Aoyama

Chapter 431 Suppressing Courage
Fortune and wealth are sought amidst danger, and lost amidst danger as well; one in ten succeeds, but nine in ten fail.

The Chen family has stood tall in the imperial court for hundreds of years, witnessing countless fleeting visitors and gamblers, and outliving many exceptional talents. Their success is not based on continuous victories, but on their invincibility.

Chen Ji dared to come to Wendan Hall because he knew that the Chen family's loss of power alongside the Crown Prince was a last resort, and that the Chen family would not miss the opportunity to change their allegiance if given the chance.

Chen Lizun stood up, cupped his hands to Elder Chen, and said, "Father, I will personally make a trip to the Qi family now."

Grand Secretary Chen shook his head: "You don't need to go in person. Just send Chen Huang, who is by your side. He should go in a very conspicuous manner."

Chen Lizun was taken aback, then replied in a low voice, "Yes."

After Chen Lizun left, Grand Secretary Chen looked at Chen Ji and said, "Do you know why I didn't let your uncle go in person?"

Chen Ji pondered for a moment: "Noble people speak slowly."

Grand Secretary Chen stroked his beard and pondered for a moment: "What a fine example of a nobleman speaking slowly; that's exactly what I meant."

The saying "a wise person speaks slowly" is interpreted by some as meaning that a wise person thinks deeply before speaking.

There's another layer of meaning: when a petty person lies, they speak extremely quickly, like beans pouring from a bamboo tube, as if afraid you won't believe them. A noble person, on the other hand, has the confidence to speak without rushing or trying to persuade you; believe it or not, it's up to you.

At this time, Chen Ji had been granted a title, and there was also the matter of Prince Fu leading the horse. If the Qi family was unwilling to form a marriage alliance, there were still the Hu family, the Xu family, and the Yang family. Therefore, sending Chen Lizun was too grand and seemed like a forced marriage.

Sending Chen Huang, a steward, would be just right.

Chen Lizhi, unwilling to listen to their further words, got up and walked outside: "Patriarch, it's getting late, you should rest early."

Grand Secretary Chen slowly said, "Have you been given permission to leave?"

Chen Lizhi turned around abruptly, his eyes narrowing slightly: "What else does the patriarch want?"

Grand Secretary Chen did not rush to answer, but stood up and went to the east side of the Wendan Hall.

He was wearing a bright red official robe and tremblingly picked up a long sword from the shelf: "As everyone knows, this sword is the sword that my Chen family ancestor used when he fought alongside the founding emperor of the Ning Dynasty. The one in the Forbidden City is called Zhenguo, and ours is called Zhendan."

Chen Lizhi tucked his hands into his official robe, his back ramrod straight as a withered pine tree, as if he were about to throw caution to the wind: "Old man, all these treasures of the Chen family originally belonged to my family. I know them very well, you don't need to tell me."

Grand Secretary Chen shook his head, raised his sword and pointed it at Chen Lizhi: "You don't know this, but this sword broke two hundred years ago. The one in front of you is just a reforged sword that the then head of the family, Chen Zhongzi, commissioned the master craftsman Zhou Ye to make."

Chen Lizhi was taken aback: "How come I didn't know?"

Grand Secretary Chen casually remarked, "Among the 30,000 books in the Kui Zhang Pavilion of Xiaoyingzhou, there are Chen Zhongzi's essays, which record this matter. You young people nowadays don't really like reading anymore; you know nothing about family affairs, nor about national affairs... Do you know why he recorded this matter?"

Chen Lizhi raised an eyebrow, sat back down in his chair, and picked up his teacup: "Say what you want to say."

Grand Secretary Chen slowly stroked the sword: "He wrote this down to tell future generations of the Chen family that even a sword used to establish a dynasty and protect the family can be reforged if it breaks. There is no hurdle in this world that cannot be overcome, and the Chen family has been reforged time and time again in this way."

Chen Lizhi no longer concealed his intentions and sneered, "Are you trying to say that you, as a son of a concubine, seized the Chen family's business, which can be considered a broken sword being reforged?"

Grand Secretary Chen returned to the hall, but instead of sitting in the head chair, he came to Chen Lizhi with the Zhendan Sword in hand: “Jingshu, I know that you have always felt that I set up the murder of your father and that I colluded with the third branch of the family and the elders of the clan to seize your Chen family’s property. You are right and wrong.”

