clash
Chapter 61, Clash
However, I underestimated this woman after all. Her expression changed, but only for a fleeting moment.
In the blink of an eye, she had regained her... well, alluring demeanor, her eyes sparkling, and she smiled lightly: "Miss Zhao, what 'redemption money'? I don't understand... My king and I are now in King Xinan's hands, our lives are in his hands. The former Shu kingdom is now just a passing cloud, what money could we possibly offer as tribute?"
I felt uncomfortable listening to this and sneered coldly: "Lady Fan, Western Shu will either be incorporated into Eastern Chu or swallowed up by Tuoluo. Even with the help of the traitors of Eastern Chu, it will not be able to survive for long."
I would never have thought of these things before, but after listening to Mr. Tao's words of advice to Lan Feiyu in the carriage, I finally understood—even Bozhou could not hold onto the foundation of independence, let alone this Western Shu, which was like a candle flickering in the wind.
Her eyes flashed, and she smiled brightly: "Miss Zhao has a sharp tongue; she talks much more than King Xinan."
Seeing that Empress Dowager Fan kept mentioning "King Xinan," I suddenly remembered the sordid things Xiao Che had mentioned, and my scalp tingled: Could she... be planning to use some kind of "honey trap" on my older brother?
When Xiao Che recounted this, a fleeting expression of extreme restraint crossed his little face. A fire ignited within me, and I refused to argue with her any longer. My voice hardened, like ice in winter: "Lady Fan, I'm talking about—the money Xie Kun told you about. That's the money Xie family amassed by lining their own pockets at the salt fields; it's Dong Chu's money, the money of the people of Dong Chu." Seeing she was about to speak again, I pressed on, "Do you want to know why I know this? Xiao Che told me. He's going to use the whereabouts of this money to 'buy his life,' you and him! And…and also, the filthy things you did with…and with Xie Kun, Xiao Che…Don't try to use the same tricks on my older brother, on King Xinan, that…that won't work…"
Before I could finish speaking, my face was already completely red.
Damn it!
Fortunately, Empress Dowager Fan's complexion wasn't much different from mine; it was just that mine was flushed while hers was deathly pale, and her lips trembled slightly.
Before I could even marvel, she had already returned to normal, letting out a soft laugh: "The victor is king, the loser is villain; it has always been so. I am now at your mercy, so you don't need to use Che'er to pressure me. He is my only flesh and blood, and I want him to be well more than anyone else. But... what makes you think I necessarily know what you want?"
Xiao Che said, "You know." "I'll be blunt," he said, "He doesn't want to be the ruler of Western Shu anymore; he just wants to be Liu Che, a child who can sleep peacefully."
I recounted everything: how Liu Che proposed the idea of "redeeming his life," how I met my older brother, and how I cried myself to sleep in his arms. Empress Dowager Fan kept her eyes down, so I couldn't see her expression, but she didn't interrupt me; she just listened quietly.
After that, there was a long silence.
"Did King Xinan really agree to spare the lives of my son and me?" After a long while, Empress Dowager Fan finally spoke, her voice no longer soft and charming, but instead slightly hoarse.
"He promised Xiao Che, and he keeps his word," I said firmly.
She fell silent again, and I felt a growing anxiety, but I suppressed my anger and said, "Your Highness, even if, even if the Shu Kingdom truly has a hope of restoration, it will not be restored in Xiao Che's hands—why would you need to cripple his wings for the sake of a vague dream of becoming king? Isn't his leg... enough?"
Empress Dowager Fan's shoulders slumped suddenly, as if all her strength had been drained. She closed her eyes, pressed her handkerchief to the corners of her eyes, and after a long while, sighed softly, "So be it..."
I was about to speak when her expression changed. Her gentleness and sorrow vanished, leaving only a hint of arrogance tinged with indifference. She spoke slowly and deliberately: "Miss Zhao, it's not that I don't believe you. First, your ties to the Xie family are not clear. Even if your maternal uncle tries his best to protect you, this mystery of your origins will eventually spread, and I'm not sure how the Emperor of Eastern Chu will deal with you. Second, you currently hold no official position or title. Even if I wanted to redeem myself from Eastern Chu, I couldn't do it through you… Do you understand this?"
Her words left me speechless, and I nodded unconsciously: "Your Highness Fan has something to say. I'll go find Prince Xinan."
Undeniably, Empress Dowager Fan's words made my heart sink.
Yes, before, my biological father was unknown and no one investigated, so it was fine. But now, it's like a bolt from the blue—I'm the descendant of a traitor—the Emperor… no, the Emperor certainly won't do anything to me; he must have known about my background all along. But how will the court and the people of Eastern Chu view me? How will they view my closest relatives? Will I become a pretext for them to attack my mother and uncle?
But now is not the time to consider these things. I saw Empress Dowager Fan nod and was about to leave when she called me back. For the first time, a hint of friendliness appeared in her eyes: "Miss Zhao, thank you and your brother for taking care of Che'er."
