Chapter 162 Undercurrents
Not long after Li Xiaoxiao returned to the East Palace, the Crown Prince also returned quickly.
Upon seeing Li Xiaoxiao, the Crown Prince quickly said, "Father's headache has flared up again. The imperial physician has been summoned, and the cabinet did not have time to discuss the matter of the new commander of the Imperial Guards before it was dismissed. So I returned first."
He gave Li Xiaoxiao a deep look and couldn't help but praise her, "You've done a great service today. What do you want? I'll reward you."
Before Lu Ke jumped onto the arena, the Crown Prince was unaware that Li Chengyao had set up such a trap. He had just come out and was already trying to kill Li Xiaoxiao. Unfortunately, Emperor Jian'an was on his side. Although he was confident in Li Xiaoxiao's martial arts skills, Lu Ke was the commander of the Imperial Guards, and even Pang Shi was his defeated opponent. He once thought that Li Xiaoxiao would be defeated by his blade.
Unexpectedly, Li Xiaoxiao crippled Lu Ke with a single kick. Lu Ke was a trusted confidant whom Emperor Jian'an had cultivated for many years, responsible for the security of the entire imperial city and the safety of Emperor Jian'an. Now that he had fallen, the successor alone would be enough to give Emperor Jian'an a headache.
Especially as he grew increasingly suspicious, he no longer had any loyal subjects like Lu Ke who had always followed him.
It's not that he doesn't trust others, but rather that he no longer easily trusts others as he did Lu Ke.
When he realizes how important Lu Ke is to him, he probably won't be able to sleep at night.
Even if a general is loyal to him, he cannot completely trust his safety to entrust it to a stranger.
Emperor Jian'an's suspicions grew daily, but did he truly only suspect himself? What about Li Chengyao, who displayed a hundred times more wickedness than himself?
He was almost certain that Lu Ke's decision to personally go to the arena was most likely Li Chengyao's idea, as he was the only one with a compelling reason to kill Li Xiaoxiao.
Li Chengyao's days of triumph were over. With one move, he lost one of Emperor Jian'an's most trusted confidants, his slander of Li Xiaoxiao in front of the officials was also exposed, and he offended Lu Ke's family. These consequences alone were enough to make him suffer.
Moreover, now that the position of Commander of the Imperial Guards is vacant, Emperor Jian'an will definitely conduct a rigorous selection process for the successor once he realizes this. This person can absolutely not be a member of the Crown Prince's faction, nor can he be a member of Li Chengyao's faction, nor can he be a member of any of the other princes' faction. He can only be someone whom Emperor Jian'an considers absolutely loyal to him.
However, this is not a problem. Even if the new commander of the Imperial Guards is completely loyal to Emperor Jian'an, as soon as he takes office, he will definitely try to place his own people in his ranks. Lu Ke's original confidants will not remain in their positions. With more personnel changes, the Crown Prince will have the opportunity to place his own people in his ranks.
Li Xiaoxiao's unexpected kick was crucial; it completely disrupted Emperor Jian'an's previously stable rear security, creating a huge gap in it, and all of this change was beneficial to the Eastern Palace.
That's why he was so happy and wanted to reward Li Xiaoxiao.
Although Li Xiaoxiao was short of money, she knew that she couldn't accept any reward at this time: "Your Highness should not only not reward me now, but also reprimand me on the surface. It would be best to punish me with some salary as a warning. Otherwise, people will think that the Crown Prince deliberately wants to kill Commander Lu. It would be too inappropriate to reward someone when his life is uncertain."
She immediately replied, "Of course, it's okay to do that openly, but you have to return the money you deducted from me privately. Meng Guanqi in my family doesn't earn much, and I have to take all my money back to support the family, so please don't actually deduct it from my pay."
The crown prince looked at her with a strange expression, and finally sighed and shook his head.
He still can't keep up with Li Xiaoxiao's thought process.
She always seemed to strangely focus on trivial matters, but she didn't care at all about injuring Lu Ke and causing turmoil in the court. She didn't ask him what he would do next, as if she were an outsider, calm and composed, only focusing on her own three meals a day.
He seemed to understand what Meng Guanqi had once told him: that her goal was to live a carefree life of farming and hunting, and that she wouldn't have attacked Lu Ke so fiercely if her life hadn't been in danger.
The Crown Prince didn't know whether to be happy or regretful. He was happy that such a skilled person was naturally on his side, but he regretted that she was so unambitious. Despite her great skills, she only cared about trivial matters such as eating, drinking, and relieving herself, as if he would mistreat her.
He waved his hand: "Alright, I understand. I will reward you quietly, without letting anyone know, and I will make sure you can support your family..."
He clicked his tongue and frowned, saying, "Meng Guanqi won't always earn so little. Don't go around telling people this, it makes him seem incompetent, you know? He's also one of my advisors. I can't officially pay him a salary, but I'll reward him privately. I won't let him keep receiving only three taels a month..."
Li Xiaoxiao was overjoyed: "Thank you for the subsidy, Your Highness. I feel much more at ease now. By the way, Your Highness, I told you a couple of days ago that my mother-in-law and Rui Rui will be leaving the capital to return to Biyang County in a few days. Tomorrow is Aze's day off, and he's leaving the palace today to come home with me for a night's rest and then another day of fun. You don't have any objections, do you?"
The Crown Prince paused. After such a big event today, Li Xiaoxiao still wanted to take Ke'er to her house as a guest.
He truly admired her magnanimity; she could forget even the biggest problems in the blink of an eye.
But then I thought, if word got out about today's battle, who would dare to mess with Li Xiaoxiao?
He hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Okay, let Wan Quan stay by his side and serve him. He can stay at your house for a day and then be brought back tomorrow night."
The fact that Wan Quan went with them showed that she was still a little worried. However, Li Xiaoxiao thought it was fine and let him come if he wanted. So, in the evening, she took Aze home with her, followed by Wan Quan and more than a dozen guards from the East Palace.
The guards didn't enter the Li residence, but instead stood guard around its perimeter. Wan Quan accompanied A Ze inside and met with Madam Liu, where they received a warm welcome. A Ze immediately broke free from Wan Quan and hugged Rui Rui. The two little ones held hands and ran into the inner courtyard to play.
Wan Quan stayed in the outer courtyard, chatting and drinking tea with Zhao Jian and A Sheng. Occasionally, he would go into the inner courtyard to check if the young master was feeling unwell. No, not at all. He and Rui Rui were playing in the mud, covered in mud, with a little maid watching them. Li Xiaoxiao and Meng Guanqi were talking in a house not far away.
Wan Quan was relieved and completely relaxed, shedding all the airs of the head eunuch of the Eastern Palace. Every time he came to the Li residence, he felt very relaxed. Apart from Meng Guanqi, the whole family was honest and straightforward, without any scheming or backstabbing. Having spent half his life in the deep palace and seen all the dirty and sordid things, Wan Quan longed for this kind of simple life.
The two children were playing wildly in the yard, and Meng Guanqi, who had been worried all day, finally saw Li Xiaoxiao.
He stood up, hugged her tightly, buried his head in her hair, and said in a muffled voice, "I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do to help with this situation today..."
Li Xiaoxiao chuckled, knowing he was worried about her safety: "Don't worry, I'm just afraid he'll use underhanded tactics that are hard to defend against. Even if I can't beat him, I can still escape unscathed if he comes out on the open."
Meng Guanqi pulled Li Xiaoxiao to sit down at the table: "The news of your defeat of Lu Ke will soon spread throughout the capital. I'm afraid even the Emperor will become wary of you. Has the Crown Prince come up with any countermeasures?"
Li smiled and said, "I've asked the Crown Prince to keep an eye on Lu Ke. We need to make sure he comes back to life. We absolutely can't let him get killed in the palace, or I'll be held responsible."
Meng Guanqi nodded. This could be considered defense, but the Crown Prince couldn't always be on the defensive; he needed to attack. "Lu Ke's position as the third-rank Imperial Guard Commander is now vacant. The Crown Prince needs to find a way to place his own people in it. You probably didn't expect Li Chengyao to suffer this loss. The Crown Prince needs to find a way to contact the Lu family and make a big fuss about this, so that Li Chengyao will be constantly troubled and too busy to have time to harm others."
Li smiled and said, "I'm afraid the emperor will side with him again and back him up, and let this matter pass."
Meng Guanqi paced back and forth in the room, pondering what the Crown Prince should do next.
He suddenly stopped in his tracks: "You said that before you left the palace, the Crown Prince mentioned that the Emperor's headache had flared up again?"
Li Xiaoxiao nodded.
Meng Guanqi analyzed, "Why did His Majesty's headache flare up? The most direct reason can only be that Lu Ke's serious injury was unexpected, and he may not have a suitable candidate to succeed him as commander of the Imperial Guards. He became anxious and that's why his headache flared up."
It must be said that Meng Guanqi was quite perceptive; even without meeting with the Crown Prince, he guessed the Emperor's actions with remarkable accuracy.
He frowned and continued, "But the position of Commander of the Imperial Guards cannot remain vacant indefinitely. The safety of the capital is related to his personal safety, and he will definitely need to decide on the next candidate soon."
Li Xiaoxiao said, "The Crown Prince said that the Emperor will not use anyone who is associated with the Eastern Palace or any other prince. He plans to place his own people under his command after the selection is made."
Meng Guanqi shook his head: "No, the Crown Prince can't wait. He wants to stir up this mess as much as possible. We all know the Emperor will never use anyone recommended by the Crown Prince, but the Crown Prince will insist on recommending someone. If one isn't enough, then two; if two aren't enough, then three or four. He wants to dazzle the Emperor and confuse his judgment, making him think that everyone recommended by the Crown Prince is connected to him. Think about it, if the Crown Prince actively recommends people, how can the other princes remain calm? Even Li Chengyao will start recommending his own people. In this way, the Crown Prince can also take the opportunity to find out who in the court is secretly supporting Li Chengyao. Of course, there will be some who are just covering up, but there will definitely be people he genuinely wants to recommend. The Crown Prince is willing to be determined to kill the innocent rather than let the guilty go free, so as not to let Li Chengyao become like that thousand-year-old tortoise, unable to make a move once he shrinks back."
The Crown Prince had been investigating for so long but had not been able to find out the forces behind Li Chengyao. He could only keep an eye on the news in the dark. But Meng Guanqi knew that instead of lying low and defending, it was better to take the initiative. As long as the balance of power shifted toward the Crown Prince, he did not believe that the people behind Li Chengyao could remain inactive.
Now the Crown Prince has a strong army and is aided by Gu Henian and Meng Guanqi in civil affairs, and Li Xiaoxiao and Pang Shi in military affairs. Behind them are the Gu and Meng families, who pose a threat. As long as that force moves, he is confident that he can seize its weakness and drag the person hiding behind it out.
Li Xiaoxiao was shocked, but upon reflection, wasn't that exactly the point? She immediately agreed: "I'll go to the palace tomorrow and talk to him about this."
-----------------------
Author's Note: I'm out of drafts, only one chapter today. [Hands clasped in prayer]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com