Chen Lizhi's expression changed when his secret was exposed.

"Let's be frank," Chen Ge Lao shook his head, "If I had done what your father did, would I have kept you alive until today? Do you think I don't have the ability to eliminate the threat completely?"

Chen Lizhi unconsciously gripped the handrail tighter.

Grand Secretary Chen suddenly placed the Zhen Dan Sword against Chen Lizhi's shoulder, but Chen Lizhi remained unfazed: "What, you want to kill me in the Wen Dan Hall? How will you face our ancestors then?"

Grand Secretary Chen sheathed his Zhendan Sword, gripped the blade, and handed the hilt to Chen Lizhi: "If you wish to avenge your father, you may kill me with a single stroke now."

Inside the Wendan Hall, a chilling light emanated from all sides.

The sword's edge was pointed at Grand Secretary Chen, and the hilt was right in front of Chen Lizhi's nose.

Grand Secretary Chen no longer looked old and decrepit; he resembled a powerful and ruthless minister who manipulated the court.

Chen Lizhi was filled with doubt and uncertainty. Chen Xu wasn't by his side, and Chen Ji might not stop him. If he were to draw the sword now, he might actually kill his enemy with a single strike.

He twitched his fingers, but ultimately did not reach out to take the sword.

Grand Secretary Chen smiled and tossed the Zhendan Sword to Chen Ji from a distance: "Put it back."

He lifted the hem of his official robe and sat down in the chair opposite Chen Lizhi: "Since you are unwilling to take action, why not listen to this old man tell me about what happened back then?"

Chen Lizhi said coldly, "Speak."

Grand Secretary Chen recalled: "That day was the Laba Festival. Your father led the Chen family to Yuanjue Temple outside the city to pray for blessings and distribute porridge. This was a Chen family tradition and not a secret. When we entered Yuanjue Temple and reached the Mahavira Hall, a young man suddenly rushed over and whispered a few words to him. He then left his guards at Yuanjue Temple to look after his family and took four guest ministers with him. I was not the only one who could have informed on him; there were dozens of people present."

Chen Lizhi said ferociously, "If we can't find the mastermind, then whoever benefits is the mastermind! My father's head is still displayed in the Jing Dynasty's palace. I can't eat or sleep in peace until I avenge this, and I have no face to meet him in the afterlife! And you, after my father's death, seized the family business and rose to prominence!"

Chen Ji, holding the Zhen Dan Sword, walked to the east side of the Wen Dan Hall, concealing his expression. He had now deduced from various clues that the assassination of the Minister of Revenue was orchestrated by his "birth mother," Madam Lu, but he was unaware that it was also related to a long-standing feud within the Chen family.

“I know you and your father have a very close relationship, which I admire,” Grand Secretary Chen looked up at him. “However, someone went to investigate at the time, and there were only Lu Jin’s footprints at the scene. The road was covered by heavy snow that day, so there’s no mistake about this.”

Chen Lizhi said in a deep voice, "What exactly are you trying to say?"

Grand Secretary Chen asked, "What are the cultivation levels of the four guest advisors beside your father?"

"One Dao Seeking Realm Grand Master, and three Innate Realm experts."

"Back then, I also thought it was Lu Jin who assassinated him," Grand Secretary Chen asked again, "But have you ever thought that in all these years, has anyone mentioned that Lu Jin was a high-ranking official? Has anyone ever seen him display his strength? In the twenty-seventh year of Jia Ning, a secret news came from the Jing Dynasty that Lu Jin had been assassinated. The assassin was just a high-ranking official at the Innate Realm, yet he was able to stab him in the left leg with one blow."

But Chen Lizhi sneered: "You're kidding me. In the twenty-seventh year of Jia Ning, Lu Jin was already a third-rank official. With all his cultivation gone, he was naturally no match for the Innate Realm."

Grand Secretary Chen shook his head: "That's why I called it a secret. The promotion and the assassination attempt both happened on the same day. Someone deliberately confused the public, making people mistakenly believe that he was assassinated after receiving the imperial decree. That's not the case. I sent someone to confirm that the assassination occurred at noon, while the decree was received in the late afternoon... He was promoted to the third rank after the assassination attempt. When Lu Jin assassinated your father, he was probably only at the Xiantian level."

Inside the Wendan Hall, Chen Ji was facing away from the two men, putting the Zhendan Sword back on the shelf.

