Something seemed to have fallen in the study. Chen Mingyu, who had been huddled inside searching for dispatches from Fujian, bent down to pick it up when she heard her grandfather’s resonant and powerful voice drifting clearly into her ears.
“Are you certain Cui Shaoting won’t become suspicious? He’s not the type to be bewitched by beauty. During his years in Fujian, it wasn’t as if people hadn’t sent all kinds of beautiful women his way, yet he never once fell for it. You’ve cut off his communications for over three months—has he really not noticed anything at all? This doesn’t align with his shrewd nature. Don’t end up failing to scheme against him and instead trap yourself.”
Cui Shaoting? Cui Shaoting! The current Three Borders Commander-in-Chief, the former Fujian Governor-General, the powerful official who was Song Chuyi’s maternal uncle! Why would Grandfather suddenly bring him up, and in such a tone? Chen Mingyu gently bent down, crouching behind the bookshelf with her body hunched, covering her mouth with wide eyes, her instincts telling her she was about to overhear something extraordinary.
Immediately following came a triumphant laugh. A male voice spoke dismissively: “That’s because those people were far too foolish in how they planted their pawns, and what kind of goods were they sending anyway? How could these high-born, self-important scholars be interested in those women covered in worldly dust? But what I’ve done is entirely different. The one I arranged is a fallen noble family’s daughter who’s been driven to desperation by the Tatars, pitiable and in urgent need of rescue. These high-minded gentlemen most love playing the hero saving the beauty.”
This was the voice of that Lord Fang—Fang Xiaoru—who often came to their home late at night and frequently needed her brother to escort him out. Chen Mingyu covered her mouth and quietly raised her head to peek beyond the bookshelf. Sure enough, she saw her grandfather’s back and Lord Fang’s face.
Fang Xiaoru wore a confident smile of certain victory. With both hands pressed on the table, he proudly described his masterpiece to her grandfather: “As for the three months without contact, I’ve slightly communicated with the Grand Preceptor on the Tatar side, having him occasionally lead troops to harass the border. I also gave Yang Xuan a heads-up—war horses have been stolen and snatched in considerable numbers, and the remaining ones constantly suffer various disasters. He’s busy rebuilding the Great Wall and reinforcing city walls, plus dealing with old foxes like Han Zhengqing. Where would he find the time and energy to think about when he last contacted the capital?”
This tactic of keeping someone running ragged was executed to perfection. Elder Chen wore a satisfied smile, stroking his well-maintained goatee repeatedly with his left hand before nodding lightly: “Don’t get too complacent. Wait until Yang Xuan’s memorial is submitted tomorrow before celebrating. We’ve stoked His Majesty’s anger quite sufficiently recently. Ye Jingkuan and Lai Chenglong have already secretly left the capital. Once Cui Shaoting submits his memorial and their investigation is nearly complete, that’s when we should truly rejoice.”
Grandfather is scheming against Cui Shaoting?! Chen Mingyu blinked, momentarily unable to process this, crouching silently behind the bookshelf without daring to make a sound.
In front of his teacher, Fang Xiaoru dared not be presumptuous. He immediately assumed a humble, teachable appearance, responding emphatically, then smiled while praising himself: “When I handle matters, what is there for you to worry about, Teacher? All the way from Yangzhou, even that old fox Elder Song didn’t discover I was constantly stirring things up and manipulating behind the scenes. This shows you how useful my silver tongue that can talk the dead back to life really is. Moreover, I haven’t forgotten your instructions. I’ve been watching every cat and dog in the Song and Cui families like a hawk. Yesterday when one of their young ladies went out, my people followed her the entire way. Besides, no matter how capable they are, can they predict the future? This time we can say we’ve acted without heaven knowing or ghosts perceiving. By the time they react, they’ll already be in King Yama’s palace.”
Old Master Chen casually picked up a memorial, flipped through it, snorted coldly and tossed it on the table, his gaze cold as he humphed: “The Cui family clings to Chief Minister Chang on one side, wanting to appear as pure ministers; maintains close relations with the Eastern Palace through Princess Duanhui on another; while pulling in the Song family hoping to make something of themselves—their reach is far too long. Hoping to push me out of my position in the Eastern Palace with the Song family? Not a chance. This time with the vacancies in Yangzhou, one radish per hole, Chief Minister Chang actually wants to monopolize everything. Back then he was the one who transferred Cui Shaoting from Fujian to the Northwest, ruining how many of my financial channels? Now he wants to pull this trick again. This time I’ll make that whole gang of them fall flat on their faces!”
After finally clearing out the Jiangnan salt transport and maritime silk production monopolies that had been controlled by Prince Duan and Prince Gong, now the people he wanted to install all had to queue behind Chief Minister Chang’s protégés and old connections—how could he accept this?! Wouldn’t this make him prepare the wedding clothes for others?!
Fang Xiaoru, very perceptive, immediately poured fresh tea for him while bending over with a smile: “This won’t just be resolved by making them fall on their faces. During this period, we’ve been directing those various imperial censors, big and small, to submit memorials attacking from east and west, openly and covertly. His Majesty’s anger has been thoroughly stoked. Earlier, the Yangzhou corruption case implicated Prince Duan, yet didn’t His Majesty still ruthlessly deal with Prince Duan because of a battle in Fujian? How much more so with Cui Shaoting? If the crimes of smuggling while colluding with the enemy are confirmed, forget the Song family—even the Cui clan that has prospered for over four hundred years, standing firm from the previous dynasty until now, will be uprooted entirely!”
Chen Mingyu’s eyes widened. Suddenly she felt blessed with understanding of what her grandmother always meant by “strike the snake at its seventh vertebra.” What had she done before? All those were just minor skirmishes that didn’t even hurt Song Chuyi or the Song family. But when her grandfather made his move, it was such a major operation—he actually wanted the lives of the entire Cui clan and the Song family! Even Princess Duanhui and her prince consort were calculated into his scheme!
Her heart pounded like a drum. She felt frightened, yet simultaneously an irrepressible pride and joy arose within her—so what if Song Chuyi was clever? Once something happened to her family clan, she would be absolutely nothing. Female relatives of convicted officials were mostly either sent to the Instruction Bureau or sold into slavery. Just thinking of this possibility made her tremble with barely suppressed glee.
After a while, Old Master Chen’s voice rang out again: “You should leave now. Tell Wang Ying and the others they need not submit any more memorials. Going too far is as bad as not going far enough—don’t let Chief Minister Chang or that old fox Song discover anything suspicious. Also, I’m telling you something crucial: you must maintain strict vigilance at the border! Make your informant stay alert—not even a mosquito flying from the capital is allowed near him! If anything goes wrong, I’ll say the ugly words first—don’t blame me for being ruthless when the time comes!”
Many thanks to “Steady Happiness” for the sachet. Today’s third update has arrived. Please subscribe, please subscribe.