Seeing that the man from the Li family was still hesitating, Feng Qiuli's voice took on a colder tone: "Uncle Li, do you still have fantasies about the Lu family?"
"Let’s not even mention that since Lu Chongyuan already spoke earlier, he’s probably aware of our plans. Even if we turn back now, he may not let us off. Besides, do you really think we can achieve something great without any risk? Uncle Li, are you truly content with this?" He stared steadily at the head of the Li family. "We are all members of elite families. The Li family was once a powerful clan. Why should we be reduced to merely supporting the Lu family's bloodline to ascend to power? Why should we live under the Lu family’s shadow? Lu Chongyuan always claims we are all connected as one, but has the Lu family ever truly acted that way?"
"Whatever we do, it’s always Lu Chongyuan who takes the lead, and any benefits go to the Lu family first. They leave us with the scraps. Lu Chongyuan holds the position of Chancellor, and the Lu family already stands above us. But even so, he’s not satisfied. Once the Fourth Prince ascends the throne, will there even be a place for our families in the capital?" Feng Qiuli's words were filled with persuasion, shaking the resolve of the Li family head.
"Imperial power and elite families have never coexisted peacefully. Just like how Emperor An borrowed the strength of elite families to secure his throne, then turned against them as soon as he was stable, going so far as to promote a eunuch just to eliminate the elite families and consolidate his power. The Fourth Prince will be no different."
"The Lu family has the protection of blood ties, so naturally they have nothing to fear. But what about us?"
"The so-called 'connected as one' is nothing more than the Lu family trying to rope us in to help the Fourth Prince. But once he ascends the throne and finds us a nuisance, do you think the Lu family will turn against the new emperor for our sake, or will they help him to eliminate us in order to gain more power?" Feng Qiuli's words thundered in the ears of the Li family head, his face growing even paler. The hesitation in his heart vanished.
He didn’t want to put the Li family in such a dangerous position, but... "What about Prince Cheng?"
"Prince Cheng won’t dare get involved." Feng Qiuli's voice was firm. "The emperor already dislikes the elite families, and even more so the royal family members who get too close to the princes. Prince Cheng has been confined because of the Song family’s scandal. If it comes out that he’s been acting as a go-between for us and the Second Prince, the emperor will never forgive him."
"Moreover, Prince Cheng may seem to have close ties with the Lu family on the surface, but back when the Crown Prince rebelled, it was him and Lu Chongyuan who handled the matter. Our families were merely bystanders, adding fuel to the fire."
"Prince Cheng knows that if he stays quiet, Lu Chongyuan will help him out to protect his own interests. But if Lu Chongyuan finds out that Prince Cheng has been secretly mediating between the elite families and the Second Prince, Lu’s temperament might even push Prince Xiao to finish him off." A royal prince was not much of a threat to the Lu family.
Even the Crown Prince back then...
What does Prince Cheng amount to?
Cui Lin glanced approvingly at the young head of the Feng family.
Among elite families, legitimate heirs always came first, and illegitimate children were never allowed to surpass them, but the Feng family was an exception.
The previous head of the Feng family had only one son, who died young shortly after coming of age. Stricken by grief, the Feng patriarch became seriously ill, and with the family left leaderless, he was forced to adopt an heir from a collateral branch of the family.
At the time, there were nearly twenty eligible legitimate heirs from the collateral branches, and several other talented young men from other branches. Yet, in the end, the patriarch chose a twenty-year-old illegitimate son, whose parents had died early, to inherit the family.
Initially, everyone thought the old patriarch had lost his mind and predicted the decline of the Feng family. Feng Qiuli kept a low profile after entering the family, staying by the ailing patriarch's side for six months, appearing meek and without ambition, and letting others bully him.
But six months later, when the old patriarch began to delegate power to him, those who had thought him a docile lamb soon realized he was a ravenous wolf. Within a month, Feng Qiuli had ruthlessly crushed the dissenters in the family and dealt with the power-hungry branches attempting to seize control.
After the old patriarch passed, it took Feng Qiuli only a few days to stabilize the family, bringing the Feng clan under his firm control. The entire Feng family soon fell in line under his leadership.
This competence was precisely why Cui Lin had chosen to ally with the Feng family.
Seeing that Feng Qiuli had managed to calm the head of the Li family, Cui Lin added, "Lu Chongyuan won’t give Prince Cheng a chance to implicate him, and neither will I. Even if Prince Cheng is accused, he wouldn’t dare expose our dealings with the Second Prince."
