Father…

Ling Zhang gazed at Ling Zhaowu, somewhat stunned. He’d never expected to hear such words from his father, which he found quite enlightening.

“Dai Cheng and Wang Cai are the second threat you’re faced with. Currently, apart from the Southern City Garrison Battalion and the garrison of Cangzhou, the garrison of Yanzhou are also in Cangzhou. Though they have suffered some casualties, they are still a massive force. Once he turns against us, we won’t be able to defend this city against his attack. Also, you should dismiss the illusion that the rebel army in Cangzhou are holding Dai Cheng back. All those rebels were originally common folk. They rose in revolt because they had no other choice. The uprising could be suppressed by force, but it’s also possible that the rebels would accept amnesty and surrender if the terms are appealing enough.

When you’re considering how to use the Fang family to eliminate all restive rivals in one fell swoop, you’re overlooking the fact that the Fang family and the Eighth Prince should be the least of your concerns.”

A deathly hush descended in the room after Ling Zhaowu finished his remarks.

The Right Prime Minister suddenly rose to his feet, stepped up to Ling Zhaowu, made a bow with hands folded in front, and then straightened himself to look at the others. “Brother Ling is right. Presently, the Jiang family and Cangzhou are our greatest threat.”

Zhao Zheng also came to himself. “The Jiang family have been quiet all along over the past few weeks, but I’m afraid that might be a spurious impression.”

“Now that we’ve come to realize this, it’s not too late to act. We still have time. The Jiang family have shut their front gates and stopped receiving visitors, so even if they have covertly done something, it shouldn’t have been very fruitful, given the restrictions they’re under. The Jiang family is different from the Fang family. Those roped in by the Fang family are no doubt uncertainties, but those that could be swayed by the Jiang family don’t necessarily have the intention of helping the Eighth Prince, so we should not show the Jiang family any mercy. We must snuff it out before it gets too strong,” added Ling Zhaowu.

“What do you have in mind, Brother Ling?” The Right Prime Minister looked at him.

“Just fabricate a charge against the Jiang family and have the troops besiege their house. Kill anybody who tries to go in or out of the house without permission. The Jiang family have lost their power, and the imperial household couldn’t even protect themselves. The Jiang family naturally wouldn’t be able to make any trouble if they couldn’t leave their house. Take a firm hand with them, so that those swayed by the Jiang family would see that taking the Jiang family’s side is not a smart move,” said Ling Zhaowu.

“Maybe we should just kill them,” suggested Commander Xie.

Ling Zhaowu looked at him. “If we kill them right now, there will be resistance, which is totally unnecessary.”

“The Jiang family… Well, it’s common knowledge that the Jiang family maintained a growing network of influential contacts in Cangzhou for many years. If the Jiang family are found involved in the Cangzhou insurrection, that should be a crime serious enough for their residence to be ringed by troops,” said the Right Prime Minister.

Ling Zhaowu gave him an appreciative look, feeling that this man was worthy of his post, that he thought faster than anybody else after coming to realize the situation. He probably had already figured out what the next step should be.

“I’ll handle the Jiang family. I need you to cooperate with me, Commander Xie.” The Right Prime Minister looked at Commander Xie.

“No problem. Just tell me what you want me to do.”

“What about Cangzhou?” Zhao Zheng sounded a trifle hesitant. “Can we just kill Dai Cheng?”

“Killing Dai Cheng is a must. Hasn’t Yuwen Tong already sent someone to Cangzhou to keep things in check? We need to give him a hand,” observed Ling Zhaowu. “Speaking of killing Dai Cheng, you are all civil officials and I’m afraid your knives might not be sharp enough. Leave it to me.”

Ling Zhang was secretly amazed, but he didn’t show it on his face.

The Right Prime Minister and the others watched Ling Zhaowu casually talk about killing Dai Cheng, and then looked at Ling Zhang’s calm face, all of them rather shocked.

…

“Your Lordship, who’s that Ling Zhaowu guy exactly? This person doesn’t seem like a nobody at all. Not only were his remarks pungent, he was also emanating a blood-curdling air.”

