Why did Li Yuanzhao want to kill him? (Chapter 218)
When the fire broke out that day, Liu Jinzhang did not sleep as usual. Instead, he sat in his study, waiting for Shizhu to return from the Princess's residence and report back to him.
So he noticed the fire immediately.
The fire spread quickly, with flames licking the wooden walls like madmen, and in the blink of an eye, it engulfed the roof.
He rushed to his mother's and maid Xiao Cui's residence immediately.
The house was locked from the inside, and no matter how much he knocked on the door, the person inside did not respond, as if they were fast asleep.
His heart tightened, and he was about to burst through the door when his arm was suddenly grabbed tightly.
Looking back, it was Wang Er.
Wang Er, who lives near the "Qingjiaotou" area, collects incense from house to house every night.
He was working tonight when he looked up and saw flames shooting into the sky.
He recognized the location at a glance; it belonged to Grand Tutor Liu.
Grand Tutor Liu was a good man and never looked down on people like them.
Moreover, many years ago, when his elderly mother fell ill and he had no money for treatment, it was Liu Taifu who paid for him to find a doctor, which allowed his mother to live a few more years.
Seeing the Liu family's house on fire, he was so anxious that he dropped what he was doing and rushed over here.
When he got to the back door, he knocked on it desperately, but no one answered.
Having no other option, he simply climbed over the wall and entered the courtyard.
As soon as he landed, he saw that Grand Tutor Liu was about to rush into the fire, and he immediately rushed over and stopped him.
"Grand Tutor, I'll go!"
After saying that, Wang Er rushed inside without hesitation.
Liu Jinzhang quickly grabbed him, "It's too dangerous inside, I can't let you take the risk."
“I’m a manual laborer, I’m tough and strong, I’m sure I can get the person out.”
Seeing that the Grand Tutor still wouldn't let go, Wang Er hurriedly pleaded, "Besides, when you gave me money to save my mother back then, I knelt on the ground and swore that I would repay your kindness in this lifetime. Now is the time, please let me go, any later and it will really be too late for the people inside!"
Seeing the stubbornness and earnestness in his eyes, Liu Jinzhang finally let go.
Wang Er nodded to him, then turned and rushed into the raging fire.
But before a cup of tea could be brewed, the house, which was already on the verge of collapse from the fire, suddenly let out a loud bang.
The beam, still carrying sparks, collapsed with a deafening roar, burying everything inside in a sea of fire.
Looking at the raging fire that was engulfing everything, Liu Jinzhang knew that if he didn't leave, he would also be burned to death here.
He had no time to grieve; he could only turn and leave.
It wasn't until two hours later that the raging fire completely consumed everything.
The fire gradually died out, leaving only a dark ruin.
Liu Jinzhang hid in the crowd and saw Li Yuanzhao who had come with the Imperial Guards.
At that moment, he suddenly realized that the fire, which came so quickly and unexpectedly, was not an accident.
It was Li Yuanzhao who wanted to kill him.
The Imperial Guards carried out the three charred corpses.
Wang Er's build was just about the same size as his, and given the chaos at the scene, no one expected that someone would die in the fire in his place.
Everyone assumed that was his body.
He remained hidden in the crowd, not stepping forward to show that he was still alive.
He spent six years with Li Yuanzhao, watching her grow from a young girl into the woman she is today.
He knows her too well.
He believed that Li Yuanzhao would kill him for some reason, but he absolutely did not believe that she would wipe out his entire family.
Although she was ruthless, she was not one to kill innocent people indiscriminately, nor would she do such a meaningless thing.
The deaths of his mother, Xiao Cui, and Wang Er were merely a consequence of his actions.
He did not hate Li Yuanzhao, nor did he have any thoughts of revenge.
In his heart, the country was always greater than the family.
Personal gains and losses, honor and disgrace, must always give way to the nation.
Even if Li Yuanzhao told him directly, "You must die," he would not hesitate to die.
It's not just because of those dark feelings that can't be told to outsiders.
And because no matter how ambitious, ruthless, and decisive she was, she was still the restorer of the dynasty that he firmly believed in.
She may not have the benevolence of a wise ruler, but she has enough skill and ability.
With her around, the Great Qi Dynasty will surely usher in an unprecedented golden age.
For the sake of this hope, his sacrifice is nothing at all.
He just needed to figure out why Li Yuanzhao wanted to kill him.
He knew perfectly well that she would never kill him in a fit of anger over an argument.
There must be some reason he doesn't know, and he must find out.
He carefully recalled everything that had happened in the past six months and found that Li Yuanzhao had been acting strangely.
And all of this seems to have started after the appearance of that guard named Chen Yanqing.
So he began to secretly investigate the guard who had suddenly appeared beside Li Yuanzhao.
The more they investigated, the stranger they found this person to be.
Several guards who had served with Chen Yanqing said that this man was extremely lucky.
After each shift, the guards would gather together to play dice to pass the time, and this man won nine out of ten times.
Such people seem to be blessed by heaven.
He then learned through various inquiries that Chen Yanqing was an orphan who grew up in a remote town in Lingnan. He had only come to the capital alone at the beginning of the year to make a living, and was "snatched" back to the palace by Li Yuanzhao on the street. Later, by chance, he became Li Yuanzhao's bodyguard.
Li Yuanzhao seemed to value him highly, keeping him by his side every day.
However, he also issued a strict order forbidding other guards and servants in the princess's residence from having any private dealings with him.
This contradiction made it unclear to him what Li Yuanzhao's attitude towards him was.
To find out the truth, he even went south to Lingnan in person and found the small village where Chen Yanqing grew up.
As soon as the village elders heard Chen Yanqing's name, they started talking all at once about him.
One person said, "This child was originally from the capital! He was picked up from a pile of dead bodies on the outskirts of the capital by a peddler. He was brought back to Lingnan, but the peddler died of illness within two years, and he became an orphan."
Another person nearby retorted, "It's not a pile of dead bodies! I heard from my deceased brother that the peddler bought it from a human trafficker in the capital, intending to sell it in Lingnan to make some money. However, he was robbed by bandits on the way and died on the spot. This kid didn't know that and escaped a disaster."
Regardless of which version is correct, it proves that he was born in the capital and later moved from the capital to Lingnan.
The others also told him that Chen Yanqing was no ordinary person.
"This kid is something else! When he was little, he went to the mountains with a group of kids to dig for medicinal herbs. They encountered a giant python, and all the other kids were swallowed up, but he was the only one who ran back unharmed!"
"And then there was that hurricane two years ago! The wind was so strong it could have blown houses off their roofs, and he was swept away by it! We all thought he was definitely gone, but ten days later, he slowly walked back on his own, without a single wound on his body, just like nothing had happened!"
As he listened to these unbelievable rumors, his doubts grew heavier.
Who exactly is this Chen Yanqing?
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