“I’m not planning to micromanage everything on this trip. I just want to take in the sights. I’ll leave the details to my grandson.”
“I understand.” Chi Hou nodded.
As the leader of the Northern Region, he could read between the lines. The fact that someone as respected as him was letting someone else take care of the details…
That said a lot.
As to why Yan Qianli had decided to go to the capital…
It was to assert dominance.
He wanted to help cement the position of the next leader of Western Liang.
He couldn’t do so if he was in Western Liang. He had to do it in the capital. Chi Hou was certain that the heir to that position would be confirmed after this trip.
However…
Only Yan Qianli had the answer to why he would follow Yan Xiu all the way to the Northern Mountain Village before going to the capital.
Chi Hou didn’t bother with any more guesses. However, he was certain that Yan Qianli’s trip to the capital was not as simple as merely taking in the sights.
Could it be that they were going to participate in the battle for the throne?
Or was there something deeper?
Regardless, he had to warn King Duan in advance. If they could have Yan Qianli’s support in the fight for the throne, it would give them a huge boost.
…
Over the next three days, Yan Xiu stayed in the Fang Residence and Fang Zhengzhi brought Yan Xiu around.
Yan Qianli never showed himself.
Chi Hou wanted to use these three days to interact with Yan Qianli and understand his thoughts. However, Yan Qianli remained inside the Yan Cloud Cavalry camp.
Yan Qianli didn’t even seem to want to meet Fang Zhengzhi.
Three days later, Fang Zhengzhi said his goodbyes and joined Yan Xiu on their journey to the capital. The Red Pinion Squad and Yan Cloud Cavalry followed behind.
Zhang Yangping, Fang Houde, Qin Xuelian, and the other villagers all watched in awe as the convoy left the village.
However…
As ordinary villagers, they couldn’t possibly stop them.
“Village elder, do you think Zhengzhi will…”
“No! Chi Hou said that he was here to help Fang Zhengzhi! He will definitely help Fang Zhengzhi get his acquittal!”
“My son…”
“Mother of my son, let’s go back. Zhengzhi may be back soon!”
“Nothing will happen to him right?”
“Of course not, definitely not!”
…
Spring was usually a joyous and vibrant time, but the atmosphere in the capital seemed suppressed and down.
Inside the Crown Prince’s residence.
Dozens of officials stood outside his study, each one of them visibly anxious.
Inside the study, Crown Prince Lin Tianrong sat behind a desk. He was dressed in a silver robe and he looked at the officials solemnly.
There was a stack of shredded papers on the table. That was an emergency letter that he just received.
“Bloody Divine Constabulary… how dare you go against me so openly?! What do you think I should do?!” Crown Prince Lin Tianrong’s hand swept across the table and his teacup shattered on the floor.
The officials shook their heads when they saw this.
“Your Highness, Chi Hou has always been King Duan’s right-hand man. It is no surprise that he would bring Fang Zhengzhi to the capital.” One of the officials spoke up.
“Yes, the problem now isn’t the Divine Constabulary, it’s the Yan Family of Western Liang…” Another official spoke up, his eyes glittering.
“We never expected that the Yan King… Yan Qianli would leave Western Liang for this. This makes an ambush along the way quite impossible.”
“Yes, fighting 2000 soldiers of the Red Pinion Squad is difficult enough. If we want to go against that and an additional 3000 Yan Cloud Cavalry, we will need to tap on the army! However, King Duan still controls most of the army! It will be difficult to do anything without revealing ourselves!”
“The Emperor may even welcome Yan Qianli at the gates of the palace. If he does so, it’ll make things even more difficult for us.”
“Do you think that Fang Zhengzhi would dare to tell his side of the story when he meets the Emperor?”
“With his character, I wouldn’t put it past him to say anything. If anything he says gets out, it could be detrimental to your cause.”
“We must not let him enter the city!”
