526: Chapter 383 526: Chapter 383 “Hmph, even if you come bearing a mission, there’s no way you can ruin my son.”
“Prime Minister, you are taking it too seriously.
This time I truly intend to become your daughter-in-law, to support you!”
“Stop kidding!
I know exactly what kind of people you are.
My son must carry on the lineage and have his own children; he cannot marry a woman who ‘cannot lay eggs.'”
“Prime Minister, how do you know I can’t ‘lay eggs’?
You’ve never tried, just like your son hasn’t!”
The two were at loggerheads, but both were determined to protect their own stance.
“Prime Minister, us women are not incapable of bearing children for you men.
If you are reluctant to let your son have me, I can be your woman instead.”
“Such despicable talk!
Even if I wanted a woman, I wouldn’t compete with my son for one.
Do you want to turn father and son against each other?
What a vicious woman’s heart!”
The more Liu Xu spoke, the angrier he became, feeling regret at that moment for having collaborated with these people.
It was like setting a fire that could consume oneself.
“Hehe, Prime Minister, why get so angry?
Haven’t you understood the fact that I’m presenting to you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said.
In other words, our plan has been in place for many years.
Of course, women have married into powerful and influential families, so why wouldn’t they have children?”
“What…?”
Liu Xu racked his brain to identify which wealthy family had women acting like foreigners.
But think as he might, he couldn’t come up with an answer.
Liu Xu was silent, preoccupied with his thoughts, never having expected such an outcome.
It was like dealing with a wolf, and one must be careful not to be bitten should the plan fail.
His worry felt all too late.
He thought again about the women around his own family, hoping they hadn’t been infiltrated by these people.
“Prime Minister Liu, don’t be nervous.
I am the first foreign woman to enter the Prime Minister’s Residence, but in the future, that might not be the case.”
“And what about the people around me?”
“Them?
That’s a secret for now.
After all, we are in a partnership, and there is no harm intended for any of you.”
“You…”
“Rest assured, Prime Minister Liu, this mission of ours isn’t targeting you, but if anyone from your side harbors disloyalty, don’t blame us for not being polite!”
“Are you threatening me, the Prime Minister?”
“How dare I!
You are my future father-in-law.
I hope you can give me a status of true legitimacy, that of a wedded wife.”
“Impossible, your status is inappropriate.
My son is to marry a princess, and your public identity doesn’t match up.”
“Oh, we can negotiate about that.
We all have a mission at heart.
It doesn’t bother me to be a concubine, but don’t you interfere with the affection between your son and me!”
“Hmph, you being close to my son right now is out of the question.
Let’s talk after he marries the princess.”
“It doesn’t matter to me.
I won’t be leaving anyway.
Some of the tasks do not require my involvement; I’ll just wait here for the news.”
“What mission?”
“Prime Minister, didn’t we agree to keep it a secret?
I will tell you when the time is ripe!”
“Hmph, what could you possibly do?
Just don’t drag us down with you.
Don’t engage in something that catches me off guard and then blame me for not cooperating.”
“Don’t worry, there shouldn’t be any problems.
You can be at ease, Prime Minister.”
“Let me give you a piece of advice, don’t be too active out there.
Tang Feiyang has already taken his men out to patrol.
Our people might turn a blind eye, but the General’s men are also out there, so weigh your actions carefully.”
“Haha, thanks for the warning.
The General has already informed me, but my people are aware, so there is no need for concern.”
The conversation between the two had reached this point, one displaying an incessant smile, and the other still showing anger, but their tones had become much more amicable.
Yingzi smiled triumphantly in her heart.
A man is merely a man, forever unable to escape a woman’s palm.
Even without using her body, she was determined to make them willingly give everything.
Liu Xu did not linger; even he, the old fox, felt that his counterpart was too formidable.
To hold a smile amid conversation, such composure; one wonders what kind of training this person has undergone.
Just like him, as the Prime Minister, he too couldn’t keep his emotions in check.
