Chapter 7 Disaster “I’m afraid I might lose control and strangle you.”

Chapter 7: Disaster

"I'm afraid I might lose control and accidentally strangle you."

Revealing the secret that concerned her family's survival to a man who refused to even give his name was extremely dangerous.

Zhong Yao agreed, partly because she was desperate, but also because she knew this man was a good person—even though he had deceived her, was impatient, petty, spoke harshly, and had threatened her many times.

Needless to say, the Yong'an Marquis heir was the descendant of a loyal and valiant general who had fought alongside the founding emperor a century ago.

In truth, by now, the descendants of those founding heroes had either made mistakes and lost their titles or become mediocre talents living off their ancestors' prestige. The Yong'an Marquis household had also faded into obscurity, but ever since the emperor personally led a campaign a few years ago, it suddenly came back into favor.

It was said that the Yong'an Marquis heir had rendered a great service.

No one knew exactly what that service was, but it wasn't an isolated case. Since then, whether it was the southern campaigns or fighting the western tribes, the Yong'an Marquis heir had led the troops. Just last month, news of victory arrived, saying the western tribes were about to surrender and sue for peace.

In short, this heir was deeply trusted by the emperor, and even the crown prince was on very friendly terms with him.

How favored was he?

Zhong Yao's father, Zhong Huaizhi, was a sixth-rank military equipment commissioner, responsible for manufacturing military equipment. He often had to deal with the Ministry of Works, in charge of iron mining, and the Ministry of Revenue, which allocated funds. The Ministry of Works was relatively easy to deal with, but the Ministry of Revenue was difficult. Every time he went to request funds, it was as challenging as fighting a battle. The hardest time, it took a full year to finally get the funds.

One day two years ago, the emperor suddenly summoned Zhong Huaizhi, personally inspected the military equipment manufacturing accounts, and then harshly reprimanded the officials of the Ministry of Revenue. Even the Minister of Revenue was not spared.

The next day, before the Ministry of Revenue's funds had even arrived, the crown prince sent emergency funds from his private treasury to the military equipment department. This frightened several officials from the Ministry of Revenue, who scrambled to deliver their apologies in person.

Since then, the military equipment department had never lacked funds again.

Zhong Huaizhi himself was baffled. Later, he pulled some strings to make discreet inquiries and learned that it was because the Yong'an Marquis heir had privately mentioned to the emperor the shortage of military equipment.

In short, the Yong'an Marquis household had the ear of both the emperor and the crown prince.

For Zhong Yao, having the Yong'an Marquis household help was like a pie falling from the sky!

Therefore, Zhong Yao wasn't bothered by Xie Chi's attitude in the slightest. She only cared about one thing: "You have more dealings with the Yong'an Marquis household, so it's natural for you to defend the Old Lady Xie. But you mustn't forget that we share a life-and-death bond, and our relationship is closer..."

Xie Chi said nothing, stood up, and walked out.

"I'll tell you, I'll tell you!" Zhong Yao made a grab for him but was too late, and blurted out, "My father is Zhong Huaizhi!"

Xie Chi stopped, turned back, and asked, "Military Equipment Commissioner Zhong Huaizhi?"

Zhong Yao: "...Yes."

Xie Chi frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and said, "Zhong Huaizhi, of humble origins, unassuming by nature, with no extensive kinship ties, never attached himself to the powerful, has served as military equipment commissioner for nearly ten years. Every day, after his official duties, he returns home to accompany his wife and children. He and his wife have two sons and one daughter..."

He looked at Zhong Yao.

Zhong Yao bit her lower lip, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "My father had grand ambitions when he was young, but later he saw..."

Xie Chi: "Did I ask you that?"

Zhong Yao pouted, finishing the rest of the sentence in her mind.

Later, her father witnessed the complexities of officialdom and felt that neither immense wealth nor dealings with the powerful were something his family could handle. So, he simply gave up the petty scheming of officialdom and settled down to live a peaceful life with his wife and children. That's why he stayed in that position with little profit and no prospects for so many years.

After muttering to herself, she finally reported her full name: "My name is Zhong Yao."

Then she asked offhandedly, "What's your name? How do you know so much?"

Xie Chi paid her no mind and said, "As far as I know, your father is mediocre, but your two older brothers are quite capable. They passed the imperial exams a few years back and have promising futures. Now, wanting to rebel—are they tired of living a peaceful life, or do they want to feel the chill on their necks?"