“Everyone, you are all thinking too much!” A voice rang out and the Minister of Law, Wan Chong, stood up. “Actually, we have already passed judgment on Fang Zhengzhi’s case. We have also issued a warrant for his arrest. The Emperor cannot simply pardon him just because the Divine Constabulary asked for it. Unless new evidence comes to light, the case will remain solid. The Crown Prince need not worry!”
“Official Wan is correct, we should remain calm and not act rashly!”
“Indeed, indeed!”
All of the officials expressed their agreement.
At that very moment, a middle-aged man in Ministry of Rites robes stood up. He straightened his robe and bowed to the Crown Prince.
“There is one other thing that I need to report. I have news that the Queen of the Southern Region is making a trip to the capital. I was wondering… if this had anything to do with Fang Zhengzhi?”
“…”
Silence. The officials looked at each other and stopped their discussions. There were too many things happening at once.
Starting with Fang Zhengzhi showing himself at Huai An County.
Then, everything had happened so quickly from that moment on that they had no time to catch their breath.
Was it a coincidence? Or had it been planned beforehand? No one could say for sure, but they all felt that everything was just a tad too coincidental.
Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping rapped his fingers against the armrest as he looked at the officials and a kneeling soldier.
“Did our intel say what Yan Qianli did in the Northern Mountain Village?” Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping queried.
“Prime Minister, he did not show himself in the Northern Mountain Village.” The soldier reported.
“He didn’t show himself? Then how do you know that Yan Qianli is coming to the capital with Fang Zhengzhi?” Yu Yiping frowned.
“Even though he didn’t show himself, he did speak with Chi Hou. Afterward, he never left his tent, so our scouts didn’t see him.”
“You’re telling me that Yan Qianli went to the village but never entered it. He also cooped himself up in his tent and didn’t meet with Chi Hou or Fang Zhengzhi?”
“Yes, sir!”
“He stayed in his tent, he stayed in his tent… I see, I see!” Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping’s eyes glittered.
When the other officials heard what he said, they looked at each other in confusion.
“Prime Minister, could you please enlighten us?” One of the officials asked when he saw Lin Tianrong look at him, approving his question.
“Yan Qianli has been the lord of Western Liang. However, he is now an old man. He will not play his trump card unless he absolutely has to.” Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping smiled confidently.
“What do you mean?” The officials couldn’t understand.
“Yan Qianli might not help Fang Zhengzhi.” Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping asserted.
“But Yan Qianli left Western Liang and went to the Northern Mountain Village. Why do that if he doesn’t plan to help Fang Zhengzhi?”
“Because of Yan Xiu!” Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping replied.
“Prime Minister, you are saying that Yan Qianli is coming to the capital because of Yan Xiu and not Fang Zhengzhi?”
“Yes!”
“We still don’t understand it fully. Please enlighten us.” The officials still seemed lost.
“Yan Qianli is aging, so he needs to plan for the future of Western Liang. I think he is going to hand the reins over to Yan Xiu.” Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping explained.
“Hand over Western Liang to Yan Xiu? Prime Minister, I’m afraid that’s not something that he can decide. The reason why they lead the region is because of Yan Qianli. Without him, the Yan Family will still be considered foreigners. Even if the Emperor wants the Yan Family to continue governing, I’m sure he will send one of the constabularies over to keep tabs on them.”
The officials began to voice their opinions.
“Exactly! That is where the problem is!” Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping nodded.
“Prime Minister, you mean…”
“Yan Qianli has managed to govern Western Liang without any interference for many decades. Do you think he will allow any of the 13 Constabularies to set up camp there?” Yu Yiping asked.
“No.” The officials replied without hesitation.
“Exactly. Yan Qianli would never let this happen. As such, anyone who can help him achieve his goals will get his support in the contest for the throne!”
“I get it now. Yan Qianli might have gone to the Northern Mountain Village, but by not showing himself, he is telling the world that he has yet to make a choice. He is trying to see who can help him achieve his goals!” The officials were enlightened.
