Chapter 467 The Way Out
Initially, the Prime Minister was somewhat dismissive of Zhu Junning. He had long heard that the Prince of Lingnan doted on this daughter, and that his decision to bring her to the capital was likely due to this affection. However, after hearing Zhu Junning's remarks today, the Prime Minister began to take her seriously, secretly thinking that this girl was indeed quite intelligent.
He looked at Zhu Junning for a moment with his slightly cloudy eyes, then lowered his gaze and pondered for a while before speaking: "You mean to use Yan Fengxi?"
Zhu Junning nodded in agreement. The Prime Minister tapped his fingertips lightly on the armrest of his chair a few times, then asked, "Do you know that Grand Tutor Yan has already pledged allegiance to the Duke of Chu's faction?"
"I've heard a little about this matter, but..." Zhu Junning raised his eyes to look at the Prime Minister, his eyes full of confidence, "If we can get Yan Fengxi to work for us, wouldn't that be a perfect way to sow discord among them?"
"Hehe..." The Prime Minister chuckled softly, his laughter carrying a hint of disdain, as if he had heard a joke. He picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip of tea, and said slowly, "You are still too young. You understand neither the Duke of Chu nor Grand Tutor Yan."
Zhu Junning frowned upon hearing this, a stubborn refusal showing on his face. The Prime Minister lowered his gaze, subtly concealing the disappointment in his eyes. Zhu Junning did possess some cleverness, but compared to Jiang Yu and Xie Ning'an, he was far inferior.
He turned to look at the Prince of Lingnan, his tone solemn: "If Yan Fengxi is truly won over by us, the first thing Grand Tutor Yan will do is make her disappear without a trace. As for the Duke of Chu... even if he finds out, he will not break with Grand Tutor Yan, at least not on the surface. They have common interests involved, and they will not tear each other apart over a daughter."
After being refuted, Zhu Junning's cheeks flushed slightly, but his voice remained urgent: "Whether Yan Fengxi lives or dies afterward is none of our business. Whether the relationship between the Duke of Chu and Grand Tutor Yan will break down is not something we should worry about now. What we need to do now is to spread the news that the Duke of Chu and Prince Rui have an affair, and make the Emperor believe it. And Yan Fengxi is the best pawn."
Upon hearing this, the Prime Minister frowned and fell silent. At this moment, the King of Lingnan's voice broke the silence: "In the past, this move would indeed have been too risky. But the situation is different now. If we don't act quickly, we may only face certain death."
The Prime Minister's eyebrows and lips drooped, his face was very solemn, and he still did not speak. The Prince of Lingnan glanced at him and continued, "Uncle, I know you are afraid of the Duke of Chu's ruthless revenge, but now, apart from Yan Fengxi, we really have no more suitable candidates."
The prime minister kept his eyes downcast, his aged eyelids drooping, and his fingers continued to tap the armrest of the chair, the "tap-tap-tap" sound echoing in the silent room, adding to the oppressive atmosphere.
After a long while, he spoke in his slightly aged voice: "Then let's use Yan Fengxi."
After saying that, he looked up at Zhu Junning: "Princess, find some time to contact Yan Fengxi. As for how to get her to agree to cooperate with us, I suppose you already have a plan?"
Zhu Junning nodded: "After I meet her, I will first test whether she truly loves Prince Rui. If so..."
She quietly clenched her fist, her tone becoming more resolute. "I then told her about the matter between the Duke of Chu and Prince Rui. Given Yan Fengxi's personality, she probably won't pretend nothing happened and just swallow her anger."
The Prime Minister nodded in agreement. Zhu Junning loosened his clenched hand and added, "If she has no feelings for Prince Rui, I will start with the two things: Yan Fengju, the illegitimate daughter of the Yan family, and the fact that she is to be married off outside the capital. I will tell her that as long as she is willing to cooperate with us, I can not only help her destroy Yan Fengju, but also find her a good marriage."
Hearing this, the Prime Minister sat there in silence. He knew in his heart that Yan Fengxi was not a fool, and if she truly had no interest in Prince Rui, the possibility of her cooperating with them was actually very small. Unless Zhu Junning could truly persuade her with words.
