Chapter 419 - 262: People’s Hearts Can Be Overturned
Chapter 419: Chapter 262: People’s Hearts Can Be Overturned
"Don’t worry. Once the grain arrives, I’ll give it to you."
"But if you try any more tricks, the Cui Family won’t let you off either."
Seeing Chen Yi nod, Lou Yuxue continued, "Second question."
"These two pieces of news can only fool people for a short time. As soon as the Government Office issues a notice to clarify things, your little scheme will fall apart, won’t it?"
Chen Yi raised an eyebrow slightly and praised her, "As expected of Lord Lady Tiger of the White Tiger Guard. It’s impressive you thought of this. Very impressive."
"Cut the crap. Tell me your plan."
"The Buddha said, ’It cannot be spoken.’"
Lou Yuxue slammed her hand on the table, her beautiful eyes glaring at him. "You won’t talk about this, you won’t talk about that. Are you planning to screw me over again?"
Chen Yi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "Lord Lady Tiger, this matter is like a nocked arrow. It must be fired."
"If I were planning to swindle you at a time like this, wouldn’t I be shooting myself in the foot?"
"The only reason I’m not telling you is because I don’t want the White Tiger Guard to have me on their radar."
Lou Yuxue was still skeptical. "I doubt you’d dare..."
The two then discussed more details, such as when to spread the two rumors and when that shipment of grain would arrive in Shu State.
It wasn’t until the sixth mark of the Hour of the Ox that Chen Yi finally stood up, preparing to leave Spring Rain Building.
Before leaving, he took the letter handwritten by Lin Huai’an from his robes and handed it to Lou Yuxue.
"Here, this is for you. Consider it a thank-you gift."
Since Lou Yuxue had already made a deal with Cui Qingwu without any persuasion from him, he didn’t mind returning the favor and throwing in this letter as a little bonus.
Lou Yuxue was initially unconcerned, but after a quick glance, her expression suddenly turned serious.
"Lin Huai’an... King Landu... ironware trade?"
"This thing... where did you get it?!"
As the Chief Steward of Bright Moon Building and having been in Shu State for many years, Lou Yuxue naturally knew Lin Huai’an’s identity.
But she never imagined that a secret letter between Lin Huai’an and King Landu would so blatantly mention the word "ironware."
She couldn’t help but recall what Lord General had said earlier—that his meeting with King Landu was to find concrete evidence of his trades with certain courtiers in Shu State.
’This letter should be it. The number of people in Shu State who can provide ironware is very small. No matter who it is, Lord General will surely be pleased.’
Unfortunately, Lin Huai’an was already dead. For this letter to be effective, further investigation would be needed.
Chen Yi, naturally unaware of these things, raised an eyebrow. "Is it useful?"
"Never you mind. Just tell me where this letter came from."
"I was there the night Lin Huai’an died."
Lou Yuxue was taken aback. "You killed him?"
Chen Yi pursed his lips. "Someone else did."
After a moment’s thought, he added a few more words.
"The supplier of the ’ironware’ mentioned in this letter is Zhu Hao of the Shu State Capital Commandery."
"Zhu Hao?"
Lou Yuxue had a flash of realization. "So it was him."
After a moment of thought, she asked, "Who else knows about the contents of this letter?"
"No one."
Chen Yi replied, and seeing Lou Yuxue’s evasiveness, he understood that the White Tiger Guard must need this letter.
Naturally, he wasn’t about to reveal Wang Ji and Zhang Dabao.
Lou Yuxue nodded slightly. "I’ll take this letter. Thank you."
Chen Yi said nonchalantly, "Glad it could help. I’m leaving."
This time, his targets weren’t the likes of King Landu and Zhu Hao, but the far more important Liu Hong.
Even the few grain trading companies in Shu State were just something he was dealing with on the side.
He didn’t much care about a letter that could prove Zhu Hao’s guilt.
After a bit more small talk, Chen Yi repeatedly warned Lou Yuxue not to leak the information—not even to the White Tiger Guard ahead of time—before finally leaving.
Lou Yuxue didn’t refuse.
’If I know, it means the White Tiger Guard knows. Whether or not I keep it a secret will depend on the repercussions of this whole affair.’
After all, she hadn’t been promoted to Golden Banner Officer yet. There were many things she couldn’t decide on her own, so it was inevitable she’d have reservations.
If the plan succeeded, everyone would be happy.
If it failed... she couldn’t possibly take the fall alone.
She might just have to let "Liu Wu" take the blame.
Thinking this, Lou Yuxue didn’t hesitate for long. After putting the letter away safely, she summoned her subordinates and gave them their instructions.
Although she was still wary of "Liu Wu," compared to the money-grubbing people from the Ji State Trading Company, she was more willing to trust him.