“Prime Minister, you have great foresight!” The other officials nodded in amazement.
“Even though Yan Qianli has yet to make his choice, he is still accompanying Fang Zhengzhi into the capital. How do we deal with that?” Another official asked.
“We can still turn things around as long as Yan Qianli hasn’t made his choice!” Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping asserted.
“We would love to hear your plan!” The officials stood up and bowed to Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping.
“Tomorrow morning, you can propose during the morning sitting for the Emperor to hold a banquet to honor our seniors at the Ten Mile Lake!” Yu Yiping proposed.
“A banquet? Why would we have it at the Ten Mile Lake and not the palace?” The officials were confused.
“The Yan Family suffered the greatest casualties in their history at the battle of the Ten Mile Lake. If not for their valiant defense, the capital would not be what we know it to be. Most importantly, all five of Yan Qianli’s brothers died in that battle. Their bodies were never recovered. He would never reject an invitation to the Ten Mile Lake!”
The Left Prime Minister asserted.
The other officials nodded in agreement.
“The Left Prime Minister is wise. Crown Prince, if the banquet was held at the Ten Mile Lake, Yan Qianli would definitely attend and we would be at an advantage. Furthermore, outsiders would not be invited to attend.”
“Diverting his attention! Great plan, great plan!”
“How do we move forward after that?”
The officials turned to look at Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping once again.
“Kill!” Yu Yiping replied.
“Kill? The Ten Mile Lake is just half a day away from the capital. Furthermore, Chi Hou would be protecting Fang Zhengzhi. How would we get to him?” The officials were shocked.
“Official Wan had said this before. Fang Zhengzhi’s case has been closed. We don’t have to ask the Emperor for his opinion anymore.” The Prime Minister looked at Wan Chong.
“You want me to capture him before he reaches the city?” Law Minister Wan Chong asked.
“No, you must catch him at the gates with witnesses around!”
“At the city gates? With witnesses?”
“Yes, that is the only way that Chi Hou can’t stop you. You are just following the law. He can’t go against the law even though he is a lord. Furthermore, by capturing Fang Zhengzhi in front of witnesses, he would be sure that you won’t dare to do anything to Fang Zhengzhi!”
“It makes sense. This is the best way to ensure that Fang Zhengzhi is captured. But what do we do after?” Minister Wan Chong nodded.
“Don’t you have your methods once he is in your ministry?”
“But… if we arrested him in front of witnesses, then…”
“You are afraid you would be blamed?”
“I…”
“Official Wan, do not worry. As long as Fang Zhengzhi is dead, Yan Qianli would not bother about Yan Xiu and Fang Zhengzhi’s friendship. Yan Qianli would also back the Crown Prince. By doing so, you have done the Crown Prince a great favor and you will be rewarded in the future.”
“I understand. Since that is the case, I will go and make the arrangements now.” Minister Wan Chong grit his teeth and took his leave.
The other officials smiled respectfully at Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping and Crown Prince Lin Tianrong.
“I’m sure Fang Zhengzhi would never expect that we would arrest him at the gates.”
“Even I wasn’t expecting that.”
“He is too naive! If he thinks that he can waltz in here in broad daylight just because he has the Divine Constabulary and the Yan Family protecting him, he is terribly mistaken!”
“Only the Left Prime Minister could have thought of such a great plan!”
“Exactly, and to think he formulated this plan based on the information that Yan Qianli didn’t leave his tent! We still have a lot to learn!”
The officials expressed their admiration.
Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping smiled when he heard this. He knew what the Crown Prince was thinking.
The Crown Prince would not be at ease so long as Fang Zhengzhi was alive.
This was a mental problem, and Fang Zhengzhi had to be eliminated.
He was more than willing to sacrifice the Law Minister in exchange for Fang Zhengzhi’s life. In fact, the Crown Prince would have willingly sacrificed all six ministers if that’s what it took.
Once this was done, the world was his oyster!