Lin Xie and his wife had a short nap by the bed, with his waist knife placed beside him. He heard some noise outside and sat up straight, listening to Zhao Qinnian and his wife talking in low voices under the eaves of the corridor. He knew that the couple couldn't sleep; they were afraid that as long as Wang Xueshan didn't fall, they wouldn't be able to rest their minds for a single day.

  Lin tied up his sleeves, rubbed his face, and walked out after adjusting his clothes, without even washing his face. He exchanged a brief greeting with Zhao Qinnian and his wife before heading to the front yard. The sky was dark, with only a few stars still twinkling in the night sky. In just over an hour, the Donghua Gate would open to allow charcoal carts and grain carts to enter the city.

  It was a matter of life and death, Zhao Qinmin couldn't help but follow Lin Wei to the front yard to see the preparations.

  Zhou Pu sat at the foot of the wall next to the Huahua Hall, closed his eyes and rested. Lin Xie and Zhao Qinmin walked over, he opened his eyes and looked at them, but didn't say anything, then closed his eyes again. Lin Xie knew that Zhou Pu had just come off duty and needed rest before setting out, so she didn't disturb him. The horses were in the enclosure behind the ear house, occasionally making snorting sounds, and the carriages were ready: Liu Yu'er, Xiao Man, and Zhao Qinmin's two daughters sat in one carriage, while Zhao Qinmin and his wife took care of Zhao Jin, who had a broken leg, in another. The carriages weren't overly luxurious, but rather designed to minimize the jolting that would aggravate Zhao Jin's injured foot. After half an hour, everyone got up to wash and have breakfast, then packed up and prepared to leave Shabo Lane and head out of the city.

  Liu Yue'er closed her eyes and rested for a moment, but when she opened them again, she was exhausted and struggled to stay awake. After having a nightmare, Xiao Man fell into a deep sleep and didn't wake up until the sun rose over the back courtyard. Her face looked radiant in the morning light, with bright eyes, but she seemed a bit embarrassed as she followed Lin Xie's side, only parting ways when they got on the carriage.

  Zhao Qinmin was only a Xiucai, but he served as a staff member for Wang Xueshan for eight years. Although he was not the most trusted person, his reputation in Jiangning City was extremely high. The power he held was even greater than that of the various Canjun and Lishi in the Jiangning Prefecture government office. However, his power came from Wang Xueshan's public and private authority, and once he left Wang Xueshan, he became worthless again.

  Zhao Qinmin was also stunned to see Xiao Man walking out of the backyard. He recognized the maid beside Su Mei and had heard that Wang Xueshan's son, Wang Chao, had already agreed with the young master of the Fan Tower, Fan Zhi Mei, to redeem her as a concubine. He hadn't expected her to appear here, let alone leave the city with them. It was only then that he understood what Lin Xuan had done after parting ways with them last night.

  If it was just to redeem herself, Baiyuan would be separated from this side by only one house. Lin Xie didn't need to leave for so long in the emergency last night, maybe sending someone over to pick up the girl would be enough. Of course, Wang Chao had already promised Fang Zhiyu, and besides, he had a deep grudge against Lin Xie, and it was impossible for him to let someone redeem her easily.

  Zhao Qinmin was very curious about what Lin Xian did after he parted ways with him last night, and why the Lin family agreed to let him take people away.

  Yang Pu didn't know Xiao Man, but he heard Gu Siyuan mention this matter yesterday. Seeing such a beautiful girl come out, he naturally understood what was going on. He also wondered how Lin Xie could redeem someone from the Fan family.

  When the time came for the East Flower Gate to open, Lin Xie saw that Wu Qi had not returned with news, so he knew that Wang Xueshan was still unaware of Zhao Qinnian's nighttime visit to Gu's residence. He said to Yang Pu and Zhao Qinnian: "Let's set off..."

  *********

  Who would have thought that Wang Xueshan, who had excused himself to go back to his room to think of a good plan, was now sleeping soundly in the warm and fragrant bed with his concubine, while Dongcheng Wei Chen Zhi, Hu Cao Shu Ling Zhou Tai, and Guangtai Pawnshop's financial backer Zhao Qigui sat dryly in the hall for a whole night.

  Chen Zhi was a bit better off, after all, he was his wife's nephew and didn't have any blood relation with him, nor were they very close. If it weren't for the fear of being scratched by his old wife's sharp fingernails, he would've gone back to sleep. Looking at the faint light coming from the window, he said: "There hasn't been any news from the city prison yet, I'm afraid it's true what Mr. Zhao said, Gu Wu Chen doesn't have the guts to kill anyone."

  Chen Zhi's mind was at ease, but Zhou Tai and Zhao Qigui were in a completely different state of mind. Although they weren't the only children, they were still flesh and blood, and their worries had kept them up all night, tormenting them. There was no news from the city prison, which meant that the city prison had been sealed off by Gu Wu's trusted men, who had also led a team in and out of the prison before midnight. They didn't know whether it was good or bad luck, but they were worried sick. They didn't dare to take it lightly, wondering if Gu Wu had the guts to kill someone. After all, how many people in high positions weren't stained with blood?