At the same time, she also wanted to see just how "Liu Wu" planned to make the Ji State Trading Company suffer a loss in Shu State.
’Hmph. Those people have already made so much in the north, yet they still want a piece of Shu State. Truly insatiable. This is a perfect chance for "Liu Wu" to teach them a lesson...’
「Not long after.」
Chen Yi returned to the residence behind the tailor shop and called for Zhang Dabao to remove his disguise.
He gazed at the night outside the window, listening to the patter of the rain, as the Go board in his mind constantly had pieces placed and removed.
Black stones were swapped back and forth.
They included people like King Landu of Poshisu Country and the Barbarian Left King, Mu Hage.
On the side of the white stones, however, there were only Lou Yuxue and Pei Qian of the Mountain Race.
In the end, Chen Yi picked up the white stone that represented himself and sighed inwardly.
’To make those people fall into the trap, I’m afraid Wang Ji alone won’t be enough.’
After much thought, he concluded that the only way to make this play more convincing was for him to personally enter the fray.
’Fortunately, I have another identity.’
None other than Chen Yu.
Thinking of this, Chen Yi changed his clothes and instructed, "Wait for me here tomorrow."
Zhang Dabao acknowledged with a "Yes, sir," and didn’t ask a single question.
Chen Yi didn’t say much either. He slipped silently into the rain and returned directly to Spring Lotus Garden.
Once he had changed into a set of dry, casual clothes, he went to his study and lit an oil lamp.
He sat quietly for a moment.
Chen Yi cleared his mind slightly, took out a brush and paper, and began to write and sketch.
His trip tonight had been quite fruitful.
Not only had he gained Asutai’s trust, but he had also consulted with Lou Yuxue to confirm their subsequent plans.
On top of that, he had unexpectedly received a piece of news—Fu Wanqing was currently deep within the Barbarian Race’s territory, in Left King Mu Hage’s tribe.
This trip could only be described as a success.
However, although he had made his moves and many things were proceeding according to his plan, he still needed a bit of luck.
Although he often touted the saying "man can conquer fate," when push came to shove, a certain degree of caution was unavoidable.
Especially since he was now facing not fools like Liu Wen and Liu Jing, but the likes of Liu Hong, King Landu, and the people from the Ji State Trading Company.
If word got out, or if any mishap occurred along the way, the entire plan could be overturned.
He had no choice but to handle it with extreme care.
’Now, it all depends on the Xiao Family’s luck.’
As Chen Yi thought this, he focused his mind and began painting portraits of Xiao Wan’er, Xiao Jinghong, and others on a wide sheet of Yunsong Paper.
It had been a long time; he really did need to hand over two paintings to fulfill his obligation.
Why two paintings?
Because his wife, Xiao Jinghong, had to have a portrait too, of course.
So, Chen Yi shamelessly painted himself into the picture, depicting himself with a handsome face and a dashing posture, the very image of a graceful young master.
’A family should be complete and proper, after all.’
And as one painting was completed, Chen Yi’s True Essence flowed, and he used the Mental Realm of his Painting Dao to connect with the Heaven and Earth’s Spiritual Mechanism.
The next moment, he saw the portraits of the people on the Yunsong Paper seem to come alive.
Not only could they move, but they could also make various expressions.
Chen Yi looked at the figures in the painting with a strange expression. ’The Painting Dao has such a miraculous ability?’
Then, with a slight shift in his thoughts, the Four Great Divine Beasts Spiritual Essence shifted position within the Sea of Qi in his Forehead Acupoint, and strands of True Essence flowed into the painting.
The next moment, a figure walked straight out of the painting.
It was none other than "Xiao Wan’er" in a long dress.
The figure of "Xiao Wan’er" was solid, her face flushed with a healthy blush, and she smiled at him as if she were a living person.
Chen Yi sized her up, then reached out a hand to test it. Confirming that it was just a shadow formed from the ambient Spiritual Mechanism, he finally relaxed.
’An unexpected surprise. Not bad.’
Right now, his Painting Dao was only at the Minor Success Realm, so this illusion wasn’t of much help to him.
Perhaps when his Painting Dao advanced to Great Success or even Perfection, it would have other uses.
Thinking this, Chen Yi painted another one, a slight smile appearing on his face.
’Lord Ye’s love of dragons... It really is a wondrous thing.’
...
「The next day.」
Just as the sky began to brighten, Chen Yi, already dressed neatly, came into the living room and sat down at the dining table.
Xiaodie asked, slightly surprised, "Young Master, are you going out today? I thought you didn’t have classes at the academy until tomorrow."
While telling her to prepare breakfast, Chen Yi looked at the fine drizzle outside the window and said:
"I have some business at Hundred Herbs Hall..."