“No need to thank me,” I said in a muffled voice. “Xiao Che is a lovely child; he shouldn’t have been involved in these turmoil.”
"The sons of princes, what right or wrong is there?" Empress Dowager Fan chuckled softly, "It's fate..."
I didn't reply and went to find my older brother after leaving the side hall. I waited for quite a while before I finally got a chance to see him. As soon as I entered the study, I told him everything about my confrontation with Empress Dowager Fan. I specifically warned him, "Big brother, that woman seems to be trying to use her 'honey trap' on you. Although she has Xiao Che, she is really charming and alluring. You mustn't fall for it."
The older brother's lips twitched: "Xiao Xi, you're becoming more and more disrespectful."
"I didn't!" I exclaimed. "I was just worried about you... Big brother, do you want to go see her? She said she only told you... By the way, if you find out where the treasure is, I'll take responsibility for finding it, okay?"
"You? Why?" The older brother's brows furrowed, which was not a good sign.
“This was stolen by the Xie family, so isn’t it only right that I go and get it back?” I said matter-of-factly.
"Silly girl," my older brother stood up and reached out his hand to me. I thought he was going to give me a good whack on the head again, but instead he slapped my head and ruffled my neatly combed hair. He then retreated with satisfaction amidst my scream and laughed, "Are you worried that if your background is revealed to the world, it will implicate your aunt and father?"
Huh...
I couldn't help but pout, and my eyes even started to well up with tears: "Shouldn't this be? It's one thing that Mother rarely goes out, but what about Uncle? What if His Majesty cares about this?"
My older brother chuckled, but seeing my sorrowful face, he quickly covered it up with two dry coughs and said with a smile, "That's why I say you're stupid. Do you think you can hide your background from Father? Xiao Xi, since no one has ever treated you as an outsider from the beginning, why are you worrying about nothing? Whether it's your aunt or Father, they have experienced far more than you have. It's not your place to worry about them."
I sighed, and had to admit that my older brother was right.
“However,” the older brother looked at me, his smile softening, “Xiao Xi is a good child.”
"I'm not a child anymore," I sighed again.
“…It’s time to talk about marriage. She’s definitely not a child anymore.” After saying that, the older brother added, “The matter between Mr. Tao and Miss Lan has come to a temporary end. Miss Lan should have already gone back. Do you want to go back and see her too? I’ll go and meet this Empress Dowager Fan in a little while.”
Having said that, I naturally knew better, but before saying goodbye, I still couldn't help but give a earnest warning: "Be very careful of 'honey traps'!"
My older brother simply pushed me out of the study. The moment the door closed, I thought I heard a soft laugh coming from inside... Who was it?
Back at my lodgings, Lan Feiyu was already there, as expected. She looked unwell, her brows furrowed with worry. When she saw me, she only managed a weak smile. I felt uneasy and went over to take her hand, asking, "What's wrong? Did something not go well?"
Lan Feiyu shook her head and said in a low voice, "Mr. Tao's antidote has made considerable progress."
"What is that?"
“Xi’er, Mr. Tao said that according to intelligence from Bozhou, Xian Asa’s ‘medicine man’ team has already… has more than a hundred people.” Lan Feiyu said, biting her lower lip. “These things are difficult to harm even with ordinary weapons, let alone arrows. And once their filth gets into a normal person’s body, Xi’er, you know the consequences… Although Mr. Tao said that everyone can take the antidote beforehand, how to deal with the ‘medicine men’ is still a thorny problem. If we launch a direct attack, I’m afraid there will be many casualties…”
"Can't we use drugs?" I asked, "Like the kind that drugged Iris and the others before?"
Lan Feiyu smiled bitterly and shook his head again: "Those things are no longer human. To bewitch them, all of our people would have to fall ill. Even if they take the antidote beforehand, it won't work. It's far from enough."
Perhaps seeing that I also looked worried, Lan Feiyu patted my hand with a smile and asked, "What did Xi'er do today?"
Knowing she was intentionally changing the subject, I went along with it and told Lan Feiyu about Liu Che and Empress Dowager Fan, saying, "I wonder if you, big brother, can get anything out of Empress Dowager Fan... Yu'er, I was thinking, if there really is any information about the Xie family's wealth, I'll ask you, big brother, to let me go look for it. That money is no small sum, and it would be wonderful if it could be used for the defense of Bozhou, or even the entire southwestern border."
Hearing this, Lan Feiyu's eyes lit up: "That's true. Bozhou is mountainous with little land, making it extremely difficult for the people to cultivate the land. It has always been poor, and it is located between Eastern Chu and Tuluo, so it has to maintain its military strength. If a windfall were to fall from the sky, it would truly be a lifesaver. However... I'm afraid King Xinan would not agree... If you were to suffer any mishap under his protection, I'm afraid he might really turn the entire southwest upside down."
"Don't worry about that," I patted my chest. "Big brother will definitely agree. He'll either let me go treasure hunting or allow me to come with him. In any case, he won't be able to shake me off!"
Lan Feiyu stared at me for a while, then finally couldn't help but giggle and kissed me on the cheek.
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