Chapter 72: Hidden Murderous Intent
Chapter 72: Chapter 72: Hidden Murderous Intent
Liang Wan gasped and looked over. The man who was supposed to be in bed was sitting bolt upright, his face dark.
"My lord, you’re awake?" Liang Wan clutched her shoulder, her face scrunching up as she tried and failed to smile.
Lu Xiu closed his eyes, a knot of frustration tightening in his chest.
Zhou Yun stared at him as if he’d seen a ghost. "How did I not know... you’re into men? You—"
He started to press further but shut his mouth under Lu Xiu’s dark and vicious glare.
Lu Xiu turned his head slightly to look at her, his jet-black eyes cold. "If you have a question, why not ask me directly? And which one of you was it that said I’m—"
He paused, appearing to swallow his rage, his expression dangerously dark.
Liang Wan lowered her eyes, her gaze flitting about with nowhere to land.
Seeing her with her head bowed obediently, dark hair spilling forward to reveal only the sharp line of her pale chin, she looked like a child admitting a mistake. His gaze then fell upon her freshly bandaged wound, and the knot of frustration in his chest inexplicably dissolved.
"Look at the state you’re in, yet you still find so much to worry about."
Lu Xiu narrowed his eyes. An ordinary lady would need to rest for days after a minor illness or fever, but her energy was boundless. It seemed neither an arrow wound nor an injured leg could hinder her drive to plot and scheme in the least.
Liang Wan blinked. It was his usual brand of cold mockery. ’From the sound of it, he’s been awake for a while,’ she thought. ’But how much did he hear?’
’Well, since he knows now, the next step is a gamble on his friendship with Zhou Yun...’
Then, Lu Xiu sighed, his voice low. "I’m not."
Liang Wan let out a soft "Ah?" and looked up at him, only to see his gaze had already shifted to Zhou Yun.
"You want me to go to—" Lu Xiu paused. "The Empress Dowager?"
Zhou Yun said, "It is indeed inconvenient for us to interfere in the affairs of the harem. I was thinking we could perhaps use the Crown Prince’s name—"
"Absolutely not!"
Liang Wan cut in sharply before Zhou Yun could finish.
Both men turned to look at her.
Lu Xiu remained silent, but Zhou Yun asked in confusion, "Why not? The Crown Prince is the Empress’s son. Wouldn’t that give us the most legitimate reason?"
"We still don’t know who’s pulling the strings. Our enemy is in the shadows while we are exposed, which puts us at a great disadvantage. I’m already a thorn in their side they want to remove. Why should we drag another person into this?"
"Besides, the Crown Prince is still just a child. I doubt he has any experience with the affairs of the harem."
"But we have no other choice right now." Zhou Yun frowned slightly. As if he didn’t already know all that.
Liang Wan secretly glanced at Lu Xiu before speaking. "I have a proposal. Instead of leaving the Empress trapped and isolated in the palace, we should find an opportunity for her to leave it. Should Her Majesty fall ill outside the palace, there might not be time to summon an Imperial Physician. A household doctor, on the other hand, would suffice..."
As she spoke, Zhou Yun’s eyes lit up, and he nodded at her again and again.
Lu Xiu watched her, a cold smile touching his lips. "An opportunity? And what kind of opportunity would that be?"
His smile was cold, and his voice was even colder.
Liang Wan glanced at him timidly. "Aren’t you, my lord, about to... with Third Lady Cao—"
Lu Xiu inclined his head slightly, his gaze cold. "Excellent."
"Yes, I think it’s excellent, too. Truly excellent," Zhou Yun said, nodding enthusiastically at Lu Xiu. He then added, "This matter cannot be delayed. We need to act as quickly as possible—"
"It’s so late. Aren’t you going home?"
Staring at Lu Xiu’s expressionless face, Zhou Yun paused. "But aren’t we in the middle of figuring things out?"
Liang Wan hunched her shoulders and turned her face away, her voice muffled. "My lord has not yet recovered from his illness. Now that we have a method, we can continue our discussion tomorrow. There is just one thing. I am injured and cannot enter the palace, so I will need the Crown Prince’s help to deliver the prepared medicine."
