Chapter 41 What is broken in the dim light?
"You heard everything just now, didn't you?"
Xie Qingyu looked at Xie Yunying, smiled, and said with an ambiguous expression, "What a coincidence, you always seem to stumble upon me having private conversations with others."
Yin Yi escorted Xie Yunying into the house, closed the door, and left, leaving only Xie Yunying and Xie Qingyu in the large room. The begonia-patterned window frames stretched out in the afternoon light, extending onto the entire bluestone floor, like flowers clinging to the rocks.
Xie Qingyu, sitting behind the desk, was handsome and radiant. She wore a Jingyuan ink-painted robe, with her long hair flowing smoothly down her back, resembling a jade mountain in full bloom.
Xie Yunying chuckled awkwardly twice: "Coincidence, it really is all a coincidence."
He looked up, his usual cheerful demeanor replaced by a calm expression: "You've come to see me all of a sudden, is there something you need?"
"...Actually, it's nothing," Xie Yunying stammered, barely suppressing her embarrassment, as she had to explain her blunder again. "I saw Xie Lianquan come in, and I thought he was going to do something naughty in your yard, so I followed him..."
"laugh."
Hearing Xie Qingyu's laughter, Xie Yunying became angry and embarrassed: "I was just trying to be kind! He had sneaked into Xie Zhi's study before, and I was just afraid he would do something while you were away!"
"Besides, your guards weren't very strict. If they hadn't let me in, I wouldn't have overheard your conversation..."
Xie Qingyu smiled: "Because it was my suggestion."
Xie Yunying was taken aback. Xie Qingyu said calmly, "Yin Yi heard your argument and came to tell me, which is why I let him bring you in. If it were anyone else, I would have had Yin Yi keep them outside until the conversation was over, but since we already know each other's secrets, it doesn't matter if you know these things."
Xie Yunying mustered her courage and asked, "Since you've already said that we've shared our secrets, can you at least tell me what happened between you two?"
Xie Qingyu smiled enigmatically: "Of course. Just ask."
"Just now I heard Xie Lianquan beg for your mercy. He said that he colluded with the Wang family to sell you to Jinling. Is what he said true?"
Xie Qingyu: "Of course, but he didn't sell me, he sold 'Xie Qingyu'. When I transmigrated here, Xie Qingyu was already in the slave shed."
"But you actually forgave him like that? You..." You don't seem like such a magnanimous person! Xie Yunying didn't dare finish the rest of her sentence.
Xie Qingyu said with a half-smile, "Who said I forgave him?"
Xie Yunying was taken aback, only to hear Xie Qingyu's voice, as clear as a babbling brook, slowly recount: "He knelt on the ground begging me to show him leniency, simply because he wanted to keep his official position. I found it laughable. Official position? I originally intended to take his life directly."
Xie Yunying: "......."
system:"........"
Xie Yunying broke out in a cold sweat. She felt that the seemingly gentle and refined person in front of her was beginning to exude a chilling aura that seemed to have a tangible presence.
She asked cautiously, "If you hate him so much, why did you ultimately let him go?"
Xie Qingyu raised an eyebrow: "Who said I hated him? I'm not the real 'Xie Qingyu'. I killed him only because keeping him around would get in my way."
"But now is not the time to kill him. Let's wait a while. He's still useful while he's alive. We should make the most of him before killing him."
Xie Yunying: "......."
Xie Yunying trembled, "This... is this something you can just kill whenever you want? If you want to kill him, you won't be able to get past Xie Zhi, will you?"
Xie Qingyu didn't answer directly, but smiled: "Since you heard everything, you must have also heard him say that he went to beg Xie Zhi, but Xie Zhi ignored him, right?"
Xie Yunying was skeptical: "Xie Zhi really doesn't intend to save him? It shouldn't be that bad, Xie Lianquan is his own son after all."
Xie Qingyu smiled enigmatically: "Then you still don't understand Xie Zhi at all."
"You must have heard about the 'anti-Wang case' that's been making headlines in Yanjing lately, right?"
Xie Yunying: "I know that. My system mentioned it to me."
Xie Qingyu: "Then do you know who orchestrated and planned this whole thing?"
Xie Qingyu's question came abruptly, but Xie Yunying seemed to sense something, her eyes gradually shifting from blankness to shock: "You mean...!"