Zhu Junning naturally understood this concern, but she was confident in herself. However, she didn't want to make any definitive statements at the moment, so she said, "Junning, go and contact Yan Fengxi first, and see how things go."
The prime minister pondered for a moment, then nodded in agreement: "Let's do as you say for now."
As soon as he finished speaking, he turned to look at the King of Lingnan, his tone becoming more serious: "Have you prepared your escape route?"
These words instantly made the atmosphere in the room even more tense. The King of Lingnan clenched his fist and said in a deep voice, "When we go to Nanyi, the Fifth Prince of Nanyi has already promised to arrange everything for us."
"The Southern Barbarians won't do." The Prime Minister rejected the idea without hesitation.
The King of Lingnan frowned at him, full of confusion. The Prime Minister's eyes held an unfathomable scheming as he slowly said, "The Southern Barbarians border the Great Gan, and the two countries have frequently clashed in recent years. If the Great Gan were to demonstrate the power of its firearms to the Southern Barbarians, do you think the Southern Barbarians would hand us over to protect themselves?"
These words plunged the room into a deathly silence once more. The King of Lingnan's face darkened, his fingers gripping the chair so tightly that his knuckles turned white, and he was speechless for a moment. He had forgotten the Southern Barbarians' fear of large-scale firearms; it turned out that the escape route he had previously planned was not a true escape route at all.
At this moment, the Prime Minister's voice rang out again: "Go to Lanzhou Kingdom."
His tone was firm, his gaze sweeping over the tense face of the King of Lingnan: "Lanzhou and Daqian are separated by the sea and do not border each other. Daqian's firearms cannot deter them at all. Moreover, Lanzhou relies on maritime trade to establish itself and has no long-standing grudges with Daqian. They will not hand us over just to please Daqian. We should take some wealth with us, which will be enough to gain their protection. This is the safe way out."
The Prince of Lingnan frowned even more deeply, his tone filled with urgency: "But we are completely unfamiliar with the road from the capital to the sea! The area around the capital is surely teeming with the emperor's spies. We'll be detected as soon as we set off, and the pursuers will be right behind us. With our limited manpower, it's questionable whether we can even break out of the city, let alone reach the sea safely!"
He paused, his fingers unconsciously tracing patterns on the chair, a new layer of worry creeping in: "Besides, Lanzhou Kingdom is far out at sea, and we don't even have anyone to make contact with! We can't just wait until we reach the coast to find a ship, can we? What if we don't find a merchant ship willing to take us, or what if we're ambushed by a large navy? Wouldn't that still mean certain death? And what about all that wealth? Carrying so much stuff on the journey will make us too conspicuous. We'll be spotted before we even reach the coast!"
Hearing the King of Lingnan's doubts, the Prime Minister's lips curled into a smile that seemed to have been anticipated, and his fingertips paused lightly on the armrest of his chair: "I have already made arrangements for these matters."
He looked up at the still anxious King of Lingnan, his tone as calm as ever: "When the time comes, we'll deliberately reveal our whereabouts, pretending to flee to the Southern Barbarians, to lure the pursuers there. In reality, we'll quietly take a detour to the southeast and head towards the coast."
The prefect of Qiongzhou Prefecture along the coast is someone I placed in the local area years ago. Once we reach his territory, he will help us clear out any spies along the way and can also prepare a boat to Lanzhou in advance, so there will be absolutely no mishaps.”
Even with the Prime Minister's meticulous arrangements for the escape route, the King of Lingnan's expression remained grave. Discussing the escape route at this juncture indicated that the Prime Minister held little hope for success.
"Man proposes, God disposes; one must always leave a way out." The Prime Minister's voice carried a hint of vicissitude as his fingertips tapped lightly on the chair. "We have both witnessed the power of the firearms the court possesses. If our plan goes wrong, we have no chance of winning in a head-on confrontation."
He looked up at the King of Lingnan, his gaze darkening. "It's not that I lack confidence in success, but we must be thorough in our actions. Success in one fell swoop would be ideal, but if things really come to a head, we can't let ourselves be trapped in the capital. This escape route is our last chance for survival."
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