Chapter 22 Destruction
He put away the secret contract, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes.
"I'm telling you! To help him raise his own army and expand his power, I'm now... I'm helping him secretly transport the purple marrow ore, which the imperial court strictly prohibits from mining and smuggling, to the Western Regions!"
"Do you know what purple marrow ore means? It's the material used to create top-tier weapons and armor! It's the lifeblood of an elite private army!"
"Have you ever thought about what you will face if this matter is exposed?"
Chen He staggered, and his originally stubbornly straight back seemed to have lost all its strength in an instant. He slowly collapsed and could only barely sit on his heels to avoid falling to the ground in disgrace.
The amount of information came like a tide, and every drop was as heavy as a thousand pounds, making her dizzy and almost suffocating.
The truth was like a sharp blade, slowly dissecting the fog in her heart.
It turned out that without her knowing it, her father had already been dragged into the bottomless, dark abyss filled with mud by Xiao Jingren!
It turned out that the Shen family had already been stumbling, walking on the edge of a crumbling cliff. If they were not careful, they would be doomed!
No wonder, in his previous life, Xiao Jingren could so easily push the Shen family into an irretrievable situation, leaving the Shen family no room to struggle!
At this moment, Chen He's heart was darker and colder than the night.
Shen Qingyuan stared at his daughter's bloodless face. The raging anger in his eyes seemed to be extinguished by a sudden cold wind, and replaced by bottomless fatigue and bone-chilling sadness.
His voice was low and hoarse, and every word seemed to be struggling out from the deepest part of his heart, carrying an indescribable despair and resignation. "Now, do you still insist that you want to remarry the Sixth Prince Xiao Jingren, who is called a fool?"
"Chen He, ah Chen He..." He murmured to himself, his tone filled with both blame and helplessness, "Why do you want to change your mind now and want to withdraw from this quagmire?"
"It's too late!" he sighed sadly. "It's all too late!"
"From the moment I personally pressed the bloody fingerprint that determined fate, the fate of the Shen family and Xiao Jingren has been inextricably linked. Whether it's glory or downfall, we will face it together and bear it together."
"We... have already committed the same sin as him! There is no redemption!"
Chen He felt his eyes go dark, the whole world seemed to be spinning, and everything around him became blurry.
Her father's words were like the sharpest blade in the world, cutting her heart accurately and precisely.
Sharing his guilt...
Eternal damnation...
Are those tragedies that were like nightmares in previous lives still inevitable in this life as if they were fate?
No!
No way! She screamed hysterically in her heart, No!
no way!
Shen He took a deep breath and struggled with all her might to get out of the abyss of despair that almost completely drowned her.
The accounts from the previous life have not been settled yet!
The situation in this life has not been broken yet!
She can't fall!
The Shen family cannot fall either!
Her eyes regained their radiance, though faint, but extremely firm.
"Father," her voice was still a little weak, but it carried an undeniable calmness. "Besides this blood contract...does Xiao Jingren have any other...documentary evidence that can directly convict me?"
Shen Qingyuan was stunned for a moment, then he smiled bitterly and shook his head.
"Documentary evidence?"
"Chen He, you are too naive!"
His tone was full of self-mockery and sadness.
"What credentials do you need?"
"So many years! So many things!"
"Northern Frontier military rations! Yellow River levee! And this damn purple marrow mine!"
"Every single one of them! Even if there's no further written record, the people involved, the routes used, the money exchanged, the officials bribed... every last clue has already spread throughout the government and the country!"
"Do you think these can be easily erased?!"
"As long as someone is willing to investigate, as long as Xiao Jingren wants us dead, even if he reveals even a little, we will be doomed!"
Chen He's heart slowly sank, as if being dragged by an invisible gravity.
Every word his father said was like a hammer, striking his heart. It was an irrefutable fact.
This murky water, the depth of its implications, the breadth of its impact, and the length of its history, is beyond words. Trying to unravel it and completely erase all traces is nothing more than wishful thinking.
However……
A glimmer of determination flashed in Chen He's eyes. He gritted his teeth and spoke in a cold and firm voice:
"In that case, then make it disappear!"
"Witnesses? They should be eliminated, not a single one left alive!"
"Physical evidence? Destroy everything that can be erased!"
Every word seemed to be squeezed out from between teeth, with unquestionable determination and ruthlessness.
Shen Qingyuan stared at the unquestionable determination in his daughter's eyes, and his heart trembled involuntarily.
Then, a short and desolate sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth, and that laugh seemed to carry endless bitterness and helplessness.
"Destroy it?" He spoke slowly, his tone tinged with sarcasm and self-mockery, "Hehe..."
He looked directly at his daughter with deep eyes and continued, "My dear daughter, do you really think Xiao Jingren is a fool who can be easily fooled? Will he watch us easily erase those clues pointing to the Shen family and easily escape his control?"
Shen Qingyuan's words revealed an unquestionable firmness. He paused slightly and emphasized again: "Don't forget..."
Shen Qingyuan suddenly took a step closer, his eyes as sharp as a knife!
"How did you humiliate him at the Queen Mother's birthday banquet in front of the entire court?"
"You rejected his marriage! And chose that idiot!"
"Are you still naive enough to think that he will remember our past friendship and treat our Shen family as his own?" His father's tone became increasingly harsh, as if he wanted to shatter the hope in Shen He's heart.
"At this moment, he probably just wants to bring our Shen family to ruin and destroy us forever, and grind our bones to dust to relieve the hatred in his heart!" His father's words were like ice, piercing Shen He's heart.
"He holds the leverage over us tightly in his hand, like a sword hanging over our heads. He could turn ruthless at any moment! If we make the slightest move, he'll immediately detonate everything and push our Shen family into the abyss!"
Every word his father said was like a heavy hammer, hitting Shen He's heart.
Instead, a strange calmness slowly emerged on her face.
"He doesn't dare."
Shen He's voice was not loud, but extremely firm.
"At least now, he doesn't dare."
Shen Qingyuan frowned: "Why do you say that?"
"Father, you forgot," Chen He said softly, "We are like grasshoppers on the same rope."
"Of course he can vent his anger by destroying the Shen family."
"But how long can he keep the secret of raising private soldiers and smuggling purple marrow ore?"
"If the Shen family goes bankrupt, who will continue to secretly transport ore for him? Who will help him manage those connections?"
"Pulling out the radish brings out the mud, and Xiao Jingren himself can't be clean either!"
"He won't choose to perish together with his enemies unless it's absolutely necessary."
Shen Qingyuan's eyes moved slightly, and he seemed to be convinced a little, but the sadness between his brows did not disappear.
"Even if he doesn't dare to touch us for the time being... this evidence is still a sword hanging over our heads!"
"As long as we don't get rid of them, the Shen family will never have peace!"
"As for the evidence..."
A cold arc appeared at the corner of Chen He's mouth.
"Father, what do you think is the truth?"
Shen Qingyuan was stunned.
“The truth always lies in the hands of the victors and the most powerful people.”
Chen He's voice carried a kind of coldness that came from a person who had a deep understanding of the world.
"As long as we can stand at the highest point, these so-called evidences will vanish into thin air."
"By then, who will still remember the sands of northern Xinjiang? Who will still remember the muddy waves of the Yellow River?"
"History books will be written by us!"
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