...
On the way back, Shen Ci gritted his teeth and said in a sinister tone, "That guy surnamed Wang always seems so hypocritical and pretentious, I never expected him to be so cunning behind the scenes!"
The mastermind revealed by the two eunuchs was a colleague from the Hanlin Academy. They saw each other all the time, so who would have thought that the methods were so dirty?
Chi Yan narrowed his eyes slightly: "Just opportunistic."
Shen Ci looked up, displeased: "Are we just going to let it go like this?"
“Of course not.” Chi Yan rested his chin on his hand and tapped his chin with his fingertip. “To deal with someone like that, you have to mess with his mentality.”
——
Chi Yan returned to the manor, still somewhat dazed, and unconsciously headed towards his bedroom.
He heard voices coming from under the eaves, and when he looked up, he saw Xue Qing and Ba Liang:
"It's so hot today, do you really think it'll rain heavily?"
Xueqing believed her young mistress's words without a doubt: "If the young mistress said it would rain, then it will rain!"
Chi Yan looked up at the sky. The summer night air was sultry, and the cicadas chirped incessantly, making even people's hearts restless.
The officials of the Imperial Observatory observed the celestial phenomena last night and said that there was no rain expected for the next two months. This morning, the ministers at court were still worried about whether there would be a severe drought this year and whether they should take precautions.
In this kind of weather, Shen Tangning said it would rain heavily?
"Even if there's a downpour, it shouldn't be enough to wash away the Yunlong Weir, right?" Ba Liang muttered, pursing his lips. "I think the young mistress is just worrying unnecessarily."
He had barely finished speaking when Xueqing kicked him. "Want to make a bet?"
Eight-Liang, clutching his backside, asked warily, "What are we betting on?"
Xueqing's eyes darted around: "I'll bet you your monthly salary this month!"
"I don't want to... Young Master!" Ba Liang caught a glimpse of Chi Yan not far away out of the corner of his eye and straightened up.
Chi Yan nodded, turned around, and calmly returned to his study.
Xue Qing's eyes flashed, and she stuck out her tongue at Ba Liang: "Coward!"
After saying that, she turned and went into the house with light steps.
"Oh, you!"
Hearing the noise, Shen Tangning looked up: "How is it?"
Xueqing revealed a sly smile: "This servant guarantees that the young master definitely heard it."
Her gaze paused for a moment: "Didn't he ask you anything?"
"No, he went to his study after listening." Xueqing shook her head hesitantly.
Shen Tangning frowned slightly: So, did Chi Yan actually take this matter to heart?
The Yunlong Dam breached, and many people living downstream perished in the flood. After all, so many lives were at stake. Although she needed the flood to achieve her goal, she couldn't simply ignore so many lives.
Since Chi Jingyu has not yet taken any action, it is unrealistic to place all her hopes on him. She can only have Xueqing indirectly tell Chi Yan so that he will be wary.
Given his personality, whether Chi Yan believed it or not, he would go and verify it himself.
His calm reaction, however, left her somewhat unsure of what to expect.
Her mind was inevitably restless, and Shen Tangning put down the embroidery she had only half-finished:
"Turn off the lights and go to sleep."
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