After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

The fastest journey between Hezhou and Jiangzhou takes at least ten days, while the fastest journey from Jiangzhou to the capital takes six days.

Therefore, after Wang Qingyan's matter came to an end, Lu Jian also began to live a leisurely life. Because he had no one to rely on, many spies were infiltrated into Hezhou Prefecture.

"Master, a letter has arrived from Hezhou."

"Well, give it to me."

After receiving the letter and reading it, he burned it. Baili Jiangluo then continued to tease the crickets in the bowl, making them fight.

Knowing his habits, Yun Su wasn't in a hurry and quietly waited to the side.

Until one of them had its head bitten off, and the other was also seriously injured and lost a leg.

"Look, we won!"

"It's because you trained me well."

"What a pity, it's useless now~"

He casually poured the water from the cup next to him into the bowl, and watched as the cricket with the broken leg drowned after struggling for a few moments, finally floating on the shallow water, spitting out black liquid. Baili Jiangluo looked on with regret.

"Tsk tsk tsk, it can't even handle such a small amount of water."

"Although it is only a small part, it is an insurmountable gap for it."

"But it struggled quite a bit just now."

"It's all in vain." Wang Qingyan is now like this cricket with a broken leg; whether he dies sooner or later makes no difference.

"But if it had escaped from that pot, or if it had just been playing dead, it might have actually survived."

Crickets with broken legs do exist in the wild; after a period of rest, they can grow new legs.

“Then…” Yun Su put the lid on the pot and made her own choice, “to ensure that he can’t escape no matter what.”

After listening, Baili Jiangluo finally placed a jade token in Yun Su's hand with satisfaction, "Then I'll leave this matter to you."

......

The He family father and son spoke much more frankly.

"Why does Baili Jiangluo want Wang Qingyan to die in Hezhou?"

"Of course, we're afraid that after Wang Qingyan returns to the capital, he might say something he shouldn't."

He Congjun pondered for a moment and felt that things were not so simple. "These two are both cunning people. Wang Qingyan has been in power for many years. I'm afraid it won't be so easy for him."

"That's what I think too. Moreover, His Majesty must be planning to bring Wang Qingyan back to the capital for trial. Therefore, Hezhou must have already taken precautions."

Killing Wang Qingyan outright and letting him die amidst the cheers and applause of the people are two completely different things.

"So, isn't Baili Jiangluo afraid of making things worse by acting so hastily?"

"And wasn't his return to walking the path due to Wang Qingyan?"

He Congjun couldn't understand this. "Wang Qingyan isn't a great philanthropist. How could he not have thought of keeping a backup plan to restrain Baili Jiangluo?"

"Then what do you think Baili Jiangluo is thinking?" After He Shidao finished speaking, he looked at his son quietly. He wanted to see how much He Congjun had improved since going to the Censorate.

He Congjun pondered carefully, then stood up and paced for a moment. “Bai Li Jiangluo did this not out of desperation or to try to take Wang Qingyan down with him.”

"Secondly, it's not because he suddenly developed an indomitable spirit and was unafraid of Wang Qingyan's threats."

If he were truly unyielding, he wouldn't have cooperated with Wang Qingyan and obeyed his every word for so many years.

The more powerful a person is, the more they cherish their life, especially someone like Baili Jiangluo who is selfish, self-serving, and loves to show off; he will do everything he can to survive.

"But he really wanted Wang Qingyan to die in Hezhou."

"This shows that Wang Qingyan's backup plan against him is no longer effective."

Only in this way would Baili Jiangluo dare to let him die in Hezhou!

"So, what are your plans?" Baili Jiangluo's letter was spread out on the table, and it contained a request for them to assist in assassinating Wang Qingyan.

He Congjun said with a sharp look in his eyes, "My son thinks that not only should we not help him kill Wang Qingyan, we should also ensure that he returns to the capital alive."

"At the same time, we must be prepared for both possibilities."

"Oh, which two techniques?"

"First, have the Zheng and Cheng families keep a close eye on Jiangzhou, in case His Majesty sends others to investigate Jiangzhou. If necessary, they can be asked to push the Song family out."