Xie Qingyu smiled slightly: "That's right, it is Xie Zhi."
"Xie Zhi appeared to be a humble and kind gentleman, but in reality he was ruthless and cruel. After he discovered that Wang was indeed planning a rebellion, he began to think about how to eliminate Wang in one fell swoop."
"Xie Zhi values the Xie family the most. If the Wang family launches a coup or is reported by others while preparing a rebellion, it will inevitably implicate the Xie family. The Wang family's actions will drag the Xie family, which is deeply intertwined with them, down with them. This is something Xie Zhi will never allow to happen."
"Therefore, Xie Zhi collected evidence of the Wang family's corruption, bribery, abuse of power and profiteering over the years and submitted it to the emperor in the form of a secret report. The official who reported the Wang family at the morning court was also authorized by the emperor and was only in charge of organizing the group."
Xie Yunying was so shocked she couldn't speak: "But...but, isn't it said that the Xie family and the Wang family have been intermarrying for generations and are already a community of interests? Isn't Xie Zhi afraid that the Wang family will report him and drag him down with them?"
Xie Qingyu: "This is where Xie Zhi's cunning lies. The Xie family and the Wang family have cooperated for many years, but Xie Zhi has always been wary of Wang Zhichang and hasn't left too much leverage in the hands of the Wang family. But Wang Zhichang is no fool. Xie Zhi didn't reveal any secrets, and the Wang family couldn't have been bound to the Xie family for so long. Xie Zhi must have something in Wang Zhichang's hands, so Xie Zhi's act of reporting the Wang family is actually equivalent to showing loyalty to the emperor and making the Xie family sever ties with the Wang family."
"As for the Wang family, I guess they still don't know that Xie Zhi orchestrated this, because Xie Zhi arranged for people to muddy the waters and frame the people from the poor families," Xie Qingyu said. "Xie Zhi's plan was originally flawless, but he discovered Xie Lianquan's collusion with the Wang family during its execution, and he was furious."
"Xie Lianquan thought Xie Zhi was furious because of me, but he was wrong. In Xie Zhi's eyes, 'Xie Qingyu' was just an heir who suited his tastes. The reason he was angry was because he discovered that Xie Lianquan had used his position to help the Wang family members bribe officials on multiple occasions, and that he had done so in a very dirty way. Now that the Wang family is about to fall, these things will be exposed, which will not only harm Xie Lianquan himself, but also bring shame to the Xie family. That's why Xie Zhi was so angry."
"So I agreed to his request and pleaded with Xie Zhi on his behalf, because whether I pleaded or not, the result would be the same." Xie Qingyu said with a faint smile, "Xie Zhi had long planned to protect the Xie family, and all the trouble would be blamed on Xie Lianquan himself. Xie Lianquan had long been used by Xie Zhi as a sacrifice in this struggle." However, Xie Lianquan was unaware of all this.
Xie Yunying was stunned. She murmured, "This is too much..."
"This is too complicated!!" Xie Yunying lamented inwardly. "There are so many twists and turns here! Am I the most ignorant person in this mansion?!"
The system reassured, "Don't be afraid, host. I just downloaded a brain plugin. Let me see if I can install it for you."
Xie Yunying: "......."
Xie Yunying: "What a terrifying lame joke. System, promise me you'll never tell it again, okay?"
Xie Qingyu's voice became languid: "Is there anything else you want to ask?"
Xie Yunying scratched her hands, then hesitated before speaking, "There's still something I don't quite understand. Since eliminating the Wang family would also severely damage the Xie family, why didn't Xie Zhi choose to cooperate with the Wang family? If the Wang and Xie families conspired together, they might actually succeed in their rebellion?"
“Not everyone wants to be emperor, at least Xie Zhi doesn’t. He’s an interesting man. Although he’s power-hungry, he’s not blinded by it. He always maintains absolute rationality and caution, and he’s unwilling to take the slightest risk in anything he does—perhaps that’s why he was able to squeeze out a bunch of old ministers and secure the position of prime minister.” Xie Qingyu mocked, “How could that old bastard Wang Zhichang be a match for him?”
A flash of inspiration crossed Xie Yunying's mind, and she quickly seized it: "But this doesn't make sense. If the Xie family can completely suppress the Wang family, then why does the original book say that Xie Zhi never took a concubine because he was worried about the Wang family?"
