A trapped beast still fights
The Emperor's wrath and the "secret investigation" order, which left room for maneuver, tormented Lin Wanru within Yonghe Palace like a tug of war. She knew full well that the confession, temporarily withheld from the case file, hung like a sharp blade over the Lin family's head, poised to strike at any moment. His Majesty's current leniency wasn't forgiveness, but a matter of balancing the circumstances. If a more suitable pawn or irrefutable evidence were found, the Lin family would be doomed in an instant.
She can't just sit there and wait for death!
Her delicate features were haggard from days of anxiety and fear, her eyes bloodshot. Her eyes, once radiant and bright, were now filled with a desperate frenzy. She needed to turn the tide, a significant enough "merit" or a prominent enough "scapegoat" to divert His Majesty's attention and regain his favor.
"Han Mingyuan... Lu Qinglan..." she muttered, her fingertips digging into the pearwood tabletop, leaving deep scratches. Han Mingyuan was Lu Qinglan's lackey, the one who had repeatedly caused trouble in the court, ultimately forcing the Lin family into this predicament! If Han Mingyuan could be brought down, or even... labeled a traitor with ties to the Northern Di or "Ninth Brother," not only would the Lin family be cleared of suspicion, but Lu Qinglan's power would also be dealt a heavy blow!
A sinister plan quickly took shape in her mind. Han Mingyuan was known for his integrity and honesty, with few flaws on the surface. But he was not without weaknesses—his family, his mother, who had lost her husband at a young age and raised him alone, and his upright younger brother, a low-ranking lieutenant in the army!
"Go, investigate for me! Investigate thoroughly! Who has Han Mingyuan's mother been associating with recently? Has his brother committed any offenses in the army? Even the slightest clue, magnify it a hundredfold!" Lin Wanru sternly ordered her trusted eunuch, her voice trembling slightly with excitement. "Also, find... find the thorn we planted in the Censorate. Have him prepare to impeach Han Mingyuan for associating with border generals and his brother for embezzling military funds!"
She was fabricating charges out of thin air! Even if she couldn't kill Han Mingyuan in one fell swoop, she would drag him into the quagmire, leaving him no time to investigate the Lin family, and even more so, make His Majesty doubt the "loyalty" of Lu Qinglan's family!
While Lin Wanru was frantically weaving a web of traps in the deep palace, the wind and snow had just stopped in the northern border thousands of miles away.
At the edge of the Hexi Corridor, a rocky Gobi Desert formed a hidden passageway leading to the Northern Di. At daybreak, a group of about a dozen men, dressed as merchants, advanced swiftly and silently. Their hooves, wrapped in thick cloth, made only a dull thud on the sand. The leader, a man with a stern face and a vigilant gaze, was the envoy sent by "Ninth Brother" to Daliang.
As they were about to cross the boundary marker and enter the Northern Di controlled area, the envoy felt a little relieved. However, at this moment, behind the seemingly peaceful stone forest on both sides, a sharp sound of breaking through the air suddenly rang out!
“Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!”
Several crossbow arrows accurately shot down several guards in front and behind the team, causing chaos in an instant.
"There is an ambush!" The messenger was shocked and drew his sword to fight.
But it was too late. Hundreds of cavalrymen, clad in the armor of the Daliang frontier army, emerged from all directions like divine troops, surrounding them. Leading them was a stern-faced general, armored and spear-wielding, none other than Wei Zheng's trusted lieutenant general, who was on this "border patrol" under his orders.
"Put down your weapons and surrender! Anyone who disobeys orders will be killed without mercy!" The lieutenant general's voice was like a loud bell, echoing in the vast Gobi Desert.
Seeing that there was no hope of breaking out, the messenger's eyes flashed with despair and ruthlessness. He suddenly reached into his arms, as if trying to take something out. However, a swift-eyed and quick-handed sergeant of the border troops nearby had already shot an arrow into his arm!
"Ah!" The messenger screamed, and a sealed copper tube in his arms fell to the ground.
The lieutenant general rode forward and lifted the copper tube with the tip of his spear. It felt heavy in his hand. He glanced coldly at the subdued envoy and said, "Take him away! Keep him under strict guard! The Duke will personally interrogate this man!"
This short and efficient ambush on the border was a clean and efficient one, leaving no one behind. The small copper tube and the captured messenger would be secretly escorted to General Wei Zheng's residence.
The news was transmitted back to Kunning Palace through special channels faster than the imperial court's express message.
"Your Majesty, the Duke of Wei has succeeded. The envoy was captured alive, and a secret letter in a copper tube was intercepted. It is on its way to the Northern Frontier Commander's Headquarters." Fu Yu's voice was filled with a barely perceptible excitement.
Upon hearing this, Lu Qinglan's previously calm face finally revealed a genuine, chilling smile. It was like a crack opening in the frozen surface of a lake, revealing a turbulent undercurrent.
"Alright. Tell Wei Zheng to pry open the messenger's mouth at all costs and learn the true identity of 'Ninth Brother'. Also, find a way to make a copy of the secret letter without breaking the seal, and have it delivered by express horseback." She paused, then added, "Have our people in the Northern Frontier fully cooperate to ensure this information is never leaked. Especially... we can't let it fall into the hands of the Imperial City Bureau or anyone else."
She knew this was the most crucial step. Once she grasped the true identity of "Ninth Brother", she would be able to turn the passive situation into the active one. Whether it was to expose his conspiracy or to use it to conduct the final negotiation with Xiao Jingche, she would have absolute bargaining chips.
Trapped within the imperial palace, Lin Wanru struggles in vain, attempting to deflect attention with framing. Meanwhile, the true hunter has set his sights on the ultimate mystery that will determine victory or defeat. The captured messenger and secret letter at the border, like a hammer hurled into a deadlock, threaten to shatter this fragile balance.
The court and the harem, the court and the border, all the undercurrents and open struggles, were led to an irreversible end because of the successful capture of the northern border.
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