After Ling Zhang and Ling Zhaowu left the residence, Zhao Zheng and the couple of others clustered around the Right Prime Minister and one of them expressed his opinion in a carry-over of fear.

The Right Prime Minister shook his head. “I don’t know that either. It seems that the Marshal indeed never does anything without a plan. Ling Zhang and his father have a force at their back which is unknown even to me. It is these two people who are the most powerful weapon Yuwen Tong deployed in this city.”

All the others were privately taken aback at these words.

The Right Prime Minister cast them a glance. “I think all of you heard that remark of Ling Zhaowu’s just now. If any of you once had connection with the Jiang family, I suggest you forget about it completely. Otherwise…”

His piercing eyes swept across them, lifting the hair on their scalp.

…

On their way back home, Ling Zhang looked at Ling Zhaowu. “Father, is there anything you’re not telling me?”

Ling Zhaowu’s conduct at the meeting had come as a great surprise to him. For an instant, he had even felt that the man sitting beside him were Yuwen Tong. The air about him had been so reminiscent of Yuwen Tong’s…

Ling Zhaowu said, “I’ll tell you some secrets when the time is ripe.”

Their eyes met. Ling Zhang gazed fixedly at him, eager to ask him whether or not those secrets had anything to do with the questions that had been baffling him all this time, but for some reason, he was unable to say those words that had sprung to the tip of his tongue. Subconsciously, he felt that that was too absurd.

After a few moments’ silence, Ling Zhang sat up straight and withdrew his eyes.

“Just now you told them to leave that to you. When do you plan to do it? Yue Qi had orders from Yuwen Tong to go to Cangzhou to deal with two things. Offering assistance to the General Zhongwu (AKA the General of Loyalty and Valor) is one of them. The other is to kill Dai Cheng.”

“It’s not me who’s going to do anything. Right now I have limited powers and I’m not capable of handling a task like that. It’s your grandfather who’s going to do it,” replied Ling Zhaowu.

“Grandfather?” Ling Zhang was astonished. “Grandfather is going to Cangzhou?”

“Your grandfather had Ji Chaofang go to Cangzhou. He set off on the journey when we left home this morning. The Millennium Pavilion probably has covertly planted some men in Cangzhou as well. Though not in big numbers, they’re all capable of handling important tasks. Dai Cheng won’t be able to survive.”

“Did you mean it when you said that Dai Cheng would choose to offer the rebels amnesty in exchange for their surrender if he stays alive?”

“If I were Dai Cheng, I would do that. After all, the capital city is of far greater importance than those rebels. Dai Cheng is the Zhou family’s henchman. If the Zhou family falls, he will fall as well. Do you think he’d be happy to see this situation?”

After a moment’s silence, Ling Zhang said, “I was being unthoughtful.”

Ling Zhaowu immediately responded, “It’s not your problem. You’ve done well enough.”

Ling Zhang’s lips clamped together. He wouldn’t have come to realize this if it weren’t for his father’s warning, because he’d placed too much confidence in the arrangements made by Yuwen Tong, believing that the General Zhongwu and Yue Qi would by no means fail in their task of killing Dai Cheng. Maybe it was not that Yuwen Tong hadn’t considered this, but that there had been nothing else he could do. After all, he had done everything within his power.

Ling Zhaowu could tell what Ling Zhang was thinking about. He wanted to console him but eventually forbore from doing so in the knowledge that sometimes it took some pressure to have people realize their inadequacies and how to improve themselves. His son had been doing pretty well, given that he had just reached adulthood but had to face a situation involving the most cunning and deceitful schemers in the world. He was not someone who had grown up in the most powerful political family in the capital city, and he didn’t have any erudite, visionary elders to offer him guidance; he was inexperienced and hadn’t really seen much of the world. He had come this far step by step with Yuwen Tong, and it was almost like the fate had forced him to where he was. Ling Zhaowu’s heart ached for his son. If possible, he would go back in time to prevent his son from taking the path which would lead him to where he currently was. He wanted his son to have an ordinary life, a family with a wife and a couple of children, but these were only his own thoughts which he couldn’t impose on his son, because after all, he owed his son too much, and presently all he could do was stand by his son’s side protecting him.

