Chapter 301 - 299: That’s Quite an Arrogant Tone (Part 1)

Chapter 301: Chapter 299: That’s Quite an Arrogant Tone (Part 1)

What followed was Yan Ci’s unprecedentedly stern voice, "Get away, don’t touch me!"

"Ci!"

"Dad, it’s hard for Mom to come here, don’t make her angry first."

Listening to the chaotic sounds outside, Xu Jing’s mouth twitched slightly. He got off the carriage without hesitation and saw, not far away, a dozen men holding torches surrounding them. In front, Yan Ci looked wary, glaring at a middle-aged man in his forties, tall and strong, whose weathered face still revealed a hint of his youthful charm.

Beside him stood a young man with sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes, his posture as upright as a pine tree, resembling him a bit. The young man was holding him back, preventing him from rushing toward Yan Ci. He was obviously Yan Ci and the former Shuofang Jiedu Envoy Cui Shidu’s son, now the Shuofang Jiedu Envoy—Cui Han.

Xu Jing’s eyes flickered slightly.

Finally, he met the main person.

"Jiang Da" beside him was also quite excited and hurriedly stepped forward to salute, saying, "This subordinate Wang Zhongheng, greets the master..."

"Ci, it’s been so many years, and you still don’t want to believe me? Our child is so grown up now, I just want us to live a peaceful life from now on!"

However, his master’s heart was clearly focused entirely on Yan Ci, not even giving him a proper look.

Yan Ci glared at him and sneered, "Cui Shidu, how do you want me to believe you! Back then, you knew full well that I hated the Jiedu Envoys who brought chaos to the country the most, yet you still concealed your identity to approach me, coaxed me into marrying you and having children! Later, you kept promising that you were different from other Jiedu Envoys, loyal to the court. But in the Wu King Rebellion twelve years ago, your good brother Lv Zhi participated in it..."

Cui Shidu was so anxious that he almost pulled his beard, "I told you long ago, in the Wu King Rebellion twelve years ago, Han’er and I did nothing but help the court suppress the rebel army. How would I know Lv Zhi had such intentions! Besides, what kind of good brother am I with him, it was just a youthful acquaintance..."

"Don’t tell me these things, I don’t want to hear them! Since you say you and Han’er are both loyal to the court, then what’s with the recent events!"

Yan Ci interrupted Cui Shidu’s words harshly, her eyes could not help but redden slightly, "Cui Shidu, I don’t care whether you live or die, but Han’er... is my only son. Over the years, I have been afraid that he might become the root of national calamity, afraid that something might happen to him. The kind of conflicted, painful feelings I have, you wouldn’t understand at all! It’s all your fault that I’ve ended up in this situation!"

Cui Shidu was stunned, looking at Yan Ci with immense heartache, but dared not step forward again, only sighing softly, "Ci, I’m sorry..."

Back then, it was indeed he who deceived her.

Back then, her parents were forced to leave their hometown Lingzhou due to the chaos of the previous dynasty, wandering everywhere. After waiting patiently for the war to subside and returning to Lingzhou, they found other family members had long gone, and since then, she hated the Jiedu Envoys who sparked the previous dynasty turmoil.

He knew this full well, yet still approached her with youthful arrogance and blind confidence, harboring a fluke mind. She was right; her conflicted and painful feelings were all brought upon her by him.

For a moment, the valley fell into complete silence.

Those who could be here were all trusted aides of Cui Han and his father, somewhat aware of Yan Ci’s matter and the old envoy’s longstanding heartache over the years.

Suddenly, Cui Han stepped forward, kneeling down with a thump, his forehead touching the ground, and said deeply, "Your unfilial son has made Mom worry, but I can swear that neither I nor Dad have done what Mom fears or detests. In fact, Dad and I have long planned to return the military power to the court at an appropriate time, but this is not an easy task... The current disaster, in part, can be said to be caused by this."

Yan Ci was startled and said in a deep voice, "What exactly is going on?"

As she said, she actually didn’t know much about the court’s matters.

Deep down, she rejected delving into understanding these matters.

However, she also knew that this time, it was not something she could continue to avoid.

"The military power in the hands of Jiedu Envoys, or rather, the benefits, have never belonged to a single person, but to a group."

A calm and melodious female voice suddenly rang out, Yan Ci turned her head sharply, and saw Xu Jing walking over slowly under the surprised gazes of everyone. She spoke while walking, "Lord Cui is determined to return the military power to the court, which is not something the other Jiedu Envoys want to see. The reason is simple, if Lord Cui does this, how will they position themselves? Should they also return the military power like Lord Cui? If they don’t, will the court feel discontented that they are unwilling to relinquish the great power in their hands?

Once the precedent of returning military power to the court is set, it will pull the string that affects the entire body. If the other Jiedu Envoys know that Lord Cui intends to return the military power to the court, Lord Cui’s end would be far worse than now.

As Lord Cui said, part of the current disaster stems from this. If I’m not mistaken, people under Lord Cui noticed Lord Cui’s intentions, became dissatisfied, and thus actively united with other Jiedu Envoys to deal with Lord Cui, such as... Lord Cui’s Vice General, Yuan Zaili."

Cui Han’s eyes slightly widened, he stood up suddenly, looking coldly at Xu Jing, "Vice General Wang, who is this lady?"

The long-forgotten Wang Zhongheng was finally remembered by his masters, he quickly ran to them, aggrieved, and said, "This subordinate wanted to introduce this lady to you earlier, this is Miss Xu, according to her own words, she is someone of the Holy Emperor, and like Vice Minister Xiao and Prince Zhao currently in Lingzhou City, she was sent to investigate the truth of Lord’s rebellion incident. However, Vice Minister Xiao and Prince Zhao are investigating openly, while she is investigating secretly.

This subordinate cannot judge the truth of Miss Xu’s words and can only bring her to the masters to decide."

Cui Han and Cui Shidu both looked at Xu Jing with surprise, Cui Han frowned slightly, and was the first to speak, "What evidence does Miss Xu have to prove that you were sent by the Holy Emperor?"

Xu Jing chuckled and said, "I’ve said it before, just take me to Vice Minister Xiao and Prince Zhao, and they can naturally prove my identity. However, this... Vice General Wang is unwilling, now that I’ve come to your hiding place, you are even more unwilling to let me go out now."

Cui Han frowned even more, he just heard the woman in front of him say coolly, "However, I have already roughly understood the truth of the matter. If all of this is truly orchestrated by the He Dong Jiedu Shi Li Yuan, once Li Yuan successfully dispatches troops in Lord Cui’s name, Lord Cui will probably find it impossible to clear his name. I suggest that Lord Cui cooperate with me, after all, I am under your surveillance now. Even if I deceive you, I can’t do anything under the watchful eyes of so many people.

Besides, I am indeed someone sent by the Holy Emperor. If you want this matter to be resolved perfectly, you can only cooperate with me."

Not to mention anything else, the lady’s tone was extremely arrogant and she was very adept at stirring people’s emotions.

Cui Han couldn’t help but glance at his father. Cui Shidu had been silently observing Xu Jing since just now, and finally spoke, "Miss Xu, how would you like to cooperate with us?"