“Chapter 150”

"Chapter 150"

"A fleeting fear crossed Rong Tang's mind, suddenly recalling a significant detail he had overlooked."

"On the boat during the Shehua meeting, the first time he saw Sheng Chengli, he knew he was a protagonist not from this era. Specifically, it was at the end of the 11th year and the beginning of the 12th year of the Qingzheng era."

"Rong Tang pursed his lips, his face alternating between light and shadow in the evening glow, finally realizing what this speculation implied."

"At the end of the 11th year of Qingzheng, Mu Jingxu was already dead."

"—Both in the predestined plot of the original story and the past he had lived through."

"The heavy snow at the end of the eleventh year took away Mu Shaoqing, and the Sheng Chengli of today still looks like he did back then."

"Panic loomed large for a moment, Rong Tang narrowed his eyes, not wasting a second before heading out of the courtyard."

"However, he bumped into Su Huaijing at the moon gate. The latter paused, instinctively wanting to smile, but quickly turned serious upon seeing Rong Tang's expression, taking his hand and asking softly, 'What's wrong?'"

"Rong Tang looked at Su Huaijing, his expression unusually panicked. Grasping Su Huaijing's arm tightly, he asked urgently, 'Did Sheng Chengli go to the Dali Temple? When, why, is my brother still there?'"

"The barrage of questions made it hard for Su Huaijing not to suspect something."

"His expression changed, his eyes sharpening, involuntarily scrutinizing as he observed Rong Tang's emotions, yet in the next second, his gaze softened, taking Rong Tang's hand to walk outside, asking warmly, 'What do you want to say, Tangtang?'"

"Before seeing Su Huaijing, Rong Tang was extremely anxious, but now he seemed slightly more stable."

"In the information he initially had, Mu Jingxu's death was attributed to chronic illness and overexertion, unable to survive the winter."

"This was normal, given the low medical standards of the era and Mu Jingxu's known poor health."

"But with the variable of Sheng Chengli, Rong Tang now had to suspect that Mu Jingxu's death might be related to Sheng Chengli."

"Even though the System no longer resided in his mind, Rong Tang still couldn't fully disclose his experiences from the past two lives or the plot of the original story to Su Huaijing, uncontrolled. This limitation might not be just from the System or the mainframe, but a rule inherent to this world itself."

"Rong Tang tried but ended up only able to hint indirectly, 'My brother previously supported Sheng Chengli, but then suddenly abandoned him and joined us. Now, Sheng Chengli has unexpectedly gone to the Dali Temple. What for? Could it be a desire for revenge?'"

"While speaking, they reached the gate. Su Huaijing pulled him onto the carriage, instructing Shuangshou to drive to the Mu residence, his expression slightly grave."

"Rong Tang, thinking of something, furrowed his brows and asked uncertainly, 'On the day of the Ghost Festival, did you and Lord Mu have an argument? What about?'"

"Su Huaijing was startled, looking at Rong Tang in surprise, then helplessly shook his head, wondering, 'Tangtang, how do you know everything?'"

"Rong Tang didn't acknowledge his praise but stared directly at Su Huaijing, insisting on an explanation."

"The latter met his gaze for a long time as the carriage rolled on."

"After a while, the antagonist said softly, 'You should ask your brother directly.'"

"During the journey, he didn't dwell much on this topic, instead asking Rong Tang some seemingly trivial details."

"Like what cases might arise in the capital next, which would be assigned to the Dali Temple, and which would be handled by the Censorate. Behind these cases, what forces might be involved, and how they could affect the situation in the capital."

"This was all conjecture, cleverly avoiding direct information about key figures."

"Rong Tang understood his implication and answered his questions in a vague manner that wouldn't trigger censorship, both clearly understanding why these questions were asked."

"If Mu Jingxu's death wasn’t due to overexertion, it must have been tangled in a web of interests and grudges."

"Either a conflict with Sheng Chengli or dangers stemming from his position as the junior prefect of the Dali Temple."

