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Chapter 271: Lu Yuan's Return, Unveiling the Truth
Chapter 271: Lu Yuan's Return, Unveiling the Truth
On a crisp autumn day, Lu Yuan finally returned home after several days away from the capital.
As soon as he reached the entrance, he saw the heavily guarded Jin Wu Guards.
Yu Zichuan, sitting atop the carriage, exclaimed, "Has the house been robbed?"
Lu Yuan dismounted with a solemn expression.
The Jin Wu Guards saluted him in unison, "Greetings, Marquis!"
Lu Yuan scanned the crowd and nodded, then strode into the mansion.
He first went to Meng Qianqian's courtyard.
Bai Yuwei was also there.
A hint of strangeness flashed in Lu Yuan's eyes as he glanced at Bai Yuwei from head to toe, "Why are you here?"
Bai Yuwei had just been humiliated by Meng Qianqian and was still fuming. She glared at Lu Yuan, "Is there a problem? You've been gone for days and didn't even bother to check on the family. What business do you have with me?"
Lu Yuan was completely baffled.
He turned to Wan Mumu, who was standing nearby with a broom, unable to utter a word.
Wan Mumu discreetly moved closer to him and whispered, "The Young Miss has been coming here daily."
Lu Yuan recalled that Bai Yuwei had been on the receiving end of Meng Qianqian's schemes more times than she had meals, and couldn't help but ask, "What's bothering you?"
Bai Yuwei: "..."
Bai Yuwei stormed off.
Not long after leaving the courtyard, Wan Mumu, breathless, caught up with her, "Young Miss, please wait! Miss Meng has a message for you!"
Bai Yuwei turned around, raising an eyebrow, "She regrets it?"
Wan Mumu forced a smile, "The Miss said that you should not forget to make up for the lessons you missed the other day."
Bai Yuwei: "..."
Bao Shu and Taner had gone to play hide-and-seek in the small garden.
Inside the room, only Meng Qianqian and Ban Xia remained.
Meng Qianqian was doing calculations.
"This doesn't add up."
She shook her head, moved the incorrect calculation aside, and started on a fresh sheet.
Ban Xia was about to pour Meng Qianqian a cup of tea when she looked up and saw Lu Yuan at the door.
A glimmer of delight flashed in her eyes, and she was about to bow to her father-in-law when Lu Yuan signaled her with his eyes. Understanding, she quietly retreated.
"Ban Xia, peel me an orange."
Meng Qianqian had been calculating all morning, and her frustration was mounting.
Lu Yuan had just returned from outside and washed his hands.
His slender, jade-like hands skillfully peeled the orange on the table, removing the pith, and presented her with clean, juicy segments.
She gladly ate them.
"Is it sweet?"
"Sweet..."
Meng Qianqian's heart skipped a beat. She quickly stood up and stared at him in a daze, "Marquis."
Lu Yuan held the orange and casually said, "After a few days apart, my skills in commanding you have improved."
Meng Qianqian muttered, "I thought it was Ban Xia."
She turned to Lu Yuan and brought him a stool, "Husband, sit!"
Lu Yuan coldly hummed, about to say, "Weren't you just calling me Marquis?" but then thought better of it and swallowed his words.
The two sat down.
Lu Yuan continued peeling the orange for her.
Meng Qianqian asked, "How is the mission going?"
Lu Yuan replied as he peeled the orange, "We caught Hai Zhu and just sent him to the Ministry of Justice."
Meng Qianqian sighed in relief, "As long as he's caught."
Although they knew Hai Zhu's disappearance was a ploy to lure Lu Yuan away, there was still a tiny chance that the Prime Minister might kill Hai Zhu to silence him.
Not returning empty-handed made this trip worthwhile.
Lu Yuan handed her another perfectly peeled orange, "What happened at home?"
Meng Qianqian took the orange, "Right after you left, my maternal grandfather received a letter from Prince Yongxin, and he took my mother and cousin to the Prince's fiefdom."
"Yua'an City?"
"Yes. That very night, people from the Xiang Manor, disguised as the Wang family's coachmen, abducted Bao Shu."
Meng Qianqian recounted the incident in detail, from Wang Furen's fall to her own speculations about the event.
"Will my maternal grandfather and the others be safe?"
Although her side had escaped danger, she was still concerned about the Prime Minister's potential actions against the King of Miaojiang.
Lu Yuan assured her, "The old man's skills are not so easily overcome."
The King of Miaojiang was a formidable martial artist, and very few could pose a threat to him. Only a large-scale military operation could overpower him, but that would inevitably alert the officials.
Tricking the King of Miaojiang out of the capital was the best they could do.
Meng Qianqian smiled at him, as if she had discovered something, "You seem to have a lot of faith in my maternal grandfather."
For once, Lu Yuan didn't argue, "After all, he is the King of Miaojiang."
Meng Qianqian asked, "Did you encounter any danger on your way to capture Hai Zhu?"
Lu Yuan paused, "You mean... Ji Li?"
Meng Qianqian was taken aback.
She had wanted to ask if the Prime Minister had made a move on him, but how did Ji Li come into the picture? Lu Yuan furrowed his brows in frustration, "You're right, I shouldn't have given him the banknote... The post station burned down."
The story began with Hai Zhu's disappearance.
Ji Li had divined that the Twelve Guards would appear again, so she and Si She searched everywhere, but they were always a step too late. Eventually, they returned to Fengshui Hutong.
There, they found a letter from Meng Qianqian informing them that Hai Zhu was a traitor.
Si She immediately set out to hunt down Hai Zhu.
And that's when they encountered Lu Yuan.
Lu Yuan wanted to arrest Hai Zhu and bring him to justice, but Si She insisted on taking Hai Zhu to the Chu Grand Marshal for punishment. The two nearly came to blows.