  "Shouldn't we call Mr. Zhao over to discuss this again?" Zhou Tai asked, it was already late at night and Zhao Qinmin had not returned, Zhou Tai thought he was really calm, he and Zhao Qigui were not the only sons, but Zhao Qinmin was the only son who was locked up in the city's great prison. Wang Chao was also nowhere to be seen, he was still nowhere to be seen, this disaster was all caused by him, yet he didn't get involved in any of it.

  "We're going to look for Mr. Zhao." Zhao Qigui also couldn't sit still, thinking that Zhao Qinmin could make decisions, and went with Chen Zhi and Zhou Tai to the east wing to find Zhao Qinmin. They called out the old servant in the east wing to open the door, only to learn that Zhao Qinmin had not returned home after leaving the house last night. Then they let the maid call out for Zhao Qinmin's wife, and it was discovered that Zhao Qinmin and his whole family had quietly left the previous night. The old servant and the maid hadn't entered the main house, nor had anyone else come to look for Zhao Qinmin, so naturally no one had noticed anything.

  "Damn it," Chen Zhi wasn't a fool, he immediately thought of why Zhao Qinnian's family had disappeared, and rushed back to the inner hall with Zhou Tai and Zhao Qigui to find Wang Xueshan. "Lord Wang, Lord Wang, that son of a bitch Zhao Qinnian has gone to surrender to Gu Wuchen..." They didn't care about the obstruction of the maidservants and rushed straight into Wang Xueshan's inner chamber. They thought Wang Xueshan was sitting in his room plotting and scheming, but when they saw Wang Xueshan's concubine's snow-white shoulders exposed outside the brocade quilt, they suddenly realized: this beast Wang Xueshan didn't care about their family members who were locked up in the city prison.

  Wang Xueshan was sleeping soundly and didn't hear clearly what Chen Zhi and the others were shouting. He opened his eyes to see them breaking into the inner chamber, exposing more than half of his concubine's shoulder, which made him furious. He cursed: "Do you know the rules? Get out!"

  Zhou Tai, Zhao Qigui and Chen Zhijiu were outside the reach of Wang Xueshan's tyranny. Although they were resentful in their hearts, they did not dare to vent their anger and retreated.

  "What's going on? You're making a big deal out of nothing!" Wang Xueshan finally got up from the house, put on his clothes, and also felt that sneaking back to sleep in the middle of the night was not good for the three people outside, so he softened his tone.

  "Zhao Qinmin left last night and hasn't been seen since. His wife and daughter have also disappeared..." Chen Zhi replied from outside.

  "What!" Wang Xueshan, having heard Chen Zhi's words, rushed out of the inner room, his clothes and gown open, revealing half of his hairy leg. He kicked over a copper basin with a loud clang, grabbed Chen Zhi by the collar, and sternly asked, "What did you say?"

  "Zhao Qinmin might have gone to visit Wuguang at night..." said Chen Zhi.

  A big commotion broke out here, and the guards from outside all rushed in. Wang Xueshan still didn't believe that Zhao Qinnian would betray him. He looked at the guards coming in and said loudly: "Go to the East Wing and call Zhao Qinnian for me. I treated him with great kindness, if it weren't for me, he would be nothing, he can't possibly sell me out."

  Zhou Tai and Zhao Qigui were filled with resentment, thinking to themselves: "Zhao Qinmin is indeed loyal to Wang Xueshan, but his only son was framed by Wang's political enemies and thrown into prison where he will die. Yet Wang Xueshan can still sleep soundly with his concubine, such kindness is as heavy as a mountain, it's better to forget about it." Although they were angry in their hearts, they didn't dare express it, so they just stood by silently, watching the commotion below.

  The old servant of the East Wing was summoned to confirm that Zhao Qinnian's family had quietly left the previous night. Wang Xueshan kicked the old servant in the chest, sending him tumbling over the threshold and rolling down the corridor into the central courtyard, where he lay for half a day without getting up. Wang Xueshan cursed, "Even raising a dog would know to bark twice, what's the use of raising you, this old dog? Take him out and give him thirty strokes..."

  Everyone knows that if the old servant is beaten thirty more times, his life will not be preserved. However, under Wang Xueshan's furious anger, no one dares to plead for mercy, watching as the old servant is dragged away with pitiful wails.

  Wang Xueshan's other attendants also rushed over, and his son Wang Chao was shocked and hurried over. Wang Xueshan was so anxious in the hall that he couldn't think straight, with one thought after another pouring out, but they were all useless. Although he had been living a life of luxury for many years, he had always been involved in intrigues, but today's danger was the first time he had encountered it, and Wang Xueshan was completely at a loss, thinking several times about gathering his men to storm into Gu's residence.

  "Mr. Ma is back..." someone outside the yard excitedly shouted, and then a chaotic sound of footsteps came from the alley between the yards.