"With the numerous cases handled by the Dali Temple annually, it's hard to say if he inadvertently stepped on a landmine in one or two of them."

"Rong Tang and Su Huaijing talked all the way but hesitated momentarily before arriving at the Mu residence."

"Noticing his hesitation, Su Huaijing raised an eyebrow and asked, 'Is there something Tangtang finds inconvenient to say?'"

Rong Tang rarely inquired about Su Huaijing's affairs in the official circles, but now autumn had passed, and someone was still alive.

He asked, "Is Li Changfu still in the Heavenly Prison?"

Su Huaijing was momentarily stunned, his brows slightly furrowed, and he replied, "He's close to death."

Rong Tang usually trusted him, but he harbored doubts specifically about this matter.

As the Vice Minister of War, Li Changfu naturally had close dealings with the Minister of War and the martial Duke of Wu Kang.

Last autumn, after the extermination of the Duke of Wu Kang's household, everyone in the Ministry of War felt endangered.

The treason was a serious matter. Emperor Ren Shou decreed a thorough investigation of the Ministry of War, led by the Censorate and assisted by the Dali Temple.

Soon after, a series of crimes like corruption and bribery were uncovered against Li Changfu. However, having been an official for many years and skillfully maneuvering, he was only imprisoned in the grand jail at the end of this spring.

Given that the Ministry of War is the nation's armament, and with the cases of the Duke of Wu Kang and Zhang Baoshan last year, Emperor Ren Shou was enraged upon hearing the news and ordered a strict investigation on Li Changfu, eventually uncovering more than ten charges and sentencing him to death after autumn.

These events occurred both in the original story and in his previous life, with Su Huaijing playing a significant role. Rong Tang even witnessed Li Changfu being led to the execution ground. The scene of a wild dog mauling half of Li Changfu's face was so bloody and terrifying that Rong Tang fell ill with a fever afterwards.

Such a minor character doomed to die couldn't cause much uproar, but for some unknown reason, whether it's because Su Huaijing wasn't completely delivered into Qin Pengxun's courtyard in this life or something else, Su Huaijing seemed less eager to hasten his death.

Emperor Ren Shou had indeed decreed death after autumn, yet he issued a general amnesty reducing sentences before this year's Wanshou Festival, including Li Changfu, whose sentence was changed from death to life imprisonment.

If it were just this incident, it might not mean much, but with Sheng Chengli unexpectedly entering the Dali Temple, Rong Tang couldn't help but suspect a connection.

Su Huaijing frowned, noticing his hesitant and worried look, and reassured him, "I have other ways to ensure his death, Tangtang needn't worry."

Rong Tang glanced at him, wanting emotionally to trust him, but intuitively feeling like there was a huge trap waiting for them.

In the end, Rong Tang just nodded, placing his trust in Su Huaijing as always.

When they arrived at the Mu residence, a few people were having dinner.

Yuanyuan was very happy to see Rong Tang, dropping her chopsticks and running to him. She gestured to the top of her head, excitedly telling him that she had grown taller again.

"Su Huaijing glanced at him coldly, bluntly exposing, 'Your shoes are padded with three layers of insoles.'"

"'How did you know!' Yuan Yuan was quite surprised, his mouth wide enough to swallow an egg."

"Su Huaijing scoffed disdainfully and didn't respond, but Ke Hongxue pulled his foolish child back, sighing deeply and explaining, 'I just saw you a few days ago, you're not a sapling that shoots up overnight.'"

"Yuan Yuan, a bit deflated, slumped his shoulders but still argued, 'He doesn’t even look at me, how would he know my height from a few days ago, let alone accurately guess the number of insoles?'"

"Mu Jingxu, hearing this, glanced briefly at Su Huaijing with a clearly advisory look, as if questioning what he had done to make the child feel so uncared for."

"Su Huaijing, indifferent as always, had already naturally taken a seat next to Rong Tang, as the servant brought two sets of utensils, he began serving ribs into Rong Tang’s bowl."

