Jiapingguan Chronicle

Chapter 2734 Still Vigorous in Old Age 118.0
"What do you mean? Did you do it on purpose?"

Upon hearing Xiao Fengqi's words, Jin Miaomiao felt an inexplicable anger surge to her head. She immediately glared at Xiao Fengqi, hoping he would give her an explanation right away.

"Don't rush, don't rush!" After getting to know Jin Miaomiao better, Xiao Fengqi understood her temperament to some extent. This young medical expert's biggest pet peeve was that she couldn't stand seeing children being bullied, especially when their own parents abused them. He fanned Jin Miaomiao and said with a smile, "Calm down, calm down. The late king had his reasons."

"No matter how difficult the situation may be, you can't use a child as a pawn. At that time, Young Master Lan was so young and had no ability to protect himself. What if he had been killed by those lackeys? Wouldn't he have regretted it?"

"No, Young Master Lan has always had someone hidden around him, without letting those two young princes and their lackeys find out. The person hidden around him can ensure that Young Master Lan will not die, but he cannot live too well, otherwise it will be easy to be discovered, which is not conducive to the late king's plan."

"What exactly happened?" Shen Cha crossed her arms and leaned against a pillar, saying, "From the very beginning, did the late King of Liao never intend to pass the throne to Young Master Lan's two older brothers?"

“Yes!” Xiao Fengqi nodded. “This can be considered a royal secret. No, to be precise, it should be…” He smiled helplessly and said, “Few people know about the late king’s romantic affairs. If my great-aunt hadn’t gotten involved, I wouldn’t have known either.”

"Huh? Old Madam Xiao?" Jin Miaomiao narrowed her eyes, looking at Xiao Fengqi. "Something's not right with the old madam. Hasn't her heart always belonged to Fourth Master? How could she be with the late Prince of Liao?"

“Hey, Mr. Jin, be careful what you say, you're talking about the wrong generation!” Xiao Fengqi patted Jin Miaomiao, but didn't actually pat her shoulder. As he patted, he said, “According to seniority, he should call my great-aunt ‘Grandma.’” He sighed and said, “This story isn’t exactly original, it’s quite cliché. Young Master Lan’s mother and Young Master Nan’s mother are very close, and they have a good relationship with my great-aunt. My great-aunt treats them like her granddaughters. She knows about Young Master Lan’s mother’s background and also knows that the second branch of the family doesn’t like her, so she often invites them to stay at the estate in the suburbs for ten days or half a month. Sometimes, Young Master Nan’s mother also goes.”

"And then? They ran into the late King of Liao in the village?"

“Yes!” Xiao Fengqi nodded. “The estates of the Yelü family, the Xiao family, the Qi family, and several important officials in the North and South Courts are all connected. They are not particularly far apart, but there is still some distance between them.”

"You mean they actually met a long time ago?"

“Yes!” Xiao Fengqi nodded and said, “At that time, the late King was still a prince, not yet married, and nothing had even begun. My great-aunt said that on the day they first met, the morning was sunny and clear, but by noon, the weather suddenly changed, and a heavy snow began to fall. The late King and the Regent were originally going to stay at the manor for a few days, but they started snowing halfway there. Just when they were about to reach the manor, they were told that the road ahead was blocked by the heavy snow and it would take at least one night to pass. Fortunately, our manor was just a short walk away, so the late King and the Regent discussed it and went to ask to stay the night.”

"Is Old Madam Xiao at the estate?" "Yes, she brought the two princesses there the day before, intending to stay for half a month. Unexpectedly, it suddenly snowed, so they had to regretfully decide to wait until the snow completely melted before returning." Xiao Fengqi smiled. "When the late King and the Regent came to knock on the door, they were preparing to gather around the stove and roast some snacks. Hearing the late King and the Regent's request, they readily agreed. The late King and the Regent were actually her great-aunt's juniors, practically raised by her, and being relatives, they felt right at home at the Xiao family's estate. But they didn't expect there to be two unfamiliar girls at the estate, which made them feel a little reserved."

“Reserved?” Jin Miaomiao rolled her eyes. “Although I have never met the late King of Liao, I have met Yelü Ertu. He doesn’t seem like a reserved person.”

"The regent you met was a seasoned veteran. The regent that Young Master Xiao spoke of was probably just a teenager back then?" Chu Han looked at Xiao Fengqi. "Right?"

“Yes!” Xiao Fengqi nodded. “My benefactor also said before that the Regent Prince wasn’t like this when he was young, right?”

“That’s right. When he was young, the regent was a spirited and righteous young man who would shed tears at night for the plight of those children and secretly vow to catch those traitors. But as time went by and he gradually gained power, everything changed. I once heard a saying from a foreigner from the Western Regions that perfectly describes him.”

"What?"

“The boy who slays the beast will eventually become the beast himself.” Xia Chen sighed and smiled at Chu Han. “I met some merchants from the Western Regions at sea before, and they said the same thing. Now that I think about it, both Wanyan Zongcheng and Yelü Ertu were passionate young men in their youth, full of ambition to do something great and save their country. But when power actually came into their hands, their ambition slowly faded, and it seems that their original aspirations disappeared.”

“Yes!” Xiao Fengqi nodded. “But at this time, he was still a boy and had not yet undergone the coming-of-age ceremony.” He took a sip of tea, sighed, and said, “However, young people, even if they have never met before, can quickly go from acquaintance to familiarity to playing together. After an afternoon, they were very familiar with each other.”

"Wait a minute!" Jin Miaomiao interrupted Xiao Fengqi. "You're not going to say that the Regent's Consort actually likes the former King of Liao, and the King of Liao's Consort likes the Regent, are you? If that's true, it's too shocking!"

"No, no, it's even more explosive than that." Xiao Fengqi gently shook his finger, revealing a wry smile. "The Princess Consort did indeed love the late King, and the Regent's Consort also loved the Regent. These two couples are not confused." He looked at everyone and raised an eyebrow at them. "Are you ready? Ready for an even more explosive storyline?"

"Ready?" Jin Miaomiao gestured for them to begin. "Let's start!"

"After their first meeting at the manor, the late king and queen met frequently for the next two or three years. My great-aunt knew they were in love, so she would arrange for them to meet when the time was right. But they would only chat and talk, nothing more. After two or three years, when they reached the age to propose marriage, the late king went to the queen's family to propose, as agreed, making it clear that he wanted to marry the queen. But what he didn't know was that a conspiracy was quietly unfolding."