Xie Qingyu laughed: "Who told you that he didn't take a concubine because he was worried about Wang Shi?"
Xie Yunying fell silent: "..."
Xie Qingyu: "Oh, so it's your system."
Xie Yunying: "......."
System: "Holy crap! Can this guy read minds? How did he know?!"
Xie Yunying rolled her eyes in despair: "Shut up."
Xie Qingyu tapped the table and chuckled, "Let me give you a piece of advice. The plot has already deviated a hundred and eight thousand miles from the original book, and it will definitely deviate even more in the future. Moreover, the explanations and settings in the original book have limited perspectives, so you can use them as a reference, but don't take them as the standard."
Xie Yunying persisted: "Then tell me, why has Xie Zhi never taken a concubine?"
Xie Qingyu: "Because he is impotent."
Seeing Xie Yunying frozen in place, Xie Qingyu found her reaction amusing and laughed, though her smile held a hint of amusement: "Didn't expect the reason to be so simple? I was just like you before, coming up with all sorts of reasons for him. I even suspected he might have homosexual tendencies."
"However, you are right about one thing. Xie Zhi did not intend to kill Xie Lianquan. After all, he was his son, and he had few children to begin with, and he probably wouldn't have any more in the future. He just wanted to teach Xie Lianquan a lesson. If Xie Lianquan were really in mortal danger, he would not stand idly by."
Xie Yunying's head was about to explode: "Then, what if the emperor wants to wipe out our Xie family as well? That's possible. After all, the emperor has always disliked aristocratic families controlling the court and oppressing the poor. If Xie Zhi reports the Wang family's behavior, wouldn't that be handing the emperor a handle on the Xie family?"
"Because Xie Zhi actually calculated things very clearly. He understood the emperor's style of doing things and his temperament. Even if the emperor had a problem with him, he would not take action against two powerful families at once. Just eliminating the Wang family alone would have been a major reshuffle of the court."
"The emperor will definitely keep the Xie family as a representative of the aristocratic families to form a balance of power with the commoners. This is because if any one faction holds absolute power in the court, it will endanger the imperial rule. On the contrary, a situation where the two factions are fighting each other is the best." Xie Qingyu said this and smiled meaningfully. "In fact, the one who benefits the most from this series of events is the emperor."
Without having to do anything, the annoying troubles disappear automatically. Isn't this a perfect example of getting something for nothing?
Xie Yunying: "...System."
System: "What's wrong, host?"
Xie Yunying: "Is my brain plugin not ready yet?"
system:"???"
Xie Yunying said dejectedly, "Damn it, why are we all transmigrators? My brain is so much worse than Xie Qingyu's, I don't want to live anymore..."
System: "Host, you're going to die from the tonic!"
Xie Yunying's brain was overloaded and she urgently needed a break, so she lay motionless on the table like a corpse.
Just then, a few soft sounds came from outside the door, and Xie Yunying heard Xie Qingyu say, "Come in."
A silver hem flashed past her eyes, and the person who entered moved silently. Xie Yunying was stunned for a moment, then looked up from her arms and saw that it was the guard named Yin Yi.
Yin Yi was surprised that Xie Yunying was still there. He paused for a moment, and Xie Qingyu gestured to him, indicating that he could report directly without having to avoid Xie Yunying.
Yin Yi bowed respectfully: "Young Master, Master previously said that he wanted to invite a Taoist master to our home to tell fortunes. I went to inquire and found out that the person has been found and will be sent to pick him up on the 27th of this month."
Xie Qingyu hummed in agreement and picked up the teacup beside her. "I understand. Remember to bring the person here beforehand. Whether you use coercion or bribery, keep them under control first, so nothing goes wrong."
"By the way, which celestial temple's celestial master is he? What is his name?"
Yin Yi: "He's not a celestial master from the Heavenly Temple, but someone from the Princess's residence named Yue Yining."
Upon hearing that all-too-familiar name, Xie Yunying froze. However, before she could even look up, a sudden, crisp cracking sound rang in her ears.
She straightened up and realized that Xie Qingyu hadn't held the teacup properly, and the ceramic cup had smashed on the ground, with shards of sky-blue glaze and tea splashing all over the floor.
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