Xie family
Chapter Twenty-Five
I recall the night before I met Monkey Chirp and Kite, the secret resolve I made to find my father during my lifetime. Now, the story of my father's origins has been unexpectedly thrown at me, saving me the trouble of even bending down to pick it up. It's the ultimate in getting something for nothing, but I'd rather it all be a fabrication by Lan Feiyu.
At the beginning of its founding, the Eastern Chu Kingdom received assistance from several powerful clans, with the Xie family being the most prominent, as far as I know.
The Xie Lian, my biological father mentioned by Lan Feiyu, was the patriarch of the Xie family back then. It is said that when Xie Lian's power was at its zenith, his daughter was the empress—the current crown prince of Eastern Chu is her own son, his son commanded the border army and held military power, and he himself held the position of Minister of Personnel, who made decisions on officials at all levels in the court.
As the saying goes, prosperity inevitably leads to decline. Before I was born, Empress Xie passed away, the Grand General was stripped of his military power by the emperor, and Xie Lian was exiled. It seems that he died shortly after leaving the capital. The Xie family's empire collapsed. By the time I was old enough to understand, the powerful clans in the court, led by the Xie family, had been almost completely dismantled by the emperor.
Legend has it that the decline of the Xie family was also closely related to the uncle. I naturally assumed that the Xie family intended to rebel, while the uncle assisted the emperor, so the two were naturally irreconcilable enemies.
But from Lan Feiyu's vague account, it seems that's not the case. If Xie Lian really is my biological father, his death doesn't seem to be so simple.
I pressed Lan Feiyu for details, but whether she was unwilling to elaborate or genuinely knew little, she only vaguely stated that her relationship with her uncle was very close, and to put it bluntly, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that her uncle killed her.
Despite feeling extremely dizzy, I refused to give up and kept pressing Lan Feiyu to tell me where she had learned all this. She refused to reveal anything, only telling me that she was an insider. Only in this way could she gain the trust of the royal family of Bozhou and Baili.
I had no choice but to go back to her and ask her, even if my father was Xie Lian, what did it have to do with me? Lan Feiyu looked at me and replied, "It has a lot to do with you, Xi'er. Only by getting you can I get money."
What kind of talk is this?
Lan Feiyu explained that this was actually related to the immense power and influence of the Xie family during Xie Lian's lifetime.
The Xie family had been in charge of the Huaihai Saltworks for many years, enriching themselves through it. Even if they only took a tiny fraction each year, it still amounted to a huge sum over the years. In addition, for a long time, the Xie family joined forces with several powerful families in the capital, Jinling, to firmly control trade with neighboring countries. All the taxes paid by caravans that traded in and out of Dongchu were ostensibly to replenish the national treasury, but in reality, after passing through the hands of several powerful families, very little was left for the emperor.
Although Xie Lian never imagined that the emperor he had personally helped ascend the throne would one day lose patience and turn around to eradicate the Xie family, he was cunning and had a vast fortune. Using this as leverage, he secretly learned from the paper tickets created by the then-existing Shu Kingdom and spread them far and wide, while secretly transporting real gold and silver to the Shu Kingdom to hide.
That enormous amount of gold and silver treasure has remained untouched to this day. Tragically, its location seems to be known only to Xie Lian and his son. However, Xie Lian is dead, and the location of the treasure has become a legend.
"Wait, you said it's just a legend, and it all happened before I was born, so how can it be related to me?" I gradually realized that they all thought I had a map to find the treasure.
Lan Feiyu said, "I heard it from someone else. Your mother was Xie Lian's last wife. When the Xie family was in trouble, she escaped because of your uncle. But you were already born at that time. Your father knew that your emperor was ruthless, so he told her where the treasure was hidden. Then, when you grew up, he asked you to come and find it, since it was something belonging to your Xie family."
"This is completely illogical!" I couldn't help but exclaim. "Putting aside whether this is true or not, even if it is as you say... Let me tell you, Lan Feiyu, my mother has no idea that I came out this time—then what does my father, Xie Lian, want me to find those gold and silver treasures for? The bigger the tree, the more the wind will blow. Does he want me to be targeted by the emperor and die a disgraceful death on charges of treason?"
“I don’t know what your father was planning. Maybe he just wanted to use the money he had saved up for his own descendants.” Lan Feiyu gently stroked the back of my hand, signaling me to calm down. “But don’t forget, the Shu Kingdom still existed back then! Even if he hoped you would get the money, recruit soldiers, and avenge him, wouldn’t that be normal?”
No!
I shivered; this is not normal at all!
If that's the case, then the Crown Prince, the one I've always called "Second Brother," should be my nephew according to seniority!
And my uncle, my favorite uncle, and the emperor whom I dared not get close to but respected greatly, both became my father's killers.
This is absolutely ridiculous!
I stared blankly at Lan Feiyu, then shook my head repeatedly after a long while: "No, no, this is too unbelievable, impossible, absolutely impossible! Where did you hear such a ridiculous rumor from? It's laughable, it's really too funny!"
To show that I am true to myself, I laughed loudly three times in this little cabin, with the heroic spirit of "I will not die on an ordinary bed, but will go to the execution ground with a smile."
Unfortunately, this moment of exhilaration was extremely short-lived. Before the laughter had even subsided, I suddenly felt a strange tightness in my chest, coughed a few times, and a sweet, metallic taste rose in my throat. When I opened my mouth again, I spat out a mouthful of blood, as if I were spitting phlegm.
Lan Feiyu hurried over and solemnly stuffed another small black pill into my mouth, saying softly, "Alright, alright, if it's impossible, it's impossible. Let's talk about it when you're a little better. Lie down and rest first."
I shook my head again, not daring to speak, my chest churning with turmoil, fearing that it would soon be blood or some other filth.
"With your injuries so severe, you're unable to move around easily. If something happens, you'll be at the mercy of others, won't you?" Lan Feiyu supported my left shoulder, applying slight pressure to make me lie down. "Focus on recovering first, and we can discuss things more carefully later."
I looked at her, and this time I wasn't just afraid I wouldn't be able to speak; even if I could, I wouldn't know what to say to her.
Lan Feiyu saw through my thoughts. She sighed slightly and said with a wry smile, "Alright, Xi'er, I promise you, I will never do anything against your wishes until you are healed. Can you sleep peacefully now?"
"...How can you guarantee that?" I could speak now, but my voice was terribly hoarse.
Lan Feiyu stared at me silently, then rolled up her sleeve, revealing the scar on her arm from our blood oath: "Regardless of whether I had any ulterior motives back then, we were sworn brothers. Now that you are in trouble, if I were to kick you while you're down, then... then I would be punished by being forced to marry a man more cruel, vicious, vile, and lowly than Amuyue and Xian Asa, and be a slave for life."
I couldn't help but laugh as I listened: "Plus, have ten more children with them."
"No, that's disgusting." Lan Feiyu frowned, then smiled at me and kissed my cheek. "Now, are you at ease?"
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