Chapter 86
Yuwen Min had just managed to steady his racing heart, but when he heard Lu Hanzhi say that, it started pounding uncontrollably again.
He had never experienced a moment where he lost control like this. He didn’t know what was wrong with him today—why had he acted so recklessly?
Yuwen Min glanced at Lu Hanzhi, but his expression remained calm and composed as he said, “I was talking about your cousin.”
Lu Hanzhi didn’t tease him too much. He knew that this future tyrant had thin skin—when it came to killing people, he was merciless, but in all other matters, he was surprisingly reserved.
Lu Hanzhi said, “Don’t you think my cousin is quite impressive?”
Yuwen Min thought for a moment before responding, “Indeed. She is merely a physician, yet she has strong connections with many members of the royal family.”
Lu Hanzhi smiled and said, “You should know that people are divided into different ranks in society. There is no such thing as being born equal in this world. People of the same level will only associate with those of their own level. Those below who wish to mingle with those above are rarely welcomed by them. Of course, there are exceptions—some people are naturally charming, and even high-ranking officials and nobles are willing to befriend them. For example, me.”
Yuwen Min: …
This man always acted unserious when he should be serious and spoke with grave sincerity when it was least expected.
Lu Hanzhi continued, “Even I am only the son of a second-rank official personally appointed by Lord Gaozhong, holding sway over the economic lifeline of the Great Zhao, and thus considered extremely wealthy and powerful. The reason people are willing to associate with me is simply because my family background and status barely qualify me to do so. My cousin, however, is different. When my aunt married, she chose not to become the legitimate wife of a prestigious family in the capital but insisted on marrying a mere physician.”
“Of course, to me, my aunt’s decision was admirable. But by doing so, she voluntarily stepped down from the highest tier of society to a lower one, or even to the bottom. While I personally believe that people are born equal, the rules of this world are anything but.”
“My cousin, Su Wan’ning, is merely a physician—and an ordinary one at that. Her father, Su Siyin, holds no official medical position. In an average family, this might still be considered somewhat respectable. But in the capital? Forget about having any connection to princes or princesses—even a fifth-rank official wouldn’t bother speaking to her.”
“And yet, my cousin is truly extraordinary. In her eyes, only princes, princesses, dukes, and consorts are worthy of notice. The noble daughters of fifth-rank officials can hardly even get a glimpse of her. Despite being just an ordinary physician, she managed to marry into the Crown Prince’s household and successfully become his side consort. Keep in mind, she has yet to bear any children. Even the once-favored Young Lord Ping, as well as our own mother, only received the title of Crown Prince’s side consort after giving birth.”
“So, tell me, Prince An, if the late emperor were still alive, would the empress have ever agreed to let the Crown Prince take a mere physician as his side consort?”
Yuwen Min replied without hesitation, “No. And the Crown Prince wouldn’t have married a physician either—because it would have brought him no advantage.”
The emperor himself was a prime example. He had married not one but two legitimate daughters of high-ranking officials. That was the proper course of action.
Yet, in the capital, the Crown Prince’s marriage to a physician was not only accepted but even praised as a romantic tale.
No one praises something that defies logic without reason. If something seems off, there is always a deeper story.
Lu Hanzhi said, “Then why did the empress not only refrain from opposing this marriage but also strongly approve of it? Have you noticed that everyone who meets her inexplicably grows fond of her and willingly speaks on her behalf? Don’t you find that strange?”
Yuwen Min thought for a moment and came to a conclusion. He said, “Are you saying… your cousin practices sorcery?”
Lu Hanzhi shook his head, his brows furrowing. “I fear it’s even more complex than that. In the two years she lived in the Lu household, our home was thrown into chaos. One incident after another occurred, yet the moment she left, everything suddenly settled down. And ever since she left, she has never once returned. Your Highness, have you never suspected anything?”
At this point, Yuwen Min finally recalled the Su Wan’ning of his past life.
Back then, after his mother and uncle were killed, all that remained within him was seething hatred and a thirst for vengeance.
His sole focus was on revenge—on tearing society apart.
He had killed so many people that he had lost count. All he remembered was that, by the end, the court was nearly empty—either officials had been killed, or they had resigned, leaving barely anyone left to attend court.
By that time, Su Wan’ning had already married the Crown Prince and followed him to his fiefdom in the Western Frontier.
Wait…
Yuwen Min suddenly realized something was amiss. Given the sheer hatred he had harbored for everyone in court, why had he slaughtered every rival prince yet spared the Crown Prince—his most formidable opponent?
Not only had he let him return to his fiefdom, but he hadn’t touched him at all?
And yet, looking back now, he couldn’t remember a single detail about why he had made that decision.
Yuwen Min abruptly lifted his head and stared at Lu Hanzhi. “Are you saying… she can control people’s minds?”
Lu Hanzhi snapped his fingers and said, “Your Highness is indeed a perceptive man. But tell me, who would believe such a thing? I suffered under her influence for years, losing the protection of every elder in my family, and I even came close to losing my life multiple times.”
Once was when Lu Haozhi exposed the truth during childbirth. Another time was when Aunt Du set fire to the house.
Both of these incidents were entirely orchestrated by Su Wan’ning.
Lu Hanzhi took a deep breath and said, “Now do you understand why I gave that handkerchief to County Princess Zhaoyun? Why I asked you to deliver the ceremonial sword to my father? Your Highness… do you see it now?”
Yuwen Min frowned at him and asked, “You also practice sorcery?”
Lu Hanzhi shook his head with a smile. “I only know some defensive measures. If I hadn’t learned them, my grave would be covered in weeds by now.”
