Chapter 301 - 87: Opportunity (Part 2)

Chapter 301: Chapter 87: Opportunity (Part 2)

The joke was not the least bit funny. The younger family members gave bitter smiles, unable to hide the terror in their eyes.

Who would have thought that the refined and courteous Princely Heir, whose smile revealed deep dimples, would kill on a whim?

"What’s so surprising about it?" another elder said calmly. "With a powerful army at his command, his request for us to preside over justice was nothing more than a pleasantry."

As they spoke in hushed tones, a General emerged from the Government Office. He seemed surprised to see them. "You haven’t left yet?"

One of the family heads hurried forward and bowed. "We urgently request an audience with the Princely Heir."

The General nodded. "The Princely Heir has just woken. Follow me inside."

This meant he was willing to see them. The men breathed a collective sigh of relief and bowed once more. They started to follow the General inside, but had only taken a few steps when a soldier came sprinting up from behind.

"Sir." He held a letter and whispered a few words into the General’s ear.

The General looked somewhat surprised. After glancing at the letter, he hesitated for a moment before telling the soldier, "I will report this to the Princely Heir. You keep an eye on these men."

The soldier acknowledged the order and departed.

The General turned to leave, then noticed the members of the Aristocratic Families still following him.

"Wait here for a moment," he said. "I have an urgent matter to report to the Princely Heir."

The men from the Aristocratic Families naturally had no objections. They had already waited an entire night, so a little longer made no difference. They quickly urged the General to proceed, apologizing again for disturbing the Princely Heir when he was so busy—

The General strode into the main hall without waiting for them to finish their pleasantries.

Xiao Xun was seated at a desk, listening to Tie Ying speak while occasionally glancing at a map.

"Princely Heir!" the General shouted as he strode in. "A letter has arrived from someone in the Capital City!"

’A letter from the Capital City? It could only be about some new move from the court, which meant nothing more than deploying troops. At this point, unless they could dispatch Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, it would be futile. We are unstoppable.’ Xiao Xun was unconcerned. "Let Mr. Ning take a look at it," he said.

But the General didn’t leave as ordered. Instead, he took a step forward. "It’s a letter written by Grandmaster Zhou of the Zhou Family himself, from the Capital City."

The Zhou Family.

They were a renowned and illustrious family.

Xiao Xun looked up. "I didn’t expect the Zhou Family to be the first. Truly worthy of a family of Go masters—they best understand the path of advance and retreat, of victory and defeat."

They had previously sent letters to the great Aristocratic Families in the Capital City. One purpose was to placate them, but the true goal was persuasion.

To persuade them not to meddle and to keep their mouths shut, and to entice them to defect to the King of Zhongshan.

According to the news received over the past several days, the Aristocratic Families had indeed remained quiet, making no move to denounce the King of Zhongshan.

Now, with the execution of the Announcement Officer and their army drawing ever closer to the Capital City, an Aristocratic Family was finally making a gesture of goodwill.

Although the Zhou Family didn’t seem to hold any high-ranking positions at court, they had used their mastery of Go to take on many disciples, and their influence was vast. Xiao Xun was pleasantly surprised that they were the first to reach out. He took the letter and opened it, but his brow furrowed as he read.

"What did that old geezer from the Zhou family say?" Tie Ying asked impatiently. It wasn’t the young who were unruly and defiant, but these stubborn old men. The arrogance of the Aristocratic Families was legendary; in the previous dynasty, an Emperor had sought a marriage alliance with one such family only to be refused. They even privately boasted, "Emperors flow like water, but the Great Families are forged from iron"—

Seeing the look on Tie Ying’s face, as if he were ready to march off and behead Grandmaster Zhou that very instant, Xiao Xun quickly placated him. "His words are very pleasant, not at all like his aggressive style of Go. However... he wrote this letter on behalf of someone else."

"Someone else?" Tie Ying asked, confused.

Xiao Xun smiled. "An old friend we haven’t seen in a very long time."

...

...

The heads of the Aristocratic Families, still standing in the Government Office, had been forgotten once more.

They watched the General hurry inside, then hurry back out, only to return shortly after with a Scholar in tow—and through it all, he never spared them a single glance.

’Is the Princely Heir of Zhongshan truly busy, or is he deliberately giving us the cold shoulder?’

But in their current position, they didn’t dare to ask and could only continue to wait.

From within, they heard the clear laughter of a young man. ’At least the Princely Heir is in a good mood. When we finally meet him, it should be easier to talk.’

...

...

After listening to Ning Kun’s report on the recent events in the Capital City, Xiao Xun burst into laughter, then shook his head. "Chu Lan is truly pathetic."

Ning Kun said, "Things haven’t been good for him since Miss Chu became the Empress. He’s been kept under lock and key. He and his wife have never appeared in public; it’s tantamount to being imprisoned."

"She was only trying to protect them," Xiao Xun said with a smile. "But now that she’s gone, there’s nothing more she can do."

He sighed again.

"Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang are both heartless, treacherous, and cold-blooded. They have absolutely no regard for Miss Chu’s reputation anymore."

Even though the court specifically announced that Chu Lan’s affairs have nothing to do with Chu Zhao, it’s useless. Empress Chu will carry the stain of her family’s disgrace for the rest of her life—which will make it much easier to depose her in the future.

"Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang never received any favors from the Chu Family, so why would they need to spare the family’s reputation?" Ning Kun said with contempt.

Tie Ying also gave a cold laugh. "If Chu Zhao had stayed put back then, not only could she have still become an empress, but our Princely Heir would have been indebted to her family. He would certainly have repaid that kindness and protected the Chu Family’s honor at every turn."

"Back then..." Xiao Xun said, a wistful note in his voice. "Miss Chu is intelligent and valiant. She doesn’t care about such things."

’And she didn’t care about me.’

"It’s too late to care now," Tie Ying said. "Her dependable father is dead, and her uncle’s family has been condemned by the court. Let’s see what she can do now."

Ning Kun interrupted Tie Ying. "Let’s not dwell on the past. Princely Heir, Chu Lan and his family have fled in a panic and are seeking refuge with us. Should we take them in or not? Chu Lan himself is of no use. Accepting him would play right into Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang’s hands, giving them proof that you’ve been colluding with the Chu Family all along. I believe we should execute him in front of our army. That would show the world that the court’s accusations are pure slander."

Xiao Xun smiled. "Chu Lan and his family are indeed of little use. But it was Grandmaster Zhou who sent them here."

He waved the letter in his hand.

"The fact that Grandmaster Zhou wrote this letter and sent these people here is a sign of his allegiance. If we were to kill Chu Lan at this juncture, it wouldn’t just be the Zhou Family. All the other Aristocratic Families in the Capital City would become wary of us. They might even be spurred into action to support the court."

Ning Kun nodded thoughtfully. That was indeed a problem.

"Let Chu Lan and his family come in," Xiao Xun said, then added with another smile, "By taking them in, do I count as a hero rescuing a beauty?"

Tie Ying replied, "No. Chu Lan is too ugly."