Jiapingguan Chronicle

"Is this the plan envisioned by the late King of Liao?"

"Yes!" Xiao Fengqi nodded. "Any ideas?"

"I just find it ridiculous."

"Ridiculous?" Xiao Fengqi looked at Shen Cha. "General, what do you mean by that?"

"The late Prince Liao felt that he couldn't show excessive affection for Young Master Lan, so that he wouldn't be retaliated against by the concubine and the two young princes, and could grow up peacefully?"

"That's right."

"But there's one thing I want to ask. As a father, isn't it his responsibility and obligation to ensure his child has enough to eat and wear, is well-fed and clothed, and is safe and sound?" Shen Cha spread her hands. "If his child is in danger and his life is in danger, shouldn't he step forward to handle it?" Seeing Xiao Fengqi nod, Shen Cha continued, "But he stands by indifferently under the guise of doing what's best for Young Master Lan. Isn't that ridiculous? I know he has a three-birds-with-one-stone plan: he wants Young Master Lan to grow up safely, but he also wants him to be less than safe, and he's planning to suppress the concubine and the two young princes in the process, weakening their power. With such calculations, isn't he worried?"

“Such a plan is too complicated and very difficult to implement.” Shen Haolin tapped the table lightly. “If we’re not careful, we’ll stray from the main point and something unexpected might happen that he’ll regret for the rest of his life.”

"Indeed." Xiao Fengqi also sighed. "Throughout the process, there were many times when he almost deviated from his plan. If it hadn't been discovered in time, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Young Master Lan almost died during this process. If it weren't for the Regent secretly lending a hand and rescuing him several times at critical moments, Young Master Lan would have been gone long ago."

"How can a child's growth possibly follow his predetermined path? How can one predict the human heart?" Song Yaojia sneered. "Power is blinding. He can't fathom the extent to which he's willing to go for that chair, for that position. If those two young princes are pushed too far, it's not impossible that they might eliminate Young Master Lan. What will he do then? Will he feel remorse or regret? Or will he be indifferent?" He looked at Chu Han, who was smiling silently and sipping his tea. "What does Grand Uncle think?"

"What did I think? Did I have to comment on the actions of the late King of Liao?"

"This isn't an evaluation, but do you think it's normal to do this?"

"As you just said, power is blinding. Once a person sits in that position, they become a completely different person. Before, they would consider love and hate, but after that, interests come first, and love takes a backseat." Chu Han put down his teacup and smiled at Song Yaojia. "There are people in this world who think they are deeply affectionate and that love is paramount, but in reality, it's nothing. The one they love most is themselves. The late Prince of Liao had feelings for the Princess, that's true, no one would doubt it, but it wasn't as deep as he thought. If he really couldn't live without the Princess, then the concubine and her parents would have been dealt with on the day the substitution marriage happened. They wouldn't have seen the sun rise the next day, and the subsequent events wouldn't have happened."

“I agree.” Xiao Fengqi nodded. “I discussed this matter with my great-aunt, and she and you, my benefactor, share the same opinion. When the incident occurred, her stance was that the concubine and her family should be punished, with the concubine facing the death penalty. However, this proposal was rejected by the Queen Dowager, who believed the matter wasn't serious enough. The late King also felt that publicly punishing someone for a substitute marriage would be a disgrace to the royal family and a shame to the Yelü family, so he didn't adopt my great-aunt's opinion. My great-aunt said that she left with the words, ‘The sins committed today will be punished sooner or later.’ Sure enough, the subsequent struggle for the throne and Young Master Lan's tragic childhood both proved this point.”

"Did your great-aunt also feel that the late King of Liao didn't love the Queen as much as he thought?"

“Love, but in the face of self-interest, it's worthless.” Chu Han sighed. “The reason Yelü Ertu holds more weight in Young Master Lan's heart than his father is because, no matter what, it was Yelü Ertu who helped him during his most difficult time, allowing him to survive. Not only that, Yelü Ertu did his best to find him many renowned teachers. This is something that can never be erased, no matter what Yelü Ertu became later. Without Yelü Ertu, Young Master Lan wouldn't have been able to survive, let alone inherit the throne, right?”

“That’s true.” Xiao Fengqi nodded. “The purpose of bringing this up isn’t to punish the late king, but to discuss something that’s somewhat related to Mian and the later Tanuki Plan.” “What is it?”

"It was the fifth year after the late king and queen got married that the two little princes were abducted one after the other."

"What?" Shen Cha was stunned. "How is that possible? They were only three or four years old back then?"

"More or less." Xiao Fengqi smiled at Shen Cha, then looked at Chu Han, "Isn't this age group quite familiar?"

"An age that both Mian and the Tanuki Project like very much." Shen Cha nodded. "So, who abducted them? Were they also nobles of the Great Xia?"

"No, it was arranged by their maternal grandparents' family. Other children of the same age from other noble families in Linhuang Prefecture were also abducted with them."

"Why would you kidnap them?"

“These children are the apple of their families’ eyes. They are used to exchange for money and develop their own private army.”

"Are they eyeing that chair too?"

"Pretty much. I heard they felt that the Yelü family had been the King of Liao for too long and that someone else should take over. However, none of them were particularly capable, so they could only come up with this solution. They wanted money, but after getting the money, they didn't release the person. Instead, they wanted to keep them and train them into a powerful weapon."

"I understand." Shen Cha nodded. "But this plan is easily thwarted and not very rigorous."

"So it failed." Xiao Fengqi shrugged. "Because the concubine's family was always hidden in the background, the families that came forward didn't know they were the masterminds, and no one implicated them. Furthermore, kidnapping a prince and the son of a high-ranking official are serious crimes, so the heads of those families were quickly arrested, their property confiscated, and their entire clans exterminated. The concubine's family, however, escaped this fate. It wasn't until the two princes failed in their attempt to seize the throne, and the concubine and her family were implicated and their property confiscated, that the matter was brought to light again during the purge. However…"

"what?"

“According to the younger brother of the concubine, this idea was not his own, but was given to him by a strategist wearing a mask.” Xiao Fengqi looked at Chu Han. “I saw that mask when I was a child. It is exactly the same as the mask of the group that kidnapped me and my younger brother Xiao Qi.”

(End of this chapter)