"Rong Tang, quite helpless, called Yuan Yuan over and took out a pack of candy from his pocket, 'Uncle Su bought this for you on the way here.'"

"'Why give him anything,' Su Huaijing grumbled, 'Anyway, I’m just the bad uncle in his eyes.'"

"Rong Tang: '…'"

"Mu Jingxu: '…'"

"The two exchanged a look, both seeing a speechless sentiment in each other’s eyes."

"Ke, the Deputy Minister, started mocking, 'Oh wow, such a grown-up, squabbling with a kid. Isn’t that embarrassing?'"

"After saying this, he picked up Yuan Yuan, who was about to bite into the candy, and while walking out said, 'We won’t play with him, so we don’t catch his childishness.'"

"Su Huaijing didn't spare a glance, focused solely on serving food to Rong Tang, watching him eat before starting his own dinner. This left Mu Jingxu baffled, not understanding if these two had run out of food and firewood at home to come so far just for a meal."

"But since they were there, he couldn’t leave the table, so he scooped another bowl of soup, leisurely drinking it while accompanying the two."

"Only after the guests were nearly full did Mu Jingxu smile and ask, 'Why come over without any notice?'"

"Su Huaijing, seemingly determined to remain petulant, glanced displeasedly at his brother, 'Don’t you know?'"

"Mu Jingxu was slightly taken aback, his smile pausing, puzzled as he looked at him, then turned to Rong Tang."

"Rong Tang shook his head and directly asked him, 'Why did the Fifth Prince go to the Dali Temple? Brother, are you aware of the details?'"

"Mu Jingxu opened his mouth, a moment of hesitation crossing his face, before he did not immediately respond to Rong Tang."

"Su Huaijing, however, said irritably, 'He was invited.'"

"Rong Tang froze, recalling the scattered papers in the study on the day of the Ghost Festival."

"Su Huaijing was always excessively rational, never sparing himself from sacrifice and calculation, even if it meant losing an arm to ensure someone else's death, he would probably agree."

"But in front of family and loved ones, the antagonist becomes an immature child."

"Knowing Sheng Chengli was a venomous snake ready to bite at any time, Mu Jingxu still chose to collaborate with him, naturally displeasing Su Huaijing, resulting in an argument."

"Mu Jingxu looked a bit helpless but indulgently towards his younger brother. Glancing at Su Huaijing, he explained gently, 'It's either the Dali Temple, the Censorate, or any other department in the Six Ministries. Rather than keeping danger in an unseen place to grow, it's better to keep it under my watch.'"

"Rong Tang disagreed, 'But he's no good.'"

"Mu Jingxu was momentarily surprised, seemingly never having heard Rong Tang speak so of anyone before. Recovering, he smiled and said, 'At least I can restrain him.'"

"Rong Tang, confused for a moment, felt an ominous premonition, 'How can you restrain him?'"

"Mu Jingxu looked at Su Huaijing and finally chose not to hide it, admitting, 'I have drugged him. He must take an antidote every month, or he could die at any time.'"

"Rong Tang's pupils dilated in shock, his surprise evident on his face, his voice trembling slightly, 'When did this happen?'"

"Mu Jingxu, not understanding his sudden emotional shift, still answered, 'Two years ago, during the Spring Festival.'"

"Rong Tang: '…'"

"Since the ninth year of Qingzheng, Mu Jingxu had never been truly aligned with Sheng Chengli."

"Under these circumstances, could Sheng Chengli really tolerate not making a move against him for three or four years?"

"He never learned to repay kindness; treachery and vengefulness were his nature. For him, this was the optimal solution in a game of power and strategy where true hearts were never involved from the start."

"How is this restraining? It’s clearly inviting the wolf into the house, nurturing a tiger for trouble."

"Author’s note:"

"Mu Mu, you should listen to Tangtang in this matter, he's the senior here (not really)."