Chapter 96 Parting (Part 1): Choosing One of Two Options and Making a Decision
That's quite frank, Li Yunru thought, but she still wouldn't give up on pursuing the matter. Just like Yan Ning said, kindness is kindness, and resentment is resentment; everything should be clearly calculated!
However, this was a matter between her and Cui Wan, and she had made a decision not to let him get involved!
...
After returning from the other courtyard, Cui did not go back to her Buddhist hall, but instead entered a small courtyard in the west wing of the Yan family.
This place is extremely remote; it used to be a deserted courtyard, uninhabited, with only two or three servants responsible for cleaning and tidying up. Tonight, it has a new master...
She was a young girl who had been kept outside by Yan Lang three years ago.
She put on the clothes of a concubine, styled her hair like a married woman, and became much more restrained. She could sit quietly and no longer made a fuss or wanted to run away.
Yan Er is even more cunning than Yan Langzhu.
The person was looking at the flowers through the window. When they saw her coming, they raised their eyelids slightly and said with a hint of sarcasm, "What a rare guest! Mother, you have time to come and visit me."
The girls of commoners are always so unruly. Liyang is one, and so is she. But when Cui hears this now, she doesn't feel uncomfortable at all. Instead, she feels a sense of sorrow.
She went inside, sat down next to the woman, looked at her, and asked, "Have you ever thought about leaving here?"
"If you want to leave, I can help you."
The young woman hadn't really paid her any attention before, but when she heard this, she burst out laughing. She turned around and stared at Cui Shi with a look that seemed to be mocking her, or perhaps blaming her, questioning what she had been doing before if she wanted to help her.
And that's exactly what happened; the woman spoke frankly.
"Where do I go now?"
She looked at Cui coldly, "What were you doing three years ago? You didn't care at all. Now that things have gotten a little better for me, Mother remembers me."
Madam Cui was rendered speechless by her question. Only Granny Chen couldn't stand it any longer and stepped forward to scold, "How dare you! Who gave you permission to speak to Madam like that!"
The man slapped the young woman across the face, claiming it was to teach her manners. The woman didn't dodge and took the blow head-on, leaving a red mark on her pretty face immediately.
She wanted to hit him again, but Mrs. Cui stopped her.
The woman didn't appreciate the gesture and mocked her for being hypocritical.
She stood up, laughing maniacally, and said, "You, that old man, the master, the lady... everyone in this house is a hypocrite!"
Li Niang hates everyone here!
They were all dressed in fine clothes, but their inner selves were filthy and despicable!
She came from a humble background and her life wasn't particularly wealthy; her family ran a tofu stall. However, her parents were loving, and she had a good marriage to the son of the silversmith next door. The two grew up together, and she called him Brother A Niu.
She and Brother A Niu were originally going to get married.
The two families matched their birth dates and made an engagement. Brother A Niu gave her a lot of silver jewelry as a betrothal gift. The gleaming silver was so beautiful that it was hard to look away.
Everyone praised her for being lucky.
But all of this was ruined by the Yan family!
The honest and law-abiding father was inexplicably taken to the county government office and never came out. His mother said she would save him, so she went to find a powerful person.
But after that night, she never had a mother again.
A white silk ribbon sealed her fate.
The family, who were originally preparing for a happy occasion, ended up holding a funeral.
She was also confined here.
To become a pawn in these family struggles, a pawn that can be discarded at will.
She initially considered running away.
Even when she was heavily pregnant, she still wanted to run away, knowing that Brother A Niu would wait for her.
But she couldn't wait for her chance.
She had once asked her for help, but the woman ignored her. She watched her suffer, struggle, and break down into despair, and the woman only said lightly, "It is your good fortune to be favored by the master."
Now that Brother A Niu is dead, she has nothing left and is trapped between these high gates. And now she's starting to do good deeds.
hypocritically!
Everyone in this place deserves to go to hell!
She will definitely do it, one day!
Knowing that she owed her something, Cui felt particularly helpless seeing her like this. She could only sigh and say, "Fine, I won't force you. You can come to Jing'an Hall to find me anytime you come to figure things out."
...
Li Yunru and Yan Ning originally planned to go to Jiangzuo to take charge, but they were unable to go smoothly. When they were about to cross the river, it rained for two days in a row, which delayed them for some time. Then, an imperial edict blocked their way.
It turned out that Yang Yan and Wang Wu had both written to Emperor Wucheng about the earlier incident, and since both sides had their own version of events, Emperor Wucheng ordered Yan Ning to return to the capital to report.
"This imperial edict came at just the right time."
Li Yunru held the imperial edict, her brows furrowed so deeply they could have crushed a fly.
"Could it be that someone did this on purpose?"
They didn't come earlier or later, but they just happened to come at this time, which makes it hard not to arouse their suspicion.
"It's alright."
Yan Ning took her hand and asked her to sit on her lap to soothe her emotions.
He could choose not to go back. After all, a general in the field is not bound by military orders. He has military power in Jiangzuo and can act independently. But if he did that, he wouldn't be Yan Changjun.
He was not obsessed with power and position, but he knew that if he disobeyed the imperial decree, it would be tantamount to holding military power and giving others an excuse to impeach him. At that time, not to mention the newly discovered mine, even the military power left by Liyang would be in danger.
Besides, marching and fighting are time-consuming, labor-intensive, costly, and even life-threatening matters. Who in the army doesn't have a family and relatives? It's not worth it for such a small thing.
He won't do that!
Therefore, Yan Ning will choose to return to the capital.
"Don't worry, I'm upright and honest, nothing will happen to me. Besides, your brother and sister are still in the capital. They'll help me out, no matter what."
Li Yunru nestled in his arms, her eyes lowered, not saying a word. She had a bad feeling about her, her heart felt heavy, as if something was about to happen.