“Father?” Ling Zhang’s voice was tinged with surprise.

Ling Zhaowu looked out of the window and found that the horse-drawn carriage had come to a halt. They had reached the front gates of the Ling Mansion.

On entering the house, the two of them saw that Ji Yin was waiting for them. Ji Yin asked, “How did it go?”

Ling Zhang gave him a sketchy account of the meeting in the Right Prime Minister’s residence. “Fortunately my father reminded us in time. Grandfather, why didn’t you tell me when you sent Brother Chaofang to Cangzhou?”

Ji Yin flicked a glance at Ling Zhaowu and replied, “Well, I’m a forgetful old man now.”

“Grandfather, when it comes to a matter of such great importance, you must consult with me first!” said Ling Zhang.

Ji Yin promised, “Okay, okay. I promise it won’t happen again.”

After saying this, seeing Ling Zhang’s sulky face, Ji Yin hurriedly added, “Actually it was only this morning that I thought of that, and when I did, you and your father had already set off for the meeting. I was afraid that something unexpected might happen in Cangzhou if I didn’t take action immediately, so I had Ji Chaofang depart and then asked your father to tell you about it.”

Noticing that Ling Zhang’s face softened somewhat, he hastily changed the topic. “What do they plan to do with the Jiang family?”

“They’ll falsely accuse the Jiang family of colluding with the rebels in Cangzhou and have their residence besieged,” said Ling Zhang.

Ji Yin gave a nod. “Do you want me to deploy a formation around the Jiang family to trap them in there?”

Ling Zhang looked at him, finding it a tempting offer, but eventually he restrained himself from accepting it. “We made too much noise when we deployed the formation in this place, and some people have come to know about it. If the same thing happens to the Jiang family’s residence, people would easily connect it with me, and the move would have the opposite effect.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll use another formation, and I guarantee you nobody will see it through,” said Ji Yin.

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After saying this, Ji Yin started explaining it to Ling Zhang, whose eyes gradually brightened as he listened. “Are you certain nobody would find out about this formation, Grandfather?”

Ji Yin looked at him with a you-need-to-trust-your-grandfather kind of look in his eyes.

Ling Zhang dithered over it for a moment and then inclined his head. “Okay. Then I’ll put you to the trouble of paying a visit to the Jiang family after our men ring the residence tomorrow morning.”

The Jiang family was a trouble in any sense. Putting it under their complete control was the only way to make sure it wouldn’t get in their way.

…

Early the next morning, news of a serious event spread through the capital city.

Someone accused the Jiang family of conspiring with the leader of the insurrectionary army and submitted some evidence, and there was also testimony of a witness, which caused an uproar in the imperial court.

Soon the residence of the Jiang family was encircled. At first people of the Jiang family shouted that they were wronged. They tried to resist and came into conflict with the soldiers laying siege to the residence.

“Anybody who tries to break through the cordon shall be killed on the spot.”

Jiang Shennian nearly passed out with rage at this remark. “How–How dare you?!”

All members of the Jiang family gathered in the front yard, Jiang Yu and Jiang Chengfeng supporting Jiang Shennian, eyeing the soldiers outside angrily.

“This is outrageous! You people actually have the balls to frame us for a crime we didn’t commit. I dare you to hurt a hair on the head of any of us without an imperial edict!” railed Jiang Chengfeng.

…

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Yuwen Tong was galloping forward on his journey from the capital city to the borderland. He had barely had any rest. Every time his subordinates had suggested he get some sleep, he had merely stopped his horse and sat in repose with his eyes closed for a while before resuming the journey.

“Marshal, are you worried about Childe Ling?”

At the sound of Ling Zhang’s name, Yuwen Tong’s eyes instantly softened, his face still impassive. “Those matters in the capital city are not difficult to settle, but he has never faced that kind of situation before. The very thought of him staying there alone concerns me.”