  "Wei Han, you're back, that's all that matters," Wang Xueshan said, hearing that his chief aide had rushed back from Tu Zhou overnight, suddenly coming to his senses like he had taken a dose of sobering medicine. He hastily walked down the hall to greet him, half-embracing and half-supporting the middle-aged scholar who was about to pay his respects, saying "I've lost my mind, I was just waiting for you to come back and take charge, that beast Zhao Qinxin has gone over to Gudu..."

  "I was worried about the situation here as soon as I received the urgent message from the county," Ma Weihan said, "I didn't sleep at night, and four of the horses pulling the carriage died on the way to the West Water Gate. When I entered the mansion, Wang Guanshi briefly told me what happened... this matter doesn't require too much panic..." Ma Weihan said, twirling his mustache, but his eyes glanced at Chen Zhi, Zhou Tai, and Zhao Qigui, and Wang Xueshan suddenly realized that Zhao Qinmin could betray him, and the three people in front of him could also betray him. He said in a low voice: "You all go to the West Wing to rest for a while..." and gave a signal with his eyes to the guards on both sides, having them keep an eye on the three of them. It would be better to kill them all rather than let one of them defect to Gao Wu... if that really happened, it would be disastrous."

  The hall below was left with Wang Xueshan, Wang Chao, Ma Weihan and three other trusted followers.

  "There are a few things that need to be done immediately," Ma Weihan said, "One thing is to fabricate charges against Zhao Qinnian and his family as soon as possible, the more mud we can splash on him the better. If he is willing to be a dog for Gu Wudeng and bite back at us, we will also have a reason to counterattack; this matter can be left to Chen Zhi to handle, I know his character, he won't abandon his current wealth and glory just because of a nephew's life, and Gu Wudeng doesn't have any leverage to pull him over. Another thing is to conceal as much as possible the many things that Zhao Qinnian knows about, so that it will be difficult for his confessions to be verified; this matter can be left to Wang Guanshi to handle. At present, Zhao Qinnian and his family are likely hiding in Gu's residence, if he doesn't show up then it's fine, but if he dares to reveal himself, we must try our best to get rid of him, without any witnesses, all the written evidence can be said to be fabricated by Gu Wudeng to attack you; this matter will be handled by Chu Dutou, but be careful not to hurt Gu Wudeng. Also, use silver to bribe the transmission official Zhou Yifu, and ask him to delay Gu Wudeng's memorial as much as possible; please prepare pearls, jade, precious artifacts, I will take them with me to Beijing immediately, it is essential that we have people in the court speaking for you after Gu Wudeng's memorial arrives. Saying this, Ma Weihan paused slightly and continued, "Of course, Gu Wudeng may not necessarily want you to step down..."

  "What does he want to do?" Wang Xueshan asked, he didn't dare to assassinate Gu Wucheng in Jiangning, even if he succeeded, his position as the prefect of Jiangning would be demoted, and once he failed, the Wang family would fall into an irretrievable situation.

  "If Gu Wu's downfall is more beneficial for him to establish himself in Jiangning, he will naturally overthrow the master without hesitation," Ma Weihan said. "If not overthrowing the master is more beneficial for him to establish himself in Jiangning, he will also naturally keep the master intact."

  "How can I be controlled by this kid!" Wang Xueshan furiously roared.

  "Han Xin could endure the humiliation of being under someone's feet, why can't you temporarily lower your head and adopt a strategy of slowing down? Time is not on our side. No matter what we do, we need time. If you endure this temporary humiliation, once our side is deployed properly, we'll wait for an opportunity to eliminate Zhao Jinmin and his family, and you won't have to be controlled by him anymore..."

  Wang Xueshan furrowed his brow and pondered for a long time before saying slowly: "Alright, let's tolerate him for the time being."

  "Chen Zhi is still usable, even if Zhou Tai and Chen Qigui's son are carried out of the city from the great prison, they may be bought by others, so we must be on guard," said Ma Weihan.

  "That's just a casual accusation thrown into prison." Wang Xueshan said, and Jiangning Prefecture also has a large prison.

  "There's no need for that, just let someone else take over their tasks," Ma Weihan finally showed some mercy, wanting to leave a way out for Zhou Tai and Zhao Qigui, saying "Zhou Tai and Zhao Qigui don't know much about the matter."

  "No, can't afford to make a wrong move." Wang Xueshan was originally a stingy and unkind person. With Zhao Qiming's precedent, he would rather miss out on a thousand than let one go, and decisively decided to put Zhou Tai and Zhao Qigui in prison under control.

  Ma Weihan and others, seeing that their advice was not heeded, followed Wang Xueshan's intention and went to instruct.

  "Have Zhang Wending brought over, and have Chen Zhixian called over. Tell him to work with the other three city commanders to immediately search for and capture Zhao Qinnin's family throughout the entire city." Wang Xueshan said again, as the all-powerful Jiangning Prefecture Magistrate, although the Jiangning Prefectural Military Command was divided into two sections led by the Left and Right Sectional Military Judges, these judges were merely subordinate officials of the Jiangning Prefecture. In reality, they had very little power to resist their superior. Wang Xueshan could directly mobilize the troops under the command of the four city commanders, and having Zhang Wending called over was just a formality.

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