Bai Zhiyi said, "Do you think you can exonerate him by fabricating a couple of lies?"
Wei Jingzhuo said, "Everything A-Wan said is true. I really didn't know there were explosives in the car, and I didn't even know there was an ambush in Ganxi Valley."
Bai Zhiyi said, "So it turns out I've been wronging you all along. It's astonishing that the Crown Prince of Jin, who is both scholarly and martial, couldn't guess that there was an ambush in Ganxi Valley. Then, may I ask who planted the explosives?"
Su Wan said, "I know who planted the explosives; it was Xie Maoliang."
Bai Zhiyi trembled slightly and said, "Who did you say? Say the name again."
Su Wan emphasized, "Xie Maoliang was once a general under A Jin, but later secretly defected to the Southern Chu Kingdom. He conspired with Ge Fanghai, the magistrate of Suiyang County, to assassinate A Jin and the general. I witnessed all of this firsthand."
Bai Zhiyi paused for a moment, then suddenly chuckled and said, "How interesting. If you're talking about someone else, I really can't verify it. Someone, bring General Xie out."
A soldier entered the cabin and soon came out with a military officer.
Su Wan recognized the man's face and exclaimed, "It's him, Xie Maoliang!"
Xie Maoliang approached Bai Zhiyi, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed, saying, "What are your orders, Goddess?"
Bai Zhiyi said, "This woman said that you conspired with Ge Fanghai, the magistrate of Suiyang County, to plant explosives in the Shence Cart in the General's Mansion to kill Wei Jingzhuo?"
Xie Maoliang burst into laughter upon hearing this, and looked at Su Wan, saying, "Such blatant provocation is truly laughable."
Su Wan stomped her foot angrily and said, "Stop pretending. That night, when you and Ge Fanghai were plotting in the county government office, Sister Chu and I overheard everything from the rooftop. You said you'd blow up A Jin, and the Southern Chu Kingdom would appoint you as the Prefect of Youzhou..."
Xie Maoliang crossed his arms and gestured for Su Wan to continue.
"Madam, please continue your fabrication."
Su Wan was furious and shouted, "Who made this up? It's all true!"
Xie Maoliang laughed and said, "Madam is indeed a clever woman, knowing that we are in a disadvantageous position. She wants to use her silver tongue to incite us to fight among ourselves. But even a seven or eight-year-old child can understand such a trick, so how could it possibly fool the goddess?"
Su Wan almost fainted from anger. Just as she was about to continue speaking, Wei Jingzhuo stopped her: "Awan, don't say anymore. Miss Bai won't believe it."
Bai Zhiyi said, "When we boarded the ship, General Xie warned me that if we encountered you, you would probably use provocative tactics to incite us to kill each other. I didn't expect that he would be right."
Su Wan gritted her teeth and looked at Xie Maoliang. After a long while, she said, "You're something else, at least you know how to get a preventative shot."
Xie Maoliang bowed and said, "Thank you for your praise."
Su Wan was furious, but she couldn't help but admire Xie Maoliang's methods. He had warned Bai Zhiyi beforehand, so no matter what she said now, Bai Zhiyi wouldn't believe him. Instead, she would think that Xie Maoliang had guessed her plans.
I'm so angry! The real culprit who harmed Bai Zhiyi is right there standing there.
Wei Jingzhuo pressed her hand, signaling her not to act impulsively, and said to Xie Maoliang, "Xie Maoliang, I have treated you well. Why would you collude with Southern Chu spies to murder me?"
Xie Maoliang said, "I have never colluded with any Southern Chu spies. But you say you have treated me well, you are sorely mistaken. We brothers have followed you for so many years, what have we gotten in return? You immediately take any gold or silver to buy military rations for the soldiers. We have nothing, not even a cup of tea. Is this what you call treating me well?"
Wei Jingzhuo said, "Father has not been sending any grain or provisions to Youzhou. It is extremely difficult for us to maintain the Northwest Camp."
“Wei Jingzhuo, you’re wrong,” Xie Maoliang said. “By saying this, you’re asking me to understand your difficulties. But you must understand that I only consider my own difficulties. I’m following you to fight against the Western Rong because I want to gain something. A position, treasure—even if you give me just one of them, I won’t leave you.”
Wei Jingzhuo remained silent.
Xie Maoliang said, "You think everyone should share your joys and sorrows? That's ridiculous. I admit that many generals are loyal to you, like Lin Qingfeng, whom I admire. But I'm not like that, nor are my two thousand brothers. We all want to be rewarded and have our families honored. We won't get anything in return unless we die under the swords of the Western Rong army."
As he spoke, he turned to the soldiers on the ship and asked, "Do you agree with what I'm saying?"
The soldiers on the ship all raised their hands and said, "General Xie is right."
Su Wan said, "Xie Maoliang, don't try to make your selfishness sound so noble. You're just a stupid idiot who only thinks about himself."
Xie Maoliang said, "Madam is right. Everything I've done is for myself. Whether it's betraying Wei Jingzhuo, following Bai Zhiyi to surrender to Southern Chu, or digging open the Guijiang Estuary, it's all for myself, just like what I'm about to do now."
After saying that, he suddenly reached out to snatch the metal cylinder from Bai Zhiyi's hand.
Bai Zhiyi was completely unprepared for his sudden attack. He snatched the metal cylinder away and then pointed it at Wei Jingzhuo before pressing the button.
A flash of green light appeared, and Wei Jingzhuo groaned, clutching his chest as he fell backward.
All of this happened so fast that Su Wan and Bai Zhiyi both screamed in surprise.
Bai Zhiyi lunged to the side of the boat and cried out at the top of her lungs, "Your Highness!" Just as she was about to jump into the water, Xie Maoliang grabbed her wrist and pulled her back, then raised the metal cylinder and aimed it at Su Wan again.
Su Wan only saw a flash of green light before Wei Jingzhuo collapsed, his condition unknown. The metal cylinder seemed capable of emitting a dangerous beam of light, and she instinctively grabbed a frying pan from her apartment and held it to her chest.
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