, please go quickly. I will have someone watch over this place and will make sure no one talks nonsense."
The night was dim, and the two looked at each other and understood each other.
Xiao Yan and Eunuch Feng got into the carriage together. Eunuch Feng reached out to support Emperor An, who was twitching due to a headache, for fear that he might hurt himself.
Xiao Yan said to the lightly armored man who had quickly reached the carriage, "I, the governor, would be too conspicuous. I'll have to trouble Commander Yu to drive the carriage."
Yu Yanfeng was ostensibly the deputy commander of the Imperial Guards, but in reality he was also the head of Emperor An's most trusted secret guards. He also knew that Xiao Yan's face was too recognizable, and driving the carriage himself would inevitably arouse suspicion, so he took off his light armor and handed it to someone else, then jumped onto the shaft.
"Master Xiao, please take good care of His Majesty."
"good."
The carriage rolled away in the night and disappeared at the end of the road in just a moment.
The surrounding imperial guards dispersed, pretending that Emperor An was still in the academy.
After these people left, the people from the academy who were blocked behind came over.
"County Lady, what's wrong with His Majesty?"
"Yeah, but what happened?"
Seeing everyone's worry, Tang Ning explained softly, "Your Majesty just suddenly remembered that he had something to do in the city. He was afraid that the noise from these people would attract attention, so he changed to my carriage. Gentlemen, you are tired today. Why don't you go and rest first? We still have to test the students who have been admitted to the academy tomorrow morning."
Everyone was a little hesitant. Since they chose to come to Rongsheng Academy, they were naturally one with the academy, and their interests were also closely related to the Yi Yang County Lord in front of them.
Just now, the imperial guards suddenly became agitated, and Emperor An obviously did not look like nothing was wrong. However, when they saw Tang Ning pursing her lips and shaking her head at them, it was obvious that she could not say more. So they understood that there were some things that they could not ask in depth. Since it concerned the emperor, everyone had their own guesses but did not dare to speak any more.
After Tang Ning comforted these people and asked them to disperse, she returned to the house. Under the flickering candlelight, she stretched out her hand from her sleeve, and when she opened it, a sachet was lying in her palm.
This was what he placed in Xiao Yan's hand when they passed each other just now.
"Hang Li."
"Girl."
"Go and clean this up before anyone sees it."
Hang Li glanced at the sachet and vaguely remembered that it was hung around the governor's waist before. He didn't ask anything, just put the sachet away and turned to walk out.
Tang Ning washed off the remaining fragrance on his hands with the water brought by Hua Wu. While wiping his hands with a handkerchief, he looked up at the night outside the window which was not yet dark.
Everything that should be done has been done.
I just hope... Lu Qin won't disappoint us...
…
The nights are short in summer, and it is not yet completely dark outside. In the pitch-black night, many shops in the south of the city have already lit their lights, but people can still be seen walking on the streets.
Although there is a curfew in the capital, the south of the city is an exception. This is because most of the docks and commercial markets in the capital are here, and even some red-light districts and entertainment venues are in the south of the city where all kinds of people gather. Therefore, although there is a curfew here in name, the patrols are different from other places.
After the carriage left the academy, Yu Yanfeng drove towards Jiyun Lane. When passing through some markets, he would occasionally pass by passing carriages.
Yu Yanfeng had been keeping his mind tense and paying attention to the people around him, but after a while he saw that almost all of the people around him were merchants and common people rushing to and fro, and he was dressed in black and the carriage he drove was very low-key, so he didn't attract any attention at all. He then relaxed a little.
Emperor An's moans in the carriage became softer, and Eunuch Feng let him lean against him while he rubbed both sides of his temples.
Seeing that Emperor An's expression seemed to have eased, Xiao Yan asked, "How is Your Majesty now?"
Emperor An's face was pale, and the pain in his head was still there, but not as severe as before: "It doesn't seem to hurt as before..."
"That's great." Eunuch Feng almost cried with joy: "Your Majesty really scared me just now."
Xiao Yan also breathed a sigh of relief. After helping Emperor An sit up, he said to him, "Your Majesty's illness is truly bizarre. Repeated attacks are probably not good for your health. Although it has eased somewhat now, we still need to have Madam Qin and the imperial physicians take a closer look later."
Emperor An rubbed his brows. His body was weak and his head was still throbbing with pain, but his pale face was full of recognition.
The last time this disease broke out, the pain lasted for most of the day. It took a few days of rest to get better. It suddenly broke out again today, which is really disturbing.
"By the way, why did Song Tangning say just now that Madam Qin was in her house?" Emperor An asked.
Xiao Yan explained, "It was the concubine daughter of the Song family. She was in a difficult situation in the Song family. Tang Ning felt sorry for her and raised her in the mansion and let her take her mother's surname."
"That little girl is also a grateful person. Last time when Lu Zhinian wanted to harm Tang Ning and the young lady from the Qian family, the little girl was beaten severely in order to protect them, and her body was almost broken."
Emperor An paused rubbing his brows and looked up at him: "Is that why you deliberately humiliated Lu Chongyuan today?"
His face darkened.
"How dare you use me as a raft!"
Feng, the eunuch, was startled by Emperor An's sudden anger and instinctively wanted to kneel. However, Xiao Yan, standing beside him, lowered his eyes and said, "I dare not take advantage of Your Majesty. We sincerely ask you to write a name for the academy. Rongsheng Academy is originally established to select talents for the imperial court. No one can convince the students of the world better than Your Majesty."
Emperor An said coldly: "You speak so eloquently, but do you dare to say that you and Song Tangning have no selfish motives today?!"
Xiao Yan was silent for a moment after hearing this, and then he whispered, "I have selfish motives."
"Your Majesty, you should know that I have been at war with the Lu family for a long time. I have already found out about Lu Zhao's case, but before I could hand it over to Your Majesty, you sent him to the Ministry of Justice and had him forced to pay the grain tax."
"I don't know why Your Majesty has forgiven the Lu family, and I dare not go against His Majesty's will. However, both I and Tang Ning nearly died at the hands of the Lu family, and we must vent our anger."
"Are you blaming me?!"
Emperor An was full of disbelief, and there was anger in his eyes when he looked at Xiao Yan.
He had given everything to this person in front of him, yet he actually dared to harbor resentment towards him?!
"I dare not."
Seeing that Emperor An was angry, Xiao Yan stood up and knelt in front of him. The carriage was already cramped, and his kneeling made it seem even more crowded.
"All my honor and disgrace are bestowed upon me by Your Majesty, and I wish to repay your kindness with all my strength. However, after this incident, I realized that I am not irreplaceable, and Your Majesty... does not trust me that much."
The carriage was still moving, but when Yu Yanfeng heard the noise inside, he subconsciously pulled the reins to slow down, his mind focused on the carriage.
In the dimly lit carriage, Xiao Yan's expression was filled with bitterness.
"After Lu Chongyuan returned to the court, he no longer had those weaknesses. Based on what I did before, he will definitely kill me. Tang Ning, who previously humiliated them, will also become a thorn in their side."
"I know Your Majesty must have some concerns about letting the Lu family go, and I dare not question Your Majesty's decision. From the day my hands were stained with blood and life, and I became the sword in your hand, I have never thought about having a good end. But Tang Ning is different. She should not be implicated in this matter."
"I did have other motives in inviting Your Majesty here today, but it was simply to use Your Majesty to intimidate the Lu family."
"If Your Majesty wishes to punish me, I am willing to accept it."
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