In front of this woman, he realized that loss of control could mean being bewitched by her.
No wonder his son was so thoroughly enchanted by her, and this was without her resorting to any drugs.
If this person were to employ such means, his entire family and clan would stand no chance.
Liu Xu harbored faint worries but having already made such a decision, he could no longer consider not cooperating; all he could do was watch how the situation would unfold.
After leaving, Liu Xu returned to the courtyard of his women to instruct them, including his legal wife, to refrain from appearing before that woman when unnecessary.
Nor should they provoke her.
After the Prime Minister left, Yingzi did not return to Liu Tao’s side either.
She went back to the shared courtyard, giving the appearance of dutifully staying within.
In reality, she had arranged to meet each person involved in the mission one by one after dark that day.
Of course, she wouldn’t leave through the main gates.
Ever since cooperating with the Prime Minister, his people had burrowed mouseholes and dogholes throughout the residence.
There were also tunnels beneath various courtyards leading directly outside.
The exits outside were not only on the main streets but potentially in the outskirts, beyond the Imperial City, or inside the home of some wealthy family.
Naturally, the interconnected locations were all manned by their own people, which is how they’d so smoothly excavated so many tunnels beneath the Imperial City.
They had also considered using these tunnels for a major terrorist act, such as capturing the King or assassinating members of the royal family.
However, after repeated mission failures, they dared not act rashly.
They could not let their last chance evaporate.
The daughters of each Noble Clan were their bargaining chips, awaiting the success of these girls’ missions.
They might wait a year, two years, but after so many years, they had grown used to waiting.
One or two years, even a decade, they could wait patiently.
The female leader of this mission, Yingzi, was unable to meet all the mission participants at once.
Liu Xu had reminded him that if they made big moves, it would alert the staff at the Minister Mansion.
Despite those scholars being rather useless, they could afford to overlook these individuals.
Nevertheless, one of the women relayed a message to her revealing she had successfully made contact with Tang Feiyang, the son of the Chief of Staff.
Those who came on the mission had already scrutinized the disciples of the elite families within the Imperial City.
Having previously witnessed Ye Tian’s prowess, Yingzi dared not let their people come close to these figures.
As for the sons of other high-ranking officials, they were all approachable, and securing the Chief of Staff’s son was akin to seizing the lifeblood of the Chief of Staff himself.
With Prime Minister Liu forming an alliance with the Chief of Staff, their tasks became easier to accomplish.
Causing even a small disturbance could give the incumbents a severe headache.
When Yingzi met with Du Jiaolan, she noticed that the beauty of the woman before her was no less than her own.
This realization bolstered her confidence somewhat; nevertheless, she still instructed her not to give herself away in front of Tang Feiyang.
“Leader, that man is wealthy and powerful.
Getting close to him might require spending a lot of money.
Even letting me pay for a date is somewhat burdensome,” said Du Jiaolan, who had no alternative as her mother could only help with planning but dating inevitably involved expenditures.
It might be buying gifts or other expenses, and she had to spend without showing any signs of inferiority.
Yingzi nodded in understanding, knowing that performing their duties would certainly incur costs.
This time, her leader had provided a significant sum of money for the mission, of course obtained from the pirates they had killed.
As for expenses on their side, having traveled across the sea for so long to get here, they had already spent a substantial amount on food and accommodations.
Especially since their country had a scarce population and resources, the future resources for their disruptive activities in this aspect entailed significant expenditures.
They were eyeing Ancient Xia Country’s vast resources entirely for the sake of domination and to strengthen their own nation.
With abundant mountains, rivers, and various minerals here, occupying any place could sustain their entire country’s consumption.
However, these were merely her aspirations, for many of them had come here decades ago and their efforts had not gone smoothly.
The Cultivation World was teeming with powerful entities, and the resources owned by the Cultivation World’s mighty figures and the Noble Clans were not so easily usurped.
They lacked the confidence to confront even a single major clan; otherwise, they would not be acting covertly, opting instead for outright slaughter.