The Li family head, hearing Cui Lin's confident words and seeing that Feng Qiuli had no intention of backing down, finally felt his anxieties settle.
"Good," he said, though his previous panic made him feel embarrassed. He quickly changed his tone. "It’s not that I’m afraid of Lu Chongyuan. No matter how powerful he is, he can't touch us. I just didn’t want to break ties with them so soon, giving that eunuch Xiao Yan an advantage." Cui Lin and Feng Qiuli pretended not to hear his weak attempt to save face.
With his mind at ease, the Li family head didn’t linger any longer. Despite his confidence, Lu Chongyuan’s words had left him somewhat uneasy, so he bid farewell to Cui Lin and Feng Qiuli and hurried home to clean up his tracks.
Watching him leave in a rush, Cui Lin frowned. "Li Changwen is truly a coward. If you hadn’t insisted on including him, I wouldn’t have wanted the Li family involved. With how easily he panics at the slightest sign of trouble, who else would Lu Chongyuan suspect first?"
Feng Qiuli said gently, "He might be timid, but he’s cautious, and being timid makes him easier to control. As long as we completely tie him to our side, he won’t dare to suddenly turn against us and join the Lu family." As he poured tea, he continued, "Lu Chongyuan’s influence runs deep. The other families are either too entangled with the Lu family to recruit, or they’re too fickle to trust. If we want to support the Second Prince and the Fourth Prince against them, relying solely on two families is a bit risky. Bringing the Li family on board not only adds security but, if anything goes wrong, they could also help shield us."
"We can’t face off against the Lu family with just the two of us. Li Changwen is currently the best option, so you’ll have to bear with it for now." Feng Qiuli handed over the teacup as he spoke. Seeing that Cui Lin accepted it and his anger subsided somewhat, he continued, "But how did Lu Chongyuan find out about our involvement with the Second Prince? Could someone have leaked the information?"
"It’s unlikely," Cui Lin replied coldly. "Lu Chongyuan isn’t the forgiving type, and the Fourth Prince is his bottom line. He may tolerate other things, but if he knew about our betrayal and support of the Second Prince, there’s no way he would just issue a casual warning."
"I think he only knows about our secret meetings with King Cheng and is merely speculating beyond that," Feng Qiuli sighed in relief. "That’s a relief."
Cui Lin raised an eyebrow, "What? Are you scared?"
Feng Qiuli shook his head, "Not scared, just a bit regretful."
"Regretful?" Cui Lin frowned at him.
Feng Qiuli gave a bitter smile and said, "I regret that, back then, the affair with the fallen Crown Prince was handled by Lu Chongyuan and King Cheng. Our families merely played supporting roles."
"The emperor only gained his throne after the Crown Prince’s death, and the means were not exactly clean. He’ll never allow anyone to touch that old case, which means that even if we investigate the woman from the Xu family or blow up the Song family’s issue, it’s all just a way to deal with Lu Chongyuan. It’s unlikely to affect our families. If someone were to discover anything, even the emperor’s claim to the throne could be shaken."
As he spoke, his face filled with regret. "I had hoped that with the Lu family’s growing power, we could use this opportunity to suppress them, allowing us to focus on supporting the Second Prince. But unfortunately, it’s Shao Yan who’s handling this matter, and he has a grudge against us. Otherwise, we could’ve used his hand to make the Lu family suffer a bit. It would’ve saved us from Lu Chongyuan’s condescending attitude, even when speaking to you."
Cui Lin’s expression darkened at the memory of Lu Chongyuan’s anger during his visit to the Lu family and his own instinctive avoidance of the man. His temper flared. "Who says we can’t?"
Feng Qiuli was stunned. "Cui Gong?"
Cui Lin sneered, "That eunuch Shao Yan is indeed loathsome, but if used well, he can still serve as a blade in our hands."
Just as Feng Qiuli had said, the emperor would never allow a reversal of the Crown Prince’s case, meaning the Song family’s matter would be resolved without significant consequences. Now, letting Shao Yan pursue the matter was likely aimed at the Lu family, not their own. Everything Lu Chongyuan said about the potential revival of old cases threatening the noble families was simply a scare tactic to keep them in line. If that’s the case, why not take this opportunity to make the Lu family suffer a little?