Zhong Yao gave him a resentful look and said, "You tell me not to talk nonsense, but you keep talking yourself..."

Xie Chi shot her a cold glance, reminding Zhong Yao that she was the one seeking help. She immediately shut her mouth, glanced at Xie Chi a few more times, and under his increasingly impatient gaze, said in a small voice, "My eldest brother... two months ago, he had been sent to Jiangzhou to investigate a case. He accidentally met the daughter of Minister Chen, who was returning home to visit family. While drunk, he..."

Zhong Yao stammered, taking a long time before whispering the second half of the sentence, "...he had intimate relations with her..."

The room fell silent for a moment before Xie Chi's voice sounded again.

"Which daughter of Minister Chen?"

"...The eldest daughter."

Xie Chi fell silent.

Zhong Yao didn't dare look at him. Steeling herself, she closed her eyes and continued as a last resort: "Then there's my second brother. He went with General Qin to suppress bandits in Xujiang. He got into a dispute with the son of Xu Guozhu's family and accidentally... accidentally... killed him..."

By the last few words, her voice was almost inaudible.

After a long while, someone spoke in the room again.

"Quite bold."

Xie Chi truly laughed this time. After praising her with a laugh, he took two steps forward, bent down, and gently patted Zhong Yao's head. Under her pitiful gaze, he said in an unusually soft voice, "Wash your neck clean and wait obediently for death."

After saying this, he withdrew his hand, turned around, and walked out heartlessly. Zhong Yao called out "Hey! Hey!" several times but couldn't stop him.

The man's tall, broad back was the last glimmer of hope Zhong Yao could see. She watched helplessly as that hope disappeared, leaving only the pale golden gauze curtains swaying gently, as if mocking her foolishness.

Feeling the pain in her back from raising her arm to try and pull him back, and thinking of her family's predicament, a wave of despair washed over Zhong Yao's heart.

He had changed his mind. He wasn't willing to help anymore.

And rightly so. After learning the truth, who would still be willing to help her?

After all...

Minister Chen's eldest daughter was the woman the crown prince had fallen in love with at first sight, the future crown princess he had personally sought. Everyone in the world knew this.

Her eldest brother had intimate relations with her. Whether for the sake of the royal family's dignity or personal feelings, the crown prince couldn't possibly let this matter slide easily.

Then there was her second brother. The Xu Guozhu household had few descendants. In this generation, there was only one male heir.

Her second brother had cut off the Xu Guozhu family line. Xu Guozhu would surely demand the entire Zhong family pay with their lives. If it were just Xu Guozhu, that would be one thing, but even more terrifying was that the Xu Guozhu household was also the empress's natal family, and the empress still had no children...

The Zhong family was of humble origins to begin with. The reason they had lived peacefully in the capital for so many years was due to Zhong Huaizhi's non-confrontational approach and his modest, incorruptible official conduct. Looking back three generations in her family, there was no connection strong enough to contend with any of the parties involved—the crown prince, the empress, or Xu Guozhu.

Moreover, Empress Xu was the emperor's second empress, not the crown prince's birth mother...

Just counting how many factions wanted her family dead and buried without a grave was enough to make Zhong Yao's head feel like it was splitting open!

How could there possibly be any way out?

Even the Yong'an Marquis household couldn't save her family!

Zhong Yao was utterly despairing, feeling it would have been better to die outright in the inn a few days ago. As sorrow spread through her, her nose tingled, and she covered her face, sobbing "Wuwu..."

"Shut up!"

After a few sobs, an impatient, scolding voice came from outside.

Zhong Yao froze. She looked up with tear-filled eyes, vaguely making out a figure sitting at the round table outside through the gauze curtain.

"You... you didn't leave?"

His voice was here, so of course he hadn't left.

Realizing she had asked a useless question, Zhong Yao wiped her tears and asked again, "Why... did you suddenly go outside..."

"I was afraid I wouldn't be able to control myself and accidentally strangle you to death."

Zhong Yao: "..."

Even though he hadn't left, Zhong Yao was still very sad. She silently wiped the tears from her cheeks, glanced outside again, and whispered, "It's alright, you don't need to be troubled... When I begged you to kill me, it was because I myself had no way to survive. Taking the knife for you was also because I was going to die sooner or later anyway..."

