The sudden thought that popped into Xiao Yan's mind made him pause.
Qian Baokun looked at him: "What's wrong?"
Xiao Yan whispered, "Someone from the Lu family went to the Southland earlier."
Qian Baokun was shocked at first, thinking that they were going to deal with the old flood case. But then he saw that Xiao Yan's expression was not right, and suddenly remembered what he had just said. Then he widened his eyes and said, "You mean, King Pingshan?"
Seeing Xiao Yan's unpredictable expression, he felt frightened.
"Is Lu Chongyuan crazy?"
First, he sent people to collude with King Pingshan to stockpile grain and buy horses, and then he caused chaos in the capital and attempted to assassinate the emperor.
If this were true, the entire Lu family would be doomed. Even if Lu Chongyuan had a lot of leverage over Emperor An, since he had ulterior motives and threatened the throne, Emperor An would never forgive him.
Xiao Yan naturally knew this. He glanced at the crowd that was gradually walking away and whispered to Qian Baokun:
"Uncle Qian, don't tell anyone about this for now. Find a way to get your clan to investigate more clearly. It would be best if you can get evidence of King Pingshan hoarding grain and buying horses. If not, don't alert the enemy."
"I will have someone investigate the Pingshan Palace as soon as possible. As long as we can catch the Lu family in the act, it will be difficult for them to turn the tables."
Qian Baokun knew the seriousness of the matter and nodded quickly: "I will send a message to my brother after I return."
…
After Master Liang brought Feng Qiuli back to the mansion, he wanted to find out more about his background.
The two seemed to be drinking tea and playing chess, but in fact they were considering everything.
From time to time, Grand Tutor Liang would bring up matters of state, and Feng Qiuli would speak frankly of his views, neither keeping to himself what he knew nor rashly expressing his opinions on what he did not know.
He is an outstanding chess player and is not at a disadvantage when playing against Grand Tutor Liang. He speaks humbly but not with a sense of inferiority, and is confident but not conceited.
As the game of chess drew to a close, Grand Tutor Liang became more and more satisfied with the young man in front of him. After the white piece was placed, he asked about the Lu family.
"What do you think I should do about the Lu family's affairs?"
"I……"
Feng Qiuli was about to speak when a servant came in from outside and said that a servant from the Feng family had come to see her and said that he had something important to report.
Feng Qiuli looked at Grand Tutor Liang.
Liang Taishi said, "Let's go and take a look, in case it's something important."
After Feng Qiuli apologized and went out, he saw someone waiting in front of the outer courtyard. He was stunned for a moment and walked forward: "Tu Bai?"
Tu Bai turned around and looked at Feng Qiuli with a very respectful expression. After he quickly approached, he whispered a few words in his ear.
Feng Qiuli was shocked: "When did it happen?"
"The Governor has just found out about this."
"How sure are you?"
"Seven or eight points."
The servants of the Liang family stood far away, and they would not rashly inquire even if the people from the Feng family came to look for them. Tu Bai spoke in a low voice without fear of being overheard.
"Lu Jiuan's departure from the capital was too strange, and the King of Pingshan suddenly stockpiled grain and bought horses. When Jinyun was being hunted by the Lu family in the south, he noticed that some of those people were soldiers. Their moves were very strange. Now I think they should be soldiers from Pinglin County."
Although the Lu family also has private soldiers, they are not in the southern area, and the soldiers who have been on the battlefield are completely different from those who have not.
Feng Qiuli would not doubt Xiao Yan's judgment, but she felt that Lu Chongyuan was really bold. If he continued to cling to Emperor An, there might be room for "negotiation", but if he could find a new master, he wanted to send the Lu family to death.
Feeling that Master Liang was looking over here, Feng Qiuli whispered, "I know, you can go back first."
Tu Bai bowed to him before turning around and leaving.
Seeing Feng Qiuli's face look extremely ugly after she went out, and a hint of hesitation and gloom in her eyes, Liang Taishi asked: "What's wrong? Did something happen in the mansion?"