"Secondly, since we are still allies with Baili Jiangluo, we cannot ignore his demands."

“But you just said we can’t kill Wang Qingyan.”

"That's the reality, but on the surface we still need to send someone to Hezhou."

"But it can't be one of our own people."

Wang Qingyan has enemies all over the world, and many people have lost their families because of him. As long as we can find a way to leak the news, or use Lu Jian to make a fuss, we don't have to worry about not having loyal and righteous people going to Hezhou to rid the world of this scourge.

"Hmm, not a bad idea," He Shidao nodded repeatedly, his eyes full of appreciation.

"But what if those brutes actually succeed? Wouldn't that just be playing into that old fox's hands?"

"Naturally, we sent someone to secretly inform His Majesty beforehand."

"In this way, not only will Baili Jiangluo be unable to find fault, but we will also gain merit from His Majesty's side. In the future, no matter who wins or loses, the He family will be invincible."

"Hahaha..." He Shidao couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Okay!! We'll do it your way!"

......

The He family's plan was shrewd, and Lu Jian's was naturally no less so.

In order to give Baili Ce as much time as possible, he tried almost every means to draw the attention of the court to Hezhou.

So much so that when Baili Ce arrived in Jiangzhou, he quickly met up with the light cavalry that the Empress Dowager had sent to Xue Fengshi.

The bad news is that this 800-strong light cavalry unit was not with Xue Fengshi.

"What do you mean?" Madam Sun asked the visitor.

General Yu Cheng, who was on the meeting, glanced at the carriage next to the teahouse. Although he was a little puzzled, he still answered Madam Sun's question, "Lord Xue... disappeared four days ago."

Madam Sun glanced instinctively to her right rear, and seeing that the carriage hadn't moved, she breathed a sigh of relief and continued to ask, "Where did it go missing?"

"Yilin County, Anqing County."

"Have you looked for it?"

Yu Cheng fell silent for a moment.

"So you mean you found it or you didn't?"

“…” Yu Cheng glanced at the carriage next to him again, but still didn’t say anything.

Madam Sun immediately became anxious, "You..."

"He means... someone is holding Xue Fengshi captive... and refusing to hand him over."

After getting off the carriage, Baili Ce no longer tried to hide his identity.

After staring into Baili Ce's eyes for a while, Yu Cheng adjusted his mindset, walked past Madam Sun, bowed, and asked directly for a solution, "What's the young lady's idea?"

"Kill them all."

Madam Sun, standing nearby, felt a chill run down her spine and quickly explained, "No, no, no, that's not what she meant..."

"I am..." He covered her mouth with his hand. Bai Li Ce had come here to cut the Gordian knot quickly.

Although Yu Cheng was afraid, he wasn't surprised. "What happens after we kill them all?"

"In the name of the imperial court, land was distributed to the poor, and rents were reduced."

"it is good"

So calm?

"You... already knew about my situation?" Bai Lize thought he had conveyed his "suspicion and approachability" very well.

"..." Looking at Yu Cheng, whose expression not only remained unchanged but was also terrifying, I couldn't help but shudder, and goosebumps rose on my skin.

"To be honest, I lied to you two just now."

"Hmm?" Madam Sun asked in surprise.

"Since Lord Xue left the capital, we have been acting separately. I was the one who received and replied to the letter His Majesty sent earlier."

"Lord Xue... has actually been missing for a long time."

"..." Bai Li Ce tilted his head in genuine fear.

This means that we don't even know if Xue Fengshi is alive or dead.

Seeing that Baili Ce's condition was even more abnormal than before, Yu Cheng quickly added, "However, Lord Xue's last appearance was indeed in Anqing County."

"How long?"

Ten Days

If you're lucky, it should have already gone bad.

"..." In the unusually quiet atmosphere, Madam Sun broke out in a cold sweat.

Fortunately, after a short while, Baili Ce stiffly took a few steps back.

"In Jiangzhou, which family is the most troublesome...?"

"The Shi family of Yilin".

"The Shi family, who are related to both the Cheng and Zheng families by marriage?"

"Yes"

"Let's start with this one."