It was Ji Li who stopped Si She.
As a token of gratitude, Lu Yuan gave Ji Li some travel funds for her return to the capital.
Meng Qianqian asked, "How much did you give her?"
Lu Yuan: "One thousand taels."
Meng Qianqian gasped in shock, you two are truly fearless in your giving and asking!
"Let's get back to business."
Lu Yuan maintained a calm expression, refusing to admit that ignoring his wife's advice had led to a disadvantage, "Did Xun Qi tell you that my righteous father's adopted sons have all returned to the capital?"
Meng Qianqian recalled, "That's what he said, but the gambling game that night tested not the truth but rather unverifiable statements. So, he might have been lying, including his claim that the Prime Minister had four Shier Wei under his command."
Lu Yuan thought for a moment, "I'll find a way to verify the Shier Wei matter. My brothers are very likely to have come to the capital, or at least they're on their way here."
With the situation escalating to involve even the King of Miaojiang, Meng Qianqian felt that the Prime Minister would have to reveal all his cards to fulfill his ambitions.
Meng Qianqian asked curiously, "What kind of people are they?"
Lu Yuan replied, "Elder Seven is the best at attacking the heart; he's my righteous father's think tank."
Meng Qianqian was surprised, "Shouldn't you be the think tank? You're smarter than Xun Qi."
Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow, "Meng Xiaojiu, are you complimenting me?"
Meng Qianqian: "Is your focus a little off?"
Lu Yuan said coldly, "My righteous father and I are not of the same mind."
Meng Qianqian suddenly realized, "No wonder he's called Xun Qi, and you're not called Xun Si. The others aren't called Xun Wu, Xun Liu, or Xun Yi, right?"
Lu Yuan: "Mhm."
Meng Qianqian's mouth twitched.
So, you really are a rebellious one.
All the other adopted sons accepted the Prime Minister's given names, except for Lu Yuan, who insisted on keeping his own name, perhaps hoping that one day his family would hear this name and recognize him.
Lu Yuan was unwilling to abandon his past, and the Prime Minister couldn't completely tame this wolf king.
Despite the lack of trust, the Prime Minister had handed over the court to him.
The game between the two was too complex to explain in a few words, and only those involved truly understood the balance and confrontations.
Meng Qianqian listened quietly.
Lu Yuan continued, "Elder Six is skilled in mechanisms and hidden weapons. The mechanism used by Elder Seven to deal with you was probably given to him by Elder Six."
Meng Qianqian seemed to ponder, "That sounds like the expertise of the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion."
Lu Yuan nodded, "Elder Six is indeed an external disciple of the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion."
After a pause, he added, "He's from the same school as Lady Chu, but they don't know each other."
Meng Qianqian blurted out, "Lady Chu is a direct disciple of the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion. As an external disciple, he wouldn't even have the qualifications to meet her, so it's natural they don't know each other."
Lu Yuan handed her a few segments of peeled orange, "He's not an ordinary external disciple; he has some identity and background. If you're interested, I can have someone look into it."
"Sure."
Meng Qianqian readily agreed. Seeing Lu Yuan's meaningful gaze, she cleared her throat and said calmly, "Knowing the enemy and knowing yourself, you will win a hundred battles. I'm not doing this for myself, but to better deal with the Xiang Manor."
"What about Elder Five?"
She quickly steered the conversation back.
Lu Yuan withdrew his gaze, "Elder Five is a merchant, traveling across various countries, and has amassed a fortune for my righteous father."
Meng Qianqian frowned, "Traveling across countries isn't just about making money, right? It's also about gathering information and networking. What about Elder One?"
Lu Yuan said, "My eldest brother has a mysterious lifestyle. I've never met him and don't know him."
Meng Qianqian: "The Prime Minister has tigers and dragons by his side."
Lu Yuan added, "It's worth mentioning that among these adopted sons, except for Elder Seven, each one has unique skills and extraordinary martial arts. Elder Six and Elder Seven are always together. That night, Elder Six was probably hiding among Elder Seven's masked men. Once you entered the room, you would likely have fallen into Elder Six's mechanism trap."
Speaking of this, Lu Yuan couldn't help but feel relieved. Fortunately, it was her; if it had been someone else, they might not have seen through Elder Seven's intricate plan.
"By the way, there's something for you to see."
Meng Qianqian opened the wardrobe and took out a small golden box, placing it on the table.
"What's this?"
Lu Yuan asked.
Meng Qianqian said, "Zhao Zhao's little treasury."
Lu Yuan's expression froze. Is the little one so rich? Meng Qianqian continued, "The bigger treasury is at Tinglan Manor."
Lu Yuan's body trembled. She has a bigger one?! Meng Qianqian usually didn't touch the children's things, but this matter was no small issue. She had to let Lu Yuan know.
She first took out a thick stack of banknotes, followed by a key and a parchment map.
"I got this from Xun Yu's carriage."
Lu Yuan's mind flashed with an image of the little one stuffing banknotes into his treasury, and his mouth twitched.
Meng Qianqian's eyes lit up, "Ten thousand taels."
Lu Yuan: "..."
"Let's not talk about the banknotes for now. Take a look at this map." Meng Qianqian handed him the parchment map, "I asked Bao Shu what it was, and she said it was 'thoughts'."
"Thoughts?"
Lu Yuan pondered for a moment, then met Meng Qianqian's excited gaze, instantly understanding her implication, "You suspect—"
Meng Qianqian nodded seriously, "That's right. I suspect Xun Yu was talking about military funds!"
Lu Yuan took the parchment map, a smile tugging at his lips, "This is indeed interesting. My righteous father has secretly raised a private army behind the court's back, and his foolish son has revealed this huge secret."
A 3000-word chapter, leaving a mark.
(End of Chapter)
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