Chapter 157 Tiger Tally
He asked very directly.
Xie Sangning walked to the sandalwood tea table next to him, picked up the teapot with the handle that was warming on the red clay stove, and poured tea into the cup in front of Lin Zhu.
The rising steam blurred her features.
"Thoughts?" She put down the teapot. "Sang Ning has no thoughts."
She raised her eyes, her gaze meeting Lin Zhu's scrutiny with composure. "I was just too weak and afraid, my great-grandfather."
"I'm afraid of going back to that useless person who could only be manipulated and bullied by others. I'm afraid of the despair of watching everything being taken away."
She paused. "I just want to live. So that the people who follow me can live too. To live, even a little... like human beings. That's all."
Lin Zhu's heart skipped a beat.
Xie Sangning rarely mentions the past, and even less often reveals such emotions.
Looking at the woman in front of him, a bitter feeling welled up in his throat.
But after all, he was an old man who had experienced the ups and downs of three dynasties and witnessed too much infighting and turmoil, and that pang of heartache was quickly suppressed by worry.
"Girl," Lin Zhu's voice was deeper, carrying a strong warning, "I understand your thoughts a bit now. But... you're too high-profile! Showing off your talents too much can lead to trouble!"
He leaned forward slightly, his thin, bony fingers gripping the handrail tightly.
“The Xie family is now the target of everyone's hatred in the capital. It was your father who gave his life to buy them a chance to breathe! Your Majesty… Pei Yan, that person,” Lin Zhu said, his tone filled with undisguised hatred as he mentioned the emperor’s name. This hatred made Xie Sangning raise an eyebrow.
“I know perfectly well how paranoid he is and how ruthless he is! The Xie family has always been a thorn in his side! Now, with you added to the mix, you've made a name for yourself in Xihan, commanding elite troops and enjoying popular support... How can he sleep soundly with someone else right next to him? I'm really afraid... afraid that he might lose his temper and do something desperate!”
He stared intently into Xie Sangning's eyes and posed the most direct question:
"Take this imperial examination for example! You secretly supported those scholars from humble backgrounds, hiring renowned teachers for them, providing them with money and provisions, and helping them pass the exam with flying colors. This was an excellent plan! Placing people in their positions was perfectly reasonable. But you..."
The old man's voice trembled with agitation, "Why did you do it so ostentatiously?! Making such a scene that the whole city knows that all these newly appointed scholars have received your favors! They are all your people, Xie Sangning! Isn't this like sticking your head under the emperor's guillotine, waiting for him to make things difficult for you and kill you? Aren't you destroying your own foundation?"
Lin Zhu was heartbroken. He couldn't understand why Xie Sangning, who was usually so shrewd and calculating, would make such a foolish move that gave others a handle to use against him on such a crucial matter!
Faced with Lin Zhu's questioning, Xie Sangning's face remained completely calm; she even slightly curled the corners of her lips.
“Great-grandfather,” she said softly, “you are right. I want everyone, especially the one in the palace, to know clearly that these people are dogs that I, Xie Sangning, have fed.”
Lin Zhu's pupils suddenly contracted!
“No matter how clean their background, once they enter the imperial court, their ancestors for eight generations, their lineage, their sects, and all their past experiences will be thoroughly investigated. Where did they come from? Who did they receive favors from? Whose people are they working for?” Xie Sangning’s fingertips slowly slid along the rim of the teacup, his eyes calm. “Under the noses of those lackeys of the Imperial City Guard, they have nowhere to hide! They can’t hide.”
She raised her eyelids and looked directly into Lin Zhu's surprised and uncertain eyes:
"Rather than letting them find out and be guarded against, isolated, and picked off one by one while I am helpless, I might as well lift the lid myself and let everyone know."
"Firstly, I want to tell the whole world that these people are where they are today because of me, Xie Sangning! In this Qing Kingdom, where reputation reigns supreme, the golden armor of gratitude I've bestowed upon them is their greatest weakness and their strongest shackle! Who dares to betray them?"
"The spittle of the world could drown him! His entire family would be nailed to the pillar of shame for their ingratitude, never to rise again! This is the first great gift I give them for passing the imperial examination—eternal loyalty."
Lin Zhu gasped! A chill ran down his spine! This was a blatant, open conspiracy!
"Secondly, as for the Emperor..." Xie Sangning picked up his teacup and took a sip. "After the background check, he will definitely know that these people are my people. Given his temperament, he will be furious. It is expected that he will suppress them secretly, make things difficult for them, or even find a pretext to demote and exile them. If I act quietly, he will act without any scruples. These people will probably not even have any bones left."
"But now, I've told him with fanfare. The entire court and the scholars of the land all know that these people are my people, Xie Sangning's people! Their official positions were determined by the Ministry of Personnel based on their talents and in accordance with regulations. They passed the imperial examination with flying colors, a testament to the Emperor's boundless grace, and there were no procedural errors."