Yuwen Min looked at the dazzlingly beautiful young man before him, and a pang of emotion struck his heart.
He said, “If that’s the case, just kill her. Why go through all this trouble?”
Lu Hanzhi shook his head again and said, “If it were that easy, would we have to go to such lengths to break her schemes over and over? The assassins you faced last time were able to wipe out even the emperor’s personal guards—doesn’t that tell you something about her power?”
That was precisely why Lu Hanzhi had never acted rashly against her. He had spent all this time probing her, yet he still had not uncovered her full capabilities.
Yuwen Min gazed at Lu Hanzhi, his eyes darkening.
He stepped forward slowly and said, “Wang Fei, I believe I have never truly known you.”
Lu Hanzhi froze for a moment, then casually adjusted his long hair in front of his chest, grinning cheekily. “Well, us hidden masters are always full of surprises!”
Yuwen Min stared at him and continued, “So it was because of her that you transformed—from a carefree young man who only wanted to marry the person he loved into someone so full of talent and strategy?”
Ah… well.
You’ve already praised me so much—if I deny it now, wouldn’t all your effort be wasted?
Lu Hanzhi put on a mature and composed expression, took a deep breath, and said, “There will always be something in this world that you care about. From the moment Ah Chan was born, she has been trying to lead me to kill him. Last time, she nearly succeeded in pushing Ah Chan off a cliff. If I hadn’t learned everything I know now, not only would I be dead, but my child wouldn’t have survived either.”
Yuwen Min asked again, “Why did she want to kill Ah Chan?”
Lu Hanzhi paused for a moment, then slowly shook his head and said, “I don’t know. I’ve been investigating it. Why did she target the Lu family, why did she kill Ah Chan, why…”
At this point, Lu Hanzhi furrowed his brow and said, “Wait, I feel like something’s not right.”
Yuwen Min asked, “What’s not right?”
Lu Hanzhi paused, but couldn’t quite pinpoint what was wrong.
It was his earlier words that had suddenly made him realize something wasn’t right.
What had he said earlier?
Why did she target the Lu family…
Right! She’s Lu’s niece, there’s blood relation there.
But, which niece would control her own maternal grandmother to the point of death?
Even if she was a venomous black lotus, she wouldn’t kill her own family, right?
Lu Hanzhi stepped forward and grabbed Yuwen Min’s hand, saying, “I need to go back to the Lu family!”
Yuwen Min said, “I’ll accompany you.”
Lu Hanzhi didn’t object and immediately had He Ming prepare the carriage. He picked up Ah Chan and headed back to his maternal home.
These past few days, Madam Lu had been busy. Being a woman of high status in the capital, she always had numerous social gatherings during the holidays.
Today, there was a gathering at the hall with plum wine and a number of ladies from the capital had come to drink the wine and admire the plum blossoms.
Lu Hanzhi didn’t disturb his mother but directly took Yuwen Min to the back courtyard.
The house in the east of the back courtyard was where Old Madam Lu lived, called the “Kanchun Hall.”
After Lu Hanzhi moved in, he rarely visited the Kanchun Hall.
At that time, Su Wan’ning had already made Kanchun Hall her base.
She was quite clever, knowing that Old Madam Lu was the most influential person in the Lu family, and even Lord Lu obeyed her commands.
It wasn’t until Lu Hanzhi removed the poisonous curse from Old Madam Lu’s body that he could finally visit her once a month.
He had originally thought that, being over sixty years old, Old Madam Lu’s health would decline more and more.
But to his surprise, after he removed the curse, Old Madam Lu’s hair had started to darken slightly again.
This showed that the reason she had aged so quickly before was entirely due to Su Wan’ning’s manipulation.
At that moment, Old Madam Lu, with nothing to do, was feeding a blue-eyed Persian cat.
This cat was one that Lu Hanzhi had sent to her, thinking that the elderly would be lonely without someone to care for them and suggested keeping a pet for company.
To his surprise, the cat was mischievous and would climb the walls all day, which made Old Madam Lu have to poke it with a stick under the tree every day, which actually seemed to help her health.
When Lu Hanzhi arrived, Old Madam Lu immediately waved at him and said, “Ah, Han’er’s here! Come, sit down! Come and see if little Dingdang has gotten fatter again these days?”
Lu Hanzhi, holding Ah Chan, saw that Ah Chan looked warily at the chubby cat, so frightened that she hid back, her double chin pushing out.
Lu Hanzhi, amazed, said, “Ah Chan is afraid of cats? Wow, you’re scared of something too?”
Just as Lu Hanzhi was about to tease Ah Chan, he noticed that Yuwen Min was hiding behind him, not daring to get any closer.
Lu Hanzhi: ???
Huh? Is it true that even people of high status fear cats?
Old Madam Lu found it amusing. The notorious, cold-blooded, and ruthless Prince An, who was said to fear nothing, was actually scared of this little fluffy white thing.
Old Madam Lu happily signaled to the maid to take the cat away, then gestured for them to sit. She asked Lu Hanzhi, “Han’er, did you come to see me for something today?”
Lu Hanzhi decided not to worry about the father and son’s fear of cats. He sat down in front of Old Madam Lu and said, “Grandmother, I… I wanted to ask about my aunt’s family.”
Author’s note:
Yuwen-Autumn: Martial artists like us aren’t afraid of anything! It’s just that we have a bit of fear, just a bit!
Lu Hanzhi: A little cat? What’s there to be afraid of? Come, Your Highness, hug it!
Yuwen-Autumn: sputters
Your favorite BL chaos wouldn’t be possible without coffee… lots of coffee….
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