Chapter 95 Gambling with Life
Earlier, when he led people to escort the evidence of grain embezzlement to the capital, the Lu family sent people to Luohan Mountain to intercept and kill him. It seemed that they wanted to keep him outside the capital.
Most of the people he brought back to the capital were killed, but he returned to the capital safely, and also brought back a crazy but deadly witness named Cai Qi.
Xiao Yan, the aristocratic families, and Lu Chongyuan had been at odds for several days. The aristocratic families hated him to the core, and when they learned that Cai Qi's madness had improved, how could they sit still?
Today, he deliberately sent a visiting card to Jiyun Lane, seemingly using Lu Chongyuan as bait to lure him to stay in Yutang Mansion so that he could send someone to assassinate Cai Qi. But the real purpose was to provoke him to get the news and leave the city to transfer Cai Qi.
They pretended to send someone to assassinate Cai Qi, but their real intention was to kill him, and for this they even used spies buried so deeply in the Privy Council.
It was a pity that he was lucky. Although he was caught off guard by the first knife, he still managed to dodge it. When the second knife was stabbed out, the spy's head had already flown out.
Xiao Yan's eyes were filled with murderous intent. "That old fellow Lu Chongyuan is losing his composure. I'm afraid the aristocratic families are also in a state of disarray. Tell Feng Qiuli to go see Cui Lin."
"I have been stabbed. If the Lu family doesn't pay me back with a few lives, I will never have peace."
Jinyun said in a deep voice: "Yes."
When Song Tangning came back from questioning Madam Qin, she just happened to hear the three words "Lu Chongyuan". Seeing Jinyun's murderous look when he replied, and Xiao Yan's face beside him also had a fierce look, she couldn't help but whispered, "Was it the Lu family who hurt my brother?"
Jinyun spoke up, "Who else could it be but Lu Chongyuan? The Governor learned last night that he was coming to see you today, and then the Lu family used this as bait to set up a trap. They used you and a prisoner from the Privy Council as bait, setting up several traps to kill him. If the Governor hadn't noticed something was wrong and contacted the head of the Gu family in advance, I'm afraid he would have been killed outside the city this time."
Song Tangning's heart sank when he heard this: "Didn't he want to come see me?"
Xiao Yan knew she was distracted and tried to appease her, "It's not that they don't want to see you. The Lu family's priority right now is to recover the things they took from you. They also want to settle the matter peacefully and remove the Queen and her son. They lured me out of the capital to prevent me from taking advantage of the opportunity to cause trouble. Setting up an assassination plot is another matter."
"Lu Chongyuan thought that what you did earlier was at my behest. Whether I died outside the capital or was trapped outside the city and couldn't return, I could have thrown you off balance and forced you to back down. But he underestimated Princess Cheng, and he also underestimated you."
Lu Chongyuan didn't expect that although he was not in Jiyun Lane, Madam Fu and the others were there.
He also didn't expect that their little Haitang had changed a lot. Even without his protection, she was no longer the little girl that the Lu family could manipulate at will.
Xiao Yan had just learned from the servants in the mansion how Song Tangning had left the Lu family's grandparents speechless. His sword-like eyes were tinged with a smile: "Lu Chongyuan's plan failed today, and you have made a great contribution."
Song Tangning didn't show any joy at all when being praised. Instead, she bit her lips and trembled with anger.
She originally thought that she had relieved herself by teaching Lu Zhinian a lesson and bringing shame to the Lu family. She originally thought that just a few harsh words were already extremely powerful, but she greatly underestimated the shamelessness of the Lu family.
On the one hand, he seemed to be entangled with her for the queen and her son, but on the other hand, he sent people to ambush and assassinate his brother.
Song Tangning was furious.
How can it be enough to repay Lu Zhinian by just ruining his reputation?
Seeing her pale face and gloomy eyes, Xiao Yan raised his eyes to Jin Yun and told him to leave first, then waved and said, "Come here."
Song Tangning walked up to him.
"What are you thinking about?" Xiao Yan asked her.
Song Tangning whispered, "I want the Lu family to pay for my brother's life."
Xiao Yan was caught off guard and amused by her honest words. Ripples appeared in his eyes and a low laugh escaped from his throat. However, he did not scold her for being ignorant. He just bent down and picked up something from the couch and handed it to Tang Ning casually.
Seeing the little girl looking at him doubtfully, he raised the object in his hand and said, "Take a look."
Song Tangning took it, opened it, took a quick look at what was written inside, then closed it instantly and suddenly looked up.
"Brother..."
The thing in my hand was extremely hot. Even after reading only one or two lines, I knew what it was about.
She raised her eyes and met Xiao Yan's casual gaze, feeling a strong sense of oppression. She couldn't help but whisper, "Brother, have you been planning to attack the aristocratic family for a long time?"
"It's not me who's moving, it's your Majesty."
Xiao Yan seemed to be unconcerned about the thing that made Song Tangning extremely nervous. He just tapped the table lightly to signal her to spread it out.
After the scroll was unfolded on the small table, Xiao Yan said to Song Tangning, "The aristocratic families have occupied the Wei Dynasty for many years, surpassing the imperial power and deeply entrenched. Your Majesty has been trying to eradicate them for a long time, but they are too deeply involved with the previous dynasty and the harem, so it will take more than one night to completely eliminate them."
"Lu Chongyuan and I have been enemies for several years. We have clashed countless times in the court, but few have forced him to take the risk of sending someone to assassinate me. If the situation had not been unfavorable to the family and he had not been in danger, he would not have resorted to such a desperate measure."
Song Tangning lowered her eyes to look at the things on the table. She looked at the family relationships outlined on it. She bit her lip and asked, "Is it because of the grain tax issue and the incident I caused?"
Xiao Yan nodded and said "hmm" softly: "It's you who messed up the Lu family's situation, so don't blame yourself. If it weren't for you, Lu Chongyuan might not have lost his composure."
Song Tangning's anger was instantly diverted by these words. She looked at the person beside her who was gently comforting her. Seeing that his lips were a little pale but he still cared about her feelings, she couldn't help but lower her eyes and muttered, "I'm not a child. Why are you comforting me when my brother is injured?"
Xiao Yan laughed: "It's not all to comfort you. In my position, anyone can kill me."
"Between me and the aristocratic families, and Lu Chongyuan and the others, we are all gambling with each other's lives. If they lose, their entire families will be buried with them. If I lose, I will naturally pay with my life."
"It's just a little bleeding today. Don't be sad. You should be thankful."
When Song Tangning heard him talk lightly about the affairs of the court and life and death, his heart couldn't help but tighten. It was also the first time that he understood so clearly the cruelty of the power struggle in the court.
The whole family may be wiped out at any time, and their lives are at stake. If they make a mistake, there will be no recovery.
Brother, you can't retreat. If you retreat, you will die.
…
After moving back to Jiyun Lane, Song Tangning and Princess Cheng originally had their own residences, but because of what happened today, Song Tangning went to Princess Cheng's place.
I saw her changing her bloodstained dress in a daze, with her hair loose as she washed silently, and then she curled up in bed with her eyes downcast and said nothing.
Princess Cheng then walked to the bedside with a bowl of red date and snow fungus soup. "I heard from Nanny Jiang that you didn't eat much tonight. The kitchen just made some snow fungus soup. Have some."
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