"If Pei Yan were to turn on me immediately at this point and launch a large-scale crackdown on and dismiss my people... what do you think the world would think?"
Before Lin could answer, she asked and answered herself:
“They’ll say—oh, so our wise and mighty Emperor is afraid of the Xie family!”
"He would immediately be branded as narrow-minded, jealous of talent, and cowardly of his subjects! For an emperor who has only been on the throne for ten years, whose power is not yet secure, and who values his reputation above all else, this is worse than being stabbed in the heart!"
Xie Sangning turned her face to look at Lin Zhu, her eyes deep and unfathomable:
"Therefore, not only will he not act immediately, but he will promote them! He will give them important positions! He will pick out a few promising individuals from among these people and entrust them with powerful official posts! He wants to prove to the world that he, Pei Yan, has a broad mind and only values talent! He doesn't care who promoted these people at all! He has absolute confidence that he can tame these Xie family dogs into loyal dogs devoted to him, Pei Yan!"
"Because he is Pei Yan. He is too confident, confident in his imperial power tactics. He thinks he can poach my people, slap me in the face, and still win the reputation of a sage ruler. This is an irresistible temptation for him, and also his fatal weakness."
The study was deathly silent.
Old Master Lin sat stiffly in the armchair.
He felt like he was watching an epic game of chess!
Every seemingly arrogant step hides a deadly trap and a scheme!
It's not a fearless arrogance, but a well-thought-out, calculated scheme!
What she wants is not widespread success at all!
All she wanted were a handful of people personally favored by the emperor! A legitimate nail driven into a vital position!
Xie Sangning walked to the desk, opened a drawer, took out a confidential letter, turned around, and gently placed it on the table in front of Lin Zhu.
“Great-grandfather, look, this is… the result.”
Lin Zhu's withered fingers trembled uncontrollably as he slowly reached for the secret letter.
He pulled out the thin sheet of paper inside and unfolded it.
As his gaze swept over the clear ink characters above, Lin Zhu's body swayed violently!
The letter contained the final official appointments of the newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) after Emperor Pei Yan's personal deliberation and adjustment!
Several names were highlighted with glaring vermilion ink!
The positions they obtained, though not as prestigious as those of the Six Ministries, were all seemingly low-ranking but were either crucial to finances and supplies, supervised all officials, or held positions of real power that reached the emperor directly!
Lin Zhu remembered those names very clearly!
It was Xie Sangning who clearly pointed out the core candidate!
Absolutely perfect!
"Snap!"
The secret letter slipped from Lin Zhu's trembling hand and fell to the ground, but he seemed not to notice.
His cloudy old eyes widened, and he suddenly looked up at Xie Sangning:
"Girl...you...you're like sharpening a knife to a gleaming shine, and then personally...plunging it into the emperor's chest!"
Xie Sangning smiled and said, "Great-grandfather, you are mistaken."
"It wasn't me sharpening the knife..."
"I forced Pei Yan to personally sharpen the blade on my knife."
After Xie Sangning finished speaking, she took out another item, which was the Xuelang Inkstone that Xie Rubao had stolen from his home and given to her.
“Great-grandfather, Sang Ning knows that you were loyal to the emperor and the country throughout your life, a veteran of three dynasties, and your loyalty is evident. All the things you did to me, those seemingly treasonous schemes, must have been filled with concerns and fears in your heart.”
"But it is also because you are a veteran of three reigns that you understand that for a new emperor to ascend the throne, there is one thing that is indispensable: the tiger tally passed down by the previous emperor. Without the tiger tally, it means that the emperor's ascension is not legitimate and he cannot mobilize troops. Do you agree?"
These words startled Lin Zhu so much that he coughed incessantly!
Xie Sangning refilled Lin Zhu's teacup, and once he felt better, she pressed a discreet spot on the Xuelang Inkstone in front of him.
A thin, hidden compartment had actually slid open at the bottom of that warm, smooth snow wave inkstone!
Inside the hidden compartment, there were no letters, no jewels.
There was only one thing.
A palm-sized object with a coiled dragon pattern engraved on its surface!
Lin Zhu's breathing stopped completely at that moment!
He sprang up half an inch from the back of his chair! Those old eyes, which had seen through the vicissitudes of life and the ways of the world, were now fixed on the object in the hidden compartment, disbelief deep in their pupils!
impossible!
Absolutely not!
That coiled dragon shape! That unique casting pattern!
He would recognize this thing even if it turned to ash!
This is--
The military mobilization tally!
Pei Yan once declared to his senior officials that he had personally kept this item in the deep palace and guarded it day and night!
But now…
It actually…
It lay there quietly in the hands of his great-granddaughter, Xie Sangning!
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