Feng Qiuli, hearing Cui Lin’s meaning, quickly urged, "Cui Gong, that Shao Yan is a madman. While he may be a useful blade, he’s also dangerous. If things go wrong, he could harm us both."
"Just hold the handle of the knife well, and make sure the blade points at others."
"Cui Gong..."
"Enough." Feng Qiuli wanted to continue persuading, but Cui Lin waved him off. "I’m not suggesting we ally with Shao Yan. Lu Chongyuan may be hateful, but Shao Yan is equally detestable. I’m not helping that eunuch take down the noble families. I just plan to nudge the Song family’s issue enough to give Lu Chongyuan a lesson. After years of leveraging his connection to the Empress and the Chancellor, he’s kept the Cui family suppressed. Even if we can’t cripple him, making him suffer a bit would be satisfying."
Seeing Feng Qiuli’s worried expression, Cui Lin reassured him, "Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing."
"But..."
"Do you not trust me, or do you think I’m no match for Lu Chongyuan?" Cui Lin’s words left Feng Qiuli with no choice but to stop his protest. He sighed, "Of course, I trust you, Cui Gong."
Still troubled, Feng Qiuli left, but once he returned to his carriage, his earlier expression of concern faded. A sneer formed on his lips as he recalled Cui Lin’s behavior.
These noble family heads really were arrogant and self-important, each more conceited and easy to manipulate than the last. Only Lu Chongyuan, cunning as he was, had managed to safeguard the noble family’s interests and maintain a balance of power with the imperial authority. But even Lu Chongyuan couldn’t carry the weight of a whole group of fools dragging him down.
As the carriage moved, a subordinate beside him asked, "Master, should we head back to the estate or to the office?"
"Back to the estate." Feng Qiuli lifted the curtain and glanced at Cui Lin, who was leading his servants out. His lips curled into a mocking smile as he instructed his servant, "Send word to Shao Yan. Tell him the Cui family matter is settled."
After the subordinate acknowledged the order, he hesitated for a moment before asking, "Master, you initially allied with Shao Yan to secure your position as the head of the Feng family. Now that you’ve achieved that, why maintain the alliance?"
"Shao Yan is a schemer, and he bears ill will towards the noble families. Once he’s dealt with the Lu family, he could very well turn on us. Why take the risk of scheming with a tiger?"
Upon hearing this, Feng Qiuli fell silent for a moment, then said softly, “He has no intention of joining a noble family.” He paused and then continued, “I also have no intention of joining the Feng family.”
“Master…” The attendant looked at Feng Qiuli with a face full of shock, as if he did not understand the meaning of his words. Unfortunately, after Feng Qiuli finished speaking, he no longer said anything, as if he had lost interest in talking and simply relaxed his body against the wall of the carriage.
“Let’s go, return to the manor.” …
When Xiao Yan received the message sent by the Feng family, he was in the Tang manor. Canglang leaned in and whispered a few words; he only nodded in response, saying, “Understood.” Xiao Yan lifted his foot and walked over to Song Tangning, who was not far away. He glanced at Gu Helian, who was standing outside the door with a pale face, and asked, “What happened to him? Who owes him money?”
Tangning gently bit her lip and said, “Brother, my aunt is pregnant.” Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan was momentarily stunned. He turned his head and saw the young girl who had been excitedly celebrating with him yesterday, filled with joy at being able to escape the Song family. At this moment, she had her eyes downcast and looked dispirited, her face as if it had been struck by frost, full of frustration.
Xiao Yan said, “So what if she is pregnant? Do you think you shouldn’t expose the matters of the Song family and let your aunt know the true face of King Cheng?”
“That's not it,” Song Tangning shook her head. She did not regret the matters concerning the Song family; even if given another chance, she would still find ways to expose them. She would never put on a false front and humiliate herself by watching their disgusting faces.
“If that's not it, then what are you worried about?” Xiao Yan observed Gu Helian taking several deep breaths to suppress the pallor on his face. As he entered the house, he instinctively lightened his footsteps and said, “Your aunt is not a three-year-old child; she knows what she wants and doesn’t want, and it's not for you to decide.”
“While you are indeed the reason she left the Prince’s residence, the fact that she has reached this point with King Cheng is not entirely because of you. Your aunt is clearer about this than you and is stronger. If you blame yourself for this, you will only underestimate her.”
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You can read ahead to chapterr 142 here
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