"no……"
Feng Qiuli shook her head and glanced at Grand Tutor Liang, her face full of hesitation and struggle.
Master Liang was puzzled. He had just played chess and chatted with the young man in front of him and knew that the young man was not a hesitant person. Moreover, watching a chess game is like watching a person. His moves were changeable and treacherous, but he made decisions without hesitation.
Master Liang picked up the teapot and poured tea: "What's the matter that makes you so embarrassed?"
Feng Qiuli pursed her lips for a moment, and then she seemed to have made up her mind: "My people just reported that the Lu family sent the illegitimate son Lu Jiuan to the south more than a month ago."
Although Grand Tutor Liang was surprised, he was not too surprised: "Many of the Lu family's businesses are in the South. Although a large part of the grain was abandoned due to the previous grain transport, the remaining ones are enough for the Lu family to pay attention to. It is not surprising that they sent people to the South..."
"But Lu Jiuan went to see King Pingshan."
Master Liang's face paused, and the tea almost splashed onto his hands.
As if he had made up her mind, Feng Qiuli did not dare to hide the hasty tone of her voice.
"Not long after Lu Jiuan left, the garrison in Pinglin County was mobilized, and the King of Pingshan began to secretly stockpile grain and buy horses. He was afraid of being discovered, so he sent his trusted aides to disguise themselves as merchants. As a result, they were discovered after they went to the Qian family's horse farm."
Master Liang dropped the cup in his hand onto the table with a bang, and the teapot fell with it, spilling the tea everywhere.
"Are they crazy?!"
Feng Qiuli's face was also very bad: "Before, Minister Qian intervened in the grain tax case, so I found a way to leave a spy next to him. I was just worried that the matter would involve other families, but I didn't expect to get the news today."
"Minister Qian has sent someone to send a message back to the clan to inquire about the details. He is a loyal minister. Once he verifies the matter, he will definitely not hide it from Your Majesty."
Grand Tutor Liang's face turned pale. He never expected that Lu Chongyuan would actually collude with King Pingshan.
Lu Jiuan and King Pingshan are hoarding grain and recruiting soldiers. It's not just for fun. They obviously want to use King Pingshan to rebel.
Lu Chongyuan had not told anyone beforehand, and his private contact with King Pingshan was even more secretive. If successful, the other families would not gain any benefit, but if unsuccessful, the Lu family would be convicted of treason and all nine clans would be executed, and all the people from the aristocratic families would suffer as well.
When Grand Tutor Liang saw that Lu Chongyuan was in trouble, he wanted to help the Lu family, at least to save Lu Chongyuan's life, but Lu Chongyuan wanted to drag all of them to death.
Grand Tutor Liang suddenly felt that his previous belief that Lu Chongyuan was considering the overall situation was a huge joke.
Feng Qiuli looked at Master Liang, whose face was turning pale and blue and who was extremely angry, with a gloomy look in her eyes.
"Everyone in the world knows that the noble families are one, and in the eyes of your majesty, our eight families are united. I thought that Lu Chongyuan had people burn down the forbidden palace and murdered Xiao Yan, which was outrageous enough, but he actually dared to join forces with Prince Pingshan to rebel."
"He's trying to kill us!"
Feng Qiuli was so angry that she spoke without thinking.
"He knew that what he did represented more than just the Lu family. Even if he really wanted to rebel, he should have discussed it with you or us. At least there would be a foolproof plan. But he just sent Lu Jiuan to the Southland and wanted to accomplish it."
"Why, is he afraid that we will share the credit for the Lu family's success in following the emperor, or is it that Lu Chongyuan has been a minister for a long time and is not satisfied with being the head of a noble family, and wants to sit on the throne as well? Is he going to use the lives of tens of thousands of people from our eight families to pave the way for him?!"===============
You can read ahead to chapterr 470 (100+ extra chapters) here
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