He had dealt with the Grand Master of the Seeking Dao Realm before, and even though Liao Zhong was barely clinging to life, he dared not say that he could definitely kill Liao Zhong. In the end, it was still thanks to Aunt Ping's intervention.

If Lu Jin were a Grand Master of Ceremonies, he would never have been assassinated by a Grand Master of Ceremonies at the Innate Realm. If he wasn't, then the murderer of the Minister of Revenue from the Chen family must be someone else.

On the day of the assassination attempt, the only person present with the ability to kill the Minister of Revenue of the Chen family was the Dao-Seeking Realm guest elder beside him; it could not have been anyone else.

Chen Lizhi said in a deep voice, "But that guest elder is also dead. If he was involved in the conspiracy, how could he have died?"

Grand Secretary Chen looked at him and said, “I also borrowed the files from the Jie Fan Lou from the Grand Chancellor and found that this guest minister named Ning Ji died dozens of feet outside your father’s sedan chair, and was killed by someone piercing his heart from the back.”

Chen Lizhi frowned: "A sneak attack?"

Grand Secretary Chen nodded: "That's right. I suspect that this person conspired with Lu Jin, but was ambushed and killed by Lu Jin at close range after assassinating your father... He trusted Lu Jin a lot."

Chen Ji turned his back to the two of them and closed his eyes in deep thought.

After Lu Jin defected, he took the head of the Minister of Revenue and fled to the Jing Dynasty. He did not reappear until two months later.

Why do this?

At this moment, Grand Secretary Chen continued, "Do you remember the identity of that guest minister? Let me tell you. This man was originally Ning Ji, a commander of a thousand men in the Guyuan border army. He was wounded in his early years and returned to the capital, where he found a job under the Chen family."

Before Chen Lizhi could speak, Grand Secretary Chen continued, "You know better than I what your father did to Qing Wentao, the commander-in-chief of the border army in Guyuan. I don't know why they joined forces, but this was definitely not my doing."

Chen Lizhi's expression flickered in the candlelight, and he was speechless for a moment.

Grand Secretary Chen slowly stood up and returned to his seat in the grand chair at the head of the table: "You hate me for taking the position of Minister of Revenue, but if I hadn't taken it back then, who in the Chen family could have taken it? You? You weren't qualified; you didn't have the seniority back then. Did you expect me to watch my power slip away and be devoured by others?"

Chen Lizhi sneered and did not answer.

“Please forgive me,” Grand Secretary Chen said hoarsely. “Family matters can be fought without breaking apart. That is why I have tolerated you all these years. You are ultimately the pillar of my Chen family. Chen Ji can be a Duke, but he cannot be a high-ranking official or a Grand Secretary. I will hand over the position of Minister of Revenue to your son, Chen Yu, in the future.”

Chen Lizhi's expression changed in surprise: "You're willing to give it to me? Why not give it to Chen Lizun?"

“Shaofu is weak and cowardly, he can’t support my vast Chen family,” Chen Ge Lao waved his hand wearily, “Go, I’m tired.”

Jingshu was Chen Lizhi's courtesy name, while Shaofu was Chen Lizun's courtesy name. Neither Chen Lizhi nor Chen Ji expected that Grand Secretary Chen intended to return the Minister of Revenue to the second wife.

Chen Lizhi stood up and cupped his hands in greeting: "Over the years, I have misunderstood the head of the family. Farewell."

He turned and stepped out of the Wendan Hall, heading towards the Qinzheng Garden.

Butler Wang Duo followed behind Chen Lizhi and whispered, "Master, you believe it?"

Chen Lizhi sneered and flicked his official robe sleeves: "The old man has given me a way out, do you think I'd be ungrateful? Just you wait and see!"

At this moment, Chen Xu strode towards you.

Chen Lizhi glanced at him sideways: "What's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry?"

Chen Xu glanced at him: "The Qi family, the Hu family, and the Yang family have all sent people. The Qi family sent Qi Xianshu, the Hu family sent Hu Junye, and the Yang family sent Yang Zhan."

Chen Lizhi raised his eyebrows: "What are these people doing at my Chen family's house in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"

Chen Xu brushed past him without turning his head and said, "Naturally, I've come for Young Master Chen Ji's marriage."

Chen Lizhi spat on the ground: "Pah, that kid's become a hot commodity?"

(End of this chapter)