Bai Changkong dashed towards the front courtyard with his son, while Lu Qian put down his seafood bowl and sprinted at full speed.
He stepped along the outer wall of the Bai family mansion and quickly arrived at the front gate, moving even faster than Bai Changkong and his sons.
Just in time, he caught the exciting scene involving that group of little eunuchs.
Standing outside the main gate of the Bai family mansion, Lu Qian watched those smug little eunuchs and felt completely thrown into chaos by the biting cold wind.
Which damn bastard came up with this reprehensible and utterly shameless plan?
Letting Bai Lu enter the palace and become one of this year’s supplementary Xiuniang (palace maidens)?
They were basically planning to utterly tear the Bai family’s face off, then toss it into a cesspit to rot and be used as fertilizer!
The process of becoming a supplementary Xiuniang in the Great Yin imperial court was strict and thorough.
The girls that could make it onto the list of reserve palace maids all came from ‘respectable families’ as ‘good daughters.’ Their reputations had to be flawless, without even a tiny flaw.
To put it bluntly, entering the palace as a Xiuniang required passing three layers of physical examinations, each overseen by the most experienced inner court maids.
How could Bai Lu possibly pass the physical exams?
And the imperial palace? Everyone in the world knew it was the greatest sieve ever; no secret could be kept there.
Once Bai Lu entered, half an hour later, her exam results would spread through Wuyin Alley and Kunpeng Alley; within three hours, through the entire capital; within half a month, throughout all the provinces, prefectures, and districts of Zuzhou—from officials down to civilians, from refugees to bandits—everyone would know this gossip.
Don’t forget, there was even General Le Wu, who was always looking to boost Bai Changkong’s fame, right?
With the Great Yin military’s intelligence network spreading gossip, was there any fear that Bai Lu’s bad reputation wouldn’t be known far and wide?
“Who dealt this dirty blow? This person deserves to be my best friend!” Lu Qian rubbed his chin vigorously, baring his big teeth in a grin.
Seeing Bai Changkong and the others stunned as if struck by lightning, Lu Qian felt an incredible sense of satisfaction.
Indeed, there really was a difference in skill and ability when it came to doing things.
Last night, he lit a fire, but besides causing Bai family some loss of trivial wealth, he hadn’t really managed to take them down.
The Bai family was secretly quite powerful, so Lu Qian ended up suffering a quiet defeat.
But when they made their move this time, look at this—they were forcing Bai Changkong’s whole family into a dead end!
It was hard to imagine how damaging it would be to Bai Changkong and the entire Bai family’s reputation if news of Bai Lu being pregnant before marriage got out.
“This is awkward. This is truly unsolvable,” Lu Qian muttered.
“The Bai family only has Bai Lu as a daughter. To protect the family’s name and Bai Changkong’s virtuous reputation, the only thing I can think of is that she ‘dies of sudden illness’!”
“You all want to get a good price selling off the daughter—given this situation, how would you choose?”
“Are you willing to sacrifice Bai Lu?”
Lu Qian scratched his head hard.
Facing this final, deadly move, he really couldn’t think of any way to counter it for a time.
Either sacrifice Bai Lu and let her die,
Or… or there was nothing else.
Lu Qian couldn’t think of any other solutions.
To avoid Bai family’s threats, Lu Qian could join the Eunuch faction, ruin his own reputation, and force Bai Changkong to cancel the marriage contract.
But Bai Changkong wouldn’t just refuse joining the Eunuch faction.
Even if he cut off his own privates and went to the palace to become sworn brothers with Yu Changle, once Bai Lu’s name was on the reserve Xiuniang list, she would have to obediently report to the palace.
Steady footsteps approached.
A towering and burly figure over ten feet tall pushed through the crowd of onlookers and stood behind Lu Qian.
Wearing a beast skin coat, most of his scalp shaved clean except for a palm-sized patch of hair right on his forehead tied into three braids, the burly man panted, then handed over a bundle wrapped in coarse cloth.
His clothing and the bloody, fierce tiger-head tattoo revealed his identity clearly—he was a barbarian from the northern Daizhou region, and from the wildest, most brutal tribe there.
“Brother Qian, here’s what you asked for. Hoo, it was a tough ride. You sent a message to me last night, and I set out before dawn.”
The big man laughed heartily, his broad, fierce face surprisingly simple and honest, almost childlike in innocence.
Lu Qian turned around and lightly patted the man’s arm, which was even thicker than a regular person’s thigh, bursting into laughter:
“Ahu, you’ve worked hard… Hehe, I’ve got a joke for you. Wanna hear it?”
Ahu’s eyes widened: “A joke? What kind? Don’t say anything too complicated—I won’t get it otherwise.”
Lu Qian raised his voice and laughed loudly:
“The joke is—Deputy Chief of the Guozi Jian, Master Bai Changkong’s precious granddaughter, is going into the palace to serve the Son of Heaven!”
Ahu stared blankly at Lu Qian, completely missing the humor in his words.
He blinked, then patted his smooth bald head hard with both hands, turned to look at the Bai family gate, and suddenly burst out laughing:
“Funny, funny, that’s hilarious!”
Lu Qian rolled his eyes.
Bai Changkong, Bai Lang, Bai Xi, and the others shivered slightly.
They saw Lu Qian and heard Ahu’s laughter but had no mood to deal with either of them.
Since Bai Changkong almost died at the hands of bandits years ago while studying abroad and was saved by Lu Qian’s grandfather, Lu Xiu, the Bai family’s greatest crisis had come.