The pain from her wound made it hard to speak in long sentences, so she had to pause after every few words.

After a pause, Zhong Yao continued, "If there were any other way, who would want to rebel? I don't want to drag you into this. Just pretend you don't know anything, give me a packet of arsenic, and quietly dump me on a remote path..."

Xie Chi's mind was buzzing with her sorrowful voice, making it nearly impossible for him to think straight.

He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead, interrupting Zhong Yao's self-pity, and asked, "Is your brothers' situation confirmed?"

The faint voice replied, "My eldest brother wrote about his situation in a letter himself, and my second brother's news came from his attendant... My parents sent people to investigate secretly. They said my second brother and Young Master Xu were captured together in a water fortress, and it was there that he killed Young Master Xu. Now, he's considered to have joined the bandits..."

Xie Chi understood.

Neither of these incidents had been directly confirmed by the people involved.

He didn't know much about the Zhong family, but from his interactions with Zhong Yao, he could tell they weren't particularly bold—even their revenge was limited to splashing wine on someone's shoes, making it seem petty to hold a grudge—nor were they malicious, otherwise Zhong Yao wouldn't have taken the initiative to break off the engagement.

So, leaving aside the eldest brother's situation for now, the second brother's case was probably questionable.

However, regardless of the truth, once these two incidents involving lives and the imperial family's dignity spread, the enraged Crown Prince, Xu Guozhu, the Empress, and others could each bring death upon the Zhong family.

That was why they had decided to take a desperate gamble before the news got out.

If they succeeded, all their crimes would be insignificant.

If they failed, it would only mean death.

Xie Chi ran through the situation in his head and asked again, "Which prince?"

Zhong Yao: "What..."

"Your father's official position isn't high. Even if it were a rebellion, he wouldn't be the mastermind. It must be one of the princes." Xie Chi said, "Including the Crown Prince, none of the seven princes have much prestige in the military. The only possible way to succeed would be a night raid on the palace to capture His Majesty. And your father happens to be the Military Supplies Commissioner. The supply and replacement of weapons for the military and the palace all go through his hands. He just needs to find an excuse to replace the weapons of the palace guards in a certain area..."

Zhong Huaizhi had held the position of Military Supplies Commissioner for ten years. Apart from a shortage of weapons a few years ago due to the Ministry of Revenue delaying payments, there had been almost no mistakes.

Due to the nature of his position, he had dealt with all areas requiring weapons and was known to the Emperor. No one would suspect this cautious sixth-rank official who had served uneventfully for a decade without reason.

Most of the time, the sabers worn by the palace guards were only for deterrence. If they were suddenly replaced, it would take a while for anyone to notice.

With proper coordination and seizing the right moment for a surprise attack, success wasn't out of the question.

But rebellion was never that simple.

Even if the Emperor agreed to pass the throne to this prince, would the Crown Prince accept it? Would the civil and military officials bow down?

Xie Chi had originally planned to quickly deal with the problem Zhong Yao mentioned and then head to Hidden Mist Mountain as invited. He never expected her troubles to be so far-reaching. By the end, he truly wished he could just strangle her.

Fortunately, Zhong Yao didn't provoke him at this moment. She cowered and said, "I don't know... My parents wouldn't tell me..."

That was to be expected.

Xie Chi asked again, "When is the rebellion scheduled?"

Zhong Yao mumbled, "It seems like..."

"If your tongue is useless, I'll help you pull it out."

"..." Zhong Yao spoke again, "...Tomorrow night..."

Xie Chi had already guessed that the rebellion was imminent, so he wasn't angered this time. He sneered and said, "It seems I have bad luck, stumbling into this just in time."

With that, he called for a servant and ordered a horse to be prepared.

"Are you going to seek help from Heir Xie?" Zhong Yao asked anxiously.

Xie Chi: "What do you think Heir Xie can do at this point?"

Zhong Yao shook her head honestly, "I don't know."

"How could you not know?" Xie Chi said, "Your mother just bullied Heir Xie's biological grandmother. If I go to him now, wouldn't it be the perfect opportunity to inform him so he can take revenge before your parents go to their deaths?"

Zhong Yao stammered, "How could you do that... Clearly, my relationship with you is better..."

Xie Chi had no patience to listen to her argue about whose relationship was better. He lifted the hem of his robe and strode out of the room.