Seeing her tightly furrowed brows, Yan Ning felt quite uncomfortable, but she didn't know what to say. No matter how eloquent or knowledgeable she was, she seemed to become mute in front of her, feeling nothing but discomfort.
He leaned in, kissed her eyebrows and eyes, smoothed out her furrowed brows, and comforted her in a soft voice, "Don't worry, Liyang, everything will be alright."
Those dark, shiny eyes, like those of a raccoon dog, staring at you so expectantly, are truly irresistible.
Li Yunru didn't listen, but she wrapped her arms around his neck and took the initiative to kiss him.
Yan Ning was stunned, her body stiffened, and her beautiful eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at her.
Li Yunru ignored his surprise and continued kissing him, tracing his features inch by inch.
The rain pattered against the small window, and the dimly lit room was damp and hot.
A sudden downpour overnight.
Yan Ning still left. Before leaving, Li Yunru asked him for the tiger tally, which granted him military power in Jiangzuo.
"You'd better be fine. Come back and return it to you exactly as I gave it to you, or else..."
Yan Ning silently stopped her from speaking, gripping the tiger tally and seal tightly in her hands, telling her that these things originally belonged to her.
yes!
It was originally hers!
Li Yunru had said in the past, "Your Yan family has taken the benefits from me, so you should treat me with respect."
But it didn't work.
Not to mention that the dowry of military power was a power struggle, which was even more complicated and chaotic. The emperor did not give it to her directly, but promised it to the Yan family in the name of dowry.
According to conventional wisdom, women are not allowed to hold power. As a result, no women have served as officials in the court during this dynasty, and even merchants and laborers are few and far between.
Everyone generally agrees that a woman's domain lies in the home, where she can manage the household, assist her husband, weave cloth, raise silkworms, sew clothes, and do laundry...
She once thought no, she once hated these things, and wondered why it was like this.
Perhaps it was because she had been in that kind of environment for a long time that when she made her voice heard, she received no recognition, unlike when she was still a young lady in her room, when at least her parents and sisters would pay attention to her, even if they were not sincere. They would respond to everything and praise her, saying, "If our Ruilin'er were a boy, she would have accomplished great things and surpass all those men."
They praised her, never spoiling the mood by pointing out what she did wrong or unreasonable according to rules and conventions. She was happy to keep talking, but once she entered the Yan family, no one paid any attention to her anymore. If she talked too much, she would be considered unorthodox. Since her father was still alive, they dared not punish her directly, but ridiculed her openly and secretly, saying that she was overestimating herself. Gradually, as time went on, she struggled but could not overcome it, and she seemed to begin to doubt right and wrong, and even tacitly accepted these rules and stopped thinking about them.
If Yan Ning takes over, then it's his; if the Yan family takes over, even if she has grievances, she won't say anything.
That's how it is. It's supposed to be her dowry, but can she really use this tiger symbol to command the army?
None of them are possible.
She never considered taking it back.
Until she reached the northern border... she saw her friend Huo Ying wearing the same heavy armor as men, wielding a long spear, and able to single-handedly dismount an invading Rongdi man. She also saw Du Sanniang, a man, forming her own caravan, traveling north and south, even daring to risk her life to trespass against the Rongdi, enduring many twists and turns without retreating. Her abilities and will were no less than those of men. Her heart began to beat again.
She never thought she would meet Yan Ning again. The two of them were like this today, but she thought that one day she could be like them, able to live without relying on anyone, and create something of her own with her own two hands.
The tiger tally weighed heavily in her hand, and Li Yunru was filled with mixed emotions.
She... is someone I can accept?
Yes, that's possible!
Li Yunru took the tiger tally and seal to Jiangzuo, met with Song Ji, and the two worked together to handle the mine's affairs.
Thanks to the reputation Yan Ning and he had built in the military over the years, she didn't encounter too much trouble.
Compared to the smooth sailing on her end.
Things became much more difficult after Yan Ning returned to the capital. Emperor Wu Cheng summoned him to the palace for questioning under the pretext of the Anzhou incident, but he gave him two choices directly: either hand over military power or... hand over the mines.
"Under this whole heaven, all land belongs to the emperor. The Jiangzuo Army and the mines should actually be under the control of the royal family."
He said that he valued his old friendship with Emperor Xuan, which was why he had not taken back the military power. But after so many years, it was time to return it to the imperial family.
“My dear minister is a wise and virtuous man. He has always been educated by a noble family and studied the classics. He is not a barbarian with only physical strength. It is really difficult for him to work among that group of barbarians. I have served in the army before and know better than anyone that it is not an easy task. The late emperor’s lineage loved Liyang the most. I was heartbroken by her passing. I really couldn’t bear to see her husband suffer such a disaster. Moreover, only when the world is unified can there be stability. When the world is at peace, the people’s livelihood is at peace.”
Oh!
Every word they utter is cloaked in a glamorous guise, claiming it's for their own good, for the well-being of the people, and for the stability of the world; in reality, it's all for their own benefit.
He wanted to seize real power and have troops outside the capital city that were exclusively at his disposal and obeyed his orders.
Um.
He didn't believe in Yan Ning's loyalty!
How could the former emperor's son-in-law be willing and at ease to work for him?
Holding such great power is too dangerous.
In the past, he was untouchable within the Yan family, but now that he has left the Yan family and become an enemy of all powerful clans, things are much easier to handle...
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Author's Note: The last line in the narration, "People's livelihood and well-being are actually for the sake of profit," was used with my friend's permission. We just happened to chat and thought it fit, so I used it in this story. Yesterday I had terrible writer's block; I wrote a mess, deleted almost everything, and rewrote it all. It's just too much. My hard-earned daily update streak has ended like this. I don't regret it, but I'm devastated!
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