Bai Changkong inhaled deeply, his twisted face calming back to normal.
Sweat evaporated instantly from his entire body.
Wearing a gentle smile like a spring breeze, he stepped up to the purple-robed little eunuch.
“This honored eunuch, may I ask your honorable name? I…”
The purple-robed little eunuch smiled with a fake smile and said softly:
“Oh my, Master Bai is too polite. You have me feeling a little nervous and unsettled... We rootless ‘eunuchs’ are usually not taken seriously by Master Bai. To suddenly become so polite, well, this…”
It was a bit like scolding a monk for being bald—this eunuch’s remark was hardly polite.
But Bai Changkong and his sophisticated intellectual friends often called themselves the ‘Eunuch faction,’ scolding and criticizing at any chance, even writing essays condemning the “Eunuch faction destroying the country.” So his suddenly warm smile towards the little eunuch was out of character.
Bai Changkong’s face twitched painfully.
His smile faded little by little, his gaze turning extremely cold and fixed on the purple-robed eunuch.
“That’s right. What is there to say between me and you eunuchs? Whatever schemes you use, bring them on!”
Bai Changkong’s voice was calm but firm:
“I, Bai Changkong, have lived a straightforward, upright life, wholeheartedly devoted to the country with no selfishness. No matter what dirty tricks you use, I take them as nothing more than a breeze to my face. Whatever plots and tricks you have, just use them!”
Turning around, Bai Changkong loudly announced to the growing crowd on the street:
“The other day at Jiuqu Garden, I pleaded with the Son of Heaven to value worthy ministers and keep traitors away. As long as Great Yin can be peaceful and prosperous, I care not for my own life!”
“But I didn’t expect, in the end, that I’d offend those traitorous eunuchs that harm the nation. Their retaliation has come so swiftly… Yu Changle, you want to drag my only granddaughter into the deep palace to be harmed. How can I allow it?”
“Better to shatter like jade than live as a broken tile!”
Bai Changkong stomped heavily, speaking those final eight words decisively.
People near and far cheered loudly, many clapping their hands encouragingly for Bai Changkong.
Such righteous words, mighty and unyielding, wealthy but not decadent—this was what “pillars of the nation should be.”
Lu Qian felt a chill in his chest—“Better to shatter like jade, than live as a broken tile.” Bai Changkong was already ready to sacrifice his own granddaughter?
This… was utterly insane!
That old man…
If possible, Lu Qian wanted to ask his grandfather how on earth he ended up swearing brotherhood with someone like Bai Changkong back then.
“Better to shatter like jade, than live as a broken tile”—used now, that was truly heartless and ruthless!
Lu Qian took the coarse bundle from Ahu’s hands and said quietly, “Let’s go. There’s nothing left to watch. Heh, I want to see just how he manages to shatter like jade rather than live as a broken tile. Heh. But this matter, it’s no longer our concern.”
Lu Qian and Ahu turned and left.
The purple-robed little eunuch blinked, smiling innocently at Bai Changkong:
“Master Bai, you’re mistaken. I’m not from Manager Yu’s people. I’m the godson of the Elder Yu!”
“Yu Sandou?” Bai Changkong exhaled cold air through his teeth.
He glared angrily at the eunuch, finally realizing this knife wasn’t stabbed by Yu Changle—it was a ruthless backstab from the trusted old eunuch by the Empress Dowager’s side.
But why was the Empress Dowager making trouble for him?
Uh, could it be because yesterday Gongyang Xu went to the palace and forcibly rescued Xiong Dingtian?
And Xiong Dingtian was arrested because he tried to attack Lu Qian?
And the mastermind behind the attack on Lu Qian was Zhu Yu and Bai Lu?
Gongyang Xu went to rescue Xiong Dingtian because the Xiong Martial School was a tool used by Zhu Yu to cultivate followers and henchmen, serving as an outer force for the Zhu Sheng family in the capital.
To get Xiong Dingtian out, Zhu Chong and Gongyang Xu used rather forceful means…
They threatened the Empress Dowager with the case of Consort Qi’s ghost, tightly controlling any follow-up investigations.
As for the Empress Dowager…
She was not someone who could be taken advantage of.
In court politics, she had always been at a disadvantage, unable to contend with the growing power of the civil officials and educators.
But the Empress Dowager’s authority remained terrifying.
More importantly, by her side was her brother, General Le Wu, as well as Jia Yu, a shameless schemer bubbling with bad intentions… Jia Yu never did anything good in all his life!
With Jia Yu’s rotten ideas and the Empress Dowager’s power, putting Bai Lu on the reserve Xiuniang list was nothing hard, nothing out of the ordinary.
Bai Changkong’s body swayed, his chest ached, and a metallic bitterness filled his throat.
After it all, it turned out his precious granddaughter and her lover had thrown a brick to the heavens, only to have it firmly strike Bai Changkong’s own head!
This was… very awkward!
“Prepare the horses. I’m going to visit a few old friends!”
Bai Changkong said slowly.
The purple-robed little eunuch smiled kindly:
“Oh my, my lord, no use going to see anyone now. Just wait, after the Lantern Festival, Miss Bai Lu will definitely enter the palace. We wouldn’t dare miss the appointed time!”
“You’re in charge of the ‘rituals’—to miss the appointed time is to break the ‘rites’. You can’t just say one thing and do another!”
(End of chapter)