Zhou Yun immediately said, "I’ll come and get it tomorrow."
Lu Xiu raised an eyebrow, his tone frosty. "No need. I’ll have someone send it to you."
Zhou Yun thought that made sense. There was no need to make a special trip just for the medicine. Better to finish up his other tasks quickly so he could come back sooner to discuss the plan. "Alright, I’ll come by later, then," he said.
Lu Xiu was noncommittal.
Liang Wan smiled and nodded.
Zhou Yun left, half of his worries assuaged.
Liang Wan supported herself on the armrest to stand, gestured toward the door, and forced a smile. "You should rest, my lord. I’ll be leaving, too. My injury—"
She sucked in two sharp breaths, her face pale, as if in unbearable pain.
A smile played on Lu Xiu’s face. "In such a hurry to leave now?"
Liang Wan’s mouth fell open. ’I’ve been forcing myself to hold on this whole time!’
"Sit."
It wasn’t that Liang Wan didn’t want to refuse, but his expression had already turned to ice. She could only obey and sit back down.
"Do you have any other instructions, my lord?"
Lu Xiu shot her a look and scoffed. "You have everything calculated, don’t you!"
Liang Wan kept her head low. "I don’t understand what you mean, my lord."
She was an expert at playing dumb, something Lu Xiu had fully expected. "The Crown Prince may be young, but he is the heir apparent. How could he be compared to an ordinary child? Why did you stop Zhou Yun?"
Liang Wan’s eyelashes fluttered.
Lu Xiu scoffed. "You clearly suspect the mastermind is either the Emperor or the Empress Dowager. You don’t want the Crown Prince to risk getting involved because you’re afraid this is a trap laid specifically for him, designed to destabilize his position as heir."
Liang Wan sighed inwardly.
"And you even suspect me."
Liang Wan’s eyes widened. "That’s not—"
Lu Xiu waved a hand dismissively. "Don’t be so quick to deny it. You suspect that if the Empress Dowager is behind this, it must be at the Lu Family’s instruction, and that when the time comes, I would side with my family."
Liang Wan knew she couldn’t hide it from him and could only confess. "I don’t suspect you, my lord. But when family interests are at stake, how could you ever cut yourself off from the Lu Family?"
Lu Xiu’s lips curved into a faint smile. "Then why do you suspect the Lu Family?"
Liang Wan’s gaze darkened.
’In my past life, Lu Xiu married Cao Luyun. But after the affair with Wang Su, Chancellor Cao and the others were executed. In the end, the marriage alliance did nothing for the Lu Family, and Gao Qian even used them to suppress the Wang family.’
’But in this life, thanks to my intervention, Chancellor Cao and his faction are safe. Instead, it was the Wang family—who were meant to be a check on the Cao Family’s power—that fell. Now, with the Cao and Lu families about to be joined by marriage, their combined strength will be terrifying. What emperor could possibly rest easy with that?’
’It’s even possible that the Emperor, Gao Qian, will have fewer supporters than the Crown Prince!’
’Gao Qian is deeply suspicious; how could he not see this? And if he can see it, how could he not consider deposing the Crown Prince, choosing a new heir, and cultivating a new power base to counter them?’
’But anything Gao Qian can think of, the Empress Dowager and the Lu Family can surely think of as well.’
’The Lu Family has remained prominent since the last dynasty; how could they fail to perceive the potential disaster in this situation?’
’The great aristocratic families have always understood the principle of preparing for danger in times of peace. Rather than inviting the Emperor’s suspicion, it is better to preemptively strike. They could appear to accept the marriage decreed by the Emperor, while secretly supporting the deposition of the Crown Prince and the weakening of the Cao Family. This would not only dispel the Emperor’s suspicions but also preserve the Lu Family.’
When she remained silent, Lu Xiu spoke again. "The night you gave the secret seal to Chancellor Cao, what you said to me wasn’t entirely to clear your own name."
Liang Wan nodded. "That’s right."
Lu Xiu’s brow furrowed. "How do you see all this so clearly?"
’A sheltered lady, trying by any means necessary to enter the palace, who also sees the affairs of the court with perfect clarity... it truly makes one doubt her real intentions!’